Broad Heath Community Primary School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Mrs Jane Frankish Headteacher Broad Heath Community Primary School Hanford Close Coventry West Midlands CV6 5DP

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 9 October 2018 with Susan Hickerton, Ofsted Inspector, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The visit was the first short inspection carried out since the school was judged to be good in June 2014.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Based on the evidence gathered during this short inspection, I am of the opinion that the school has demonstrated strong practice and marked improvement in specific areas. This may indicate that the school has improved significantly overall. Therefore, I am recommending that the school’s next inspection be a section 5 inspection.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

The leadership of the school is strong. You are a dedicated, inspirational and energetic leader. You are well supported by an able leadership team and effective governing body. Together, you are relentless in your pursuit of high-quality teaching and support for all pupils to ensure that they get the very best educational start in life. You have very high expectations. There is no room for excuses or complacency and the school continues to move forward at a pace. Barriers and challenges, occurring as a result of some pupils’ backgrounds or circumstances are tackled and overcome. As a result, pupils achieve well from their respective starting points.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

You have created a happy, harmonious and very community-based school. Pupils from a wide range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds work and play together effortlessly. This is because strong values of respect and tolerance are deeply embedded in the school’s ethos. Staff are proud to work at the school and feel well supported. Close working and collaboration is fostered with parents. For example, termly coffee mornings provide updates and information about school life, together with an opportunity to raise questions or concerns. Home–school communication books are also completed by all class teachers to ensure regular ongoing dialogue about pupils’ well-being and progress. Parents describe the school as ‘excellent’ and ‘amazing’. As one parent put it, ‘Staff expect a lot from the kids, but that’s good. Our kids do well at this school.’

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

The curriculum is strongly enriched to provide fun and unique learning experiences for all pupils. Breakfast and a wide range of after-school clubs make a valuable contribution to pupils’ social and personal development. Pupils learn Spanish in key stage 2 and can converse confidently by the end of Year 6. This is aided by a visit to Madrid in upper key stage 2. School finance is used wisely but creatively to support the curriculum. Learning environments and displays around school are bright and vibrant and highlight much of the high standard of pupils’ work. Remarkable and high-quality equipment is purchased to add to pupils’ experience of school. For example, pupils are very excited about the adventure playground, golf area, swimming pool and radio station. This high level of going above and beyond the standard curriculum is the reason that pupils ‘love school’.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

Since the previous inspection, the school has increased in size from 540 pupils to 671. Leaders and managers have managed the school’s growth well but the increased numbers have brought with them some challenges. For example, not all pupils join the school in the early years. Many have joined part way through key stage 2 from other schools or abroad. This has made it difficult to track or build on prior learning. Nevertheless, strong assessment systems, good teaching and regular support have ensured that pupils make progress.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

At the previous inspection, you were asked to raise the proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels in reading throughout the school. You have successfully achieved this. There is a rising three-year trend at the end of key stage 2. Provisional results for 2018 show that numbers are now in line with the national average. You were also asked to improve teaching further, which was judged to be good at the time. This has been addressed by working in close collaboration with other schools to share good practice, monitoring teaching closely and providing training, support and mentoring for staff. As a result, pupils make good progress from their starting points and almost all reach the levels expected for their age. However, further work is needed to challenge the most able pupils in reading and extend pupils’ reasoning skills in mathematics in key stage 2.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. Together, you have established a strong safeguarding culture within the school because you and your staff care deeply about every individual. Recruitment checks on the suitability of staff working in the school are robust. Frequent training updates, reflecting the latest guidance, are shared regularly with staff. This ensures that they know precisely what to do if they are concerned about a pupil. Systematic record-keeping, which is detailed and thorough, is in place. Swift and appropriate action is taken when incidents are reported, including referral to social services when necessary. Follow up to these referrals is rigorous, as demonstrated by your determination to ‘not let things go’.

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Short inspection of Broad Heath Community Primary School

Pupils say that they feel safe in school and are confident that staff will help them if they have any worries or problems. Visitors and the school’s curriculum provide valuable opportunities for pupils to learn how to keep themselves safe. They have a good knowledge of ‘stranger danger’, road safety and staying safe online. Pupils know that inappropriate content cannot be accessed on school computers because of blocks in place. They are also adamant that they would report anything which made them feel uncomfortable when using the internet. Parents agree that their children are safe, happy and well looked after at the school.

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Inspection findings

 My first line of enquiry during the inspection was to see how well the most able pupils are challenged in reading in key stage 2 as there has been a slight decline in their progress rates over time. From the outset of my visit, it was clear that you place a high priority on reading. All classrooms have quality texts in well- organised reading areas. The well-stocked library and Hogwarts’ reading room are used frequently by pupils. Staff carefully monitor pupils’ reading journals to ensure they read widely and often. Life-size, three-dimensional book characters, such Kipper and The Gruffalo, add life to the school corridors and inspire young readers.  Leaders have recently sifted and sorted reading material, to weed out unattractive and unstimulating books. Books have been banded to match pupils’ levels of reading ability. While this is still in the early stages of development, the most able pupils are not encouraged to read material which is above their current

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Inspection findings

year group. For example, Year 5 pupils do not access Year 6 books. This slows their progress. However, leaders have revised teachers’ planning for guided reading sessions to incorporate deeper questioning and probing of pupils’ comprehension. This is helping to challenge the most able readers more effectively. Research projects also encourage pupils to locate information independently and present their findings to the teacher and the class. For example, following a topic on Afghanistan, pupils were urged to research the question, ‘Is there a chance of peace in this country?’ Leaders are therefore proactively taking steps to improve the progress of higher-ability pupils.  Second, I looked at how leaders track progress across the school in writing and mathematics and the quality of teaching in these subjects in key stage 2. This is because progress fluctuates in these subjects. A robust and thorough assessment

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Inspection findings

system is in place. It is well organised and detailed. All classes, cohorts, groups and subjects are tracked. Checks made of pupils’ work show that teachers’ assessments are accurate and that pupils are making good progress. We discussed the reasons for fluctuations in progress rates in some classes and at the end of key stage 2. There is good evidence to support the reasons given. These include mobility of pupils, including inward mobility of pupils who speak English as an additional language, and the appointment of newly qualified teachers due to the expansion of the school. However, effective support is provided for both pupils and staff to ensure that outcomes remain favourable.  There are many strengths in how writing is taught. Drama and speaking and listening opportunities allow pupils to develop their communication and language skills as a precursor to writing. Pupils have a secure grasp of grammar,

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Inspection findings

punctuation and spelling and apply the rules taught to their writing in different curriculum subjects. They also have neat and cursive handwriting and present their work extremely neatly. A good range of genres are covered so that pupils can write for real and different purposes; for example, by writing to an author. Pupils understand the importance of drafting, editing and improving their writing to ensure that the final piece is of a high standard. Very high expectations are set for disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities. Teachers encourage them to use complex sentences and vocabulary in their writing. As a result, these pupils achieve well. Overall, attainment at greater depth is rising year on year at the end of key stage 2.  Mathematics is also taught well. Clear instructions and explanations by adults ensure that pupils know precisely what to do. Teachers model how to set work

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Inspection findings

out and, together with support staff, provide ongoing effective support to groups and individuals during lessons. Challenging questions are posed to check pupils’ thinking and understanding. Counters and resources are used, where appropriate, to aid their visualisation skills, for example to reinforce place value. Books are well presented and teachers insist that the correct mathematical vocabulary is used to ensure precision. There is increasing evidence in pupils’ books of problem-solving activities. This enables them to apply and consolidate their mathematical concepts and knowledge. However, there is limited evidence of pupils using their reasoning skills to explain their answers or detail the methods used. This has a direct impact on their ability to work at greater depth.  My final line of enquiry was to look at the school’s work to support pupils who are disadvantaged. Work to improve outcomes for these pupils has a high profile at

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Inspection findings

the school and has been extremely successful. Leaders and teachers are sharply focused on the progress that disadvantaged pupils make. They ensure that funding is used well to provide tailored support to groups and individuals. This is particularly successful in mathematics where Year 6 pupils receive one-to-one tutor tuition online. Headphones allow pupils to talk directly to the tutor about work they are doing. The tutor marks the work with the pupil so they have immediate, effective, individual support. Other interventions, for example book club, also have a positive impact on pupils’ achievement. Case studies show that some pupils have made an impressive 14-month gain in their reading age in only a four-month period of support. Nurture provision strongly supports pupils’ emotional and social well-being. The strong inclusive ethos of the school ensures that disadvantaged pupils have the same opportunities to engage in all aspects of

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Inspection findings

school life. As a result, disadvantaged pupils do well and consistently achieve standards that are equal to, or above those of, other pupils nationally.

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Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the school

 teaching challenges the most able readers, and pupils’ mathematical reasoning skills are further developed in key stage 2. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Coventry. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection, inspectors met with you, members of your leadership team and governing body, and spoke to a representative from the local authority. They discussed the work of the school, including the processes and procedures in place for safeguarding. Teaching in all key stage 2 classes was observed. Pupils were asked about their learning and work was checked in their books. Inspectors talked to pupils at breakfast club and lunchtime to gather their views about school and to determine if they felt safe and the typicality of behaviour.

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Information about the inspection

Inspectors looked at a range of school documents, including the school’s own information about pupils’ achievement. The school’s evaluation of its work was reviewed, together with different action plans. Responses from 31 parents to Parent View, and the free-text responses from four parents were taken into account. Over 40 staff and pupil views, submitted through Ofsted surveys, were also considered.

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