Setting

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

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Mrs Karen Tucker Headteacher Canvey Junior School Long Road Canvey Island Essex SS8 0JG

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No formal designation inspection of Canvey Junior School

Following my visit to your school on 27 February 2019, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings.

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No formal designation inspection of Canvey Junior School

This inspection was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for inspecting schools with no formal designation. The inspection was carried out because Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector was concerned about outcomes for pupils at the school.

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Evidence

I scrutinised the single central record and other documents relating to safeguarding and child protection arrangements. I also reviewed a range of documents and policies, including behaviour and attendance information, leaders’ self-evaluation of the school’s work and improvement plans. I met with you, the deputy headteacher, three members of the governing body and a representative of the local authority. I made visits with the deputy headteacher to observe learning and scrutinise pupils’ work in Year 4 to Year 6. The deputy headteacher and I also scrutinised a sample of Year 3 pupils’ books from a range of subjects. I held a formal meeting with a group of pupils and spoke to pupils when observing learning and behaviour. I observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at less formal times, such as lunchtime. I considered the 12 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online parent questionnaire, and spoke to parents and carers before the start of the school day.

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Context

Canvey Junior School is an average-sized primary school. The school educates pupils from Year 3 to Year 6. The very large majority of pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is above average. The proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is above average. In particular, the proportion of pupils with SEND who have an education, health and care plan is well above average. The school manages a specialist base that is funded by the local authority to provide short-term support for pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. The school works in partnership with other schools on the island through the Canvey Schools Partnership. The school was judged to be outstanding at its most recent section 5 inspection in September 2010.

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Main Findings

Through their skilful leadership, senior leaders have ensured that the school continues to provide a high quality of education for all pupils. You set the highest expectations of how pupils should behave and what they can achieve. Pupils and teachers respond exceptionally well to these high expectations. Pupils’ behaviour is excellent. Your thorough improvement plans are underpinned by actions based upon your accurate self-evaluation. You check regularly that teachers implement your actions and that they make a difference. This results in consistently effective teaching, learning and assessment that ensure that pupils make strong and sustained progress in the full range of subjects over their time at the school.

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Main Findings

In 2017, there was a decline in achievement at the end of key stage 2. This was particularly true in reading and mathematics, and pupils made below-average progress. You quickly took action to improve pupils’ outcomes by improving further the quality of teaching, learning and assessment in reading and mathematics.

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Main Findings

Leaders have focused on improving outcomes in reading by strengthening pupils’ skills in inference and deduction. Teachers and other adults in school plan activities and use skilful questioning to do this effectively. For example, the most able pupils can explain how an author has used metaphors to illustrate a character’s feelings. Lower-attaining readers can give examples to justify their views of what they read. This has had a positive impact and improved pupils’ progress in 2018. Pupils read texts that are well matched to their current attainment with appropriate understanding. Teachers also take the opportunity to expose pupils to a wide range of vocabulary. This aids pupils’ ability to read with understanding and also supports their writing. Pupils say that they enjoy reading and do so regularly in school and at home. This is reflected in pupils’ reading records. Pupils of all abilities are making

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Main Findings

substantial progress in their reading skills from when they joined the school.

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Main Findings

Teachers are very secure in their subject knowledge of mathematics and are confident about trying different approaches in their teaching. They are very effective in helping pupils to develop their reasoning skills. They provide regular opportunities for pupils to explain their reasoning, and use questioning skilfully to check on pupils’ mathematical understanding. Teachers carefully plan sequences of learning so that pupils gain confidence in the basic knowledge they need as a strong foundation for learning. Consequently, pupils are confident in using and applying mathematics knowledge in different contexts. This ensures that all pupils make strong progress in mathematics over time.

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Main Findings

Pupils learn to write for a variety of purposes and use these skills when writing in subjects other than English. Teachers ensure that pupils learn the technical aspects of grammar and punctuation and expect pupils to use this knowledge in all pieces of written work. Teachers implement the school’s assessment policy consistently to provide insightful guidance to pupils to help improve the quality of written work by developing structure, using vocabulary for effect or improving spelling and grammar. This means that pupils have many opportunities to practise and develop their writing skills. As a result, pupils achieve well in writing. They make progress that is consistently above average by the end of key stage 2.

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Main Findings

You have established a culture of the highest expectations and aspirations for all. Teachers use assessment astutely to match tasks well to pupils’ ability across all subjects. However, neither teachers nor pupils set limits on what they think can be achieved. Pupils say that the level of challenge is ‘just right’ and know that making mistakes is part of learning. In my visits to lessons, I saw teachers challenge the most able Year 6 pupils to find the most efficient methods to solve mathematical problems using their knowledge of fractions. I also saw teachers make use of their ongoing assessment to identify pupils in Year 4 who needed more time to grasp formal methods of multiplication. Pupils enjoy challenging and interesting learning in a range of subjects, including art and design, geography, history, French and science. Teachers consistently provide pupils with feedback in line with your expectations. Pupils know what to do to improve their work and capitalise on

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Main Findings

opportunities to act upon their teachers’ precise guidance. As a result, pupils make sustained progress. Teachers know individual pupils’ barriers to learning well. They provide the help necessary to overcome them. This results in all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, making the same strong progress.

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Main Findings

Leaders and governors ensure that additional funding is used efficiently and has a positive impact on pupils’ educational experience. The pupil premium and the funding for pupils with SEND are used well. Leaders and governors check that actions have a positive impact on pupils’ achievement and are helping pupils to make strong progress. Governors ensure that this funding also ensures that pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils have full access to the curriculum and other activities offered by the school, contributing to pupils’ academic and personal development. The sport premium grant is used very effectively. Pupils appreciate the wide range of physical activities, sports clubs and competitive sport that are offered because of leaders’ carefully considered use of this funding.

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Main Findings

Leaders and governors have set very high expectations regarding behaviour. Pupils behave exceptionally well and this contributes to them achieving well. They are polite and proud of their appearance, their achievements and their school. Pupils say that their learning is very rarely disturbed by the behaviour of others. The school’s behaviour records confirm this. In lessons, pupils collaborate well and help one another. Pupils’ behaviour at other times is similarly supportive and amicable. At lunchtime, for example, pupils engaged in sensible play, organising their own teams for ball games. Through your well-structured curriculum and programme of assemblies, pupils learn about, and show respect for, the beliefs and cultures of others. As one pupil said, ‘People are different, but everyone should be treated equally.’ Because you have been successful in establishing this culture, incidents of the use of racist, homophobic or derogatory language are rare.

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Main Findings

While pupils behave very well when in school, the attendance of some is not good enough. You have, in collaboration with other local headteachers, established ‘attendance ambassadors’ to follow up pupils’ absence. You make full use of available resources to support families in times of difficulty who may be struggling to achieve regular attendance, for example by enabling their children to access before- and after-school clubs. You also celebrate high attendance and, through your regular newsletters, you inform parents of the impact low attendance has on learning. However, you are not afraid to challenge parents who do not ensure that their children attend regularly. Your actions are having an impact on improving attendance, and the proportion of pupils who are frequent non-attenders is below the national average.

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Main Findings

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. You ensure that keeping pupils safe from harm is given the highest priority by all those working in the school. Leaders and governors carry out thoroughly all the checks required to ensure that adults are suitable to work in school. They ensure that the record of these checks is accurately maintained. You ensure that the person responsible for maintaining the single central record receives training to keep her knowledge up to date. She has a detailed understanding of what checks are required.

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Main Findings

You ensure that all staff receive appropriate and regular training so that they can recognise the signs that pupils are at risk of harm, including the risks of radicalisation and extremism. As a result, adults know how and when to pass on concerns and have the confidence to do so. In your role as designated safeguarding leader, you ensure that, when necessary, you swiftly pass concerns to external agencies. You are diligent in ensuring that pupils and their families receive promptly any help that they need.

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Main Findings

Pupils are very clear that they feel safe and well cared for and their parents agree. Pupils understand the difference between bullying and unpleasant, unacceptable behaviour. Those pupils that I spoke to during the inspection were adamant that bullying was very rare and that teachers deal with problems quickly when they arise. Similarly, parents stated that there were very few cases of bullying and were confident that teachers act effectively to deal with incidents when they do occur. You and the governors ensure that pupils know how to stay safe online and when using mobile technology. Pupils learn about e-safety in their computing lessons and memorable assemblies from visiting speakers. You also ensure that parents are kept informed about staying safe online through the fortnightly school newsletter and information on the school website. Consequently, pupils have an excellent understanding of how to stay safe when working online.

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External support

Leaders and governors make effective use of an external consultant, a local authority school effectiveness officer and peer reviews from other headteachers to validate their judgements about the school’s effectiveness. You make use of work with other schools, including other outstanding schools, to check on the accuracy of teachers’ assessments and share ideas about effective practice. You have also made use of an external consultant to provide professional development in mathematics and participated in a reading project run by the local authority to improve and sustain the high quality of teaching, learning and assessment.

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Priorities for further improvement

 Improve attendance so that it is at least in line with the national average.

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Priorities for further improvement

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Essex. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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