Chalgrove Primary School

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

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Mrs Jennifer Gaffney Headteacher Chalgrove Primary School Chalgrove Gardens Finchley London N3 3PL

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Short inspection of Chalgrove Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 5 March 2019, 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 November 2014.

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Short inspection of Chalgrove 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 Chalgrove Primary School

It is clear that the ambitious vision you have for all your pupils extends right across the school community. Your work with parents and carers, pupils, staff and governors has secured a sustained rise in academic standards since the previous inspection. This is because leaders know exactly what they need to do next to help all pupils achieve their potential. When responding to the Parent View survey, many parents expressed their respect for your leadership and dedication. They can see the very real difference it has made to their children.

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Short inspection of Chalgrove Primary School

Governors provide highly effective support and challenge; working together, the school has gone from strength to strength. Together you have successfully addressed the areas for improvement identified at the time of the previous inspection. Pupils across all year groups are happy, settled and engaged; their learning is rapid. They are inquisitive and interested in their lessons as the rich and well-structured curriculum meets their needs. Safeguarding is effective.

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Short inspection of Chalgrove Primary School

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. Records are detailed and of high quality. Staff have a secure knowledge and understanding of current safeguarding guidance and procedures. They are aware of local safeguarding issues that might affect the children and how best to support them in overcoming these. Pre-employment checks on adults working at the school meet statutory requirements. Staff training is up to date and their safeguarding practice is effective. Governors carry out appropriate checks on safeguarding during the school year. The curriculum is well planned to support pupils in understanding how to stay safe. Pupils say that they feel safe in school and trust all adults there to help them.

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Inspection findings

 The first key line of enquiry focused on what the school has done to improve outcomes in writing for boys by the end of Year 6. This was because the school had identified a gap in outcomes between boys and girls in 2018.  The systematic approach the school has taken to supporting boys’ writing was clear in every class visited. There is a consistent approach across the school which has been designed to motivate and engage boys to write effectively and at length. This begins with the selection of high-quality texts that pupils say they really enjoy. They talk about the plot, characterisation and themes with maturity and real understanding, which they then transfer into their writing.  The planned opportunities pupils are given to write for a real purpose also lead to high-quality outcomes in all year groups. Pupils write fluently to local dignitaries or to canvas for additional funding with a confidence and awareness of audience

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Inspection findings

that often belie their age. They enjoy the responses that they receive and say it encourages them to write more.  Teachers ensure that their expectations for each piece of writing are explicit. They give clear instructions and examples for pupils to follow. Pupils are adept at editing and improving their work and support each other in peer review. These strategies have led to high-quality outcomes across the school.  The second line of enquiry focused on what the school has done to improve the teaching of literacy in early years. This was identified as an area for improvement at the time of the previous inspection.  The early years is now full of opportunities for children to write. Resourcing is enticing and challenging. The indoor and outdoor areas are set up to reflect the children’s interests and capture their writing. Children routinely share their views on the topics on which they wish to focus in their learning. They feel listened to

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Inspection findings

and this is reflected in the quality of the writing they produce.  The high-quality teaching of phonics helps the pupils to produce pieces of writing that are increasingly complex. This, coupled with a systematic focus on subject- specific and technical vocabulary, mean that pupils are making rapid progress.  Adults provide good role models for spoken language. There is an emphasis on talk before writing that supports the pupils in making the right grammatical choices, and this can be seen in their work.  The third line of enquiry focused on what the school has been doing to develop leaders at all levels. This was an area that the school identified it had been working on as a result of some recent staff changes.  Leadership at all levels is very strong. As with English and early years, there is a systematic focus to school improvement that is based in accurate self-assessment and meticulously planned. This means that even though some leaders have been

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Inspection findings

in post for a relatively short time, they have already had a significant impact on standards.  Leaders hold others to account successfully. They monitor progress and attainment assiduously and intervene when necessary. They have communicated their ‘non-negotiables’ to all staff and the consistency that they bring shows through in the pupils’ outcomes. They are now ready to support others in their leadership development.

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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

 they use the expertise available in the current leadership to continue to develop leaders with less experience, so that standards continue to improve across all curriculum areas.

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Next steps for the school

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

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Information about the inspection

I held meetings with you, and senior and middle leaders. I met with three governors, including the chair. I also spoke with a representative of the local authority. I met with pupils from key stages 1 and 2. I visited classrooms across the school with senior leaders to gather evidence about the key lines of enquiry and to look at pupils’ work. We considered documents, including the school’s self- evaluation and improvement plan, information about pupils’ progress, and documents relating to safeguarding. I also looked at information on the school’s website. We analysed the confidential responses to the online inspection surveys from 18 members of staff and 14 pupils. I also took into account the views of 69 parents who completed Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, and 53 free-text responses. I also met with one parent.

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