Durley Church of England Controlled Primary School

Durley Church of England Controlled Primary School Durley Brook Road, Durley, Southampton, Hampshire SO32 2AR

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The headteacher provides excellent leadership. She leads a long-standing, successful drive to provide the best possible education for all pupils, whatever their backgrounds or needs.  Senior leaders place the well-being of pupils at the heart of this school’s work.  All staff and governors share the same ambition for the school, leaving no room for complacency.  Teaching is highly effective. Teachers and teaching assistants have strong subject knowledge and consistently high expectations.  Most pupils currently in the school are making excellent progress from their starting points.  Thorough training and professional development equip all staff with the knowledge and skills to do their jobs to a high standard.  Pupils love coming to school and have excellent attitudes to learning. They work hard, join in enthusiastically and always try their best.  Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. This is equally true in lessons, on the playground or when

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

they move around the school.  Standards of attainment are high. Over the past three years, pupils’ scores in reading and mathematics in the key stage 2 tests have been in the top 10% nationally.  Pupils achieve well in phonics. In recent years, no pupil has started key stage 2 without the phonics knowledge needed to read fluently.  Children get off to an excellent start in the early years. Staff know their needs in detail and enable them to make strong progress, whatever their starting point.  Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school. They speak about it as a warmly inclusive community.  The curriculum enables pupils to achieve well in a wide range of subjects. The same high- quality work seen in pupils’ English and mathematics books is also seen across a range of subjects.  Aspirational and ambitious leaders constantly seek to increase the proportions of pupils achieving the higher standards by the end of

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve pupils’ progress in English and mathematics and ensure that more pupils consistently achieve the higher standards by the end of Year 6.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

 The headteacher shows great determination and tenacity in leading a sustained drive to provide the best possible education for Durley pupils. All staff and governors fully support her in this ambition and they form a united, resolute team. Their resolve leaves no room for complacency.  Senior leaders have a clear understanding of the strengths of the school as well as those areas targeted for further development. Their plans are sharply focused and enable leaders to be held to account really well.  Leaders make excellent use of information about pupils’ progress. They ensure that as soon as any pupil starts to fall behind, this is quickly noticed and remedial action put in place.  A comprehensive programme of training and professional development plays a vital role in equipping staff to be highly effective in their various roles. Senior leaders constantly seek out opportunities to work with schools in the local area and look for

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

ways of improving the school further.  Teaching assistants, including higher-level teaching assistants, receive similar high- quality training. Several now aspire to be teachers and are working towards this goal.  Middle leaders have a strong grip on their areas of responsibility. They carry out a range of different activities to evaluate the quality of teaching in their subject, using this to assess how well pupils are achieving. During the inspection, the leaders of mathematics and English demonstrated their ability to evaluate pupils’ progress accurately and recognise areas where progress is not as strong as it could be. Middle leaders provide an effective role model and source of expertise for other staff.  Morale among staff is very high. All who expressed a view feel proud to be part of the school, confident in the leadership and enjoy working in the school. One said, ‘Staff work well as a team, supporting each other … and senior leaders always have time to

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

offer support when required.’  Parents are fulsome in their praise of the school and speak highly of its warm, family atmosphere. They reserve special praise for the leadership of the headteacher. One parent said: ‘Durley School provides our children with an exceptional learning and pastoral environment, which has helped them to flourish, both academically and socially. The school has a fantastic ethos, with inclusivity for every child, and the children are encouraged to adopt the core values.’  The leadership of the provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is successful. Parents are closely involved right from the start in the process for identifying and recognising potential special needs in pupils. Leaders systematically seek the advice of external agencies and experts to confirm the school’s assessments before placing a pupil on the special needs register. Staff know these

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

pupils in great depth and provide excellent support to meet their various needs.  The additional pupil premium funding is put to effective use. Leaders fully understand the needs of the few disadvantaged pupils. They play a full part in the life of the school, attending a wide range of clubs and activities. Where needed, they also receive additional support so that they make the same strong academic progress as others in the school.  The curriculum is a real strength of the school, with leaders seeing it as a means to provide pupils with ‘opportunities that they would not normally have’. The curriculum extends far beyond English and mathematics and is enriched by visits to exciting places far and near. For example, older pupils enjoy a residential visit to the Brecon Beacons. There are many trips to local places of interest.  Pupils’ work in science, history, geography, religious education, personal, social and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

emotional development, and art is all of a very high quality. Pupils acquire knowledge in a wide range of subjects.  A large proportion of pupils learn a musical instrument and perform at school events. This brings life and purpose to the learning. Many pupils sit external exams in their instrument and leave school having achieved a high standard for their age. Pupils from the school have sung at the Royal Albert Hall.  The sports premium is used well to develop teachers’ skills, to promote healthy lifestyles and to enable pupils to compete in sports teams, both in school and with other schools. For such a small school, pupils engage in a wide range of competitions and are becoming increasingly successful.  The curriculum provides very well for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Leaders recognise that pupils in this largely mono-cultural area need to develop an understanding of the richness and variety of life in other areas of the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

country. The curriculum opens a window on the wider world for pupils and helps them to understand the range of cultures and backgrounds represented in modern Britain.  Older pupils recently visited a mosque in Southampton. They learn about others’ views and beliefs and respect views different to their own. Pupils also visited Winchester Cathedral to compare the two faiths. Pupils elsewhere in the school study Judaism, Islam and Buddhism as well as Christianity.

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Governance of the school

 Governors have a deep and detailed understanding of the strengths of the school and work tirelessly to improve it further. They have a wide range of skills and experience, including in education. They receive regular training so that they can be as effective as possible in their work.  They undertake a range of activities to check that what they are told is accurate, including visits to the school. They offer strong support and challenge to senior leaders in all aspects of the school’s work.  Governors fully understand the difficulties that the school faces in managing its tight budget. A group of governors worked closely with the headteacher to present different possible budgets to ensure that the school remains financially secure.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. There is a culture of vigilance in this school where everyone understands how to recognise, report and record any concerns about a child’s welfare, however small it might appear on the surface.  Senior leaders work tirelessly to ensure that the well-being of pupils is paramount and that everyone understands their role in keeping pupils safe. Those with specific responsibility for safeguarding have the right training to enable them to carry out their work thoroughly. They ensure that all staff receive regular training in all aspects of safeguarding and are kept up to date with matters that concern individual pupils. Safeguarding is the first item on the agenda at all staff meetings.  Leaders work closely with external agencies to provide the right support for pupils who may be vulnerable. The relationship with these agencies is typically effective and

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Safeguarding

serves well to safeguard pupils. However, leaders are quick to register their concerns on the rare occasions where they do not feel that enough is being done.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

 Teachers bring learning to life and provide an atmosphere in which pupils can excel. They have consistently high expectations of all pupils, whatever their prior ability. They expect all to make strong progress in whatever they do. Pupils relish the challenge and work hard to meet the high standards expected of them.  Excellent subject knowledge ensures that teachers plan lessons that capture pupils’ interest and build their knowledge and understanding systematically.  Teachers are skilled at questioning, not only to check pupils’ understanding, but also to help them think deeply and take their learning further. Pupils are eager to answer questions, but also listen carefully when others are explaining their ideas.  Teaching assistants play a vital role in pupils’ learning. They share teachers’ high expectations of what pupils can achieve. High-quality training and professional development opportunities have equipped them with strong subject knowledge and a

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

clear understanding of how children learn. Teaching assistants are equally effective, whether working with an individual pupil or with a larger group.  The teaching of reading is highly effective. Pupils acquire the skills needed to decode text at a young age and this helps them to become capable readers. They develop strongly positive attitudes to reading, enjoy books and read widely, including at home. In lessons, pupils read fluently and accurately, explaining such words as ‘potentially’ and ‘prototype’ with great confidence.  By the time they reach Years 5 and 6, pupils show considerable maturity in their use of language. They can discuss the variety of meaning in words and the impact of these words on the reader. Pupils think very carefully about their word choices and take time and great thought to find exactly the right word. This reflects the consistently high expectations set by teachers.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

 Teachers place a high value on writing and on pupils using a wide vocabulary. This is reflected in the displays in classrooms to provide ideas and stimuli for pupils as they write. Pupils write to a high standard in many subjects.  All pupils appreciate the targets set by teachers to improve their writing. They work hard to meet them and proudly show examples of how these have helped to make their writing even better.  Strong teaching in mathematics enables pupils to achieve well. Teachers explain new ideas clearly, using precise language. They provide plentiful opportunities for pupils to practise the learning for themselves and secure their understanding. Teachers ensure that work is sufficiently challenging for the most able pupils.  Pupils use a range of equipment and resources, such as number lines, to help support and consolidate their learning in mathematics. As pupils tackle more challenging work,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

involving complicated problems and investigations, teachers particularly stress the importance of being methodical and systematic in their working.  Assessment lies at the heart of teaching and learning in this school. Teachers are vigilant to signs that a pupil has not understood, and act quickly to ensure that nobody falls behind. Where groups of pupils have not met their high expectations, teachers revisit the learning the next day and ensure that all understand.  Where teachers feel that a pupil will struggle with the next lesson, they give extra help and introduce any new learning before the pupil meets it in class. This helps pupils to approach lessons confidently and learn well.  The excellent teaching seen in English and mathematics is reflected across a wide range of curriculum subjects. Work in books shows substantial progress, whatever pupils’ starting points or year group. Pupils’ writing is as strong in other subjects of the

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

curriculum as it is in their English books.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding. Leaders place the well-being of pupils at the heart of this school’s work. They work tirelessly to ensure that pupils develop academically as well as meeting their social and emotional needs.  The attitudes of pupils to all aspects of school are strongly positive. Throughout the school, pupils work hard, enjoy learning and do their best. They are equally comfortable when working independently as they are when working in a team or with another classmate. The school is an inclusive, purposeful, happy community.  Positive, caring, professional relationships underpin this school’s work. Staff know pupils well and form strong trusting relationships with them. In turn, pupils trust staff to look after them and deal with any concerns that they may have. Senior leaders rightly consider this school to be ‘a place of sanctuary’.

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Personal development and welfare

 Pupils have a clear understanding of the difference between bullying and occasional fallings out. Their understanding extends to cyber bullying, because teachers ensure that pupils learn about this aspect of staying safe. Bullying is very rare and dealt with swiftly and decisively.  Pupils feel safe in school. They know that if they have any concerns, there is always someone to turn to for help.  Pupils learn how to stay safe in various situations, including on the road. They recently received a visit from the police and some pupils had the opportunity of sitting in a police van that was monitoring the speed of traffic through the village.  Online safety plays an important role in the curriculum. Pupils acquire a clear understanding of how to stay safe online, including avoiding the attempts of hackers to steal personal information. The school provides regular information for parents about this important aspect of safeguarding children.

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Personal development and welfare

 Pupils across the school have regular opportunities to take roles of responsibility in their classes and in the wider school community. The inspector noted the vigilance of pupils in fluorescent jackets who were helping lunchtime supervisors in their work.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.  Pupils’ behaviour in school is impeccable, not only in lessons but also throughout the school day. They are confident, welcoming and polite. The inspector received many cheerful greetings from pupils throughout the inspection. Pupils are very positive about behaviour in the school. Staff and parents also echo this view.  Pupils’ behaviour at playtime is energetic but always considerate. Pupils of all ages play happily together on the playground. The inspector saw some pupils from Year 6 play happily alongside the youngest children in the sandpit.  There is a wide range of activities, including tennis, football and other games, which pupils use sensibly and thoughtfully.  The school’s systems of rewards and sanctions plays its part in encouraging pupils to behave as well as they do. However, pupils explain that the school’s values of love, respect and forgiveness play a pivotal role in shaping their positive behaviour.

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Behaviour

 Senior leaders evaluate any issues of poor behaviour rigorously. When these appear, they are dealt with quickly and decisively. Leaders enlist the support of parents as soon as there are any concerns about a pupil’s conduct. This helps to bring about improvements quickly. Some parents report that the school’s work to ensure excellent behaviour has a strongly positive impact on their child’s behaviour at home.  Pupils who have well-understood behaviour needs are extremely well catered for. Staff help them to achieve well at school and to focus on their learning.  Pupils attend school regularly and few are persistently absent. Senior leaders work hard with parents to reinforce the benefits of regular attendance. Consequently, rates of attendance have been consistently above the national averages and improving further. No group of pupils is disadvantaged by poor attendance.

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Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

 Pupils currently in the school are making substantial progress from their different starting points. The overwhelming majority of pupils across the school are on track to achieve the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics. In some year groups, all pupils are on track to achieve these standards.  The proportion of pupils who are on track to exceed the expectations for their year varies slightly from year to year. However, as pupils move through the school, greater numbers achieve these higher standards. Leaders are ambitious to increase these numbers further.  Pupils consistently attain highly in this school. In the past three years, at the end of key stage 2, pupils’ attainment in reading and mathematics has been in the highest 10% nationally. In 2018, over 90% of pupils achieved the expected standard in writing and mathematics at the end of Year 6. Their attainment in reading was also very high.

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Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

 The proportion of pupils who achieved the higher standard in writing at the end of key stage 2 increased in 2018 to be nearly double the national average. The proportion of pupils who achieved this standard in reading and mathematics dipped from the very high proportion in 2017, but it was still above the national average. The proportion of pupils on track to achieve the higher standards in all three subjects at the end of Year 6 this year shows substantial improvements and reflects pupils’ outstanding progress.  The few disadvantaged pupils typically achieve as well as others in the school. Pupils with SEND also make strong progress from their starting points, in some cases catching up with their peers.  At the end of key stage 1 in 2018, pupils’ attainment in writing was in the highest 10% nationally. Their attainment in reading and mathematics was also above the national average. The proportion of pupils who achieved the higher standard was in line with

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Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

that seen nationally.  All pupils achieved the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check in 2018. This was also true in 2017. In the past three years, all pupils achieved this standard by the end of Year 2.  Leaders are ambitious to ensure that in sustaining the best possible progress made by current pupils, even more will be enabled to achieve the higher standards.  Pupils achieve highly in science. In the past three years, all pupils have achieved the expected standard in this subject. These high standards were reflected in pupils’ work and in conversations with them.  Pupils make consistently strong progress across a wide range of curriculum subjects. They achieve particularly well in religious education, the arts, physical education and music.

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Early years provision Outstanding

 The headteacher and leader of the early years share a very strong understanding of this stage of education, and how to enable children to get off to a flying start. They are ambitious and always looking to improve. They make the early years a place where children can learn independence and take responsibility for their own learning. Leaders have ensured that staff in the early years have had extensive training to develop their practice to match the needs of children in this school.  Teaching is highly effective in helping children to acquire the basic skills needed to learn rapidly. Teachers and teaching assistants have a sharp focus on enabling children to develop good speaking and listening skills, and to make an excellent start in reading, writing and mathematics.  Children learn phonics from the moment they start in school and quickly learn to apply this knowledge when reading and writing for themselves.

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Early years provision Outstanding

 Staff are skilled at working alongside children, assessing their learning and intervening appropriately with a suggestion or question to help them take the next step in their learning. At times, they join in with children’s play, modelling spoken English accurately. This provides a strong example for children to follow.  Activities are well planned and closely targeted to meet children’s needs. The provision is richly resourced for learning, both indoors and in the outdoors area. Children have a wealth of opportunities to take substantial strides across all areas of learning.  Children show great interest in all aspects of their learning. In one lesson, children were writing and solving riddles that described an animal or creature. They shared their thoughts clearly and confidently, offering reasoning for their answers. Where children differed in their ideas, they listened carefully and were willing to change their

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Early years provision Outstanding

mind in light of others’ reasoning. Teaching enables children to become articulate and thoughtful learners. Accordingly, behaviour is exemplary.  Children concentrate well for prolonged periods because activities interest and challenge them. For example, one boy showed great perseverance when tackling a difficult puzzle using wooden shapes and showed no sign of giving up. Others spent time in drawing the various insects and minibeasts that were displayed on tables in the classroom.  Children currently in the early years are making excellent progress from all starting points. A significant proportion of children start school with speaking and listening skills below those expected for their stage of development. These children are also making very good progress. The proportion of children on track to reach a good level of development is in line with the national average of recent years. Several children in this

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Early years provision Outstanding

small cohort are on track to exceed the early learning goals.  In 2018, the proportion of children who reached a good level of development was in line with the national average. This showed a considerable improvement on the previous year, when weak teaching prevented children from achieving as well as they could. Leaders acted decisively and teaching improved rapidly.  Parents are involved in children’s learning right from the start, when they contribute to the school’s initial assessments of children. Throughout their child’s time in the early years, parents add photographs and notes recording children’s achievements at home. This provides a comprehensive and accurate picture of children’s learning.  Comprehensive induction processes enable children to settle into school quickly. Similarly, children who move into another class at the end of their first year in school meet with their new teacher and work in their new class several times before leaving

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Early years provision Outstanding

the Reception class.  The school provides workshops in such subjects as the teaching of phonics, and a very high proportion of parents attend these.  All safeguarding requirements are met, including the provision of paediatric first aid training. Children learn how to recognise and manage risk and act safely, for example when moving large logs in the garden area. MKE

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School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Email address adminoffice@durley.hants.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 10 July 2018

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Information about this school

 Durley Church of England Controlled Primary School is much smaller than the average- sized primary school. There are four mixed-age classes. One comprises children in the early years and Year 1. Another has pupils from Years 1 and 2. Two other classes contain pupils from Years 3 and 4, and Years 5 and 6.  The proportion of pupils with SEND is in line with that seen nationally. The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan is above the national average.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported by the pupil premium is well below the national average.  The very large majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  Very few pupils speak English as an additional language.  Durley Primary School is a Church of England controlled school. It had its most recent section 48 inspection in July 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed learning in all classes across the school. All these observations were conducted jointly with the headteacher. In addition, the inspector scrutinised pupils’ work with the headteacher and the subject leaders of English and mathematics. He listened to some pupils from Years 2 and 6 read.  Meetings were held with the following people: a group of 12 pupils; the chair of the governing body and five other governors; representatives of the local authority and the local diocese; middle leaders, and the leader of the early years. At the start of the inspection, the inspector met with the headteacher and assistant headteacher to discuss the school’s self-evaluation.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour on the playground and at lunchtime, where he talked to several of them about school life. He also watched them come into a whole-school assembly.  The inspector undertook a check of the school’s policies and procedures for the

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Information about this inspection

safeguarding of pupils, including the statutory checks made during the recruitment of new staff. He also spoke with a number of staff throughout the inspection to check on their understanding of safeguarding in the school.  A range of information produced by the school was considered. This included information on pupils’ progress and attainment, behaviour and attendance, and the school’s own evaluation of its work. The inspector considered reports to the governing body, minutes of their meetings and the school’s plans for further improvement.  The inspector considered the 184 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, together with 49 free-text responses from parents. He also spoke to several parents on the playground at the start of the day.  The inspection also took into account the 16 responses to the staff questionnaire. There were no responses to the pupil questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Bruce Waelend, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. www.gov.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and- alternative-provision-settings .

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Inspection team

You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted .

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Inspection team

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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