Ruislip Gardens Primary School

Ruislip Gardens Primary School Stafford Road, Ruislip HA4 6PD

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Leaders have substantially improved the school. As a result, pupils benefit from a good and improving education.  Through a comprehensive programme of training and accountability, leaders improve the effectiveness of teaching, learning and assessment so that it is now good.  Good teaching and support now ensure that all groups of pupils make good progress, especially in English and mathematics.  Leaders have started to improve the planning of teaching and learning in subjects other than English and mathematics. This means that now pupils generally make good gains in their learning across a range of subjects.  Leaders identify pupils’ specific needs and potential barriers to their learning. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and disadvantaged pupils. Furthermore, leaders regularly check on all pupils’ progress. They use this information effectively to trigger well-tailored extra support

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

for any who need help or fall behind.  There is still scope to improve teaching further as there remains some variability across subjects and year groups.  Pupils feel safe. They learn about risk and how to keep themselves safe in different situations.  Pupils are keen to learn, and they behave well in class and around the school. Their punctuality and attendance are good.  The curriculum and enrichment opportunities make a good contribution to pupils’ successful learning and personal development. The school prepares them well for their future lives.  Children get off to a good start in the early years. Leaders makes sure that teaching is effective and that children benefit from a bright and well-resourced provision. Children feel safe and secure. They behave well and make good academic and social progress.  Governors and leaders work effectively together. They are ambitious and determined to make sure that the school continues to

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching and outcomes so that they are good or better across all year groups and subjects, by leaders: – ensuring that teachers routinely plan lessons that enable pupils to reach their full potential – building on their work to refine the planning and delivery of subjects other than English and mathematics.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 The new headteacher and senior leaders, together with the governors, are ambitious and determined to make sure that pupils benefit from a high-quality education. They have robust systems for evaluating the school’s work. They take decisive and quick action to secure improvements in all aspects of the school’s work. As a result, teaching, outcomes and pupils’ personal development, behaviour and attendance have improved.  Senior leaders have strongly improved the effectiveness of middle leaders and of teachers. Leaders check closely and often on teaching and learning. They organise quality training and development opportunities to achieve whole-school priorities, such as in the teaching of writing. Furthermore, they devise individualised teacher development plans and organise bespoke training, mentoring and coaching. Staff also benefit from external consultancy support and from working with colleagues in other

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

schools that are outstanding.  Leaders hold teachers to account and take decisive action if staff do not respond positively to the training and development opportunities. At the same time, leaders have had to contend with difficulties in recruitment. Leaders deal effectively with these challenges by quickly training new staff and, in some instances, stepping in and teaching classes. Leaders have recruited a more stable staff for September. As a result of effective training and accountability, teaching and pupils’ outcomes have markedly improved, although some variability remains.  The leadership of inclusion and use of SEND funding is effective. Over time, pupils with SEND did not make the progress of which they are capable. Leaders now sharply analyse the needs of pupils with SEND. They arrange well-targeted support to meet these pupils’ needs. As a result, pupils with SEND are now making good progress and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

beginning to meet their potential.  Leaders have improved the effectiveness of the use of the pupil premium funding for disadvantaged pupils. They analyse each pupil’s potential barriers to learning and social development. They seek the views and interests of disadvantaged pupils and use all this information to create bespoke support plans. As a result, differences are diminishing and, sometimes, disadvantaged pupils make stronger progress than their peers and other pupils nationally.  The curriculum is broad and, in line with the national curriculum, provides pupils with a variety of topics and themes. A range of visits supplement the curriculum and add interest for pupils. For example, pupils visit museums and recently a theatrical production of Shakespeare’s `A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. Leaders have made a good start in developing the planning and teaching of the wider curriculum so that pupils

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

make good progress across the subjects. This is still a work in progress.  Leaders provide pupils with many enrichment activities to broaden their learning and enhance their personal development. For instance, key stage 2 pupils learn to play a different musical instrument each year and pupils can choose to attend a range of clubs. Pupils in Years 4 and 6 go on residential team-building trips. The many visitors to the school include leaders of different faiths, poets, authors and an evacuee. These opportunities make a strong contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Governance of the school

 Governance has significantly improved since the previous inspection. New governors bring a range of expertise to support their work as well as extensive experience of school governance.  Governors visit the school frequently. Assigned governors check on the various aspects of the school’s work and leaders’ progress in meeting school improvement targets. They meet with leaders, staff and pupils, and scrutinise documentation. Through these checking processes, and scrutinising leaders’ and local authority adviser reports, governors gain a thorough understanding of the school’s effectiveness.  Governors play a key role in securing improvements. They provide leaders with a good balance of challenge and support. They made excellent strategic decisions in appointing a strong senior leadership team that has the necessary capacity to improve the school.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  The five trained designated safeguarding leaders make sure that they train and regularly update all staff with the latest safeguarding guidance. Staff have a good understanding of potential safeguarding issues in the community. They are vigilant and leaders have created a culture of encouraging staff to report even the slightest concern.  Leaders work effectively with parents and a range of external agencies to keep children safe and take care of their welfare.  Through the curriculum, pupils learn how to identify and avoid risk. For example, external speakers deliver workshops on how to stay safe online and the dangers of gangs.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 Teaching is effective and supports pupils to make good progress across the subjects.  Teachers and other adults have good working relationships with the pupils. Adults create a supportive environment in the classrooms. As a result, pupils work hard. They confidently ask questions, which helps them to learn successfully.  Additional adults give pupils with SEND comprehensive in-class or small-group support that is well tailored to their needs. As a result, pupils with SEND make good progress.  Teaching of writing has markedly improved this year. Teachers’ planning is much more thorough. Teachers develop and extend pupils’ vocabulary effectively, underpinned by the stronger emphasis on reading texts that are challenging. Pupils now have more opportunities to write at length across subjects, in different genres and for a range of audiences. As a result, they make good progress.  Over time, teaching of phonics in the lower part of the school is effective in giving

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

pupils the skills to read. Pupils’ comprehension skills historically, however, were underdeveloped, especially at key stage 1. Leaders changed planning and teachers now help pupils to tackle a range of difficult texts. They systematically develop pupils’ higher-order comprehension skills, such as inference and deduction. As a result, across the school, pupils now make good progress in their reading comprehension.  Teaching of mathematics is effective. This is because teachers’ planning securely builds pupils’ basic skills and then becomes increasingly challenging. Teachers create opportunities for pupils to apply their skills to solve everyday problems, and ensure that pupils explain their mathematical thinking. Pupils therefore become skilled mathematicians and make good progress.  Typically, teachers have good subject knowledge and plan activities that meet pupils’ needs and abilities across the subjects. They plan learning that sequentially builds on

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

pupils’ prior learning. Teachers ask pupils probing questions to help them think deeply. Teachers give clear explanations, check pupils’ understanding and address any misconceptions. They have high expectations for pupils to produce work to a good standard, which is neatly presented. They model what they expect and show pupils examples of high-quality work so that they know what to aim for. Teachers set homework and give feedback to pupils in line with the school’s policies to help pupils to extend their learning and improve their work.  In some cases, usually when teachers join mid-year, teaching is not as strong. As they settle down and benefit from leaders’ training and support, they improve their teaching skills. In these circumstances, pupils’ progress is not as strong as it is for those who have had continuity of teaching from the start of the year.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. As pupils progress through the school and develop good social and learning skills, they develop in self-confidence. They learn to engage in meaningful conversations and articulate their opinions clearly.  Leaders promote pupils’ welfare and mental health effectively. The school’s welfare and attendance officer and learning mentor support pupils and their families should they have any difficulties. Pupils know that they can visit the `rainbow’ room when they want some quiet space or if they wish to talk though a worry with a caring adult. Pupils learn about keeping their minds happy, promoting self-control and managing anger, for example. Leaders are introducing a well-being week into the curriculum before the end of term. The school also supports the Armed Forces Charity for service children and young people.  Pupils are aware of the different forms of bullying. They say that bullying is rare. They

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Personal development and welfare

are confident that should it occur, staff would deal with it appropriately.  Pupils develop a good sense of responsibility and community. They have worked with leaders in improving the broader curriculum. They take on responsibilities such as being elected members of the school council, playground buddies and road safety officers. The latter had opportunities to discuss road safety issues with the local council. Pupils also raise funds for a range of local and national charities.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils have good manners and welcome visitors. They behave sensibly at social times and are proud of their school.  Pupils have good attitudes to learning. They work hard in lessons and are keen to succeed. These positive attitudes help them to learn well. On the odd occasion, there is some low-level disruption, usually when the teaching is less inspiring. These instances are usually dealt with effectively and learning proceeds.  Leaders introduced a new behaviour policy this year. Pupils report that there have been improvements in behaviour this year. Records of poor behaviour incidents show that they have considerably decreased since the start of the year. Exclusions are extremely rare.  Leaders have worked effectively with parents and external agencies to improve punctuality and attendance. Pupils now arrive punctually to school. Rates of absence and persistent absence last year were slightly above the national average. These have

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Behaviour

reduced this year to slightly below last year’s national averages.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 In 2018, the proportion of pupils in Year 1 that achieved the expected standard in the phonics screening check was well above average.  In the 2018 Year 2 tests, the proportion of pupils reaching and exceeding the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics was below average, significantly so in writing.  In the 2018 Year 6 cohort, pupils reached above-average standards in reading, writing and mathematics combined. This represented average progress from Year 3 in reading and mathematics and below-average progress in writing. Disadvantaged pupils made stronger progress than their peers in all subjects. In reading and mathematics, their progress was stronger than other pupils nationally.  Current pupils, across key stages 1 and 2 and in subjects including reading, writing and mathematics, are making good progress. This is because leaders have improved teaching across the school.  Pupils with SEND now make good progress. This is because new leaders have

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Outcomes for pupils Good

improved support for these pupils.  With their improving academic outcomes and good personal development, pupils leave the school well prepared for secondary education.

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Early years provision Good

 Leadership of the early years is good. Leaders know the strengths and weaknesses of the setting and are improving the provision. Teaching, especially of writing, and the outdoor resources have particularly improved this year. As a result, all groups of children make good progress across all areas of learning. Staff prepare children well, academically and socially, for entry into Year 1.  Children behave well and follow adults’ instructions. They happily share resources and concentrate on challenging tasks, sometimes for a long time. They feel safe and secure because they build strong trusting relationships with adults.  Teaching is good. Adults benefit from leaders’ training and coaching to enhance their skills. Staff check regularly on children’s progress and use the information to plan well- targeted activities. There is a good balance between adult-led formal teaching and child-initiated activities. There is a good range of resources, both indoors and outdoors,

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Early years provision Good

that support children’s learning and development.  There is a very strong emphasis on building children’s literacy and numeracy skills. The teaching of phonics is highly effective. Staff read to children and encourage them to read a range of fiction and non-fiction. Staff encourage pupils to apply their phonics knowledge to writing. They provide multiple opportunities for children to write for a variety of purposes. Inspectors observed, for example, children who chose to write outdoors. Some wrote conjunctions in chalk on the floor, others labelled signs for a tower they were building, and another group wrote recipes for mud pies.  The early years team works closely with parents and carers to involve them in their children’s learning. Staff also organise parental workshops such as on phonics and how to deal with any concerns about their children’s eating and sleeping routines.

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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 officeemail@ruislipgardensschool.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 29–30 March 2017

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.  There have been many staffing and leadership changes since the previous inspection. The headteacher took up her post in September 2018, as did one of the assistant headteachers. Governors appointed an additional assistant headteacher. She took up her post in January 2019.  All but one of the current governors were appointed during the last academic year. A new chair and vice-chair were recently appointed. The previous chair and vice-chair remain active members of the governing body.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed pupils learning in a range of classes. Senior leaders joined inspectors during most of these visits.  Inspectors looked closely at pupils’ work to inform judgements made about pupils’ outcomes and the quality of teaching and learning.  Inspectors met with two groups of pupils and spoke informally to other pupils in lessons and during social times. Inspectors met with school leaders and other members of staff.  Meetings were held with the chair, vice-chair and another member of the governing body and with a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors examined a range of documentation, such as that relating to pupils’ attainment and progress. They also looked at records and documentation about pupils’ behaviour, attendance and exclusions, and the ways staff help to keep pupils safe.  Inspectors considered the 38 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents, which included some free-text responses. They had informal conversations

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Information about this inspection

with parents in the playground. Inspectors took account of the views of 17 members of staff and 73 pupils.

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Inspection team

David Radomsky, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Sahreen Siddiqui 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

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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