Gooderstone Church of England Primary Academy

Gooderstone Church of England Primary Academy The Street, Gooderstone, King’s Lynn, Norfolk PE33 9BP

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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

 Pupils, parents and staff recognise the progress made by the school’s leaders since the previous inspection.  Systems to check the effectiveness of teaching, learning and assessment are robust. Leaders take swift action to improve teaching. As a result, pupils are making good progress.  Leaders, including governors, know the school’s strengths and weaknesses well. Improvement plans are tightly focused on the right priorities. Leaders rigorously check their actions are improving outcomes for pupils.  Governors provide senior leaders with effective support to improve the quality of teaching. They hold leaders to account for their work.  Teachers plan interesting learning experiences for pupils across the curriculum. Staff ensure that, wherever possible, they make links between subjects. This supports pupils’ understanding and makes learning more meaningful.  Children in the early years get off to a good start. They make good progress in all areas of

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

learning.  Safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. Pupils say that they feel safe and well looked after. Most parents agree.  Pupils show positive attitudes. They behave positively in lessons, are attentive and try hard to do their best. Pupils are polite. They are respectful to adults and to each other.  Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively, both emotionally and academically. This helps pupils make good progress.  Developments to the teaching of reading, writing and mathematics have led to improved achievement for pupils. Even so, further work is needed to build on these improvements to ensure that more pupils reach at least the standards expected for their age.  Improvements to the way teachers assess pupils’ knowledge, skills and understanding in English, mathematics and science mean that teachers plan tasks that precisely meet pupils’ needs. Work has begun to make sure that

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

teachers apply the same accuracy to assessments in all subjects.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that leaders, including governors, raise pupils’ attainment in reading, writing and mathematics by building on effective strategies to enable pupils to make strong progress.  Improve the accuracy of assessment in the foundation subjects to equal that of English, mathematics and science, to ensure that teaching addresses specific gaps in pupils’ knowledge and skills.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 The executive headteacher leads the school’s work with calm determination. She is ably supported by a strong and increasingly effective senior leadership team. Leadership expertise is shared and developed across the federation of schools and wider trust.  Leaders have established a culture of high aspirations and ambition for pupils’ learning and consistently good behaviour. Staff say that they are proud to be a member of the school community.  Leaders support teachers new to the profession, as well as those with more experience, effectively. They are provided with the training they need to develop their skills. Leaders are committed to develop teachers’ subject knowledge and expertise. Staff say that they are trusted to work in innovative ways to promote pupils’ engagement and learning. They say that leaders are thoughtful about helping them to maintain an appropriate work-life balance.  Senior leaders have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and where

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

improvements need to be made. Key to the school’s recent success has been its work to ensure that systems to assess what pupils already know and can do are accurate. As a result, teachers are can identify what pupils need to learn next. Staff pay due attention to ensure equality of opportunity. Teachers meet regularly to check pupils’ learning. They give extra help to those pupils in danger of falling behind or to those who are not making sufficient progress.  Leaders rightly identified pupils were lacking in basic skills such as inference in reading, spelling in writing and arithmetic fluency in mathematics. They recognised this was inhibiting pupils’ learning and preventing them from deepening their understanding. To tackle this, leaders embarked upon what is known by the school community as a ‘BIF’ or ‘bitesize improvement focus’. This involves a short, sharp focus on a particular area in need of improvement.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 As part of each focus, staff invite parents into school to learn about what their children will be doing differently. Parents say this has helped them support their children’s learning at home. One parent reflected the views of many others when they commented that they had ‘some good ideas to take home with us’.  These sessions, called, ‘Gooderstone Gatherings’, have become part of the school’s way of working and are now established and well attended. One such example is a ‘maths meeting’. This is a daily session in which pupils revisit prior learning and practise skills to keep them current. It may include recapping on multiplication, telling the time, or naming and using appropriate mathematical vocabulary to describe the properties of shapes. Similar strategies have involved reading for inference and spelling. All strategies have included a significant focus on developing pupils’ knowledge of, and ability to use, a greater variety of vocabulary.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 Alongside pupils’ academic development, leaders have successfully provided pupils with opportunities to develop resilience, be able to reflect and think more deeply and to be able to explain their thoughts and ideas confidently.  Work in pupils’ books shows that these approaches are paying dividends. Pupils of all abilities and in every year group are making strong progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  Leaders regularly review the curriculum on offer to pupils. They plan units of work carefully so that teachers can help pupils make links between different ideas, helping them to learn more and remember more.  The curriculum provides a breadth of study and is enhanced by trips, visits, clubs and ‘no-plan’ days, in which pupils set and pursue their own learning based on their interests. Pupils study different faiths, beliefs and practices. They learn about and demonstrate their understanding of British values. Pupils who wish to take on

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

additional responsibilities make a presentation to others about why they consider themselves suitable for the role. They are voted for by their peers. Pupils discuss issues that involve thinking deeply, such as, ‘Have we destroyed the planet?’ They appreciate music and learn to play musical instruments. At the time of the inspection, pupils demonstrated their skills and talent by playing a wide range of tunes on the ukulele. Such activities support pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  The leadership of support for pupils with SEND is effective. The SENCo works in partnership with class teachers to ensure that they adapt the curriculum to meet pupils’ needs in the classroom. Staff check pupils’ progress frequently and adapt provision accordingly. Adults support pupils’ understanding by providing additional and discrete opportunities for them to repeat and rehearse new ideas. This supports learning and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

pupils make good progress from their individual starting points.  Leaders have made effective use of the primary physical education (PE) and sport premium funding. It has improved the quality of teaching and learning of PE and provided opportunities for pupils to be involved in sporting events and be more active. Pupils have learned to win, and lose, graciously.  Pupil premium funding is used effectively to support eligible pupils. Leaders use it to identify and remove any potential barriers to learning for disadvantaged pupils and check that pupils are making good progress.  Most parents who responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, and who shared their views with the inspector, are happy with all aspects of the school’s work. Many talked about improvements made since the previous inspection. The vast majority say that their children are learning well. A few parents expressed some

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

concerns, particularly about communication between home and school. Leaders are working on ways in which this could be improved.  Although pupils are making good and sometimes rapid progress, pupils’ attainment is not as high as it should be. Leaders know more needs to be done to build on recent and successful initiatives to improve pupils’ attainment so a greater proportion reach the standards of which they are capable.

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Governance of the school

 Governors take advantage of training and networking opportunities across the trust to share effective practice. Training focuses on governors’ roles and responsibilities as well as on the school’s improvement priorities. This means that they are more able to offer leaders critical challenge.  Governors are supporting leaders to take prompt action to tackle weak teaching. Governors support the executive headteacher and other senior leaders in raising and maintaining their expectations of staff. They keep a close eye on how effectively leaders are improving the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by making frequent visits to classrooms to see for themselves how well pupils are learning.  Governors lend their support for leaders’ improvement strategies, attending ‘Gooderstone gatherings’ and working in partnership with staff to monitor their effectiveness. They know improvements have enabled pupils to make good progress.

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Governance of the school

Nonetheless, governors know more needs to be done to increase the proportion of pupils working at or above the standards expected for their age.  Records of governors’ meetings show that they hold senior leaders to account for their work to improve pupils’ outcomes and to ensure that school funds achieve best value for money.  Governors manage the additional funding the school receives, including the pupil premium and the primary PE and sport premium effectively. They know the pupil premium is helping pupils to make good progress. Similarly, governors are aware the sport premium funding is used successfully to provide opportunities for pupils to be more involved in sport.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Leaders have established a culture of safeguarding being everyone’s responsibility. Staff attend training so that they are kept up to date with recent safeguarding practice. There are clear procedures to protect pupils from harm. Staff know what to do if they have any concerns. Safeguarding records are carefully maintained.  The single central record meets requirements. Procedures for checking adults’ suitability to work with children, including governors and volunteers, are secure. Governors and trust staff check that these systems are working and meet statutory requirements.  The vast majority of parents who responded to Ofsted’s online survey and those who spoke to the inspector, agreed or strongly agreed their children were safe and well looked after by staff at the school. Several parents and pupils mentioned the school’s pastoral ethos and ‘family feel’. As one pupil put it: ‘I love this school because it is

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ learning and behaviour are high. They expect them to work hard and strive to reflect on and improve their work constantly. Pupils respond favourably to this challenge. Evidence in pupils’ books shows that they take great pride in how they set out their work.  Good relationships support learning. Pupils offer their views, opinions and answers adults’ questions without fear of failure.  Recent developments to ensure greater accuracy in assessing pupils’ skills and abilities ensures that the work pupils are set matches their individual needs. Teaching provides opportunities for specific gaps in pupils’ knowledge and skills to be addressed. This supports pupils’ learning.  Teachers show that they have secure, technical knowledge across a range of subjects, emphasising vocabulary which deepens pupils’ understanding. For example, pupils in Years 5 and 6 were exposed to words such as ‘erosion’ and ‘transportation’ as they

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

built a riverbed and observed and predicted the effect of a constant flow of water. Consequently, pupils used the same vocabulary in their predications and explanations.  Adults use questions effectively to check and reinforce pupils’ understanding. Careful choice of questions with no obvious answers means that pupils are encouraged to think for themselves and reach their own conclusions. Programmes designed to deepen pupils’ thinking have enabled pupils to be more articulate and confident in voicing their opinions. One pupil explained that these activities, ‘makes people more confident and determined to say what they think in front of others’.  Pupils are provided with plenty of opportunities to use and apply their English and mathematics skills when studying other subjects and presenting what they have learned.  Homework builds on and extends classroom learning. It is based on reading, spelling,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

writing and recording learning in different ways.  The teaching of reading and pupils’ ability to infer meaning from texts has been improved. Teachers read daily to pupils. They encourage pupils to read extensively for pleasure. Such activities foster in pupils a love of reading. Staff take time to discuss texts to guide pupils towards reading a wider range of genres. They make good use of volunteers who come into school to help pupils practise reading.  Likewise, improvements have been made to the teaching and learning of writing. This is because pupils regularly revise spelling, punctuation and grammar rules together with their exceptions. Lessons include looking at the features of high-quality texts, which inspires pupils to use them in their own writing.  Mathematics teaching has also improved. Teachers plan activities such as ‘maths meetings’ to remember, use and apply pupils’ knowledge, skills and understanding.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

Alongside their increasing fluency in arithmetic, pupils are expected to solve mathematical problems and develop reasoning skills.  As a direct consequence, pupils currently in the school are making better progress in each of reading, writing and mathematics.  Work has begun to ensure that the improvements to the quality of teaching, learning and assessment for English, mathematics and science equals that for other core and foundation subjects.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils are polite and courteous as they conduct themselves in school and outdoors in the playground. They show positive attitudes to learning in lessons. Pupils listen to adults’ instructions and try their hardest to succeed. They work well together and are supportive of each other.  Pupils say that they are kept safe and feel safe. They have confidence that staff will deal with any of their worries or concerns. Pupils say that bullying is extremely rare. They report that sometimes pupils are mean to one another but adults help them to reflect on and deal with the issues.  Pupils have a thorough understanding of how to keep safe online. They know not to share any personal details, not to play online games with strangers and to play only age-appropriate games. Pupils know to tell an adult if they see something worrying on

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Personal development and welfare

the internet or if they are being coerced into doing something they know they should not do.  Pupils enjoy the responsibilities they are encouraged to take on, such as being play leaders. They say it helps them to become kind, independent and to prepare for the future. Older pupils help younger pupils on the playground. They show them how to play games and support them to keep their balance on the trim trail.  The head boy and girl know that their responsibility is to provide a good role model for other pupils – to show them how they should behave. They enjoy presenting certificates and lanyards in achievement assemblies and say that they believe these rewards give pupils something to aspire to.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Staff manage pupils’ behaviour consistently well. Pupils say systems to promote good behaviour are working. They fully understand its rewards, sanctions and the notion of possible consequences of their actions, which they often decide for themselves.  The school’s records show that there are very few incidents of poor behaviour. They indicate that incidents earlier in the year have reduced to very few because of the school’s procedures for dealing with them. There have been no fixed-term or permanent exclusions this academic year.  Leaders have introduced a gradual, ‘soft start’ to the beginning of the school day. This has ensured that pupils become involved in learning straight away and start school in a calm, purposeful way.  Pupils’ attendance is above average. Levels of punctuality are good.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 Published information shows that in 2018 pupils’ attainment at the end of key stages 1 and 2 was below average in reading, writing and mathematics. Similarly, the proportions of pupils working at greater depth in reading, writing and mathematics were below national averages. Pupils’ progress, by the time they left the school in Year 6, was average in reading. It was below average in writing and mathematics.  Leaders took decisive action to improve pupils’ achievement in reading, writing, mathematics and science. The bitesize improvement priorities have focused on ensuring that pupils learned the basic skills they needed to read, write, use and apply mathematics.  Phonics teaching is regular and systematic. The proportion of Year 1 pupils reaching the required standard in the national phonics screening check in 2018 was average. Pupils who did not achieve the required standard in Year 1 have extra help to catch up.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

By the end of Year 2, most pupils are able to use phonics to sound out and blend unknown words.  Most current Year 1 pupils passed the phonics screening check in 2019. Those who did not have made strong progress from their starting points.  Provisional results at the end of key stage 1 in 2019 indicate that pupils’ attainment is rising. More are working at the standards expected for their age in reading, writing and mathematics. Likewise, greater proportions are working at a greater depth in all three subjects.  It is not possible to report on the achievement of disadvantaged pupils without identifying them as they are small in number. However, leaders use the pupil premium funding effectively to ensure that these pupils make good progress.  Pupils with SEND make good progress from their starting points because they are supported in class. Staff pre-teach and practise new vocabulary. They break down

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Outcomes for pupils Good

tasks into small, achievable steps. They ensure that pupils are provided with resources that support their understanding.  Work in pupils’ books show they have made strong progress, particularly over the past academic year. However, provisional results at key stage 2 in 2019 show that pupils’ attainment in reading and mathematics is not as high as it should be. Provisional results in writing by the time pupils leave the school in Year 6 show an improvement on 2018.  Work in pupils’ topic or theme books show that they are making good progress in their knowledge, skills and understanding of the foundation subjects. Even so, teachers’ assessments of these skills are not as precise as they are in English, mathematics and science.

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Early years provision Good

 Children’s skills when they join the Reception Year vary. On the whole, their abilities are broadly typical for their age. They get off to a good start. Most children reach a good level of development and so are ready for Year 1.  Children make good progress because adults provide lots of opportunities for them to explore, learn and develop across all areas of learning. Adults ask children questions to find out what they know and suggest what they might like to try next.  From a very early stage, adults ensure that there is an emphasis on helping children to learn, understand and use new vocabulary. For example, children are able to explain that the number 4 comes ‘before’ 5 and ‘after’ 3. This means that they are ready to learn mathematics in the next stage of their education.  In mathematics, young children are expected to explain their answers, using technical, subject-specific language. Daily ‘maths meetings’ give children the chance to visit and

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Early years provision Good

revisit key skills. Older pupils in the same class were able to describe the number of faces, vertices and edges of 3D shapes, and this helps reinforce mathematical vocabulary of children in the early years.  Reading is a high priority. Children begin to learn phonics at the start of the year. Most know letter sounds by the end of the first term. By the end of their Reception Year, children can use their knowledge to sound out and blend regular words and are learning to recognise irregular ones.  Children, including those with SEND, are supported skilfully through activities set up for them as well as experiences that enable children to explore and find things out for themselves. Adults provide help and support where it is needed. For children who are not yet fluent writers, children’s ideas are scribed for them. Over time, children are increasingly able to write on their own. Children’s books show that from mark-making

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Early years provision Good

at the beginning of the year, children are now writing in simple sentences.  Leadership of the early years is effective. Adults know what is working successfully and where to prioritise their efforts. They use assessment information and observations of children’s learning to identify what children need to learn next. Positive partnerships with parents mean that they are kept informed about how well their children are learning.

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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

Website www.churchsidefederation.norfolk.sch.uk

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School details

Email address exechead@churchsidefederation.norfolk.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 29–30 November 2016

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Information about this school

 Gooderstone Church of England Primary Academy is much smaller than the average primary school. It consists of three classes; one of children in their Reception Year and pupils in Years 1 and 2, one class of Year 3 and Year 4 pupils and one class of Year 5 and Year 6 pupils.  The school is part of the Churchside Federation with Mundford Church of England Primary Academy. It is a member of The Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust (DNEAT). Trustees are primarily responsible for holding the school’s leadership team to account for the quality of provision. They delegate these powers to a local governing body.  The vast majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  The percentage of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils with SEND support is below average, as is the proportion with an education, health and care plan.  The executive headteacher and head of school took up their substantive posts in

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Information about this school

September 2018 and January 2019 respectively. There have been significant changes to staffing since the previous inspection.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed lessons in all classes, all of which were carried out jointly with senior leaders.  During visits to lessons, the inspector talked to pupils about their learning. Senior leaders joined the inspector to look at work in pupils’ books. Two pupils read to the inspector and talked about how they were learning to read.  The inspector observed and talked to pupils at breaktime. Two pupils took the inspector on a tour of the school to talk about their learning and other experiences at school.  Discussions were held with the executive headteacher, head of school, SENCo and governors, including the chair of governors. The inspector spoke to the chief executive officer, academies improvement director and academies group executive principal of the trust. Discussions were also held with middle leaders and those with responsibility for safeguarding.  A range of documentation was scrutinised. This included the school’s website, policies,

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Information about this inspection

pupils’ assessment information, leaders’ evaluation of the school’s performance and plans for improvement. The inspector looked at records of behaviour, attendance and punctuality.  The inspector took account of the 29 responses to Ofsted’s online parent survey, Parent View, the free-text responses, one item of correspondence and parental comments from the school’s own surveys. Seven responses from staff to Ofsted’s online questionnaire were scrutinised. The inspector spoke to parents at the start of the day as they brought their children to school.

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Inspection team

Sarah Warboys, 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

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

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