Buryfields Infant School

Buryfields Infant School Buryfields, Odiham, Hook, Hampshire RG29 1NE

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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 Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

◼ The leadership team, supported by a skilled team of governors, has built on the strengths of the previous leadership to ensure that all pupils receive a good quality of education. ◼ The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good across the school. Most teachers know their pupils well and plan work that is suitably matched to pupils’ learning needs. ◼ Pupils’ outcomes are good but their attainment in reading is stronger than it is in writing or mathematics. Pupils do well in other subjects, including art, which is of a high standard. ◼ The curriculum provides rich and exciting experiences for pupils and this adds to their enjoyment of school. Staff go out of their way to seek out activities that inspire pupils to learn. ◼ Teaching is not yet outstanding because there are times when some teachers do not plan work that builds on what pupils already know and can do. Sometimes the learning objectives focus on what pupils are expected to do rather

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

than what they are to learn. ◼ Staff provide good-quality care for pupils, and this helps pupils to feel safe and secure in school. Pupils enjoy learning and this is reflected in the good behaviour seen in the school. ◼ Children in the early years get off to a good start in school. They are warmly welcomed into a stimulating and vibrant learning environment where they thrive and flourish. ◼ The new headteacher has formed good relationships with all stakeholders. She has rapidly gained the trust and respect from parents, governors, pupils and her staff. ◼ Not all middle leaders make enough use of performance information to track the impact of the actions they have put into place. ◼ The school provides a delightful learning environment both indoors and outside. This provides ample opportunities for pupils to learn and play. ◼ One published policy and one document does not yet have all the statutory information required.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

◼ Work in some pupils’ books is untidy and not always presented as well as it could be. This sometimes leads to inaccuracies in spelling and calculation.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

◼ Bring the quality of teaching, learning and assessment up to the standard of the best by ensuring that: – all leaders make effective use of performance information to evaluate the impact of actions taken to bring about improvement to outcomes for pupils – work planned for pupils builds on and extends what they already know and can do – teaching focuses clearly on what teachers want pupils to learn – pupils present their work to the best possible standard. ◼ Ensure that published documents and policies contain all required statutory information.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

◼ Since her appointment in September 2018, the headteacher has quickly gained the respect and trust of staff, governors, parents and pupils. She is ambitious and has a clear vision rooted in the school’s values that have been agreed by staff and pupils. This is for pupils to ‘be kind, be confident, and love learning’. ◼ School leaders have created a culture of high expectations in which staff and pupils are helped to become the best they can be. The headteacher has reviewed roles and responsibilities so that all staff understand the role they play in achieving the school’s ambitious aims. All staff who responded to the online survey said that they are proud to work at the school. ◼ There is a strong sense of community in which all pupils are valued for the unique skills and talents they bring. Consequently, all pupils are treated equally and fairly, and discrimination on any grounds is not tolerated.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

◼ Leaders who are new to their roles have received effective training. This has allowed them quickly to gain an understanding of what they need to do to bring about improvement. However, they do not all use performance information well enough to evaluate the impact of the actions they have put into place. Consequently, some leaders are unable to articulate how effective these actions have been. ◼ School leaders and governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and what needs to be further improved. Their plans for improvement are tightly focused on what the school needs to do to continue to improve. The plan is ambitious, with clear objectives that aim to raise standards through meeting the needs of every child. ◼ Although leaders have in place all required documents and policies, they do not have all of the information that is required. For example, the current pupil premium strategy

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

does not identify the specific barriers that disadvantaged pupils may have that prevent them from learning. The safeguarding policy has not yet been adapted to reflect the particular contextual factors that may give rise to local issues. ◼ Leaders of this small village school are constantly looking for new ways to improve on what they already do well. School leaders visit classrooms formally as well as informally and they provide feedback to staff that helps them to refine their skills and strengthen their practice. Staff welcome the many opportunities they have to attend training events. Staff are encouraged to visit each other’s classrooms to share best practice, and this has strengthened teamwork. As a result, staff morale is high. ◼ The curriculum has been carefully planned to take into account pupils’ needs and interests. It is based on topics under which different subjects are linked together and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

so pupils gain a wider understanding of what they are learning. There are plenty of opportunities for pupils to use their reading and writing skills when learning other subjects. This has strengthened their attainment in these subjects, particularly in reading. ◼ School leaders incorporate enriching experiences into the curriculum to add to pupils’ learning and enjoyment of school. They plan visits that support pupils’ learning and help them to understand the importance of learning in ‘real life’. For example, pupils visited a working farm as part of their topic on food and farming. As part of multicultural week, pupils experienced an African dance workshop as well as an African music workshop. Experiences such as these help to promote pupils’ understanding of life in other parts of the world and prepare them well for life in modern Britain. ◼ Pupils enjoy a wide variety of sporting activities. In addition to having plenty of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

opportunities for physical activities at breaktimes, pupils also have access to specialist sports provision. This has been achieved through the thoughtful use of the primary school sports funding. Pupils in key stage 1 are able to learn early skills in games including rugby, golf and tennis. This specialist coaching has also improved teachers’ skills and so has led to a sustainable programme of physical education. ◼ Parents who responded to the online survey and who spoke to inspectors were overwhelmingly positive about the school. They agreed that the school is well led and managed and that leaders are responsive to any concerns they raise.

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Governance of the school

◼ Governors are highly motivated and committed to the school. They visit the school formally as well as informally and so they see at first hand how well the school runs on a day-to-day basis. They are very well informed about the effectiveness of teaching and how well pupils are learning. Governors have a broad range of professional skills that they use to provide a good balance of support and professional challenge to school leaders. They have a clear understanding of their role, taking an oversight of the strategic direction of the school. ◼ Minutes from governors’ meetings show that they are well organised and maintain a good overview of their statutory responsibilities. They hold school leaders to account by monitoring the progress of the school against the actions identified in the school improvement plan. Governors attend training that helps them to be efficient and up to date with new initiatives. They ensure that all funding, including the pupil premium

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Safeguarding

◼ The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. School leaders and governors have created a culture in which the needs of the pupils come first. The designated safeguarding leaders (DSLs) have all received appropriate and recent training and they ensure that all policies and practices are up to date. They are aware that they need to adapt safeguarding and child protection policies to take into account the school’s contextual circumstances. All staff receive regular training, sometimes from an external provider, while at other times school leaders provide in-house training. Regular updates are provided, often using scenarios as a stimulus. Consequently, all staff are well prepared to act should they have a concern that a pupil may be at risk of harm. There are good relationships with external partners. The DSLs act quickly to ensure that pupils and their families receive the right support in a timely way.

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Safeguarding

◼ Pupils feel safe in school and they are taught about personal safety through the curriculum as well as other events, including assemblies. Pupils are taught how to stay safe online. School leaders provide workshops for parents to help them to protect their children from potential dangers associated with modern technology. Visits from organisations such as the Fire and Rescue Service teach pupils about risks from dangers, including fire safety.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

◼ The quality of teaching varies but it is good overall. One of the strengths of teaching is the quality of relationships between teachers and their pupils. This inspires positive attitudes to learning and encourages pupils to behave well. ◼ Where teaching is stronger, teachers have a clear view of what they want their pupils to learn. They know their pupils well and so plan work for them that is at the right level. In this way, pupils build their skills sequentially and so progress well. However, this good practice is not yet established consistently well across the school. ◼ Another of the strengths of teaching is that teachers provide a range of good-quality resources that help pupils to learn. This is especially evident in mathematics lessons where pupils have access to equipment that helps them to count, calculate and solve problems. ◼ Most teachers use every opportunity to incorporate reading skills into their lessons.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

They provide examples of good writing as well as short excerpts that pupils analyse in preparation for their own writing. Pupils compare different styles and types of writing and this helps them to develop deeper reading skills, including making inferences and predictions. ◼ In most classrooms, teachers maintain a good overview of what pupils are learning. This allows them to intervene and adjust their teaching when necessary. While most teachers have high expectations for pupils, they do not all routinely encourage pupils to present their work to a good standard. This can then lead to inaccuracies in calculations and spellings. ◼ Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are provided with good support from skilled teaching assistants. Teaching assistants work with individual pupils or with small groups and this helps these pupils to make similar progress to other pupils. Sometimes support is targeted towards disadvantaged pupils who need

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

additional support to develop their confidence. ◼ There are a few teachers who provide activities for pupils that do not focus clearly enough on what they want pupils to learn. As a result, pupils are not always clear about what they are expected to learn. There are times, particularly in mathematics, when tasks provided for pupils are too easy. This slows the progress that pupils make.

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Personal development and welfare

◼ The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. All parents who responded to the online survey agreed that their children are happy and safe at school and that they are well looked after. Typically, parents commented that ‘Buryfields is a safe, stimulating and nurturing environment.’ ◼ School leaders have created a delightful environment both indoors and outside. Classrooms are bright and attractive with stimulating examples of pupils’ work. The outdoor area is very well equipped to provide plenty of opportunities for pupils to learn outside. During breaktimes the playground is very well supervised. Pupils are able to play games that they organise themselves or sit quietly in the gazebo and chat with friends or share books. ◼ Pupils are happy and friendly, and they enjoy school. They get on very well together in class and in the playground. Pupils have positive attitudes towards school and they

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Personal development and welfare

want to learn. Pupils are confident that adults will listen and respond quickly to any concerns they may have. ◼ Because pupils feel safe and secure in school, they have developed resilience as learners and persevere when completing challenges. They show respect towards adults and towards each other. They listen carefully to what each other has to say and respond accordingly. ◼ Pupils are taught to keep themselves safe. They know about different forms of bullying but say that it rarely occurs. On the odd occasion that there is a disagreement, pupils say that adults are always on hand to sort things out. Pupils learn about online safety as well as dangers from roads, waterways and fire. ◼ Although pupils love their school and take pride in attending this school, they do not always take enough care when presenting their work.

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Behaviour

◼ The behaviour of pupils is good. Most pupils behave well in class and when moving around the school. Staff implement systems to manage pupils’ behaviour consistently and so pupils understand what is expected of them. Pupils respond quickly to teachers’ instructions and settle quickly to work. ◼ There are a few occasions when pupils chat above the teacher and display ‘off-task’ behaviour. This occurs mostly when the pace of lessons is too slow and pupils become bored and fidgety. ◼ School records show very few incidents of poor behaviour, and exclusions are rare. Pupils’ attendance is above average.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

◼ In 2018, the proportion of pupils reaching or exceeding age-related expectations in reading was above the national average. The proportion of pupils reaching expectations in writing and mathematics was broadly in line with the national average. However, the proportion of pupils reaching the higher standard was above average in writing and mathematics. ◼ School data suggests a broadly similar picture in 2019, with good performance maintained in reading. However, there has been a slight decrease in the proportion of pupils reaching the higher standard in writing and mathematics so that it is now closer to the national average. ◼ School leaders are aware of historic gaps in the attainment of some groups of pupils, including boys, disadvantaged pupils and those who have low prior attainment. Leaders’ actions to address this are showing signs of success. ◼ Boys now do equally as well as girls in reading but girls remain ahead of boys in writing

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Outcomes for pupils Good

at the higher standard. Girls are now ahead of boys in mathematics except at the higher standard where boys remain ahead of girls. Disadvantaged pupils do less well than other pupils but school information shows that some of these pupils have additional needs that prevent them from learning as well as other pupils. ◼ Pupils thoroughly enjoy reading, and have secure skills, including phonics, that help them to read unfamiliar words. They have very well-developed comprehension skills and so they have a good understanding of what they read. By the end of Year 2, they read fluently and confidently for both pleasure and to find information. ◼ Work in pupils’ books shows that while most write competently across a range of subjects, some have a legacy of weak basic skills. They do not always punctuate or spell as accurately as they should and this slows their progress. Some handwriting is poorly formed and their work is not presented as well as it should be.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

◼ Most pupils have a good grasp of number that they use to solve written problems. They enjoy their mathematics lessons. However, the level of work in some classes is too easy and so pupils, particularly those who are more able, do not progress as strongly as they should. ◼ There are few pupils with SEND, and so their outcomes as a group cannot be evaluated against national outcomes. However, work in their books shows that they make good progress from their relative starting points. ◼ Pupils’ outcomes in subjects other than English and mathematics are strong, particularly in dance and music. The quality of artwork on display in classrooms and around the school is impressive.

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Early years provision Good

◼ Children in the early years are very well prepared for Year 1. They make good progress across all areas of learning because teaching is good. Teachers have a good understanding of children’s learning needs and present activities that help them to learn and develop. ◼ The early years area is bright and attractive and presents a delightful environment, both indoors and outside. It is very well structured, with good-quality equipment and resources that inspire and engage children. Staff provide various activities, some of which children select for themselves, and some of which are directed by adults. ◼ Outcomes for children are good. Children write simple sentences most of which are correctly punctuated with spellings that are accurate or mainly plausible. They enjoy writing, and the more able children write stories or recount some of the activities that they have carried out. During the inspection, children were spotting birds and writing

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Early years provision Good

about their own particular favourites. ◼ In mathematics, children have already gained a good grasp of number. They count accurately to 20 and sometimes beyond, and they add together pairs of numbers to make and recognise number bonds. Some children are already adept in counting in twos, fives and tens. ◼ Teachers know children well. They observe their learning and their play and so plan experiences and activities that build on and extend what the children already know. This leads to good and sometimes better progress for children. ◼ Teachers are skilled in looking for opportunities for children to apply their learning to different contexts. For example, children cut out triangles, circles and rectangles to create pictures of birds. They added colour and decoration to create some delightful images of birds while extending their understanding of two-dimensional shapes. ◼ Children behave well in the early years. They have a good understanding of right and

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Early years provision Good

wrong and become quite indignant if someone does not take the right action. They get on very well together, sharing and taking turns. They speak to adults with confidence and show a wide vocabulary. Adults provide a range of experiences that capture children’s imaginations and which promote their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively. ◼ The early years leader has a clear understanding of the strengths of provision and has plans in place to enhance further the quality of education provided in the early years. She knows that not all adults are skilled in observing and recording children’s learning. She is also aware that there are a few occasions when children spend too long without adult intervention and so their progress slows.

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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@buryfields.hants.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 7 February 2018

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Information about this school

◼ The school is smaller than most primary schools, and some pupils are taught in mixed- age classes. There is provision for early years in the Reception classes. ◼ There have been some changes to staffing since the previous inspection. The headteacher was appointed in September 2018. Some leaders have changed their roles. ◼ A significant proportion of pupils attending the school are from service families. Pupil mobility is high all year round. ◼ The proportion of pupils with SEND is lower than found in most schools. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is also lower than found in most schools.

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Information about this inspection

◼ Inspectors observed pupils working in all classes. Some teaching was observed jointly with the headteacher. Inspectors looked at work in pupils’ books and they listened to pupils reading in Year 2. They observed pupils’ behaviour in class, in the playground and as they moved around the school. ◼ Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and some members of the senior leadership team. They met with four governors, including the chair of the governing body. A telephone discussion was held with an adviser from the local authority. ◼ Inspectors looked at a range of documentation, including the school’s own self- evaluation and the plans they have in place for further improvement. They looked at information about pupils’ behaviour and outcomes, as well as minutes from governing body meetings. Inspectors considered a range of documentation relating to child protection and safeguarding. ◼ Inspectors took into account the views of parents by considering the 66 responses to

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Information about this inspection

the online survey and 65 free-text responses. They also spoke to parents informally at the start of the school day. Staff views were considered by evaluating the 25 responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Joy Considine, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Judith O’Hare 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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