The Mary Towerton School At Studley Green

Inspection of The Mary Towerton School At Studley Green Water End Road, Studley Green, Stokenchurch, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire HP14 3XN

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good 1–2 October 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like coming to school. They know that their teachers care for them and want them to do well. Teachers and pupils get on well together and staff know the pupils well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Teachers expect pupils to work hard in lessons. However, pupils do not always achieve as well as they should. This is because teaching does not routinely build on what pupils already know or can do. Sometimes pupils find work too hard, particularly pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This hampers their achievement as they rely too much on staff support.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. Teachers deal quickly and appropriately with poor behaviour so that pupils’ learning is not interrupted. Pupils are kind to each other and enjoy playing with friends from different year groups.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and safe in school. There is always a member of staff to talk to if they are worried about something. Pupils say that bullying doesn’t happen very often, but when it does staff sort it out quickly. Playtimes and lunchtimes are well organised and there are lots of different activities for pupils to do. Pupils enjoy taking part in the clubs on offer, such as football and gardening club. They also enjoy taking part in special events, such as harvest festival.

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better?

The interim headteacher and deputy headteacher have accurately identified the areas of the school which need to be improved. Some subjects are not planned well enough. Curriculum plans do not make clear to teachers exactly what to teach and in what order. They do not include the knowledge that pupils need to help them know more and remember more as they progress. This means that pupils do not achieve as well as they could.

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better?

Leaders have ensured that work is underway to improve the planning of the curriculum and to ensure that staff receive the training that they need. However, there has not been enough time for all their actions in this area to have the required impact.

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better?

Leaders have improved the behaviour of pupils at the school so that they are now more motivated to learn. However, occasionally pupils become distracted when lessons are not sequenced well.

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better?

Most pupils are successful in the phonics screening check by the end of Year 1. However, there is not yet a consistent way of teaching reading across the school. Reading plans do not sequence the learning effectively enough to build on what pupils already know or can do. Some pupils, particularly those with SEND, do not receive the support they need to become fluent readers. They continue to struggle with their reading as insufficient support is given to them. Pupils with SEND also 1–2 October 2019

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often struggle to remember what they have been taught in other subjects because teaching is not adapted well enough for them.

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Teachers do not give pupils access to enough high-quality books to stretch and challenge their learning. Leaders have not ensured that teachers read to their pupils regularly and it is not clear which books are expected to be read to the pupils in each class.

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This year, leaders have changed the way that mathematics is taught. This gives pupils more opportunities to solve problems. Teachers have recently received training in mathematics to improve their knowledge of the subject. However, there has not been time to see the impact of this yet.

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The science curriculum is more effective than other subjects because teachers’ planning clearly identifies what pupils need to know in each topic. Teachers help pupils to develop their scientific knowledge. However, teaching does not challenge pupils enough in order to develop their understanding in depth.

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Pupils take on a range of helpful jobs around the school. For example, pupils can join the school council or become a play leader. Pupils understand how to be healthy and enjoy finding out what is happening in the world, for example through watching news clips.

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Children are happy and safe in the early years. Staff help children to learn to read, write and count well. Children play happily together and develop positive attitudes to their learning. Staff develop strong relationships with the children and care for them well. Staff have high expectations of how children behave, and routines have been established quickly.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff have regular training and updates which increase their understanding of how to keep pupils safe. They know what to do if a child is at risk and report concerns quickly.

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Safeguarding

Pupils say that they feel safe in school and trust staff to look after them. They learn how to stay safe in lessons and in assemblies. For example, they know how to stay safe on the road.

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Safeguarding

Leaders take appropriate action if they have a concern about a child. They work well with the local authority and other agencies to get the support that pupils need. 1–2 October 2019

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The plans to teach reading do not identify the sequences of learning necessary to ensure that all pupils achieve well. Leaders should ensure that teachers receive training to help them to sequence the reading curriculum effectively. Leaders also need to ensure that high-quality texts are used to extend pupils’ learning further.  In most subjects the curriculum is not well sequenced. Leaders need to improve curriculum planning so that the sequencing of knowledge during teaching improves and pupils know and remember more over time.  Pupils with SEND do not achieve well in all areas of the curriculum. This is because the curriculum is not adapted well enough to meet their needs. Leaders should ensure that teachers adapt the curriculum so that pupils with SEND develop their knowledge, skills and abilities to apply what they know and can do with increasing fluency and independence.  Leaders need to ensure that teachers develop the skills to be able to implement

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

and deliver a coherently planned curriculum in all subjects by providing training to develop teachers’ pedagogy and subject knowledge.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you’re not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

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. 1–2 October 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10111100 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Bernadette Allison

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School details

Date of previous inspection 4–5 June 2015

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Information about this school

 An interim headteacher joined the school in April 2019, initially for the summer term to cover the absence of the substantive headteacher.  In September 2019, the deputy headteacher and three new teachers joined the school.  The interim headteacher was not available during the inspection, as she was recruiting teachers for Buckinghamshire County Council.  The school is expanding and currently has four classes from Reception Year to Year 5.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 During the inspection, inspectors met with the deputy headteacher and other leaders, pupils and members of the governing body. Inspectors also spoke to representatives of the local authority and to the interim headteacher on the phone.  Reading, mathematics, geography and science were considered as part of this 1–2 October 2019

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inspection. Inspection activities included discussions with subject leaders, scrutinising curriculum planning, lesson visits and discussions with pupils about their learning.  Inspectors met with the designated safeguarding leader to check that safeguarding procedures and processes were effective. Inspectors also checked the single central record to ensure that recruitment checks on staff have taken place.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at playtime and as they moved around the school.

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Inspection team

Mo Galway, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Clare Haines Ofsted Inspector 1–2 October 2019

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regulates and inspects to 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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