Erdington Hall Primary School

Inspection of a good school: Erdington Hall Primary School Ryland Road, Erdington, Birmingham, West Midlands B24 8JJ

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Outcome

Erdington Hall Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils like this happy, friendly school. They feel safe in school and trust the adults to care for them. They know what bullying is and rightly say it happens very rarely. They are confident that when they tell a teacher, it will stop.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Since her appointment, the new principal has built a strong leadership team. Leaders have high expectations and want every pupil to do well in school and broaden their horizons. Every class has an Aspirations Board. Pupils’ photographs record what they want to become in the future. Pupils in Year 6 aim to have careers such as lawyers, doctors and sky-divers.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders, supported by Summit Learning Trust leaders, have worked hard to bring about significant improvements. Pupils learn about all subjects in the national curriculum and standards in reading, writing and mathematics have risen.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The majority of parents and carers are pleased with the school and say their children come to school happily and feel safe in school. Behaviour in lessons and at breaktimes is good. Pupils play well together. Play leaders in Years 4 and 5 help younger pupils. The playground has designated play areas. The lunchtime fun club, run by learning mentors, gives pupils a quiet indoor space to enjoy.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Children in Reception and Nursery get off to a good start. They enjoy a language rich environment where they can be curious and experience new opportunities. Children enjoy writing lists in the writing area. They share books in the cosy book corner and outside they learn about numbers as they jump from one space to another. They excitedly gave the principal the birthday cards and gifts they had made for her.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Leaders have recently reviewed their early reading curriculum. They work with a local English hub to enhance staff’s knowledge and understanding. The teaching of phonics has 8–9 January 2020

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improved and is now more consistent across classes. Pupils enjoy reading and become more confident and fluent over time. Reading books match the letters and sounds pupils know. Pupils who find learning to read more difficult quickly receive support. This structured approach is increasing the number of pupils in Year 1 who achieve the expected standard in phonics.

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Pupils enjoy books. The school library, designed by pupils, is a special place. It can be a magical forest or Christmas grotto and changes throughout the year. Pupils visit every week to read, enjoy stories, and choose books for the classroom or to take home. Pupils can become library monitors, who share books with others at breaktimes.

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Leaders have designed a strong curriculum with topics that excite pupils. Carefully structured plans develop skills and knowledge in a sequence and the staff ensure that learning builds over time. Leaders and staff are successful in ensuring that pupils achieve well. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Staff know what they need to cover to make progress.

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Leaders have well-thought-out plans for science. Pupils enjoy their lessons. They use and understand scientific vocabulary well. For example, Year 6 could explain the human circulatory system in detail. Teachers follow curriculum plans and this is ensuring that standards in science are improving.

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Leaders from Summit Learning Trust have worked with school staff to design a strong mathematics curriculum. Pupils develop a knowledge of key skills. They explain their understanding and apply reasoning skills well when problem solving. Staff teach mathematical vocabulary and talk in lessons is a key feature of learning. Pupils who are less confident in mathematics receive support swiftly. They said this helps them to feel more confident and ready to tackle new work. Pupils revisit prior learning through ‘connect’ questions, practising learning from the last lesson, last week, last month or last year.

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Behaviour in lessons is good. Pupils listen to each other’s ideas and work well individually, in pairs or in small groups. Leaders have reviewed behaviour policies. Staff apply rewards and sanctions consistently. Pupils respond well to this positive approach and high expectations. Attendance is improving.

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Pupils experience a wide range of clubs and visits. They have visits from theatre groups, poets and athletes. Pupils learn to play the drums and enjoy the weekly visits from a professional singing group. Pupils in Year 6 work with members of Shakespeare’s Birthplace Trust and present to groups of the public on site. Pupils in Year 6 go on a residential trip to Wales which contributes well to their personal development. Pupils support a range of charities, including collecting food for a local food bank at harvest.

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Staff enjoy working in school and feel valued by leaders. Staff who are new to teaching value the support and training they have received. 8–9 January 2020

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and staff know their pupils and families well. Staff know what signs to look out for and who to speak to if they have concerns. Communication between staff and safeguarding leaders is strong. Learning mentors offer effective support for vulnerable pupils. Leaders use external agencies well.

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Safeguarding

Pupils know how to keep themselves safe. They learn about internet safety, stranger danger, fire and road safety. Visitors from a local project to support families against youth crime lead assemblies or visit classes, to talk about keeping safe and issues that might affect the local area.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that all staff receive quality training and pre-employment checks have taken place.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have recently developed a more consistent approach to the teaching of phonics. They recognise, rightly, that there is still scope to raise standards further in phonics. This has resulted in more pupils confidently decoding words and learning to read quickly. Leaders should now further enhance provision so even more pupils achieve at and beyond the expected standard in key stage 1.  Leaders recognise that there is still work to be done to continue improving the school’s curriculum. Leaders aim to design a curriculum that is well planned for all pupils and builds progressively over time. This helps develop pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding so they know and remember more. Leaders should maintain and build upon recent improvements in standards by ensuring that the curriculum continues to flourish.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called a section 8 inspection of a good school or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that the school could now be better than good or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 24–25 May 2016. 8–9 January 2020

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How can I feed back my views?

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 are the school and you are 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. 8–9 January 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10132692 Type of school Primary

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School details

Date of previous inspection 24–25 May 2016

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Information about this school

 A new principal and assistant principal were appointed in January 2019.  The school is part of the Summit Learning Trust.  The school provides a breakfast club.  The school has a Nursery class for three-year-olds who attend in the mornings and/or afternoons.

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Information about this inspection

 I met with the principal, vice and assistant principals, other leaders within the school and teaching and non-teaching staff. I met with the chief executive officer and education director of the trust. I also met with the chair of the local governing body and vice chair of the board of trustees.  I met with key staff responsible for safeguarding and checked the single central record and procedures for the recruitment of staff. I discussed procedures and policies relating to safeguarding and the welfare of pupils.  In order to judge the quality of education I focused on reading, mathematics and science. I visited lessons with senior leaders, looked at pupils’ work and met with pupils 8–9 January 2020

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and staff from these lessons. I observed phonics teaching in Nursery, Reception, and Years 1 and 2 and heard pupils read from Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.  I watched pupils’ behaviour in class and at other times during the day and spoke to parents, staff and pupils about behaviour. I also met with the school council to listen to their views of the school.  I spoke with parents at the end of the school day. I considered the 43 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, and the 41 free-text responses. There were no responses to the pupil questionnaire, but I reviewed the 16 responses to the online staff questionnaire. I also spoke by telephone with a parent.  I studied the school’s website and published information.

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Inspection team

Tina Willmott, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 8–9 January 2020

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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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