Dairy Meadow Primary School

DAIRY MEADOW PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 7 th – 9 th February 2000

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DAIRY MEADOW PRIMARY SCHOOL

Inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

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DAIRY MEADOW PRIMARY SCHOOL

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 1

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Nursery, Infant and Junior

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Swift Road Southall Middlesex

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 15 th – 18 th January 1996 Dairy Meadow Primary School - 2

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Team members

Tom Shine Registered inspector Christine Haggerty Lay inspector Andy Bond Team inspector Margaret Hart Team inspector

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Team members

PPI Group Ltd 7 Hill Street Bristol BS1 5RW

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Team members

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to:

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Team members

The Registrar Inspection Quality Division

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Team members

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Dairy Meadow Primary School - 3

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 4 - 7

Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL 8 - 12

By age eleven, attainment in English is above average, and is well above average in mathematics and science. Overall, teaching is very good, with almost 90 per cent being good or better. Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with each other; all pupils are highly motivated to learn. The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are soundly supported by the governors in managing the school. The school cultivates pupils’ personal development very well. The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and for those pupils who are learning English as an additional language is of a very high standard.

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WHAT COULD BE IMPROVED 12 - 13

The use of information and communication technology, to support other areas of the curriculum. Pupils’ concentration is sometimes adversely affected by: 1) some teaching sessions being too long; 2) the screen doors between adjacent classrooms not providing adequate sound-proofing.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

The school is a large two-form entry primary school with nearly 400 pupils on roll, the balance between boys and girls being fairly even. In addition, there is a nursery catering for 100 children on a part-time basis. The school is over-subscribed, with pupils coming from a variety of backgrounds and about half coming from outside the catchment area. In the last school year, pupil mobility was 20 per cent. Three-quarters of pupils are from ethnic minorities, but only 37 pupils, less than 8 per cent, qualify for additional help in acquiring English. Although the percentage of pupils on the special needs register (11 per cent) appears to be below the national average, this reflects the school’s policy on identifying and supporting pupils early before their special needs develop. There are only two pupils with statements of special educational needs (SEN). About 25 per cent of pupils are known to

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

be eligible for free school meals, which is broadly average. When children enter the nursery, their attainment is below average, with a high proportion having little or no English. On entry to reception, their attainment has improved to the point where it is only marginally below the local education authority average. The school recently has been invited by the Department for Education and Employment to apply for the status of Beacon School.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

Dairy Meadow is a very effective school achieving high standards. Very good teaching and the commitment of the headteacher and staff, supported by the Governors, to high achievement, contribute substantially to these standards. The school provides very good value for money.

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What the school does well

§ By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in mathematics and science. § Overall, teaching is very good, with almost 90 per cent being good or better. § Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with each other; all pupils are highly motivated to learn. § The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are soundly supported by the governors in managing the school. § The school cultivates pupils’ personal development very well. § The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and for those pupils who are learning English as an additional language is of a very high standard.

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What could be improved

§ The use of information and communication technology, to support other areas of the curriculum. § Pupils’ concentration is sometimes adversely affected by: 1) some teaching sessions being too long; 2) the screen doors between adjacent classrooms not providing adequate sound-proofing. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

Since the last inspection in January 1996, the school has made significant improvement in all of the action points identified. The school has developed and strengthened the role of the subject co- ordinators and the school’s curriculum plans have improved so that pupils’ learning develops progressively. The curriculum is now broad and balanced; for example, information and communication technology now meets statutory requirements and the policy on religious education is being fully implemented with appropriate emphasis on the world’s great faiths. Teaching has improved most significantly and is now much better than it was at the last inspection. This has a positive effect on standards which continue to rise year on year in English, mathematics and science.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The quality of provision for pupils with special educational needs, which was already very good, is now excellent. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 5

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by 11 year olds based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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Key

Science A A A A very high well above average above average average below average well below average A* A B C D E

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Key

These are very good results. Compared to schools with similar intakes, they are well above average in all three subjects and in mathematics they are in the highest 5 per cent of schools nationally. Evidence from this inspection confirms pupils’ high standards at age eleven. When children enter the nursery, their attainment is below average. By the age of seven, inspectors find they have made very good progress and attainment is above average in reading and writing and in mathematics. Reading and writing for 7 year olds is better than the results in the 1999 statutory tests indicate because the school is now in the second year of the National Literacy Strategy and this has improved reading and given added structure to pupils’ writing. Standards of singing are good; standards have improved in information and communication technology and are now satisfactory. The school is making good progress towards its targets for pupils in Years 2 and 6, which are sufficiently

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Excellent. Pupils are highly motivated and interested in their lessons. They generally concentrate very well and enjoy school.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Behaviour is exemplary at all times.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Pupils have very good relationships with each other and with all members of staff. They willingly take on responsibility in the daily life of the school.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Just average. The main cause of absence is due to holidays being taken in term time.

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Aspect Comment

Pupils’ attitudes and behaviour, their personal development and very good relationships contribute very significantly to their effective learning.

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Teaching of pupils: Aged up to 5 years Aged 5-7 years Aged 7-11 years

Lessons seen overall Good Good Very good Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 6 Teaching is much better than it was at the last inspection when 30 per cent was unsatisfactory. In this inspection, the overall quality of teaching is judged to be very good. In the lessons seen, just under 90 per cent was at least good, of which 36 per cent was very good. The rest was satisfactory. Nearly 70 per cent of teaching for the under-fives, both in the nursery and in reception, was good, with just over 30 per cent being satisfactory. The teaching of 5 to 7 year olds was good in 75 per cent of lessons, including those for literacy and numeracy, with over 12 per cent being very good and the same proportion being satisfactory. Teaching has particularly improved for the 7 to 11 year olds

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Teaching of pupils: Aged up to 5 years Aged 5-7 years Aged 7-11 years

since the last inspection. It was good in 41 per cent of lessons, with 53 per cent being very good. The teaching of literacy and numeracy skills for this age group was also very good. Homework is used well to reinforce learning.

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Teaching of pupils: Aged up to 5 years Aged 5-7 years Aged 7-11 years

In the best lessons, teachers’ very good subject knowledge and understanding of methods and strategies, for example, in the literacy and numeracy sessions, captures the attention of the class for the whole of the lessons. Very good planning ensures that pupils are fully aware of what is to be learned and very effective, brisk questioning, reflects teachers’ high expectations, challenging pupils to think at speed and build well on work previously learned. In these lessons, teachers have very good management strategies and expectations of behaviour. All pupils, including those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language, respond well to this exciting teaching, which creates a stimulating learning environment and they make very good progress. Teachers have improved their knowledge and skills in information and communication technology (ICT) since the last inspection. The teaching of the subject by the co-ordinator is good.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Very good. The National literacy and numeracy strategies have been successfully introduced and an impressive ICT suite has recently been opened. The curriculum is enriched by a wide range of visits and visitors and by a number of outside school activities. The school has plans to develop the use of ICT to support learning in other subjects.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Excellent. The school has very effective procedures to identify and support pupils early. Pupils are very well supported and they make very good progress.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language This is very impressive. These pupils are supported very well in their access to the full curriculum and make very good progress in acquiring English.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Overall, very good. Moral and social development are very good and cultural development is excellent. Music makes a positive contribution to social, cultural and spiritual development, religious education making a very effective contribution to cultural education.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils Outstanding. This is an exceptionally caring school.

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Aspect Comment

The school provides a very effective curriculum that fully meets statutory requirements and places strong emphasis on the development of pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills. Provision for ICT is good, with the school well placed to develop pupils’ skills further following the recent opening of the ICT suite. Provision for music, especially singing, is good, the school using the expertise of some members of staff effectively to support those less secure in the subject. Some lessons in the afternoon are too long to retain pupils’ full attention for the whole of the sessions. The school does its utmost to ensure the welfare of its pupils; for example, the headteacher and deputy head regularly supervise break-times to monitor their welfare.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff The headteacher and deputy head provide very effective leadership and management, their skills complementing each other very well in improving standards in teaching and learning. They ensure the curriculum is effectively evaluated and teaching is sensitively monitored. The headteacher, deputy head and senior staff form a strong, effective team that promotes learning, creating an excellent ethos and high staff morale. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities The governors are supportive and fulfil their statutory responsibilities soundly. They are interested in the work of the school and are committed to developing their expertise. The school’s evaluation of its performance This is very strong. The school plans very well and sets challenging targets, based on a thorough analysis of previous pupil performance. There is very detailed monitoring of academic and personal

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Aspect Comment

development of pupils. The strategic use of resources Very good. All resources are used well, including funds for pupils with special educational needs and those from the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG).

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Aspect Comment

The headteacher, deputy head and senior staff, supported by the governors, provide very clear educational direction for the work and development of the school, creating a very effective, yet improving, learning environment. The aims of the school, which include, ” creating and sustaining a disciplined and ordered environment in which each child may work to fulfil his or her potential” and “creating a school in which everybody is valued and is able to contribute fully” are met very successfully. The school applies the principles of best value well.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Children like school. • They make good progress. • Behaviour is good. • The school is approachable. • Teaching is good. • High expectations. • Works closely with parents. • Well managed and led. • Helps pupils become mature and responsible. • The range of activities outside school. • The right amount of homework, some parents feeling there is insufficient in Year 6. • Information about progress.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

Inspectors strongly support parents’ positive views. They find homework is similar to that given in other good primary schools, is consistent with government guidelines and is appropriate. At the meeting, parents were more positive about how the school kept them informed about their children’s progress. They felt written reports were good and informative. The consistent use of specific targets for improvement would sharpen the reports. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 8

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

1. When children enter the nursery their attainment is below average. They achieve well, however, and by age seven their results in the most recent National Curriculum tests are in line with the national average in reading and writing and above average in mathematics. When compared to schools with similar intakes, the results in reading and writing are above average and are well above average in mathematics. Inspection findings confirm the good standards in mathematics, but finds, that standards in reading and writing are above average, better than the test results indicate. The school attributes this improvement to the impact of the National Literacy Strategy, which is now well into its second year in the school. The school believes it has helped to improve reading and has improved pupils’ writing in use of spelling, vocabulary, punctuation and use of grammar. The impact has been most marked in Key Stage 1, as many of the pupils have been

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

exposed to the English language for a relatively short period of time. Pupils’ standards in science are in line with national expectations, broadly reflecting the teachers’ assessments in 1999.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

2. Throughout Key Stage 2, pupils, including those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language, continue to achieve well and by age 11 the standards overall in the National Curriculum tests are above average in English and well above average in mathematics and science. Compared to schools with similar intakes, standards are well above average. Since 1996, there has been a general upward trend in all three subjects, broadly mirroring the national trend. Inspection findings reflect these high standards.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

3. All pupils benefit from the good teaching throughout the school which, together with their positive attitudes and behaviour in response to this good teaching, fosters a very purposeful working atmosphere in the classrooms. Frequent opportunities for speaking and listening allow pupils to develop and practise these skills. In Year 2, in the literacy hour, pupils confidently identify the author and illustrator of their set text Rascally Cake, describing the main characters in the text using appropriate words and phrases. In religious education, these pupils listen carefully to their teacher and then confidently describe the key features of the Chinese New Year and the various animals represented in illustrations. This confidence and ease increases as they progress through the school so that in Year 5, in studying the poem Dawn is a Fisherman by Raymond Barrow, pupils are very keen to reveal their knowledge and understanding of terms such as

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

similes, metaphors, figures of speech and personification. One pupil confidently explains very clearly, “living on the edge” means “living dangerously” . By age 11, pupils skilfully get to the heart of the meaning of sections of Dickens’ Nicholas Nickelby. They consider the description of the forlorn pupils at Dotheboy’s Hall, one boy asking “why does Dickens describe the boys’ faces as pale?” Many suggestions are put forward until a girl suggests: “You have to understand these children were not pale with fright. Their faces were sickly looking because they were hungry and probably ill.” Many such confident, thoughtful insights are heard.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

4. There is a strong emphasis on literacy, supporting progress effectively in other subjects, such as science, religious education and design and technology. The pupils are very keen to read and reading skills for pupils aged both 7 and 11, overall, are above average and, in many instances, especially in Year 6, are very high. In Year 2, teachers remark that progress in reading is very noticeable and attribute this, in part, to the introduction of the Literacy Strategy. All pupils enjoy reading and, as they progress through the school, benefit from the slots in the timetable giving opportunities for quiet reading sessions. Pupils complete book reviews regularly which are monitored well by the teachers. The library is used well and general research skills are well- developed, although pupils’ research would benefit from greater use of ICT. Standards in writing are good overall, with the work of some higher attaining pupils being exceptional. By age seven,

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

pupils’ writing is well organised, with pupils writing complete sentences using full stops and capital letters correctly. Spelling is largely accurate. Higher attaining pupils write well- constructed sentences that are developed logically. At age eleven, pupils in the higher set Dairy Meadow Primary School - 9 paraphrase passages well from Nicholas Nickelby, dissecting its meaning effectively through discussion and rewriting in a style to make it more accessible to younger children. Writing is fluent and accurate, with appropriate use of punctuation, such as speech marks and exclamation marks. Their writing shows pupils write well for a variety of audiences and in a variety of styles. Vocabulary and use of grammar is very good. In the parallel set, pupils write well, being secure in use of grammar, punctuation and spelling. They study different genres and have good knowledge of the structure of a story focusing on characters, settings and events. Handwriting is

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

markedly less good in this set and there is inconsistency in writing in pen.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

5. Numeracy is emphasised well and pupils’ skills in numeracy support other areas of the curriculum effectively. At age seven, pupils’ attainment is above the expected standard. Most pupils have a good grasp of addition and subtraction facts and are familiar with odd and even numbers. They benefit from the emphasis the teachers place on recalling numeracy facts m e ntally and are progressing well in developing speed in this aspect. By age eleven, most pupils are very secure in their understanding and use of numeracy. They are very motivated and confident and have developed impressive speed and fluency, responding well to the challenges set by the very good teaching in this year group. For example, they confidently add and subtract 3 digit figures mentally and can explain clearly the strategies they use. Pupils are comfortable in using mathematical language and concepts. Pupils in the higher set know the degrees in the angles of

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

a triangle and a rectangle, measuring them to the nearest degree, and are familiar with concepts such as obtuse and acute. The parallel class is equally at ease responding to lively quick-fire questioning from their teacher. They use all 4 operations to solve word problems involving length and use maps effectively to calculate distances using metric measures. The pupils in both classes are highly motivated, working well in groups and responding energetically to exceptionally good teaching.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

6. At the age of seven, pupils achieve standards in science broadly in line with what is expected nationally. By age eleven, standards have risen to well above average due to very good teaching. At age eleven, pupils have very good understanding of scientific concepts, with literacy continuing to support learning well in the subject. For example, in considering the movement of the planet Earth, a higher attaining pupil describes the process as “taking one year for the Earth to go around the Sun once. – We say it makes one orbit”. The work of the majority of the pupils is of a consistently good standard. All attainment targets are fully covered. Pupils are very secure in the subject, displaying very good use of language in their written descriptions as in this piece on micro-organisms: “Compost is full of nutrients that living plants need to grow. It is made by bacteria and other creatures breaking down dead material”. All pupils enjoy science and work

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

Overall, teaching is very good, with almost 90 per cent being good or better.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

7. Teaching is good for the under-fives and for pupils aged 5 to 7. In the 7 to 11 year age groups the overall quality of teaching is very good. This represents a marked improvement in teaching since the last inspection, particularly for the older pupils in the school. All teachers are committed to high standards. This is evident from their planning and the effective way they work in harmony with support assistants. In the nursery, for example, the teachers and nursery assistants provide carefully planned opportunities in a relaxed and sociable atmosphere. This good planning, allied to effective team-work, is present throughout the school, class teachers working well with all support staff, including those for SEN and staff funded by EMAG. In Year 6, in a literacy lesson, the teacher consolidates pupils’ knowledge of different genres, setting clear objectives, so that the class is in no doubt of the first task to be done: “let’s find out what reading

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

target we have achieved in terms of reading different genres”. In the group sessions, the support assistant from EMAG is well prepared for the tasks and gives effective support to a group of pupils, recently arrived in the country, with English as an additional language. In these well- planned lessons, there is a variety of activities to fully engage pupils’ attention and the snappy pace ensures their concentration never wavers. Literacy and numeracy skills are well taught and teachers are confident in the subjects, having introduced the National Strategies well.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

8. Teachers have high expectations that their pupils will achieve of their best and these are often reflected in their very good questioning. The best teachers use these questions very effectively in a number of ways. For example, they establish pupils’ recall of previous learning at the Dairy Meadow Primary School - 10 beginning of the lesson by getting a fix on their current knowledge and understanding in the context of previous teaching. This day-to-day assessment requires flexibility from the teacher, as was seen in a mathematics lesson in Year 1. On this occasion, the teacher modified the lesson plan for the week, after assessing that the pupils had not made sufficient progress, and decided to reinforce and consolidate the concepts of tens and units. In this way she rightly judged that pupils would not get left behind or proceed with shaky concepts. Good questioning is also present when teachers challenge pupils to examine the subject matter in front of them and

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

interpret its meaning. In this way they extend pupils’ understanding and teachers are able to evaluate pupils’ progress effectively. A small group in Year 6 read the text of Nicholas Nickelby: “Two or three hands went to two or three eyes when Squeers said this”. The group is about to move on, but the teacher immediately asks, “What does that mean?” The group pause, forced to think and examine the meaning and then almost unanimously respond: “ they’re crying!” pleased at having solved the puzzle posed by the teacher.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

9. Teachers generally have good and often very good subject knowledge. Where a teacher has a particular strength this expertise is used effectively to support other teachers as well as pupils. This happens in ICT lessons, where the co-ordinator works alongside class teachers, developing and reinforcing teachers’ subject knowledge, as well as providing a worthwhile experience to pupils. In music, teachers with expertise, including the co-ordinator, teach singing throughout the school, whilst in Year 6 the two class teachers interchange to teach each other’s class for music and French respectively. This represents a good use of resources and has a positive effect on pupils’ learning. All teachers have good management strategies and expectations of behaviour.

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By age eleven, attainment in English is above average and is well above average in

10. Teaching has greatly improved since the last inspection, about half of the class teachers being new to the school since then. At the last inspection there were weaknesses in Key Stage 2 whereas now teaching in this key stage is a strength of the school. The school applies the principles of best value in appointing staff, the best candidate for the job being appointed, who is usually experienced and is not necessarily the cheapest. Regular monitoring of teaching by the deputy head and co-ordinators also takes place and constructive feedback from such monitoring contributes positively to the raising of standards. Homework is used well to reinforce learning in school.

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Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with

each other; all pupils are highly motivated to learn.

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Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with

11. The school encourages “ pupils to take pride in their work, aim for the highest possible standards and derive satisfaction for their own achievements and achievements of others”. The school successfully meets these aims in practice. Throughout the school, there is a strong ethos for hard work and co-operation. In an art lesson in Year 2, pupils work with precision to achieve clear lines with primary colours in the style of Mondrian. The tasks have been well structured by the teacher to make pupils think about what colours to use next to each other. They respond very well and enjoy the tasks. In a mathematics lesson in Year 2, pupils respond very positively to the probing questions from their teacher. They enjoy rising to the challenges the mental mathematics questions give them, working in a very effective learning environment in which tangible learning is taking place.

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Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with

12. Parents are very pleased with pupils’ behaviour. It is not hard to see why. Behaviour is outstanding in lessons and in and around the school, including the playground. At lunchtime, pupils are very well behaved and are happy to talk about the school to visitors. They are very clear about the school’s rules for behaviour and know what to do in the rare instances of bullying.

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Pupils’ behaviour is excellent; they have very good relationships with their teachers and with

13. Pupils work very well together. They share equipment patiently, such as computers in the ICT suite. Older pupils talk in a mature way in class groups and listen attentively to each other’s point of view. Teachers respect their opinions and this fosters pupils’ confidence. The very good relationships with their teachers encourage pupils to work hard and to answer confidently, knowing all view points are respected. As they progress through the school, pupils take on more responsibility and are increasingly involved in the daily routines of the school, such as acting as monitors. Pupils with special educational needs and those learning English are very well integrated, reflecting the strong ethos of equal opportunities in the school. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 11

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

soundly supported by the governors in managing the school.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

14. The headteacher and deputy head lead the school very well and are clearly committed to achieving high standards. They achieve a good, complementary balance in the division of responsibilities. They monitor the National Curriculum test results and the results of non- statutory tests and track pupils’ progress effectively. For example, the current Year 6 is the only year group in the school that has always been under-subscribed. There has been a lot of turbulence, with pupils both leaving and entering the school at different stages, and this has led to a relatively small number of pupils in the cohort who joined the school in nursery. Because of the potential impact on standards, the headteacher and deputy decided to arrange the year group in sets based on prior attainment for literacy and numeracy. This arrangement has had a positive impact upon standards.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

15. Monitoring of teaching is undertaken regularly and is a strength of the school. The headteacher delegates responsibility for this to the deputy head and subject co-ordinators, whilst he works alongside teachers in a supportive role, informally monitoring their performance. This year the priorities for monitoring are the teaching of Literacy and Numeracy. He has also adopted a policy of covering for staff absences during which he takes the opportunity to monitor standards in the classrooms. This has the added benefit of placing the school in a strong financial position by reducing reliance on supply cover. The headteacher views this as a good example of best value principles, with which inspectors agree. There are annual professional interviews for teachers, in advance of which pro-formas are completed and in which targets are set and then reviewed. Continuing professional development is strongly encouraged. There is an easy relationship

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

between the headteacher, deputy head and staff and, not surprisingly, morale is high. Responsibility for the oversight of the curriculum is delegated to the deputy head who manages it very well, having a clear picture of the curriculum. There were weaknesses identified in the last inspection report which have all been satisfactorily addressed, the curriculum now being well balanced. Planning of the curriculum is based on a thorough assessment of needs and priorities. This year, for example, the headteacher and deputy have decided to implement a programme of team teaching for ICT to improve both teachers’ and pupils’ knowledge and skills in the subject. This aim is being effectively achieved.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

16. The governing body is supportive and is keen to fulfil its statutory responsibilities to the best of its ability; they are appropriately involved in the development of the school management plan in which relevant priorities have been identified and appropriate targets set. There are committees for the main areas of responsibility and governors attend training sessions provided by the school on educational issues before most full governing body meetings. The governors are fully committed to the principles of best value. Parents are very supportive of the leadership and management of the school.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

The school cultivates pupils’ personal development very well.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

17. Pupils’ personal development is promoted very effectively, especially through the school’s provision for their moral, social and cultural development. The school has a clear moral code and sets a high standard of behaviour, all pupils responding accordingly. They are very aware of the school’s rules, one of the aims of the school being “to encourage all pupils to behave with courtesy, care and respect both towards one another and to all adults”. Staff act as good role models and treat pupils in a consistent manner. The emphasis is on reward rather than sanctions, as the staff handbook makes clear: ”Punishment should be avoided; rather we should aim to reward the children for their good efforts”. This dictum is followed in practice, as positive values are actively encouraged. Assemblies are used to give moral messages about issues such as stealing and jealousy. There is a strong sense of community in the school. Relationships

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

between pupils and between pupils and adults are very positive and parents are very supportive. The pupils’ social development is also enhanced by raising their awareness that the community extends beyond the school boundaries. Visits are made to old people’s homes and collections are made for charities and natural disasters, such as the appeal for the victims of the Indian Cyclone. Pupils show a sense of being fully aware of others, readily saying good morning and holding the door open to visitors. Singing together, in classes and in the choir, enhances their spiritual and social development as they are united in enjoying a shared social experience. A Dairy Meadow Primary School - 12 wide-range of activities outside school foster pupils’ personal development, including dance, music and a book club. A range of sporting activities, such as hockey and gymnastics, help to develop team spirit.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

18. The school’s promotion of pupils’ personal development through teaching them to appreciate their own cultural traditions, as well as the diversity and richness of other cultures, is outstanding. The strong emphasis, for example, on other faiths in the teaching of religious education has a very positive influence, giving pupils insights into the customs, practices and symbolism of other religions. These are enriched by visits to places of worship and by visitors to the school representing other faiths and cultures. There is a variety of display representing a range of cultures throughout the school. The emphasis on sport, drama, dance, poetry and singing, together with numerous visits, such as to the farm, the sea-side and the post office, provide further evidence of the school’s strength in effectively promoting pupils’ cultural development.

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The headteacher and senior management team provide very effective leadership and are

19. The school’s impact on personal development through its emphasis on fostering pupils’ spirituality is sound, especially through music and literature, but this aspect is less well developed than it could be. There are, for example, missed opportunities in assemblies for reflection on the meaning and purpose of life central to all religions.

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The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and for those pupils who

are learning English as an additional language is of a very high standard.

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The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and for those pupils who

19. At the last inspection, provision for pupils with special educational needs (SEN) was very good. It is now excellent. There are very effective procedures for identifying and supporting pupils early, before they are formally at Stage 1 of the Code of Practice (COP) and before their needs develop. Very effective support for SEN pupils throughout the school ensures that they make very good progress. Many pupils are removed from the SEN register as they progress to the point where they no longer require additional support. However, the school is not slow to place a pupil on the register if it is judged necessary. For example, a pupil transferred from another school with no SEN information accompanying him. After concerns were raised from within the school he was assessed and placed at Stage 3 of the COP. The quality of support staff is very good and the quality of individual education plans is outstanding. All pupils with SEN have full

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The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and for those pupils who

20. The quality of support for those pupils supported by the Ethnic Minorities Achievement Grant (EMAG) is very high and these pupils make very good progress. The deputy head and EMAG staff, including two trained classroom assistants, work closely together. There are also highly effective bilingual assistants in the nursery and reception classes. Support is effectively targeted for literacy and numeracy. There is a good balance between support provided in class and on a withdrawal basis. Good records are kept for these pupils that are regularly updated. The school is meticulous in distinguishing the needs of EMAG children from those with SEN. Class teachers recognise that the development of both groups of these pupils is their prime responsibility and plan their work appropriately and do not rely solely on specialist staff.

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The use of information and communication technology, to support other areas of the

21. At the last inspection, the school was reported as “not yet providing a broad experience of information technology, well matched to the full National Curriculum”. Since then the general knowledge base and skill level of teachers has improved significantly, although there is still some way to go for it to be brought up to the level of the best in the school. However, the full programme of study is now being taught and statutory requirements are being met.

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The use of information and communication technology, to support other areas of the

22. Aside from the ICT lessons, there are few planned opportunities for pupils to consolidate and develop their skills and there is still insufficient use of ICT to support other subjects, especially Literacy and Numeracy in Key Stage 2. In the last report it was noted that “word-processing was under-exploited as a tool to support pupils’ drafting skills”. This criticism remains, apart from Dairy Meadow Primary School - 13 word-processing in ICT lessons. Currently, the focus is on ICT as a subject, rather than as a tool to be used to access ideas and experiences across the broader curriculum.

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too long; and 2) the screen doors between adjacent classrooms not providing adequate

23. During the inspection, some afternoon sessions were very long and even very good teaching failed to retain pupils’ attention for the whole of some of these lessons. Some science lessons, for example, were of two hours in length. The lessons began very well, with the pupils showing a high degree of commitment and interest in micro-organisms and the human skeleton, respectively. In spite of good teaching, which was well presented and lively, by teachers who have a very good range of management strategies, pupils’ concentration began to wane in the last quarter of the lessons. This adversely affected their learning, which, although good, could have been better. In ICT, lessons of similar length were observed to work well. In these lessons, with the support of the co-ordinator and after an introductory session, the class was divided into two groups, inter-changing between work in the ICT suite and work programming control

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too long; and 2) the screen doors between adjacent classrooms not providing adequate

24. Teachers manage their classes very well. However, in a minority of lessons, the noise from adjacent classrooms was sufficient to disturb the concentration of the class and their listening skills temporarily. On at least one occasion, it was difficult to hear the teacher. When pupils are working in groups, the ambient noise is less obtrusive and pupils’ concentration less affected. It is more noticeably disturbing when the teacher is addressing the whole class. The closure of the screen doors between some classrooms has only a marginal effect in deadening the sound.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

a) extend the use of information and communication technology to enable pupils to support their work in other subjects, especially Literacy and Numeracy in Key Stage 2 (paragraph 22) ;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

b) enable pupils to retain their attention throughout the whole of all lessons by: Dairy Meadow Primary School - 14 - reviewing the length of lessons on the timetable in the afternoon sessions (paragraph 23);

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

- explore ways of deadening the sound between some classrooms (paragraph 24). Dairy Meadow Primary School - 15

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 17

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

0 36 53.5 10.5 0 0 0 The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y6

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 50 398

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils eligible for free school meals NA 101 FTE means full-time equivalent.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y6

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0 2

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 0 51

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 350

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 49

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 32

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Attendance

National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 16

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 1999 34 30 64

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 28 30 32 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 27 27 29

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 86 (77) 89 (81) 95 (84) at NC level 2 or above National 82 (80) 83 (81) 87 (84)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 27 32 30 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 27 29 29

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 84 (87) 95 (88) 92 (89) at NC level 2 or above National 81 (81) 86 (85) 87 (86)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year.

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 1999 22 29 51

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 19 18 21 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 23 27 28

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 82 (83) 88 (81) 96 (93) at NC level 4 or above National 70 (65) 69 (59) 78 (69)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 12 14 15 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 13 16 14

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 49 (58) 59 (56) 57 (50) at NC level 4 or above National 68 (65) 69 (65) 75 (72) Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 17

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 4 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 9 Black – African heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group 5 Other minority ethnic groups This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 17.1 Financial year 1998/98

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 27.6

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 783353

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 11 Expenditure per pupil 2004

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 162 Balance brought forward from previous year 94753

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 121610

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1.2

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 41

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 4

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 97.5

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 9.6 FTE means full-time equivalent. Dairy Meadow Primary School - 18

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Percentage of responses in each category

Strongly agree Tend to agree Tend to disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 50 42 4 1 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 60 35 1 1 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 45 36 15 2 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 42 43 11 3 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 61 33 2 2 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 68 28 2 1 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 52 38 6 2 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 68 28 1 1 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 55 38 3 0 4

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 45 35 6 3 11

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Summary of parents’ and carers’ responses

Over 60 parents attended the meeting. Parents were very positive about most aspects of the school and inspectors strongly support these views. The two minor areas of concern, homework and, in the questionnaire, how parents are kept informed about their child’s progress, they did not find justified.

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