Furze Infant School

FURZE INFANTS SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 18 th and 19 th January 2000

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FURZE INFANTS 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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FURZE INFANTS 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. Furze Infants School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Bennett Road Chadwell Heath Romford Essex Postcode: RM66ES

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The governing body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Mrs Glenda Paddle

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: November 1996 Furze Infants School - 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Penny Holden Registered inspector Joanna Adams Lay inspector Brian Oppenheim Team inspector Susy Powlesland Team inspector

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

360 Lee Valley Technopark Ashley Road London N17 9LN.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

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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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The Registrar Inspection Quality Division

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Furze Infants School - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6-10

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 11-15

The pupils achieve high standards in their work. Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’ enjoyment of learning, their hard work and good behaviour. Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils interesting work which makes learning fun. The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made because of the way it analyses and evaluates its work. The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted and develops their skills so that they can progress alongside others in their class

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WHAT COULD BE IMPROVED 15-16

Reading is taught well and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough information about this or the other work their children are doing. The highest achievers need more challenging work, particularly in mathematics and some aspects of English. Whilst the nursery is very successful in developing the children’s personal development and getting them to be independent, children have too few tasks that are planned to develop their skills.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Furze Infants’ School is a community school for children aged between three and seven years old. It is a very large infant school with 408 pupils on roll. There is in addition a part- time nursery for 78 children. The 14 per cent of pupils who are eligible for free school meals is close to average. Pupils come from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds and the number who speak English as an additional language is high at 7.7 per cent. Forty-two pupils are on the school’s register of special educational needs including four with a statement of need. The nature of the pupils’ special needs is very varied and includes, for example, moderate learning difficulties and speech and communication difficulties. Attainment on entry is broadly average.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

Furze is a very effective school where pupils take part in many enjoyable and interesting learning activities. The consistently good teaching ensures that pupils achieve high standards, particularly in reading and mathematics. The headteacher and deputy headteacher are able to evaluate the effectiveness of the school and make informed improvements to the curriculum. The school provides very good value for money.

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What the school does well

• The pupils achieve high standards in their work. • Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’ enjoyment of learning, their hard work and good behaviour. • Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils interesting work which makes learning fun. • The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made because of the way it analyses and evaluates its work. • The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted and develops their skills so that they can progress alongside others in their class.

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What could be improved

• Reading is taught well and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough information about this or the other work their children are doing. • The highest achievers need more challenging work, particularly in mathematics and some aspects of English. • Whilst the nursery is very successful in developing the children’s personal development and getting them to be independent, children have too few tasks that are planned to develop their skills.

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What could be improved

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

The school has made substantial improvement since the last inspection in November 1996. Teachers use questions to challenge and stretch the higher achieving pupils but in some topics in mathematics there is not enough sufficiently challenging work. Good progress has been made in both identifying and sharing good practice in teaching. Co-ordinators’ roles have developed and now include monitoring of their subject. Furze Infants School - 7

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by 7 year olds based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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STANDARDS

Performance in: all schools similar schools Key

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STANDARDS

Reading C C B B well above average above average A B Writing C D B B average below average C D Mathematics C C A A well below average E

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STANDARDS

Standards are above average in the National tests in reading and writing and well above average in mathematics where a good number of pupils gain the higher levels. Teacher assessment when pupils are seven years old shows performance in science as also very high.

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STANDARDS

Results in the national tests have risen overall over the past four years and last year the school exceeded the targets it had set for pupils. Results in writing dipped to a little below average in 1997. Mathematics results have followed national results from 1996 to 1998 but, like writing, made a big increase in 1999. Reading shows the most consistent year on year increase rising steadily from 1997 at a faster rate than the national trend. In lessons, and in the work seen in pupils’ books, standards are above average. This reflects the consistency with which teachers follow the local education authority’s mathematics and literacy schemes. The schemes have been in use for several years: as standards throughout the school continue to rise, the higher achievers are not being given sufficient work to stretch them. Handwriting is not always as good as it should be and some pupils have bad habits in holding

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STANDARDS

their pencil, which should have been corrected in the nursery.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Pupils enjoy school and are friendly, confident and independent learners always keen to take on responsibilities. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Very good: pupils know exactly what is expected of them, supported by the well-organised routines throughout the school day. Personal development and relationships Relationships between staff and pupils are a strength. From their first days in the nursery pupils are encouraged to be caring, thoughtful and independent. Attendance Satisfactory.

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Aspect Comment

Pupils have plenty of opportunities to help others and to be responsible. In the playground pupils take responsibility for playing with lonely pupils who visit the area marked as the ’friend stop’. Pupils get on well with each other and when they work in pairs do so without fuss. They have great respect for their teachers and respond well to them. Teachers are particularly strong in managing pupils quietly and calmly. Furze Infants School - 8

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

32 lessons seen overall Good Very good N/A 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.

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

Teaching in English and mathematics is very good. The school follow the local authority schemes of work closely. This allows teachers to spend time planning how to teach each lesson rather than what to teach. Literacy and numeracy skills are taught well as the schemes give good support and teachers have good expertise in mathematics, phonics and teaching reading. In other subjects, schemes of work provide good support for teachers and the joint planning meetings that take place are very useful and let nursery nurses and other support staff play a very full role in lessons. Many teachers are very skilful at presenting the work and making the lessons very interesting and in keeping the pupils involved in their learning. Teachers ask searching questions both in assembly and class and this stretches high attainers. Pupils with special educational needs both in their work and their behaviour are taught very well and receive very good support. Furze Infants’ School meets the needs of

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

all pupils well, although as standards continue to rise in English and mathematics a group of higher attaining pupils needs greater challenge. All lessons were satisfactory or better, 36 per cent were good, 25 per cent very good and none were unsatisfactory or worse.

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

Pupils learn very well. They are eager to acquire knowledge and skills and take care with all their work. Pupils and teachers take work very seriously and this contributes to the pupils’ positive attitudes to learning. There is an effective atmosphere for learning: pupils know what is expected of them as teachers manage them consistently. Changes from one activity to another are very quick and efficient and pupils do not waste time. They expect to work hard throughout lessons.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum The pupils are given a broad and relevant curriculum, which they thoroughly enjoy. Provision for pupils with special educational needs Very good: much care is taken to teach pupils the skills they need so that they can keep up with the work in class.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Most pupils who speak another language at home also speak English well; those beginning to speak English when they start at school are given good support. Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Pupils’ have very good opportunities for developing their moral and social skills through responsibilities in the classroom, the playground and the school. They also have good experiences for spiritual reflection and to develop their cultural awareness.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils This is a strength of the school. The staff take great care to know the pupils’ strengths and weaknesses and to give them appropriate support and experiences.

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Aspect Comment

Pupils have a very interesting curriculum that covers all the subjects of the National Curriculum and the learning goals for children under five. Lessons are well organised so that Furze Infants School - 9 no time is wasted and pupils work productively throughout the day. In class pupils have plenty of opportunities to help one another and their teachers. They happily take responsibility for jobs in their classrooms and around the school. All the adults treat the pupils with care and consideration, which the pupils copy, and in this way learn to respect everyone as an important individual.

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Aspect Comment

The school cares for its pupils very well. Pupils are known well by all staff who do their very best to ensure all learn in a safe and stimulating environment. The experiences pupils are given are closely checked and developed to ensure they suit every child as well as possible. Pupils with special educational needs get very knowledgeable and effective support to overcome their difficulties.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff The leadership of the headteacher and deputy headteacher is inspiring and motivating. Teachers know what is expected of them and have a good understanding of their own roles and how they can contribute to achieving and maintaining high standards.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Many members of the governing body are new and just developing their roles but there is an experienced core of governors who know the school well and ensures statutory responsibilities are fulfilled.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance The school is a learning school: it reflects effectively on what works well and less well, and the headteacher and deputy headteacher are very skilful at managing change.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources People are managed well so that the best use is made of staff. Routines are efficient so time is very well used. Teaching materials are looked after carefully.

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Aspect Comment

This is a learning school where all are committed to helping the pupils obtain high standards. Everyone in the school contributes to the excellent management. The headteacher and deputy headteacher form a thoughtful and evaluative partnership offering vision and challenge to everyone in the school. Subject co-ordinators, class teachers and support staff all understand the contribution they can make to the success of the school. Procedures and practices are monitored and evaluated to ensure that what is working well is maintained and improvements made where necessary. The school applies the principles of best value by testing out the effectiveness of what it provides, being determined to improve and by ensuring money is spent wisely. Furze Infants School - 10

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• The standards pupils achieve. • The helpfulness of teachers. • Individual worries about their children are dealt with well. • The good behaviour of pupils. • Information for parents about their child’s reading progress and how the school teaches reading. • Information about the work their children are doing in class. • The lack of playground and green space.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspection team agrees fully with parents’ positive views; standards are high and pupils behave extremely well. This is due to the very good quality of teaching and the care adults in the school take of each individual pupil. The concerns parents expressed about the information they receive are understood by the inspection team; this has been selected as an issue for action. Whilst the teaching of reading is very good and pupils are achieving above average standards, parents are unclear about how this happens. Again, the curriculum is very good and pupils are making very good progress but the recent newsletters to parents have not been as informative as those in the past. The school makes the best use of the available outside space. It is concerned about the lack of a garden area, which it hopes to address when new classrooms have been built. Furze Infants School - 11

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

Pupils achieve high standards in their work.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

1. Standards in the National tests pupils take at seven are above average. These results have risen over the last four years. Standards are just as good in lessons where pupils are working well towards their potential. Pupils make very good progress with their reading. Reading is very well taught and reading activities are well planned. Teachers have a good knowledge of how well their pupils are reading and what they need to learn next. Pupils learn to read through a variety of well-organised experiences. In a reception class during a literacy hour, the teacher worked with a group of pupils helping them learn to read words they frequently use when they talk. By the end of the session they could read several new words and names accurately. Baseline information on pupils starting in the school is quite new but teachers in the reception classes are using this well to target individual pupils in

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

2. Almost three quarters of the pupils have attended the school’s nursery and start school as very fluent and confident speakers. This allows pupils to follow their curiosity, to ask questions and explore new ideas, and play a full part in lessons. Nursery children looking at the books in the infant library talked eagerly about topics in which they were interested and recognised and recounted familiar stories. Pupils’ speaking and listening skills are fostered throughout the school and play a very large part in the numeracy and literacy sessions. Pupils readily bring into school objects or pictures linked to their work in class, and they enjoy talking about what they know or would like to find out about. In a reception class, studying the Muslim festival of Eid, the Muslim children shared their knowledge and brought in artefacts to illustrate important facts which helped make the lesson come alive.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

3. Pupils achieve well in their work because they follow a well-planned curriculum that builds on what pupils know in a progressive and continuous manner. The school uses the local education authority’s scheme of work for mathematics and English to plan the work the pupils do. These plans have been followed for some years now so that the current Year 2 pupils have worked through the whole scheme and their good standards reflect the effectiveness of the approach. In a Year 2 mathematics lesson pupils were so secure in their knowledge of number bonds, in this case different ways to make seven, they could quickly and accurately solve the problems they were given. When pupils were given the sum 45 + ? = 50 they could use a variety of effective strategies to find the missing number. One boy was able to count on from 45 and a girl used her knowledge of the five times table.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

4. Standards are high in other subjects of the curriculum because all work is planned using the guidance of agreed schemes of work. Teachers in each year group plan together to further ensure all pupils get a consistently good experience. Subject co-ordinators look at other teachers’ planning in their subject and help and advise where there are any weaknesses. This ensures continuity and helps every teacher organise work that challenges the pupils well.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

5. The teachers’ knowledge; pupils’ speaking and listening skills; good planning and schemes of work all contribute to the high standards pupils achieve, as does their desire to work hard and learn. Furze Infants School - 12

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

enjoyment of learning, their hard work and good behaviour.

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

6. Pupils throughout the school start the day ready to learn. They take their work seriously and know that they have to make an effort to progress. Pupils develop these good attitudes to learning early in their time in the school and build on them well. They are motivated by their teachers who make the work interesting and in turn expect the pupils to work hard. Relationships between teachers and pupils are good. Teachers treat their pupils with care and consideration and are quick to praise effort when it is justified. In a Year 1 English lesson the teacher very effectively shared with the class some of a pupil’s past work in a celebration of what they had done well. She inspired the class by saying, “Just look at how she was writing when she first started and now look at yesterday’s work!” The class gasped in admiration and felt enthused to make just as much progress. Pupils work well with

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

each other and when they work in pairs do so without fuss concentrating on the task in hand. In a lesson where a boy did not have a partner the teacher dealt with the situation so well it fostered kindness and good relationships between pupils very successfully. Mixed pairs of Year 2 girls and boys, selected to work together by their teacher for an English lesson, talked excitedly to one another about their ideas for their story. They are used to working with a variety of people and know they must complete their task well whomever they are with.

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

7. Pupils have plenty of opportunities to help others and to be responsible. In the playground pupils take responsibility for playing with lonely pupils who visit the area marked as the ’friend stop’. As soon as a child sits on the bench there another pupil will very quickly arrive and befriend them. In all classes pupils work in pairs to be helpers for the day. This allows everyone to take a turn to be responsible and pupils do this very earnestly. When asked about their duties they respond at length about taking registers to the office or helping their teacher, and talk with great pride about what they have to do. Even the youngest pupils, those in the nursery, take responsibility well; they take out and put away their own resources and at drink times take great care to pour out their own drinks without spilling.

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

8. Pupils have great respect for their teachers and respond to them well. Pupils know that adults in school will reinforce school rules and whilst doing so will treat them consistently and fairly as this is what they have come to expect. Consequently, pupils behave well without over-zealous supervision; for example, all classes collect and hang their coats sensibly without adults overseeing their actions. Teachers are particularly good in handling pupils quietly and calmly; parents at the parents’ meeting commented on how teachers managed the pupils without needing to shout, and this was the case throughout the inspection. Teachers praise pupils who are behaving well in order to set a good example to the rest of the class. In a Year 2 literacy session the teacher said to the class: “These two have nearly finished; as they have worked so hard and have not talked too much, I may let them colour their picture in!” This worked very well as an incentive, there was a sharp intake of breath

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

from the rest of the class who clearly felt this an important privilege. After a Year 2 music lesson, the teacher ensured the pupils went out quietly by whispering her instructions to the class and they responded excellently by leaving silently.

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

9. Pupils learn very well. They are eager to acquire knowledge and skills and take care with all their work. Pupils and teachers take work very seriously as this contributes to the pupils’ positive attitudes to learning. There is an effective atmosphere for learning; pupils know what is expected of them as teachers treat them consistently. Changes from one activity to another are very quick and efficient and pupils do not waste time. Reception class pupils changed their clothesquickly after their physical education lesson and were soon ready to start their mathematics work. Pupils expect to work hard throughout lessons and do so. In a Year 2 music lesson, pupils practised difficult parts of a new song with the teacher’s help. They were happy to rehearse several times and with great effort but enjoyed Furze Infants School - 13 themselves so much they did not feel they were working hard. They made very good

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Relationships between teachers and pupils are good and contribute to pupils’

progress in learning the tune and remembering the words.

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

interesting work which makes learning fun.

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

10. Teaching is very effective and ensures pupils make good progress. Teachers plan lessons in detail following the school’s agreed schemes of work which gives every pupil work that builds systematically on what they already know. Teaching in English and mathematics is very good. Teachers follow the local authority schemes of work closely. This allows teachers to spend time planning how to teach each lesson rather than what to teach. Literacy and numeracy skills are taught well as the schemes give good support and teachers have good expertise in mathematics, phonics and teaching reading. In other subjects, the school’s schemes of work provide good support for teachers and the joint planning meetings that take place are very useful and let nursery nurses and other support staff play a very full role in lessons.

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

11. Many teachers are very skilful at presenting the work and making the lessons very interesting and in keeping the pupils involved in their learning. In a Year 2 mathematics lesson the teacher started the lesson with a short zippy session using cards to get the pupils to suggest the correct missing number. This was very effective in keeping the pupils’ attention, who were delighted when they had the right answer. Teachers use their voices and faces very expressively, with good variation of voice and dramatic emphasis when sharing stories with their pupils who listen very attentively. They ensure all pupils can see the illustrations and keep all involved, as in a Year 1 lesson where the teacher got them to join in with the repeated phrases. The pupils delighted in the sounds of words such as swish, swosh as they appear throughout the book ‘We are going on a Bear Hunt’. In another Year 1 literacy lesson the teacher used humour very effectively to get the pupils to listen. These

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

strategies foster the pupils’ very positive attitudes to books and consolidate their literacy knowledge very well.

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

12. Teachers ask searching questions both in assembly and class. They ask named pupils questions that test what they individually know and this stretches high achievers. Some questions are very effective at challenging all the class to develop their ideas, for example, in a Year 1 literacy session the teacher asked pupils to expand their answers by asking, “What made you think that?” In a Reception class science lesson, pupils were challenged by the teacher to say how best could they test to see which materials are waterproof. The discussion that followed challenged and informed them so that they had some excellent guidance in carrying out a proper investigation. These pupils achieved great satisfaction in planning and then carrying out their own investigations. Not only did they have fun but they learnt a great deal about the importance of testing fairly. In the early years assembly excellent questions were asked to involve the pupils and often nearly three quarters

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Teaching is consistently effective as teachers are well organised and give pupils

13. The teaching at Furze Infants’ School meets the needs of all pupils well, although as standards continue to rise in English and mathematics an increasing number of higher attaining pupils needs greater challenge. All lessons were satisfactory or better. Thirty six per cent were good and 25 per cent very good. None were unsatisfactory or poor.

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

because of the way it analyses and evaluates its work. Furze Infants School - 14 14. The leadership of the headteacher and deputy headteacher is inspiring and motivating. They value the staff, expect the best from them and by knowing everyone’s strengths and weaknesses make good use of them. Teachers are clear about what is expected and this helps them understand how they can contribute to the effectiveness of the school. All the staff are committed to ensuring that pupils achieve and maintain high standards. The school is a learning school: it reflects well on what works well and less well and the headteacher and deputy headteacher are very skilful at managing change.

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

15. The senior management team reflects systematically on the work of the school and involves all staff in this. Consequently, staff are constantly evaluating what they do in order to improve. This reflection is carried out systematically as part of a regular school development process and leads to successful change. Each foundation subject, such as geography, history and physical education, used to be taught by teachers who would specialise in a subject. Concerns about the time it took to change from one subject to another, and that teachers were losing their expertise in the whole curriculum, led to a new timetable. Teachers now teach all subjects to their own class. On another occasion the senior management team were keen to test out carefully the most effective model for developing pupils’ reading skills and set up a programme that they could evaluate fairly. This method of action research, deciding what you want to achieve and how you are going to check the

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

effectiveness of your actions, exemplifies the school’s thoughtful approach to its work. School policies are followed conscientiously; because everyone has the same expectations of pupils’ behaviour and reinforces school rules so consistently, pupils are confident about what they should and should not do.

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

16. The governing body is also involved in school development. Whilst many members of the governing body are new and developing their role there is an experienced core of governors who know the school very well and encourages the process of improvement.

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

17. Co-ordinators have a good knowledge of their subject and what they need to do to ensure it is taught well. They have embarked upon a rigorous process of monitoring the work in their subject as part of a recently developed whole-school self-evaluation policy. The monitoring includes looking at other teachers’ planning and is having a positive effect upon helping to ensure all pupils have an equally good curriculum.

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The school is very thoughtfully led and managed: important improvements are made

18. The effective management ensures that routines are efficient and time is very well used. Teaching materials are used well and looked after carefully by staff and pupils. From their first days in the nursery children are expected to take out resources themselves, and put them away carefully, and this develops their independence and teaches them to look after things.

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The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted

and develops their skills so that they can progress well alongside their class.

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The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted

19. Pupils with special educational needs are taught very well and receive very good support both to improve their work and their behaviour. The needs of pupils are identified well and then work is planned to address those needs. For example, all teachers have lists which help them identify systematically any child’s learning need. Regular reading tests are carried out to monitor all pupils’ reading progress and pupils’ mathematical standards are assessed, these can also trigger additional help. Learning and behavioural skills are promoted through an individual education plan which is used by teachers and other adults involved in helping pupils learn. Furze Infants School - 15 20. There are excellent small-group sessions to help pupils develop their social skills and manage their behaviour better. These are clearly of great benefit and help the pupils improve their learning skills. In a regular small-group session pupils are helped to improve

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The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted

their behaviour by developing their social skills. They are given a series of activities which effectively encourage eye contact and thoughtful interaction with others. Those attending these sessions are clearly affected by the activities, as for example was the Year 2 girl who was moved to say ‘Gosh’ quite involuntarily, at the end of a task of passing a smile around the table, one to another. During these sessions pupils learn to listen to each other, to take turns and to be sensitive to others’ ideas. This is very effective and a very positive and supportive atmosphere is established, indeed during an observed session a pupil felt able to talk about something that was troubling him in school. This was extremely well dealt with by the teacher and gave the pupils good evidence of the importance of dealing with matters in an accepted fashion.

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The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted

21. Pupils with learning needs, often those who need to improve their reading and spelling skills, get very effective support. This support is focused on improving the pupils’ skills in short intensive teaching sessions out of the classroom so that the pupil can quickly keep up with the rest of the class. When a pupil with a learning need requiring additional support is identified, an excellent diagnostic assessment is carried out. This identifies clearly where the gaps in knowledge and understanding are and what steps need to be taken next. This enables a carefully structured programme to be devised for these pupils.

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The help and support given to pupils with special educational needs is well targeted

22. The quality of special needs teaching is very good. Teachers who help pupils with learning needs know how to develop pupils’ literacy skills. They use a wide range of techniques and strategies to keep the pupils interested, such as little material bags which each contain a small object for the children to unpack. Thus intrigued they identify the object and then write the name, which because of the teacher’s careful selection, practises a word they have just learnt. These teachers use questions very well to focus the pupils closely on their work. They also have very good relationships with these pupils who want to work hard and believe the work they are doing will help to improve their skills. All these factors motivate the pupils who make very good progress in developing appropriate literacy and numeracy skills.

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Reading is well taught and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough

information about this or the other work their children are doing.

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Reading is well taught and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough

23. Reading is extremely well taught and pupils make excellent progress in their reading. A very few pupils have reading ages below their actual age by the time they are in Year 2. These pupils are selected for extra help.

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Reading is well taught and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough

24. The main information many parents expect to receive about their child’s reading is contained in the home/school reading book. In the past parents and teachers used this to track children’s reading progress. Now, much of pupils’ learning in reading takes place during the literacy hour. Here, strategies are good and pupils are taught to read words, sentences and stories systematically rather than through reading schemes. Pupils also take books home to read and enjoy with their parents. Parents are using the diaries conscientiously to record books read at home and any difficulties that arise. Teachers are generally not using the diaries but recording information about individual’s reading as part of the literacy strategy assessment. Parents consequently see only their own comments in reading diaries with very little, if any, teacher comment. As parents do not see what their child is learning in reading lessons they are quite understandably unclear about their child’s

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Reading is well taught and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough

reading progress. When the literacy strategy began a few years ago the school held Furze Infants School - 16 information meetings for parents about reading and the literacy hour. However, many of the parents who attended those meetings no longer have children at the school and the new parents have not received similar information.

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Reading is well taught and pupils make good progress but parents do not get enough

25. Similarly, the school writes regular newsletters to parents. In the past these contained details of what different classes were to work on every term. Some parents remembered this and were sorry the newsletters had not continued to contain such detail. The current newsletters are very useful to parents and written in a very helpful style but do not contain the same amount of information about work to be done in class as in the past.

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The highest achievers need more challenging work, particularly in mathematics and

26. Pupils are achieving very well in mathematics and English. The schemes of work that pupils follow throughout their time at Furze have had a very positive result in raising pupils’ standards.

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The highest achievers need more challenging work, particularly in mathematics and

27. Consequently, many pupils have a good grounding in the basic skills in mathematics, which helps them grasp new tasks in lessons quickly. This also means that in most classes there are a few pupils, particularly in Year 2, who find some topics especially using numbers, relatively easy. Most staff recognise this problem and try to resolve it by asking the higher achievers appropriately difficult questions during the class oral sessions. Many teachers give these pupils more work to do when they finish the set tasks but these are often too easy and they should be doing more challenging tasks.

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The highest achievers need more challenging work, particularly in mathematics and

28. The same difficulty arises for a few pupils in their work in English. Some pupils have now developed their reading and writing skills so well, they find some of the work in the literacy hour too easy and need to be given more difficult challenges.

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development and getting them to be independent, children have too few tasks that

29. Children have excellent opportunities to become independent in the nursery. They are expected to join in with large-group activities, paying attention, listening to one another and playing their part. They do this well and can take turns in action games such as “Little cockerels standing on the gate”. They are good at choosing the resources they wish to play with and in putting them carefully away. They are encouraged to put on their own coats and to generally take care of themselves. At drinks times they are very good at pouring their own drinks and taking turns in taking a piece of fruit. They develop good self-confidence and readily talk to visitors about what is happening in the classroom.

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development and getting them to be independent, children have too few tasks that

30. They do not, however, have enough activities which are tailored to meet their individual needs, so that they can make maximum progress. In a session where the adult was sitting by writing materials, children came to the table and moved away at random often without finishing anything. Children were not targeted in order to help them take the next step in their learning. Appropriate and sensitive intervention at an early stage would also ensure that correct handgrips are formed to help writing at later stages. The lack of planned intervention by adults also leads to some children always taking part in the activities they like and missing out on important areas such as those involving numbers and writing. Furze Infants School - 17

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• ensure that the information parents get about their children’s reading progress and the work they are doing reflects the good work and progress that actually goes on by: − revising the use of the home/school diary and developing ways to let parents know about their child’s reading progress; − finding opportunities to explain to parents how reading is taught; − using the newsletters and other methods to tell parents about what their children are learning;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• improve the attainment of the highest attaining pupils in mathematics and English by: − assessing where pupils find tasks in the mathematics and literacy scheme too easy; − developing tasks to fill the gaps to mathematics and literacy schemes that will challenge the highest achievers;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• in the nursery, ensure all children make progress in all aspects of the curriculum by: − using their observations of children to identify the next steps children need to take in their learning; − increasing the number of adult-led learning activities planned for particular children to teach them what they need to learn next. Furze Infants School - 18

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 4

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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

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) 39 330

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils eligible for free school meals 48

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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 1 3

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 4 42

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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 32

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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 39

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 38

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Attendance

National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5

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Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Furze Infants School - 19

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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 55 55 110

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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 48 50 54 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 52 52 53

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 91 93 97 at NC level 2 or above National 82 83 87

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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 49 51 52 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 52 51 52

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 92 93 95 at NC level 2 or above National 82 86 87

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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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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 6 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 7 Black – African heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group 8 Other minority ethnic groups

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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. Furze Infants School - 20

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 14.6 Financial year 1998/99

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 22.4

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 714,287.00

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 6 Expenditure per pupil 1,935.74

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 143.4 Balance brought forward from previous year 52,769.00

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 39,488.00

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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

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 39

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 3

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 71.5

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Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. Furze Infants School - 21

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

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

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 54 40 1 0 4

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 43 47 4 4 1

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 24 53 11 0 11

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 43 37 14 4 1

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 61 36 3 0 0

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 49 37 7 0 7

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 36 44 11 1 7

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 41 43 3 1 11

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 49 43 3 0 6

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 9 23 29 16 24

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