South View Infant and Nursery School

SOUTH VIEW INFANT SCHOOL

Reporting inspector: Ms Margaret Dickinson

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SOUTH VIEW INFANT SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 29 January – 2 February 2001

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SOUTH VIEW INFANT SCHOOL

Full 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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SOUTH VIEW INFANT 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. South View Infants - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Off Shooters Way Basingstoke Hants

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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: Miss D Myers

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: November 1996 South View Infants - 4

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Aspect responsibilities

12373 Margaret Dickinson Registered inspector English Design and technology Physical education What sort of school is it? The school’s results and pupils’ achievements How well are pupils taught? How well is the school led and managed? What should the school do to improve further? A8919 John Kerr Lay inspector How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 14997 Val Emery Team inspector The foundation stage curriculum Science Religious education Geography History Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

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Aspect responsibilities

16500 Tom Richardson Team inspector Speech and language unit Special educational needs Equal opportunities English as an additional language Mathematics Information and communication technology Art and design Music How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? South View Infants - 5 The inspection contractor was:

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Aspect responsibilities

QAA Herringston Barn Herringston Dorchester Dorset DT2 9PU

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Aspect responsibilities

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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Aspect responsibilities

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Aspect responsibilities

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE South View Infants - 6

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 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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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 11

The school’s results and pupils’ achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

South View Infant School is a community infant school in Basingstoke, with 188 pupils. The school has a nursery, with places for twenty children each morning and afternoon; ten of these places are for children who have speech or language difficulties. Attached to the school is a Speech and Language Unit (Class 1) which caters for twelve children aged between 4 and 7, from throughout the authority. Eight pupils are from ethnic minority backgrounds. There are four pupils who do not speak English as their first language; two are in the early stages of learning the language. Around half the pupils have special education needs, which is well above average. The percentage of pupils with statements of special educational needs is also well above average. Children enter the school with well below average basic skills, particularly in their speech, language, mathematical and social development.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

The vast majority of pupils live in the area surrounding the school. This area of Basingstoke is currently involved in a regeneration programme due to the high levels of economic and social deprivation. High-rise accommodation is being gradually demolished and families are being moved out of the area. This means the number of pupils in the school is gradually falling, and will continue to do so for the next few years. However, this is a temporary measure and numbers on roll will increase as new housing is completed.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The school is very effective and gives very good value for money. The headteacher and senior management team provide outstanding leadership. All members of staff work very effectively together as a team and the pupils and their wellbeing are at the heart of their work. The quality of teaching is good throughout the school, including the nursery and Class 1. Pupils thrive in the school and do well because everyone is highly committed to providing a calm, secure and purposeful learning environment where pupils can learn effectively.

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What the school does well

• The leadership and management of the headteacher and senior staff are outstanding because there is such a clear focus on exactly what the school needs to do to develop and improve; • The teaching is good so, from the time children enter the nursery to the time they leave the school, they achieve particularly well and learn effectively; • Pupils with special educational needs in the main school and Class 1 make good progress as a result of the carefully planned teaching and the good support they receive from teachers and learning support assistants; • Pupils behave very well and they have very good relationships with one another and all the adults in the school. This is because the staff have a very good and consistent approach to encouraging pupils’ moral and social development; • The school provides a curriculum that is very relevant to what the pupils need and this means they make good progress in developing their literacy and numeracy skills;

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What the school does well

• Everyone in the school works very closely with parents and encourages them to support their children’s learning. As a result, the vast majority of parents appreciate what the school is doing for their children.

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What could be improved

• More could be done to help pupils develop their speaking and listening skills, broaden their vocabulary and speak more clearly and confidently; • Pupils do not have enough opportunity to use computers and develop their information and communication technology (ICT) skills; • There could be more emphasis on music, drama and physical education to broaden pupils’ experiences and to help pupils develop their imagination and expression.

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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

South View Infants - 8 The school was inspected in November 1996. Since then, there has been good improvement. All the main areas that inspectors found needed attention have been greatly improved, particularly those that related to the curriculum and the assessment of pupils. Since the last inspection, standards have improved significantly, the leadership and management of the school is better than it was at that time and the quality of teaching is much more effective.

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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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Key

reading E E E D well above average above average A B writing C D D C average below average C D mathematics B E E D well below average E

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Key

The 2000 national test results show pupils’ performance is well below the national average in reading and mathematics and below average in writing. When results are compared with other schools, with a similar proportion of pupils claiming free school meals, they are below average in reading and mathematics and around average in writing. Over the last four years, results have improved steadily as a result of the headteacher and co-ordinators looking critically at pupils’ performance and identifying ways to improve standards further.

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Key

Inspection findings show pupils’ standards are below the expectations in reading, writing, mathematics and science but they achieve well. Around half the pupils have special educational needs and a high proportion of children come to the school with poor speech, language, mathematical and social skills. For these reasons, pupils’ standards are appropriate. They benefit from consistently good teaching and therefore make good progress as they move through the school. A weak area is speaking and listening and standards are well below what is expected by the age of seven. Bearing in mind the limited speech many children have when they come to school, pupils make steady progress but they could be achieving more. Pupils who do not speak English as their first language made steady progress. Pupils do not do as well in ICT because they do not have enough chance to use computers and this hinders their skills. In music too, the standards could be higher. In both subjects, pupils do not achieve as well

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Key

as they should. Their rate of learning is appropriate in all other subjects; they achieve particularly well in science, history and geography because children enter the school with very limited knowledge and understanding of the world.

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Key

Although the school is not required to set targets, it does so very effectively. The way the headteacher, co-ordinators and teachers use targets and information from assessments is having a clear impact upon helping to raise standards in the school.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. Pupils enjoy school and thrive as a result. They are responsive and are keen to learn and work hard.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Very good. Pupils are polite and friendly. They play very happily with one another at lunchtimes. The school is very orderly and a pleasant place in which to work. South View Infants - 9 Personal development and relationships Good. They willingly take responsibility and are quick to offer help when this is required. The quality of relationships is very good.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Satisfactory and similar to the national average. Unauthorised absence is above average.

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Aspect Comment

Pupils’ positive attitudes are an important factor in the good progress they make as they move through the school. They enjoy coming to school and make the most of the opportunities on offer.

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

Lessons seen overall Good 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.

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

Teaching is good and never less than satisfactory. In 68 per cent of lessons, teaching is good and in 13 per cent it is very good. Pupils learn effectively throughout the school; they put a lot of effort into their work and concentrate hard. English and mathematics are both taught well. The school has taken care to plan occasions when literacy and numeracy skills are developed through other subjects and, as a result, both these basic skills are taught well. Teachers place good emphasis on the teaching of these basic skills, whatever the subject they are teaching, and this helps pupils to make good progress. Teachers plan their lessons in teams and, in almost all cases, lessons are planned very well to allow pupils of different abilities to achieve their best. The teaching of pupils with SEN is good. Learning support assistants play a crucial role here; they are well briefed by the teachers and they support pupils

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

effectively throughout the lesson. There are a few cases where more could be expected of the more able pupils and they could learn at a faster rate.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Good. Pupils’ learning experiences are very broad and balanced. There is a good emphasis on literacy and numeracy. The curriculum for children under five is very appropriate and carefully planned. There is a good range of extra curricular opportunities.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good. All teachers know pupils’ individual targets and the work planned takes careful account of pupils’ needs. Learning support assistants provide good support and help pupils make good progress.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Good. The school receives good support from the bi-lingual support service.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Good. The school provides very well for pupils’ moral and social development, which has a positive effect upon their behaviour and relationships. Spiritual provision is satisfactory. Cultural provision is good.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils Pupils are very well cared for. Everyone in the school is diligent about providing good quality care and support. The school has excellent procedures for encouraging good behaviour. South View Infants - 10 All subjects are fully covered and meet the statutory requirements. The personal, social and health education programme is good. Pupils benefit considerably from the many visitors who come into school to broaden their experiences. The school’s assessment systems are very good. Pupils are carefully tracked as they move through the school and, in almost all classes, the information that comes from assessments is used very well to check that pupils are set appropriate work.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and manage- ment by the headteacher and other key staff Excellent. The headteacher has a clear vision for the school. There is a very strong emphasis on striving for higher standards and looking for ways to improve. Once needs are identified, the action that is required is very well managed. All staff are determined and committed in wanting the best for pupils in the school.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Well. Despite being a relatively new governing body, governors have a good awareness of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They receive good information to help them fulfil their role and are frequently involved in reviewing how well the school is doing.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance Very good. Pupils’ performance has been analysed by the headteacher and senior staff carefully for several years and this has helped to raise standards. Co-ordinators play an important role in checking how well pupils are doing in the national tests. More could now be done to monitor pupils’ ongoing work.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources Very good. The budget is allocated very carefully according to the school’s priorities and targets. Governors have taken wise steps to cover the fall in income whilst numbers drop over the next few years. Additional funding from government grants is very well used.

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Aspect Comment

The school is very well staffed. A lot of hours are put into providing learning support assistants but the funding is well spent because they are effective. Accommodation is very good and the school has good resources to support pupils’ learning. The governors consider their spending frequently and whether they are getting value for money but this is not recorded systematically.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• The teaching is good and children make good progress • Class 1 has a special atmosphere. The children make good progress and are integrated very well, as appropriate • All children are known very well by the staff and all are treated as special • They are very happy with the management of the school: staff work closely with parents. • Some parents would like to see more after school activities.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspectors agree with all parents’ positive views. During the day, pupils benefit from a very broad and relevant curriculum and the play activities offered during lunchtimes are very successful. Inspectors do not support the concerns of some parents that there are insufficient after school clubs. South View Infants - 11

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. In the 2000 national tests for seven year olds, pupils’ performance is well below the national averages in reading and mathematics and below average in writing. When results are compared with schools where pupils come from similar backgrounds, they are below average in reading and mathematics but broadly average in writing. Over the last three years, girls have performed better than boys in writing and very slightly better in reading, which is similar to the national picture. Since the last inspection, pupils’ test results have improved when compared with the national averages. There are two important points that need to be taken into account when interpreting these results: • a high proportion of children start school with limited speech, language and mathematical skills; • almost half the pupils in the school have special educational needs

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. Inspection findings show that, by the age of seven, pupils’ standards in reading, writing, mathematics and science are below what is expected by the age of seven. This is a better picture than that suggested by the national tests in 2000 and reflects the amount of work the headteacher and co-ordinators have undertaken to improve standards. Although pupils are not working at the nationally expected levels, taking the above factors into account, they are achieving well in these subjects.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. Standards in speaking and listening remain a weakness and are well below what is expected by this age. This affects to some extent their overall attainment across the curriculum; for example, there are instances when pupils find it hard to grasp new learning because they struggle with the pronunciation and meaning of specific vocabulary. Pupils make satisfactory progress in developing their speaking and listening skills but more could be done to develop this aspect of English. There are two subjects where standards are below what they should be and pupils do not achieve as well as they could: information and communication technology, and music. In art, design technology, history, geography, physical education and religious education, pupils’ are working at appropriate standards. They make good progress in art, history, geography and religious education and satisfactory progress in design and technology and physical education.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. Children enter the nursery with well below average attainment. In particular they have poorly developed speaking and listening, mathematical and social skills. Their knowledge and understanding of the world is also well below average. During their time in the nursery, they make a good start, particularly with developing their personal and social skills. Around half the children entering the reception classes have not attended the nursery and many of them too have poorly developed basic skills when they start school. They continue to make steady progress towards all the nationally defined goals for this age though, by the time they are ready to start in Year 1, the majority are still well below expected levels in most areas of learning. The children make very good progress in their personal and social development, which matches the required goals for this area. This means that, by the time they begin Key Stage 1, children already have good attitudes

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

towards learning. They also make very good progress in their physical development, which also meets the standard required by this age.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. By the time they reach seven, most pupils can manage to read most of the words in their reading books although they are often hesitant. When they come across a word they do not know, most pupils make good use of their knowledge of sounds to have a go; only a few give up altogether. The high number of pupils with special educational needs means many pupils are still in the early stages of reading. The more able pupils read with reasonable fluency and some introduce good expression when reading, by changing their voices when they see speech marks or italics. Even so, many pupils have a limited knowledge of books and they do not all by any means receive help with their reading at home. Pupils’ writing skills are developing well and many pupils have made particularly good progress over the last term or so. However, this is not even across all classes South View Infants - 12 and in some they make slightly less progress than others. Most pupils can write simple

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

sentences and some remember to punctuate these correctly. They are beginning to experiment with finding new ways of starting their sentences and are making good progress in planning stories. This is helping them to organise their writing and some produce slightly longer pieces of writing. What holds many pupils back in their writing is their limited speaking skills and restricted vocabulary. This means few pupils are able to enliven their writing with more interesting words and expressions. This is the main reason why so very few pupils exceed the expected standards for their age in writing.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. In mathematics, by the age of seven, pupils are confident with numbers to 99 and the more able pupils cope well with hundreds, tens and units. They are aware of symmetry in the shapes of capital letters and understand some of the names for solid shapes such as cuboid and sphere. Pupils are helped to develop their numeracy skills through other subjects, such as geography and science. Many pupils find some of the basic mathematical terms, such as minus and equals difficult to learn and this hinders their learning. Because many have limited speech and language skills they find solving mathematical problems difficult. This means they do better in number, measurement and shape than in investigating and applying their knowledge of mathematics.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. Pupils’ knowledge and use of computers is weaker than it should be by the age of seven because pupils do not get enough practice to use computers for a range of purposes. Pupils’ keyboard skills are slow and they are not confident about saving and printing their work. Some pupils have computers at home and they already know how to do what is being taught in class. This means that they are not being challenged to learn more and improve their skills. Since the last inspection, the school has sensibly concentrated on improving pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills, which were very weak, and, until recently, little has been done to develop computer skills. However, the school has already identified ICT as an area for further development and this is currently a priority for improvement.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. Pupils with special educational needs (SEN) make good progress. The pupils with SEN who took national tests in 2000 did well when their results are compared to the tests they took when they began school. They made the best progress in mathematics and writing – slightly better than in reading – and twenty-six out of thirty four pupils with SEN attained the national expectation in mathematics. The school keeps a register of pupils with SEN and this shows that, each year, a significant number of pupils make enough progress to come off this register.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

9. Pupils’ attitudes to the school were judged to be a strength at the time of the last inspection and this is still very much the case today. These good attitudes contribute well to the rising standards of attainment in the school. Parents praise pupils’ attitudes and the way they approach school life. Pupils enjoy coming to school and show a good level of interest in the work provided. They want to learn and work hard to succeed. They settle quickly in lessons, are enthusiastic and listen well to their teachers and to one another. In a Year 2 history lesson, for example, pupils working in groups listened carefully to each other’s ideas about the uses of Victorian objects and were again careful listeners when the teacher worked with their group to question and help their understanding. Parents praise pupils for accepting those who have difficulties. All pupils show friendly courtesy towards pupils with SEN and those from Class 1, who are often included in their

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. Children in the foundation stage enjoy coming to school because they are offered a range of interesting practical activities. They show good attitudes to their work, develop good independence and work and behave well. They register themselves in the morning in the nursery for example and use their nametags to register which activities they are involved in.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils’ behaviour in lessons, in the playground and around the school is very good, contributing well to the happy, safe and orderly atmosphere in the school. This supports the good learning and pupils’ personal development. A very high proportion of parents who completed questionnaires and South View Infants - 13 those parents who attended the pre-inspection meeting, state that pupils’ behaviour is very good. Playtimes and lunchtimes are pleasant occasions when girls and boys play well together in a variety of situations. Lunchtimes are a particularly good example of the high standards of behaviour. Pupils play very well together in the various allotted zones and there is careful circulation between activities. No bullying was seen during the inspection. There has been one short-term exclusion, which is an isolated incident.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Pupils have very good relationships with one another and the adults around them. Pupils throughout the school are polite and friendly. They respect and follow the school’s expectations of good behaviour and positive relationships at all levels. Pupils like one another and try hard to stay friends. For example, in one lesson a pupil spoke for another who was crying to say that she felt lonely. This was followed by other children saying how much they liked the child and wanted to play together the next day.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Pupils with special educational needs behave very well. Some of these pupils receive support for behaviour difficulties and they try very hard to follow the school’s rules and are genuinely upset if they cause any disruption to lessons.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Pupils’ personal development is good. They take the responsibilities that they are given seriously and carry them out successfully. The six and seven year olds, who are involved in helping with lunchtime activities, are a good example of this. They organise themselves into having an early lunch in order to be able to guide other pupils into their zones for different lunchtime activities. They give support, as necessary, to other pupils, particularly younger ones. Older pupils were seen to finish the work required of them and then independently get involved in another task. For example, in one class of six-year-olds, pupils completed and checked a writing task, then independently started reading their books without interrupting the teacher. Pupils become confident and adept when asked, at planning and organising their work. This was observed in a writing task. Pupils collected what they needed and organised themselves efficiently for

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

independent work. In this lesson, one girl saw a tray out of position and independently put it away. Pupils enjoy taking responsibility for a number of other class and school responsibilities. Being register monitors, librarians and working the CD player in acts of worship, are good examples of this. Pupils take their responsibilities seriously, and act efficiently and independently.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. The attendance of pupils is satisfactory being in line with the national average. The rate of unauthorised absence is above average. Pupils arrive in good time for school and only a few are habitually late. Registration is quiet and friendly. As a results there is a smooth and efficient start to the day’s work.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

16. The quality of teaching is good throughout the school, including the nursery and reception classes. Teaching was at least satisfactory in all lessons, 68 per cent was good or better and 13 per cent was very good. This shows a marked improvement since the last inspection when there was a significant proportion of unsatisfactory or poor teaching. Teaching is good in English, mathematics, science, art and design and history; it is satisfactory in information and communication technology and physical education. There is insufficient evidence to make a secure judgement on the quality of teaching in the remaining subjects.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

17. Teaching in the nursery and reception classes is good. Teachers plan a good range of purposeful activities and these are very well related to the skills that the teachers want the children to develop. Planning is less detailed for physical development lessons in the hall; it does not give enough detail on what the children are intended to learn in each lesson. Teachers hold children’s attention well and establish a calm but firm atmosphere, which helps children to develop their confidence and independence. The nursery nurse and learning support assistants provide good support. The teachers and adult helpers constantly encourage the children to speak and build their vocabulary through asking good questions, building upon their natural curiosity, and repeating important vocabulary to help children remember words. Relationships are good and South View Infants - 14 there is a high level of courtesy shown to the children by the class teachers and learning support

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

18. During Key Stage 1, pupils learn effectively as a result of the good teaching. Teachers have a good knowledge of the subjects they teach although there is scope for further improvement in the teaching of physical education and in improving teachers’ confidence in teaching music. Teachers plan lessons well and cater effectively for pupils of different abilities. They do this in a number of ways, by: • planning work at different levels for different groups of pupils; • deciding which groups of pupils they are going to work with in depth in each lesson; • thinking carefully how they will use their learning support assistants to the best effect. These qualities are most evident in literacy and numeracy lessons and, as a result, pupils benefit from being given tasks that are appropriate. Pupils of differing abilities therefore learn effectively and at a good pace.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

19. A particular strength is the way teachers relate to pupils and encourage them to do their best in a very calm way. They know each pupil well and use different strategies according to individual pupils’ needs and work habits. Teachers use praise very effectively and this helps to encourage pupils to persevere and increases their motivation to learn.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

20. Pupils who speak English as an additional language benefit from the input they receive from local education authority specialist teachers. Teachers in the school take careful steps to make sure that these pupils receive extra help and understand what they have to do. This was evident in a physical education lesson when a teacher patiently repeated a simple instruction and demonstrated clearly so that the pupil understood the task.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

21. The teaching of literacy and numeracy is good. Teachers keep coming back to the main points or skills they want pupils to learn and make sure pupils have plenty of opportunity to repeat tasks to help them learn. In the majority of lessons, the teachers set a good pace. In one mathematics lesson, for example, the teacher set the number of sums that had to be completed by the more able pupils within a set time limit; they all worked hard and enjoyed completing this challenge. The majority of teachers keep a lively pace going; their animated manner and good questioning all help pupils to keep on their toes and learn effectively. Just occasionally, teaching in literacy and numeracy moves at a slower pace and the work that the more able pupils do is not challenging enough. In one literacy lesson, for example, a group of more able pupils did not put as much effort into their writing as they could have done so they produced a limited amount of work.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

22. In many lessons, teachers plan how they will use their own time very carefully. In one literacy session, the teacher spent a good amount of time with different reading groups whilst the learning support assistants worked on very well planned tasks with the remaining groups. The teacher’s time was used very effectively, which meant the pupils made good progress. In another literacy lesson, the teacher intentionally spent a long time with one particular group of pupils. As a result of effective, in-depth teaching and skilful questioning, they all made very good progress in producing a first draft of a story.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

23. Teachers make good provision for pupils with SEN. They prepare good individual education plans that show clearly what pupils should learn next, and use these in their lessons to help each pupil build successfully on what they can already do. Learning support assistants are valuable members of the teaching team and support pupils with SEN effectively so that they can keep up with their learning and not disrupt the rest of the class. Special arrangements are made for some assistants to work with individual pupils on specific literacy programmes. These assistants are highly skilled, prepare their work very well and really help pupils to concentrate hard on improving their basic skills.

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STUDENTS?

South View Infants - 15 24. The curriculum provided for children in the foundation stage is good and is based appropriately on the specified areas of learning for children of this age. Teachers plan this carefully in accordance with the early learning goals and provide opportunities for child and adult initiated activities, whole class and small group work. Planning systems are not consistent between the nursery and the reception classes. There are other differences such as the way in which homework is presented to parents, which could be confusing for them. One of the main reasons for this is that the leadership of the foundation years is split between the nursery and reception classes. Consequently, the good practices that are to be found in both the reception and nursery classes are not shared sufficiently and do not build coherently and progressively through the foundation years. There are good links between the reception classes and the rest of the school. Subject co-

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STUDENTS?

ordinators and reception teachers have looked closely at the requirements of the early learning goals and make sure that what children cover in Year 1 takes account of these.

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STUDENTS?

25. The school provides a wide range of good quality learning opportunities for all pupils in Key Stage 1 and has an appropriate statutory curriculum in place. The national strategies for literacy and numeracy have been implemented well and are having a good effect on standards in English and mathematics. The school has only recently started looking at how speaking and listening should be catered for and this is a weaker area at present; more could be done to look for opportunities within all subjects where pupils’ speaking and listening skills can be developed. The timetable is arranged so that literacy and numeracy are the first priority, with each class having these subjects every morning. Teachers plan carefully and make sure that sufficient time is also given to other subjects each week. For example, history, geography and art are often taught in turn, depending on the topic to be studied. During the inspection, the history topic was about ‘the

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STUDENTS?

Victorians’. Teachers have calculated that this needs more lessons closer together to be successful as a topic and so little art or geography took place that week. The amount of time needed for each topic has been carefully worked out and teachers have also planned when two subjects can be addressed at once, for example, when art can be taught through providing illustrations for a topic in religious education. As a result, the school has a curriculum that is very well planned with sufficient time provided for each subject. The planning for religious education is appropriate and follows the locally agreed syllabus. Planning for physical education is less detailed and does not give teachers enough guidance and support to help them when they come to plan individual lessons.

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STUDENTS?

26. The previous inspection identified the curriculum as a weak area in need of substantial improvement. This work has been carried out well and very good improvement has taken place. Teachers meet annually to review the curriculum and to plan what should be taught next year. They also highlight where literacy, numeracy and, more recently, information and communication technology can be taught in other subjects to support pupils’ learning. As a result, the school now has a very broad and balanced curriculum that is helping pupils to make good progress. In particular, the curriculum provided is very relevant for the pupils. Many live in areas of high social deprivation and gain tremendous benefit from the activities provided, for example, to study art in Basingstoke, visit local sites of historical interest and to experience social and cultural events in and out of school. The activities provided at lunchtime are also of significant benefit to the pupils

p.15

STUDENTS?

as they are encouraged to play together, alongside their meal time assistants, in activities such as skipping, dressing-up and traditional play ground games. This is very popular with pupils, and parents are very supportive of this initiative. However, an aspect that is not as well developed is providing pupils with a range of creative and imaginative opportunities that arise through subjects such as art, music, drama and dance.

p.15

STUDENTS?

27. Good provision is made for pupils’ personal, social and health education and religious education now receives due attention. The school has good arrangements for including pupils from Class 1 in other classes and this is further helped by teachers planning together to make sure that each pupil receives a broad and balanced experience. In all activities, pupils have equal opportunity to take part and those pupils with English as an additional language receive effective support that helps them to feel included. For example, a pupil new to the country as well as to the school was helped to settle in class by the teacher displaying photographs of the pupil’s home culture that helped the other pupils to be more welcoming. The school also makes good use of the support South View Infants - 16 provided by the local education authority for pupils who do not speak English as their first language and works hard to help pupils to communicate more effectively.

p.15

STUDENTS?

28. Pupils with SEN have good provision and this helps them to make good progress. Teachers assess their needs well and produce good quality individual education plans that show what pupils should learn next. These plans are used well in lessons and teachers and assistants know what to focus on when helping SEN pupils. The requirements of the Code of Practice for Special Educational Needs are met and teachers receive effective advice, when required, from an appropriate range of external specialists. Pupils are often put into groups in lessons according to their ability and this also helps teachers and assistants to make sure that more able pupils are given challenging work as well as providing support for those with the greatest learning needs.

p.16

STUDENTS?

29. A good feature of the curriculum is the range of additional activities provided. Pupils benefit from annual events such as weeks for art, music, books, geography and history. There are also featured days for mathematics, fitness and sports. Pupils visit supermarkets, churches and farms and are encouraged to take part in performances for parents and others, for example at Christmas. Pupils are encouraged to join the choir and gardening club and a number of clubs for other activities are currently planned. In addition, pupils are encouraged to think of others less fortunate than themselves and take part in a suitable range of charity collections.

p.16

STUDENTS?

30. The school benefits from good links with the community. The youngest children have been given new and exciting climbing equipment by a local firm. Other businesses and organisations have helped to improve the school environment. However, there is more limited scope for developing links with the immediate community. The police and fire brigade visit the school and make a useful contribution to pupils’ learning and their knowledge of the world. Local artists and musicians visit the school to enrich pupils’ learning. All these opportunities have a good effect on pupils’ social development.

p.16

STUDENTS?

31. Relationships with other local nurseries, playgroups and schools are good on balance. There are few pre-school nurseries in the area but the school offers a lot of help to parents of children who are about to join the school. There are very effective links with local playgroups. The headteacher visits members of the senior management team of the adjacent junior school. Matters of common interest are discussed such as behaviour policies and joint training programmes but academic planning between the two schools is not well developed. There are good links through the special needs co-ordinator. There are regular meetings with other schools in the area including the comprehensive school and pupils from there put on performances for the school.

p.16

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

32. Satisfactory provision is made for pupils’ spiritual development. There is a daily act of collective worship where suitable time is provided for pupils to reflect and where prayers written by pupils are used effectively. Teachers include opportunities for reflection in some lessons and encourage pupils to experience wonder at, for example, finding out about Victorian school life and observing the impact of vibrations from a tuning fork on water. In religious education, pupils gain awareness of the importance of faith in people’s lives and of the significance of some religious buildings. Satisfactory improvement has taken place since the last inspection but more can still be done to create a spiritual atmosphere in assembly and in other lessons.

p.16

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

33. Very good provision is made for pupils’ moral development. The school’s ‘Golden Rules’ are displayed in every class and known very well by the pupils. Pupils are encouraged to be courteous and have a very clear understanding of what is right and what is wrong. There is a strong behaviour code that is applied consistently by everyone in the school. Staff set a very good example and provide very good role models for the pupils. Older pupils set a very good example to younger pupils and they encourage one another to behave well and think of others. Over time, the school has successfully created a very strong moral code. Pupils new to the school adopt this and they quickly learn to behave just as well as the others. South View Infants - 17 34. There is very good provision for pupils’ social development. Teachers frequently include opportunities for pupils to work together and they co-operate very well. A particularly strong

p.16

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

feature is the lunchtime activities. Lunchtime assistants lead pupils in a good variety of games where they learn to play together and be friendly towards one another. Pupils are given many responsibilities to help with classroom routines as well as assembly or lunchtime jobs. Throughout the school, there is a high expectation that everyone works together, including the pupils, and this is achieved very well.

p.17

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

35. The school makes good provision for the cultural development of pupils. In subjects such as art, music and literacy, pupils gain an awareness of the arts in people’s lives and benefit from visits to, for example, civic buildings in Basingstoke and seeing musicians perform in school. They also experience a good range of different cultures and teachers show how they value the contribution other cultures make to life in Britain. There is a good emphasis on equality and valuing the differences between people. A good number of visitors come into school to support pupils’ learning, for example to perform music from different cultures. As a result, pupils are effectively prepared for life in our multi-cultural society. However, they could benefit from increased ongoing involvement in music, dance and drama to complement to the good range of special events.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

36. The school supports, guides and looks after its pupils very well. Teachers and support staff know the pupils very well and show a real concern for their welfare and academic support. As a result, pupils feel secure and are confident to seek advice and help from their teachers. The effort that everyone in the school puts into caring for pupils means that they enjoy coming to school and learning; consequently they do well.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

37. There are careful plans and procedures for introducing the children and parents who are new to the school. Parents are invited to come into lessons early on, so new children settle quickly into the school routines. This smooth transition is very effective as children start to work and play together. Pupils’ personal needs are considered as well as their academic needs and those with low self-esteem are given particular consideration. Very good support is given to pupils with speech and language difficulties and special educational needs.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

38. Procedures for monitoring and promoting good behaviour are excellent. These are an important part of the strong and supportive ethos and culture of the school. The schools behaviour policy reflects the aims of the school and is the basis on which all staff set their expectations of good behaviour. As a result, staff work very well together as a team and foster good manners and self- discipline. If a pupil’s behaviour gives cause for concern, the school works closely with parents, if necessary. Pupils are clear what to do if someone is unkind to them. In the relatively few cases when behaviour does not follow the expected standard, staff act sensitively and effectively.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

39. The school has good procedures for encouraging good attendance and punctuality. Registers are monitored and action is taken if appropriate. With the co-operation of parents, almost all absences are accounted for. Where this is not the case, staff are vigilant and take prompt action.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. The procedures for child protection and promoting the wellbeing of pupils are very good. All staff, including those new to the school, know and understand the child protection procedures. The health and safety policy is thorough. Staff and governors carry out regular checks of premises and equipment and defects are dealt with promptly. Accidents and injuries are treated efficiently, appropriate records are kept and parents are informed.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. On balance, the school has very good systems for monitoring pupils’ academic performance and personal development. The information from the different assessments is used very well to plan pupils’ future work. Significant improvements have been made in assessment procedures and how the information is used since the last inspection. It has made a considerable contribution to the improvements in teaching and raising standards in the whole school. This is because the school increasingly analyses the various tests, to identify aspects that are weaker and then plans how to improve upon these through adapting the teaching. For example, weaknesses are remedied by South View Infants - 18 allocating extra time, or by making sure there is a particular focus on a particular area. All staff are involved in this process, not just the co-ordinators, which means everyone reflects upon how well the school is doing and whether their planning or approach needs to be adjusted.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. Teachers use assessment information well to track pupils’ progress through the school. Another good feature is the individual targets, which pupils are set for reading, writing and mathematics. These are discussed with parents at their termly interviews with teachers. Target levels are also set at the start of the academic year for the predicted level at the end of the year. A minor weakness here is that the level predicted can often be too broad and needs to be more specific, for example, by using levels 2A, 2B and 2C.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. Overall, assessment practice is very well developed in English, mathematics and science. In other subjects, teachers’ assessments are developing well. Teachers moderate the consistency of all their assessments in year groups. The results of the tests carried out shortly after children enter the nursery and reception classes are used well to match the curriculum and teaching styles to the needs of the children. For example, there is a strong focus on children developing their vocabulary and good listening skills in the foundation years, since so many children come to school with speech and language difficulties.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. Good assessment is made of pupils’ special educational needs. This is used effectively to prepare good quality individual education plans and the progress each pupil makes against these is monitored well. Individual education plans are reviewed regularly. These reviews are of good quality and help pupils, teachers and parents know what needs to be done next. The targets set in individual education plans can be for personal development as well as for academic progress and this helps teachers to think about the development of the whole child.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

45. The school’s partnership with parents is very good. The headteacher and staff are keen to explore ways of encouraging parents to become involved in their children’s education. Parents have a high regard for the school. They find it easy to approach teachers if they have a concern over their child’s progress or welfare. This shows improvement since the last inspection.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

46. The quality of information for parents is very good. School newsletters are interesting and parents are well informed on all aspects of school life, including the work that their children are doing. Parents are encouraged to come into school to meet and get to know the teachers. There are pre- school meetings for parents of new children and tea afternoons for parents of pupils in Class 1. Parents’ views are invited. For instance, findings from the annual questionnaire are incorporated in the school development plan and parents’ views about homework were taken into account in drawing up the homework policy. There are suitable systems in place for involving parents in home-school agreements.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. Pupils’ annual reports to parents are personal; they say what pupils know and can do and tell parents how their children are progressing. They include targets for improvement, which parents find helpful. Parents are invited to comment about the report but not many do. Regular meetings with teachers give parents the opportunity to support their children.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

48. The contribution that parents make to their children’s learning is satisfactory. The school provides many opportunities to involve parents but with only partial success. Few parents offer voluntary help in the school, though they help in activity afternoons in the nursery. Some parents hear their children read at home but there are many who do not. By no means all parents come to meetings to review their children’s work. Those who do come, benefit from hearing how their child is getting on and the future targets that teachers have set for them. With the recently improved information technology facilities, the school is developing ways to include parents as well as their children in this new venture.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

49. Parents of pupils with SEN are fully involved when individual education plans are reviewed and new targets set for development. For those pupils with Statements of Special Educational Needs, the South View Infants - 19 school produces annual reports of good quality, as part of the statutory procedure for reviewing their progress. The school establishes very good links with parents of children with speech and language difficulties and they play a valuable role in helping their children to make progress.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

50. The leadership and management of the school are outstanding. This represents an improvement since the last inspection. The headteacher has a very clear vision for the school and the senior management team is highly effective. She delegates responsibility to staff very well. The headteacher and senior staff look critically at all aspects of the school’s work and there is a very clear focus on identifying ways in which pupils’ standards and the quality of education can be improved. This influences the work of all staff, especially subject co-ordinators, and there is a shared culture in the school in terms of evaluating what goes on, reflecting on what works well and working together as a team to bring about improvement. The areas that the school has set as priorities for improvement are highly appropriate, given the needs of the pupils in the school. The school development plan is effective and underpins the work of the school well. The school aims

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

51. One particularly strong feature is the sharp focus on pupils’ standards. For several years, the data from test results has been carefully analysed by the headteacher and subject co-ordinators and some effective strategies have been put into place to improve standards. In mathematics, for example, specific targets have been set for each class and teacher as well as the whole school. Making the best use of the information from national and school-based assessments is an important and well-established part of co-ordinators’ roles. This is clearly helping to raise standards and ensure that pupils make good progress during their time in the school.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

52. There is good quality co-ordination for pupils with special educational needs. All statutory requirements are met and the provision is effectively monitored. The co-ordinator regularly sees if any improvements are needed and takes any action necessary to develop and support teachers in their work with the pupils.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. The governing body is effective in carrying out its responsibilities. Governors have a good overview of the school, helped by the detailed reports from the headteacher. There are good lines of communication between governors, headteacher and staff. Governors look carefully at the targets the school has set and the information on pupils’ performance and they therefore have a good understanding of any aspects that need to be improved. The governing body has set up good systems for monitoring the work of the school and the school improvement committee has a crucial role in this respect. Statutory requirements are fully met.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

54. The school’s strategy for appraisal and performance management is good. Appraisal has been carried out by the headteacher over a number of years so teachers and support staff have confidence in the system. Training needs are discussed at the appraisal so professional development of staff is constantly under review. There are very good routines for the introduction of new staff. A new teacher is carefully matched to a suitable class and a mentor is assigned to offer support. Training needs are carefully considered.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

55. The school is very well staffed both in relation to teachers and learning support assistants. Teachers are appropriately qualified and experienced and are deployed carefully, with the particular needs of each class in mind. Support staff are very well used. They work very closely with teachers and are fully involved in planning and school routines. As a result, they have a marked impact upon the progress that pupils make. Pupils benefit from the small class sizes and from the close attention of both teachers and learning support assistants. This is particularly noticeable when staff support pupils with SEN and when those from Class 1 join with other classes. Many of the learning support assistants are well qualified and their expertise is valued.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

56. The school’s accommodation is very good and the school makes good use of extra spaces available. For instance, the new computer workstations have been well thought out and there are suitable areas for teaching small groups with special needs. Children in the nursery and reception South View Infants - 20 classes are well catered for, with areas for role-play and practical activity. Good use is made of the hall. The school has good resources, which are used well to enhance pupils’ learning.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

57. The school makes very good strategic use of its resources. The budget is allocated each year to match the priorities set in the school improvement plan. This makes sure that resources are targeted to the areas of development most likely to improve standards. In addition, the school is looking ahead and governors are planning to use resources appropriately to help the school through a difficult period when local houses are demolished and rebuilt and pupil numbers are set to fluctuate. For this reason, a small reserve has been created to maintain staffing levels during a temporary fall in the number of pupils on roll.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

58. During recent years the school has benefited from additional government grants to help raise standards. These are used very well, for the intended purposes, and their impact is clear, in that pupils’ standards are improving. The local education authority provides specific funding for pupils with speech and language difficulties. This is used well to pay for the provision and to help to keep class sizes small so that these pupils can be included successfully with other pupils of their age. The local education authority also provides additional funding for pupils with special educational needs. This is used well and the outcome is clearly seen in the good progress these pupils make.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

59. Good use is made of new technology. The office staff are of good quality and provide a warm and efficient link between the school and the outside community. The school uses more administrative hours each week than schools of similar size. However, this is used effectively, first to enable the administration officer to have sufficient time to manage the school’s accounts and secondly, to provide a range of services to parents, pupils and staff that ensure the smooth running of the school. Office staff use computers appropriately and are up to date with current developments in software. As a result, there are very good procedures for financial control. The recommendations of the previous auditors’ report have all been acted upon.

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

60. The school and governors are investing wisely in raising standards and improving the school. The governing body is aware of what the school does well and whether expenditure has been worthwhile. However, these reports are received informally and it would help governors to have a formal record of whether best value has been obtained from what is spent. For example, the school has invested in providing a learning support assistant to give one to one support to pupils with SEN. This investment is known to be worthwhile, and producing benefit for the pupils, but has not been recorded in the minutes of governors’ meetings. The school has more income, and spends a lot more each year than schools of a similar size. However, the following reasons lie behind inspectors’ judgement that the school provides very good value for money:

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

§ many pupils come from very low socio-economic backgrounds; § pupils’ attainment on entry to the school is well below average; § pupils achieve well from the time they enter to the time they leave the school; § there is good teaching and the school has made a wise decision to invest in teachers and learning assistants to keep class sizes small; § excellent leadership focuses sharply on school improvement and raising standards; § pupils behave very well; and § the school provides an oasis of stimulation, enjoyment and learning and makes a considerable difference to the lives of its pupils.

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

61. In order to continue to raise standards, the headteacher, staff and governors should:

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Help pupils to develop their speaking and listening skills, broaden their vocabulary and speak more confidently and clearly, by: South View Infants - 21 • increasing the emphasis on speaking and listening across the curriculum; • providing a wider range of opportunities for pupils to practise and extend their speaking and listening skills; • broadening teachers’ awareness of strategies for promoting speaking and listening skills during lessons; • assessing and recording pupils’ progress in speaking and listening; • using the information from these assessments to set realistic targets; • making use of the specialist expertise in speech and language that already exists within the school. (paragraphs 3, 25, 84)

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Raise standards in information and communication technology*, by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• providing pupils with sufficient opportunities to practise their skills; • assessing pupils’ computer skills more carefully; • using this assessment to make sure that pupils build upon what they already know and can do. (paragraphs 7, 114 – 117)

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Provide more opportunities for pupils to develop their powers of imagination and expression through music, drama and dance, by:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• extending teachers’ knowledge and skills in the teaching of music and PE; • making sure pupils have more opportunities to be perform and compose in music; and to evaluate and refine their movements in PE; • improving the planning for PE to provide teachers with more guidance; • monitoring and supporting teachers so they gain sufficient confidence for their lessons to become stimulating and enjoyable. (paragraphs 18, 26, 35, 80, 118-119, 123)

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

The governing body should also consider the following minor weaknesses when drawing up their action plan:

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• developing a more consistent and co-ordinated approach to provision for children in the foundation stage (paragraph 24) • breaking down level 2 to 2a, 2b and 2c to track pupils’ progress more effectively and to set more specific targets (paragraphs 42, 89) • extending the monitoring of English to include looking at pupils’ written work to check that pupils in all classes make equally good progress (paragraph 89)

p.21

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

* Note: the school has already identified ICT as an area for development South View Infants - 22

p.21

1)

62. The school provides specialist provision for pupils from the local education authority who have Statements of Special Educational Needs for their speech and language difficulties. There are five places in the nursery each morning and afternoon, for ten children in all. In the main school (Class 1) there are ten places although, at the time of the inspection, there were twelve pupils in Class 1. The provision is staffed by well-qualified teachers and learning support assistants. The local health authority provides speech and language therapy support. Pupils have a wide and complex range of speech and language difficulties.

p.22

1)

63. Children in the nursery make good progress in developing their speaking and listening. They are taught well and there is a very good emphasis on developing vocabulary and building children’s confidence in speaking. Great care is taken to make sure the children understand the vocabulary that is being used; this aspect is carefully planned. The children are fully integrated and are included in all activities. They benefit from a good number of adults who support them very effectively. A measure of the success of the provision is seen in the number of children who are able to return to their neighbourhood schools by the age of five.

p.22

1)

64. Pupils in Class 1 make good progress and achieve well as a result of the good support they receive. A minority of pupils make very good progress in communication and these pupils are encouraged successfully to return to their catchment schools. Other pupils make slower progress in communication, due to the severity of their difficulties, but all the pupils make good progress in developing their confidence and self-esteem. This motivates them to keep communicating and to join in their lessons in Class 1 and in other classes in the school. Pupils have an individual programme of lessons in Class 1 and in other classes. This is carefully worked out according to their needs and is effective in keeping pupils up to date with what their age group is learning. Literacy and numeracy are taught effectively and pupils read the same books as the others and follow similar strategies for learning to use numbers. Some pupils are reading well for their age

p.22

1)

and recognise a large number of words by sight. This helps them to think about the meanings of words and the sentences they make which, in turn, helps pupils to understand more about their language. Most pupils understand number as expected for their age and also learn more vocabulary through classifying objects as 'long' or 'short' .

p.22

1)

65. Pupils are very well behaved and are eager to attend school and join in with their classmates. Teachers and assistants make every effort to understand children and pupils’ communication and this motivates them to keep trying, even when they are having difficulty in being understood. Pupils are tolerant of one another and work hard themselves to understand what others say.

p.22

1)

66. The quality of teaching in the nursery and Class 1 is good. The specialist teacher is supported well by good quality assistants and, along with the speech and language therapist, there is obvious teamwork in promoting children’s communication. Lessons take place with adults communicating at several different levels at once, according to individual pupils’ needs. They know how to communicate with each child – in carefully chosen phrases to one, in more complicated sentences to another and with selected vocabulary to another for example. All communication, in all lessons, is carried out in this way, with sentences repeated and adapted as necessary so that everyone understands. This leads the pupils to concentrate on their learning and work hard to develop new skills. Regular routines also help the pupils. For example, in a numeracy lesson, pupils ‘help’ Teddy to count and pass him between themselves and the teacher, each time adding

p.22

1)

on one or ten as appropriate. In a literacy lesson, the teacher used repetition well so that pupils joined in with ‘little pig, little pig, let me in’ and practised their pronunciation at the same time. Teachers also show a good awareness of when to intervene and prompt pupils to say more. For example, in one lesson two pupils working together did so in silence. The teacher skilfully encouraged each pupil to begin communication and, as a result, they began to interact spontaneously and extend their utterances.

p.22

1)

67. Pupils follow a good curriculum where the subjects they follow in class are used effectively as a context for addressing their speech and language needs. This is added to with regular speech and South View Infants - 23 language therapy that also ensures accurate and detailed assessment of how well pupils are doing in developing their speech and language and what they should learn next. Pupils build successfully upon their experiences in the nursery and are encouraged to join in other classes with their age group; this ‘integration’ is supported well. Parents are kept very well informed of pupils’ progress and there is a very good working relationship between home and school that also helps the pupils to make progress.

p.22

1)

68. Since the last inspection, standards of provision have been maintained and there are now closer links between the activities planned in Class 1 and, for example, in the literacy and numeracy lessons in other classes. There are two main areas where further improvements could be made. First, the school has rightly recognised that some pupils need to support their expression with signs so that others can understand them more easily. Appropriate plans are already in place to help staff and pupils to raise their signing skills. Secondly, more explicit use could be made of the format of the literacy hour to include direct teaching of individual areas identified through speech and language therapy assessment. For example, as well as learning phonics, pupils could focus on speech sounds they are working on. At the same time, pupils could focus on learning new vocabulary that is immediately relevant to their needs and could concentrate on using

p.23

1)

grammatical structures that are appropriate to their next stage of development. The aim of this development would be to provide a continuous speech and language therapy provision, even when the therapist was not in attendance. The provision is well led and managed and all funds are used effectively for the benefit of the pupils. However, the headteacher has yet to receive specialist advice regarding the performance management of the teacher in charge. South View Infants - 24

p.23

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 34

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y2

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 18 170

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals - 43

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y2

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 5 13

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 6 87

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 4

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 20

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 15

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. South View Infants - 25 Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 Year Boys Girls Total

p.24

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 31 33 64

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Boys 21 25 27 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 22 27 28

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Percentage of pupils School 67 (76) 81 (83) 86 (78) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 85 (83) 90 (87)

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.25

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Boys 25 27 30 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 27 26 27

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Percentage of pupils School 81 (79) 83 (79) 89 (78) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 88 (86) 88 (87)

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Black – Caribbean heritage 1 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Black – African heritage 1 Black – African heritage 0 0

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Any other minority ethnic group 2 Other minority ethnic groups

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

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. South View Infants - 26 Teachers and classes Financial information

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 9 Financial year 1999-2000

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 23.4

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Education support staff: YR – Y2 Total expenditure 533,035

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of education support staff 14 Expenditure per pupil 2391

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total aggregate hours worked per week 239 Balance brought forward from previous year 29,535

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Balance carried forward to next year 35,168

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery Income and expenditure figures include additional funding designated for special educational needs and the speech and language unit

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 18

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total number of education support staff 3

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

Total aggregate hours worked per week 71

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PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS

FTE means full-time equivalent. South View Infants - 27

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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. 64 34 2 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 62 31 4 0 4

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 53 37 8 3 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 62 31 7 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 73 24 2 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 70 27 0 0 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 58 38 3 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 76 20 1 0 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 65 30 1 0 4

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 37 28 10 5 21 South View Infants - 28

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

69. Children in the foundation stage in the nursery and reception classes enjoy a rich and practical curriculum, which is planned well to meet the particular needs of its children.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

70. After a good range of induction procedures, including home visits, children enter the nursery in the year they are four. All children that come to the Nursery attend either in the mornings or afternoons for a year. Following a further induction programme, they transfer to the reception classes to start a staggered full time attendance at the beginning of the academic year in which they become five. At present, 30 children attend the nursery on a part-time basis. Of the 50 children at present in the reception classes, only 28 have attended the school’s nursery. All but 6 of these children have had some sort of pre-school experience in another nursery or playgroup.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

71. For the youngest children, the teaching has improved since the last inspection and this means that the children make a good start, resulting in learning that has also improved. Particular strengths in the teaching include very good support for the development of personal and social skills and a strong emphasis on developing good listening skills and clearer speech. Assessment procedures are also very good and the information from assessments is used well to help teachers plan the curriculum. The sensitive, quiet but firm, very effective handling of children who come into school with behavioural difficulties is also a strength. It is because of these strengths that children settle quickly into school and are ready to learn, resulting in a good rate of learning.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

72. Although there is a wide range of attainment, many children enter the nursery with well below average attainment. In particular they have poorly developed speaking and listening, mathematical and social skills. They have difficulties with pencil skills and their basic knowledge and understanding of the world is also well below average. During their time in the nursery, the children make a good start, particularly in their personal and social skills where their progress is particularly good. They continue to make good progress, on balance, towards all the early learning goals as a result of the good teaching in the reception classes. By the time they are ready to start in Year 1, the majority are still well below expected levels in most of the areas of learning. In personal and social development, children meet the required nationally defined standards; this means that children have already gained the vital skills of good attitudes towards

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

learning, which stands them in good stead during Key Stage 1. Good gains are also made in children’s physical development and they also meet the required standard in this area.

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Personal, social and emotional development

73. A significant number of children enter the nursery with immature personal independence; they lack confidence in relating to and playing with other children. By the time they leave the reception class they are meeting the early learning goals in this area. This shows very good achievement and reflects the consistently skilful teaching in both the nursery and reception classes. Children are frequently encouraged by all adults to work and play together in pairs and small groups. For example, when retelling the story of ‘ The Three Billy Goats Gruff’, using play animals, houses and a play mat, they are encouraged to take turns and respond to one another’s play to sequence the story correctly. The children are enthusiastic about their learning. Good examples of this are seen in the group activities. The provision of interesting, practical and relevant activities is good and children are reluctant to stop and clear up.

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Personal, social and emotional development

74. All adults provide very good role models for the children, always treating them with warmth, care, quiet respect and courtesy. This results in good levels of trust and helps children to develop good social skills. The teaching in this area is very good in both the nursery and reception classes, helping to promote confidence and independence very well.

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Communication, language and literacy

South View Infants - 29 75. The majority of children are unlikely to attain the early learning goals in communication, language and literacy by the time they are ready to enter the class for six-year-olds. The rest are likely to be close to, or attaining them. Attainment overall is well below average; this is because of their overall well below average skills on starting school, particularly in speaking and listening. All adults take every opportunity to develop these skills in discussion and as a result the children make good progress in their language. Good numbers of adults are employed by the school so that they can join in small group activities. At these times, all adults use very clear speech to help children speak clearly, use short sentences and learn new vocabulary. Good examples of this are seen in the nursery, when the teacher gives very clear guidance to helpers about what the children are learning, when they are involved in sand or water play. On these occasions, there is a

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Communication, language and literacy

good level of interaction and discussion and children learn well. Children enjoy listening to stories. In particular they enjoy talking about their ‘big books’ in their classroom. They understand that text has meaning and use pictures to help them to talk about what is happening. All children handle books carefully and this is reinforced daily when they come into school and settle quietly with a book.

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Communication, language and literacy

76. Elements of the literacy framework are used well in all classes. Through a variety of well thought out games, children gain a satisfactory knowledge of letters and sounds and the alphabet. By the time children are at the end of their reception year, about half of them are starting to read simple sentences in picture books. A good number have a small vocabulary of known words and lower attaining pupils have some knowledge of sounds and are starting to use these, along with pictures to help them read words.

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Communication, language and literacy

77. In all classes, teachers encourage children to think of themselves as readers and writers, whatever their stages of development. For example, they share ‘Big Books’ such as ‘The Three Billy Goats Gruff’ and supplies of paper, pens and crayons are readily available for children in the writing or play areas. The teaching in this area of learning is good and there is a consistent approach to the development of language skills as a priority. In their listening and language development, children’s learning is good. Because of the overall significant weakness in speech development when children come to school, the gains in reading and writing are satisfactory.

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Mathematical development

78. This area of learning is taught well but because of the children’s well below average mathematical skills on entry to the nursery and reception class and the significant language problems, they are still well below average by the time they enter Key Stage 1. Satisfactory learning has taken place, but good gains have been made in mathematical understanding and the understanding of mathematical words. This is because of the good numbers of adults present in classes to support well chosen practical activities. Teachers in the foundation years help children to see mathematics all round them and encourage children to think as mathematicians. For example, in the nursery they match pairs of socks in the ‘Baby Shop’. In the reception classes, they stand in a circle and count the numbers in the class and then explore the most or least number of boys and girls.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

79. Many children enter the nursery class with well below average basic knowledge. Through good teaching, they are helped to build on this knowledge by learning about the place where they live and what has happened to them since they were born. Additionally, they learn about wider aspects of their lives such as Christian celebrations and how to use the computer. In their work about where they live, they start to draw the route to school, learn the name of their road and the number of their house. When they study their own lives they look at pictures of themselves as a baby and talk about how they have changed. They become aware of how to keep fit, clean and healthy and learn about celebrations such as Pancake Day, the Chinese New Year and Mother’s Day. The good teaching supports the children in investigating their surroundings and encourages them to find things out for themselves. By the time they enter the Year 1 classes, they have

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

made good gains and their attainment has moved to below average. South View Infants - 30

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Physical development

80. Frequent use of the outdoor play area and good access to the school hall are major factors in the good development in this area of learning. The good teaching offers a wide range of activities, using the good number and variety of wheeled vehicles for outside play. The teaching of physical activities in the hall is good overall and is again well supported by a good range of suitable apparatus for children of this age. However, the school’s planning for physical education is brief and does not provide much guidance for teachers on how to extend the activities. Through very wide and practical play experiences in all classes, children’s experience in using a range of tools and construction and modelling materials, is also good. It is because of the good teaching and good provision of resources that the children make good progress and reach the required standards for physical development.

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Creative development

81. At the end of the foundation years, children are well below the expected levels. However, although the teaching is satisfactory in this area of learning, the lack of language and social skills has a strong bearing on their creative development. Children paint, draw and dance. They regularly sing songs and make music, sometimes using instruments. For example, they listen to the rhythm of their names and clap it together. Role-play areas are set up in all classrooms and activities such as play mats and toy animals for retelling stories, are good provision. This area is a relatively weaker area of teaching and learning and as a result of this the learning is not as good as in other areas, although it is satisfactory.

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ENGLISH

82. In the 2000 national tests for seven year olds, results were well below the national average in reading and below average in writing. When results are compared with schools where pupils come from similar backgrounds, they are below average in reading and broadly average in writing. Over the last few years, results in writing have been slightly better than in reading and girls have generally performed better than boys. Results over a three-year period show pupils are about a term and a half behind where they should be in reading and just over half a term behind in writing.

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ENGLISH

83. Inspection findings show pupils’ speaking and listening skills are well below average. Standards in reading are improving; they are still below those expected by the age of seven but this is better than the picture shown by recent test results. Writing standards are also below what is expected. There are more pupils in Year 2 this year who are on the higher stages of the special educational needs register so this is a good achievement.

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ENGLISH

84. Despite standards being below what is expected nationally, the rate at which pupils learn and their achievement are good. When they enter school, the great majority of pupils have very limited speaking, listening, reading and writing skills and around half the pupils in the school have special educational needs. The school wisely places a lot of emphasis on literacy and numeracy and pupils therefore make good, and in some cases very good, progress as they move through the school. This includes pupils with special educational needs, who make good progress in both reading and writing. There are a number of reasons for pupils of all abilities making good progress: • everyone shares a commitment to wanting pupils to do well and pupils are praised warmly for their efforts, which in turn encourages them to try hard; • the quality of teaching is consistently good; • lessons are very well planned; • teachers check pupils’ progress at regular points during the year and identify which pupils

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ENGLISH

need extra help; • learning support assistants are used well; they know what the teachers want the pupils to learn and they give very good support.

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ENGLISH

85. Pupils’ speaking and listening skills are weak. They are not used to speaking at any length and, in most cases, pupils answer questions with only a few words or at best a sentence. It is quite unusual to hear pupils extending their answers and speaking in a series of sentences. Many South View Infants - 31 pupils speak ungrammatically and they find it hard to pronounce words correctly, often having several attempts before they manage to say the word they are searching for. They do not have the breadth of vocabulary that is expected by seven. This restricts their flow of speech but also hinders their reading and writing skills. Pupils often come across words in their reading books that they do not understand. For example, one pupil in Year 2 used his knowledge of letter sounds to work out how to read the word ‘tide’ but did not know what it meant. When writing, pupils often structure their phrases and sentences according to the way they speak, which often lacks fluency

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ENGLISH

86. By the age of seven, pupils of differing abilities use their knowledge of sounds to work out words they find difficult; pupils in the early stages of reading use the pictures to help them. Many pupils read their books hesitantly and stumble over words but most of them at least sound out the first few letters to help themselves. The more able readers follow punctuation to vary their voices accordingly; this means they read in a more interesting way. They are confident reading more difficult words, such as ‘exclaimed’ and ‘suddenly’. When they make errors they usually notice and correct them without help. They can retell sections of the story from memory. Pupils do not all receive help with their reading at home, though many read on their own before they go to bed, for example. A few pupils are able to talk about their favourite stories but many have a limited knowledge of different types of books, although they are developing knowledge of non-fiction

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ENGLISH

87. The majority of pupils are making good progress in writing during Key Stage 1. Analysis of pupils’ writing from the time they enter the reception class to the time they reach Year 2 shows most pupils make good progress in how they structure their writing, as well as in their spelling and punctuation. More recently, a good number of pupils have begun to write slightly longer pieces of work rather than just a few lines. They are benefiting from some very effective teaching because teachers have highlighted this as an area that they want to particularly develop. Teachers focus on the specific skills that pupils need in order to improve the way they express themselves. For example, some recent work on using phrases connected with time, such as ‘the next morning…’ and ‘later that day…’ has resulted in some pupils beginning to use these as a matter of course to vary the way they begin sentences. This makes their writing more interesting to read. Whilst there

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ENGLISH

are a good number of pupils likely to reach the required level by the time they leave the school, few are working at a level beyond this. This is because they have a restricted vocabulary and tend to use simple words rather than more imaginative words and turns of phrase. Many pupils struggle with their handwriting and do not form letters correctly. They often hold their pencils awkwardly which prevents them from writing fluently.

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ENGLISH

88. The quality of teaching is good. Teachers plan together to make sure pupils in different classes within the same year group cover the same ground. They plan lessons very well and focus carefully upon what pupils will learn. Teachers make sure that they use their time effectively, by concentrating on different groups of pupils. For instance, in one lesson, the teacher spent most of the lesson supporting one group of pupils who were writing a story. By asking some excellent questions, such as ‘What kind of morning was it?’ she made the pupils come up with better language which made their writing much more lively. In some lessons, teachers emphasise important learning points so that pupils have plenty of opportunity to learn new things. For example, in one Year 1 lesson, the teacher constantly re-inforced the first and last sounds in simple words, through a good range of reading and writing tasks. In another lesson, on planning a

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ENGLISH

story, the teacher kept reminding pupils what had been covered earlier in the lesson so that they learned to consider particular points, such as the setting and the characters. In some lessons, teachers do not make the most of the opportunities that arise to develop pupils’ speaking skills; for example, by repeating what pupils have said using correct grammar, or by encouraging them to extend their answers beyond one or two words. Teachers are lively in their approach; they are enthusiastic about reading and writing and using language. Their enthusiasm is infectious and, as a result, pupils enjoy literacy lessons, and work hard. Pupils are invariably well behaved and all persevere. They receive plenty of praise from their teachers when they have worked hard and they positively glow with pride. South View Infants - 32 89. Learning support assistants play an important role in helping pupils to achieve well in reading and

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ENGLISH

writing. The teachers make sure they know what the main learning points of the lesson are and the assistants give good support. They are used in a variety of ways to support pupils of various abilities, but this is always effective. When they help pupils with SEN, they are highly aware of the specific targets on their individual education plans; consequently, they have a real bearing upon the progress these pupils make.

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ENGLISH

90. The leadership of the subject is very good. There has been good progress in improving standards and the quality of teaching since the last inspection. The way the curriculum is planned is very good. Teachers have carefully identified where pupils’ literacy skills can be developed through other subjects and this is often effective: there is a constant emphasis on learning new vocabulary. The staff focus carefully on looking for ways to improve standards in reading and writing and more could now be done to improve speaking and listening standards. The national and school-based tests are analysed carefully and new ideas are introduced as a result. For example, a number of pupils who need extra support with reading are being specifically targeted and this is helping their progress. More could be done to check pupils’ ongoing work and ensure that the progress pupils make is equally good across the school. The arrangements for assessing

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ENGLISH

reading and writing are very good and the information that arises from assessments is used very well in almost all classes to find out what pupils need to work on to improve. This system could be further extended by subdividing level 2 on the prediction sheets, so that teachers can see where progress is being made more clearly; for example, there is a quite a difference between level 2c and 2a in writing. The co-ordinator has carried out some monitoring but this could be further extended by looking at pupils’ written work to make sure pupils in all classes are making equally good progress.

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MATHEMATICS

91. Pupils do well in mathematics, and the school’s national test results do not really show their achievement. Most of the pupils enter school with very low levels of mathematical knowledge and understanding. They make good progress in their learning so that, by the age of seven, a large number reach the national expectation for their age. Some pupils achieve very well to get to this level. The results of national tests show that, compared to schools nationally, pupils’ performance is well below average. It is also below average when compared with schools with similar numbers of pupils claiming free school meals. However, nearly half of all the pupils in the school have special educational needs and they do well to improve their mathematical ability to almost match national expectations by the time they are seven.

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MATHEMATICS

92. There has been a significant improvement in the school’s results since 1997. The number of pupils attaining Level 2 in their national assessments is increasing steadily each year. This is due to improvements in the quality of teaching, the introduction of the National Numeracy Strategy and the excellent leadership provided for the subject by the co-ordinator. Inspection findings show that pupils in Year 2 are working at a standard just below the national expectation. This represents good achievement when compared against the tests they had when they began school, which show their knowledge then was well below the average expected for their age. The previous inspection found pupils’ progress to be satisfactory and that there were too few opportunities to use their number skills in other lessons. This is no longer the case. Pupils make good progress in their learning and are encouraged well to use their number skills in all other

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MATHEMATICS

subjects. For example, they draw graphs in science and measure weights of ingredients in food technology.

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MATHEMATICS

93. Pupils in Year 1 are confident to add and subtract numbers up to 20. They are beginning to extend this knowledge into numbers up to 99 and are aware that, for example, 52 is five tens and two units. They use rulers to measure and draw lines with reasonable accuracy for their age and know the names of basic shapes. A small proportion of pupils with higher attainment can already add and subtract tens and units. Pupils in Year 2 are confident with numbers to 99 and the pupils with higher attainment show an understanding of hundreds, tens and units. They are aware of symmetry in the shapes of capital letters and understand some of the names for solid shapes such as cuboid and sphere. During the inspection, pupils were learning to count on nine and all South View Infants - 33 understood that it was easier to add on ten then take away one. Pupils were also encouraged to use other words to describe their sums. For example, ten minus four leaves six. They found this

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MATHEMATICS

difficult. Many pupils have very low ability in speaking and listening when they begin school. These pupils go on to find it harder to learn and use new words and this is stopping some pupils from doing better in national tests. For example, while a pupil may be able to add and take away with numbers to 99, the test question might ask them to, for example, write the answer to ‘what is ten less than forty five’. Other questions ask pupils to solve problems and these also present difficulties to many. As a result, pupils do better in number, measurement and shape than in investigating and applying their knowledge.

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MATHEMATICS

94. The quality of teaching is good. In the best lessons, teachers use a wide range of teaching methods and this helps pupils to understand better what they are expected to learn. For example, in one Year 1 lesson, the teacher wanted the pupils to understand the value of each number in, for example, 43. First, she used a drum and handclaps for pupils to count in tens on the drum beat then count in units on the handclaps. This was followed by counting ‘the giant’s money’ into bags of ten coins. The moneybags were then used for counting and demonstrating clearly that 88 coins is eight bags of ten and eight coins left over. Because pupils were able to listen, watch, and be involved practically they all were quick to understand and could then write two digit numbers correctly on their white boards. All teachers manage the pupils very well and make sure that behaviour is good in all lessons, at all times. As a result, pupils are able to get on with their

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MATHEMATICS

learning and can concentrate on what they are doing. Lessons are planned well and pupils are grouped effectively by their ability. This means that the teacher and learning support assistants can work each day with a different group. Each group has different work set and this provides a challenge for more able pupils and good support for pupils with lower ability. As a result, each child is expected to do their best and to learn as fast as they can. Teachers keep a careful check on what each pupil is learning and use this information very well to plan the work they should learn next. Pupils enjoy the work that is set. For example, in a lesson in Year 2, the teacher used lively expression and clearly explained what each group should do. This led pupils to say, in pleasure, ‘Oh yeah’ when asked to write a variety of number sentences and they began their work feeling motivated to do their best. In another lesson, the teacher showed a good understanding of

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MATHEMATICS

how pupils learn and presented the lesson in logical small steps, checking carefully that pupils understood each step before moving on to the next one. In this way, they learnt that they could check their answers to, for example, 7+3 = 10 by using their knowledge that 10-3 = 7.

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MATHEMATICS

95. Pupils’ learning and their attainments are assessed very well. Parents receive good information about their child’s achievements and teachers use this information very well to plan what to teach next. The data from this assessment is collected and analysed by the teacher responsible for the subject. This is done exceptionally well. The information is used to highlight areas that could be improved. Targets are set for individual pupils, as well as for each class, teacher and the whole school to meet. The result of this high quality leadership is seen in the improvement each year in national test results. There is room for finding time for the subject leader to support other teachers so that their skill in teaching mathematics is consistently high in all classes. However, the school is to be praised for the exemplary way it has set out to raise standards since the last inspection. This is being achieved and is set to continue.

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SCIENCE

96. Since the last inspection, standards have risen. Inspection findings show standards in science are below average by the age of seven. This judgement is based on work seen in lessons, scrutiny of pupils’ work and talking to seven year old pupils. Teacher assessments in the national tests in 2000 were higher than this inspection judgement. The reason for the apparent drop in standards is the high number of pupils with special educational needs who are going to take these tests this year. The school’s predictions for this current group of pupils reflects the inspection judgement. Pupils enter the school with well below average skills in literacy, numeracy and knowledge and understanding of the world. This indicates that their achievements are good and that by the age of seven they have made good progress as a result of good teaching. South View Infants - 34 97. Teaching for five to seven year olds in science is good. Skills of predicting, observing, recording

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SCIENCE

and drawing conclusions are developed gradually and regularly reinforced. An investigation undertaken by 6 year olds is a good example of this. In their ‘Bouncing Ball’ investigation, they predicted which surface would be best and discussed how to make it a fair test. They used the computer, block graphs and pie charts to record their predictions and used a tally chart to record their results. Although all these activities were carried out, many pupils needed adult support to complete them.

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SCIENCE

98. Teachers cover the required areas of scientific knowledge systematically. When looking at previous work and talking to six and seven year pupils, it was found that they mostly have a satisfactory recall of basic life requirements and what happens when different materials are heated and cooled. Most of them know how to make a simple circuit. Teachers prepare their lessons carefully and tasks are designed to match the needs of particular pupils. This often means that there will be other adult support in the classroom to support the high numbers of SEN pupils. The quality of this support is good and the large number of pupils with SEN learn well because of this. Lessons are planned to be exciting and practical. A good feature is that teachers regularly reinforce scientific knowledge or vocabulary through the lesson, which helps the pupils to learn well. A science lesson for six year olds was a good example of this, when pupils were studying

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SCIENCE

‘Sound’. As they watched the sound waves from a tuning fork plunged into water, the word ‘vibrations’ was emphasised. This continued through a range of practical activities with consistent involvement of pupils using ‘vibrations’ in their replies to questions. Teachers manage pupils well and consistently, resulting in orderly lessons and a good degree of involvement on the part of pupils.

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SCIENCE

99. Pupils enjoy science and their attitudes in lessons are good. Behaviour is always very good. From the earliest years, pupils are very interested in the topics they study and by the tasks they are presented. They are eager to explain their thinking, as was seen in all science lessons and in the enthusiasm with which the six year old pupils answered questions when interviewed during the inspection.

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SCIENCE

100. The co-ordination of science is very good and makes a good contribution to the good teaching and the good gains that pupils make in their learning. Considerable improvements have been made since the last inspection. All the paper work has been reviewed and rewritten with close attention given to the particular needs of this school. Teachers have been given considerable support in gaining a better knowledge of the subject. Additionally, all the many resources that the school has are very efficiently stored so that they are easily accessible for teachers. Systems for assessing pupils’ work are now good and there is good recording of pupils’ assessed levels through the school. These levels are not yet as clear as they might be but the school is aware of the need to develop its approach.

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ART AND DESIGN

101. By the age of seven, pupils’ work in art is at the standard expected for their age. This is good achievement as most pupils have poorly developed creative skills when they begin school. Art takes turns with history and geography to be a focus on the timetable. During the inspection, the emphasis was on history and very few lessons of art were taught. Photographs of pupils’ work, their sketchbooks, and work on display in classrooms show that pupils experience a wide range of different techniques and are carefully taught new skills. Pupils’ paintings are framed and displayed in corridors along with the work of other artists. This helps to show pupils that their work is valued. Art work is used effectively to illustrate other subjects and children produce lively drawings which they colour well, taking care not to go over the lines. Paintings show that pupils use all the paper and handle brushes and colours appropriately. In Year 1, pupils have produced

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ART AND DESIGN

interesting prints and wax resist pictures of goldfish. They have extended this work into fabrics and made some attractive tie dye examples. Pupils make good progress in observational drawing and control their pencils well. For example, Year 2 sketchbooks show effective drawings of shoes and cheese-graters with three dimensions and a range of light and dark tones. South View Infants - 35 102. Since the last inspection, the school has given emphasis to raising standards in literacy and numeracy. Developments in art have been of lower priority and the school has done well to keep pupils’ achievements at a good level. The teacher responsible for the subject is enthusiastic and has a good view of how the subject needs to improve. She has included the use of computers appropriately in the curriculum and makes sure that pupils experience a good range of other activities to widen their artistic experience. These include visits into Basingstoke to see different

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ART AND DESIGN

kinds of art around the town and the appreciation of art from other cultures.

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ART AND DESIGN

103. The quality of teaching and learning is good. In a lesson seen for pupils in Year 1, the teacher planned the lesson well to show pupils how to use a soft pencil to create shape, texture and pattern. Her demonstration was logical and followed by all the pupils so that they were able to experience success and draw in proportion with light and dark tones as appropriate. All pupils then had confidence to go on and try to draw other objects by themselves. The pupils’ skills are assessed well by teachers, and reported effectively to parents. The teacher responsible for the subject uses this information well to make sure that pupils learn new skills in each class and that their work is of a sufficiently high standard each year.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

104. No design and technology was observed during the inspection. Evidence from pupils’ written work and photographs show that standards by the age of seven are appropriate. Standards have improved since the last inspection and the weaknesses identified at that time have been put right.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

105. Pupils make steady progress as they move through the key stage. In Year 1, pupils investigate and evaluate how fruit drinks are made. They prepare the ingredients, assemble their own fruit drinks and test the results. They also make comparisons between their own and commercial fruit drinks. In Year 2, pupils design and make a vehicle that moves. There is clear progression between Year 1 and Year 2 in terms of the detail of pupils’ designs. For example, in Year 1, pupils draw a simple picture with a caption but, by Year 2, they label specific parts, using terms such as ‘wheels’, ‘axles’ and ‘drive shafts’. Pupils evaluate their work and this too develops as they move through the key stage. In Year 1, for example, this involves giving their work marks out of three when they have completed a task but by Year 2, pupils write their own evaluations and some go further by saying how they might modify things if they were to do the task another time.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

106. The subject makes a good contribution to developing pupils’ literacy skills. Teachers include the specific terms they want the pupils to learn on their planning sheets. They give pupils planning sheets to help them approach their designing tasks. For example, when planning a park, pupils are prompted to think who will play there, what equipment they will include and what they need to consider to make sure the play area is healthy and safe. As pupils move through the key stage, they develop skills such as cutting and joining techniques through a range of tasks using different materials. They also develop their numeracy skills through weighing ingredients in food technology.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

107. The subject is well led. The co-ordinator has developed a helpful portfolio of samples of pupils’ work from all year groups, which is useful for teachers. This gives her a good view of work across the school and helps her to identify areas that could be improved. Learning support assistants are well briefed by teachers on the main learning points of the lesson and teachers prepare very helpful sheets for them to record the younger pupils’ comments, where appropriate.

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GEOGRAPHY

108. Standards in geography are satisfactory for pupils by the age of seven years. Although no lessons were seen during the inspection, the school was able to provide a satisfactory range of evidence of pupils’ work. Additionally, teachers’ planning was carefully examined, together with the school’s plans of what they will teach and how they will teach it. Substantial improvements have been made since the last inspection and standards have risen. South View Infants - 36 109. In Year 1, pupils look at their holiday destinations in the United Kingdom and Europe on a map. They make trips to Basingstoke and use maps, make plans and study places of interest. By the age of seven year, their knowledge has widened. They have an appropriate understanding of a small number of places on a world map and are able to use maps and plans to identify their homes on a local map and places of interest in Basingstoke.

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GEOGRAPHY

110. Co-ordination of geography is good and many improvements have been made since the last inspection. Detailed planning systems are in operation, which help to build pupils’ knowledge and skills progressively. Plenty of practical activities and trips are included, such as walks in the grounds and walks to local shops, trips to Basingstoke and Sherborne St.John, and an environmental week. The ‘Green Fingers’ lunchtime clubs give pupils good opportunities to learn how to care for their environment. Pupils’ work is regularly monitored and assessments have been established to help to track pupils’ learning. There is a clear plan for developing geography, which includes, appropriately, making better use of the computer and developing teachers’ questioning techniques.

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HISTORY

111. Standards in history are at the nationally expected level by the time pupils are seven years of age. This is good achievement, as pupils enter the school with well below average skills. Standards have improved since the last inspection.

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HISTORY

112. Pupils develop a sense of the order of the passage of time in their own lives, their parents’ and their grandparents’ lives. When they are in Year 2, they study Victorian life. For example, they visit a Victorian school at Sherborne St. John and compare clothes that would have been worn by rich and poor people. The oldest pupils have a satisfactory understanding of the passage of time and can sequence events from Victorian life until the present time, by using their family history. They identify differences between Victorian times and today in terms of, for example, electricity, kitchen utensils and clothes.

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HISTORY

113. Pupils have appropriately developed historical skills. A good example of drawing conclusions by looking at objects occurred in a Year 2 lesson, when pupils were looking at Victorian washday equipment. They drew the conclusions that washing was by hand, there was no electricity and they had to grate their soap and pound the clothes. Additionally, pupils are starting to use sources such as the Internet and non-fiction books to gain information.

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HISTORY

114. The teaching of history is good based on a good knowledge of the subject for pupils of this age. Historical skills are taught systematically and regularly reinforced in a variety of practical and interesting ways. The visitor who brought alive Victorian life during the inspection was a good example of this. Pupils’ historical skills of observation and drawing conclusions were used together with reinforcement of previous knowledge and gaining new knowledge. Materials and resources are readily at hand in lessons. For example, a good range of materials had been carefully selected for a lesson when pupils were making peg dolls to represent rich and poor people. Pupils’ learning is good because of the way teachers manage pupils so well, the carefully planned and resourced lessons and the emphasis on practical activities. Behaviour is always very good and resources and materials are treated with care. Pupils are friendly towards each other,

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HISTORY

taking turns and sharing when necessary. They show amazement at differences between life in the past and their own experience. Seeing soap being grated into the copper during the dramatisation of ‘Victorian Washday’ was an example of this.

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HISTORY

115. The leadership of history is good. It is because of this that considerable changes have been made since the last inspection and standards have risen. Improvements have been made in planning and these are now linked closely to the early learning goals for the foundation years. The co- ordinator tracks pupils’ work through the school to help ensure that pupils of all abilities, including those with SEN, are making the progress that they should. Extra training has been given to teachers to ensure that they have good knowledge of the subject. A good range of helpful South View Infants - 37 materials, books and historical objects has been collected to help teachers in their work and add excitement and interest to lessons for pupils.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

116. By the age of seven, pupils are achieving at levels that are lower than expected for their age. This is due to pupils waiting to have a turn on a computer in class and not getting enough practice to improve their skills. Since the last inspection, the school has concentrated on raising standards in literacy and numeracy and not enough has been done to develop computer skills. However, the subject is currently a priority for improvement and pupils are about to use a new suite of computers, which should increase the amount of time each pupil uses a computer each week.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

117. During the inspection, teachers demonstrated effectively how some computer programs could be used. For example, pupils in Year 1 were using a CD with an inter-active game to show their understanding of sound. This supported their topic work in science and music. Pupils know how to use a mouse, click on icons and follow the instructions that appear on screen. In a Year 2 lesson, pupils discussed the actions they should take to follow an adventure game and demonstrated they know how to insert floppy disks and follow instructions. In other lessons, pupils were observed using computers to word process their work, add punctuation to their sentences and to click and drag objects on screen. Work on display in the school shows that pupils use computers effectively to draw and make patterns and create block graphs and that teachers make good use of digital photographs. However, pupils’ keyboard skills are slow and

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

they are not skilled enough in saving and printing their work. Also, pupils do not have enough experience of using computers for communication and for collecting information. Some pupils have computers at home and they already know how to do what is being taught in class. This means that they are not being challenged to learn more and improve their achievements.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

118. Since the last inspection, teachers have improved their own skills in using computers and some set a good example to the pupils by using ICT for their display and preparation work. The school is currently increasing the training opportunities for staff and is making good use of government grants to help teachers improve their ICT skills. Teachers’ plans have recently improved and now show clearly which computer programs can be used to support learning in other subjects. The teacher responsible for developing the subject has made an appropriate three-stage plan for raising standards and the first stage is now nearing completion, with the opening of the new computer suite.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

119. The subject is taught satisfactorily and teachers are particularly good at managing pupils and planning when to use computers. This results in pupils having a turn with each new item of software and learning support assistants being able to help groups of pupils at the computer during other lessons. These arrangements are effective in providing sufficiently broad experiences for the pupils, which motivate them to be interested and to concentrate on what they do. However, teachers are not making enough use of their knowledge of what each child can already do. This means that pupils do not always build on their previous skills and this leads teachers to be unsure about how much each pupil has achieved, and pupils to be unaware of how well they are doing. To improve this situation, and to raise standards, the school should now follow the very good examples from other subjects, such as mathematics, of how to use assessment to set

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

targets for pupils, classes and the school as a whole.

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MUSIC

120. Standards in music are lower than expected and pupils could be achieving more. There has been no leadership in the subject for three years and pupils’ experiences are largely limited to singing together. The school is aware of the need to raise standards in the subject and has recently appointed a teacher to be responsible for developing the quality of the curriculum, teaching and learning. The quality of pupils’ singing was observed in school assemblies and in the choir and South View Infants - 38 singing club. Here, most pupils sing in tune but their performance lacks enthusiasm and vitality. This is mainly due to the pupils singing along to pre-recorded backing tapes and not being able to follow the lead provided by live singing, with and without live accompaniment. For example, in singing club when teachers did not used a backing tape, the quality of singing improved and pupils were able to sing ‘London’s Burning’ and make a reasonable attempt at singing this as a

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MUSIC

121. Discussion with pupils and assessment of their instrumental skills shows that pupils have too few opportunities to play instruments and compose and perform their own music. As a result, they are unsure of the names of instruments, unaware of how to play them and lack experience in co- operating to develop their own musical ideas that they can perform for others. In assembly, pupils listen carefully to the music playing as they enter and leave the hall. Their books show that pupils write appropriately about music they hear and why they like it. Photographs and teachers’ plans show that pupils benefit from experiences such as the annual music week and gain a good awareness of the music of other cultures. However, there is much to improve. Teachers need more knowledge and confidence in their skills to teach the subject. Pupils need more opportunities to play instruments and compose and perform their music and lessons need an

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MUSIC

injection of enthusiasm so that pupils can enjoy their success when they produce good quality sounds.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

122. Standards are in line with what is expected nationally by the age of seven and pupils make satisfactory progress as they move through Key Stage 1. The standards have been maintained since the last inspection.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

123. The quality of teaching is satisfactory but the strengths in teaching seen in other subjects are not always reflected in physical education lessons. Teaching is not as good as it was at the last inspection. This is mainly because the school has quite rightly been concentrating on improving standards in basic skills and has therefore not focused on developing teachers’ subject knowledge and skills in teaching this subject over recent years. Where teaching is effective, there is good attention to improving pupils’ technique, for example, how to hold the bat correctly when pushing a ball forward. Pupils handle bats and balls with an appropriate degree of control. They move across the apparatus using a variety of movements, including rolling, sliding and bunny jumping. Some are light-footed and well balanced when using equipment and others lack fluency. Because of their limited vocabulary, some do not understand the words the teachers use. For

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

example, in one lesson some pupils did not understand the word ‘close’ as an opposite to ‘apart’. Teachers take care to repeat instructions and terms to reinforce important teaching points but in some cases they talk for too long and pupils are sitting still for too much of the lesson. Another aspect which is not developed is encouraging pupils to evaluate their own and each other’s work.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

124. Pupils are extremely sensible and well behaved in lessons. They work in virtual silence and concentrate very hard on what they are doing. They sometimes have to wait for some time to have a go on the equipment and they show immense patience. Pupils who participate in gym club benefit from very good teaching, which is well focused on improving their skills and techniques. The time available is used well to incorporate a good variety of activities and the pupils are confident to demonstrate to each other when asked.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

125. Teachers follow the school’s programme of curriculum plans but these are not outlined in sufficient detail to help teachers plan their lessons. They need more guidance on how to plan a range of activities that develop specific skills. In one lesson, for example, on sequence and pattern, the main learning intentions were not highlighted enough during the lesson and were therefore not fulfilled. The leadership of the subject is satisfactory but more could be done now to develop teachers’ confidence in teaching physical education. The co-ordinator has already identified dance as an area that needs developing.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

South View Infants - 39 126. Standards in religious education have improved since the last inspection. Pupils are now meeting the expectations of the Locally Agreed Syllabus by the time they are seven. Pupils learn well considering their lack of knowledge when they start school. This reflects the good action taken by the school to address the weakness identified in the last inspection.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

127. Because of the way the school plans its work in a subject focus for a week or more, it was not possible to see any lessons. However, there is good evidence from looking at teachers’ planning, pupils’ work and talking to pupils that the required work is covered and pupils are learning well.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

128. Pupils’ work shows that they learn about special clothes and special events in the reception classes. At six years of age, pupils explore feelings such as anger and learn about harvest time and harvest celebrations. They start to learn about Hinduism and in particular how Hindus celebrate Divali. When they are in Year 2, they continue learning more about Hindus and more about Christian celebrations and stories. They are able to compare the creation stories from Christianity and Hinduism and events such as baptism and weddings. By the time they are seven years old, they have satisfactory knowledge of the life of Jesus and can retell the main events in his life, linking it to Christian celebrations. Similarly they know stories from the Hindu faith and the meaning of some Hindu celebrations and religious symbols. They have a well-developed understanding of the impact of their actions on others. They can share their feelings by

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

identifying, for example, something that is precious to them. They have an appropriate understanding of the deeper meaning of stories such as the Good Samaritan.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

129. Since the last inspection, good developments have taken place in religious education. A co- ordinator has been appointed and a scheme of work carefully drawn up. It is appropriately based on the Locally Agreed Syllabus and includes good links with the school’s personal and social and health education programme. Increased time has been given to religious education and a good range of new resources has been bought. The co-ordination of the subject is good. It includes monitoring teachers’ planning and pupils’ work. A portfolio of work is collected to help teachers match the work to agreed standards. Assessments are regular and the levelling of the work by matching it to the standards in the Locally Agreed Syllabus, has just started. Good links have been made with the local community church and there are frequent visits to the church and visitors from the church come into school to help the pupils learn.

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