St Luke's CofE Primary School

ST LUKES C of E (VC) PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 24 th – 27 th September 2001

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ST LUKES C of E (VC) PRIMARY 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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ST LUKES C of E (VC) PRIMARY SCHOOL

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Infant and Junior with nursery

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Langport Avenue Longsight Manchester

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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: Reverend P Clark

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: April 1997 St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 2

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responsibilities

23081 Mrs C E Waine Registered inspector Mathematics Information and communication technology Design and technology Geography How high are standards? How well are pupils taught? How well is the school led and managed? What should the school do to improve further? 1234 Ms T Bradley Lay inspector Pupils’ attitudes, behaviour and personal development How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 17939 Mr G Graveson Team inspector English as an additional language 21245 Mr W Lowe Team inspector Science History Music Physical education Religious education Special educational needs 10144 Ms M Marriott Team inspector English Art Provision for children in the Foundation Stage How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils?

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responsibilities

PPI Group Ltd 7 Hill Street Bristol BS1 5RW

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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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responsibilities

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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responsibilities

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 3

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 4 - 8

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? 9 - 11

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

St Luke’s C of E Primary School is of average size, having 39 children in the nursery and 156 pupils in the main school, taught in single age classes. It serves a highly disadvantaged area in Manchester, which is reflected in the very high proportion (over 80 per cent) of its pupils who are entitled to free school meals. Although the numbers in school remain at a similar level each year, there are considerable changes amongst the pupils because of movement in and out of the local area. For example, in the last school year, there was a change of 58 per cent, which is high. This is even more significant in some year groups. For example, in the current Year 5, the change is 83 per cent and in Year 6 is over 70 per cent. When children enter the nursery or the reception class, their academic attainments are very low. There are an average number of pupils with special educational needs, mainly moderate learning difficulties. There is a wide ethnic mix in the school; 22 per cent of pupils

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

are of White UK heritage, 14 per cent are Black African and the remainder of pupils includes similar proportions of Bangladeshi, Black Caribbean, Pakistani, Chinese and other minority ethnic groups. Currently, over 60 per cent of the pupils have English as an additional language, with Bengali, Somali, Punjabi and Arabic being the most common languages. The school has specialist support for these pupils. It is also involved in Excellence in Cities initiatives to support disaffected pupils and those who are gifted or talented. The school has had an exceptionally high turnover of staff in the last school year, including the entire senior management team, and had great difficulty in recruiting supply teachers. There is now a full staff of permanent teachers. The inspection took place in the fourth week of the school year.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is a rapidly improving school. Following a very unsettled period of staffing, there was much underachievement by pupils when they left the school and standards were well below average. Excellent leadership by a new headteacher and senior management team now provides a very high focus on raising standards. The quality of teaching has much improved and, together with the effective range of policies and procedures introduced since February 2001, has already begun to raise standards. There is now a positive learning environment and pupils’ achievements are improving quickly. The school now provides an acceptable standard of education and, despite the high cost per pupil, gives satisfactory value for money.

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What the school does well

• The provision for the Foundation Stage 1 , including teaching, is very good. • The quality of teaching is good throughout the school. • Excellent leadership and management by the senior management team. • The very good provision for pupils’ social, moral and cultural development promotes very good relationships, good behaviour and a positive learning ethos. • The school is fully inclusive of all its pupils and is a model for racial harmony.

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What could be improved

• Standards at age 11, particularly in English, mathematics and science. • Attendance and punctuality. • The range of reading materials, which is narrow. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school was last inspected in April 1997, when serious concerns were expressed about many aspects of the school, including standards, the quality of teaching and leadership and management. Since then there has been good improvement, overall, although much of this improvement is very

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

1 The Foundation Stage is the provision for children in the nursery and reception class. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 5 recent. Standards rose faster than the national rate of improvement between 1996 and 2000 but this rise was reversed in 2001, when staffing difficulties had a detrimental effect on standards. The arrival of a new headteacher and senior management team with a high focus on improved standards is now promoting rapid improvement. Many effective new policies and procedures have been successfully implemented; the quality of teaching has improved significantly, the curriculum has been improved and standards are again beginning to rise. Financial planning has improved and spending is now closely targeted towards school priorities

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by pupils at the end of Year 6 based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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Key

English E D E B well above average above average A B Mathematics D A E C average below average C D Science E C E C well below average E

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Key

There is considerable variation from year to year in test results at age 11, but results in 2000 were well below average, although similar to those of schools with a similar background. Test results in 2001 show a fall in the numbers of pupils reaching the standard expected for their age, partly because of significant staffing problems, which have now been resolved. Results are greatly affected by the numbers of pupils entering and leaving the school throughout Years 1 to 6, with many of those entering having little spoken English. In 2000, pupils’ results in the tests at the end of Year 2 were average in writing and in the bottom five per cent of all schools in reading and mathematics. In 2001, results were similar in reading and mathematics and fell in writing. They were adversely affected by the very small number of pupils undertaking tests and the arrival of three new pupils who had low attainment levels, just before the tests. Standards at the end of Years 2 and 6 have risen since the

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Key

last inspection and, between 1997 and 2000, those at the end of Year 6 rose faster than those nationally. The fall in 2001 reversed that trend. At the end of Year 2, girls achieve better in tests than boys, as they do nationally, but at the end of Year 6 there are no significant differences. Pupils of different ethnic origin attain similar standards, although the school has identified those of white boys as being weakest.

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Key

At the end of the Foundation Stage, children have made good progress and most attain the levels expected on entry to Year 1. However, the movement of pupils and the high proportion speaking little or no English affect overall standards, and these are below average. Standards are now improving at both Years 2 and 6. Pupils in Year 2 are achieving well and working at the levels expected for their age in all subjects. Standards in Year 6 are below average and pupils are only just beginning to work at the levels of which they are capable, because of the school’s previous problems. The improved teaching and curriculum are now providing for good progress. Pupils achieve well in lessons and are quickly making up lost ground, particularly in the basic skills of literacy and numeracy. The school’s targets for English and mathematics were not met in 2001 but, if current provision is maintained, those set for 2002 should be achieved. The new procedures for identifying and supporting groups of

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Key

pupils and individuals is ensuring that all pupils are achieving at similar levels.

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Key

Standards in information and communication technology have risen dramatically in the past few months; pupils are achieving very well and are working at average levels. In art, physical education and religious education, standards are average at ages 7 and 11. In design and technology, geography and history, standards are average at age 7 but below average at age 11. There was insufficient evidence for a judgement on music at age 7 but standards are below average at age 11. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 6

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. Pupils enjoy coming to school and all take a full part in lessons. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good. The few pupils who find it hard to behave well in the classroom or the playground are well supported and do not disrupt learning for others. Personal development and relationships Personal development is very good and pupils are happy to accept their responsibilities. Relationships are very good and racial harmony is excellent. Attendance Unsatisfactory; many pupils arrive late.

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Aspect Comment

The school has a small group of pupils who have difficulties with behaviour but has become involved with the Excellence in Cities project. Learning mentors from the project support their behaviour very well. Attendance is problematic. Although the school has begun a system of chasing up absence on the first morning, this has not yet had time to have a full effect on attendance levels. Some parents are not as co-operative as they could be in ensuring that their children arrive at school regularly and in good time.

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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

Quality of teaching Very good 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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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

The quality of teaching has been much improved recently through good staff selection procedures and a rigorous programme of monitoring, following an extended period of disruption and staff change. It was never less than satisfactory during the inspection and at least good in four out of every five lessons. It was particularly good in the Foundation Stage, English, mathematics and information and communication technology (ICT). The basic skills of literacy, numeracy and ICT are well taught, enabling pupils to make good progress. Teachers pay close attention to helping pupils understand and pronounce specific vocabulary correctly, helping pupils to make good gains in their learning. Specialist teaching of pupils with English as an additional language is helping them to understand their work and make good progress. Teachers plan carefully to meet the needs of all their pupils and the additional support that the school provides for pupils with special educational needs,

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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

either academic or behavioural, is having a positive effect on these pupils’ learning. The poor attendance and punctuality of some pupils is having a negative impact on their learning. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 7

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum The curriculum now meets all statutory requirements and offers pupils a good range of interesting and relevant learning experiences. Provision for pupils with special educational needs Provision for pupils with special educational needs is good. They are supported well in lessons, which helps them to make good progress. Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Provision for pupils with English as an additional language is good and they make good progress.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Very good overall and a strength of the school. Provision for spiritual development is good and for moral, social and cultural development it is very good.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils There is good provision for the welfare and protection of pupils. There are very effective procedures to support those pupils with behavioural difficulties. Information gained from assessments of pupils is now being used to target groups and individuals for support.

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Aspect Comment

Parents have positive views of the school and appreciate the good relationships they have with the school. Many help their children at home with reading and homework but despite the school’s best efforts, a significant minority does not become sufficiently involved. Information for parents is satisfactory but annual reports do not help them to help their children improve. Whilst the school now has a good range of assessment procedures and an effective system by which to check pupils’ progress, these are in the early stages of implementation and not yet fully effective.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Excellent leadership by the headteacher and her senior staff over the last few months has been responsible for halting a downward trend and giving a very clear direction for school improvement. A very good range of effective policies and procedures has been introduced to improve and monitor provision. Teamwork is of high quality and the whole staff shares a determination to improve standards. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Governors accept responsibility for past difficulties and have taken effective action to improve the situation. They have a clear view of what is needed for further improvement. The school’s evaluation of its performance The school has made a thorough and honest evaluation of how it performs in relation to other schools. Effective action is being taken to improve performance and progress is being very carefully checked.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources Resources are now being use effectively. Finances are carefully targeted at the improvement priorities of the school development plan.

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Aspect Comment

Staffing levels are now good and well used to support groups and individuals. Whilst the accommodation is satisfactory for most classes the classroom for the reception class is cramped and there is no library. Resources are generally satisfactory but there is an insufficiently wide range of fiction and non-fiction books for older pupils.

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Aspect Comment

Staff and governors are now ensuring that they get best value for money in their spending decisions, with a high focus on raising standards in comparison with other schools. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 8

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Their children are well cared for and are happy. • Most feel that their children make good progress. • Behaviour is good. • Their children develop good attitudes to work and to others. • Teaching is good and teachers have high expectations of their pupils. • The school is well led and managed. • Parents feel that they have a good relationship with the school and are made welcome. • The amount of homework their children receive. • The range of activities outside lessons. • The high turnover of teachers, particularly in the former Year 4 class (current Year 5 pupils).

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The parents’ questionnaires and meeting were completed before the summer holidays, in the previous school year. The inspection team finds that they agree with the positive points made by parents because of the many improvements made recently. In response to the negative points made, the team finds that the new system of homework provides a good improvement on the previous situation. The range of activities outside lessons has improved this term and is good; the after-school study clubs and book clubs are well targeted on raising standards. Parents were right to be concerned about the high turnover of staff but this has been resolved and the school has a full team of permanent, well-qualified teachers. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 9

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. Pupils achieve well in Years 1 and 2 and standards in English, mathematics and science are close to the average. Most are working at the levels expected for their age, with a small proportion exceeding them. However, there is a small group of pupils who are only just beginning to speak English and are not working at the level expected. These standards are an improvement on those noted at the last inspection. Standards in Year 6 are below average in English, mathematics and science. Pupils in the current Years 4, 5 and 6 did not achieve well in the previous year because of the staffing difficulties faced by the school. Inspection evidence indicates that there has been considerable improvement in Year 6 and, overall, pupils are beginning to work at the levels of which they are capable. However, there is still considerable underachievement in Year 5, which was most badly affected in the previous year. Pupils are

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

now achieving well, often very well in lessons, including those in Year 5, and making up for lost time. Pupils who remain in the school throughout their primary education make good progress from their low starting point. However, the biggest gains they have made have been in the Foundation Stage and Years 1, 2 and 6, where the pattern of teaching has been more settled than in Years 3 to 5. The current improved quality of teaching, the high focus on speaking and listening, literacy and numeracy and the very good use of assessment information to target groups and individuals for additional support are having a significant beneficial impact on standards in all year groups. The school is focusing well on individuals and groups, particularly in literacy and numeracy, setting them targets and monitoring their progress. The intensive focus on Years 5 and 6 is particularly beneficial.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. When children enter the nursery, attainment is very low, particularly in communication, language and literacy, early mathematical skills and their knowledge and understanding of their world. They make good progress in all aspects of their work and, on entry to the reception class, although attainment has improved, it is still well below average. Those children who transfer to the reception class continue to make good progress but because of the number of pupils with low levels of spoken English and movement in and out of school, attainment is still below average on entry to Year 1, in communication, language and literacy and mathematics. Standards in personal, social and emotional development, knowledge and understanding of the world, creative development and physical development are close to the average. Recent improvements in provision through the good implementation of the national guidance for

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

teaching children of this age are promoting improving standards and achievement.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. When comparing test results with national figures and with similar schools, it should be borne in mind that this school is at the very top end of the highest free school meals band and faces exceptionally high levels of deprivation and associated social stress, such as high crime levels. There is also an exceptionally high level of movement of pupils in and out of the school, many of whom have little or no spoken English on entry. As few schools face such a combination of adverse factors, it is very difficult to compare St Luke’s with other schools.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. At age 7, in the national tests of 2000, pupils’ results in reading and mathematics were in the bottom five per cent of all schools nationally. Results were average in writing and in the teacher assessments in science. When compared with similar schools, results in reading were well below average and in mathematics were in the bottom five per cent. Results in writing were well above average. Whilst there was little higher attainment in reading and mathematics, an average proportion of pupils attained the next, higher level in writing. Girls attained better than boys in reading and writing but at similar levels in mathematics, which reflects the national picture. Test results rose faster than in most schools in writing and at a similar rate in reading and mathematics, where standards vary from year to year. In 2001, results in reading and mathematics were similar but they fell considerably in writing and science. Only 15 pupils

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

undertook the tests, which means that natural yearly variations are exaggerated in the results, where each pupil counts as almost 7 per cent of the total. Only 10 of these pupils had been at the school through Years 1 and 2 and there were twice as many boys as girls. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 10 5. At age 11, test results in English, mathematics and science, in 2000, were well below the national average but in comparison with similar schools, were average in mathematics and science, and above average in English. Few pupils exceeded the level expected in any of the subjects. A close look at the results shows that the marks that pupils gained in the tests are better than those gained by eleven-year-olds at the time of the last inspection and have improved at a faster rate than those nationally. Following an extended period of unsettled staffing, this trend was reversed in the results in 2001, and there was considerable

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

underachievement when pupils left the school. The school’s records show that pupils who remained in the school between the tests at age 7 and those at age 11 made at least satisfactory progress and achieved appropriately. Targets set in English and mathematics were not achieved but, providing that the improvements made in provision are maintained, the school should attain those it has set for 2002. Boys and girls attain similar standards and there is little difference between ethnic groups. However, the school has noted that the weakest results in the national tests were those of white boys, although it has not yet discovered why this is so.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. The additional support from the local education authority (LEA) support service for pupils with special educational needs (SEN) and the Excellence in Cities projects is effective in promoting good progress for those pupils, including the pupils who are gifted and talented or who are disaffected with school. Support teachers and assistants provide well-informed and effective help for these pupils and, as with other pupils, they are quickly making up lost ground from the previous year. Pupils with SEN have individual programmes of work with clear and realistic targets for improvement and adequate support in the classrooms to help them achieve the targets. The support for pupils with English as an additional language (EAL) is now providing for good progress, particularly in those lessons where they have direct help in learning to understand the conventions of the English language.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. In information and communication technology (ICT), standards are in line with those expected in the National Curriculum at ages 7 and 11 and pupils are achieving well throughout the school. The rate of improvement has been very good over the past two terms. In art, physical education and religious education, standards of work are average at both ages 7 and 11. Standards in design and technology, geography and history are average at age 7 but below average at age 11. Whilst there was insufficient evidence to make a sound judgement on standards in music at age 7, they are below average at age 11.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

8. Pupils’ attitudes to school have improved since the previous inspection and are now good. Children in the Foundation Stage quickly settle into school routines and develop good attitudes to learning. They gain confidence and form positive relationships with staff and other pupils. Older pupils come into school sensibly and quietly and are well-behaved in assemblies. There is a pleasant social atmosphere at lunchtime, when pupils chat together without too much noise and behave well for the midday supervisors. Older pupils discuss opinions of school in a mature and sensible manner and come into school happily. They greet their friends amicably, such as by telling ‘ knock, knock’ jokes that help to pick up friendships where they left off the previous day. Pupils in Year 6 are proud of their achievements in school and are keen to draw attention to their latest musical production through their delightful and impromptu singing of native

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

African songs. Positive attitudes were also seen in a Year 4 English lesson, where all pupils behaved very well. They worked together and discussed their ideas in a sensible way and because of this they prepared well and could participate fully in class discussion.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

9. Behaviour is generally good throughout the school, although in the previous year there was an above average level of exclusions for poor behaviour. Very good improvements have been made, through a positive and consistent approach to managing behaviour and through the work of Excellence in Cities mentors. Exclusion figures have reduced rapidly since the summer term. In classrooms, pupils respond particularly well to their teachers’ very high expectations of good behaviour. The school’s methods to promote good behaviour are used consistently by all staff to achieve a harmonious atmosphere. Teachers are sensitive to the individual needs of their pupils and provide support and encouragement to help them to behave well. The result is well- managed lessons where pupils concentrate on their work. There is a small group of pupils who find self-discipline difficult and have serious problems controlling their behaviour but they are

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 11 very well managed by their teachers and support staff. The rare examples of bullying and other forms of oppressive behaviour are dealt with systematically and parents consulted when necessary. The introduction of ‘playground squads’ of Year 6 pupils has improved the quality of behaviour at lunchtimes and has had a positive effect for pupils and their supervisors.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. Pupils’ personal development is very good and they respond well to playing a part in the school’s daily routines. Most pupils, including those with SEN, benefit from carrying out minor duties such as preparing the projector for assemblies, visiting other classrooms to collect nominations for effort awards and helping in after school activities. Older pupils respond well to working in the playground squads, organising equipment and supervising lunchtime games, such as football, rounders, netball, skipping and cricket.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Very good relationships play an important part in the school’s current success. Pupils are very supportive of each other both in and out of the classroom. They are sympathetic to the difficulties of their friends who are new to the country and the English way of life and where language differences are a genuine handicap. They understand and respect the problems of others and make every effort to communicate and include everyone. Pupils follow the excellent example of their headteacher and her staff by being kind and seeing the other person’s point of view. In consequence, there is strong racial harmony in this school where the meaning of racism is understood but does not play a part in the daily life of pupils.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Whilst there is a positive response from most pupils and their families to the school’s new routines to improve regular and punctual attendance, many pupils are frequently absent from school and the current level of attendance is unsatisfactory. The large number of pupils absent from lessons, or arriving late, is having a detrimental effect on their learning and progress.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

13. The quality of teaching is good and much improved from the time of the previous inspection. At that time, much was unsatisfactory or even poor, and it was very rarely very good. During this inspection, 53 lessons or parts of lessons were observed and teaching was always at least satisfactory. It was good in nearly half of lessons, very good in one in three and excellent in almost one in ten.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

14. The school has faced an extended period of disruption to staffing since 2000, which affected Years 2 to 6. Whilst the governors secured stability in Years 2 and 6, the situation in Years 3, 4 and 5 was poor, with constant changes of supply teachers. The governing body had great difficulty in recruiting permanent staff or supply teachers, sometimes having to employ foreign teachers who were unfamiliar with the National Curriculum. The situation in Year 4 (the current Year 5 pupils) was particularly poor. Parents at the meeting prior to the inspection rightly expressed concerns about the effect that this had had on their children’s standards and attitudes to school. The introduction of a rigorous system of monitoring, introduced by the new headteacher in early 2001, was effective in improving the quality of teaching, overall, but in Years 3 to 5 there was a significant adverse effect on pupils’ achievements and standards. This

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

situation has been effectively resolved and the school now has a full complement of suitably qualified teachers. Senior staff have been selected for their proven track records in schools which face similar difficulties and are proving to be very effective in supporting their newly qualified or less experienced colleagues. Additional levels of support have been provided to enable those pupils who were worst affected to recover lost ground.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

15. Teaching in the Foundation Stage is very good and this is a big improvement on the findings of the previous inspection, when it was satisfactory. The improvements have come about because of a carefully thought out curriculum and relevant training for teachers. Teachers have a very good understanding and knowledge of the needs and curriculum for children in the nursery and reception classes. Planning is very effective in providing for the needs of all children and they make good gains in their learning across all areas of the curriculum. Great care is taken to ensure that children gain confidence in their early weeks at school and quickly learn the classroom routines. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 12 16. Teaching in Years 1 to 6 is good, overall, with a good proportion of very good and occasionally excellent lessons. No unsatisfactory teaching was observed during the inspection. Teachers

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

now in post have high expectations, an improvement on the previous inspection, when expectations were often too low and resulted in a lack of challenge for pupils. Teachers have a clear focus on helping pupils to attain the nationally expected levels in English, mathematics and science, and the teaching of the basic skills of literacy and numeracy is particularly good. Teachers concentrate well on the use of language and take great care to introduce new words carefully, so that pupils understand and pronounce words correctly. They provide ample opportunities for pupils to discuss their work and encourage all to take a full part in these discussions. For example, they often ask a pupil who has not put their hand up to provide an answer and then encourage, support and praise the pupil well, which develops confidence and self-esteem. Teachers have good subject knowledge and plan interesting lessons to help pupils

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

achieve as well as they can. They make sound use of their on-going assessment of pupils to plan work that meets their needs, adapting their plans when they see pupils either encountering difficulties or accomplishing work with ease. This is an improvement on the previous inspection, when assessment was not consistently linked to planning the next steps for individuals. Planning for those who have SEN, or who are lower attainers, is good and enables them to work in small groups or alongside other pupils in the classroom on the same topics at their own level. This supports their access to the full curriculum and promotes their self-esteem well. Planning for those pupils with EAL is satisfactory by classroom teachers and good by individual support teachers. Occasionally, new pupils are withdrawn for individual help by support teachers, until they gain enough confidence to listen and speak within their classrooms. The teaching of ICT by

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

specialist teachers is a strength and these lessons are also serving as a very good training opportunity for class teachers. It ensures that pupils develop their skills progressively and apply them in work in a meaningful way in other subjects, such as literacy and numeracy, as well as in independent research and investigation. For example, Year 6 research information on Greek gods on the Internet and learn to identify the main points in text. The quality of teamwork of teachers and support staff is very good. All contribute to planning and work together effectively, making best use of the time available and supporting pupils in their learning.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. In the best lessons, teachers share their learning targets with pupils, so that pupils know exactly what it is that they are expected to achieve in the lesson. Teachers set a lively pace in introductory sessions, making very good use of their resources and involving pupils well. Pupils are motivated to work hard; no time is wasted and pupils complete an appropriate amount of work. At the end of lessons, time is used well to share and consolidate what has been learned. A very good example of this was observed in Year 6, when pupils discussed what they had learned with their teacher. They were congratulated on how much progress they had made towards their learning targets and then told just what they needed to do next to improve. Marking varies in quality, with some particularly good examples which inform pupils exactly what they need to do next. Other work is marked simply, with a brief tick or congratulatory

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

comment. The senior management team have already monitored books and noted the discrepancies but have not yet had time to act upon it. Throughout the school, relationships between teachers, other staff and pupils are of high quality and promote pupils’ self-esteem effectively. Teachers assume that pupils will concentrate on learning and that behaviour will be good. Most pupils respond to this positive approach, work hard and behave very well. Where there are pupils with significant behavioural difficulties they are very well managed by class teachers and in particular by their learning mentors, who intervene in a discreet but firm manner. Their impact on the learning of other pupils is minimised but very occasionally, it slows the pace of lessons temporarily.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. In responses to the parents’ questionnaire, some parents indicated a concern about homework but the situation has improved this term. Teachers are now consistently including homework in their weekly plans, giving it regularly and following it up in lessons.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. Overall, the quality of teaching is now good and the improvement is supporting pupils in Years 4 to 6 in making good gains in learning and making up lost ground.

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PUPILS?

St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 13 20. The curriculum is broad and balanced and meets all the statutory requirements for the National Curriculum and religious education. The school provides a stimulating curriculum that meets the needs and interests of its pupils and provides well for their academic and personal development. The quality and range of learning opportunities are good and are enhanced by the many different people who come into the school to teach and provide support for the pupils, such as staff from the Ethnic Minority Achievement Service. The National Literacy and Numeracy strategies have been implemented successfully throughout the school and teachers’ planning for literacy and numeracy is good. Staff have worked hard to resolve weaknesses identified in the previous inspection and improvements are good.

p.15

PUPILS?

21. The curriculum for the Foundation Stage follows suggested national guidelines for all areas of children’s learning and meets their needs well. It provides children with a very good education that promotes their intellectual, physical and personal development and prepares them for the next stage in their learning. The policy for the Foundation Stage is in draft form but is being implemented and teachers have planned a rigorous curriculum using national guidance.

p.15

PUPILS?

22. In the previous year, design and technology, geography, history and music were not taught regularly during the staffing crisis in Years 3 to 5 and pupils did not develop their skills and knowledge satisfactorily. This has now been resolved. Policies have been reviewed and whole- school schemes of work are now in place, reflecting much hard work by subject co-ordinators. These schemes support successfully the step-by-step development of what pupils should know, be able to do and understand. An effective framework for planning is implemented consistently throughout the school. Planning builds steadily from term to term and year to year and is well matched to the age range in each class. Very good systems to check the quality of teaching and learning are in place and these enable co-ordinators to improve provision for their subjects.

p.15

PUPILS?

23. The school fully responds to the Code of Practice for the identification and assessment of pupils with SEN. Pupils are identified early and fully included in all aspects of school life. Individual education plans are clear and well focused. Record keeping and maintenance of pupil files are good. Classroom assistants are well deployed and support individual and small groups of pupils. Teaching materials are appropriate and enhance the quality of learning for all pupils. Pupils with EAL are quickly assessed on entry and taught within the classroom wherever possible. Work is well planned for them, and they are supported well by teachers and support assistants. The school promotes inclusion successfully within its excellent ethos of racial harmony.

p.15

PUPILS?

24. A good range of educational visits enriches and supports the curriculum, including the local library, the Museum, and Wythenshawe Arts Festival. An annual residential visit by pupils in Year 6 to Ghyll Head Outdoor Pursuits facility takes pupils further afield. It deepens their awareness of other environments and gives valuable opportunities for pupils to learn inter- personal and social skills. Pupils in Key Stage 1 visit Formby Point where they learn about the environment of the sea. A good range of out-of class activities is provided, including recorder club, art club, book clubs, football and ICT clubs and pupils regularly take part in competitive sports against other schools. There are also after-school study groups for pupils in Years 5 and 6. Representatives of local services, such as the Crucial Crew and the ‘time travellers’, enhance pupils’ understanding of emergency services and drama.

p.15

PUPILS?

25. The school is fully committed to equal access and opportunity for all pupils to be included in all aspects of school life. Policies for equal opportunities are well understood by adults and pupils and consistently implemented throughout the school. There is no significant difference in attainment because of gender, disability, race or culture and teacher questioning and allocation of jobs within the classroom shows no bias towards any group. Pupils are not deprived of visit opportunities through cost. The occurrence of racial or gender-based incidents is very rare and if any occur they are dealt with promptly and seriously. The programme for personal, social and health education is good. Assemblies and ‘Circle Time’ provide pupils with opportunities to explore a variety of issues and accept personal responsibility for dealing with difficult situations and issues that arise in their lives. The school has a sound policy for sex education, which has

p.15

PUPILS?

just been reviewed and is in draft form.

p.15

PUPILS?

26. The school has very good links with the community to enrich learning opportunities. The religious education curriculum emphasises the importance of world faiths and is rich in St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 14 stimulating pupils’ thoughts of the diverse cultures and religions that are practised within the school. Local police come into school to talk about awareness of the misuse of drugs and the school is involved in a local initiative, the ‘Pride’ drugs project. Other visitors provide useful expertise in lessons. The school makes good use of work experience students, and has a good link with a local independent boys’ school whose pupils volunteer to come into the school to help pupils with reading. These boys provide good role models for the school’s own pupils.

p.15

PUPILS?

27. Provision for the spiritual, social, moral and cultural development of all pupils is very good overall. The school provides very good cultural, social and moral development and spiritual development is good. This is an improvement from the previous inspection, when spiritual development was unsatisfactory, provision for moral and cultural development was good and provision for social development was sound.

p.16

PUPILS?

28. Good provision for spiritual development provides for time and opportunity for reflection on aspects of pupils’ lives, during assemblies and in lessons. For example, during a religious education lesson pupils reflected on making the right choices and were given an opportunity to be calm whilst listening to soft music. Spirituality is reflected in assemblies where clear messages and appropriately related songs reinforce the ethos of the school. There are designated quiet areas, which give pupils opportunities for reflection. There is a strong sense of purpose within the school that encourages all pupils to value themselves and others.

p.16

PUPILS?

29. Provision for moral development is very good. There are clear systems to ensure that all pupils have a good understanding of right and wrong. Rules are positive and encourage pupils to adopt appropriate attitudes and behaviour within the community. Pupils are encouraged to understand the consequences of their own actions, to be honest, show self-restraint and contribute to the welfare of others in the school. In response, pupils are cheerful and confident and show respect and courtesy to others.

p.16

PUPILS?

30. The provision for social development is very good. Adults are very good role models and pupils are consistently encouraged, through praise, to adopt appropriate social skills in relating to them and to each other. New pupils are made welcome and the caring attitude of the adults quickly helps them to fit in to the school’s ethos and routines. Pupils’ self esteem is developed sensitively and pupils are encouraged to take on responsibility. All pupils are encouraged to work together co-operatively in lessons and share ideas and equipment in a collaborative way. The school operates ‘playground squads’ and from this has developed the idea of forming a school council.

p.16

PUPILS?

31. The cultural development of pupils is very good. Through pupils’ own diversity, the school celebrates and develops their awareness of other cultures. The curriculum offers a range of activities to develop pupils’ awareness of other cultures through many subjects, such as art and design, music, history and geography. Resources, such as books and musical instruments, reflect pupils’ ethnic diversity. Displays in the school hall celebrate black achievement across the world, visits to places of interest such as Formby Sands, and pupils’ achievements in the Wythenshawe Arts Festival, where they performed in ‘Caliban's Story’, based on traditional African culture.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

32. The school’s arrangements for child protection have improved since the previous inspection and are now good. The headteacher is the designated person responsible for the provision. She has undertaken training and has a good knowledge of how to deal with problems. The whole staff has not yet received full training but they know the correct procedures to follow when they have concerns. A senior member of staff has responsibility for the health and safety issues facing the school and safety checks are carried out regularly. The school is aware of an outstanding safety hazard that should be dealt with as soon as possible. There is a strong emphasis on the support and care of the individual child. When pupils are ill or distressed they receive good care whilst they wait to be collected by their parents.

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

33. There are many good procedures to assess and support pupils in their learning and there has been very good improvement in this area since the previous inspection. These make a St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 15 considerable impact on the overall support the school provides for its pupils but have not yet had time to affect standards. Records of pupils’ academic achievements enable staff to check that pupils are making appropriate progress and help them set learning targets for each class. The school includes and supports all groups of pupils well, including those who have specific learning difficulties, those with EAL or those who are particularly talented. The progress of pupils in the various ethnic groups and those who enter school part way through their education is also monitored by teachers. A close check has been kept on individuals who were particularly affected by the previous staffing difficulties and this shows an improvement in their academic

p.16

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

attainment and achievement. Plans are in place to set individual targets for pupils and provide the support they need to achieve them. National test results are analysed and the information is used to highlight areas for improvement and groups and individuals for support.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

34. The school has high expectations of good behaviour and unacceptable behaviour is dealt with firmly and fairly. Parents are informed that serious uncontrollable behaviour may result in a fixed period exclusion from school and the strenuous efforts made have achieved a reduction in the number of pupils who are excluded. This had been above average in the first half of the previous school year. The school’s policy for promoting good behaviour is particularly effective and has resulted in significant improvements. Very good use has been made of the funds from an Excellence in Cities project to support this work. Learning mentors provide pastoral support for pupils who have problems controlling their behaviour and who need help to achieve and understand the work set for them by their teachers. There are very good strategies to raise the pupils’ self-esteem and help to build their confidence, including pupils taking responsibility for

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

35. The school’s aim to provide a secure environment in which pupils can reach their full potential in a changing world is fundamental to the work of the school and encourages positive attitudes to learning. A strong emphasis is placed on the pastoral care of pupils. New procedures are in place to promote and check regular attendance. For example, if pupils are not in their lessons on time and parents have not contacted school, the learning mentor telephones home to make enquiries. The intention of this initiative is to raise the school attendance levels and have a positive effect on pupils’ progress. It highlights the importance of full attendance but has not been in place long enough to have a major impact on attendance figures.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

36. Parents have a good opinion of the school, as at the time of the previous inspection. The pre- inspection questionnaires show that one of the their main concerns is the amount of homework pupils are expected to do on a regular basis. This concern should now recede as the school has set out, quite clearly, in its prospectus how much homework each year group is expected to do each week. Each pupil has a homework book and homework is identified in teachers’ weekly planning. The range of activities outside lessons was also an area of concern highlighted by parents. Although, until recently, school clubs were not having an impact on pupils’ learning, more clubs have now been established to improve and support learning outside normal lessons. Some of these are very well targeted to individuals and to raising standards. For example, there is a computer club for the highest attaining pupils and after-school study groups for those who

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

need extra support to reach expected standards in Years 5 and 6.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

37. The school has very good links with parents and carers. A partnership agreement is signed as part of the school’s admission routine to ensure that the family and school work together to benefit the children. The headteacher is building a strong team of staff to work with her in partnership with parents. There are two parents’ meetings each year and parents are encouraged to come into school at the end of any school day to talk with their children’s teachers. The headteacher’s informality in dealing with parents is creating new friendships with them. The school takes prompt action to contact parents about attendance and uses home visits to improve links. Parents are showing an interest in the school’s learning workshops on family literacy and numeracy. They are now making suggestions about the most convenient times for social events such as coffee mornings or afternoon meetings. These examples are positive

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

beginnings in the satisfactory involvement of parents in the work of the school. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 16 38. The quality of information provided for parents is satisfactory. The school translates its most used letters into many different languages for parents. In addition to sending letters home, the headteacher and language specialists act as interpreters to communicate with parents in their own languages. The school’s brochure provides good quality information for parents but the governing body did not provide parents with all the information they should have about the school and its work in the previous school year. Pupils’ progress reports are sent out each summer term and, although they are satisfactory overall, they do not tell parents how their children can improve their learning skills.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

39. A small band of parents are working alongside teachers in the classrooms to support their children’s learning and parents are now better informed about the amount of homework pupils are expected to do at home. Many parents are helping their children with their reading and making some contribution to homework but a significant minority are not yet becoming involved.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

40. At the time of the previous inspection, leadership and management were unsatisfactory. Sound improvements were made immediately after the inspection and standards began to rise. However, the school then again lost direction and deteriorated quickly. The turnover of staff was very high; in Years 3 to 5 this was particularly so and had a disastrous effect on standards and behaviour in some year groups. To its credit the governing body recognised the problems and made no excuses. Governors immediately set about resolving the situation through the appointment of a new headteacher and senior management team, with proven track records. They also secured invaluable support from the School Improvement Service of the LEA. A new team of permanent staff is now in place and several new members recruited to the governing body, providing a wider range of skills than previously. Governors have provided very good

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

numbers of teachers and support staff in its drive to push up standards.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

41. The new headteacher took up her post in January 2001 and has demonstrated excellent leadership skills in turning around the school’s fortunes. She has had excellent support in her work, from her deputy and the senior managers. Between them, they introduced a whole range of effective policies and procedures with a tight focus on raising standards. The school’s highest priority was that of developing communication and literacy skills so that pupils can learn across the whole curriculum. The school became involved in such projects as Excellence in Cities, to improve the provision for pupils who had become disaffected with school and those who are gifted or talented. Resources for reading and ICT were greatly enhanced and the school formed a valuable link with a local Beacon school. A rigorous system of checking the quality of teaching and learning, by the headteacher and senior management team, was effective in ensuring that

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

teaching was always at least satisfactory in the second part of the previous year. Despite the hard work put in by themselves and the permanent staff in improving pupils’ achievement, it was too late to prevent a fall in standards at the end of Years 2 and 6. However, the value of all the policies and procedures put into place is evident now in rising standards and achievement. The senior management team has now been expanded to include a new Key Stage 2/literacy co-ordinator, again carefully selected because of success in a school with a similar background.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

42. Subject management is now good; it is very good in English, mathematics and art and excellent in ICT and the Foundation Stage. Co-ordinators are fully involved in planning for their subjects and checking the quality of teaching and learning, through classroom observations and examination of pupils’ work. This provides them with a clear overview of provision and standards and they plan for future developments very well. The management of ICT and the Foundation Stage has been particularly effective in improving teachers’ knowledge and understanding and in raising standards. Rigorous monitoring systems are being effectively implemented and have a sharp focus. For example, at this early stage of the school year the senior management team is already examining samples of pupils’ books to check that teachers’ marking is effective in informing pupils of what they have achieved and how they can improve.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

There are good procedures for the induction of new staff, including those who are newly qualified. The school has fully introduced the new performance management system and teachers have appropriate targets directly related to raising standards in their classes. Specialist teachers from the link Beacon school are providing good training and support for staff, particularly in literacy. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 17 43. The provision for pupils with SEN is well managed. The school makes effective use of specific funding to support not only those with learning difficulties but also to target pupils who are disaffected with school and those who are higher attainers. The management of provision for those pupils who have EAL has changed significantly from the previous inspection. As with other aspects of the school, there has been much instability of support staffing provided by the LEA service for these pupils. Management has been much improved recently by the provision

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

of a regular support teacher and intervention by the headteacher, and is now satisfactory.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

44. There are very good relationships between the governing body and the staff, and the governors hold their new headteacher and senior management team in high regard. Governors now have a clear picture of the effectiveness of the school and how it compares with other schools. An increased range of expertise is helping them to question and come to sound decisions about the school’s priorities. The development plan is a good document with a clear focus of raising standards, and financial decisions are made on the basis of educational priorities. The use of a consultant with experience of school finances is very effective in managing the budget. It allows the school to gain a clear overview of financial matters, whilst allowing the headteacher to concentrate on educational priorities. The school had accrued a substantial financial surplus over the previous two years but this has been considerably reduced, through carefully targeted

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

spending on priorities. Principles of getting best value when making decisions on spending are applied well and money is targeted effectively to the school’s needs, which is an improvement on the previous inspection. The many additional funds that the school receives, such as Excellence in Cities funding for disaffected pupils and gifted and talented pupils, are being used correctly and are improving provision.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

45. Whilst the accommodation is adequate for most classes, the reception classroom is very cramped and there is no school library. The school needs to consider how it uses the available space. Staff facilities are in urgent need of some improvement and refurbishment. Resources have improved in the last year and are satisfactory overall but the school is aware that a wider range of reading materials is needed, for older pupils in particular.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

46. The school has faced a very difficult time but has made no excuses for its poor performance over the last year. It has made good improvements in many of the aspects criticised in the last inspection and standards overall are a little higher than at that time. Its current provision in terms of teaching and the curriculum is good and there is now a strong learning ethos, with high expectations of all pupils. The school strives to be inclusive of all its pupils and is a model of racial harmony. It is now very well placed to make significant improvement and raise standards. Despite the high cost per pupil, the school now gives satisfactory value for money. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 18

p.19

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

47. To raise standards in English, mathematics and science at age 11, the governing body, headteacher and staff should:

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Rigorously implement all the policies and procedures that have been put into place for:

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

a) checking the quality of teaching and learning; b) ensuring individual pupils are making appropriate progress; c) setting and reviewing targets for groups and individual pupils, on a regular basis.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(Paragraphs 1-7, 14, 33, 41, 42, 67-73, 76, 78, 82, 83, 94, 98, 99, 102, 111)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Consistently implement policies which improve attendance and punctuality;

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Widen the range of reading materials for older pupils.

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

48. In addition, the governing body should also consider the following minor weaknesses for inclusion in their action plan. (Paragraphs 32, 38, 45, 58, 71)

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• There is no library. • The accommodation for the reception class is cramped. • Staff accommodation is in need of refurbishment. • The annual written reports for parents do not tell them what their children need to do to improve. • The governors did not provide an annual report to parents on the life of the school in the previous year. • There is an outstanding safety hazard of which the school is aware. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 19

p.20

PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

49. A high proportion of the pupils in Years R to 6 (73 per cent) speak English as an additional language. Of these, 50 (25 per cent) are in the early stages of learning to speak English. The main home languages are Arabic, Bengali, Punjabi, and Somali. The number of pupils with EAL in each class is broadly the same, except for Year 5, where numbers are appreciably greater. In the course of the period May - September 2001, 20 pupils with EAL left the school and 17 were admitted. In this time, there was a significant increase in Somali speaking pupils, balancing a decline in other languages. This movement is similar to the mobility in the school as a whole, and indicates the scale of the adjustments the school is called on to make at frequent intervals.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

50. During the week of the inspection the classes for Years 5 and 6 each received specialist teacher support for five lessons spread over two days, and the class for Year 2 received a specialist support assistant for two full days. The Nursery was supported by a half-time specialist Nursery Nurse, and by the specialist support assistant for one half day. Bilingual EAL teachers support pupils of Somali and Vietnamese origins across the school individually, during the course of one day. All these staff are employed by the LEA’s central service (EMAS), funded through the Ethnic Minorities Achievement Grant, and from funds arising from the LEA’s Educational Development Plan. It was reported that the school was entitled to a further two days of specialist teacher support, but that the post was vacant during the week of the inspection.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

51. Individual pupils are targeted for support that is provided in lessons on an individual and small group basis. New arrivals occasionally receive support from the bilingual support teachers on a withdrawal basis, but this is kept to the minimum as far as possible. These arrangements are effective and contribute well to the inclusion of pupils in the curriculum overall. Collaboration between specialist staff and class teachers is good.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

52. Teaching and support from the recently allocated specialist teacher are very good. For example, in a Year 6 numeracy lesson, pupils with EAL were effectively helped to understand the specific terminology in use so that they could achieve the learning targets. The specialist teacher also enabled them to express their own ideas so that they could take a full part in the end of lesson discussion. In this lesson, pupils made very good gains in their understanding of numeracy and mathematical vocabulary. Teaching by class teachers and general support staff generally is less assured, although satisfactory, and a more individualised oral approach is needed for the English language development of pupils who will already be familiar with the structures, conventions, vocabulary and idioms of another language. Teachers’ assessment of pupils’ work and progress is variable. In discussion, teachers show a good level of

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

understanding about the learning preferences of individual pupils, and of their current level of facility in English. They take care to emphasise the pronunciation of new vocabulary and ensure that meanings are understood. For example, a support assistant working with a newly admitted child, who speaks and reads French, used a French dictionary with her to help her understand the word ‘sentence’. Within lessons, however, opportunities for individual pupils to make progress are not always taken. For example, a nursery pupil working on the sound ‘c’ responded to a picture by calling it a ‘birthday cake’. This was not accepted because the principal image (and the caption) was of ‘candles’. This was a missed opportunity for reinforcement. Pupils whose English language acquisition is rapid are often given challenging opportunities. For example, a Year 3 pupil who had recently joined the school was confident in reading from a

p.21

PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

short play script, with a number of character parts, to the whole class.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

53. Pupils at all stages of language acquisition now make good progress with their work, overall, and attain at similar levels to other pupils. This is an improvement on the evidence provided from work in the previous year. Provided the school can maintain the stability of its staffing, and implement the range of developments it has already identified as being necessary, standards should continue to rise.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

54. Records of pupils’ language development are incomplete. This applies to the school’s EAL register of progress through the stages of language acquisition, as well as to the class assessment records of day-by-day progress within specific aspects of language. Improvements in these two areas are identified for action in the School Development Plan, and the progress already made in a short time gives grounds for confidence that this important dimension will be St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 20 corrected. At the same time, pupils’ achievements are monitored well at the more strategic level by means of assessments in relation to National Curriculum levels and the use of standardised tests; this helps promote good progress across the curriculum.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

55. Bilingual support staff carry out home visits and mostly for pupils in the nursery. The level of contact with parents whose own English is not secure is good. The school is careful to provide translations of school information in appropriate languages.

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PROVISION FOR THOSE PUPILS WITH ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

56. Resources are satisfactory, although there was little evidence of dual language texts in use or of appropriate software for pupils to practise their speaking and listening, reading and writing with suitable models. Books and other printed materials have a good level of cultural relevance for the pupils. The specific grant to support EAL is retained centrally by the LEA. The school makes impressive arrangements to integrate the allocated staff within the school but has identified a large number of actions it needs to take to make this provision fully effective. The inspection team confirms that these actions are entirely appropriate. They include further development of assessment and record keeping to ensure that pupils’ progress can be monitored in detail, staff training and co-ordination. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 21

p.22

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 33

p.23

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very Good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.23

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Percentage 6 28 45 21 0 0 0 The table gives the number and percentage of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about teaching. Care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents more than one percentage point.

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y7

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 39 156

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Not applicable 150 FTE means full-time equivalent.

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y7

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0 1

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 1 43

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 148

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 56

p.23

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 43

p.23

Attendance

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 22

p.23

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 11 16 27

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys 5 8 6 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 9 15 11

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 52 (62) 85 (76) 63 (79) at NC level 2 or above National 83 (82) 84 ( 83) 90 (87)

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys 6 7 10 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 12 12 15

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 67 (59) 70 (76) 93 (41) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 88 (86) 88 (87)

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

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

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2000 14 12 26

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys 7 9 11 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 10 6 10

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 65 (56) 65 (78) 85 (78) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (70) 72 (69) 85 (78)

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys 7 9 11 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 10 7 10

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 65 (56) 65 (78) 85 (78) at NC level 4 or above National 70 (68) 72 (69) 79 (75) Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 23

p.24

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 13 Black – Caribbean heritage 4 0

p.25

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 30 Black – African heritage 0 0

p.25

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group 20 Other minority ethnic groups 2 0 This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 9.9 Financial year 2000-2001

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 16

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 557898

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 8.4 Total expenditure 528231

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 89 Expenditure per pupil 2503

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery Balance brought forward from previous year 24511

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1 Balance carried forward to next year 54178

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 39

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 2

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 65

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 13 FTE means full-time equivalent.

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 14.5

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 14.5

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Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 0

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of unfilled vacancies or vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of less than one term (FTE) 0 FTE means full-time equivalent. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 24

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Percentage of responses in each category

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

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 71 14 7 0 7

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 57 36 7 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 29 29 21 14 0

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 71 14 7 0 7

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 86 7 0 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 86 7 0 0 7

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 50 36 7 0 7

p.26

Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 71 21 7 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 71 14 7 0 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 36 29 14 7 14

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Percentage of responses in each category

The questionnaire and the parents’ meeting were completed at the end of the previous school year because the inspection was to be held at an early stage of the school year.

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Percentage of responses in each category

NB 1 Percentages may not add up to 100 per cent because not all parents responded to every question. The results are also affected by rounding. NB 2 The small number of returns means that each parent responding counts as 7 per cent of the total.

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Other issues raised by parents

The five parents attending the meeting prior to the inspection expressed concern about the number of supply teachers in school particularly in one year group. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 25

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

57. At the time of the inspection, the nursery had 38 pupils on roll, set to increase to the maximum 45 over the year as children reach their third birthdays. There is a rolling programme for entry to the nursery, following children’s third birthday and they begin part-time, gradually increasing to full-time after full discussion with parents and carers. Children transfer to the reception class in September or January after they are four. Children who attend the nursery are not guaranteed a place in the reception class and many transfer to other local schools. Initial assessment shows that most children enter nursery with attainments that are very low when compared to the average for three year olds. Initial assessment records show that whilst they have made good progress, most children enter the reception class with skills, knowledge and understanding that are well below those of children of a similar age. Children in the reception class achieve well in

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

all areas of learning. The good experiences provided make it likely that by the time children are ready to start Year 1, they will have made good progress and the attainment of most will be average in most areas of the curriculum. However, overall attainment levels are still affected by the movement of significant numbers of pupils in and out of the school, and by the numbers of pupils who speak little English on entry. For example, 27 of the 38 children in the nursery qualify for additional support in learning English. Good assessment procedures are in place and information is used well to plan suitable programmes of work and set targets for development.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

58. Since the last inspection, and particularly in the past year, the provision for children in the Foundation Stage has improved significantly. Excellent leadership has provided for an improved curriculum, including much improved provision for ICT and new assessment procedures. The quality of teaching and learning is now very good and standards are beginning to rise at the end of the reception year. Resources are generally good but whilst the nursery accommodation is good, the reception year classroom is very cramped and limits the range of activities that can be provided at any one time. Both age groups have access to a secure and well-planned outdoor area.

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Personal, social and emotional development

59. High priority is given to children’s personal and emotional needs and they achieve well. Most are likely to achieve levels expected for their age by the end of the reception year. This reflects the skilful teaching which constantly encourages children to feel confident about what they can achieve, to form good relationships, look after themselves responsibly and behave very well. Children have positive attitudes to learning and enjoy coming to school. They are beginning to work co-operatively and collaboratively in various outdoor play activities and in role-play settings. For example, the nursery children share the outdoor climbing frame, tricycles and balancing equipment well and children in the reception class speak and listen to each other when playing in 'Cinderella's Shoe Palace’. All children take responsibility for their personal hygiene, and most put on aprons independently when working with paint and water. Both boys

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Personal, social and emotional development

and girls learn the importance of taking turns in games and sharing construction toys. They listen attentively to adults, concentrating well on tasks such as reading and mathematics. Teachers, nursery nurses and assistants actively encourage children to play well together and show consideration to each other when using a wide range of activities. Adults create a secure, calm and purposeful atmosphere by their consistent, supportive but firm manner.

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Communication, language and literacy

60. By the end of the reception year, most children make good gains in their learning. Most are likely to achieve the levels expected for this area of learning but the movement in and out of school and the numbers of children who speak little English means that, overall, standards are below average. Children interact well with others, speak confidently and take turns in conversation, as seen when they responded to attendance and dinner registration. They listen to stories for an appropriate length of time and enjoy listening for sounds such as rhyming words in books. Children in the nursery listen carefully to stories and rhymes and in the reception class, they refine their listening skills and identify letter sounds in words, such as when listening to the St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 26 story ‘Goodnight Goodnight’. Staff use talk to good effect and the use of language is developed well. Most children are at an early stage in reading. They know that print carries meaning, start

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Communication, language and literacy

at the beginning of a book and turn pages. They know which is text and which is the picture. Listening skills are well taught through songs, rhymes, games and stories. Children recognise and join in with rhymes such as ‘Tommy Thumb’ and learn the names of colours. The careful teaching of language provides a very good role model for other teachers to follow.

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Communication, language and literacy

61. Children in the nursery learn early mark making skills, using a very good range of materials in the writing area. These are developed and refined in the reception class where children learn to write and form letters with increasing accuracy. As they move through the reception class, children learn to write sentences, and higher attainers begin to use capital letters and full stops correctly. Teaching is very good. Planning identifies groups of children and what they will learn, allowing for the different level of maturity of the children. Children respond well, concentrating hard and learning well.

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Mathematical development

62. Children achieve well in developing mathematical understanding and most are on course to achieve the expected standard in this area of learning by the time they leave the reception class. However, movement and levels of new pupils with EAL affect overall standards, which are a little below average. In relation to their level of initial attainment, children make very good gains in their learning because of the very good teaching and interesting numeracy experiences provided. Children in the nursery learn number rhymes and play counting games. They experiment with water and sand and gain an early understanding of capacity. Children learn to recognise numbers and to match one object to another. The teaching develops pupils’ understanding of number through topics, stories and games. Nursery nurses and assistants are well deployed and make a very good contribution to the progress made. Adults are supportive

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Mathematical development

and praise is frequently used to encourage learning and raise self-esteem. In the reception class, children engage in a very good range of practical activities, which are well matched to children’s learning needs. Work with sand and water is less well developed as the cramped accommodation restricts their use. Books show that, by the time they leave the reception class, most children can count to 10 and write numbers to 20. They have an understanding of two- dimensional shape. Other children count to 10 and ‘copy write’ figures to ten.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

63. Children enter with a very low general knowledge and, in relation to their levels of initial attainment, they make good gains in their learning. Most are on target to achieve the level expected by the end of the reception year. Children have good opportunities to experience work in many areas, including science, design and technology and ICT, and links with literacy and numeracy are good. Children learn to use appropriate senses to investigate their environment and learn to understand the meaning of taste. For example, they tasted a variety of different fruits and commented on the taste, sweet or sour. Learning was well developed by the good teaching through a ‘blind tasting’ where children named the fruit they ate. To develop their knowledge and understanding further, children made ‘Turnip Soup’ and through skilful teaching learned to peel and chop vegetables. They developed an understanding of hygiene and safety

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

when washing their hands and washing the vegetables and understood that the cooker was hot. When the soup was cooked, they tasted it with relish. Speaking and listening were developed well. Children in the nursery and in the reception class use role-play to develop their skills. For example, in the reception class, children buying shoes for ‘Cinderella’s Shoe Palace’ wrote a letter to children in the ‘house’ and the postman delivered, it saying ‘ding dong’ as he rang an imaginary bell. The quality of support given by the nursery nurse to develop children’s knowledge and understanding during this activity was very good.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

64. In ICT, children learn to use the arrow keys to move a character about the screen. They understand the parts of the computer and use the mouse and the keyboard confidently. For example, they use the mouse to operate the program buttons and click on arrows to move an animated figure in a simple mathematics game. Lessons are very well planned and the very good teaching and positive relationships enhanced children’s knowledge and understanding. Children’s learning in ICT is good and they attain standards appropriate for their age. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 27

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Physical development

65. Children are making good gains in their learning and are on course to achieve the standards expected by the time they leave the reception class. They acquire sound skills in movement and develop a sense of space and bodily awareness. They use tools and equipment with increasing dexterity. Planning shows that there are good opportunities for children to experience work, both indoors and outdoors, in physical education, games and creative activities. Most children move with confidence as they balance and use wheeled toys and a climbing frame. The quality of the planning and of teaching has a positive impact on standards in physical development. Children in the nursery learn to cut materials, such as when making a teddy bear. The teacher demonstrated the technique of using scissors well and careful individual support gave children confidence to try for themselves. Children in the reception class show sound

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Physical development

control when using scissors, such as when cutting materials for a collage. They show increasing dexterity when they work with pencils, crayons, paintbrushes and as they roll, squeeze, push and kneed malleable materials, such as play dough to make letters of the alphabet.

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Creative development

66. Teaching is good and children make good gains in their learning in relation to their levels of initial attainment. They are on course to meet the standards expected for this area of learning by the time they leave the reception class. Children are encouraged to express their feelings through exploring art materials, music, dance, story making and imaginative play in all areas of their learning. They develop an eye for detail and a growing sense of colour through paint mixing. For example, children matched the shades of green and yellow that they could see in tulips to colour their observational drawing of plants. They had developed their observation of shape and transferred this carefully to their drawings. Many opportunities are given for children in both nursery and reception classes to develop their skills in a range of materials. For example, children in the reception class busily created a puppet and explored and used paint,

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Creative development

glue, fabric, recyclable and modelling materials. Teaching was skilful and developed cutting and joining skills well. Children in nursery and reception recognise familiar songs, nursery rhymes and jingles and sing them in unison with enjoyment and natural exuberance. Children have many opportunities to observe other pupils’ art displays, as African art in the school displays.

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ENGLISH

67. Inspection findings show that standards are close to the average at Year 2 and pupils in Years 1 and 2 are achieving well. The benefits of the National Literacy Strategy, evident at age seven, are not yet apparent on standards higher up the school. Over the past two years, there has been considerable underachievement amongst pupils in Years 3 to 6 because of the turbulent staffing situation. The school has documented evidence to show that those pupils who remained in the school between the tests at age 7 and those at age 11, made satisfactory progress. Currently, whilst standards are below average at 11, they are being improved rapidly, through a very tight focus on improvement, including the setting of targets each half term. The school has identified the improvement of communication skills, understanding of vocabulary and reading as their highest priority because these are the essential tools for learning in all subjects. They are not

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ENGLISH

yet strong enough in Years 3 to 6 to fully support learning across the whole curriculum. Pupils are now achieving well in lessons because of a significant improvement in the quality of teaching, which is well focused and motivates them to work hard. Standards in Year 2 are now much better than at the last inspection. There is also a slight improvement in Year 6, but this has been limited by the staffing difficulties, which are now resolved, and the exceptionally high turnover of pupils, over 70 percent in the current Year 6.

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ENGLISH

68. In the national tests in 2000, at the end of Year 2, pupils’ results were average in writing but in the bottom five per cent of all schools in reading. In comparison with similar schools, results in writing were well above average but in reading were well below average. Boys’ reading was particularly poor. Few pupils exceeded the level expected in reading but an average number did so in writing. Results in the tests in 2001 were similar in reading and fell in writing. Results were badly affected by the arrival of three new pupils just before the tests, all with learning and/or attendance difficulties, and the small number taking the tests, of whom two thirds were boys. Boys throughout the country generally score worse results in reading and writing tests than girls. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 28 69. At age 11, test results in 2000 were well below the national average but were above average for

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ENGLISH

similar schools. A very low proportion of pupils exceeded the level expected. The marks that pupils gained are much better than those gained by eleven-year-olds at the time of the last inspection and have improved by a faster rate than those nationally. Following an extended period of unsettled staffing, this trend was reversed in the tests in 2001. Targets set for English were not achieved and there was considerable underachievement amongst pupils, despite an intensive period of support. Girls consistently attain better results in the tests, as do girls nationally. The school’s analysis of results shows that there are no significant differences between ethnic groups in test results, other than that the weakest results are those of white boys. The school has not yet analysed why this is so.

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ENGLISH

70. Overall, standards of speaking and listening are below average and this is an important development point noted by the school. Pupils throughout the school listen carefully in large and small groups because they are interested in what teachers and other pupils have to say. However, pupils with little spoken English find it hard to understand what is said. Teachers and support staff take great care that all pupils, including those with English as an additional language, develop an understanding of new vocabulary and learn to pronounce it correctly. Pupils’ confidence in speaking and expressing their ideas develops satisfactorily, but, by seven, many still have a more limited range of vocabulary than is expected at that age. In Key Stage 2, most pupils are confident in speaking aloud to the class or the school. For example, a group of pupils in an Excellence in Cities project enacted a short drama on making choices, speaking

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ENGLISH

clearly with good expression, in front of the whole school. By age 11, most respond to teachers’ questions confidently and explain their answers in simple terms. However, the range of vocabulary remains below average and when asked to expand an answer and give reasons, many find it difficult to find the appropriate words or express their ideas at length. This also affects their work in other subjects.

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ENGLISH

71. The school has placed a high priority on improving reading and this is evident in the gains pupils have made in learning, not only to decode print but in the improving understanding of what they read. By age seven, pupils’ reading is average and they enjoy the range of books they read. Whilst higher attainers read fluently with good expression and a good understanding of the plot and characters in their books, average and lower attainers read their books accurately but lack fluency and expression. Higher and average attainers know and use a simple contents and index page and know what an author and illustrator are. Progress through Years 3 to 6 has been unsatisfactory in the recent past but the school has identified this point and has introduced a systematic programme of support to improve standards. This has been successful in raising attainment in reading, although it remains below average at 11. Pupils read their books

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ENGLISH

accurately but some lack expression and a sufficiently deep understanding of what they are reading. Few express preferences for favourite authors, although they identify some they have learned about in literacy lessons. The range of books available in school is narrow, there is no school library and a high proportion of pupils have few books of their own. The school has recognised these points and there are firm plans to expand reading resources and outline plans for a library. Meanwhile arrangements are now in place for pupils to visit a nearby public library to widen their experience and skills. Pupils are encouraged to read more widely in the two after- school book clubs and the first of a series of Book Days was held at the end of the summer term. Pupils are encouraged to take reading books home and have a home-school reading diary, but whilst many parents offer invaluable support to their children, a significant number do

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ENGLISH

not become involved. Recent meetings on reading held for parents of Year 5 and 6 pupils were poorly attended. A family literacy group attracts a small group of parents and supports them in helping their children. Pupils develop and apply their reading skills well in ICT, when researching information on the Internet, and learn to discriminate when selecting the information they need to download into their work.

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ENGLISH

72. Attainment in writing is close to the average in Year 2 and below average in Year 6, which is an improvement on standards indicated by the national test results. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 are provided with a range of opportunities for writing and by Year 2 develop a sound understanding of how to structure writing. Higher and average attainers are beginning to use simple sentence punctuation, although at the start of the school year, this is inconsistently applied by some. Written stories are simple, with a limited number of ideas expressed. Higher attaining pupils consolidate their understanding of story sequence in their own writing, with simple words spelt St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 29 correctly and reasonable attempts made at unknown words. Lower attainers write simple unpunctuated sentences and whilst most attempt to spell words using their knowledge of letters and their sounds, they are rarely accurate. Some of the pupils with EAL have added difficulties

p.30

ENGLISH

in this area because of the way they pronounce English words but class teachers do emphasise pronunciation to help them improve. Standards of presentation are satisfactory. In Years 3 to 6, pupils extend their range of writing across the curriculum in a number of subjects and use a range of writing styles. By age 11, pupils write stories, descriptions, instructions and reports. They plan, draft and improve their work, but only the higher attainers include sufficient detail and use descriptive language to create effect. The school has identified this and is focusing on improving descriptive vocabulary. By Year 6, higher attaining pupils demonstrate accurate sentence construction, punctuation and grammar and organise their work into paragraphs. However, many other pupils are struggling to write at the levels expected nationally. Their skills of punctuation and grammar are weak and spelling is generally below average, being worse for

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ENGLISH

some of the pupils with English as an additional language, who confuse similar words or whose pronunciation affects their spelling. The school has recognised this weakness and has introduced a system of teaching spelling and teachers encourage pupils to check their finished work, using a dictionary. Whilst this has the potential for improvement, it is a recent introduction and has not had time to have a significant impact. Work is well presented and most pupils write in neat joined script. The below average writing skills affect pupils’ ability to record work in other subjects. However, they practise their skills well in ICT lessons and standards of spelling and punctuation are often better in work produced in these sessions.

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ENGLISH

73. Over the past year, achievement was unsatisfactory for many pupils, particularly in Years 3 to 5, because of the turbulent staffing situation. This included pupils with EAL, SEN and those who were higher attainers. However, the situation improved after January 2001, when new systems of supporting pupils’ progress were introduced. Despite the school’s best efforts, there was still underachievement by many at the end of both key stages. Further improvements have been made, not the least of which is the appointment of a full complement of permanent staff and regular support staff for pupils with EAL. New systems of identifying groups and individuals for support are effective and there is a high focus on raising standards and achievement. For example, all teachers have a display that informs pupils what is expected for their age in writing and how they can improve their work to the next level. Class targets are also displayed and

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ENGLISH

reviewed regularly. Most pupils are now achieving well in lessons and those in Key Stage 2 are quickly making up lost ground.

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ENGLISH

74. Teaching is good, sometimes very good, and teachers focus well on the basic skills that pupils need to learn. They have high expectations of their pupils and plan work well to meet the needs of their pupils. They question well, often challenging pupils to explain their answers. Teachers have very good relationships with their pupils and manage them well, applying the positive discipline policy consistently and effectively. Pupils respond well and work hard, both in full class sessions and on independent tasks. Teachers adopt a very encouraging approach that gives pupils confidence in attempting their work and sharing their views with the class. When those pupils with problems related to behaviour are supported by specialist staff, they take a full part in lessons but when unsupported sometimes find it hard to maintain concentration. However, class teachers manage the situation well, applying specific guidelines to ensure that

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ENGLISH

other pupils can continue to learn. Classroom support staff are very well used and enable all pupils to make gains in their learning in lessons. Particularly good support was noted by a specialist teacher for pupils with EAL and for those pupils with behavioural difficulties. Very good use is made of ICT in learning and pupils respond very well to their literacy lessons in the computer suite.

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ENGLISH

75. The quality of leadership and management has improved considerable recently and is now very good. Effective policies and strategies have been put into place to raise standards. The close link with a local Beacon School is effective in promoting better teaching of the subject through demonstration lessons, staff training and support for the new co-ordinator. Whilst these have not yet had a full impact at age 11, they are already promoting good improvement in provision and the achievement of individual pupils. The subject makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development through the studies of literature, opportunities to discuss moral and social issues and studies of the work of other cultures. Books reflect the St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 30 school’s cultural diversity well. Involvement in the Wythenshawe Arts Festival also makes a good contribution to personal development.

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MATHEMATICS

76. Inspection evidence shows that standards are rising across the whole school. Pupils in Year 2 are now working at levels that are average for their age, which shows a significant and pleasing improvement on previous test results. It reflects good achievement, in view of the fact that these pupils entered Year 1 with standards that were below average. By the time pupils are 11, standards are below average but, whilst this reflects an improvement on previous years’ tests results, there remain some pockets of underachievement in Key Stage 2 because of the previous unsettled pattern of teaching. Recent improvements in teaching quality and a high focus on raising standards, through thorough implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy, are now providing for good progress in lessons and pupils are quickly making up earlier deficits.

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MATHEMATICS

77. Results in the national tests at the end of Year 2 were very low in both 2000 and 2001, being in the bottom five per ent of all schools in 2000 and also in the bottom five per cent of similar schools. No pupils exceeded the level expected for their age. In both year groups, but particularly in 2001, results were significantly affected by the small number of pupils taking the tests and the movement in and out of the school. Teacher change also had some effect on Year 2 in 2001 but this was resolved in the second part of the year. Since the last inspection, grades attained in test results at age 7 have risen erratically but have been consistently well below the national average. In Years 1 and 2, pupils now make good progress in lessons because of consistent teaching, which builds on skills and knowledge systematically. They gradually gain the ability to use number both mentally and on paper. At the start of Year 2 pupils are working

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MATHEMATICS

confidently on addition and subtraction with numbers up to 20. Higher attainers extend their work to higher numbers and lower attainers are working with numbers to 10.

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MATHEMATICS

78. At the end of Year 6, test results in 2000 were well below the national average, but average for similar schools. A well below average proportion of pupils attained a higher level than that expected. At the end of Year 6, results improved at a faster rate than nationally after the previous inspection, although this trend was reversed in 2001, following the disruption to teaching. At 11, whilst most pupils add, subtract, multiply and divide, a few need practical apparatus to help them calculate. Pupils give properties of shape and use a range of measures, selecting the most appropriate ones for the task in hand. Pupils have more difficulty in working independently on mathematical problems and require help when structuring problems. Pupils have gained a range of mathematical words, but for some who have SEN or are at the early stages of learning English, their poor general language skills depress their ability to use these to

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MATHEMATICS

describe what they are doing. Consequently, although these pupils make good progress in lessons, there is still some underachievement at the age of 11. Other pupils, however, make good gains in their learning and are achieving appropriately in their knowledge and skills.

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MATHEMATICS

79. Pupils with SEN, EAL or who are gifted or talented are supported well in class and make good progress. Teachers take good care to provide these pupils with the help they need, and they are often supported by teaching assistants. The work of these assistants is of good quality and makes a very positive contribution to pupils’ learning.

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MATHEMATICS

80. Teaching and learning in mathematics is good in both key stages. A great deal of work has been done in implementing the National Numeracy Strategy to the benefit of all pupils and good attention is given to the teaching of basic numeracy skills. The consistency of the structure of the lessons assists both pupils and teachers in working within a secure setting. Work is planned so that pupils receive a good balance of types of mathematics. Lesson planning is good, sometimes very good, and has very clear targets for learning for different groups of pupils. Assessment is thorough and teachers effectively use this to plan the next steps in pupils’ learning. Good emphasis is placed on assisting pupils to work mentally in the introductory parts of lessons and these mental sessions encourage pupils to gain confidence in answering questions and in talking about their methodology. The school has identified a need to promote

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MATHEMATICS

pupils’ mathematical language and teachers take good care to introduce and use the correct terminology. This initiative is a very positive strategy for raising standards. Pupils are given very St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 31 good opportunities to consolidate and develop mathematics learned in other subjects. For example, they are regularly taught numeracy in ICT lessons. Teachers have high expectations of what pupils will achieve and this improves learning. Pupils are expected to complete a good deal of work in lessons. They respond well to this and books show that they have covered a good deal of work during the previous year. In the best lessons, teachers are successful in interesting and inspiring pupils to learn. In these lessons, pupils are well behaved and work productively, wasting no time. Homework is used well to underpin what pupils have learnt in lessons.

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MATHEMATICS

81. The management and organisation of the subject are very good. There is a high level of commitment to improving standards and providing effective training and procedures to ensure that teaching quality is good. The LEA’s school improvement service has provided invaluable support to the school in the development of numeracy. Much hard work has been done during a short time and this is evident in the improving standards seen during the inspection. Resources for the subject are good.

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SCIENCE

82. Inspection evidence shows that pupils in Year 2 are achieving average standards, which reflects those indicated by the teacher assessments in 2000 and is a marked improvement on those of 2001. Pupils in Year 6 are achieving at below average levels as they were in the national tests in 2000. Data from the national tests for 2001 indicates a fall in results from 2000. There is a considerable difference between the results for 2001 and the findings of the inspection, which strongly indicate overall improvement. Year 6 pupils are still not achieving national averages but their attainment is improving. There is no significant difference between the attainment of boys and girls.

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SCIENCE

83. In the teacher assessments in 2000, at the end of Year 2, pupils’ results were average and an average proportion exceeded the level expected. There were no significant differences between the results of boys and girls or of different ethnic groups. The results were well above those of similar schools. In 2001, results fell following staff and pupil changes. In the tests at the end of Year 6, in 2000, pupils’ results were well below the national average and few attained the next higher level. In comparison with similar schools, results were average. Boys and girls achieved similar results and there were no significant ethnic differences. During the period of spring 2000 to summer 2001, the upheaval in staffing had an adverse effect upon the results attained in the national tests at age 11, and on the achievement of pupils in Years 3 to 5. However, the school is now providing a settled environment with well-qualified teachers and during the inspection all

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SCIENCE

teaching observed was good. There have been organisational changes such as the appointment of a new subject co-ordinator and there is a development plan that is clearly focused on the improvement of standards. The school is well aware that its failure in the past to identify and provide suitable work for its higher attaining pupils has been a major factor in its low attainment in comparison to schools nationally. The school’s response to this is the introduction of its policy for gifted and talented pupils, which targets pupils for improvement.

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SCIENCE

84. Year 2 pupils know how living things change as they get older and pupils knew that tadpoles changed into frogs and that lambs became sheep. They develop their knowledge of what their bodies need to remain healthy. For example, they understand the need for exercise and a correct diet. They understand that some food needs to be processed before it can be eaten and that water is very important to life. In discussion they demonstrate an understanding of how some materials can be changed, for example, melting ice and their different characteristics describing them as soft, hard, smooth and rough. When discussing plants they understand that they need sun, light and water in order to survive. Pupils begin to understand that tests need to be fair for results to be reliable.

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SCIENCE

85. Year 6 pupils understand the concept of fair testing and record the results of their experiments using simple tables. They understand the change that occurs when solids are dissolved in water and know about the different states, gases, liquids and solids. Pupils use the correct vocabulary, such as solids, solute and solvent. They can read thermometers with different scales of measurement. They develop sound observational skills and learn how to record their experiments in a scientific form. However, the below average communication and literacy skills St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 32 of some pupils mean that they have difficulty in explaining, at length, what they have achieved, orally or in writing.

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SCIENCE

86. Teaching for pupils of all ages is good and they make good gains in their learning in lessons. These findings are an improvement on those of the previous inspection, in which teaching and progress were judged to be satisfactory. The good progress made by pupils is the result of well- structured lessons that follow a logical progression, good knowledge of the subject by teachers and careful use by them of the vocabulary associated with it. The confidence and self-esteem of pupils is enhanced by the very encouraging manner adopted by their teachers. An important feature of many of the lessons observed during the inspection was the good pace that teachers maintain, thus keeping the interest of the pupils. Opening sessions are well used by teachers to revise the knowledge covered in previous lessons. The progress of pupils with SEN and those with EAL is good because of the support they receive. The quality of the marking of pupils’ work

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SCIENCE

is not consistent, with some teachers marking in some detail and providing good feedback while others confine themselves to ticks. Teachers seek to develop communication and literacy skills of pupils through discussion sessions that give them the opportunity to improve their ability to listen to others and express themselves clearly. Their writing skills are developed while recording the results of experiments in note form. Pupils use computers to enter their findings and print out graphs of results.

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SCIENCE

87. Pupils develop good attitudes towards their work are good and these are very good in some lessons. They co-operate well with each other and with their teachers and particularly enjoy their practical opportunities. For example, in an experiment on the theme of gas and proving that it exists, pupils in Year 5 offered sensible predictions as to what they thought would happen. They carried the experiment through to a satisfactory conclusion showing genuine excitement at the results.

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SCIENCE

88. Leadership and management are good. As part of the drive to improve standards and achievement, pupils’ work is regularly checked to ensure that it is of a high enough standard. Appropriate action is taken where it is felt to be below that acceptable. Teachers are following the scheme of work closely and lesson plans are carefully checked to ensure that skills and knowledge are taught progressively. Pupils’ work is regularly assessed against the national scheme of work and progress is recorded on individual records. The school has made good improvement in its provision since the last inspection, but it is aware of its responsibility to raise standards further for all its pupils.

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ART AND DESIGN

89. During the week of the inspection only a limited number of lessons were observed, involving pupils in Years 2, 4 and 6, and judgements are supported by examination of pupils’ previous work and by discussion with pupils and the co-ordinator. Standards have been maintained since the previous inspection and are average at the end of Year 2 and Year 6, with some examples of above average attainment throughout the school. Pupils, including those with SEN or EAL, achieve well and make sound progress over time and good progress in many lessons.

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ART AND DESIGN

90. Pupils, including those with SEN, use a range of media and materials to develop their skills and techniques and these are built upon well as they move through the school. In Years 1 and 2, pupils are introduced to the work of well-known artists, such as Picasso, and produce pictures in their styles successfully. Pupils create pictures, using ICT. For example, Year 2 pupils create pictures in the style of Mondrian or Kandinsky, varying texture and line using the graphics tools available. Pupils produce models from their own designs, developing and modifying designs until they are satisfied with the finished product. They use a range of materials and a variety of textures when creating a three-dimensional object from a two dimensional drawing, such as when decorating a chair for Bugs Bunny. By Year 6 pupils have sound observational drawing skills. They further develop these when studying artists who have portrayed strong facial

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ART AND DESIGN

expressions and when sketching facial expressions from a digital camera picture. Pupils produce interesting and effective collages, such as when Year 5 visited Formby Sands and imaginatively used a range of textures to re-create the images they had seen. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 33 91. The quality of teaching is very good in Key Stage 1 and good in Key Stage 2. Teachers have good subject knowledge and understanding which they use to plan good learning opportunities in classes. Lessons are well planned and prepared with clear learning targets, which are shared with the pupils. Teachers give clear instructions and guidance to help pupils to improve their artistic skills and to this end, they make good use of sketchbooks. Pupils know what it is that they are expected to learn about and how they are expected to do it. Pupils have good attitudes in lessons and listen carefully to teacher guidance and suggestions. Teachers make very good

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ART AND DESIGN

use of ICT in teaching and this motivates pupils well.

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ART AND DESIGN

92. Work makes a positive contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils work well together in lessons. For example, Year 4 pupils help each other to choose materials and textures for their topic. Pupils take responsibility for clearing away after lessons are completed in a sensible way. They learn about the work of great artists such as Picasso and express their feelings about wider experiences, such as a collage produced after taking part in a local schools’ arts festival production of Caliban’s Story. Work is well displayed around the school, contributing to cultural and spiritual development.

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ART AND DESIGN

93. The subject is very well led and managed. The co-ordinator monitors planning to ensure a consistency of approach that builds progressively on skills and knowledge. She has developed a comprehensive portfolio of pupils’ work that clearly illustrates pupils’ progress. Resources are good and easily accessible to all staff.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

94. Only one lesson was observed and judgements are supported by other evidence gained from talking to pupils, examining teachers’ plans and pupils’ designs and finished products. Standards are average at the end of Year 2 but below average at the end of Year 6, as they were at the time of the previous inspection. There has been no improvement in the subject since that time, although a new curriculum has been introduced this term. During the previous year, there was little teaching of the subject in Years 3 to 5 as the school struggled to improve its standards in English, mathematics, science and ICT during a very unsettled period. Settled staffing and a new co-ordinator and curriculum have good potential to raise standards in the future.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

95. By the end of Year 2, pupils design and make simple products, selecting appropriate resources and using simple tools and means of fastening materials together. In Years 3 to 6, this has not been built upon sufficiently and although pupils discuss the design, make, evaluate and amend process at a simple level, they have not developed a sufficiently good range of skills in either designing or making. Currently, pupils are beginning to make up lost ground through the introduction of the national scheme of work across the whole school. Pupils are challenged to design a product and although initial designs are simple, they make a prototype and amend their design before embarking on their final product. For example, pupils in Year 5 were challenged to make a musical instrument that could be played in three different ways. They produced labelled drawings and built a model out of waste materials and could discuss and

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

demonstrate that they had met the challenge. Higher attainers could say how they might improve their model. Future lessons are planned to refine the original designs and make an improved finished product.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

96. Teaching is now satisfactory throughout the school. Teachers have not had training on the new curriculum but make good use of the scheme of work to support their own knowledge when planning to develop pupils’ skills. Pupils enjoy the lessons and are now making sound gains in their knowledge and understanding of the designing and making process. Teachers make good links to pupils’ cultural backgrounds. For example, when Year 3 pupils investigated resources for making sandwiches, they sampled a range of different breads and fillings drawn from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. Some very good links are made to ICT and numeracy. For example, Year 5 pupils design a bedroom, using a graphics package, to a given budget. They are highly motivated by this work and it promotes their learning in all three subjects very effectively. St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 34 97. Whilst the school has neglected the subject in Years 3 to 6 for some time, the recent

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

developments in leadership and management, curriculum and teaching are now promoting rapid improvement. An action plan to develop teachers’ skills further is soon to be implemented.

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GEOGRAPHY

98. Three lessons were observed and judgements are supported by discussion with pupils, and examination of work and teachers’ plans. As at the time of the last inspection, standards at the end of Year 2 are average but they have declined at the end of Year 6 and are below average. As with some other subjects, geography was insufficiently taught in Years 3 to 5 in the previous year and pupils did not build on the skills and knowledge they learned in Years 1 and 2. The co- ordinator did work hard to plan for these year groups and provide guidance and resources for temporary teachers, but the supply staff did not consistently follow the curriculum provided.

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GEOGRAPHY

99. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 develop sound mapping skills, drawing plans and maps, for example of the school and their route to school. They locate countries of the British Isles on a map. They study the local area and learn about how land is used and about the type and uses of buildings found there. They study a different type of location and visit the seaside at Formby to identify at first hand the similarities and differences between the two areas. This has not been built upon sufficiently in Key Stage 2 and pupils in Year 6 have difficulty in locating places on maps of the world or Britain. They have unsatisfactory skills in reading maps and understanding symbols, and cannot explain why settlements arose in different places or how man affects the world environment is limited. However, recent improvements have been made and the new curriculum is being taught systematically in all year groups so that pupils are now making

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GEOGRAPHY

100. Pupils are interested in learning about their local area and further afield and teachers are now providing them with the opportunity to do so. Careful planning to the new scheme of work is now providing a structured and progressive development of skills and knowledge. Teachers provide pupils with good practical opportunities within the local area to develop their understanding and link work well to other subjects, such as numeracy and ICT. For example, Year 2 pupils conduct a traffic survey near to the school and Year 4 pupils conduct litter surveys. Both convert their data into graphs and learn how to interpret these to develop an understanding of the effects of man on the environment. A whole school project on countries of the world with whom they have connections is helping pupils to understand where places are located in relation to Manchester.

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GEOGRAPHY

101. Leadership of the subject is good and new procedures are supporting the co-ordinator in ensuring that the subject is taught consistently across the whole school. Although there is an adequate range of resources overall, there is a shortage of globes.

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HISTORY

102. Pupils in Year 2 are achieving standards in line with those expected nationally but pupils in Year 6 are achieving at a level below that expected for their age. The below average attainment noted in the present Year 6 is largely due to the recent staffing situation, when the subject was not taught on a regular basis in Years 3 to 5. Judgements are based on discussions with pupils and the subject co-ordinator, lesson observations, the scheme of work and a scrutiny of pupils’ work. Although pupils in Year 6 are achieving at a level below that expected, inspection evidence indicates that pupils in Years 3 to 5 are now reaching average standards for their respective ages.

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HISTORY

103. Pupils in Year 2 empathise with people in the past. For example, from the work they are doing on Florence Nightingale, they have an understanding of the unhygienic conditions that she encountered when she began her work in hospitals and the resistance she met to changing them. Pupils in Year 6 do not have the breadth of basic historical knowledge that is expected for pupils of their age group and find it hard to discuss past eras and their effect on modern life. Their early knowledge of their current period of study, the Ancient Greeks, is sound. For example, they know the names of a number of gods and know that the Greeks believed these gods lived on Mount Olympus. They make very good use of the Internet to research their St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 35 information and present their findings to their classmates. Pupils have a basic understanding of the use of different sources of evidence in order to answer questions about the past. For

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HISTORY

example, Year 5 pupils extract information from written evidence, such as census forms. They empathise with the feelings of others. For example, when discussing the differences between burial customs of people in Ancient Egypt and modern Britain, a Year 3 pupil said that we should leave the graves of ancient people alone because it was wrong to disturb them.

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HISTORY

104. No full history lessons were observed in Years 1 and 2 but the very small sample observed, combined with a scrutiny of pupils’ previous work, indicate that teaching is at least satisfactory. Inspection evidence indicates that teaching for pupils in Years 3 to 6 is generally good and pupils are making good progress in their knowledge and understanding of the past. Pupils with SEN or those with EAL make similar progress to that of their peers. Teachers ensure the progress of their pupils with well planned lessons that maintain a brisk pace and encourage pupil involvement. Resources are well focused on the stated lesson objectives and teachers demonstrate good subject knowledge. For example, in a lesson on Ancient Egypt the teacher developed the understanding of the pupils with well chosen activities such as translating simple messages into hieroglyphics. Pupils are encouraged to take a full part in lessons with the use of

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HISTORY

good questioning techniques, which ensure the involvement of all and probe to assess and develop knowledge and understanding. Good links are made to other subjects. For example, pupils are encouraged to talk about their work and by so doing develop their speaking and listening skills. Their literacy skills are developed when pupils make notes and undertake research, using books and the Internet and discussion with pupils across the age ranges shows an improvement in their ability to use indexes since the last inspection. In lessons on Ancient Egypt, teachers make a good link to mathematics when asking pupils to identify the shapes that make up the net of a square based pyramid. Pupils adopt good attitudes towards the subject, behave well and show enthusiasm for the work provided for them. They co-operate well with each other and with their teachers.

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HISTORY

105. Management of the subject is satisfactory and the co-ordinator is well aware of the need to improve the standards, particularly in Key Stage 2. The new policy, scheme of work and topic planner provide a good framework for teaching the subject consistently and progressively across the whole school. Monitoring of planning and teaching has begun to ensure that this is being implemented. The improvement in the school’s overall provision for the subject since the last inspection is satisfactory.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

106. At ages 7 and 11, standards are average and are still improving. Little improvement had been made since the previous inspection, when standards were not good enough, until the new senior management team took up their posts in early 2001. Since then there has been a dramatic improvement in both provision and standards. Good resources and very good, often excellent, teaching, by specialist teachers has promoted very good achievement for pupils. Pupils have very quickly made up lost ground because of the highly focused programme of study in the computer suite. This provides for a weekly lesson on computer skills and direct weekly teaching of literacy or numeracy, which contributes significantly to pupils’ achievements in these subjects. All lessons are linked as closely as possible to other subjects of the curriculum.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

107. At age seven, pupils are confident in operating computers and log-in and access programs quickly, ready to begin their lessons. They write, using a word processor, and locate the letters on the keyboard with comparative ease. Lower attainers are well supported in lessons and higher and average attainers work confidently and independently. All produce their own pictures and enjoy experimenting with line and colour. For example, Year 2 pupils produce pictures in the style of Kandinsky and Mondrian, varying the thickness of pens and brushes and inserting shapes to create their desired effect. They move characters about the screen, such as when playing simple numeracy games. Pupils enter data into a simple database and convert their results into graphs. For example, Year 2 collected data on traffic in a geography lesson and in their numeracy session entered the data and produced block graphs.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

108. At age 11, pupils have sound word processing skills and their writing is often at a better standard than their hand-written work. They move text about the page, alter size and style of St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 36 font to enhance presentation and create effect. They insert pictures into their work, often downloading these from the Internet before altering their size and shape and repositioning them within the text. When downloading information from the Internet, they learn to discriminate and select only what they need. For example, Year 6 pupils consider just what they need to include to inform the rest of the class about their chosen Greek god in their history topic. There are regular computer clubs and the school’s highest attainers are targeted successfully in a project aimed to improve their achievements across the whole curriculum.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

109. Direct teaching is undertaken by the school co-ordinator and an outside expert and is of high quality. Not only are pupils very well taught but lessons also provide very good staff training for the class teachers supporting the lessons. Teachers give very clear explanations and directions, using the overhead projector well to demonstrate what pupils are going to learn. In response, pupils are enthusiastic and most are confident in working independently. They concentrate very hard and are not afraid of experimenting to achieve their desired effect. Teachers support those with EAL and those who are lower attainers or who have SEN well so that all achieve their learning targets. Pupils are proud of their work and it is displayed effectively, thus adding to their self-esteem. The very good links made to literacy and numeracy support pupils’ achievements in those subjects well. Good links to other subjects ensure that pupils learn that

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

their ICT skills are an important tool for learning across the whole curriculum.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

110. Excellent leadership has promoted the very good improvements made and there is a strong action plan to extend resources into the classroom and provide further targeted training for teachers. The link with a specialist company which provides computers, weekly technical support training and a specialist teacher provides very good value for the money spent.

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MUSIC

111. Only one lesson was observed during the inspection and judgements are supported by other evidence. There is insufficient evidence available to form a valid judgement on attainment in Year 2. Evidence available indicates that pupils in Year 6 are attaining at a level below that expected for their age. In the previous report, attainment in Year 6 was judged to be in line with national expectations. The apparent fall in the level of attainment since the last inspection is due, in the main, to the staffing problems suffered by the school during the academic year 2000 to 2001. This had a detrimental effect on the progress and achievement of the present Year 6 pupils. The school fully recognises the need to develop the subject to increase the overall levels of attainment of the pupils, and has developed a sound action plan.

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MUSIC

112. Because of the lack of lesson observations, no valid judgements are possible on teaching and learning. In the one lesson observed, pupils in Year 1 made good progress in responding to a conductor and keeping to a rhythm when playing instruments. When given the opportunity, in assemblies for example, pupils sing well and follow the rhythm of the music.

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MUSIC

113. As part of its drive to improve standards, the school has increased the number of extra- curricular activities. There is a recorder group for older pupils, as suggested in the last inspection report. Pupils who demonstrate some talent in music have the opportunity to join the steel band or guitar group. Pupils perform at the Wythenshawe Arts Festival and in school based events, such as pantomimes and Christmas productions.

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MUSIC

114. A new scheme of work, which is designed to ensure that pupils develop their skills progressively, is to be introduced in January 2002. The Manchester Music Service is providing training for teachers so that they have sound knowledge and understanding of the scheme. Lesson plans are now monitored by the co-ordinator to ensure that the subject is being taught consistently throughout the school. Resources are good and reflected the diverse ethnic cultures in the school.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

115. Pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 are attaining standards in line with those expected for their respective age group, which is an improvement on the unsatisfactory standards reported at the St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 37 previous inspection. The school has worked hard to improve its provision and now has a good subject policy and scheme of work and has improved the quality of teaching.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

116. In dance, pupils in Year 2 use their imaginations and bodies well while moving in time to a piece of music. They move expressively at different speeds and are beginning to combine different movements into simple sequences. Pupils understand the importance of warm-up exercises and work co-operatively when carrying and placing equipment. Older pupils devise simple ball games and explain the rules to others. Year 6 pupils have good balancing skills and link several different movements into a continuous routine. They dismount from equipment safely and their movements show good body control. They are self-critical and explain how their performance could be improved. They discuss the performance of others sensibly and constructively. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 are making good progress in their ability to swim, with just over 50 per cent of them having reached the 25-metre standard expected by the end of Year 6. The majority of the

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

rest have swum at least 10 metres. Pupils with SEN and those with EAL make good progress.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

117. The quality of teaching observed during the inspection was good, with some that was very good. This is an improvement on 1997, when some unsatisfactory and even poor teaching was observed. Teachers demonstrate good subject knowledge and plan well-structured lessons that are a balanced mix of direct teaching and practical activities. In lessons that include a variety of activities, immediate feedback and encouragement allow pupils to demonstrate and refine their skills to ensure that they make good progress. Teachers develop pupils’ speaking and listening skills by encouraging discussion about their activities. Lessons include a strong element of confidence building and seek to develop pupils’ skills in co-operating with each other. Teachers ensure that pupils are aware of the safety aspects of moving large equipment and ensure that it is safe before allowing them to use it.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

118. Pupils develop satisfactory attitudes to learning, sometimes demonstrating good or very good attitudes. Where attitudes are good, pupils are well behaved and quick to react to instructions. They try hard and work well together. However, there are some examples of a small minority of pupils being slow to react to instructions, or whose behaviour, although well managed by their teachers, leads to a temporary slowing of the pace of lessons.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

119. Pupils enjoy the opportunity to take part in after school sporting activities, such as football coaching sessions. The school has formed good links with a number of different local organisations to support this work, for example, the weekly use of a local sports hall, the playing of inter-school football matches and the successful involvement in an athletics competition in which pupils won a number of medals. Pupils are actively encouraged to develop their games skills by taking part in sponsored events, coaching activities, local swimming galas and a variety of sporting activities offered by Manchester Leisure Services. A particularly good example of the school’s commitment to the personal development of its pupils is the “Playground Squad” made up of Year 6 children that has responsibility for team games in the playground at lunch- times. There is an annual visit to the adventure centre at Ghyll Head for Year 6 pupils, where

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

120. Physical education is well managed and there is a good development plan to further improve provision and standards. Resources for the subject are satisfactory and well organised.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

121. Pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 achieve standards in line with those outlined in the locally agreed syllabus and the school has maintained the satisfactory standards noted by the previous inspection. This judgement is based on lesson observations, discussions with pupils and the subject co-ordinator, a scrutiny of the scheme of work and pupils’ books. In response to the critical points made in that report, the school has adopted the Manchester Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education and has increased the amount of time allotted to the subject and improved resources.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

122. At the end of Year 2, pupils understand the concept of belonging to something, such as their school or their group. They are aware of the importance of periods of peace and reflection in worship and discuss ways in which these can be achieved, using words such as calm, quiet, St Lukes C of E (VC) Primary School - 38 gentle and soft to describe the feeling of being peaceful. They understand that some places are “special” to them and to other people. Older pupils understand what makes someone a good friend using descriptions such as “… . likes to be helpful and wears a big smile.” Year 6 pupils understand some of the beliefs of Christianity and other world faiths, particularly those that are special to them, such as the Muslim faith. For example, they have a good knowledge of the Five Pillars of Islam and the customs associated with them.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

123. The quality of teaching is good overall and pupils make good progress in their knowledge and understanding of different religions and in their spiritual understanding. The progress of pupils with SEN and those with EAL is also good. Teachers have good subject knowledge and plan lessons carefully, with clear learning targets. Teachers question well to encourage pupils to take part in class discussions. They do not always ask questions of those with their hands up and thus ensure the participation of as many pupils as possible in discussions, enhancing speaking and listening skills. Where possible, teachers link what they are teaching to other subjects, such as by using Hindu music to set the mood in a lesson on the concept of peace. In a lesson on Islam, the teacher used the pupils’ historical knowledge well when she talked about the Ancient Greek belief in many gods and contrasted it to the one God of the Muslim religion. Lessons

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

provide good links to literacy, such as when pupils in Year 2 developed their ability to form descriptive sentences during a class discussion, and teachers make good use of ICT when appropriate to research and record work. Pupils adopt good attitudes towards the subject and take part in discussions confidently, which promotes their learning well. They are interested in finding out about the beliefs and values of others and respond well to the activities provided for them. They listen to the ideas of others with respect. Pupils are well behaved and co-operate willingly with each other and their teachers.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

124. The subject is managed well and a good action plan gives clear guidance of how it is to be improved in the immediate future. A portfolio of pupils’ work supports teachers in judging pupils’ attainment. Provision is enhanced by the involvement of the local church, regular assemblies taken by the Vicar and a visiting puppet show designed to encourage the pupils to think about the Bible. Pupils visit places of worship, such as a local Christian church and a mosque. This aspect of its work is an area for further development through the inclusion of visits to a wider range of places of worship.

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