Redland Primary School

REDLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 5 th – 8 th February 2001

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REDLAND 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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REDLAND 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. Redland Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Brook Street Chippenham Wiltshire

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The governing body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Mrs A Woollings

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 23 rd November 1998 Redland Primary School - 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

23630 Mr J Palk Registered inspector Mathematics, information and communication technology, geography, and physical education How high are standards? How well are pupils taught?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

11096 Ms M Davie Lay inspector Pupils attitudes values and personal development How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 14997 Ms V Emery Team inspector Science, art and design, and music. Co-ordination of special educational needs Co-ordination of the foundation stage How good are the curricular and other opportunities?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

22967 Ms M Griffiths Team inspector English, history, design and technology, and religious education. Co- ordination of equal opportunities How well is the school led and managed?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Redland Primary School - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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? 10

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Redland school is an average sized primary with 217 pupils on roll. There are a small number of pupils from Bangladesh, the Caribbean and the Far East, amounting to five per cent of the roll. All pupils speak English well. Thirteen per cent of pupils receive free school meals which is average. The school serves a large mixed housing estate which is mainly rented housing. There are two other schools in the area and numbers of pupils entering the school fluctuates each year. The school has mixed age classes to accommodate the different numbers. There are more girls than boys in most classes. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6 are taught by ability groups for English and mathematics. Five pupils have statements for their specific needs with a further 55 on the register of special educational needs. This is above average. Most of these pupils are in Year 6. Children start school in September and their

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is a rapidly improving school. Since the last inspection, when it was found to have serious weaknesses, standards have risen. Teaching is now consistently good with a substantial proportion that is very good. The curriculum and the encouragement given to pupils to do well are also good. Pupils enjoy learning. The good leadership and management are effective in improving the quality of education in the school. The school is giving good value for money.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What the school does well • Children are making a very good start at school as a result of very good teaching. • By the age of seven pupils achieve above average standards in reading, writing and maths. • The teaching and learning is good across the school; there is effective planning, and good classroom management and organisation. • There are high expectations of the pupils in all subjects. • Pupils have good attitudes and work hard. • Pupils benefit from the help of well trained support staff and other adults. • The headteacher provides clear leadership and is well supported by the governors and subject co- ordinators in managing school improvement. • The parents have every confidence in the headteacher and the staff.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

What could be improved • Lower attaining pupils in Year 6 do not reach sufficiently high standards in writing and mathematics: … the individual education plans for these lower attaining pupils in Year 6 do not accurately identify the weaknesses in basic writing and numeracy skills and do not show how they will be supported; … there is not enough adult support for lower attaining pupils in mathematics lessons. 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 November 1998. Since then it has made good progress in dealing with the serious weaknesses identified in the last report. There is a clear strategy for raising standards which is working. Higher attainers are now achieving the standards expected of them. There is a good range of methods for tracking the progress pupils make and using this information to set targets for them. Good schemes of work are being used to teach all subjects. School improvement is well planned with very good involvement from the governors. The headteacher and the experienced co-ordinators are checking up on the effect of recent developments. Systems are in place for seeing how well teachers are teaching and pupils are learning. There is challenging work in the use of literacy and numeracy skills in other Redland Primary School - 7 subjects. Redland Primary School - 8

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STANDARDS

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

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STANDARDS

Performance in: all schools similar schools Key

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STANDARDS

English E D C C well above average above average A B mathematics D C C C average below average C D science A C B B well below average E

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STANDARDS

The latest test results exceeded the schools targets and in English and science test results have risen more than nationally. Pupils’ performances in the tests for seven-year-olds were average in reading but below average in writing and mathematics. Overall the last three years performances for seven and eleven-year-olds in the national tests are rising above the national trend for both boys and girls, and are better in writing than reading. The children in the reception class are on course to achieve the targets set for five-year-olds in all areas of learning.

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STANDARDS

Inspection found that standards for seven-year-olds are above average in reading, writing and mathematics and that the pupils are making good progress from a below average base of skills when they enter school.

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STANDARDS

Pupils continue to make good progress in Years 3, 4 and 5. These pupils, including those with special educational needs are achieving well, given their earlier attainment. There is no difference in the attainment of boys, girls or pupils from different backgrounds. Average and higher attaining Year 6 pupils are also making good progress and are reaching their potential. The lower attaining group make up a significant proportion of Year 6, and many are on the special educational needs register. The standards this group are achieving in writing and mathematics are not high enough and consequently the overall standards in writing and mathematics for Year 6 are below average. By the age of eleven standards in reading and science are average. The standards in science are lower than last year’s test results and reflects the difficulty some pupils have with writing explanations. The school has set suitably challenging

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STANDARDS

The standards achieved by seven year olds in information and communication technology are as expected. Eleven-year-old pupils exceeded the standards expected and have made good progress in understanding and using computers for research and presentation of work.

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STANDARDS

As a result of significant changes in the quality of the curriculum and teaching, standards in some other subjects exceed expectations. These include design and technology, information and communication technology, history, geography at both key stages and art in Key Stage 2. Pupils are reaching the expected standards in religious education as set out in the agreed syllabus.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attitudes to the school Pupils have very good attitudes to school and are enthusiastic about their work.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Behaviour, in and out of Behaviour is good. Pupils are very civilised. Good role models shown by Redland Primary School - 9 classrooms all who help in school. Behaviour in the hall at lunch times is excellent.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Personal development and relationships Pupils respond very positively to the responsibilities they share with other adults. There are very good relationships between all who work in the school. It is a happy school.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attendance Better than average attendance.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Pupils respond well to the responsibilities they share with adults.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

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

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Lessons seen overall 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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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Good quality teaching is consistent throughout the school. In eighty per cent of lesson the teaching was good or very good. No lessons were unsatisfactory. The teaching of literacy and numeracy is effective. The extra teaching of basic reading and writing skills is good and improving learning for eight and nine year olds. The setting of pupils for English and mathematics is one strategy that is helping to raise standards. The teaching in the reception class is lively and stimulating. Team planning is effective between the two teachers and the children’s’ progress is carefully monitored.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

There is good support from the other adults, including parents. Classes are very well managed. This allows pupils plenty of opportunity to learn with each other and means that there is no time wasted. Teachers planning is good, they are clear about what they are to teach and why. Special educational needs pupils are taught well. The individual educational plans vary in quality in Year 6 and this affects how well they learn basic skills. Teaching assistants provide good support to individuals and small groups. This means that all pupils have the chance to learn at the right pace. In Key Stage 2 they are not fully involved in all parts of the lessons.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Homework for English and mathematics is well matched to pupils’ abilities and reinforces what has been learnt in class as well as encouraging pupils to find things out for themselves.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

The quality and range of the curriculum A good curriculum. Adapted to meet the needs of different abilities. The topics link the different subjects together and help pupils learn a good base of knowledge.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Overall good. Good support for those with statements. Well managed by the co-ordinator. The individual education plans for most pupils are good but they are not specific enough for pupils in Year 6.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Good for social and moral. Lots of opportunity for pupils to work together. Pupils are able to contribute their views and ideas and opinions. These are valued. Satisfactory opportunities for pupils to develop spirituality and an understanding of other cultures.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

How well the school cares for its pupils Very good routines for monitoring and promoting good behaviour. Good assessment practices now in place. Redland Primary School - 10 Parents are very involved and the school is good at maintaining this involvement through regular consultations and newsletters. Parents enjoy coming in to help and are also very involved with developing homework and the early years numeracy project. The school has developed good community links, which help pupils develop good social and moral behaviour. There are a good range of clubs which are well attended.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

Leadership and manage- ment by the headteacher and other key staff Leadership and management are good and the action to improve the school so far have been effective. There is a determination to be even better and very effective team work is established. The co-ordinators are experienced, enthusiastic and effective.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Good. They are active in helping to determine the priorities for improvement. Well led and well informed and have a clear view of the schools strengths and weaknesses. Extending their links with parents.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The school’s evaluation of its performance Good. Everything is now in place. Setting targets based on hard evidence. Improvement plan based on evaluations of teaching, learning and standards.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The strategic use of resources Making good use of staffing and funding to improve standards.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

There are a good number of trained support staff who work closely with the teachers. The accommodation is now adequate and this has improved attitudes and behaviour around the school. The range of multi-cultural resources is insufficient. The school development plan sets out clear strategies for developing teaching and learning and raising standards. It is a useful tool for monitoring improvement. The school is beginning to use data from tests to support the tracking of pupils progress but this needs refining. Funds from the school budget have been carried forward to ensure the stability of the pupil teacher ratio in the forthcoming years in order to maintain the improving standards.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

• That the teachers expect more from the pupils. • That they are made to feel welcome. • That their children are making good progress. • Pupils are well behaved and keen to come to school. • The committed and hard working staff. • Stability amongst the teaching staff.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

The inspectors agree with the parents’ positive views. Parents are very pleased with the recent improvements at the school, summed up by the phrase ‘it is a very different place from last time’. The school now has the necessary systems in place to ensure continued stability.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

There are three stages of education identified in a primary school. The Foundation Stage begins when children reach the age of three and finishes at the end of the reception class year; typically before a child’s sixth birthday. Key Stage 1 begins Redland Primary School - 11 when pupils are rising six and ends after they are seven-years-old and covers Years 1 and 2. Key Stage 2 starts when pupils are rising eight and is usually completed after they are 11-years-old. This key stage covers Years 3, 4, 5 and 6. Redland Primary School - 12

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. The pupils’ performances in the national tests for 11-year-olds has improved in English, mathematics and science. Over the last three years the percentage achieving Level 4 1 or higher has risen from 45 per cent to 89 per cent in English, from 45 per cent to 83 per cent in mathematics and 76 per cent to 94 per cent in science. The school exceeded its targets in 2000 tests for pupils to reach Level 4 and those to reach Level 5 2 . The proportion of boys and girls reaching Level 5 is still well below average in English and below average in mathematics when compared to similar schools. This is a consequence of a large number of pupils on the register of special educational needs. The use of booster classes in Year 6 and setting for English and mathematics has helped to raise the attainment of average and lower attaining pupils.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. Pupils performances in the national tests for seven-year-olds in 2000 were below average in reading, average in writing and well below average in mathematics. Pupils test scores have risen more than nationally over the last three years in reading and writing and are in line with national trends in mathematics. The proportion of boys and girls reaching Level 3 has also improved and is now average when compared to similar schools in reading and writing. This represents a better picture than at the last inspection in reading and writing, but is similar to that found in mathematics.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. Children’s attainment on entry to school is below average and as at the time of the last inspection, they reach the standards expected of them in all areas of the curriculum for pupils in the foundation stage 3 . The progress they make is often very good as a consequence of the effective teaching partnership in the reception class which tracks the progress children are making.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. Inspection found that all pupils continue to make good progress in Years 1 and 2 as a result of very good teaching. Standards are rising quickly and seven-year-olds are on course to reach above average attainment in reading, writing and mathematics. This cohort of pupils was reaching the expected levels when they entered Key Stage 1 and are being well challenged. Lower attaining pupils are supported well in all lessons and this is having a positive impact on their achievements.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. Most pupils are making good progress in English, mathematics and science through Key Stage 2. Teachers are making good use of assessment information to plan their lessons for the different abilities in their classes. The schemes of work for all subjects are in place and identify what is to be taught and when. These lessons are providing a good level of challenge for pupils of all abilities and helping raise standards. The literacy and the numeracy framework are being used effectively and this is ensuring that pupils learn basic skills uniformly.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. Pupils with special educational needs generally achieve well in relation to their prior

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1 The average level expected of all 11 year olds. 2 One level above that expected of all 11 year olds. 3 There are three stages of education identified in a primary school. The Foundation Stage begins when children reach the age of three and finishes at the end of the reception class year; typically before a child’s sixth birthday. Key Stage 1 begins when pupils are rising six and ends after they are seven years old and covers Years 1 and 2. Key Stage 2 starts when pupils are rising eight and is usually completed after they are 11 years old. This key stage covers Years 3, 4, 5 and 6. Redland Primary School - 13 attainment. Eleven-year-old pupils with special educational needs do not reach sufficiently high standards, particularly in writing and mathematics.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. The present Year 6 is making satisfactory progress overtime given their early attainment. 4 There are a large proportion of boys and girls in Year 6 with special educational needs whose attainment in English and mathematics is below average. Many still lack the key skills in punctuation, spelling, grammar and number and this has an adverse effect on what they can achieve in English, mathematics and science tests. Overall the standards of eleven year olds are below average in writing and mathematics and average in all aspects of science. They have experienced breaks in their learning due to staff changes and the progress they made in basic skills has been erratic due to previously identified weaknesses in schemes of work for all subjects. The provision for these pupils has improved, with booster classes and setting in English and mathematics. This is benefiting pupils, particularly in writing. However there is still

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

not enough adult support in mathematics lessons for such a large number of lower attaining pupils. Whilst teachers are well focused on what these pupils need to know in preparation for the national tests, the targets for writing and mathematics are too broad to accelerate their learning.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. The small proportion of average and higher attaining pupils in Year 6 are making good progress in basic skills. This is because they have plenty of opportunity to use their literacy and numeracy skills in a wide range of other curriculum areas. This years targets for National Curriculum tests are low but reflect the large group of below average pupils in the year group. The inspection confirmed that these are still suitably challenging for this cohort. Higher and challenging targets have also been set for the 2002 tests which the school is on course to achieve as the effects of recent improvements in teaching and learning are consolidated.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

9. Pupils are achieving well in other subjects at both key stages. In particular there has been a good improvement in standards in information and communication technology (ICT) as a result of improved teacher expertise and additional computers. Research and enquiry skills are now taught discretely and this has meant that standards in history and geography have risen and are now above those expected. Pupils knowledge of the design and evaluation processes in design and technology has improved substantially and this is leading to achievements that exceed expectations. High standards in art have been maintained.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

10. The last inspection found that pupils made unsatisfactory progress and the demands made of them were inconsistent from one class to the next. On this issue the school has made good improvement. Progress is consistent as a result of better use of assessment information, good lesson planning and the extra support for all classes.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils of all ages are keen to come to school and are enthusiastic about learning. The youngest children readily leave their parents and carers and are eager to get going with activities as soon as they arrive. In all lessons pupils listen to their teachers carefully, follow instructions well and confidently take part in discussions. This was evident in a physical education lesson with Year 1 pupils who were asked to make up simple sequences of movements. Because they listened to what their teacher wanted them to do so well, they could think up very imaginative body shapes; tall, curled, pointed or

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

4 Key Stage 1 test results for this cohort of pupils were well below national by 2.7 points in reading (points score 12.7), 1.5 in writing (points score 12.0) and 2.7 in mathematics (points score 12.6). The average points score for seven-year-olds is 15. Redland Primary School - 14 wide and took pride in demonstrating how smoothly they could link one shape to another.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Pupils’ behaviour in classrooms and around the school is good and this makes a positive contribution to how well they achieve. Parents rightly feel that this is due to the clearer expectations the school now has of their children and the tightening up of rewards and sanctions. A few children are occasionally restless or fidgety, particularly during long sessions on the carpet, but teachers are skilful at managing this behaviour and pupils respond appropriately when asked to pay attention or behave. Lunch times are orderly and civilised and the behaviour in the dining hall is impressive. Pupils are aware of the rules and know what they are supposed to do. They all know that serving drinks falls to the oldest on each table and quickly agree amongst themselves who this is without argument. They are lively and happy when playing outside and there is no evidence of bullying. Strategies to deal with bullying form part of the school’s personal

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

and social education, and children say they are aware of what to do if it occurs. The high number of fixed term exclusions last year were all because of inappropriate, sometimes aggressive behaviour by a very small number of pupils, most of whom have now moved on to secondary school. There have been no exclusions this year.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Relationships are very good between adults and pupils and the pupils themselves. Children are encouraged to work in pairs and groups as soon as they start school and to turn to each other for help. In the dinner hall when one of the younger children spilt his drink into his food two older girls sharing the same table quickly noted his distress, assessed the situation and took positive action. “Don’t worry about it, let’s just move your plate out of the way and you can start on your sweet” , quickly calmed the child happily finished the rest of his lunch. Teachers take every opportunity to encourage pupils and are quick to praise achievement. This has a significant impact on their self- esteem and the amount of effort they put into their work. During a homework follow up session in Year 6 the teacher made a positive comment to each child about their homework, often referring to their individual targets for improvement. “Your spelling was

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

excellent, no mistakes, I see you remembered your literacy target, tell us all how you did it” resulted in the pupil proudly telling how he and his mum had worked together to check his work.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Pupils are taking an increasingly greater role in school life. They fulfil their roles as classroom monitors, playground buddies, and reading partners responsibly. Class representatives on the school council 5 . take their duties seriously and come to meetings well prepared to discuss issues that are being raised. The council is currently organising cake sales to raise money to provide playground equipment.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

15. Teaching is good throughout the school. In eighty per cent of lessons the teaching is good or better with thirty per cent that is very good. There was no unsatisfactory teaching. This is a significant improvement on the previous inspection. There is a stable teaching staff and a clear understanding amongst staff about what leads to effective learning. The three new appointments since the last inspection significantly strengthen the expertise and experience in the school, particularly in teaching literacy, numeracy and music. In addition the two experienced teachers in the reception class form a strong team.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

5 The school council is made up of representatives from each class, and comes together to discuss issues that are of current concern to pupils; a wide range of issues may be tackled including behaviour and homework. Redland Primary School - 15 16. The teaching of pupils in the reception class is very good. The teachers, nursery nurse and teaching assistant have a very good understanding of the curriculum for the foundation stage and are knowledgeable about the abilities of the children. Good systems are in place for tracking the children’s understanding of basic skills in literacy and numeracy as well as how they are learning. The information is used well by the two teachers to plan good experiences for the children and to organise the other adults to provide the best help. All the adults plan together and set up the classroom and adjoining areas to stimulate and challenge the children’s thinking and encourage

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

enquiry. There is just the right balance in all the lessons seen between guided work and individual work where the children make their own choices about what to do. As a consequence learning is rapid and the children make good progress from a below average starting point.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

17. The teaching in the rest of the classes is good with the greater proportion of very good teaching in Years 1 and 2. In these classes teachers’ assistants are used well throughout the lessons to help pupils and this has a very good impact on how well they learn. This is not always the case in lessons in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6, where teachers’ assistants may well spend the first part of the lesson observing rather than actively supporting pupils or noting the progress made.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

18. Teachers are knowledgeable about the subjects they teach and receive good support from the schemes of work and the subject co-ordinators. Teachers plan in pairs between the year groups. This is also helping to improve the quality of lesson planning because teachers strengthen their knowledge about what to expect of pupils. The work set for pupils is appropriate to their age as well as challenging to pupils of different abilities. For example in a science lesson for nine year olds the teacher expected higher attaining pupils to show their understanding of food groups by preparing two meal plans whilst lower attaining pupils had to arrange a selection of foods to develop their knowledge of proteins and carbohydrates. This helps pupils learn at a rate that best suits them. The teachers provide stimulating and challenging tasks for the pupils. For example eleven year olds were asked to present their findings about the rain forest

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

formally as role play. This meant that pupils had to present their notes carefully and prepare themselves for likely questions from the chair person and committee.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

19. Teachers capitalise on the very good relationships pupils have with each other and encourage them to work together. Groups of eight year olds organised themselves to count the number of people in different categories whist using a database on the computer. This meant that the whole class quickly found the answers to the problems the teacher had set and moved on to look at how graphs could be used to convey the same information. These lessons help pupils learn together and are made possible by the high expectations of behaviour that teachers maintain in all lessons.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

20. Teachers’ assistants are well trained and provide good support. In one design and technology lesson for six year olds the teacher’s assistant wrote on the pupil’s design, for baby bear’s chair, the labels and resources. This meant that the pupil could spend valuable time discussing the purpose of various features, strengthening her understanding of this part of the process.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

21. The teaching of literacy and numeracy is good across the school. The lesson is taught crisply in the hour each day for each subject. Teachers set out clearly what the class is expected to achieve and clarified the time for each part of the lesson. This helps the pupils concentrate. The last part of the lesson is used to bring out the main points and remind pupils of the lesson intentions. The quality of questioning is generally better in English lessons than mathematics lessons in Key Stage 2, but is of uniformly high Redland Primary School - 16 standard in Key Stage 1. Where it is best, teachers follow up the first question with ‘why do you think that?’ or ‘come up and show us how you did that’. These extensions to the original questions challenge the pupils to think deeply as well as giving an insight into how well pupils have understood. Pupils generally become enthusiastic in these sessions and this is of benefit to older, lower attaining pupils who show less

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

22. Good use is made of targets for the different ability groups to plan work and also to organise the levels of classroom support. As a consequence lessons move along at a good pace with little time wasted. This is having a good impact on the progress pupils are making. The targets are not however always meeting the specific needs of lower attaining pupils in Year 6 because they don’t tackle the basic skills in writing and number that these pupils still lack. The additional literacy strategy support for eight and nine year olds is effective and makes a good contribution to developing phonic strategies for reading and spelling. There is a real pace about these sessions to which the pupils respond well.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

23. The use of setting for literacy and numeracy in Key Stage 2 is effective. The teachers use information gathered from looking at the pupils’ work and considering the results of test and this leads to an accurate placing of pupils into the right set. The shared planning and evaluation of the lessons on a regular basis means that both teachers keep a check on the progress of individuals and ensure that they are getting enough challenge in lessons. Average and higher attainers benefit from the faster pace of lessons. In literacy sets the lower attaining group makes good progress because there is plenty of additional adult help, allowing the class to be split into four or five groups. However in the mathematics set for ten and eleven year olds the teacher does not have enough support given the size of the class and the specific needs of the set. As a result the pupils repeat common mistakes or have no one around to encourage them to

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

develop strategies for solving problems quickly.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

24. The teaching of the booster classes varies in quality. Where it is snappy and deals with important basic skills and understanding it is very good. However a few of the lessons lacked a sense of urgency and sharp focus.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

25. Teachers’ lesson plans in other subjects make clear links to developing literacy, numeracy and ICT skills and this is also contributing to the good progress pupils are making. The teachers are careful when setting homework to pitch it at pupils’ needs and abilities. They give plenty of praise for what individuals have achieved. There is a regular time to review what pupils did for homework and to set further work but there are no strategies in place for helping pupils who do not get the support from home. This means that some pupils do not benefit from the extra opportunity to learn or reinforce skills. Some younger pupils did not enjoy homework because of this lack of support.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

26. Where teaching of the foundation subjects were seen the teaching was good. Staff are using the new schemes of work to match work at the appropriate levels and this helps pupils learn effectively. The assessment records are completed but are at an early stage in their use to give a teachers an accurate view of how well pupils of different abilities are performing in the different subjects. The most progress since the last inspection has been in the teaching of ICT. There is a clear programme of skills teaching and teachers are managing the classes well in the ICT suite. In this subject there are high expectations and this is evident in the brisk pace that the teachers maintain.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

27. In a good majority of classes, the good quality of the teaching impacts significantly on Redland Primary School - 17 the good progress made by the pupils with special educational needs. Their needs are generally viewed as a high priority by the school and work is very often adapted or modified to match their needs. Additionally, teaching assistants are mostly used well to support the identified targets on pupils’ individual education plans, either by good quality support for a group or by withdrawal for specialised work. The plans for eleven year olds do not meet these same high standards. The targets and provision for these eleven year old pupils with special educational needs do not state clearly what are the particular needs and how they will be addressed. Nor is the exact nature of the support for these pupils explained clearly enough. The school uses past test papers to identify areas for development. The assessments have been refined since the arrival of the

p.16

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

new co-ordinator but are not yet fully bedded in.

p.17

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

28. The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection when it was judged to be satisfactory. In the main this is due to better planning by teachers to meet the needs of different ability groups. Support staff continue to play an important role in supporting pupils during lessons, and are more knowledgeable about the curriculum than at the last inspection.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

29. The curriculum provided by the school is good overall. It has breadth and balance and contains the full range of subjects for pupils from four to eleven years of age. Provision for health, sex and drugs education is also good and are addressed well through the science curriculum with the good support of the police and school nurse. The quality and range of learning opportunities is good overall. All pupils have equality of access and opportunity to the whole curriculum, and overall satisfactory provision is made for pupils with special educational needs.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

30. Since the last inspection, the curriculum has improved substantially and now meets statutory requirements. New whole school planning systems and schemes of work for all subjects and their implementation help to ensure consistent progress through the school. Literacy and numeracy strategies have been effectively introduced. These improvements have contributed towards the rising standards.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

31. The curriculum provided for children in the foundation stage is good. Teachers plan the work carefully in accordance with the early learning goals 6 . Activities are varied and practical, engaging the children and making them want to learn.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

32. The school now has a good framework for planning which is consistently followed by all teachers. Good monitoring systems check the match of teachers’ planning and the results of teaching and this provides the school with a secure system in the event of staff leaving. There is a good emphasis on the teaching of literacy and numeracy skills. The impact of the literacy strategy is more effective than the numeracy, as it has had a longer time to influence the curriculum. The inclusion of additional literacy support lessons for eight and nine year old pupils and booster classes for eleven year old pupils reflects positively the school’s aim to further raise standards. In some classes there are mixed year groups and the school’s planning systems ensure there is no replication within subject area coverage and is closely monitored.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

6 These are expectations for most children to reach by the end of the foundation stage. They refer mainly to achievements children make in connection with the following six areas of learning; communication, language and literacy; mathematical development; personal, social and emotional development; knowledge and understanding of the world; physical and creative development. There are many goals for each area of learning. Redland Primary School - 18 33. Provision for pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory overall. Provision is good for four to ten year old pupils. The quality of the individual education plans for eleven year olds, does not match the high standards of the rest of the school. The identification of areas for development is not focused sharply enough and targets to be met are not specific enough. It is therefore difficult to make good provision for these pupil. The special educational needs co-ordinator, class teachers and teaching

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

assistants generally give good support to pupils with special educational needs.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

34. The school provides a good programme of extra-curricular activities. It contains a wide range of sporting, musical, artistic and environmental clubs. Additionally, such clubs as chess, cycling and drama add to the opportunities on offer by the school.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

35. The school supports all aspects of personal development effectively, and is particularly effective in promoting social and moral development. Provision for spiritual development is satisfactory and there is now a daily Act of Collective Worship, which is an improvement since the time of the last inspection. Cultural development is also satisfactory overall, however the range of multicultural resources such as books and musical instruments for pupils’ use is insufficient when the whole class is being taught together.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

36. All age groups are represented on the newly established school council. This is having a positive impact on pupil’s personal and social development and raising their understanding about being part of a greater community. They are very well informed about the issues that are being raised and feel they now have a real say in what happens in school.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

37. Lessons on personal, social and health education enhances pupils’ understanding of issues ranging from the importance of healthy lifestyles to the taking on of responsibilities around the school. They have a range of responsibilities in every classroom to help with the smooth running of the day, act as playground buddies and help with the selling of snacks at break time. The oldest are expected to set the standards for younger children to follow, particularly at lunch time when they take on responsibility for the tables they sit at. Themes for assemblies often reflect aspects of personal development, for example a play by Year 6 pupils about rain forests asked the children to think about the depletion of our environment and what effect this will have on us all.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

38. Much emphasis is placed on self-esteem, working hard to earn recognition, and the care and tolerance of others. The headteacher places much importance on developing strong personal relationships with all the pupils and their families, making sure noteworthy events such as new babies or awards earned outside of school are celebrated. School rules are also given a very high profile. The headteacher revisits a particular school rule once a week in assembly, discussing why behaviour is right or wrong thereby helping to foster a feeling of justice amongst the children.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

39. Pupils have the opportunity to go on outings that develop their knowledge as well as encourage their social and cultural awareness. They have recently visited the Bath Museum, a local Church, and the Millennium Dome where ten and eleven year old pupils took part in staging the “Wiltshire Story” along with other schools in Chippenham. Parents rightly feel that the school is special in taking younger children on a residential visit. Six and seven year old pupils spend a long weekend at Braeside in Devizes to help develop their sense of personal responsibility and independence.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

40. A number of old age pensioners eat lunch with the pupils once a week and local Church representatives help in assemblies regularly. Local artisans have demonstrated Redland Primary School - 19 lace making, crocheting and tile making, and good relationships with a local business have resulted in a donation which was used to equip the new food technology area. A local artist is currently working with the pupils on a community project making three- dimensional hangings. These are important links that have been forged with the wider community and provide for very good social development.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. Pupils are known well and there is a high degree of concern for their welfare. Parents are very happy with the way children are prepared for school. This ensures that children and their parents are familiar with the expected routines and that teachers already have a very good idea about the children’s individual needs by the time they start.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. Overall, the monitoring of pupils’ academic performance and development is good. Significant improvements have taken place since the last inspection, including regular assessment checks and reviewing pupils’ written and number work. Teachers complete appropriately detailed records after the end of each topic and this is helping provide a good profile of pupils’ attainment. Assessment procedures and the use of assessment information are now good. Special educational needs are assessed and addressed early ensuring that any extra help is given. Individual targets for improvement are starting to have a positive impact on pupils’ achievements but are not yet wide ranging enough as they have only been set for some aspects of literacy. The school has made a sound start on using the National Curriculum test points scores to evaluate the progress pupils are making, but has not yet refined this to provide a picture

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

of the attainment of specific groups of pupils.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. The introduction of a new behaviour policy since the time of the last inspection has brought about positive change. Parents feel that their children look forward to and appreciate being rewarded for good achievement. Rewards such as marbles in the jar, stickers and certificates of achievement are much sought after and have had a very positive impact. Pupils in Year 5 who have nearly filled up their jar of marbles talk enthusiastically about the rewards they have earned, which include treats such as extra playtime or the freedom to choose an activity. Teachers use whole class targets well to manage the lessons, regularly drawing them to pupils’ attention. “What’s our target for this week?” when children get a bit noisy on the carpet and all try to speak at once. This brings about a quick response by the class, “Listen to each other carefully”! The headteacher takes a very active role in encouraging good behaviour, believing in the

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

benefits of raising children’s self-esteem and ensuring that school rules are given a high profile. Sensible sanctions are also in place, although their use is seldom necessary.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. Procedures for monitoring and eliminating oppressive behaviour are very good. The climate of openness and good relationships that have been developed ensures that children feel safe, secure and confident to approach staff with any problems. Children are successfully encouraged to be kind and helpful to one another through a range of strategies working throughout the school. These include membership of the school council, playground buddies and many opportunities to work together in lessons. A bullying workshop and visiting drama group from a local college has helped children to understand what bullying is and given them pointers about how to deal with it.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

45. Pupils are well supervised at work and play. There are good systems in place to ensure that medical emergencies and illness are dealt with properly, and facilities for pupils and parents with physical limitations are soon to be further improved. Teachers and Redland Primary School - 20 classroom assistants are well trained in matters of child protection, however the meal’s supervisors have not all benefited from the same level of training.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

46. A large number of people are involved in scrutinising the results of national and optional assessment tasks taken at the ages of seven, nine and eleven years. These include the senior management team, governors and relevant subject co-ordinators. Results of this process are used to inform both the responsible teacher and the teacher who will receive the pupils, of the identified strengths and weaknesses. This information is used well to adapt the curriculum and the teaching and is helping to raise standards.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. Parents are very satisfied with the school and their views are more positive than at the time of the last inspection. All parents who responded to the inspection questionnaire feel overwhelmingly that their child likes school and is making good progress. They feel that communication, particularly about the curriculum, is excellent. They are very happy that homework is tailored to meet their children’s needs in literacy and numeracy and appreciate the opportunity to give and receive feedback on a regular basis through both the reading diaries and contact books to ensure that problems can be sorted out quickly. The headteacher and teachers are felt to be very approachable and parents feel that they address any concerns promptly while keeping them well informed. The school is aware of some parents’ concerns about the recent staff turnover and has worked hard to rectify this situation.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

48. The quality of information for parents is good. Two brochures, one for parents of children in the early years and one for parents of older children are very helpful. They give a clear idea of what their children will be doing and what to do about routine matters such as meals and uniforms. The early years 7 brochure gives useful guidance about how parents can help with their children’s learning at home in every day situations, “counting how many apples in a bag, biscuits in a tin or naming colours of cars when they go for a walk”. Both are easy to read and easy to use as reference for specific questions, for example the section headed “Will my child bring work home?” succinctly spells out the school’s expectations of children and of their parents. The governors’ annual report to parents is similarly well laid out and gives a comprehensive overview of what has been happening in school over the past year. The prospectus

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

omits the required information to report pupil absence rates

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

49. Annual reports on pupil’s progress give a good idea of how well children are achieving, which is an improvement since the time of the last inspection. All reports contain individual targets for improvement, however they are sometimes too vague to be of much help. “Continue to enjoy reading” as an improvement target is very encouraging, but does not give parents or children a clear idea of how further progress can be made.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

50. Parents are given a wide range of information to help keep them informed about their child’s curriculum and how they can help to support their learning. Half-termly curriculum overviews are supplemented by workshops such as the homework forum and parents on line day 8 , to keep them informed about what their children are learning. Parental support for homework is variable and so the school has involved itself in a number of local initiatives such as the ‘Family Numeracy Project’ to improve parents’ understanding of how they can support their children at home. The governors hold a regular clinic to deal with any parental concerns and noticeboards and regular

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

7 Usually refers to the years covering children’s’ foundation stage of education. 8 A day organised by the governing body to introduce parents to the use of computers as a tool for learning in schools. Redland Primary School - 21 newsletters ensure that parents are kept up-to-date.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

51. A good many parents and volunteers help regularly in school on a day-to-day basis, assisting teachers in all aspects of classroom work, or with activities such as cooking or swimming. Many also help with much needed one-off tasks such as sorting out the costumes for drama, painting or gardening. The caretaker works hard to keep the school and it’s ground well maintained and also assists regularly in classrooms. He has therefore come to know the children well, adding to their sense of security.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

52. When the school was last inspected in 1998, the leadership of the headteacher and the governors was found to be a serious weakness. There were a number of important issues from the earlier inspection 9 that had not been addressed by the headteacher and governors. Since the last inspection, the headteacher has worked effectively with staff and governors to secure improvements in school management. As a consequence, the weaknesses identified in the last report have been successfully addressed.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. The headteacher demonstrates good leadership and management skills. She provides a clear sense of direction for the school and analyses its performance rigorously. The headteacher develops constructive relationships with parents and promotes a positive team spirit in the school. She meets weekly with the deputy headteacher and regularly with the senior management team to discuss appropriate issues, which demonstrates the shared commitment for moving the school forward. He provides good support. The headteacher has regular discussions with teachers about their work following termly monitoring of each class on an agreed whole school focus and meets regularly with the subject co-ordinators. This further strengthens everybody’s understanding of what changes are proving effective.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

54. The school development plan has been formulated through effective leadership by the headteacher with appropriate staff and governor involvement. The plan is well organised, and has targets that provide the school with a clear focus for improving. Action plans identify those responsible for individual initiatives and show how the initiatives will be undertaken, resourced and monitored. Overall, the plan, which extends to August 2003, identifies relevant priorities and makes a valuable contribution to school improvement. The last OFSTED inspection found insufficient success criteria by which governors and staff could judge the effectiveness of their actions and also a more secure link with the financial implications of actions was needed. All these weaknesses have been successfully rectified in the current school development plan.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

55. The role of the English and mathematics co-ordinators is well established, although they only joined the school at the beginning of the academic year. They have taught or observed every class in the school and gained a clear picture of what needs to be done; planning is monitored to ensure that the high expectations of teachers are maintained. The headteacher has fully involved the two co-ordinators and the deputy headteacher in analysing test data and set challenging targets for the school. There is a need to sharpen up the use of this data so that the attainment of different groups of pupils can be tracked and measured. Other subject co-ordinators carry out their responsibilities well. They monitor subject planning and some are sampling work to check that standards are high enough. This action has a positive effect on the team

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

9 Date of earlier inspection; 16 th - 20 th January 1995 Redland Primary School - 22 spirit evident amongst the staff.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

56. The special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) gives good leadership to teachers and learning assistants in a consultative role. Good systems are in place and resources available are also good. A good level of communication exists between teachers and teaching assistants, through a good planning and feedback sheet. Regular meetings are held between the SENCO, teachers and learning assistants and she is aware of the strengths and the weaknesses in the quality of provision for pupils throughout the school.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

57. The school benefits from a committed governing body that makes a valuable contribution to the leadership and management of the school. It is helpful to the headteacher that the budget, school development plan and the results of statutory testing are all debated rigorously in order that the pace of change is maintained. The governors are kept well informed of various developments, joining staff on training days and working closely with subject co-ordinators. The governor with responsibility for special educational needs is particularly well informed and is a valuable source of expertise. The governors have developed their own action plan identifying those responsible for individual initiatives and show how the initiatives will be undertaken with clear success criteria.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

58. The administration of the budget is carried out efficiently by the headteacher and the school administrator. The school expects to have a carry forward of £27,000 which has been adjusted by the local education authority and is different to the figure published in the annual report to parents. Financial planning is appropriately linked to the priorities on the school development plan and the carry forward is prudent because of the possibility of falling numbers and the importance of keeping the same pupil-teacher ratio. The school takes care to obtain value for money through the purchase of educational materials and estimates for building work or maintenance are carefully debated. Overall, the school makes good use of finance, staffing, accommodation and learning resources. The school has continued to fund extra additional literacy support by teaching assistants for pupils in Years 3 and 4, because this is helping to raise

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

59. The school has made appropriate preparations for the introduction of performance management and the senior management team are clear about their targets. The level of educational support staff is good and they have received appropriate training. They are valued members of the team, also committed to the raising of standards, who support lower attaining pupils through the school; this support is generally good but there needs to be more focused support for lower attaining pupils in Year 6. Educational support assistants are not always used productively during the whole class part of the lessons.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

60. The school has improved the accommodation since the last inspection raised this as a weakness. The new computer suite and a library are used extensively by classes and easily accessible to pupils at all times of the day. The school benefits from good grounds, which have been attractively developed. The school is well resourced in the curriculum areas of literacy, design and technology, religious education, art and also for special needs. In other subjects, resources are satisfactory.

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

Redland Primary School - 23 61. To build on the recent improvements in the quality of learning and raise standards amongst the lower attaining pupils in Year 6

p.23

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

… identify the weaknesses in the basic skills more accurately and use this information to target additional adult support. ( Paragraphs: 7, 22, 23, 77, 81)

p.23

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

… improve the quality of individual education plans in Year 6. ( Paragraphs: 7, 27, 33, 77, 85)

p.23

These additional minor issues should be considered as part of the action plan:

§ Provide more support for pupils in Years 3 and 4 with their homework. (Paragraph 25) § Up date IEP’s to show progress made in basic writing skills. (Paragraph: 42) § Continue to develop the use of data on pupils’ attainment in order to track the progress of different groups of pupils, including those with special educational needs, boys and girls and pupils with English as an additional language. (Paragraphs: 42, 56) § Improve the quality of individual pupil reports to parents. (Paragraph: 49) § Review and provide a clear brief on the use of teaching assistants and other adults during whole class lessons to ensure consistent practise. (Paragraphs: 17, 59, 77, 82) Redland Primary School - 24

p.23

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 36

p.24

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.24

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

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

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 217

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 37

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 5

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 60

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 2

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 19

p.24

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 9

p.24

Attendance

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5

p.24

Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Redland Primary School - 25

p.24

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 21 23 44

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 17 17 18 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 18 21 18

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 80 (75) 86 (75) 82 (67) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 85 (83) 90 (87)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 17 18 18 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 20 18 20

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 84 (79) 82 (67) 86 (83) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (82) 88 (86) 88 (87)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

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

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 1 2000 25 10 35

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 89 (65) 83 (74) 94 (85) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (70) 72 (69) 85 (78)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 80 (62) 80 (68) 86 (82)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

1 Test and examination data is excluded where either the number of girls or boys is ten or fewer to avoid identifying individuals. DfEE circular 7/99 & 8/99 Redland Primary School - 26 at NC level 4 or above National 70 (68) 72 (69) 80 (75)

p.25

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Redland Primary School - 27

p.26

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 3 Black – Caribbean heritage

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage Black – African heritage 1

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group Other minority ethnic groups

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 8 Financial year 1999/2000

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 27

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 408,060

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 10 Expenditure per pupil 1,759

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 128 Balance brought forward from previous year 27,499

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 36,329

p.27

Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. Redland Primary School - 28

p.27

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

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

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 79 21 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 73 23 2 0 2

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 52 38 8 2 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 71 29 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 92 8 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 88 12 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 71 27 2 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 83 17 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 77 23 0 0 0

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 58 29 6 0 7

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Each response is equivalent to 2.2% Redland Primary School - 29

p.28

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

62. Children are admitted to the reception class at the beginning of the year in which they have their fifth birthday. Generally, all children are full-time by Christmas. The majority of the children have experienced some form of pre-school provision. Evidence from the baseline assessments shows that there is little average or above average attainment on entry to school, with particular weakness in literacy and language skills and numeracy skills. Children’s learning is very good as a result of the very good teaching and good provision. By the time children leave the reception class, they are likely to attain all the early learning goals 10 . This judgement of standards is broadly similar to that of the last inspection, but the quality of the teaching has improved to very good. Strengths in the teaching include well planned, purposeful and practical activities and very good behaviour management. Very good relationships are established between

p.29

AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

the teachers and the class. This creates a happy and secure atmosphere, where children enjoy being at school. It is because of these strengths that children settle happily into school and want to learn.

p.29

Personal, social and emotional development

63. Although there is a significant amount of below average attainment on entry to the school at the age of four, children learn very well. By the time they leave the reception class, they are meeting the expectations in this area. This shows very good achievement and reflects the very good, skilful teaching in the reception class. Children are frequently encouraged by all adults to work and play together in small groups and pairs. For example they work in groups, sharing sets of objects to count or to put in sets. Here they are encouraged to help each other and share the resources. In whole class sessions, there is a high emphasis in the children’s participation, but they learn to listen respectfully to one another and value each other’s opinions. Good creative role play areas such as the castle encourages children to interact in their creative play. Whilst the fishing game encourages good levels of concentration and interest amongst

p.29

Personal, social and emotional development

the children as they wait eagerly to see what has been hooked out. 64. All adults provide very good role models for children, always treating them with warmth, care, quiet respect and courtesy. This results in a good level of trust and children who settle well and are happy to come to school. The teaching in this area is very good, helping to promote confidence and independence very well.

p.29

Communication, language and literacy

65. Children are likely to attain the early goals in this area of learning. Very good learning takes place in the development of speaking and listening, reading and writing skills. All adults take every opportunity to develop the skills of speaking and listening and a good level of interaction and discussion takes place between all adults and children. Whole class discussions about the weather or answers to questions such as, ‘what do you think? ’, are good examples of this. At these times, adults use very clear speech to help the children themselves to speak clearly. Teachers have adapted the literacy framework well for these children. They enjoy listening to stories and in particular the

p.29

Communication, language and literacy

10 These are expectations for most children to reach by the end of the foundation stage. They refer mainly to achievements children make in connection with the following six areas of learning; communication, language and literacy; mathematical development; personal, social and emotional development; knowledge and understanding of the world; physical and creative development. There are many goals for each area of learning. Redland Primary School - 30 ‘big books’, which are shared by the whole class. The ‘Gingerbread Man’ is a current favourite in the class. It is through highly skilled teaching that children not only learn favourite traditional stories, but also how stories have a beginning, middle and end. This prepares children well for when they write independently. Through a very good variety of well thought out games and activities, children gain a satisfactory knowledge of letters and sounds of the alphabet. Already, children are using this knowledge to identify words

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Communication, language and literacy

and higher attaining children confidently read books with simple sentences under pictures.

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Mathematical development

66. This area of learning is taught very well and children are likely to reach the required goals in this. Teachers encourage children to think of themselves as mathematicians and see mathematics around them. They count numbers of children and there is frequent reinforcement of mathematical language such as biggest, smallest, first and last. Whole class sessions are of very good quality. An appropriate adaptation of the numeracy strategy has a regular time slot each day. Children show enthusiasm and interest in ordering numbers and counting through a well thought out approach to a good variety of practical activities. Children identify which number is missing on the number line, for example, or re-order the numbers correctly after the teacher has muddled them. Teachers have a consistent approach to the consolidation of previous learning, followed by new learning, providing well thought out practical and exciting

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Mathematical development

activities. Because of this, very good learning takes place in mathematical development.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

67. Through a well planned range of activities, children have very good experiences. They learn very well as a result of the very good teaching and by the time they are five, they reach the required standard of this area of learning. In their work, children learn about where they live and some make simple plans of area. They learn how to use the computer and make pictures on them. They use bricks and learn about how they balance and look at different materials which interest them. Using magnets and magnetic building blocks is a good example of this. Children were fascinated by the way magnets stuck to each other and could attract metal objects. The very good teaching supports children in investigating their surroundings and encourages them to find things out for themselves.

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Physical development

68. Good access to the school’s hall and the good teaching are major factors in the good development in this area. The planning of activities and access to the outdoor physical play area is an area for development. No planning or activities were seen for outdoor play during the inspection. The good teaching of physical activities in the hall provides good opportunities for children, for example, to dance, throw, catch, run and slide. Through the very wide practical play experiences, children’s experience of using a range of tools and construction and modelling tools is also good.

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Creative development

69. By the time children enter the class for five to six year olds, their creative development is reaching the expected levels of this area of learning. The very good teaching and good provision support good learning. Children paint, draw, dance and sing in addition to the good provision on the creative role play area. The castle, at present in the Redland Primary School - 31 classroom, together with the very good range of well chosen dressing up clothes, enable children to create their own play in being kings, queens, princes and princesses. Additionally, good provision is made for singing songs and nursery rhymes as well as music making. A good range of musical instruments was used in a music session, for example. This enabled children to have good experience in making choices and playing with a number of untuned percussion instruments.

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ENGLISH

70. Inspection findings show that standards are below average in writing at the age of eleven because of the high number of special needs pupils in that particular year group. Standards in reading are broadly average. Seven year old pupils are achieving above average standards in reading and writing. Considering the low attainment on entry, pupils make generally good progress and achieve well. Pupils with special educational needs are now making good progress through much of the school. Lower attaining pupils in Year 6 are on the register of special educational needs, but are not making enough progress in writing to achieve average standards. This is in the main due to a lack of focus on the basic writing skills for these pupils.

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ENGLISH

71. The literacy hour had not been fully implemented when the last inspection took place but it is now having an impact on standards in reading and pupils enjoy the variety of texts and topics provided by the scheme. The very good leadership provided by the co- ordinator is improving the quality of the subject. Since he has joined the school, he has taught all classes for literacy, which has given him a clear view of the subject and what needs to be done in order to improve attainment. Since the last inspection, the school has shown that it is committed to raising standards by putting various strategies in place to improve writing; these include identifying and developing effective teaching through the school and obtaining advice from an advisory teacher. Writing targets are now in place for each pupil with the targets written clearly on a card in front of their writing books; pupils enjoy receiving the ‘smiley faces’ on the way to reaching their

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ENGLISH

targets and this strategy is helping to raise standards. The school has also continued to fund additional literacy support for lower attaining pupils, which is proving effective for eight and nine year olds, particularly in raising their reading and spelling attainment.

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ENGLISH

72. In the last inspection, an issue raised was that pupils did not have enough opportunities to express themselves at length in their writing on a chosen theme. Skilled teaching now ensures that literacy is being used well in other subjects of the curriculum, where there are opportunities for pupils to write freely. In history, for example, Year 3 pupils write descriptions of a Victorian Sunday and write a diary of a Victorian worker. Pupils in Years 5 and 6, write poems as part of their history work, about the ‘Railway Debate’. In music, pupils enjoy writing about their favourite piece of music. One pupil, for example, writes that when she listens to ‘Allegro’ by Mozart, the picture that she sees in her head is ‘ of a fluffy white lamb running across a field’ . In design and technology, when pupils make ‘pop-up’ books, they write appropriate stories for their books, such as ‘An Animal Pop-Up Book’. In religious education, opportunities for writing are used well also. For

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ENGLISH

example, pupils prepare written questions for an interview with the Vicar in order to find out about her role in the community.

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ENGLISH

73. When pupils enter the school, they lack confidence in speaking and listening but good progress is made as pupils move through the school. Teachers make words enjoyable for the children. For example, Year 2 pupils enjoy reciting a poem, ‘The Rescue’ and find great pleasure in tapping out the rhythm and reciting the poem again, emphasising the words appropriately. When writing their own poems later, this has helped them to Redland Primary School - 32 be aware of how to create rhythms. Teachers introduce a wide range of vocabulary and use appropriate technical vocabulary with older pupils, such as ‘pitch’, tempo’ and ‘timbre’ in music and ‘prediction’ and ‘conclusion’ when writing about a science experiment. Pupils in Year 6 spoke confidently during a whole school assembly when presenting their research on rainforests.

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ENGLISH

74. Considering the fact that reading skills are poor when pupils begin school, pupils make good progress in learning to read through shared and guided reading as well as in regular times for individual reading. The school has responded well to an issue in the last inspection that pupils should be encouraged to read more non-fiction books and need to develop reference and research skills. An area has been developed into a library, which is used regularly and it is evident from pupils’ work in various areas of the curriculum that research skills are being well-developed not only from books but also from the Internet. Pupils in Year 6 taking an assembly on ‘Rainforests’, researched the theme independently. Book resources have been greatly improved both in classrooms and also in the library. Pupils read to their teachers regularly and also to their families at home. Older pupils read a suitable range of books independently and most of them

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ENGLISH

enjoy reading. They read a variety of texts and talk about what kind of books they like to read.

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ENGLISH

75. Standards in writing are above average at the age of seven. Some pupils begin to use their knowledge of phonics effectively in their spellings and by the age of seven, many are using simple punctuation correctly when they write. Letters are well formed and are usually of a consistent size. They write for a range of purposes. For example, after reading the story ‘Snow White’, pupils in Year 1 enjoy writing a ‘wanted poster’, describing Snow White. Pupils in Year 2, writing a poem that tells a story, understand how to make it effective by using repetition; one pupil begins his poem, ‘I’m going in a forest, I’m going in a forest. Which way shall I take? Which way shall I take?’

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ENGLISH

76. By the age of eleven, standards in writing are below average, as many pupils in Year 6 have special educational needs. More able pupils write imaginatively, join their handwriting and use correct punctuation in their writing but some lower attaining pupils are not using capital letters or full stops and are still printing. An issue in the previous inspection was that higher attaining pupils were not always given enough challenge and therefore were not making appropriate progress. The school is addressing this issue through grouping pupils according to ability. Higher attaining pupils in Year 6 learn to identify features of good writing effectively, such as the rearranging of clauses or writing short sentences to create suspense. Spelling is taught through the ‘Look, Cover, Write, Check’ method, which is proving successful to raise standards in spelling. Pupils write in a range of styles and for different purposes. For example, pupils in Year 6 wrote

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ENGLISH

instructions for making a cup of tea and pupils in Year 4 wrote a modern version of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ as a play. Year 3 pupils understood the concept of taking notes, when they thought about the main points in a text about ‘Snakes’. They understood that one of the main themes in the text is the Black Mamba and wrote bullet points below, such as ‘African snake’, ‘good climber’ and ‘eats birds’. In the last inspection, standards in handwriting were found to need improvement. The school is introducing a new cursive style and this is leading to improvements.

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ENGLISH

77. The quality of teaching is generally good across the school and there are some instances of very good teaching. Teachers have a good understanding of the national literacy strategy and this is having a positive effect on pupils’ attainment. Lessons are carefully planned to ensure that pupils have tasks that challenge them appropriately but in Year 6, the pupils with special educational needs are not always having tasks that match their ability. This is because targets for improvement are not sharply focused for these pupils. Most teachers keep their lessons moving briskly with a variety of activities Redland Primary School - 33 to ensure that pupils maintain high levels of interest. Lessons are also good when the teacher makes clear what the pupils will expect to learn from the lesson as this helps the pupils to understand the aim of the lesson. In a Year 5 lesson, the teacher explained to the pupils at the beginning of the lesson that they were to learn how to take notes and

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ENGLISH

constantly reminded them of this as they took notes from a traditional version of a fable in order to write a modern version. In a Year 3/4 lesson, pupils enjoyed making a sentence with word cards that formed a list, putting commas in the correct places, after the teacher had explained the need for commas in lists. There are generally high levels of firm but friendly discipline and relationships between pupils and their teachers are very good, which results in good progress in lessons. The majority of teachers remind pupils what they have learnt in the previous lesson and at the end of lessons there is a useful time of ‘recap’ over the main points of the lesson. Teaching assistants are generally used well but they are not always used productively in the whole class part of the lesson. The best use of teaching assistants during this part of the lesson is when special needs pupils are taken out individually by teaching assistants and time is

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ENGLISH

taken to explain what they are to do later.

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ENGLISH

78. Various tests are carried out for assessment purposes and the results of tests carried out are used for setting targets and for curricular planning. Careful records of pupils’ reading are kept through the school and involve parents also, thus involving the parents in their children’s learning. Teachers’ careful questioning helps them to find out what pupils have remembered and what they know. Not all teachers are secure in their ability to assess the level at which pupils are working. Marking is always carried out but the quality of constructive remarks to move pupils forward varies between teachers.

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MATHEMATICS

79. Standards in mathematics are above average for seven year olds and all pupils are making good progress given their below average starting point. The reasons for this higher attainment are the quality of teaching and the successful use of the numeracy strategy. The standards at eleven are overall below average due to a large proportion of pupils with special educational needs. This cohort of pupils have made satisfactory progress through Key Stage 2 but lower attaining pupils still lack some basic knowledge of number which limits their achievements in areas such as solving number problems and mental calculations and their standards are not high enough. The 2000 results were average for eleven year olds and the improvement was similar to that found nationally. The proportion of pupils achieving Level 5 is however below average. The achievements of higher attaining pupils were an issue at the last inspection. The

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MATHEMATICS

good planning of numeracy lessons as well as setting for Years 5 and 6 is successfully addressing this. The 2000 test results for seven year old pupils showed an improving picture of performance amongst the lower attaining pupils but below average proportions reaching the higher levels. This has also been an issue for school since the last inspection and inspection found that the higher attaining pupils are now challenged in all areas of mathematics, particularly problem-solving and investigations and are achieving well.

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MATHEMATICS

80. Both the teachers in Key Stage 1 placed emphasis on developing basic skills of number facts as well as developing ideas about patterns and relationships. The teaching is consistently very good. The lessons are brisk and the teaching assistants are kept fully involved. They join in with the pupils during the main activity, following up the short burst number work on the number line or with the number fans. They help the pupils develop the main teaching points and during individual and group work take the pupils aside to reinforce basic skills such as money recognition through the shop or the properties of regular solids. Support for pupils with statements and low attainers is also Redland Primary School - 34 good. The teaching assistants help the children count and touch the faces of the cube as the teacher responds to a pupils suggestion that it has six sides. The teachers plan the lessons well, matching work accurately for the range of abilities in the class. In Year

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MATHEMATICS

2 for example the higher attaining pupils were given various money problems to solve which demanded that they multiply accurately and then find the change owing to them. This lesson successfully reinforced the three and five times table as well as the importance of setting out sums with decimals in. The lower attaining group was given a task that encouraged them to multiply small amounts in their head and then used real money to check their answers. This style of practical work improved their confidence during the lesson.

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MATHEMATICS

81. Teaching in Key Stage 2 is satisfactory with nearly half that is good. There is a need to provide more adult support for pupils in the lower set for mathematics in Years 5 and 6 as many of these pupils lack confidence with number. In particular they need extra help to encourage them to develop such aspects of mathematics as pattern and generalisations. Similarly they need help and encouragement to develop quick strategies for solving simple approximations that will improve their confidence. Pupils are reluctant to share their thinking, generate hypothesise or test out patterns. For example in looking at the pattern of the six times table most stopped before the pattern of the tens digits became evident. This aspect of mathematics has not been developed systematically for pupils in the past because of weaknesses in the scheme of work. Recent staff training led by the newly appointed co-ordinator has helped teachers focus

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MATHEMATICS

more on discussing observations and strategies with pupils in their lessons. Eight and nine year olds are responding well but ten and eleven year olds are still reluctant to contribute in discussions.

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MATHEMATICS

82. The support staff work well with the pupils in small groups and individuals and offer good support in booster lessons. In all classes in Key Stage 2 they are rarely involved in the main part of the lesson when the teacher is teaching the whole class. Consequently they miss opportunities to work alongside pupils to help count on the number line, or spot re-occurring patterns, or encourage them to guess or estimate.

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MATHEMATICS

83. The last inspection found that insufficient attention was given to developing pupils mathematical skills more widely. This has been dealt with well. Planning in other subjects identifies where mathematics skills will be developed. In a project about themselves pupils in Year 2 used real data on pupils’ names. Setting out the data on the most common number of letters in a name; first as a tally and then as a bar chart. In all areas of the school the pupils ability to use ICT to develop mathematical skills and knowledge is well developed. In particular setting out procedures to control such devices as robotic toys or programming the computer to produce and reinforce knowledge about shapes. The pupils are developing an awareness of formula through working on spreadsheets. Mathematics is used to help learning in other subjects such as science when the pupils plot results on light or when constructing scale models in

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MATHEMATICS

design and technology. 84. The inspection found that there is plenty in place to support teachers and maintain the progress seen over the last two years. The teachers are now familiar and secure with the structure of the numeracy lesson and this is well managed. Pupils’ work is assessed against the expectations set out in the numeracy strategy and this provides a comprehensive record of pupils’ attainment. Teachers are using this conscientiously to set and group pupils. 85. The school has gone some way to addressing the large proportion of pupils in Year 6 with below average attainment through extra support, setting and booster lessons. Pupils make satisfactory progress in these lessons, however the individual targets are Redland Primary School - 35 not specific enough and there are no clear targets for these pupils to help guide teachers in their planning. These pupils’ progress in acquiring basic skills over the time

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MATHEMATICS

has been erratic and they lack confidence in basic numeracy skills such as halving and doubling and are insecure in simple number facts associated with table facts and place value. 86. The co-ordinator joined the school in September and very quickly established an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in the quality of teaching and learning by teaching in all the classes. She has set out a clear agenda for action and has made a good start by supporting the staff with a programme of training in aspects of mathematical teaching relating to problem-solving. The school has successfully introduced adult and child numeracy sessions which is having a positive benefit at the reception stage. This good example of parental partnership needs to be extended in order that lower attaining pupils in Key Stage 2 have the chance to be supported with their homework. 87. The school has made satisfactory progress since the last inspection. Subject co-

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MATHEMATICS

ordination has been strengthened and the planning and assessment arrangements are now more robust. The attention given to higher attaining pupils has been addressed well.

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SCIENCE

88. Standards in science are average at the age of seven and eleven. This judgement is based on work seen in lessons, scrutiny of work and talking to pupils. Since the last inspection, standards have risen in terms of pupils who have attained the higher Level 3 at the age of seven and overall there are improvements in experimental and investigative science throughout the school. Both these were weaknesses at the time of the last inspection. Teacher assessments at the age of seven in the year 2000, were below average. The reasons for the higher level this year, are the impact of the good teaching and the new scheme of work on these young pupils. At the age of eleven, standards are average. This is lower than last year as a consequence of the very high numbers of pupils with special educational needs in this year group. However pupils of all abilities are achieving well on their earlier attainment as a result of good teaching.

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SCIENCE

89. Teaching throughout the school is good. Skills of predicting, observing, recording and evaluating are developed systematically and are regularly reinforced. The establishment of ‘Quick Science’ 11 lessons does much to ensure this regular reinforcement. For example in a Year 2 lesson, pupils were focusing on drawing conclusions from an investigation they had undertaken in looking at sources of light. In a class of eight and nine year olds, there was a focus on predicting and drawing conclusions when investigating how the pitch and volume of sound could be changed. As well as learning scientific skills, pupils develop a broad knowledge of materials, physical processes and living things. The middle and higher attainers at the age of seven, for example, identify sources of light and classify them into natural and man- made sources. They have a clear understanding of the five senses of the body and relate this to their own body.

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SCIENCE

90. By the age of eleven, pupils have improved and extended their methods of recording results from diagrams and tables and now use graphs. For example they make detailed annotated diagrams of the human body and plants and use scientific symbols to record the circuits they have made. Overall, the presentation of the work of the eleven year

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SCIENCE

11 The term used by the school to describe a weekly 45 minute science lesson which concentrates on teaching pupils investigation skills. Redland Primary School - 36 olds is in an orderly and scientific way, but a significant number of pupils have insufficient skills in writing or articulating their scientific knowledge. By the age of eleven, their scientific knowledge has developed appropriately. About three quarters of pupils have sound knowledge of food chains, healthy life styles and opaqueness of materials. They competently use a range of measuring devices during experiments. For example they use light sensors to record how effective different materials are in letting light through. Teachers sometimes match the tasks they set pupils to different levels of ability and in these lessons the learning is good. In a lesson concerning healthy foods, for example, the eight and nine year olds were all studying the same

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SCIENCE

topic, but the teacher supported one group in their written recordings, while another group of higher attaining pupils worked independently. A third group recorded their work through drawing diagrams with the good support of a teaching assistant. Teachers manage pupils’ behaviour very well, resulting in orderly lessons and a good degree of pupil involvement. Teaching has shown good improvement since the last inspection, when some unsatisfactory teaching was identified. Teaching is now generally good and never less than satisfactory. Pupils’ response to science is good, they are interested and involved in their work and able to work independently when asked to do so.

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SCIENCE

91. Developments in science have been good because of the good co-ordination of the subject. The scheme of work has been rewritten and science is now taught as a separate subject as well as within the topic cycle. Extra ’Quick Science’ short time allocations are very effective in raising standards in science and in particular, developing scientific skills. Resources have been extended and they are now good. Good assessment systems have been established, which includes some target setting for both individual pupils and the age group concerned. Good analysis of assessments is undertaken, which alerts all teachers to the strengths and weaknesses in pupils attainments. It is clear that there is a commitment to improve achievement in science further.

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ART AND DESIGN

92. Standards in art are as expected at the age of seven and are above the expected level at the age of eleven. No lessons were seen during the inspection, so these judgements are made from a scrutiny of the pupils’ previous work, their sketch books and the work on display in the school. The reasons for the apparent drop in standards at the age of seven, is that there has been a greater emphasis on literacy and numeracy for these pupils in the last two years. For seven to eleven year old pupils, standards have been maintained, successfully developing the skills of art through linking it to other areas of the curriculum. History, geography and religious education are good examples of this. In the classes for ten and eleven year olds for example, good art work is linked to their ‘Rainforest’ work. Large three-dimensional animals of good quality and the emergent layer of the rainforest have been skilfully created by pupils. There are examples of

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ART AND DESIGN

detailed sketches of Victorian house, different types of transport and Noah’s Ark to be found in other classes.

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ART AND DESIGN

93. The art co-ordinator provides good leadership to the subject. She has a good overview of art as headteacher and is able to monitor standards of both teaching and learning . Good links are made with other schools. The ‘Joint Schools’ Art Exhibition’ is a good example of this, which focused successfully on art techniques from around the world. Other good opportunities to extend the curriculum include the visit of the ‘Mosaic’ artist who supported the mosaic work displayed in the hall and the proposed project with a local artist who uses tissue paper and recycled materials. Displays around the school add interest and also speak of the high standards the school is promoting. Redland Primary School - 37

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

94. Only two lessons were observed during the inspection period and there was insufficient evidence to make an overall judgement on the quality of teaching. Evidence obtained from talking to pupils and looking at their work shows that standards are above expectations by the ages of seven and eleven. This is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection in 1998, when they were satisfactory. The issues raised then of needing more guidance in the scheme of work and limited evidence of pupils evaluating their work, have been addressed. All pupils, including those with special educational needs, achieve well.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

95. In one lesson observed, when pupils in Year 1 were designing a chair that is strong and comfortable for Baby Bear in the story of Goldilocks, they produced a workable design and explained why it is important to draw a design first. They talked about the cotton wool for making cushions that will make them comfortable and most pupils produced a design for a chair with clear labels to show what materials will be used to make it. In a similar lesson in Year 2, pupils were at the ‘making stage’ of a stable chair with four legs and a back. In previous lessons, pupils have designed the chair and evaluated the design. It is evident that the teacher has spent time teaching the skills needed for making the chairs, as the pupils are confident with such techniques as sticking materials together and fixing the legs on to the chairs. Pupils know that they will need to test the chairs to find out if they are stable. Pupils enjoy the subject, share resources

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

and tools sensibly and help each other appropriately.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

96. Progress is evident through the school. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 have made attractive books with parts that move or ‘pop up’ – they talk confidently about how they made them and what tools and resources they used and have evaluation sheets to show how they considered their designs. Older pupils in Years 5 and 6, learning about the Victorians, research the toys from that period in history and find out about toys that have some kind of mechanism. They then design a puppet with a pull-string mechanism and their designs are clearly labelled, showing the materials that will be needed to make the puppet. Some pupils design a house with moving parts, such as a face appearing at the window when a piece of card is pulled. Their evaluation sheets show that they have considered the design thoroughly and what they will do in order to overcome any design problems. For example, one pupil learns that they will need to

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

move the window in order to allow room for the piece of card to slide.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

97. The range of resources, such as tools and materials is good. This enables the pupils to make good progress in the subject as they consider what materials and tools will be needed for their designs.

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GEOGRAPHY

98. Standards exceed expectations at the age of seven and eleven. This is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection. The recently developed scheme of work sets out clearly for teachers the learning objectives for pupils and builds well on their previous experiences. In addition teachers pay good attention to geographical language when planning the work.

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GEOGRAPHY

99. The teaching is good throughout the school. Teachers are very well prepared with good quality resources and teaching assistants are well briefed about the learning objectives. The use of a Katie Morag book in Year 1 and 2 generates an enthusiasm amongst the pupils to compare the Isle of Struay with their own area. The topic is very well supported with good quality photographs, maps and plans which pupils use to build up their own plans of journeys they take. A three-dimensional map provides a good starting Redland Primary School - 38 point for lower attaining pupils to discuss features of the landscape and refer these back to their own plans. The work with this map sees a big leap in pupils’ understanding of space and positions of objects in relation to each other. The middle and higher attaining pupils at seven set out their own maps using keys and symbols to show the features on their island maps. There is very good support given by the

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GEOGRAPHY

teaching assistants who encouraged the pupils to take their own starting point for their journey around the island so ensuring that each pupil developed their own understanding of directions.

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GEOGRAPHY

100. In two lessons in Year 3 and 4 pupils developed their mapping skills well, using a good set of pictures of the school grounds. They were challenged to ask questions of each other to describe the position of features using compass directions and successfully develop technical language. The pupils enjoyed the challenge of turning photographic evidence into plans and maps and built up a good range of symbols ‘so they didn’t need to draw everything’ .

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GEOGRAPHY

101. Geography teaching makes a good contribution to pupils literacy skills and personal development and all lessons were enjoyed by the pupils. The dramatic presentation of factual information about the rainforest by Years 5 and 6, meant that pupils quickly developed their knowledge of global issues. They were motivated to research fully into the fate of the rainforest, using their research skills on the computer, reference books and by questioning other pupils. The teachers managed these lessons well. One lesson where the teacher had adopted the role of chair person at a world summit meant that the pupils used formal language to present their case. In another lesson the teacher’s style of questioning was quickly picked up by others and within ten minutes most of the pupils had something to contribute. Pupils enjoyed the lesson and a strong feeling amongst them that their views were valued by each other.

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GEOGRAPHY

102. The subject is well managed by the co-ordinator and the school has made good improvement since the last inspection. The scheme of work has clear links with English, mathematics and ICT which is helping develop a broad range of skills. She ensures that the planning is monitored regularly and that the lesson objectives meet the needs of particular classes. Assessment is thorough and gives a good picture of what pupils have learnt but there is no regular monitoring of standards to ensure that the good standards are now maintained. Redland Primary School - 39

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HISTORY

103. Standards are above expectations by both the ages of seven and eleven. No teaching was observed during the inspection period, but written work, displays and discussion with pupils suggests that they are acquiring an increasing understanding of the past and present as they move through the school, and that progress is good. This is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection in 1998 when progress was unsatisfactory. At the time of the last inspection, no scheme of work was in place and this issue has also been addressed.

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HISTORY

104. By the age of seven, pupils develop their knowledge and understanding of the people in the past. For example, they talk about Henry VIII and know that he had six wives. They have put together a timeline showing when famous people lived, such as Princess Diana, Mary Seacole and Captain Cook, with photographs and pictures. In a book that they have made about a visit to Chepstow Castle, they write about the castle and name different parts of the castle, such as ‘dungeon’ and ‘keep’. The visit helped pupils to have good knowledge of a castle.

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HISTORY

105. The subject is taken forward well as the pupils move through the school. By the age of eleven, pupils talk about different ways of finding out about the past, such as visiting a museum or looking at old maps and books. When learning about the Victorians, pupils learn about such events as ‘The Railway Debate’ and understand the effect that it had on peoples’ lives. After looking at maps of the town, they consider similarities and differences between modern Chippenham and how the town may have looked in Victorian times. They realise that similarities would include the railway station and the church but differences would be the football pitches and the schools. They know that many people left the countryside to go to live in bigger towns and consider why that happened. This helps them to understand how events in the past have affected how people live. Older pupils were involved in a Victorian Day in Chippenham and also

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HISTORY

enjoyed taking part in a play about Victorian times, ‘A Tale of Two Children’. This rôle play helped pupils with their understanding of the Victorian era. Younger pupils in Years 3 and 4 know that Sundays were spent very differently in Victorian times and that rich people lived very differently to poor people and that they had servants to do many jobs in their homes for them.

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HISTORY

106. The co-ordinator has only recently become responsible for the subject but has already updated the scheme of work to include links with ICT and also to extend pupils’ writing in this subject. After each topic, teachers are meeting with her to consider what pupils have learnt by looking at various pieces of work together. This is moving the subject forward and enhancing pupils’ progress further.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

107. The standards in information and communication technology are average by the age of seven and above average for eleven year olds.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

108. By the age of seven pupils key board skills are well developed and all are secure with how to select and run programs or return to the start menus. Most get themselves out of trouble by using the programs tool bar and apply previous experiences well to help them when they get into difficulty. For example in using the dustbin to get rid of unwanted writing or the undo function in an art programme. The teaching is good and pupils have made good progress from a low base of skills. The teacher is sufficiently knowledgeable to teach the basic skills and prepares the lesson well. Teaching assistants and other adults are well briefed on how to support pupils in the computer Redland Primary School - 40 suite and when teaching small groups to program a moving toy. The Year 2 lesson moved at a good pace and was well managed to provide frequent stops to check on progress. The lesson was a good balance between direct instruction by the teacher

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

and collaboration between pupils to make the right decisions in order to reach the ‘favourites’ folder. They are familiar with the screen commands and move forward and back using prompts displayed on the screen. Year 1 pupils use an art program creatively and also demonstrate how they use the program to add writing. By the age of seven pupils use a range of fonts, sizes and colour when word processing.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

109. The teaching is good in Key Stage 2 with a clear programme in place that is systematically teaching the skills pupils need to use the computers to support other curriculum areas. Pupils in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 are making good progress now that they have regular access to good computers. Retrieval skills are at a good level and pupils use a range of software to research information including the Internet. By the age of eleven they are competent in a range of tasks including loading up new programs onto the hard drive. They use a desk top publisher to write up information obtained from a web site address about rainforest animals, ably showing how to copy text, move it around, change its size and position. They use the word processor to copy up writing for a display on the Victorians and know how to import borders to enhance their work. Pupils in Year 3 and 4 are catching up quickly. They move around a database to find

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

answers set by the teacher and discover for themselves that some graph formats do not provide the information they want. A small group of Year 3 pupils made satisfactory progress programming a toy to travel a route around a compass. This indicated that for some pupils and teaching assistants this aspect of ICT is still relatively new.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

110. The subject is very well managed. The scheme of work is fully in place and well supported by a comprehensive assessment record that teachers use to plan their lessons. The co-ordinator monitors planning and also ensures that the training needs of staff are met. All the teachers are trained to teach ICT skills and the co-ordinator, who is a certificated trainer, is effectively developing these skills. There is a good programme of training in the use of the school’s computer suite and the programs that are available to use with pupils. This is adding to the teachers’ confidence in using computers. Very good use has been made of the funds available to bring forward planned developments to keep up with the improvements in pupils’ skills and staff needs. There is well planned programme to increase the number of computers in classrooms so that pupils have access to ICT all day.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

111. The school has made good improvement since the last inspection. Standards have risen and are rising at a good pace due to improved staff expertise and well resourced computer suite. The training programme is ensuring that all teachers are acquiring the skills to keep pace with pupils’ needs.

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MUSIC

112. Pupils meet the expected standard in music by the age of eleven. This judgement remains the same as at the time of the last inspection. Music was only taught for seven to eleven year old pupils during the inspection, consequently judgements can only be made about these lessons. Children enter the school with below average creative skills. By the time they leave at eleven years of age, their standards are as expected. This represents good learning over the time they are at school.

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MUSIC

113. Teaching for seven to eleven year old pupils is good and has improved since the last inspection. The teachers’ knowledge of music is good in the lessons seen. The school is fortunate in having a skilled musician, as a subject co-ordinator and other teachers with good musical expertise. This is used profitably to support extra-curricular activities Redland Primary School - 41 such as recorder groups. The good management of pupils in lessons means that the ideas and knowledge develops smoothly and the pupils learn well. Additionally, because behaviour management is strong, there is good use of a wide range of musical instruments and good opportunities for pupils to compose music. Consequently, music lessons are enjoyable occasions with pupils collaborating well with the teacher and in their composing groups. Pupils treat musical instruments with care and respect and listen to each other’s compositions with interest and appreciation. They have learned to

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MUSIC

make both supportive and evaluative remarks about each other’s performances.

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MUSIC

114. Learning is also good because of good opportunities for practical music making and the well taught basic skills. Additionally, the technical vocabulary of music is taught systematically and regularly checked to ensure pupils’ understanding. Pupils are told clearly, at the start of the lesson, what they are expected to learn during the lesson and how it is going to be achieved. Instructions are clear and time limits are often used. As a result of this, pupils have a clear idea of what is expected of them and what they are going to learn. By the age of eleven, pupils have a satisfactory knowledge of the elements of music, for example, timbre, tempo and dynamics. They compose music by developing their ideas with consideration of how sounds balance and go together. Good links are made with ICT. A good example of this was the introductory lesson for eleven year olds, using ‘Music Box 2’, where pupils were learning the possibilities of the

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MUSIC

115. The co-ordinator is new to the school and provides good leadership and has already made considerable improvements. The scheme of work is being reviewed to address the criticism in the last inspection concerning a lack of balance. Efforts have been made to include more musical elements and performances in assemblies and there was good evidence of this in the assemblies seen during the inspection. A good example of this was the ‘Rainforest’ music used in the eleven year olds’ assembly for parents. Here, music was used effectively to introduce and enhance their performance and used sensitively for a well executed dance performance. There are limited opportunities for pupils to listen to live performances by professional musicians. Assessment systems are in place, using the lesson objectives to judge pupils’ performance. It is the intention to evaluate their effectiveness with the staff as they are

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MUSIC

not yet judged against National Curriculum levels. Some improvements have been made in the accommodation to alleviate the problems of music making and an open plan building, but these are mainly concerning the classrooms for older pupils.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

116. Pupils meet the expected standard in gymnastics by the age of seven. Eleven year olds exceeded the expectations in their dance lesson. The pupils used a good range of movements which they repeated to emphasise the different moods and tempos within the music. They combined these well, smoothly linking the different themes and repeating phrases of movement to accentuate the emotions they felt. They showed a mature understanding of the audience and the need to watch carefully the other members of their dance group.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

117. In discussions with pupils it is evident that the pupils’ experiences in physical education include games, athletics and adventurous activity. Boys and girls are equally enthusiastic about physical education and being part of school teams.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

118. The teaching is sound with good elements in all the lessons. The encouragement given to pupils to work together on routines and sequences means that pupils learn at a good rate. There is pride in the achievements of the Year 6 dance groups and the pupils are keen to improve on their performance when the teacher and other pupils evaluate their Redland Primary School - 42 work. The teacher used good technical language during the lesson and this helped the pupils focus on the different elements of the dance. The music was well-chosen, gripping the pupils imagination and leading to opportunities throughout the dance to return to themes. The pupils worked very hard together to perfect their technique and were rewarded by the rapt attention of the audience when they presented it to the school.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

119. The lessons are well balanced. There is a good mix of teacher demonstration, activity and time to watch and learn from each other. In Year 2 a long list of shape words initially muddled the pupils who had difficulty remembering what words they had to choose from. It is important for pupils to have some props or aids in these situations to help them develop their creativity as well as to make the most of opportunities to develop language skills. Most of the pupils went on to link three movements into a sequence successfully. Both the Key Stage 1 teachers skilfully picked out the interesting use of space as well as the long and short rests that some pupils incorporated. This intervention moved the learning along well.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

120. The co-ordinator has addressed the main weaknesses identified in the last inspection. There is now a comprehensive scheme of work in place. There is still a need to provide more advice for staff particularly in identifying where they can find support for lesson planning.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

121. Only two lessons were observed during the inspection period and there was insufficient evidence to make an overall judgement on the quality of teaching. Evidence obtained from talking to pupils and looking at their work shows that standards of work match the expectations of the locally agreed syllabus by the ages of seven and also eleven. This is an improvement on the findings of the last inspection in 1998, when standards of work were below what was expected in the agreed syllabus. The issues raised then of religious education not meeting statutory requirements and some teachers lacking knowledge and understanding, have been addressed. All pupils, including those with special educational needs make satisfactory progress.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

122. In one lesson observed, pupils in Year 1 listened attentively to the parable of ‘The Good Samaritan’ and talked about what caring means. They knew that the Good Samaritan showed that he cared because he did everything he could to help the injured man such as ‘he wiped his cuts and bruises’ and ‘he let him ride on his donkey’ . They relate this story to what caring means for each of them and how they can help one another. Older pupils in Year 5, read the book ‘I am David’ with their teacher, discussed David’s belief in God when he lost his compass and thought seriously about his dilemma. The good brainstorming session with the teacher helped them to focus on how he felt and described this as ‘shocked’, ‘annoyed’, ‘worried’ and ‘scared’ . Pupils remembered that God said that ‘I am the way’ and recognised David’s trust in God for help in a moment of crisis.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

123. Progress is evident through the school. Pupils in Year 2 think about special people and special places. They describe a room that is special for them at home and they think about celebrations, such as birthdays and consider celebrations in the Bible, such as the birth of Samuel or Palm Sunday. Older pupils in Year 3 consider the wonder of God’s creation and write their own prayers. In Year 6, pupils think about the parable of ‘The Wise Man and the Foolish Man’ and draw parallels with decision-making for themselves such as ‘Is it wise to spend all your money or save it?’ They learn that the Bible says that Christians should be like salt, yeast and light and pupils explain that this Redland Primary School - 43 means that Christians should make a difference in the world. They then consider sensibly whether it is only Christians who can make a difference. Opportunities are used to visit the local church where pupils interview the vicar, asking such questions as

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

‘What do Christians do in church?’ so helping them to understand the Christian faith. They compare Christianity, Islam and Judaism and recognise that each faith has its own special book and special building.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

124. The co-ordinator provides good leadership and has introduced the new agreed syllabus, ‘Chatterboxes and Thinking Caps’ to the staff. The new syllabus has helped teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the subject considerably. The co-ordinator is keeping examples of work from each unit in order to keep a record of what has been covered in lessons, which will be a useful resource for teachers.

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