Blair Peach Primary School

BLAIR PEACH PRIMARY SCHOOL

Short 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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BLAIR PEACH 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. Blair Peach Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Beaconsfield Road Southall

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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: Cllr. Madhav Patil

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 16 March 1998 Blair Peach Primary School - 4

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Team members

12487 John Lilly Registered inspector 11414 Ann Bennett Lay inspector 27895 Margaret Skinner Team inspector 10270 Sandra Teacher Team inspector

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Team members

Open Book Inspections 6 East Point High Street Seal Sevenoaks Kent TN15 0EG

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Team members

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

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Team members

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Team members

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

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REPORT CONTENTS

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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PART B: COMMENTARY

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER? 16-17

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PART B: COMMENTARY

PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS 18-22 Blair Peach Primary School - 6

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Blair Peach is a large primary school with 431 girls and boys on roll between the ages of three and eleven. It serves a community of many cultural and religious traditions, although the majority of pupils are of Indian or Pakistani heritage. Almost all the pupils speak a language other than English at home, the commonest being Panjabi or Urdu with an increasing number of Tamil speakers. A high number are at an early stage in acquiring English. Most pupils come from homes that are not as economically advantaged as the national average and a third of pupils are eligible for free school meals, a much higher than average proportion. A third of pupils have refugee or asylum-seeker status, and a much larger than usual number of pupils joins or leaves the school other than at the reception stage or Year 6. Most pupils join the school with well below average attainment. The number of pupils with special educational needs is broadly average. In recent years the school has won

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

three Achievement Awards. The school’s mission is: ‘Achieving Academic & Creative Excellence’ or, as the school’s brochure says, ‘Blair Peach is ACE.’

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

Blair Peach is a very good school, well on the way to becoming excellent. Pupils make very good progress and by the end of Year 6 their attainment is above the national average and well above the average for similar schools. This is because the headteacher provides excellent leadership and she is supported well by a close-knit, committed and determined staff. Consequently, teaching is very good and provision for personal development is excellent. Relationships are excellent and pupils behave very well and are eager to succeed. It is a highly inclusive school with very strong values. Girls and boys of every ability, culture, faith and background succeed and reach their potential, not least because support for pupils learning English and those with special educational needs is excellent. The school offers very good value for money.

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What the school does well

Pupils make very good progress, reach their potential and develop very well as young people because: • The headteacher provides excellent leadership for a committed, hard working and determined staff • Teaching is very good • Provision for the personal development of the pupils is excellent • Support for pupils learning English and those with special educational needs is excellent.

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What could be improved

To improve standards even further, the school needs to: • Strengthen and further extend the leadership and management skills of managers • Ensure the Foundation Stage (nursery and reception) has an expert leader who is part of that teaching team • Seek further partnerships with the wider community and other very successful schools to learn more ways to sustain future improvement. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan. Blair Peach Primary School - 7

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

Improvement has been very good since the last inspection (March 1998). Standards have improved rapidly and steadily. The curriculum is now very well managed and planned, and pupils’ progress accurately tracked. Provision for information and communication technology is at least good and improving rapidly, and support for pupils learning English as an additional language is now excellent. Even though the school has had great problems in recruiting and retaining staff, current staffing is stable. It is now a school that seeks ways to improve through rigorous and systematic self-review.

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STANDARDS

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

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Key

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

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Key

Pupils join the nursery with very low-attainment, particularly as to speaking and listening in both English and also in the languages many speak at home. By the end of Year 2, they achieve standards in national tests and assessments that are broadly in line with the national average and well above the average for similar schools. This represents very good progress and shows that pupils overcome factors that may hinder their learning. In these tests in 2002, pupils attained standards in writing that were in line with the national average, although they were lower for reading and mathematics. Over recent years standards by the end of Year 2 have risen in line with the average national rate. Work seen during the inspection, and interim results in national tests for 2003, show that improvement is becoming more rapid, with significant improvement since 2002. Improvement in results at the end of Year 6 has

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Key

been more rapid than nationally and work seen during the inspection and interim results in national tests at the end of Year 6 in 2003 show that this trend continues. This rapid improvement is the result of improved teaching and good provision for personal development, and also because the support for pupils with special educational needs and for pupils learning English as an additional language has become so effective. This support includes excellent induction for pupils who join the school other than at the reception stage. The school sets itself challenging targets for improvement. Significantly, teachers say ‘We expect a lot of the children because it raises their self-esteem’. Blair Peach Primary School - 8

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Pupils are keen to come to school and strive to do their best. They have very good attitudes towards their work and towards others.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Pupils behave very well and there is very little bullying.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Pupils develop very well as caring, mature and independent young people. Relationships are excellent between adults and children, and amongst children of all races and faiths.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Most pupils have good attendance, although it is satisfactory overall.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance figures are affected by children’s visits to their heritage countries. Although pupils gain the confidence to take responsibility for their own learning and behaviour and to take initiative, the school is seeking further ways to increase pupils’ ability to research on their own, for example, through the recently equipped library and access to the Internet within classrooms.

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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

Quality of teaching Satisfactory Very good Very good Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.

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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

Teaching has improved significantly because staff are determined to increase their skills and because they benefit from supportive management. Even so, some staff lack experience overall or in the areas they need to teach. For example, teaching in nursery and reception is less effective because it lacks sufficient planning for the variety of learning required at this stage. Throughout the school, teachers and teaching assistants are particularly good at helping pupils gain the rich and structured spoken English language they need for learning; they teach literacy and numeracy very well. When available, dual language teaching also helps children develop the language they speak at home. Skilled assessment of each pupils’ needs leads to focused and successful help for each pupil in overcoming problems they meet and takes advantage of their individual gifts and talents. Among other reasons, this is

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Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

because teachers help pupils to understand why they succeed and what they need to learn next, orally and through very helpful marking. Pupils, therefore, become able to plan their own learning, for example, when a teacher asked her class ‘What do you think we need to learn next lesson?’. The pupils were quick to tell her. Teaching seen during the inspection and analysis of the pupils’ previous work show that most teaching is at least good and almost one half very good or excellent. Blair Peach Primary School - 9

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum The curriculum is broad, balanced and relevant, and significantly enriched by outside class activities. Even so, clear and immediately accessible management guidance is needed in nursery and reception classes to increase the balance and variety in the children’s learning.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Provision is excellent and highly responsive. Problems are picked up early and solved.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Provision is excellent and includes very good support when pupils join the school, often from other countries.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Provision overall is excellent. For spiritual development it is very good and for moral, social and cultural development excellent. Pupils learn to value their own culture while respecting and appreciating the faiths and cultures of others. This provision is empowered by seeking the views of pupils both within lessons and also through the school council.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils Standards of care are high.

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Aspect Comment

The school works hard, innovatively and successfully to work in partnership with parents. There is a strong sense of mutual respect between home and school. The school actively seeks the views of parents and acts upon their advice.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff The excellent leadership of the headteacher is creating a team within which members share responsibility and seek solutions together. Leadership and management overall is already effective and mainly very effective. The task is now to learn the additional skills to make them excellent.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities The governors work in an efficient and effective way to support the school, giving the school clear vision and values for the future. They meet their statutory responsibilities well

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance It is a highly reflective school that sees systematic and honest self- review as essential for continuous improvement and the school uses such self-review very effectively. Because this self-evaluation is so rigorous, senior managers recognise that they must now find new and innovative ways to sustain improvement.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources The school manages its finances well and gains best value from investments. It is significant that the school does not benefit from the additional resources such as Excellence in Cities that are commonly found in schools facing similar challenges. Blair Peach Primary School - 10 The school makes full and effective use of what the buildings and accommodation offer. The buildings are attractive but inconvenient; even so they sparkle with excitement and shine from the care of site staff. Resources are of good quality and range. There are adequate qualified staff to meet the requirements of the curriculum and the many learning needs of the pupils, although some staff lack experience. Administration staff are courteous and efficient. Senior managers use ‘performance management’ positively to develop staff skills. Through working with others and comparing the school’s performance with similar schools, the school seeks

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Aspect Comment

best value, but now needs to work more closely with the wider community and other very good schools to extend its awareness of strategies used elsewhere and additional support that could be available. Governors, staff and parents are concerned about the expensive vandalism of the school by outsiders, despite their best efforts. There does need to be stronger partnership between community agencies to rectify this costly and damaging problem.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Their children are happy and make good progress • They find it easy to discuss concerns with the school • Their children are well taught. • Their children grow in maturity and independence. • Some parents think that homework needs to improve • Some feel there needs to be more activities outside lessons • A few were concerned about outbreaks of theft in the school

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

Inspectors agree with the positive views of parents. Provision for homework is good and is becoming more systematic, with better communication between home and school. There is a very good range of activities outside lessons, although there could more activities for pupils in Years 1 and 2. Theft is very rare and is investigated fully. Blair Peach Primary School - 11

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determined staff

1. The headteacher inspires and guides the staff and pupils through personal example and expert guidance. These leadership qualities give the school vision, mission and strong sense of purpose and direction. She helps others to believe anything is possible, but not without strong values, hard work, skilled planning and open and honest self- criticism. This excellent leadership has created a shared commitment to improvement and given staff the authority to seek better ways to help the pupils learn; this encourages innovation. The headteacher backs this by effective and efficient management, and relevant and tightly-planned staff development, managed ably by the deputy headteacher. As a result, standards of teaching, learning and personal development have improved significantly and attainment throughout the school has been significantly raised.

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determined staff

2. Middle managers pick up and run with these leadership and management skills. They are willing to take risks while keeping that which has been proven to work. Many of the subject co-ordinators are new and/or comparatively inexperienced. They recognise they will need to learn new skills and new ideas, and they see that these may well be best gained by visiting other similar, very successful schools. The headteacher seeks such ideas from others, for example, through an action-research project with other schools and an university college, and extensive links with teacher training institutions. There are excellent links with an environmental group. The time has now come to extend the range of partners, for instance, with business organisations and through, perhaps, the Investor in People quality framework or the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) as adapted for schools; both could help with recruitment,

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determined staff

selection and retention. This building of the school’s own supportive network is very important since the school is not a member of a Education Action Zone or Excellence in Cities partnership.

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Teaching is very good

3. Teaching is very good across all classes and subjects in Years 1 to 6. This encourages very good learning.

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Teaching is very good

4. Pupils make very good progress and reach their potential because teachers help them to learn one step at a time, clearly understanding what they need to learn and why each topic or skill is important. Skilled assessment not only tracks what pupils can do but is also used to predict what pupils could do if the teaching and learning became even better. Through skilled questioning and marking, teachers and teaching assistants help pupils of all abilities to play their own part by deciding how to improve their work.

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Teaching is very good

5. This very good teaching results in high quality learning because:

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Teaching is very good

• The curriculum is planned and delivered so that each step prepares for the next and is resourced to give richness and relevance to the learning. • Teachers place very high priority on developing the pupils’ speaking and listening skills – before moving on to the systematic teaching of reading and writing skills. Teachers make the same priorities when teaching numeracy. Blair Peach Primary School - 12 • At the start of each unit of work and lesson, teachers make clear what is being learned, why it is being learned and what qualities the teacher will look for in each pupil’s work. • Teachers use accurate and progressive assessment to evaluate progress and to match the learning to each pupil’s needs – spotting when a child could do better. • Teachers counter potential barriers to learning, for example, special educational needs and pupils being at a early stage of English acquisition. • Teachers use probing and open questions to test the pupils’ learning, increase the

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Teaching is very good

pupils’ awareness of why they succeed or meet problems, alongside building the pupils’ ability and confidence to self-review and think through their own work. • Teachers make clear through marking where and why each pupil has succeeded and what they need to learn next. • Teachers set high yet achievable targets for each level of ability, adapting the work perceptively. • The structure and expectations within each lesson help pupils gain good work routines and ways of learning. • There is very productive teamwork between the class teacher, and support assistants and specialist teachers, for example, providing focused support for pupils who have recently joined the school. • Teachers make the pupils full partners in the learning by asking them to review their own progress, and help decide what they and the class need to learn next. Some teachers also ask pupils for advice on how to improve their teaching next lesson.

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Teaching is very good

6. These qualities were fully met in almost one half of the lessons observed and previous work shows this is usually the case. There is a shared enthusiasm for, and joy in, learning throughout the school.

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Teaching is very good

7. One lesson caught all these strengths. A small group of recent arrivals shrugged off their natural worries about speaking English in a strange country. ‘Cold!’, ‘Rainy!’, ‘Hot!’ rang out as they chased new words and ideas. ‘I did that on the computer – come and see’. Gathering around, the others saw how he could type in the words and then their opposites, changing the font and colour of the letters. The quiet ones came out of their shells of shyness and the rather pushy focused their energy on learning new skills. The teacher asked, ‘What have we learned today?’, ‘Opposites – like it’s very hot today not rainy’, and ‘I did it on the computer with this button’. ‘Do you mean ‘button?’, the teacher asked. ‘No – the right word is key!’ – punching a triumphant fist in the air. The teacher asked, ‘What shall we do next time?’ – the pupils bubbled with ideas that they felt would help them to learn exciting new words and to use the computers better. They were

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Teaching is very good

curious, ambitious yet thinking learners. The teacher skilfully balanced development of speaking and listening with growth in self-esteem and confidence – not forgetting to build the pupils’ information and communication technology skills. Instead of rushing on, she gave the pupils space to think, expecting and supporting more structured language at every step in the lesson. Blair Peach Primary School - 13 8. Where teaching and learning are less good while still at least satisfactory:

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Teaching is very good

• Teachers are overly dominant and do not give pupils space and time to respond and think for themselves. The pupils lose the confidence to think through and suggest their own ideas and solutions. Their learning loses that key individuality and independence. • The pace of the learning is too fast for some, and the less able lose confidence and concentration. • The potential contribution of teaching assistants is not used to the full, for example, when sitting at the back in full class sessions, where they cannot make eye contact with the pupils. • The curriculum at the reception stage is not taught in ways that assure full coverage of all the areas of learning and the styles of learning necessary for this age. The learning does not strike the right balance between teacher-led and self-initiated learning.

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Teaching is very good

9. An area for improvement overall is giving pupils more opportunity for personal research, for example, through more widespread use of the library and Internet. Similarly, although very able pupils are sufficiently stretched and challenged, the school has yet to focus on ways to identify their very specific gifts, talents and specific learning needs.

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Provision for the personal development of the pupils is excellent

10. This is a key strength and enlivens learning as well as helping pupils mature as responsible, caring young people. Pupils learn the rights, responsibilities and skills of being a citizen by playing a full part in making the school the effective community it is. The school council garners views and makes suggestions. The pupils who care for the beautiful atrium do not simply tidy up but also look for ways to make it better. Pupils regularly play team and competitive sport and balance this with creative art display, and musical and dance performance. In lessons they learn to collaborate as a higher skill to just being co-operative. Visits to and from the school, including residential experience, extend the challenges they learn to deal with and also provide a wider view of the world. They learn that manners and being nice to people get you further than sullen aggression.

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Provision for the personal development of the pupils is excellent

11. This social awareness is founded upon clear expectations of not only what is right or wrong but also learning why this is the case. Pupils learn that personal decisions must be set in real life situations, for example, through study of such areas as drugs education and relationships, as well as different societies and times. Classes draw up their own codes that balance successful ways of working with the values that underpin human life and work. Especially good is the way teachers give pupils certificates not simply ‘for being good’ but for highly individual achievements.

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Provision for the personal development of the pupils is excellent

12. This leads naturally to learning that helps pupils to understand, appreciate, respect and find joy in the range of faiths, cultures and creativity present within the school. They learn in depth about major religions. They experience and take part in a range of musical and dance traditions. Drama is taking an increasing role in the life of the school. Pupils learn that this creativity is not simply part of school but also important to life beyond school, for example, through the art and craft project involving parents, and listening and singing along with visiting performers who also play an important part within the community. Visibly and actively, this is a culturally rich school. Blair Peach Primary School - 14 13. It is a spiritual school that gives pupils many opportunities to seek meaning and purpose in their lives. They do this through imaginative art, reflective writing and poetry, deep

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Provision for the personal development of the pupils is excellent

discussions of shared reading and enjoyment of music. Teachers increasingly use ‘circle time’ (a time when children can share concerns and dilemmas) to deepen the pupils’ ability to reflect on things that are not simply factual but emotional, and this is a development that could be extended. Assemblies are important corporate events and celebrations. Through assemblies, pupils consider aspects that are centrally significant to human lives. Even so, assemblies tend to lack the quiet stillness that enables calm and un-pressured reflection leading to inner awareness. The school could usefully consider ways to allow assemblies to give pupils more opportunities to reflect quietly.

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excellent

14. This is crucial to the school’s success as an inclusive school. Both areas are powerfully led and expertly managed, with close and planned collaboration between the two of them, and with class teachers and teaching assistants. Pupils are assessed and their needs carefully identified the moment they arrive. From then on their progress is continually tracked so that action can and is taken the moment learning slows or personal development wanders off track. This leads to seamless provision across each day, with a measured balance between trying on your own, trying with support, trying with a special group and working outside class in a more focused way. The deputy headteacher plays a very positive part in supporting the pupils facing the greatest problems.

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excellent

15. Especially good is the way the school unpacks special educational needs, the need to learn English and personal development needs, even when a single child faces all three barriers to their learning. The excellent provision helps these pupils to see these barriers not as very high walls that block the way but as hurdles that they can be helped to jump over with confidence. When compared with practice elsewhere, the expert way in which the induction of children, often from other countries, is planned and managed is so good that it could set the standard for almost every other school in the country.

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excellent

16. Underpinning both areas of provision is the expert way class teachers develop speaking and listening skills in English and, when possible, in the languages many pupils speak at home by using specialists who speak the same language as the children. Teachers model the English language pupils need in school, and will later need at secondary school and in adult life, extremely well.

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excellent

17. Equally important is the way the school works fully with parents, realising they may need and want support with helping their children. The school runs sessions for parents and provides texts in the pupils’ home languages to read with their parents at home. Children and their parents value this highly, and this service could profitably be even further extended, for example, by acquiring a greater number and range of books in the languages pupils speak at home. Blair Peach Primary School - 15

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The leadership and management skills of managers

18. Staff with management responsibilities already provide strong and ambitious leadership, and efficient management for their areas. This is because they have an increasingly clear idea of what is needed to improve learning and how to meet the many learning needs of the pupils. This has led them to realise that they still have skills to learn if they are to meet the very high standards they set themselves. They consider problems and projects intelligently, and actions are pushed forward continuously against planned schedules and standards to reach. Communication is very good within teams and across the school, and this helps good ideas to be shared and problems to be solved together. Honest and systematic self-review leads to realistic evaluation of how far the school has come and where it needs to go next, for instance, through excellent reviews of literacy and numeracy that lead to improvements.

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The leadership and management skills of managers

19. Even so, managers recognise that energy and drive is not always enough, and that new strategies and techniques can be found. There is now a need to look outside the school for the next step forward. This process is called ‘benchmarking’. One area for development is the skill of collecting, recording and seeing patterns in data. This helps managers to make better use of what they already know, for example, by using better computer programs to record, analyse and provide insightful reports on assessment data. A second area would be to seek more accurate ways of identifying the potential of, for example, the gifted and talented pupils. A third area would be greater use of Quality Frameworks such as ‘Healthy Schools’ to compare the school’s practices with those elsewhere. This would help managers spot what they miss because they see it everyday or because they do not recognise a need or strategy because it is beyond their

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The leadership and management skills of managers

experience. The school recognises that it requires the highest management skills and this means seeking out training and advice that is not run of the mill.

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The leadership and management of the Foundation Stage (nursery and reception)

20. The school has faced considerable problems in staffing this area of its work, including the loss of a key and expert manager through promotion outside the school. Senior management have acted sensibly and practically to maintain standards, but this has meant that the key manager with oversight of the Foundation Stage has wider responsibilities, including responsibility for a class further up the school. The school has clear plans to improve this less-than-ideal situation as soon as it is possible. Currently, the team manager is not a member of the nursery and reception teaching team. This means that the manager cannot immediately lead and guide staff, and knowledge of what goes on day-by-day lacks immediacy. As a result, hardworking and committed teachers and assistants cannot take full advantage of the skills they bring to their work. Similarly, the curriculum has become unbalanced, losing the essential mix

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The leadership and management of the Foundation Stage (nursery and reception)

of learning which includes both that which is led by the teacher and that which is initiated by the children. The learning needs of children of this age are different from those of older children and national guidance lays down six areas of learning that should be covered. Currently, the curriculum in reception in particular, does not ensure the foundations in these six areas of learning are fully secure before moving on to the more structured learning within the National Curriculum.

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The leadership and management of the Foundation Stage (nursery and reception)

21. An essential aspect of management is monitoring, evaluating and interpreting the children’s progress and achievement. National guidance for the Foundation Stage sets these out as secure and progressive ‘steps’ in learning. Currently, progress is not Blair Peach Primary School - 16 sufficiently measured and recorded against these steps and, therefore, teachers run the danger of missing essential stages on the way.

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schools to learn ways to sustain future improvement

22. The school is outward looking and has several very productive partnerships. These have been arranged, however, largely through the school’s own initiative. As a result, although very helpful in some areas, these partnerships lack the range and scope seen in many other very successful schools. In part this is because the school is not part of initiatives such as Excellence in Cities or an Education Action Zone. This means that managers do not have easy access to partnerships and may not be aware of what is there to help. By contacting other very successful schools and schools that already benefit from such partnerships, a new resource would become available to the school, for example, links with businesses and quality assurance agencies. Examples of such additional resources could include, businesses providing learning mentors and reading partners, providing role models for pupils, for example, girls, making trainers available

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schools to learn ways to sustain future improvement

for leaders and managers, and providing consultancy in financial management and revenue generation. Other initiatives can bring additional relevance to the pupils’ learning, for example, applying numeracy skills in real commercial settings or using literacy skills to persuade others. National research shows that such schemes can make a major contribution to raising standards. Links with other very successful schools can bring benefits to Blair Peach by learning from what the other schools have already discovered. The school recognises that it needs now to become even more innovative, and this often means taking ideas from others and adapting them to meet the needs of Blair Peach.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

23. The school has come a very long way, despite many challenges on that journey. It achieves very high standards. Because this is the case, governors and staff need to gain the skills and awareness necessary to sustain improvement. The school is like a football team that is in the Premiership and is about to win the cup, but managers and team players want to win all the national competitions and then those in Europe. This will require leadership and management skills and understandings of the highest order if improvement is to be sustained and the school is to achieve its very high aspirations.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

24. To improve standards even further, the school needs to:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(1) Strengthen and extend the leadership and management skills of managers by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• improving the systems for collecting, recording and seeing patterns in assessment data, for example, by using better computer programs to record, analyse and provide insightful reports on assessment data; • seeking more accurate ways of identifying pupils’ potential, for example, the gifted and talented; • seeking ways to get training in the highest management skills, for example, through government schemes and business partners. (Paragraphs 2, 9, 18 and 19)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(2) Improve the leadership and management of the Foundation Stage by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• finding ways to make the key manager a member of the teaching team for this age group in line with present planning; Blair Peach Primary School - 17 • using the leadership and expertise of this manager to review and improve the curriculum, and styles of learning and teaching; • use national guidance to create better ways of tracking progress and evaluating teaching; • seeking out best practice from other very good schools. (Paragraphs 8, 20 and 21)

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(3) Extend partnerships with the wider community and other very successful schools to learn ways to sustain future improvement by:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• making greater use of Quality Frameworks available to schools; • investigating schools that already have extensive links with business and other organisations that can help; • forming partnerships with schools that are already very successful but face similar challenges to Blair Peach. (Paragraph 22) Blair Peach Primary School - 18

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 11

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

The table gives the number and percentage of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about teaching. When the total number is substantially less than 100, care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents more than two, percentage points.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y6

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 40 351

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 117

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Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y6

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 4

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 7 60

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 324

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 121

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 64

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Attendance

School data 6.7 School data 0.2 Blair Peach Primary School - 19 National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5

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Attendance

Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Blair Peach Primary School - 20

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

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2002 24 24 48

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

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

Boys 20 21 22 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 22 22 20

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

Percentage of pupils School 88 (80) 90 (85) 88 (87) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (84) 86 (86) 90 (91)

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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

Boys 19 20 20 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 19 21 22

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

Percentage of pupils School 79 (70) 85 (89) 88 (63) at NC level 2 or above National 85 (85) 89 (89) 89 (89)

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

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

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

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2002 29 27 56

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

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

Boys 24 23 25 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 21 21 24

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

Percentage of pupils School 80 (77) 81 (83) 88 (94) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 73 (71) 86 (87)

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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

Boys 24 23 25 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 21 22 24

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

Percentage of pupils School 80 (79) 80 (80) 88 (89) at NC level 4 or above National 73 (72) 74 (74) 82 (82)

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

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Blair Peach Primary School - 21

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Categories used in the Annual School Census No of pupils on roll Number of fixed period exclusions Number of permanent exclusions

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

White – any other White background 6 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – any other mixed background 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British - Pakistani 74 1 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 1 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – any other Asian background 33 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 6 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – any other Black background 1 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

No ethnic group recorded 0 0 0 The table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. It gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and classes: YR – Y6 Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 17 Financial year 2002-2003

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 23

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 1130602

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 8 Total expenditure 1166497

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 214 Expenditure per pupil 2791

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: nursery Balance brought forward from previous year 98466

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1 Balance carried forward to next year 62571

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 40

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 2

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 60

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 13 Blair Peach Primary School - 22 FTE means full-time equivalent.

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 12

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 9

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Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 3

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of unfilled vacancies or vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of less than one term (FTE) 0

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Recruitment of teachers

FTE means full-time equivalent. Blair Peach Primary School - 23

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Percentage of responses in each category

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

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 60 33 5 1 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 59 31 7 2 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 51 32 12 5 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 55 37 5 2 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 59 33 4 2 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 63 34 2 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 48 44 7 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 64 33 2 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 54 40 5 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 54 32 9 2 3

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Other issues raised by parents

Some parents were concerned about theft in the school. Inspectors find these incidents are recent and rare. The school treats theft extremely seriously and investigates each event thoroughly. Stopping such events entirely is difficult because of the open-plan nature of the school.

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