Spindle Point Primary School

SPINDLE POINT PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 27 th – 29 th January 2003

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SPINDLE POINT 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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SPINDLE POINT 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. Spindle Point Primary - 1

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Nursery, infant and junior

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Moss Lane Kearsley Bolton

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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: Mr Derek Burrows

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 22 nd - 26 th September 1997 Spindle Point Primary - 2

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Aspect responsibilities

24254 Tom Shine Registered inspector Science Art and design How high are standards? How well are pupils taught? How well is the school led and managed? 19430 Trevor Hall 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? 31175 Arthur Allison Team inspector English Information and communication technology Religious education 21113 Jane Sargent Team inspector The Foundation Stage Design and technology Music How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? 11528 Michael Wainwright Team inspector Mathematics Geography History Physical education Special educational needs Educational inclusion

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Aspect responsibilities

PPI Group Ltd 7 Hill Street Bristol BS1 5RW

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Aspect responsibilities

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

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Aspect responsibilities

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Aspect responsibilities

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Spindle Point Primary - 3

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 4 - 7

Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 8 - 11

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Spindle Point is a mixed one-form-entry primary school and is similar in size to other schools of this kind. It caters for pupils aged three to 11 and has 222 pupils on roll. These include 51 children in the Nursery, who attend on a part-time basis. There are slightly more boys than girls overall, but significantly more in Years 1, 4 and 6, with more girls than boys in the Reception class. Some years ago the school was undersubscribed and this is reflected in the relatively low numbers in the current Year 6, - 23 pupils. The roll has increased gradually over the years to the extent that in the last few the school has been oversubscribed with waiting lists for places in the Nursery and Reception classes. On occasion the school is asked to admit a few pupils who are unsettled in other schools, but that apart, the number of pupils who join or leave the school other than at the usual planned times is similar to most primary schools. When they enter the

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Nursery children’s attainment is low for their age. The majority of pupils are drawn from white UK backgrounds with very few from minority ethnic groups. Only three pupils come from homes where a language other than English, Urdu, is the mother tongue. None of these pupils is in the first stage of acquiring English. At nearly 26 per cent the proportion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) is above the national average for primary schools, with most pupils having general learning difficulties. There are no pupils with a statement of SEN. The area is a mix of private and council owned housing and is socio- economically deprived, although the proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is broadly average.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The headteacher, who led the school at the last inspection, is committed to raising pupils’ attainment. Standards are broadly in line with those expected. Under her direction this is becoming a more effective school. Teaching has improved and is now good enough to raise pupils’ standards further. Pupils with SEN are integrated fully and achieve as well as their peers. The school provides satisfactory value for money.

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What the school does well

• Teaching is good in most of the school and pupils are making good progress. • The headteacher provides good leadership and is supported very well by her deputy head. • The school’s support for pupils with SEN is good, enabling them to learn well. • Pupils’ personal development and relationships are very good. • The school cares very well for all its pupils and supports them effectively. • Links with parents are good and they think well of the school.

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What could be improved

• Standards in art and design. • The amount of actual teaching time. • Consistency in teachers’ marking. • Planning for outdoor play for Nursery children. • The range of learning opportunities in some subjects. 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

Since the school was last inspected in September 1997, it has made good progress overall. The proportion of teaching that is good or better is higher than at the last inspection whilst there is less that is unsatisfactory. The teaching of all groups of pupils, including above average pupils, is therefore better than it was. This is as a result both of significant changes to teaching staff and an increase in the monitoring of teaching. Standards in the school are better than the last national test results would suggest and with the overall good quality of teaching it is well placed to raise them further and to continue to improve. Other improvements include the management of pupils’ behaviour and the introduction of a very good programme Spindle Point Primary - 5 for pupils’ personal, social and health education.

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

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Key

In 2002 at the end of Year 6, standards in English were below the national average and were well below average in mathematics both nationally and compared to similar schools. In science, standards were broadly in line with the national average and with those of pupils in similar schools. The standards in English and mathematics were not as high as the targets that were set for these subjects, which if achieved, would have been above the national average. The school was disappointed by these results and points to the considerable disruption caused to the class by one pupil with severe behavioural needs that the local education authority asked the school to admit, that affected pupils’ progress adversely. This pupil attended part time and generally missed the science lessons. The trend in the school’s average points scores since 1998 has been below the national trend. By the end of Year 2 in 2002, standards in reading

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Key

and writing were well below the national average and those in similar schools. They were below average in mathematics both nationally and in similar schools. This is because whilst most pupils achieved the expected level, a lower than average proportion achieved the higher levels. The school attributes these results to the high proportion of pupils with SEN in Year 2 last year.

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Key

Inspection findings show that children make a good start to their education in the Nursery and Reception classes and by the time they enter Year 1 they are attaining standards at the levels expected in all the areas of learning, with some achieving above those expected. These children are achieving well. Progress is less rapid in Year 1, but by the end of Year 2 standards are broadly average in reading, writing, mathematics and science, although some pupils are achieving above those standards. By the end of Year 6, standards are in line with those expected in English, mathematics and science, with some pupils achieving above these standards. However, there are only 23 pupils in this year group, and the seven pupils identified with SEN tend to depress the overall average. In most other subjects standards are at the level expected, except in art and design where they are below those expected and in history and physical

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Key

education in Year 6, where they are above national age-related expectations.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school These are good throughout the school and help pupils learn well.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms This is good in and around the school. Pupils are courteous to adults and to each another.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Personal development is very good. Pupils enjoy helping with the daily routines. Relationships are very good amongst pupils and pupils and staff.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance This is broadly in line with the national average. Spindle Point Primary - 6

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Teaching of pupils in: Nursery & Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

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

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Teaching of pupils in: Nursery & Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

The quality of teaching is good overall and has improved since the last inspection. In the Nursery and Reception classes it is good and all children, including those with SEN, learn well. In Years 1 and 2 the quality of teaching is more variable. It is good in Year 2, but in Year 1 pupils learn satisfactorily, though at a less rapid rate than in the Nursery and Reception classes or Year 2. In Years 3 to 6 teaching is good, overall, including the teaching of English and literacy, and mathematics and numeracy. In Years 2 and 6 it is very good in both subjects. In Year 6, the teaching of science by the co-ordinator is also very good. Teachers and support staff place great emphasis on meeting the needs of all of their pupils and do this effectively, including those with SEN and higher attaining pupils who generally are appropriately challenged. There are very few pupils whose first language is not English. These are fluent English speakers and they

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Satisfactory overall, but the range is restricted in some subjects. The amount of time spent on teaching is below the nationally recommended minimum.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good throughout the school. Pupils are supported well and make good progress towards the targets in their individual education plans.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language There are a few pupils who benefit from being fluent in both English and Urdu. They receive additional literacy support alongside other pupils.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural, development Good overall. Provision for spiritual and cultural development is satisfactory. Provision for moral development is good and for social development it is very good. There is very strong emphasis on pupils’ personal, social and health education.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils The school provides very good levels of care and all staff look after the pupils very well. It has very good systems for monitoring and promoting good behaviour. Parents value the level of care and think well of the school. Spindle Point Primary - 7

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and manage- ment by the headteacher and other key staff These are good; the headteacher is supported very well by the deputy head. They are committed to raising standards further and have the capacity to succeed.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Good overall. The governing body is very supportive and fulfils its statutory responsibilities well. It is more involved in the work of the school than it was at the last inspection.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance Good. The head and senior staff check on and assess effectively the school’s academic performance in English, mathematics and science.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources Good overall. The school uses its funds well for resources such as computers, makes sensible spending decisions and reviews the benefits. Staffing and resources are good, whilst accommodation is satisfactory.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Children like school. • They make good progress. • Teaching is good. • The school is approachable. • It has high expectations. • It is well managed and led. • It helps their children become mature and responsible. • The information about pupils’ progress.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

Inspectors agree with parents’ positive views. They found the information on pupils’ progress to be good. Spindle Point Primary - 8

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. Inspection findings show that standards in English, mathematics and science, when pupils are in Year 6, are in line with national age-related expectations and are better that the National Curriculum test results in 2002, in English and mathematics. The results in these subjects were adversely affected by the disruption to the class caused by a pupil with severe behavioural difficulties whom the local education authority asked the school to admit. The pupil did not attend on a full-time basis and the science lessons were not nearly affected to the same extent.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. The previous report judged progress made by children in the Foundation Stage to be good and this remains the case. The teachers in both classes benefit from the assistance of experienced Nursery nurses. When they enter the Nursery the attainment of a significant majority of children is low, with a large proportion having weak language skills. Many find it difficult to listen and their vocabulary, when speaking, is restricted. Many of the children are not used to sharing or taking turns in using resources or equipment. As a result of good teaching, all children, including those with special educational needs (SEN) learn well and make good progress in most of the areas of learning (personal, social and emotional development, communication , language and literacy, mathematical development, knowledge and understanding of the world and creative development). In physical development teaching is satisfactory overall and children make steady progress. In the Reception

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

class, children make good progress throughout the curriculum and by the time they are due to leave, the majority of children are on course to attain the Early Learning Goals in all areas of learning, including physical development.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. In the rest of the school, there is a wide range of attainment in most classes, including Years 2 and 6. Pupils make satisfactory progress in their speaking and listening skills and by the time they are ready to leave Year 6 standards of attainment in these skills are at national age-related expectations. In Year 2 pupils listen attentively to their teacher and to each other. For example, when a pupil from Year 4 described his pilgrimage to Mecca to pupils in this class, all pupils listened attentively and with great interest and showed their appreciation of the Year 4 boy’s efforts by applauding at the end. Teachers use good questioning and allow pupils to expand on their answers, developing their speaking skills well. Support staff work closely with pupils with SEN. They ensure that they concentrate well and are not over-directive, allowing pupils to search for their own answers and develop their self-confidence. As a result of the good support provided, these pupils achieve well and

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

make similar progress to the majority of pupils. In Year 6 pupils listen well and respond to the good quality of teaching. They speak confidently when answering questions, knowing that their teacher will allow them to speak at length and without interruption, to explain their ideas. Teachers provide opportunities in all subjects for pupils to develop their skills in speaking and listening.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. Standards of reading throughout the school are at expected levels for pupils’ ages. Most pupils have favourite books and authors and have positive attitudes to reading. By the end of Year 2 all pupils, including those with SEN, have made satisfactory progress and this is maintained by the time they are in Year 6. All pupils in Year 2 enjoy reading and have positive attitudes. They take books and lists of the most commonly used words home and are expected to read to their parents. They have favourite authors and books, such as Roahl Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. Those who are reaching national age-related expectations and above in reading know the meaning of technical terms such as ‘author’ and ‘illustrator’, although those who read below the expected standard become confused with such terms. In Year 6 most pupils are able to use the library confidently when choosing books. They have favourite authors such as J K Rowling and J Wilson and enjoy books

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

such as Harry Potter, Bad Girls and Matilda. All enjoy reading and do so frequently. They are able to retrieve information from books using the contents page and index. All pupils are able to talk about the plot and the characters in their books and can give sensible reasons for recommending them to others.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. In writing in Years 2 and 6, the standards for pupils are at national age-related expectations. Spindle Point Primary - 9 Because handwriting is consistently taught, most pupils in Year 2 form their letters correctly and write in a uniform size, although this standard is not consistently achieved in all subjects, for example in science. The work in Year 1 is less well presented and is below the national expectations for their age. By the time they are 11, pupils write in a well formed, joined script and the presentation of their work is satisfactory overall. Pupils achieving above the expected standard for their age consistently present their work well. Work in pupils’ books shows that they are able to write for a range of purposes and are developing their ideas satisfactorily. Higher attaining pupils are able to use evocative language, using techniques such as personification, alliteration and onomatopoeia. Most

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

pupils in Year 6 use vocabulary confidently. Throughout the school, there is good emphasis on both reading and writing poetry.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. Work in the mathematics books of pupils in Year 2 shows that they are becoming increasingly competent in developing their competency and confidence in numeracy and are learning several strategies for adding and subtracting. A wide range of work is covered and the standard is at expected levels, although there is evidence in this year group, of less work on the use and application of mathematics than is normally expected. Pupils attaining at below expected standards make good progress in learning the strategy, when adding numbers, of using the largest first. In a very good lesson in Year 2, pupils were able to count using multiples of five up to 30 and back again. Higher attaining pupils became increasingly confident in using this procedure as they counted up to 95 in fives and back. Pupils achieving at age-related expectations were able to count up to 55 in fives and back. Work in the books of pupils in Year 6 shows a reasonable range of work has been covered;

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

there is good emphasis on the development of pupils’ skills such as drawing and measuring the angles of triangles and then progressing to other shapes. There is good attention to vocabulary with pupils writing a glossary of words connected with ‘shape’. All work is neatly presented. Two very good lessons were observed in Year 6, one by the class teacher, the other by the deputy head who taught a group of lower attaining pupils. In this group, the pupils increased in confidence, as they subtracted two digit numbers such as 87-49 and on worksheets they were challenged to work in three digit numbers such as 692-432. They made good progress in response to the very good teaching. In the other lesson for the whole class, pupils made very good progress as they shared their strategies multiplying two-digit numbers mentally for example 16 x 21. Pupils achieving at expected levels were able to calculate the area and perimeter of simple compound shapes and were beginning to use the

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

formula previously explained by their teacher.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. In science in Year 2, standards are broadly at nationally expected levels. These standards are reflected in the work in pupils’ books although there is a limited amount of such work. There is appropriate emphasis on scientific enquiry and the development of pupils’ investigative skills, including work on predictions about which various materials will be the most effective conductors of heat. Although some of this work is well presented it is not consistently so and some is below the expected standard for pupils of this age. In a good lesson in Year 2, pupils enjoyed working on simple electrical circuits using switches, bulbs, batteries and wires. This was a follow-up lesson to the previous week’s work and the whole class made good progress in making the circuit connect and break in turn, using a switch. In Year 6, pupils’ standards are at expected levels, although there is a considerable number of pupils who are working above these levels. Work in pupils’ books shows that

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

their standard of presentation is above that expected for pupils of this age; they make neat detailed notes that reflect the high quality teaching of the subject in this class. A wide range of work has been covered and the work of higher attaining pupils is above the standard expected. In a very good lesson observed, on the theme of sound, all pupils, including those with SEN, made very good progress. Most pupils showed satisfactory knowledge of sound being caused by vibration and how sound travels to the human ear, whilst above average pupils had very confident knowledge of this aspect of science.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) are in line with those expected for pupils in Years 2 and 6. No lessons were observed in Year 2 and judgements therefore are based on discussions with pupils in this year group and samples of their previous work. All pupils are secure and confident in using computers and have a broad range of experiences. These pupils have sound word processing and graphics skills and are familiar with the layout of the keyboard and the basic functions of the computer. All pupils, with the exception of those attaining below the expected standard, are able to explain how to highlight text in order to change the colour or size of the font. They use the Internet for research for example, in history and are aware that ICT includes not only Spindle Point Primary - 10 computers, but also many household items. By Year 6 pupils use word processing and graphics

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

software confidently and are able to describe how to open up program files, such as spreadsheets that they had designed to help their learning in mathematics. In discussions with pupils they are confident in talking about the technology and clearly enjoy the subject.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

9. In religious education, standards in Years 2 and 6 are satisfactory and meet the requirements of the locally agreed syllabus. At the last inspection, there was insufficient evidence to judge standards. By the end of Year 6, pupils have satisfactory knowledge of some of the main world religions such as Judaism, Islam and Hinduism, in addition to Christianity. In most other subjects, where there was sufficient evidence to judge, standards are at expected levels and pupils are achieving satisfactorily in relation to their prior attainment when they entered Year 1. The exceptions are in art and design where standards are below those expected and in history and physical education in Year 6, where standards are above national age-related expectations.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. When children enter the Nursery a significant number of children have limited social skills. For example, they find it difficult to share toys or take turns and some children are reluctant to part from their carers. Many of the children find it difficult to concentrate beyond short periods of time, but this gradually lengthens. These children readily talk to visitors and seek to engage them in their activities. In Reception, children develop effectively. They are increasingly confident when speaking in small groups or in front of the class. They particularly enjoy listening and responding to stories. When working on activities they help one another and readily share equipment and resources. They are able to choose equipment on their own. Children know how they are expected to behave and are beginning to develop a sense of right and wrong.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils’ attitudes to school and their learning are good. Most pupils are purposeful in their studies as a result of good teaching and interesting lessons. Most pupils listen well and work well together in pairs or in groups. They share ideas and equipment good-naturedly. Older pupils are developing good attitudes to learning on their own and being less reliant on their teachers. Pupils freely explain what their lesson activity is about and cheerfully correct any mistakes. They contribute positively to class discussions and appreciate one another’s comments. For example, in an ICT lesson in Year 5, individual pupils led the class by opening and working programs on a computer that projected onto a white screen, and explained how they were doing it. The pupils generously applauded one another for their efficient presentation. Parents’ positive views of the school are reflected in the inspection

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Behaviour is good overall. Pupils have a keen sense of self-discipline and are tidy and respectful of property. They are courteous to adults and to one another and are well aware of what is expected of them. A very few pupils in some classes have personal behavioural difficulties. Because of the skilful management of teachers, this does not cause undue interruption to the flow of lessons. Lunch is a civilised occasion and pupils co-operate well with the supervisors. Pupils play good-naturedly as they enjoy the wide range of resources. A very few pupils, however, are occasionally boisterous and not always aware of those around them. Where there are lapses of conduct, pupils know how seriously this is viewed. They know that bad behaviour or bullying is very wrong and are familiar with the systems of rewards and sanctions. There are no exclusions.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. Personal development is very good overall and has improved since the last inspection. Pupils have a very good understanding of the effect of their actions on others. They show concern and very good initiative, for example, they willingly look after anyone who has fallen in the playground. There is a strong moral code and pupils know right from wrong. Pupils believe the codes of conduct and their own class rules are fair. They have a good respect for others’ feelings and beliefs and accept one another’s differences. For example, in lessons in religious education, personal, social and health education and during circle time, they listen well and express themselves thoughtfully. In history, geography, art and music, pupils demonstrate a growing understanding of their environment and the beauties of the world around them. They are proud of some of their ‘best work’ on display. They are quiet and respectful at assemblies and appreciate the visitors who share in them, including

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

representatives from churches and charities. All pupils contribute enthusiastically to the singing, prayers and moments of reflection and value their ‘Tree of Life’ booklet, raising their spiritual Spindle Point Primary - 11 awareness effectively.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Pupils’ initiative and responsibility are developing very well. They enjoy assisting in the daily routines and the many other opportunities provided, such as preparing for lessons or helping in activities and assemblies. Even the youngest children know where to put their belongings and enter their class confidently. Pupils are proud of being members of their class and enjoy the friendly competition for team and merit points. They respect their elected school council, which is serious and enthusiastic about its responsibilities. A growing number of suggestions are being considered seriously and dealt with efficiently. Pupils treasure their records of achievement and have an increasingly mature view of what is expected of them. Older pupils reflect thoughtfully on their time at the school and feel well prepared for secondary education. They believe they have learned a lot and appreciate the efforts of

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. Relationships are very good throughout the school. The pupils are content and they smile readily and often speak first on meeting. They share their thoughts confidently with staff. Consequently a very good rapport is evident between pupils and between pupils and adults in school. This reflects very well in their work and play.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

16. Attendance is broadly in line with the national average. A very few families cause most of the absence problems and their children, similarly, are often late. The school feels too many families take holidays during termtime. The local education authority closely monitors this practice. The majority of pupils, however, attend very well. Most are early and lateness is minimal. A small number enjoy the Breakfast and After School Clubs. They greet their teachers cheerfully at the beginning of the day. Pupils, returning from illness, are warmly welcomed. Registration conforms to requirements and is prompt and effective. This is a good start to the day. However, as the day progresses, lessons do not always start on time and break times often overrun. This reduction of teaching time has a detrimental effect on standards.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. Teaching has improved since the last inspection. Although it was judged to be good overall, in just over half of lessons teaching was good or better, with the best teaching representing nine per cent of the total. Six per cent was unsatisfactory. In this inspection, over three-quarters of lessons were good or better, with over 27 per cent of lessons being very good – three times the proportion at the last inspection. Just over four per cent was unsatisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. The school attributes the improvement in teaching to a number of factors, including the following:

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

• a significant turnover of teaching staff since the last inspection, with some very good teachers remaining and being joined by other good teachers; • regular monitoring and evaluation of teachers’ planning, pupils’ work and observation of lessons; • a new tracking system that ensures rigorous monitoring of pupils; • training in the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies and training in ICT; and • the weaknesses identified in certain classes, including some teachers’ expectations and class management, have been addressed.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

The inspectors agree that these elements have been crucial in improving standards. However, they have not been in place long enough for their impact to be felt fully in driving up standards.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. The quality of teaching in the Nursery and Reception classes is good and all children, including those with SEN, learn well. Indoors, teaching and learning is good in all areas of learning in the Nursery, but is satisfactory in the outdoor play area. This is because, whilst the outside area is colourful with a safe play surface, it is too small to accommodate all of the Nursery children. However, the teacher’s planning does not take account of the limitations on space. As a result all the children are taken outside together at specified times and this leads to ineffective provision, with children being too restricted in their movements. This provision contrasts with the quality and range of opportunities offered inside. Planning for outdoor play is limited to developing physical and some social skills. Inside the Nursery, all children are offered an imaginative and exciting range of activities, all linked by

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

Spindle Point Primary - 12 a common theme. There is good emphasis on encouraging children to extend a specific range of vocabulary, with opportunities to repeat and use it in many activities. For example in a session on creative development in this class, four boys played with sand using diggers, cranes and lorries. They played well together and shared the toys willingly, as they were absorbed on this imaginary building site. They sustained this play and accompanied it with appropriate sound effects of engines and sirens with some narrative: “My lorry’s coming down now. Look out!” one child called out excitedly. Both the class teacher and Nursery nurse have high expectations and use their time well. They work hard to ensure that children are fully engaged in the learning opportunities that are selected.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. In the Reception class, the quality of teaching and learning is good overall for all the areas of learning and on occasion it is very good. Activities are structured and carefully planned. The teaching of language and mathematical skills is of a consistently high order. Staff have high expectations of all their children who are encouraged to make good use of their time and achieve well in relation to their prior attainment. There is no dedicated outdoor provision for children in Reception, although they use the facilities of the Nursery every afternoon on a rota basis. In addition, the school offers opportunities for physical development through physical education sessions in the hall and playtimes. In both the Nursery and Reception classes, teachers check on children’s progress and development exceptionally well and use this knowledge very effectively when they plan children’s work.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

21. Throughout the rest of the school, most teachers have high expectations and match work to pupils’ needs. In a very good lesson in Year 6, continuing the theme of writing adventure stories, the teacher extended his pupils very well by encouraging them, in developing their stories, to focus on the characters, setting and plot. The teacher challenged their understanding of words such as ‘audible’ and extended their vocabulary effectively. In a lesson of similar quality in Year 2, on poetry, the teacher challenged her pupils to examine the structure of the poem and went into great detail, examining for example, aspects such as spelling, using pupils’ phonic skills. A pupil explained that ‘green’ is ‘gr’-‘ee’-‘n’. As a result all pupils made very good progress. The standard of teaching in Year 1 is inconsistent. On occasion it is good, but some of the work given tends to be less challenging, particularly when pupils work in groups and the learning support assistants have not

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

been sufficiently briefed by the teacher, or when less work than usual is expected from the pupils in the time allowed. On these occasions, pupils make unsatisfactory progress.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

22. All staff have a strong commitment to meeting the needs of all groups of pupils. There is good support for pupils with SEN, both from class teachers, the SEN co-ordinator and learning support assistants. Particular strengths of this support include good organisation and planning, a consistent approach to classroom management and a careful match of tasks to pupils’ ability. As a result, most pupils are clear about what is expected of them and they complete their work successfully. Teachers are well aware of the specific learning needs of some pupils, providing good support and suitable tasks. Some very good teaching is provided in small groups for some of these pupils, so that they achieve well. The school has identified a pupil who is both gifted and talented and has made suitable provision for his needs.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

23. The teaching of English and literacy and mathematics and numeracy is good overall and is very good in Years 2 and 6 in both subjects. All teachers have good knowledge and understand the National Strategies for Literacy and Numeracy well. Teachers in Years 2 and 6 are particularly secure in their subject knowledge and explain clearly to their pupils what they want them to achieve during their lessons. Pupils are expected to work hard and teachers ensure that the tasks are matched well to pupils’ prior attainment. In these lessons, pupils respond well and enjoy the challenge. Throughout the school, most teachers plan well for their lessons, based on their good knowledge of their pupils and their prior attainment. As a result, more challenging tasks are often set for the higher attaining pupils, whilst they ensure that those with SEN are supported well by learning support assistants, enabling them to complete their activity effectively. In one unsatisfactory lesson in literacy, the work

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

for groups being helped by learning support assistants did not challenge the pupils sufficiently and the teacher did not check sufficiently on the work of some groups working on their own and these groups made unsatisfactory progress. In Year 3, in an otherwise satisfactory lesson, some higher attaining pupils were insufficiently challenged.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

24. The teaching of science was observed in all classes and was consistently good, except in Year 6, Spindle Point Primary - 13 where it is taught by the subject co-ordinator and was very good. She planned the lesson very well as a result of her very secure subject knowledge, used very effective questioning and generally managed the session very capably. Her pupils enjoyed learning and made very good progress. In the other lessons, teachers gave clear presentations so that pupils were in no doubt about what was to be learned, planned well and used good resources. Throughout the school in all subjects, teachers have good relationships with their pupils and manage them well.

p.14

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

25. In most other subjects, including religious education and ICT, teaching was good. In geography and music it was satisfactory overall, although in one lesson in music teaching was poor. This was mainly because of the teacher’s weak subject knowledge. In art and design and design and technology there was insufficient evidence to judge the overall quality of teaching, but the unsatisfactory standards of pupils’ work in art and design suggests that the majority of teachers’ knowledge in this subject is weak.

p.15

HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

26. In the questionnaire, the vast majority of parents were happy with the quality of teaching and most were satisfied with the homework given to their children. The school has a clear marking policy but this is not applied consistently. Marking of work is up to date and frequently includes encouraging comments that bolster the confidence of the pupils. The best marking includes comments for pupils to self-correct such as “Remember ‘he was’ and ‘we were’” and, when writing poetry, “Try not to make every line rhyme. It is more important that it makes sense”. Most marking, however, is not helpful in taking pupils’ learning forward and includes comments such as, “More detail needed”, with no examples given. Additionally, whilst teachers’ hand-written comments ought to provide a good model for pupils to copy, frequently this is not the case.

p.15

PUPILS?

27. The quality and range of learning opportunities for children in the Nursery and Reception classes are satisfactory overall. Classroom provision is better than provision for outdoor play. Children are given interesting and imaginative learning opportunities in the classrooms that address all of the prescribed areas of learning. The quality and range of learning opportunities for outdoor play offered to Nursery children is insufficiently broad as planning only highlights the physical and social areas of learning. The current use of the outdoor play area by all the Nursery children at the same time does not allow children to engage in good quality play. Reception children do not have access to the outdoor play area, but have time in the school hall for physical activity.

p.15

PUPILS?

28. The curriculum for the rest of the school meets statutory requirements in all subjects and the requirements of the locally agreed syllabus are met in religious education. However, there has been insufficient review of the breadth of learning opportunities in some subjects. For example, curricular provision in geography is sometimes over-reliant on skills such as map work. In music, pupils need to engage in singing a wider range of songs than at present. In art, the taught curriculum shows some imbalance, with emphasis being placed on the teaching and learning of techniques with less attention being given to the expressive nature of art. The amount of actual teaching time is below the recommended minimum. The recommended minimum level of total hours for lessons per week, for schools of this type is 21 for Years 1 and 2 and 23.5 for pupils in Years 3 to 6. These calculations exclude time for registration, assemblies and break-times, including lunchtime. Although the planned

p.15

PUPILS?

teaching time is in line with these recommendations, in practice, because lessons tend to start late after the morning and afternoon breaks, there is a resultant loss of teaching time of over an hour a week. The ten minute afternoon break is unnecessary and because of its brevity makes it all but impossible to avoid starting lessons at least five minutes late.

p.15

PUPILS?

29. Schemes of work are in place for all subjects and good links are made between literacy and numeracy and other subjects. ICT is also used effectively to support learning, for example, when pupils use the Internet for researching projects. Subject co-ordinators review their subjects in accordance with the monitoring and evaluating schedule. The subjects with weaknesses in their breadth which are due to be reviewed in the summer of 2003 are music and art and design and geography in the spring of 2004. The school offers Spanish lessons to older pupils. A parent volunteer teaches this, assisted by the deputy headteacher. Spindle Point Primary - 14 30. Equality of access and opportunity is good, with one of the strong features being the emphasis the school places on valuing the needs of all its pupils. As a result, it provides well for all groups of pupils, including those with SEN. These pupils have detailed individual education plans that provide

p.15

PUPILS?

suitable challenge, and receive good support in the classroom, enabling them to achieve well in relation to their prior attainment. Identification of these pupils, or those at the opposite spectrum such as gifted and talented, is carried out at the earliest opportunity, in order to ensure that they have access to a curriculum, which is appropriate for their needs. The school has made good progress in addressing the issue of meeting the needs of higher attaining pupils, identified at the last inspection. Teachers are fully aware of pupils’ differing needs and make good provision for all of them. The few pupils with English as an additional language are fluent English speakers and are fully involved in all their lessons.

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PUPILS?

31. There are effective strategies for teaching the basic skills of literacy and numeracy. Additional support is given to groups of pupils throughout the school, where they find difficulty with some skills in literacy lessons. Teachers’ planning is generally effective, although on occasion it is insufficiently challenging for pupils.

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PUPILS?

32. Extra-curricular provision is satisfactory. There are opportunities for older pupils to participate in a lunchtime study club, a computer club, gymnastics club, football and netball and there are plans to begin a fencing club. Some older pupils have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument. The school choir meets regularly and travels to Bolton to sing at the Victoria Hall each year. The school has planned a detailed programme of visits and visitors. There have been visits by a ceramic artist who worked with pupils showing them techniques for working with clay. In geography, visits are made to coastal areas to study coastlines and a residential trip takes place annually for pupils in Year 6. Visitors to school include members of the local police to talk about road safety, ‘Stranger Danger’ and as part of the school’s drugs education programme. The school nurse talks to pupils in Year 6 as

p.16

PUPILS?

part of the sex education programme. A member of the Muslim faith talks to pupils about her faith and pupils have also experienced Indian dance and African drumming.

p.16

PUPILS?

33. Pupils’ personal development is given strong emphasis within the school with personal, social and health education being very good. In these lessons, pupils are sensitively encouraged to discuss their feelings and sense of values according to their age and understanding. Ample opportunities for further development are taken through assemblies and by teachers through most subjects of the curriculum. There is a clear focus on good attitudes to healthy living, good relationships and responsible choices in all things, as preparation for adult life.

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PUPILS?

34. The school has worked hard to involve parents in their children’s education. A computer club for parents has been started after school each week. The school has also developed wider links with the local community and has strong links with local schools. Pupils are prepared for transition to the next phase of their education through regular contact with their next school. Students from local secondary schools attend the school as part of their work experience and students from the two Manchester Universities are placed at the school for teaching practice. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 perform a carol concert at the local Methodist church at Christmas and clergy from the Methodist and Pentecostal churches visit the school to lead assemblies.

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PUPILS?

35. Overall, the provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good and has improved since the last inspection when it was judged to be satisfactory. Provision for social development is very good and has been significantly improved, as it was satisfactory previously.

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PUPILS?

36. There is sound provision for pupils’ spiritual development. Pupils are given appropriate opportunities during assemblies to reflect on their own feelings and beliefs, when prayer and silence are used to provide moments for reflection. Pupils’ ideas are valued and they are encouraged to respect the values and beliefs of others in religious education lessons and through visits, such as to the Jewish Museum in Manchester. Pupils are made aware of the wonders of the world and the excitement of learning. For example, in a numeracy lesson Reception children filled the base of a large nesting doll with cubes and gasped with amazement on hearing the number of cubes that the doll held.

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PUPILS?

37. Provision for pupils’ moral development is good. The school has a good behaviour policy and teachers are consistent in reinforcing their expectations of good conduct. They teach the principles Spindle Point Primary - 15 that distinguish right from wrong and draw pupils’ attention to the correct way to behave. Pupils show respect for one another and for adults. They listen attentively and allow one another time to express their opinions in discussions. Pupils learn to take responsibility for aspects of school life, such as preparing the music to be played on entry to assembly. The school has a warm and friendly atmosphere in which pupils are welcoming to visitors.

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PUPILS?

38. Provision for social development is very good. In the Nursery, the youngest children learn the importance of sharing and taking turns with toys and equipment. In Reception, children learn about the work of ‘people who help us’ such as the work of the fire fighters and the police and learn how they work to keep others safe. Pupils readily remember to say ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ when requesting or receiving help themselves. Pupils from all classes represent their peers on the school council. Circle time is also a feature of the school week, when pupils discuss personal and school matters important to them, such as the improvements they might make if they were the headteacher. Pupils benefit from their involvement in supporting charities, such as the annual Poppy Appeal and from educational visits and visitors to school.

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PUPILS?

39. Provision for cultural development is satisfactory. Pupils are exposed to music from different cultures. Through their work in history, they learn about the British heritage and about other times and places. The school has adequate books and artefacts to promote cultural development. Some subjects, such as art and geography, do not place enough emphasis on promoting opportunities that could broaden pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the multi-cultural world in which they are growing up.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

40. There are very good procedures for ensuring pupils’ safety and welfare. The pupils are secure in a warm, clean and supportive environment. Procedures for child protection are fully in place. There are no health and safety concerns within the general framework of the school day. All staff know the pupils very well and care for their welfare. The caretaker plays a significant part in helping pupils in the school garden and organising their snack times. Lunchtime supervision is unobtrusive but effective. The supervisors know the pupils well and stimulate good interactive play, particularly with the younger pupils. The school secretary deals very helpfully with any issues and cares sensitively for any pupils who are unwell.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

41. Procedures for promoting and monitoring attendance are very good and thorough. Any unexplained absence is enquired of during registration and followed up promptly. Parents are constantly reminded of the importance of regular attendance and punctuality as being essential for their children’s development. During registration and in assemblies, these messages are reinforced by personal certificates and comments are also made on the pupils’ individual reports. The school takes a firm stance on the criteria for authorised and unauthorised absence. There are concerns about the detrimental impact on learning when holidays are taken in term time. The education welfare officer and the local authority closely monitor these levels.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

42. Procedures for monitoring and promoting self-discipline are very good and policies and strategies are very well structured. They are conscientiously and consistently applied. Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ self discipline and promote a calm atmosphere. As a result, pupils are strongly encouraged to take a responsible approach to their work. Some individual pupils have behavioural problems that are a constant concern of staff. The way these problems are managed is constantly reviewed, to produce improvements. Procedures for monitoring and eliminating oppressive behaviour are very good. Bad behaviour is viewed very seriously and parental co-operation is quickly sought. On the rare occasions when instances of bullying or oppressive behaviour occur, they are dealt with swiftly and effectively. The parents of these pupils are fully informed and asked for their co- operation.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

43. Procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment and progress are good and have improved since the previous inspection. Each child’s standards of attainment are checked when they enter the school. Children’s attainment and their progress are monitored constantly in the Nursery and Reception classes and these procedures are good. There are good procedures for analysing the results in the national tests in English and mathematics. Pupils’ performance in the teacher assessments in science at the end of Year 2 and the national tests in Year 6 are also carefully analysed. The Spindle Point Primary - 16 information from this analysis is used effectively to identify strengths and weaknesses and is used to guide teachers’ planning. The school also makes good use of other tests to monitor learning in reading in all year groups and to check progress in English and mathematics from Years 3 to 6. The school uses the information from these procedures to set targets for each pupil for reading, writing,

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

mathematics and science and progress towards these targets is carefully tracked and discussed. Test results are used well to identify those pupils who need additional support for literacy and, for older pupils, mathematics, to help them to achieve at the nationally expected levels. Shorter-term targets are set for small groups who have similar needs and for individuals. These targets are often displayed in the classrooms so that pupils know what they have to achieve to make further progress. Parents also are kept informed of these targets. Good procedures also apply to identify those pupils who may have SEN or are gifted or talented. Recently introduced procedures for assessing progress in most other subjects are good and procedures for the remaining subjects are being finalised. Results of assessments are now being recorded electronically in a way that will enable the progress of individual pupils to be tracked more easily.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

44. Procedures for promoting pupils’ personal development are very good. All adults in the school set fine examples for the pupils and have good relationships with them. Teachers know their pupils’ capabilities well and support the pupils’ individual needs very well. There is a caring atmosphere in the school. Staff work diligently with the pupils who follow their lead very well. Parents appreciate this and feel teachers get the best out of their children. They are pleased the school helps their children to mature. A wide range of daily opportunities is created for pupils to take initiative and responsibility. The personal, social and educational programmes are used very well to promote good attitudes. Good work and effort are acknowledged at the end of lessons and in assemblies, especially when significant personal achievements in learning are made. Assemblies are also used very well to promote responsible attitudes to work, behaviour, relationships and decision making. Parents

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

acknowledge that staff are very approachable and freely available to share any concerns with them or their children. They feel they are listened to and concerns are dealt with appropriately.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

45. The school works well with parents whose comments during the inspection, at the meeting and in the questionnaire returns, were largely positive. The school also prepares its own surveys and is prepared to listen to parents. There are regular newsletters and memos about school events. There is a comprehensive school prospectus, promoting and valuing parental co-operation from the day their children enter school. The governors’ annual report gives a clear insight into areas discussed and what effect the decisions taken have for the good of the school.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

46. There are good and effective links with parents. A minority of parents, however, expressed some concerns about information on their children’s progress. The inspectors agree with the great majority of parents that information is good. Information about the curriculum is sent out termly. Teachers are always available at the beginning and end of the day and appointments are made for matters requiring more formality or time. Annual written reports conform to requirements and are generally good. Reports are individual to the pupil, with some indications for future development. Detailed target setting is discussed at the termly parents’ consultation evenings. These sessions are very well attended and pupils’ work is available for parents to see.

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

47. The impact of parents’ involvement on the work of the school is good and effective. The home/school agreement has received a very good response. The school believes in full co-operation with parents and seeks consistently to invite parents to contribute to their children’s learning both at home and in school. Staff are concerned that there are a few parents who are consistently unwilling to be involved in their children’s learning. However, a good number of parents, particularly in the younger age groups, hear their children read at home. A small number take up the opportunity to attend the community education literacy and numeracy courses. Some also join in making story sacks in the parents’ share groups. Attendance at curricular related sessions, however, is low. A few parents and other members of families help in school by hearing pupils read, assisting in lessons or with games. Many more are willing to help with trips and visits. The school promotes and values these activities

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HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

and recognises they are effective in increasing parents’ confidence to help their children at home. Parents and others enjoy special assemblies, concerts and the celebrations for the major festivals of the church year. Spindle Point Primary - 17 48. The parent, teacher and friends association promotes a wide range of social and fundraising activities. For example, family discos, Christmas and summer fairs, and sports night barbecues. The funds raised are used for additional resources and include computers.

p.18

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

49. The school has a positive and caring ethos that reflects it aims and values well. The headteacher leads this school effectively. She deals very well with people and has built a team that performs well and has high morale. She sees the effective induction of all staff as very important, including support staff and lunchtime supervisors. Six of the teaching staff have been appointed to the school since the last inspection. Three were newly qualified teachers when they took up their posts and have received their induction and continued professional development under the headteacher’s leadership. These teachers continue to develop and are increasing their expertise. Two teachers were appointed in their second year of teaching, one as recently as last September and a new but experienced teacher was appointed to the Reception class within the past year. In general the teaching staff is now a strong

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

team but its impact has not yet been fully felt in raising standards. The headteacher has a clear vision of what needs to be achieved, with a clear unity of purpose, a commitment to improving teaching and learning and ensures that this vision is shared with all staff. All these members, including support staff, are fully signed up to this commitment to improvement and to ensure that the school does its best by its pupils. Overall, the action taken since the last inspection has been good, with the exception of standards in art, that still remain below average, although some improvements have been achieved.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

50. The management of the school is also good. The headteacher reports that she does a lot of managing by walking about. During the inspection she was highly visible within the school and was seen frequently talking to staff, pupils and parents. She encourages a trusting climate and values and respects all staff. A very capable deputy head supports the headteacher very well. Together, they work very effectively as a management team. Besides her qualities as a very good teacher she complements those of the headteacher very well, although both have qualities that are not mutually exclusive to each other. For example, both are effective in producing necessary paperwork of good quality but, whereas one clear strength of the headteacher is her personal relationships with the other members of the staff, the deputy considers her strengths to include scheduling and systems. The deputy says that the headteacher initiates ideas as a result of her very strong vision, which she, the

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

deputy, sees through. One significant example is the monitoring and evaluating schedule that identifies the activities to be undertaken during the period when a subject is the focus of such activities. These cover two half days per week in each half term when teachers’ planning and pupils’ work is analysed and lessons are observed in the subject that is the current focus. She also arranges for the class of the co-ordinator involved in this schedule, to be covered. There is significant emphasis on staff development in the school and performance management procedures that are much more rigorous than previously, are in place. As a result these procedures are having a positive effect on the process of tracking pupils’ attainment and progress. The third member of the senior management team (SMT) has recently taken over responsibility for checking on and tracking pupils’ progress from the deputy head. His leadership of this important aspect is good. There is an

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

extended management team - the school improvement team – that consists of the SMT and the co- ordinators for the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 2. This meets every two weeks. The headteacher says the objective is to increase the school’s effectiveness and to ensure that all staff share the headteacher’s vision. It was not possible to judge its effectiveness during the inspection. There is insufficient monitoring of the start of lessons that often begin late, particularly after break periods and teaching time is lost as a result.

p.19

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

51. The governing body is very supportive, well informed and fulfils its statutory responsibilities well. It is more involved in the school than it was at the last inspection, for example in devising adequate means of judging whether initiatives have been successful. It is very experienced. The chair of governors for example, has been a member of the governing body for approximately 15 years and has been chair for about five years. Appropriate procedures for performance management are in place and the governors support the headteacher’s commitment to continuing staff development. The governors work well as a team and have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They act supportively and increasingly effectively as a ‘critical friend’ and whilst they look more in depth at Spindle Point Primary - 18 the National Curriculum test results, they were also agreeable to strengthening the management

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

team with the appointment of the senior teacher. The governing body is organised into appropriate committees – finance, buildings, SEN and personnel to enable them to work effectively. These meet once a term, as does the full governing body, to which they report back.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

52. The school is fully committed to meeting the needs of all pupils. The co-ordinator for SEN provides very good leadership and management. She receives very good support from the link governor who is well qualified and is fully involved in working in the school as a special needs assistant. The co- ordinator, who is also the deputy head, emphasises the need to identify pupils with such needs early. She works closely with staff and outside agencies when necessary, to ensure good provision. For example, the school buys in the services of an SEN advisory teacher from the local education authority for one afternoon a week for pupils on the ‘school action plus’ stage of the national procedures. Teachers write their own individual education plans and parents are involved from the outset. The headteacher says the school’s basic philosophy is ‘inclusion’: “School is pupils’ life opportunity and some children need extra support to take full advantage of it” . The headteacher says

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

the school takes pupils who were excluded from other schools. In Year 6 for example, of the 23 pupils in the class, at least five pupils have come from elsewhere and these have settled in well. The school works hard for pupils with a wide range of needs, assesses them and helps them to move on. In order to do this much effort is put into personal, social and health education. There is a pupil identified as gifted and talented who is considered to be an all rounder and was assessed early with the support of an educational psychologist.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

53. The headteacher monitors the budget well and reports to the finance committee. The chair of this committee is well qualified and regularly scrutinises the accounts. Although educational priorities are supported through careful financial planning, there was an overspend of over £17,000 in the last financial year. This was set against the existing balances, but the school is forecasting another overspend in this financial year, leaving a balance of just under £7,000, which is below the amount normally considered prudent for possible contingency needs. This amount would have been larger had the school not had to spend about £12,000 for repairs and carpeting for areas in the school that were damaged by a flash flood during the summer. Other costs that increased the overspend included the resurfacing of the Nursery play area and an upgrade to the ICT system. The chair of the finance committee reports that in setting the budget it looks at every aspect and both he, and the

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

headteacher are aware that it is necessary to prepare plans to reduce revenue spending for future years.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

54. There is good use of new technology both in the administrative section and throughout the school. The school secretary manages the day-to-day administration effectively, enabling the school to run smoothly.

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HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

55. The quality and number of teaching and support staff are good overall. Accommodation is satisfactory. Most of the classrooms are quite small and there are few areas suitable for group work. The conversion of the dining hall into work areas for both younger and older pupils, including areas to house the two computer suites, has been a success. This represents good value for money, even at the cost of losing a separate dining area. The outdoor play area for the Nursery is too small for all children to use it as a group together. Resources are good, overall. They are very good in science and ICT and are satisfactory in art and design, geography and history.

p.20

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

56. To raise standards and improve the quality of education, the headteacher, staff and governors should:

p.20

I. Raise standards in art and design throughout the school by:

• improving teachers’ subject knowledge to raise it to the level of the best (paragraphs 25, 104);

p.20

I. Raise standards in art and design throughout the school by:

• ensuring the scheme of work is followed fully by all teachers (paragraphs 28, 108); and Spindle Point Primary - 19 • monitoring the quality of teaching and teachers’ planning (paragraphs 108).

p.20

I. Raise standards in art and design throughout the school by:

The monitoring of teaching and teachers’ planning is included in the school’s monitoring and evaluation schedule for the summer term .

p.21

II. Provide more time to teach the curriculum by:

• reviewing the actual time spent on teaching to ensure it complies with the recommended minimum hours per week (paragraph 16, 28).

p.21

III. Raise the standard of teachers’ marking to help pupils to improve their work by:

• ensuring that all teachers consistently apply the school’s clear marking policy (paragraphs 26, 89, 97, 116) ; and

p.21

III. Raise the standard of teachers’ marking to help pupils to improve their work by:

• ensuring that all teachers’ hand-written comments provide a good role model for pupils (paragraph 26, 89).

p.21

IV. Improve the quality of outdoor play and learning in the Nursery by:

• Ensuring the teacher’s planning covers all aspects of physical development outdoors (paragraphs 27, 60); and

p.21

IV. Improve the quality of outdoor play and learning in the Nursery by:

• reducing the number of children who play in the outside area at the same time (paragraphs 27, 60, 76).

p.21

V. Improve the range of learning opportunities in geography and music by:

• Reviewing the curriculum for geography to ensure it is sufficiently broad (paragraphs 28, 114); and

p.21

V. Improve the range of learning opportunities in geography and music by:

• ensuring that teachers’ planning in music includes a broader range of songs than at present (paragraphs 28, 129, 132).

p.21

V. Improve the range of learning opportunities in geography and music by:

The monitoring of music and geography is to be the focus of the school’s monitoring and evaluation schedule in the summer term 2003 and the spring term 2004 respectively.

p.21

OTHER ISSUES WHICH SHOULD BE CONSIDERED BY THE SCHOOL:

• Continue to discourage some families from taking their holidays in term-time (paragraph 16).

p.21

OTHER ISSUES WHICH SHOULD BE CONSIDERED BY THE SCHOOL:

• Ensure that in the few lessons where teaching was less than satisfactory, its quality is regularly monitored (paragraphs 21, 88, 131).

p.21

OTHER ISSUES WHICH SHOULD BE CONSIDERED BY THE SCHOOL:

• Ensure clear plans are prepared to reduce revenue spending in order to avoid setting a deficit budget (paragraph 53). Spindle Point Primary - 20

p.21

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 30

p.22

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very poor

p.22

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.

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils on the school’s roll Nursery YR – Y6

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 26 196

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 0 26

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Special educational needs Nursery YR – Y6

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 6 57

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 0 0

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 3

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 10

p.22

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 10

p.22

Attendance

National comparative data 5.4 National comparative data 0.5 Spindle Point Primary - 21 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Spindle Point Primary - 22

p.22

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 14 15 29

p.24

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.24

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

Boys 13 9 13 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 12 13 15

p.24

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

Percentage of pupils School 86 (70) 76 (83) 97 (90) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (84) 86 (86) 90 (91)

p.24

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 11 12 13 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 13 12 12

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

Percentage of pupils School 83 (80) 83 (83) 86 (80) 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 14 17 31

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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 8 8 11 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 14 12 16

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

Percentage of pupils School 71 (88) 65 (71) 87 (100) 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 8 8 10 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 15 13 15

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

Percentage of pupils School 74 (81) 68 (88) 81 (94) 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. Spindle Point Primary - 23

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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 0 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 3 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 10 Financial year 2001/2002

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 21.7

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 490,959

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 5 Total expenditure 507,327

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 100 Expenditure per pupil 2,231

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Qualified teachers and support staff: Nursery Balance brought forward from previous year 36,681

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 1 Balance carried forward to next year 19,288

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 26

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 1

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 30

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per FTE adult 13 Spindle Point Primary - 24 FTE means full-time equivalent.

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 4

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 4

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Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

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Recruitment of teachers

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

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Recruitment of teachers

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

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Recruitment of teachers

FTE means full-time equivalent. Spindle Point Primary - 25

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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. 52 42 4 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 49 44 5 0 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 38 44 11 1 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 48 35 11 5 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 65 31 2 2 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 71 27 2 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 44 41 9 3 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 56 39 3 0 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 56 39 2 0 2

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 32 44 7 2 12

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Summary of parents’ and carers’ responses

The inspectors agree with parents’ positive views but disagree with the minority about the information provided on their child’s progress, which they found to be good. Spindle Point Primary - 26

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

57. Children enter the Nursery in the autumn term of the year in which they are four, attending for either mornings or afternoons only. They transfer to the Reception class at the start of the school year in which they are five. The previous report judged progress made by children in the Foundation Stage to be good and this remains the case. The teachers in both classes benefit from the assistance of experienced Nursery nurses. The attainment of a significant majority of children is below that normally found and a large proportion have limited language skills. They find it difficult to listen and they use a restricted vocabulary when speaking. Many of the children find it difficult to share or take turns.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

58. Provision for children in both the Nursery and Reception class is good. The school has developed good systems for planning that ensure that an appropriate curriculum is taught. Planning is consistent across both classes and staff know the children well. They use their knowledge of the children’s learning to give them focused support. Their progress is carefully recorded and this information is taken into account in the planning process. As a result, staff frequently adapt activities for individual children, as they are drawn into the learning process and encouraged by their own success.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

59. The quality of education for children of this age is good overall. Children with special educational needs (SEN) learn well. In the Nursery, the quality of teaching and learning indoors is good in all areas of learning. Children are offered an imaginative and exciting range of activities all linked by a common theme. At the time of the inspection, the theme was ‘Journeys’ and this approach helps children to develop a specific range of vocabulary, which they repeat and use in many activities. All the staff have high expectations of their children and use their time well. They work hard to ensure that children are fully engaged in the learning opportunities that are selected.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

60. The outdoor provision for Nursery children is satisfactory. The available space is colourful and is completely covered by a soft safety surface. However, the area is quite small and the current practice of taking all the Nursery children outside together at specified times, results in provision that is not used effectively and does not reflect the quality or range of opportunities offered inside. Planning for outdoor play is limited to a description of the equipment to be used and focuses only on developing physical skills and some social skills. This adversely affects the quality of play and learning outside.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

61. In the Reception class, the quality of teaching and learning is good overall for all the areas of learning and in some respects it is very good. Activities are structured and carefully planned. The staff have high expectations and children make good use of their time, achieving well relative to their abilities. Children in the Reception class use the outdoor facilities in the Nursery on a rota basis, and the school offers opportunities for physical development through physical education sessions and playtimes.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

62. Resources for children under five are good. They are plentiful and of good quality, including those resources available for outdoor play in the Nursery. Classroom equipment is always attractively presented and children are eager to play or investigate, making good use of the opportunities that they are offered.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

63. The co-ordinator for the Foundation Stage retains an overview of provision through monitoring of planning and work. She is keen to maintain consistency across the classes in both planning and teaching and has firm plans to observe teaching.

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Personal, social and emotional development

64. On admission to the Nursery a significant number of children have limited social skills and find it difficult to share toys or take turns. Some children find it difficult to part from their parents or carers. Spindle Point Primary - 27 The staff work hard to support the children, who are soon eager to explore their new environment. At first many of the children sample a number of activities for a short period of time, but their concentration gradually lengthens. At the time of the inspection children were fascinated with some of the learning experiences they were offered, such as printing with a variety of toy wheels, or playing in the sand with lorries, cranes and diggers and they show good levels of concentration. They enter the Nursery happily at the start of a session and quickly become involved in playing with jigsaws or the ticket office and train, in the role-play area. All children are able to select an activity that interests

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Personal, social and emotional development

them. In discussions about their journey to school, most children readily talk about the adult that brings them and describe how they came to school. They readily chat to visitors and seek to engage them in their activities.

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Personal, social and emotional development

65. In the Reception class, development continues effectively for all children. In this class they are confident to speak in small groups or in front of the class. They listen to the teacher or to the contributions of their peers. They enjoy listening and responding to stories. In activities they help one another and share equipment and resources such as glue or scissors that they have selected on their own. Children know how they are expected to behave. They understand what is right and what is wrong, for example when discussing some misbehaviour at lunchtime.

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Personal, social and emotional development

66. Children are given many good opportunities to work and play together. The adults treat the children and one another with respect and the children copy this behaviour. The teaching in this area of learning is good in both classes. By the end of Reception the majority of children are likely to attain the Early Learning Goals with a significant minority exceeding them.

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Communication, language and literacy

67. In the Nursery, the time spent together as a class makes an important contribution to the development of children’s speaking and listening skills. All children listen attentively to their teacher and enjoy her reading the big books such as ‘The Train Ride’. As they do so, they join in rhythmically with phrases that are repeated throughout the story. When the teacher’s questions are carefully targeted at individual children the rest of the class allows the child an opportunity to answer. A higher attaining child quickly identified a question mark at the end of a phrase in the story. Together, the children recall the main events in the story. A significant minority of children know individual letter sounds and quickly identify letters that are held up. Children also enjoy taking part in imaginative play. Indoors, the children play in the station ticket office. They are fully engaged in their

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Communication, language and literacy

roles, asking for example, “Please can I buy a train ticket?” Imaginative play such as this is generally sustained for shorter periods of time than some other play. Outside, children use their imagination well as when two boys pretended that their cars were fire engines on their way to an emergency.

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Communication, language and literacy

68. Children in Reception build effectively on what they have already learned. They play and work together in small groups and admire one another’s efforts, for example, when drawing and labelling a picture of a fireman. They speak clearly and often use complete sentences in their replies. An analysis of their previous work shows that handwriting improves steadily, with letters being formed correctly. Children of all abilities use their knowledge of individual letter sounds to help them when writing. Most of the children can write the first and last sounds of words when writing on their own. Higher attaining children know and try to use sounds using two letters, such as ‘ee’ and ‘ai’. A group of children labelling pictures they had drawn of a fireman who had visited the previous day, made very plausible attempts at spelling words, such as ‘jacit’ for jacket and ‘wellizz’ for wellies. They write on

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Communication, language and literacy

69. Most children in Reception enjoy reading and are confident. They read books with simple texts that repeat one word and talk briefly about the pictures in their books. Other children are able to identify simple words by attempting the letter sounds out loud and then combining the sounds. They point out words that rhyme. Higher attaining children read their books fluently and expressively and talk about details in the pictures. The Nursery and Reception classes are environments which are rich with text and which value literacy skills. The quality of teaching for this area of learning is good and children make good progress. The majority of children are on course to attain the Early Learning Goals, with a significant minority likely to exceed them by the end of the Reception Year. Spindle Point Primary - 28

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Mathematical development

70. In the Nursery, children readily use appropriate mathematical language. They show interest in numbers and in counting and most children know what 0 represents. When looking at numbers to ten, they know that zero is the smallest number and ten is the largest. When the register is marked, children count up to the total number of children present. Higher attaining pupils identify numbers such as 24 or 25. A small number of children are able to count a small group of objects accurately. Children are learning the language related to the passage of time. For example, some children know that Tuesday comes after Monday. Children fit pieces into jigsaws in order of size. Children use appropriate mathematical language when playing in the train, where they use ‘in front’ and ‘behind’ correctly.

p.30

Mathematical development

71. In the Reception class, children learn to count objects accurately. Work is carefully matched to what they have learned before. Some children count to five, others to ten and higher attaining children work beyond ten. They record numbers and make repeating patterns, in which some children order changes in colour and shape. They learn the names of two-dimensional shapes and correctly place pictures in the correct order to indicate the passage of time. They learn vocabulary to compare objects, such as ‘heavy’ and ‘light’, and ‘long’, ‘longer’ and ‘longest’.

p.30

Mathematical development

72. Teaching is good in the Nursery and very good in the Reception class. In the most effective lessons, questioning is skilful and new language is introduced into the children’s vocabulary appropriately. Practical activities are well chosen. In a very good plenary session, children sang a song enthusiastically about ‘Goldilocks and the three bears’. This was used in discussions about comparing things and a child volunteered the word ‘medium’ as an alternative to ‘in between’. Effective learning was demonstrated when the teacher asked whether small objects could be heavier than large objects. In response to her question a child said, “It’s the stuff inside that makes it heavy”. By the end of the Reception class, most children will reach the goals for this area of learning and some will exceed them.

p.30

Knowledge and understanding of the world

73. Good attention is paid to this area of learning in both the Nursery and Reception classes. Children enter the Nursery with a wide range of experiences. Many children have been taken out on visits by their parents or their carers and at first they find it hard to talk about these. However, as they develop their vocabulary, they quickly begin to talk about the things they know. Children like using computers and quickly become skilled controlling the computer using the mouse. In the Reception class, children continue to develop their computer skills and learn to click and drag images to make up imaginary faces. They compile simple graphs, showing the colour of children’s eyes.

p.30

Knowledge and understanding of the world

74. In the Nursery, children begin to look at simple representations of routes familiar to them. They talk about their journey to school and some of the objects on the way. They play with rockets and begin to learn vocabulary such as ‘the Earth’, ‘the moon’ and ‘planets’. Their knowledge and understanding is further developed in the Reception class through work about families. Children consider how they have changed since they were babies and identify activities that they are able to do now which they could not do before. In learning about the past and the present, children identify ways about how people kept warm in the past. They think about people who help us, learning about the work of the Fire Service, the police and health workers.

p.30

Knowledge and understanding of the world

75. Teaching is good for all children. A broad range of activities is offered which gives ample coverage of the various areas incorporated within this area of learning. In the Reception class, much work is represented pictorially. Good marking clearly indicates where children have demonstrated a verbal understanding, which is beyond the level indicated in their recorded work. Most children are on course to reach the learning goals for this area by the end of the Reception class and a small number will exceed them.

p.30

Physical development

76. On entry to the Nursery, the majority of children have good levels of ability when physically active. Spindle Point Primary - 29 They are able to run, jump, pedal bicycles and balance on scooters, steering their vehicles within the small outdoor play space. However, with all children using this area at the same time it is overcrowded and this limits the ability of adults to intervene, to raise the quality of play. As a result the children do not make the same rate of progress as they might. In lessons in the school’s hall, children enjoy climbing and jumping down from higher surfaces. Nursery children are less adept in performing activities requiring more co-ordination. However, they practise using pencils, crayons, scissors and paintbrushes and make good progress refining these skills.

p.30

Physical development

77. Children in Reception are given regular opportunities to continue practising these finer skills. They use play dough to make shapes of different sizes and cut and use cellotape to join recycled items together, when making models. Progress over time can be seen in children’s writing, as it becomes more controlled and consistent in size. They paint figures that fill their paper. More energetic activity is undertaken during physical education lessons in the school hall, although no lessons were observed.

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Physical development

78. The teaching seen in this area of learning is satisfactory in the Nursery and good in the Reception class. Most children are likely to attain the learning goals by the end of the Reception Year and a significant minority will exceed them.

p.31

Creative development

79. In the Nursery, children engage in imaginary play in the train and the ticket office, as they pretend to be making a journey. When they play in the sand they talk about what they are doing as they play with lorries, cranes and diggers, making sound effects of engines and sirens. When investigating a selection of toy trains they soon began to make up stories to accompany their play. Children enjoy painting and printing, making collages and cutting and sticking shapes on paper. The Nursery is filled with examples of children’s creative work, such as trees in winter with finger painted snow, large collage snowmen and pictures of the sun and the moon. Musical instruments are available for the children to use.

p.31

Creative development

80. In the Reception class children continue to engage in a range of creative activities. The role play area takes the form of an optician’s shop. In the ‘workshop’ area outside the classroom, children paint, cut, stick and use play dough. In the classroom children play with small toys such as a farm, narrating the stories they have made up. They enjoy singing songs together and participate enthusiastically with action songs.

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Creative development

81. The teaching in this area of learning is good. Planning indicates that a wide range of learning opportunities is given to the children. By the end of the Reception class, most children are likely to reach the learning goals for this area and some will exceed them.

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ENGLISH

82. In the 2002 national tests for pupils in Year 6, standards in English were below those found nationally. The number of pupils attaining standards higher than those expected for pupils of this age was also below the national average. Standards are the same when compared with those in schools in similar circumstances. Although the proportion of pupils attaining the expected Level 4 was the same as that in the national tests in 1997, in comparison with the national average it was less impressive, as it has risen in recent years. The 2002 results were below those achieved in the previous year and below the expected targets set for this cohort. They reflect the difference between the cohorts and particularly the disruption caused by a pupil the local education authority (LEA) asked the school to admit, that had an adverse effect on the progress of the whole class. Inspection finds the standards

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ENGLISH

of the present Year 6 are broadly in line with those expected for their age. This is similar to the findings of the previous inspection. They reflect the improved tracking and assessment procedures and the improved teaching in Years 3 to 6, particularly the very good teaching in Year 6. In this year group pupils’ achievement is meeting national expectations. The standards achieved by pupils in Year 2 in the 2002 tests were well below those found nationally in reading and writing because of the lower proportion of pupils who achieved above the expected standard. Inspection findings indicate that standards in reading and writing are broadly similar to those expected of pupils of this age – similar standards to those reported at the last inspection. There were a large number of pupils with Spindle Point Primary - 30 SEN in this year group last year and this, together with consistently very good teaching in this class,

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ENGLISH

explains the difference between inspection findings and last year’s test results. As a result, all pupils are achieving at expected levels and are making very good progress.

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ENGLISH

83. Because the arrangements for supporting the achievement of pupils with SEN are good throughout the school, these pupils make good progress either when in groups, or on a one-to-one basis with the learning support assistants or the teacher. Pupils from families where the mother tongue is not English are equally as competent as their peers in English and achieve at the same level. Children enter the school with language skills that are low for their age and the school targets this aspect of their learning with good provision. The school also identifies pupils who are gifted and talented and makes appropriate provision for them. As a result, all pupils are achieving satisfactorily by the time they leave the school. The school has identified the need to target potential higher attaining pupils in Years 1 and 2 to enable them to achieve at a higher than expected level. The standards achieved by

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ENGLISH

84. Pupils make satisfactory progress in their speaking and listening skills, by the time they leave Year 6. They listen well to their teachers and other staff and, when working in pairs or small groups, they respect what others are saying. Learning support staff work closely with children with SEN, to ensure that they concentrate on what the teacher is saying. Where teachers encourage pupils to expand on their ideas, their speaking skills develop well. For example, when a pupil from Year 4 described his pilgrimage to Mecca to a Year 2 class in a religious education lesson, the teacher used skilful questioning to enable him to expand on what he was saying. This enabled the detail to become more interesting and informative. The pupil spoke clearly and in full sentences and the pupils in Year 2 listened attentively as his account brought the Muslim pilgrimage alive. In a Year 6 literacy lesson,

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ENGLISH

the pupils responded very well to opportunities provided by the teacher to explain their ideas. For example, they were challenged to give reasons why an author had begun a sentence with the subordinate clause ‘G rabbing two coats’ and were keen to justify their views in sentences that were structured well. All teachers provide opportunities for pupils to use their speaking and listening skills in all subjects.

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ENGLISH

85. Standards of reading throughout the school are broadly satisfactory and are better than the test results in 2002 would suggest. Pupils have a positive attitude to reading and most have favourite books and authors. By the end of Year 2, pupils have made satisfactory progress and they maintain this progress by the time they are in Year 6. The school uses structured schemes to develop reading skills, although higher attaining pupils in Year 6 are not given texts that are consistently challenging. Occasionally, lower attaining pupils have texts that are too difficult for them. Teachers and learning support assistants work with small groups within the literacy hour. In these sessions, pupils learn to talk about the story and develop their understanding. Younger pupils learn about the different ways to help them read unfamiliar words, using the clues given by the sound of the letters. All pupils learn

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ENGLISH

about these letter sounds and spelling patterns. Pupils have the opportunity to read a range of written material, which includes stories, poetry, plays and non-fiction material. Almost all pupils take reading books home to read. Younger pupils and some older pupils read to an adult at home. Younger pupils also take home lists of words taken from the National Literacy Strategy to extend their ability to recognise and spell words correctly. Research skills, taught throughout the school, enable pupils to understand how to retrieve information from non-fiction material and by using computers. By Year 6, average and higher attaining pupils not only know how to locate relevant information, but skim the text to find what they want to know more quickly.

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ENGLISH

86. Standards in writing are in line with those expected in Years 2 and 6. All pupils make satisfactory progress and achieve satisfactorily, compared to when they entered Year 1. Handwriting is consistently taught and most pupils in Year 2 are forming their letters correctly and usually in a uniform size. The presentation of work is variable, but clear. However, the work in Year 1 is less well presented and is below the standard expected for pupils of this age. Most pupils in Year 6 write in well-formed, joined script. The presentation of their work is satisfactory overall, but higher attaining pupils consistently present their work well. An analysis of previous work shows that pupils learn to write for a range of purposes and develop their ideas satisfactorily, with some evocative use of language by higher attaining 11-year-olds. For example a Year 6 pupil wrote in a personification poem about a tree ‘But then the cutter came, and plunged his saw right in me’. Younger pupils retell

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ENGLISH

stories and list instructions in the correct order, for example about cleaning their teeth. Work is Spindle Point Primary - 31 prepared so that all pupils are helped to achieve satisfactorily. For example in a Year 2 lesson, the learning support assistant worked with lower attaining pupils, including some with SEN and they made good progress within the lesson. Their contributions to a group poem included ‘The clown’s nose is so funny’ and ‘Tomato sauce, all runny.’ Most average and higher attaining pupils in Year 2 punctuate correctly and are beginning to use speech marks. Older pupils learn to choose words that enliven their work to make it more interesting. Pupils in Year 5 learn how onomatopoeic words can enhance their writing. In Year 6, a pupil wrote ‘ Mark felt weak. He was nauseated by the long, shrill cry that he had just heard.’ The school works hard to increase the range of vocabulary that pupils can

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ENGLISH

use confidently when speaking and incorporate with accurate spelling in their writing.

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ENGLISH

87. Literacy is used well to support learning in most subjects. Opportunities are provided to promote literacy in ICT lessons, for example when presenting an account of work in design and technology and when designing a multimedia presentation about themselves. However, the school acknowledges that, as yet, pupils are given insufficient opportunities to use pupils’ ICT skills to help them learn during the literacy hour.

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ENGLISH

88. Teaching is good overall. It is satisfactory in Years 1 and 2 and ranges from unsatisfactory to very good. Teaching is good in Years 3 to 6 and ranges from good to very good. Pupils make good progress in lessons in Years 3 to 6 because of the consistently good teaching. There is very good teaching in Years 2 and 6 and this helps to ensure that many pupils achieve the nationally expected standards and some pupils achieve at the higher level. In these lessons, all groups of pupils made very good progress. Teachers throughout the school have a secure knowledge and understanding of the National Literacy Strategy. In the best lessons, teachers ensure that pupils know what they are expected to learn, use the whole-class session towards the end of the lesson to assess what the pupils have learned and ensure that the pupils also know what they have learned. For example, in a Year 4 lesson, one of the objectives was for pupils to use text about bread to find and record

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ENGLISH

information. In this lesson, four higher attaining pupils who had completed the task were given an additional activity to stretch them and they were asked to use the Internet to find further information on the subject. In the lessons of high quality, teachers have high expectations of what pupils will achieve and the lessons move along at a brisk pace that retains the pupils’ interest. In a very good lesson in Year 2, the teacher provided more challenging work for the higher attaining pupils, whilst ensuring that those with SEN were supported well by a learning support assistant so that they were able to complete their activity successfully. During the concluding part of the lesson pupils from this group read what they had written to the class and the compliments they received boosted their confidence and self-esteem. In the one unsatisfactory lesson, the teacher did not share clearly with the class what was to be learned until well into the lesson. The work for groups being helped by

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ENGLISH

learning support assistants was not challenging enough and the teacher did not check on the progress of some pupils working on their own, so restricting their learning.

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ENGLISH

89. Teachers generally manage their classes well. The calm atmosphere enables pupils to work hard and maintain their concentration. All pupils have literacy targets, usually displayed on the wall or on the tables and these are shared also with parents. For many pupils the targets relate to a group of pupils with similar abilities, but some pupils have individual targets. Assessment procedures are good and the school maintains detailed records of pupils’ progress that helps to identify those pupils who are underachieving, as well as those who are making more than the expected progress. Marking, however, is inconsistent and does not always follow the school’s marking policy. The best marking includes not only encouraging comments, but advice that will help to improve accuracy or presentation. In a Year 2 pupil’s book, for example, the teacher had written ‘Think about how to spell a word before writing so you don’t have to cross out.’ Occasionally teachers request pupils to

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ENGLISH

complete a piece of work that was unfinished, but they do not always ensure that this is done. In some pupils’ books the teachers’ hand-written comments do not provide a good model for pupils to copy.

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ENGLISH

90. The management of the subject is good. The school recently appointed a second subject co- ordinator with a focus on the younger pupils. There is a sufficient number of books, both fiction and non-fiction and the quality and quantity of resources are good. The priorities identified in the school improvement plan, as a result of the monitoring and assessment procedures, are appropriate. Together with the general good quality of teaching, they place the school in a strong position to raise standards further. Spindle Point Primary - 32

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MATHEMATICS

91. The national test results in 2002 for pupils in Year 2 show that standards were below average when compared to schools nationally and to similar schools. Although the proportion of pupils achieving the expected level was above the national average, there were fewer pupils than average achieving the higher levels. This was because there was a higher proportion of pupils with SEN than usual in this particular cohort that depressed the results. Inspection finds that standards are broadly in line with national expectations for this age group and pupils are benefiting from very good teaching in Year 2. The national test results for pupils in Year 6 in 2002 show that standards were well below average compared to schools nationally and to those in similar schools. The school’s explanation for these results, that were below the targets set for this year group, is the disruption caused by a pupil with

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MATHEMATICS

severe behavioural needs, admitted at the request of the LEA, that affected the progress of the class disproportionately. Inspection finds standards are broadly in line with expected standards by the end of Year 6 and are similar to those reported at the last inspection. Pupils are achieving satisfactorily in relation to their prior attainment when they enter Year 1. All groups of pupils, including those with SEN who are given work that is well matched to their needs, make good progress overall, because of the good standard of teaching. It is particularly good in Years 2 and 6 and pupils are on course to achieve higher standards still, with this level of teaching. Higher attaining pupils are usually challenged by their tasks. In some lessons in Year 6, pupils are grouped according to their prior attainment and work is carefully matched to their needs. Additional booster groups also take place at

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MATHEMATICS

92. Teachers place strong emphasis on developing pupils’ competency and confidence in numeracy and teach different strategies for adding and subtracting. Pupils in Year 2 mentally add and subtract five to a range of numbers up to 100. All achieve this when starting with a multiple of five. Higher attaining pupils also continue the pattern correctly when starting at numbers such as 61. Lower attaining pupils need the support of a number line to help them in the process. Pupils recognise inverse operations such as if 5 + 3 = 8 then 8 - 3 = 5. They use standard units of measurement such as centimetres correctly and apply their knowledge to problems. A lower attaining pupil struggles to add groups of numbers beyond ten but shows improvement when he grasps the strategy of starting with the largest number. Higher attaining pupils successfully add pairs of numbers to 70. They convert sums of money from pence to pounds such as 204p is the same as £2.04.

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MATHEMATICS

93. In Year 6 pupils calculate the area of simple compound shapes, using a formula. Lower attaining pupils lack the confidence to do this, but understand the concept of area and, with the use of squares and the support of the teacher, they calculate correctly. The majority know their multiplication tables. Higher attaining pupils multiply mentally pairs of two-digit numbers. Most pupils are competent in working with large numbers, including the addition of decimals. Some struggle with the subtraction of decimals when exchange is involved. They draw and measure angles in triangles and also in shapes such as pentagons and irregular rectangles. Pupils use co-ordinates on grids correctly involving two figures. Higher attaining pupils apply their knowledge of co-ordinates to work in four quadrants. They also apply the processes of long multiplication and division involving decimals.

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MATHEMATICS

94. Teaching and learning are good. In Years 2 and 6, the teachers are particularly secure in their subject knowledge and know clearly what they want the pupils to achieve during the lesson. Tasks are well matched to pupils’ prior attainment. They are expected to work hard at their tasks and pupils respond accordingly and enjoy the challenge. In Year 6 pupils were reluctant to leave their tasks when the teacher gathered them together to review their learning. They were anxious to show what they had achieved and how they had progressed to a more difficult task, such as working out the surface area of a hand.

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MATHEMATICS

95. All teachers have secure understanding of the National Numeracy Strategy that has been implemented well. Good attention is paid to the teaching and sharing of strategies. Teachers plan well for their lessons, based on good knowledge of their pupils and their prior attainment. Pupils enjoy their lessons as group or individual tasks are initially challenging for all. However, on occasions, pupils are not moved on quickly enough when they grasp a concept readily. A Year 3 pupil found the recording method laborious as he was quickly calculating the answers to problems such as 121-65 mentally. A further task set was insufficiently challenging. Spindle Point Primary - 33 96. Pupils enjoy learning as in a lesson in Year 4, when pupils were involved fully in estimating and timing others in tasks such as saying the alphabet or a multiplication table. The teacher in Year 3 used ‘Oscar’, the class mascot, to maintain a rhythm whilst pupils counted on to work out subtraction

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MATHEMATICS

problems. Teachers’ questioning is effective. They encourage all pupils to join in and most do so with confidence. The teacher in Year 2 frequently asked , “How did you work it out?” Pupils explained their strategies and made other observations such as, “I can see a pattern there.” They smiled as they made helpful contributions and were given praise appropriately. Technical vocabulary is stressed well ensuring pupils are familiar with it and use the vocabulary with understanding. Pupils in Year 4 remember that ‘kilo’ refers to a thousand and use this knowledge to convert measures of length and mass. When reciting multiplication tables in Year 6, the teacher encouraged the pupils to look ahead as they do when reading. They enjoyed the challenge of a game requiring them to multiply larger numbers mentally. A higher attaining pupil was quick to give the correct answer to 16 x 21. Others were quick to work out mentally problems such as 144 + 576 + 90. Teachers frequently encourage

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MATHEMATICS

the use of numeracy skills in other subjects. For example in science they add and multiply when calculating the number of human teeth. 97. Most pupils record their work neatly. Although teachers mark work regularly and give praise appropriately, they do not encourage pupils sufficiently to progress further by, for example, thinking of alternative strategies. In Year 5, the teacher does well to encourage his pupils to check on their own learning and say what they do, or do not understand. For example one pupil wrote, “I have learned how to check triangles of different sizes” .

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MATHEMATICS

98. The subject is well led and the co-ordinators have clear priorities for improvement. Very good procedures are in place for monitoring the subject and for checking on pupils’ attainment and progress. Good resources are used well in lessons. ICT is used frequently to help pupils learn in mathematics, such as in the use of spreadsheets and in the production of graphs for data handling.

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SCIENCE

99. Results in the 2002 National Curriculum teacher assessments for pupils in Year 2 were below the national average. In the national tests for pupils in Year 6, the results were in line with the national average. Compared to the performance of pupils in schools in similar circumstances, these results are in line with average results from similar schools. However, compared with the progress they made against their teacher assessments when they were seven, the results are above average and pupils are achieving well. There has been considerable improvement in the results in the last five years that broadly reflects the national trend. Inspection finds that the standards of pupils when they are seven and 11 meet national expectations and generally reflect the 2002 test results. These standards are similar to those reported at the last inspection, accepting that the national expectation has risen as a result of improving standards. There are no significant differences between the

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SCIENCE

performances of boys and girls. Pupils with SEN learn as well as other pupils, due to the good teaching and good support they receive both from teachers and from learning support assistants.

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SCIENCE

100. A limited amount of work in pupils’ books in Year 2 shows their attainment is in line with national expectations for the age group. It includes appropriate emphasis on scientific enquiry and the development of pupils’ investigative skills, including the need to plan, to obtain and present evidence and to evaluate it. In working on materials and their properties for example, they record their predictions about which materials will be the most effective conductors of heat. “I predicted that the metal spoon would be the best conductor of heat,” wrote one pupil and after testing concluded, “Metal was the best conductor of heat”. Other enquiries include experiments on which solids will melt the quickest when hot water is poured on chocolate, candle wax, ice and jelly. Overall, the standard of presentation of this written work is very variable. Some of it is tidily written with clear handwriting and

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SCIENCE

signs that the writing is beginning to be joined. But much is untidy, sloppily presented and with handwriting that is not uniform in size. In a good lesson in Year 2, pupils worked on electrical circuits using a switch, bulb, battery and wires. The teacher had already introduced the concept of a switch that would break and connect the circuit and the class had satisfactory understanding of its function. Working effectively in groups, the majority of pupils were able to join the battery and wires, using the crocodiles clips, to the bulb and switch and were able to make and break the circuit. This practical experience was reinforced effectively when, following this exercise, the pupils successfully completed drawings of the complete circuit. Spindle Point Primary - 34 101. An analysis of pupils’ books in Year 6 shows that the standard of presentation is above that expected for pupils aged 11. This is because of the insistence of their teacher who is a science specialist and

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SCIENCE

has high expectations of standards of presentation. Their work includes the study of ‘Life processes and living things’ and has focused on plant growth and reproduction. “Living things need food. Animals have to find their own food, but plants can make it by themselves,” wrote one pupil. They know that plants make food by photosynthesis. “During photosynthesis the gas that is used up is carbon dioxide and the gas that is made is oxygen”. Their work shows they have good awareness of environmental issues writing, “Most of the world’s oxygen comes from the trees in forests and they also help absorb some of the carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels”. Work in pupils’ books this term shows ‘Sound’ has been studied and pupils have good understanding of the relationship between sound and vibration. One child writes, “Every sound we hear is caused by something shaking. We call this shaking a vibration”. In a very good lesson in this class, the theme

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SCIENCE

of sound was developed and pupils showed satisfactory knowledge of the main features of the human ear, many pupils being able to identify key features such as the hammer, anvil, stirrup and cochlea. They make very good progress in learning the characteristics of sound and how to change its volume and pitch. Pupils have very good attitudes to science. They are enthusiastic about the subject and work hard and with confidence.

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SCIENCE

102. The quality of teaching is good overall. All pupils, including those with SEN, who are supported well, make good progress. In Year 6, where the subject is taught by the co-ordinator, teaching is very good and pupils make very good progress. In Years 1 and 2, teaching has improved since the last inspection, when it was reported as being unsatisfactory. In both these classes teaching is good. In Year 1 the teacher used good questioning to check that her pupils had understood the basic concepts of electricity taught in previous lessons. “Do we need electricity to make us work?” she asked. When the class replied in the negative she asked, “What do we need?” to which they replied, “Energy” . This session with sharp, incisive questioning, enabled her to judge that her pupils were ready to study simple circuits, with batteries being the source of energy. However, the quality and quantity of work in the books of pupils in this class does not reflect this good standard. In Year 2, the

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SCIENCE

teacher gave a very clear presentation leading to more advanced work on electrical circuits involving switches. She had very good relationships with the class and managed it well. In all lessons good preparation is a strong feature, as a result of good planning and subject knowledge. In Year 3, for example, the learning objectives were made very clear: ‘To know about the function of teeth and the importance of dental care.’ The teacher used an appropriate poem, ‘Oh, I wish I’d looked after me teeth’, by Pam Ayres to generate pupils’ interest, and a large set of false teeth to identify the main categories of teeth and to explain their function. In Years 4 and 5, the teachers had planned their lessons well and had all the materials needed prepared in advance. In Year 4 these were materials to test their effectiveness in conducting or dampening sound, and in Year 5 materials to test the differences and impact of series and parallel circuits. All lessons ran very smoothly, and pupils made

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SCIENCE

good progress. However, in Year 5 the session observed (the second science session of the afternoon) began late and pupils lost seven or eight minutes of teaching time because of returning late from the afternoon break that is scheduled for ten minutes but invariably overruns. In Year 6 the teacher has very good subject knowledge that enables her to use very effective questioning. She managed the class very well and maintained her pupils’ interest throughout. She used ICT very effectively, drawing on an Internet website to show the differences in the airwaves reflecting sounds that are louder or softer and high or lower.

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SCIENCE

103. The subject is very well led. There has been continuity in the curriculum since the introduction of the National Curriculum and this has been instrumental in building teachers’ confidence. Monitoring of teachers’ planning, pupils’ work and observation of teaching took place in the second part of the summer 2002, as part of the school’s monitoring and evaluation schedule. Homework is set every week and resources are very good.

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ART AND DESIGN

104. At the last inspection, standards were reported as being below national age-related expectations. Inspection finds that although there has been progress in some aspects of the subject, such as in pupils’ observational and drawing skills, standards overall are still below those expected throughout the school. It was possible to observe only two lessons, in Years 3 and 4 and in these lessons Spindle Point Primary - 35 pupils’ attainment was broadly at expected levels. There was insufficient evidence to judge the general quality of teaching. However, the lack of breadth in the taught curriculum and the unsatisfactory standards in much of pupils’ work indicate that there are gaps in some teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the subject.

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ART AND DESIGN

105. The work in pupils’ sketchbooks from the last academic year represents the teaching of a range of artistic techniques and a significant amount of work in designing artefacts such as a chair for an artist or an image to represent a journey. However, there is insufficient work requiring pupils to express their own ideas or feelings, drawing on the qualities of materials available, or their knowledge of texture, tone or colour. Generally, sketchbooks are underused. Some have only two or three pages completed. Others are full but have not been used as a means of gathering information or developing ideas and are used rather as a record of work. This covers printing, basic collage, using gummed or crepe paper and seeds. Much of the work, particularly for pupils in Year 3 to 6, veers towards the design element of the National Curriculum. It addresses the requirement to learn a range of techniques but largely overlooks the expressive strand of art and design. There is some work

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ART AND DESIGN

representing observational art and drawing skills but this is still less than normally expected. There is also a lack of studies representing multicultural art, although there are studies of Greek patterns to decorate pots and vases linked to pupils’ history project in Year 3.

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ART AND DESIGN

106. There is very little work in the sketchbooks of pupils in this academic year. What exists is generally below the standards expected in terms both of quality and quantity. Even in Years 3 and 4 where the standard of pupils’ work is broadly in line with that expected, there is much less work completed than normally found.

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ART AND DESIGN

107. In the lesson observed in Year 3, work was linked well to history where pupils had studied Theseus and the Minotaur. Pupils made uniform patterns for a mosaic using multiple copies of simple shapes. Within this lesson pupils developed their ideas and understanding of how patterns could be interlinked. They were interested in their work, which was of a satisfactory standard. In this lesson teaching was satisfactory, overall. The teacher used questions effectively to show pupils the range of possibilities within pattern making and generally managed the class well. Initially the lesson moved at a good pace but pupils became increasingly noisy as the lesson progressed. The two-hour lesson allocation is unnecessarily long and is interrupted by a play-time that is scheduled to last ten minutes but in practice lessons resume late. In the lesson in Year 4, pupils studied the process of designing

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ART AND DESIGN

a chair and showed their emerging ideas of the finished product and considered issues such as its stability, strength and its overall appearance. Pupils worked enthusiastically and produced work of a satisfactory standard in a relatively short space of time. They used felt pens effectively and produced particularly interesting colour combinations. In this class there is one pupil of Year 3 age who is doing as well as the Year 4 pupils academically. In this lesson teaching was good with planning being particularly good. The aims of the session were very clearly explained and questions were used effectively.

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ART AND DESIGN

108. The co-ordination of the subject is satisfactory and is shared between two teachers. They have now adopted the scheme of work from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and have stressed the need to teach skills and move away from free activity. So far this emphasis has had limited impact, as the evidence from pupils’ work indicates that the full scheme of work is not being taught by all teachers. However the monitoring of teachers’ planning, pupils’ work and the observation of teaching is planned to be the school’s focus in the second half of the summer term 2003. This will include the effective use of sketchbooks. The policy has been reviewed and revised and resources are now more organised, reasonably plentiful and stored accessibly. Staff are now more aware of the full range of media.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

109. At the time of the previous inspection standards were judged as meeting national expectations. During the inspection it was not possible to observe lessons in the subject. Judgements therefore are based on an analysis of pupils’ work, displays, teachers’ planning and interviews with pupils and the subject co-ordinators. This evidence indicates that pupils are attaining at levels which are in line with those expected of pupils when they are in Years 2 and 6. Pupils are receiving an appropriately broad and relevant curriculum. Spindle Point Primary - 36 110. Pupils’ work indicates that they plan, design, make and evaluate appropriately. In Year 2, pupils design vehicles satisfactorily. At the start of their work they learn to label parts of a motor car, learning such words as axle and chassis. Initial designs show front and side views of their planned vehicle. Pupils consider which materials are to be used. Their evaluations of the finished project

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

whilst good, require significant levels of adult support. The detail shown in the level of planning and evaluation indicates that pupils are attaining at satisfactory levels, although the project’s full effectiveness could not be assessed, as there were no photographs of the final product.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

111. In Year 6, pupils design and make a structure – a building. Some pupils choose relatively simple designs such as pyramids. Others are more adventurous and make model houses. In preparation for their projects, pupils investigate horizontal and perpendicular joins. They also investigate ways of reinforcing the joins and then evaluate the effectiveness and strength of each join. A project booklet is used to record progress. Evaluations are detailed and contain thoughtful comments such as “we could have measured more precisely” and “we spoiled the house by rushing the painting”. In discussions, pupils are enthusiastic about their work and talk about past projects, such as the construction of a carousel, involving the design of a mechanism to allow it to rotate. They readily acknowledge the importance of planning and evaluating their projects. All pupils, including those with SEN, attain at levels appropriate for their ages.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

112. Because no lessons were observed it is not possible to judge the general quality of teaching. But good use is made of the scheme of work and a wide variety of tasks are covered, including food technology. The marking of project work is generally satisfactory, although pupils do not consistently follow through teachers’ suggestions or questions.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

113. There is a good range of resources for the subject. The co-ordinators have worked hard since the previous inspection. The scheme of work has been changed and a programme of staff training has been completed. Assessments are now made on pupils’ verbal contributions at the end of each project alongside their finished product. Planning is monitored regularly and there are firm plans to monitor teachers’ planning, pupils’ work and teaching in the first half of the autumn term in 2003.

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GEOGRAPHY

114. Standards are in line with national age-related expectations in both Years 2 and 6. Pupils have satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the subject, overall. However the present curriculum is imbalanced with too much emphasis focused on map work, most of which is unrelated to places relevant to pupils’ other learning. Consequently whilst the map work skills of pupils in Year 6 are good, they are to the detriment of other areas of learning in the subject. Some pupils’ views of the subject are rather negative, saying, “It is boring. We just learn about maps!” However, when further questioned, they show more positive views of the subject. They refer, for example, to differences in climate around the world and the impact that this has on people. They make the connection between people and places and identify natural and man-made features. There are good links with history when considering the reasons for the siting of a cotton mill, with its proximity to the river, canal and

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GEOGRAPHY

115. Pupils in Year 1 have recorded little work but those in Year 2 compare Bolton and Blackpool appropriately. They study a photograph alongside a matching plan and identify five ‘landmarks’ in each town. They write satisfactorily about a visit to Blackpool, making simple comparisons. This links well with their studies in history of Blackpool developing as a seaside resort over the last century.

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GEOGRAPHY

116. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall, but some good lessons were observed. In these lessons teachers had good subject knowledge and planned well. They managed the pupils effectively so that good use was made of the time available. Good emphasis was paid to the development of technical vocabulary in all lessons. In Year 2 one pupil gave a very clear definition of the word ‘transport’. Pupils in Year 4 refer confidently to terms such as, ‘conventional waste’, ‘recycling’ and ‘landfill sites’ when discussing the problem of pollution. These pupils used their numeracy skills well to calculate the weight of one week’s rubbish. They enjoyed their lesson, expressed their opinions confidently, with clear views of the environmental issue. One pupil said, “I think we should have land- Spindle Point Primary - 37 fill sites, but put them in empty fields where there are no animals”. In Year 6 pupils quickly identified

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GEOGRAPHY

‘stacks’, ‘arches’ and ‘needles’ as some of the features of a coastline and most of them were able to explain how they were formed. The teacher made good use of a range of resources, which retained the pupils’ interest and enthusiasm for learning. In all lessons pupils behaved well and paid good attention to their teacher. They presented their work neatly and teachers’ marking gave good praise and encouragement. However, there is not enough attention given to how pupils might improve their work. The work recorded in pupils’ books, other than that of Year 6, does not reflect the pupils’ knowledge of the subject. In some classes it is unsatisfactory with overuse of worksheets and some work being left unmarked.

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GEOGRAPHY

117. There are some good links with other subjects such as with history in both Years 2 and 6. In a religious education lesson on Hinduism, pupils in Year 4 noted where India is situated in the world and studied photographs of the country. Pupils’ literacy skills are reinforced in many lessons, when for example in Year 2, pupils used clear writing to describe a visit to Blackpool. The recently appointed subject co-ordinator has had insufficient time to have made any impact on the subject. Procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment have just been instigated. Resources are satisfactory overall, with maps and globes displayed in most classrooms but there is a shortage of aerial photographs. Standards have been maintained since the previous inspection. The subject is included in the school’s monitoring and evaluating schedule for the spring term of 2004.

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HISTORY

118. In Year 6 pupils’ standards are above national age-related expectations. No lessons were seen in Years 1 and 2 and judgements are based on an analysis of pupils’ written work, including that on display. Pupils’ standards in Year 2, are broadly in line with the standards expected for pupils’ ages. These pupils gained a satisfactory understanding of chronology when they placed pictures of homes throughout the ages, in the correct order. They handled artefacts such as irons and kettles used by their grandparents and earlier, so that they were able to compare them with modern items used at home. When they studied the seaside they looked at the different modes of transport used by people in 1900, 1960 and today and made sensible comments. They learned to carry out simple investigations by preparing a series of questions about seaside holidays.

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HISTORY

119. In Year 6, pupils have good knowledge of a wide range of sources of evidence, talking about cave paintings and Greek pottery confidently, as well as diaries and historical buildings. They are acquiring a good sense of chronology and recall well a range of events of the Victorian era. Teachers’ subject knowledge is good and they clearly enjoy teaching it. Their enthusiasm is reflected in the interest, concentration and curiosity shown by the pupils. Very good learning took place in this class when pupils studied an aspect of their own locality. The teacher had planned very well so that pupils saw clearly, through a series of maps, the change of land use from the growth of a large cotton mill, ultimately demolished, to a residential area - where one of the pupils now lives. They researched photographs and newspaper clippings to extract information, which they used to write a report on the

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HISTORY

changing land use. Good links were made with geography and pupils used their skills in map-work effectively, recognising both natural and man-made features quickly. They understood and explained the reasons for the original siting of the mill.

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HISTORY

120. Pupils in Year 6 and other classes use the Internet to research information. These pupils use and reinforce their writing skills effectively. For instance some good, persuasive writing was noted when they wrote about unacceptable working conditions in the Victorian era.

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HISTORY

121. The curriculum provides for pupils to learn about a wide range of past societies and teaching emphasises the development of pupils’ investigative skills. No visits have been made recently but a number are planned to enhance pupils’ learning. Some attractive displays further stimulate pupils’ interest. The school has access to lending sources for artefacts and teachers use resources to good effect. Procedures for assessing pupils’ attainment in the subject have just been introduced. The recently appointed co-ordinator has had insufficient time to make any impact on the subject, but it is planned to monitor the standard of pupils’ work, teachers’ lesson planning and the quality of teaching in the first half of the autumn term 2003. Standards have improved since the last inspection.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

Spindle Point Primary - 38 122. Standards in Year 2 and Year 6 are typical for pupils of these ages. This is similar to the findings of the previous inspection. However standards have increased nationally in the subject and the school has kept pace with this rise in standards. In addition teaching has improved since the last inspection. Teachers use the technology well as a tool for learning and the school is well placed to continue to improve.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

123. Work in pupils’ books, displays of work and discussion with pupils in Year 2 indicate that there is good teaching of word processing and graphics skills. This teaching ensures that younger pupils gain familiarity with the layout of the keyboard, control the cursor with a mouse, log on and off and open programs. They use technical terms such as click, monitor and menu correctly. The higher and average attaining pupils explain how to highlight text to change the colour or size of the font. Pupils in Year 2 add text to the pictures of faces they have drawn. Many pupils know how to give instructions to search for information using the Internet, for example about William Morris. They also know that ICT consists not just of computers, but includes items such as video recorders, radios, CD players and other household items. Pupils use listening centres confidently for work in literacy. By Year 6 pupils are confident when using word-processing and graphics software, for example when

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

designing a multimedia presentation about themselves, that combined text, graphics and sound. In discussion, a higher attaining pupil described enthusiastically and in great detail, how he had used a variety of tools to prepare a multimedia presentation about cricket, “Because it is a game that Americans do not understand”.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

124. The school’s timetable arrangements precluded lessons being observed in Years 1 and 2. Teaching and learning are good in Years 3 to 6. In the two lessons observed in Years 5 and 6, teaching and learning were very good. This is an improvement since the previous inspection when teaching was judged to be satisfactory, overall. Teaching is good for several reasons. All staff have benefited from training funded under a national initiative, with very good additional support provided by the subject co- ordinator. Teachers are confident and secure in their knowledge and understanding. Some teachers, including the co-ordinator, have a very high level of knowledge and understanding. Good planning is based on a scheme of work that follows the latest national guidance and ensures that all the National Curriculum requirements are met. The scheme is linked closely to an assessment procedure that enables all teachers to check on the progress of pupils against nationally expected standards of

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

attainment. Teachers have high expectations of pupils, set them challenging tasks, use very appropriate methods and manage pupils very well. They also use the very good resources very effectively. These attributes were illustrated in a very good Year 6 lesson. The teacher used the computer very well projecting images onto a screen to reinforce the need for accuracy in relation to spelling, spacing and the use of brackets, when writing a sequence of instructions to control a screen turtle. This led to high levels of concentration and application by all pupils. As a result, all pupils, including those with SEN, made very good progress in their learning.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

125. All teachers use ICT to consolidate or extend learning in other subjects. For example in literacy, a Year 5 pupil set out a poem beginning ‘ A gentle breeze blew all morning’ in an imaginative way. However, ICT is still used insufficiently during the literacy hour to foster learning and the school recognises this. In design and technology, pupils in Year 6 used digital photographs of designs for an igloo with text to illustrate what they had done together, followed by an evaluation of the finished product. In Year 5 pupils design and draw the Parthenon, choosing to view their design from different perspectives. This process reinforced learning in both history and design and technology well. Pupils use the Internet to find information, for example when researching history topics. As a result of these opportunities all pupils, including those with SEN and those whose mother tongue is not English,

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

make good progress overall in lessons and standards are rising quickly. Some higher attaining pupils attain standards above those expected nationally.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

126. As a result of the good teaching, all pupils use the skills they have learned confidently and are keen to learn. They concentrate well on tasks, co-operate well in pairs and behave well in lessons. Lunchtime computer clubs and the out of school clubs provide additional opportunities for pupils to consolidate their skills. This provision, together with the positive attitudes of pupils, contributes significantly to the rate at which they make progress within lessons.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

127. The leadership and management of the subject co-ordinator are very good. The teacher uses his very Spindle Point Primary - 39 secure subject knowledge to support all staff very well. He has been instrumental, with the support of the headteacher and governing body, in improving the resources very significantly since the previous inspection. They are now very good. He monitors teaching, planning and assessments and also gives demonstration lessons, particularly when new hardware or software is being introduced. He has a very clear vision for the further development of teaching and learning.

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MUSIC

128. Standards are broadly in line with what is expected for pupils’ ages. At the last inspection standards were judged to be above national age-related expectations. In Year 1, pupils sing well-known Nursery rhymes as they keep a steady beat when they clap or play percussion instruments. In Year 2, pupils create compositions that show different layers of sound. They know and use vocabulary such as rhythm and texture to describe their work and begin to record their compositions pictorially. Pupils take turns to perform satisfactorily and to be an audience. In this role they are able to give constructive evaluations of the performances given by other pupils. For example, one pupil was able to talk about a contribution saying, “It was good because I could hear the shape of the music”. In this class standards are in line with national age-related expectations.

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MUSIC

129. Older pupils learn about differences in pitch, such as high and low. They sing familiar songs and indicate whether a tune rises or falls with their hands as they sing. Pupils discuss intervals between notes, describing them as steps or jumps and record this in different ways. In Year 6, pupils learn about standard notation and note values. They represent music in different ways and make satisfactory progress in their knowledge. Discussions with pupils in this class show that pupils enjoy the different elements of their music lessons. They talk well about music they have listened to, such as ‘Pictures at an Exhibition’ by Musorgsky. They describe the feelings that music can evoke and make good comparisons between the works of some Russian composers, which they describe as ‘solemn’ and French and Italian composers, whose work is described as ‘lively’. Pupils use appropriate vocabulary when they talk about their work, such as rhythm, pitch, texture and volume.

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MUSIC

They recall listening to African and Indian dance music with pleasure. When talking about singing, pupils were only able to name hymns that they sang and were unable to recall any other songs that they had learned. However standards are in line with those expected for pupils’ ages.

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MUSIC

130. In the lessons seen, pupils were attentive and the majority of pupils confidently answered or asked questions. When singing in assembly, pupils are enthusiastic and sing with enjoyment. They use dynamics effectively to bring shape to their singing.

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MUSIC

131. The quality of teaching seen was satisfactory overall and ranged from poor to good. In good lessons the teachers planned well and the lessons moved at a brisk pace, maintaining pupils’ concentration throughout. These lessons were well managed and the teaching had a positive impact on the quality of learning and how well the pupils achieved. However, in one lesson seen, the teacher’s subject knowledge was weak, class management was unsatisfactory and the lesson generally suggested a lack of preparation. As a result pupils marked time and made no progress. However, most lessons observed were well prepared with clear learning objectives. Resources are good and allow all pupils to participate fully.

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MUSIC

132. The co-ordinator is very knowledgeable and has revised the policy and introduced a commercial scheme to support non-specialists in their classrooms. There is insufficient emphasis on the range of songs that pupils are taught, including songs that are part of British heritage. Teachers’ planning, pupils’ standards and the quality of teaching are to be monitored in the first half of the summer term 2003. Live music has recently been performed in school by a group of peripatetic teachers of brass instruments. The school produces a number of Christmas concerts when pupils perform for parents. Opportunities are offered for older pupils to engage in musical activities outside the curriculum, such as singing with the school choir, or receiving violin, keyboard or guitar lessons.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

133. No lessons were seen in Years 1 and 2. In Year 6, standards are above national age-related expectations. Pupils dress appropriately for lessons and their behaviour and attitudes are good. A Spindle Point Primary - 40 rounded curriculum provides pupils with experiences in a range of activities, although a very limited range of gymnastics was observed during the inspection.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

134. An examination of pupils’ swimming records shows that standards are above the standards expected by the time pupils leave the school. About 90 per cent of the pupils in the current Year 6 have already achieved the required standard of the National Curriculum and approximately 50 per cent of them swim distances considerably in excess of that and are training for life-saving awards. It is the intention for pupils in this year group to have further swimming lessons before they leave the school.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

135. All lessons observed were in gymnastics. In a very good lesson in Year 5, pupils showed an awareness of the need for good control in their movements. They counted time in order to improve their balance and control and executed some very imaginative moves. These pupils responded well to the praise and encouragement of the teacher and showed a good sense of balance and interesting ways of travelling. They were constantly challenged to achieve new and better goals reflecting the teacher’s high expectations. Consequently they enjoyed their tasks and thought and worked hard to improve their skills. In this lesson teaching was very good, the teacher’s subject knowledge was very secure and was used very effectively and all groups of pupils made very good progress. This lesson was very well planned and it flowed at a good pace throughout. Pupils’ standards are in line with those expected for pupils’ ages.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

136. In Year 6 pupils worked in pairs and small groups and co-operated very well with each other, as they created and performed fluent sequences on the floor whilst varying their speed and direction. The pupils were very aware of their partners and worked closely together using well-controlled and imaginative movements. The teacher encouraged the whole class to work as a team and help in others’ learning. When given opportunities to observe and comment on the work of others, they were generous in their applause and made helpful and positive comments such as, “It was well balanced and very effective”. These opportunities made a strong contribution to pupils’ personal development. In this lesson, teaching was good. The lesson was managed well from the outset and pupils were fully aware of what was expected of them, including joining in a suitable warm up session and following the lead of the teacher. The lesson proceeded at a good pace so that there was smooth

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

progression throughout and pupils were constantly active. As a result, all pupils made good progress.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

137. The new co-ordinator is very enthusiastic to develop the subject. He is inexperienced in the role, having only been appointed to it last September, but is keen for it to develop. A number of extra- curricular clubs take place and funding has just been obtained to introduce the sport of sword fencing. Outside specialists provide additional expertise in football and tennis. The residential visit to the Lake District provides pupils with opportunities to participate in challenging outdoor activities as well as further contributing to their personal and social development. There is good provision of resources. There has been good improvement since the previous inspection.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

138. Attainment broadly meets the expectations of the locally agreed syllabus for pupils in Years 2 and 6. No overall judgement was made about standards in the previous inspection.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

139. In Year 2, pupils have learned about Christianity and the life of Jesus and Islam. Pupils have satisfactory knowledge about important Christian festivals such as Advent, Christmas and Easter. They visit the local church and draw labelled diagrams of the church, identifying the key features within a church such as the altar, font, pulpit and pews. Pupils also have reasonable knowledge about Islam, including what it is like to be a child in a Muslim family, the five Pillars of Islam and why Muslims make a pilgrimage to Mecca. By the time pupils are in Year 6 they have satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the world’s main religions and know about the sacred writings and the symbols associated with the faiths of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. They are also able to relate the appropriate places of worship to each of these faiths. Their knowledge of Christianity and the life and teaching of Jesus is more secure than for the other main faiths. When

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

studying Islam they learn about the extended family and that ummah means community. In their study of Hinduism they learn about and have satisfactory knowledge of the four stages of life. Spindle Point Primary - 41 140. In the lessons seen, teaching and learning ranged from satisfactory to good and are good overall. The strengths of the teaching include the effective use of skilful questions to draw ideas from and extend the learning of the pupils, the choice and use of resources and the activities that ensure that the learning intentions identified in the planning are achieved by the pupils. These activities frequently draw on and reinforce pupils’ literacy skills. Pupils in Year 2 learned about the importance to Muslims of a pilgrimage to Mecca and listened attentively to a boy from Year 4 who described his pilgrimage. He explained clearly what it meant to him, such as when he kissed the stone to cleanse

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

himself of any bad things inside him and said his heart felt cold because of the impression the experience had made on him. He also described some of the tasks he had to do, such as walking seven times around the ka’bah. When he paused, the teacher used skilful questioning to draw further information from him. The pupil’s self-esteem was raised by the applause he received from the class in Year 2, after his contribution had made the Muslim pilgrimage come alive for them. The subsequent written task, to write a postcard to a friend as though they were making the pilgrimage themselves, supported pupils’ writing skills well and enabled the teacher to assess their learning effectively. Similarly, in a good lesson in Year 3, the teacher reinforced pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the different genres of stories when introducing the parable of the Prodigal son. Because the teachers interest and motivate pupils, their behaviour is good and they apply themselves

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

to the tasks purposefully. The marking of pupils’ written work has weaknesses that rarely take learning forward and does not help pupils learn from their mistakes. The support provided for pupils with SEN and the few pupils whose home language is not English, enables them to make the same progress in lessons as their peers.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

141. Resources for learning are good. These include a good selection of books and items of educational interest that the school has purchased or borrowed. The pupils also use ICT resources to help pupils learn, although more could be made of these. Learning is enhanced by visits to the local churches and to a Jewish museum and synagogue and by visitors such as a local Methodist minister and the LEA adviser for the subject. Religious education is also supported in collective worship and contributes well to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

142. The subject is led and managed well. The subject co-ordinator has a very clear view of the strengths of the subject and areas for development, for example by the way in which the implementation of the new locally agreed syllabus is being monitored. The school is in a good position to raise standards further.

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