Millhouse Primary School

MILLHOUSE PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 16 th – 19 th September 2002

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MILLHOUSE 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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MILLHOUSE 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. Millhouse Primary School - 1

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Lea Lane Millhouse Green Penistone Sheffield

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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 John Williamson

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: April 1998 Millhouse Primary School - 2

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Aspect responsibilities

16413 Mrs D Bell Registered inspector Art and design Music Foundation Stage Special educational needs Educational inclusion What kind of school is it? Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils? How well is the school led and managed? 15181 Mrs M Hackney Lay inspector How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 23095 Mr D Mankelow Team inspector Mathematics Science Design and technology Religious education The school’s results and pupils’ achievements How well are pupils taught?

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Aspect responsibilities

30935 Mrs K McArthur Team inspector English Information and communication technology Geography History Physical education

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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 Millhouse Primary School - 3

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 4 - 8

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

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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 9 - 11

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

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Millhouse Primary School is a small school that serves a well-established rural community. It has 91 boys and girls aged 4 to 11 on its roll, all of whom are from white UK heritage backgrounds. They are taught in 4 mixed age classes. Some year groups have considerably more boys than girls in them. Children are admitted to the reception class three times per year, resulting in some spending only a very short time in the Foundation Stage. The children’s attainment on entry to school is as expected for their age. The proportion of pupils on the special education needs register (18.7 per cent) matches the national average, but the proportion known to be eligible for free school meals (13.2 per cent) is below the national average. The school has been through a period of great upheaval since the last inspection, including uncertainty over its future, an issue it still faces. This inspection took place in the third full

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

week of a new school year, when, for the first time since the previous inspection, the school had a full complement of permanent teaching and non-teaching staff. It has had difficulty recruiting and retaining staff, including a headteacher, since the last inspection. A new headteacher was finally appointed in January 2002. He has set out clear priorities for the school aimed at raising standards, improving pupils’ progress, achieving stability for staff and pupils, and fostering a shared commitment to improvement.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The school is beginning to recover from the instability in leadership, management and staffing that has hindered its progress since the previous inspection. It is providing a satisfactory standard of education for its pupils, all of whom are fully included in all that it has to offer. The new headteacher’s sound leadership and management has resulted in his rapidly gaining the confidence and respect of staff, governors and parents. Because teaching is always at least satisfactory, the majority of pupils enjoy school, behave well and make appropriate progress. However, standards are not yet as high as they could be because more able pupils do not do well enough. A sound start has been made on tackling all of the weaknesses identified in this report. Nevertheless they remain significant and far-reaching and, despite the improvements of the past year, the school is not yet providing satisfactory value for money.

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What the school does well

• Children are given an excellent start to their education in the Foundation Stage and Year 1. • Behaviour and attitudes are good, as a result of effective moral and social development. • There is a good range of extra-curricular activities for all pupils. • The school has good links with neighbouring schools. It is beginning to work with them to help it raise standards.

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What could be improved

• The under-developed role of the governors, the senior management team and the subject leaders. • Standards in reading in Year 2, the range of writing in Years 3 to 6 and standards in music by Year 6. • The insufficient use of assessment information in English and mathematics and the lack of recording and assessing pupils’ progress in all other subjects. • Curricular planning, so that it meets the needs of the school and especially the more able pupils. 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

There has not been enough improvement since the previous inspection. The uncertainty over the school’s future, and the instability in leadership, management and staffing have resulted in a lack of continuity in the school’s work, both in terms of educational provision and standards. Nevertheless, last October, a good start was made on improving curricular planning. All staff are now working with the long term plan agreed at that time, but the school still has some way to go to achieve a common approach to planning, assessing and recording pupils’ progress in the medium and short term, to ensure that all pupils make the progress of which they are capable. Staff training and increased resources have resulted in improved standards and provision in information and communication technology. There has Millhouse Primary School - 5 been good improvement in resources for the Foundation Stage, but there is still a shortage of resources

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

for design and technology and music. As at the last inspection, teaching was at least satisfactory in all lessons observed. The staff are keenly committed to raising standards and demonstrate a satisfactory capacity for doing so.

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STANDARDS

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

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Key

English C E B B Well above average Above average A B Mathematics B D D D Average Below average C D Science C D C C Well below average E

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Key

Year on year comparisons for Year 2 and Year 6 are not totally reliable because of the small number of pupils involved and the different make up of each year group. However, in English and science, standards in Year 6 have kept pace with the national trend over the last three years, while standards in mathematics have gradually declined. For the majority of pupils currently in Year 6 standards match the national expectation in English, mathematics, science and almost all other subjects. The improvement in mathematics is due to effective leadership, which has had a significantly positive effect on standards and on the quality of teaching and learning since November 2001. In music, standards are below the national expectation. There was insufficient evidence to make a judgement about standards in design and technology. The previous test results showed that boys did better than girls in the National

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Key

Curriculum tests, but there was no evidence of this during the inspection. The majority of pupils, including those with special educational needs, make satisfactory progress, although more able pupils are not always provided with challenging enough work. The school exceeded the target it set for English in 2001, but did not reach its target for mathematics. Early indications are that it has not met the targets it set for 2002 in either subject. Given the attainment and progress of pupils currently in the school, the targets for 2003 are unrealistically high. The school does not analyse its test results well enough to have reliable information on which to base its targets, for example, by identifying weaknesses in learning that need to be tackled as a whole school. Work has begun on improving procedures to enable it to do this.

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Key

The majority of children start school with average levels of attainment. They make very good progress in their reception year, reaching and often exceeding the early learning goals in all six areas of learning. The picture is not as strong by the end of Year 2. In 2001, when compared with all schools and with similar schools, the test results were well below average in reading and below average in writing, though they were above average in mathematics. Standards in science were also below average. Reading results have declined steadily over the last three years, though early indications are that they have improved a little this year. Writing and mathematics results have kept pace with the national trend over the same period, although the writing results have declined since 2000. The attainment of the majority of pupils currently in Year 2 is as expected nationally for their age and their progress is satisfactory in all

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Key

subjects except design and technology, music and religious education. There was insufficient evidence of work in these three subjects for inspectors to reach a secure judgement. Millhouse Primary School - 6

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Good. Pupils enjoy school. The majority are eager to learn and work hard at what they are given to do. Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Good. Pupils realise the importance of behaving well. They understand the ‘Golden Rules’ and the impact of their actions on others. They mostly mix together well, readily help each other and respect the school environment. There were no exclusions in the last year. Personal development and relationships Good. Younger pupils especially respond extremely well to the excellent opportunities provided for them. Older pupils are showing increasing responsibility as they grow in confidence in their roles, for example, as school councillors. Attendance Satisfactory. Pupils are punctual and there is a prompt start to all sessions.

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

Quality of teaching Excellent Satisfactory Satisfactory 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: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

The quality of teaching is satisfactory, overall, and the teaching of children in their reception year and in most of Year 1 is outstanding. Here, the very detailed planning of well-timed, progressively demanding activities and the very imaginative use of a wide range of teaching strategies makes learning exciting for the pupils. The teaching very successfully stimulates the pupils’ ability to think for themselves, to take a good level of responsibility for their own learning and to develop good personal, social and emotional skills from the earliest age. In this age group, pupils’ progress is very effectively assessed and recorded and the information is used very well to ensure that planned activities build effectively on what has gone before. Such good practice is not evident in the rest of the school, although in lessons teachers make accurate assessments of what the pupils are doing and intervene appropriately to take their learning

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

forward. However, at whole school level, teachers do not, and in the past have not been required to, assess and record pupils’ progress frequently or rigorously enough and then use the information to plan new work. This has hindered pupils’ learning and is still doing so in Years 3 to 6. In addition, marking rarely provides pupils with the information they need to improve their work. Although the planning for lessons was satisfactory during the inspection, the scrutiny of teachers’ files shows that they rely too much on units of work taken from nationally recommended schemes and do not adapt these sufficiently to meet the pupils’ learning needs. Teachers take appropriate account of the targets set for pupils with special educational needs and use support staff appropriately to help these pupils and those with lower levels of ability. However, they do not pay enough attention to giving more able pupils sufficiently

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

demanding work to help them reach the higher levels of which they are capable. The teaching of English and mathematics is satisfactory and opportunities are taken as appropriate to promote literacy and numeracy skills in other subjects. Millhouse Primary School - 7

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum Unsatisfactory. Statutory requirements are met, but the curriculum is insufficiently well planned to ensure that pupils gain the skills, knowledge and understanding required in each subject in a progressive way throughout their school lives. Provision for pupils with special educational needs Satisfactory. All relevant pupils have appropriate individual education plans with suitable targets to help them make sound progress. Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Satisfactory, overall, and moral and social development are good. Pupils are given many opportunities to learn about their own culture, but the school is not yet preparing them well enough for life in a culturally diverse British society. How well the school cares for its pupils Teachers already know their pupils well and provide a satisfactory level of care for them. There are major weaknesses in the assessing and

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Aspect Comment

recording of pupils’ learning and progress in Years 3 to 6 and in the use of assessment information to determine the next stages in pupils’ learning.

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Aspect Comment

The school has a satisfactory partnership with parents, and they in turn appreciate the positive steps that the new headteacher has taken to improve the relationship between home and school. Pupils’ annual reports still do not give parents sufficient information about the progress their children are making.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Overall, satisfactory. The new headteacher is beginning to drive the school forward with clear vision and satisfactory leadership. The senior management team and subject leaders still have some way to go to work effectively together to raise standards, but have made a sound start and are committed to doing so. How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities Unsatisfactory. Statutory requirements are met, but governors are not sufficiently involved in helping to shape the direction of the school or in holding it to account for the standards that pupils reach. The school’s evaluation of its performance Unsatisfactory. Some evaluation has begun to take place but systems are not yet well enough established or rigorous enough to bring about school improvement. The strategic use of resources Unsatisfactory. The draft school development plan shows that finance is

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Aspect Comment

likely to follow school priorities in the future. However, spending in the past has not been sufficiently targeted at raising standards. The governing body does not have a clear understanding of how to obtain best value from its spending.

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Aspect Comment

Staffing is generous, given the number of pupils in the school and all staff, including teaching assistants and other support staff, are appropriately deployed. The accommodation has benefited from very recent refurbishment and, with the exception of music and design and technology, there are adequate resources for learning.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Children like school • They are expected to work hard • The school is approachable • It provides an interesting range of activities • The amount of work children get to do at home • Information about how their children are doing • The school’s partnership with parents Millhouse Primary School - 8 outside of the normal school day

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspection team agrees with the parents’ positive views. The information given to parents is now satisfactory, except with regard to reporting on progress in the pupils’ annual reports. Inspectors found that an appropriate amount of homework was set during the inspection. However, from the pupils’ previous work it is clear that the parents’ concerns regarding the inconsistency and irregularity of homework are well-founded. Millhouse Primary School - 9

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. There are three intakes each year, with children starting school in the term in which they are five. The majority start school with levels of attainment that are as expected for their age. The three children currently in the reception class have made very good progress in the first three weeks of their school life. They are on course to meet the nationally agreed early learning goals in all six areas of learning at the end of their reception year. Similar, very good progress is seen in the work of the majority of the younger Year 1 pupils who are in the same class.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. The National Curriculum test results for pupils in Year 2 in 2001 were well below the national average in reading, below the national average in writing and above the national average in mathematics. In science, the teacher assessments for this year group showed pupils’ attainment to be below the national average. The reading results were well below and the writing results below those of schools with similar intakes of pupils. In mathematics, the results were above those of similar schools. For pupils in Year 6 in 2001, the English test results were above, the mathematics results below and the science results in line with the national average and the results found in similar schools.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. The small number of pupils in each year group means that year on year comparisons cannot be totally reliable. However, the school’s ability to raise standards has been adversely affected by the recent instability it has faced and the analysis of the work of pupils who are now in Years 2 to 6 shows that they did not make sufficient progress last year. Over the three year period from 1999 to 2001, reading results declined to below the national trend for pupils in Year 2, while the writing and mathematics results matched the upward national trend for that age group. Over the same period, for pupils in Year 6, the trend in the school’s results has been broadly in line with the national trend in English and science, but below the national trend in mathematics.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. The unconfirmed Year 2 test results for 2002 indicate that reading standards improved this year. A greater proportion of pupils reached the higher levels in reading and in mathematics in 2002 than in previous years, but not in writing. The majority of pupils currently in Year 2 are working at the nationally expected levels for their age in speaking and listening, reading, writing, mathematics and science. In this age group, standards are also satisfactory in art and design, geography, history, information and communication technology (ICT) and physical education. There was insufficient evidence to make reliable judgements about design and technology, music or religious education. Changes in staffing and more effectively planned work mean that although standards are not yet high enough, especially for more able pupils, they are starting to improve, and the majority of pupils in Years 1 and 2 are making satisfactory progress.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. A similar picture emerges in the older age group. In Year 6, standards are as expected nationally for pupils’ ages in English, mathematics and science and also in art and design, geography, history, ICT and physical education. Standards in mathematics have improved in the past ten months due to the effective leadership of a new co-ordinator and the positive effect her work has had on standards and on the quality of teaching and learning throughout the school. Standards match the requirements of the local agreed syllabus for religious education. There was insufficient evidence available to make a reliable judgement about standards in design and technology in Year 6. Standards have been maintained in most subjects since the last inspection, but they have declined in music and do not meet the national expectation for pupils in Year 6. Insufficient improvement has taken place in English and in design and technology. Unconfirmed results from

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

the tests in 2002 indicate a decline in the proportion of pupils reaching the nationally expected levels in English, mathematics and science. However, school records show clearly that this group of pupils made satisfactory progress between Year 3 and Year 6. Millhouse Primary School - 10 6. In English, the majority of pupils in Years 2 and 6 acquire satisfactory speaking and listening, reading and writing skills. The school is now working hard to tackle standards in reading, the weakest area of English for younger pupils and through participating in a ‘Reading Recovery’ programme, well taught by a trained teaching assistant, pupils whose reading is below average are making satisfactory progress and are beginning to catch up with their class mates. Pupils make sound use of their literacy skills in other subjects by contributing satisfactorily to discussions and recording information in writing. However, in Years 5 and 6 pupils do not use a wide enough range

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

of writing styles and this inhibits their progress.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. The majority of pupils throughout the school have good mental recall of number facts. They develop a sound understanding of the place value of each digit in a number and of shape, space and measure. By the time they are in Year 6, the majority competently use addition, subtraction, multiplication and division in their work, and have an appropriate knowledge of fractions and decimals. However, they do not use their knowledge sufficiently well when trying to solve problems and their skills in handling information are weak. In Years 2 to 6, pupils rarely use computers to support work in mathematics. They use their numeracy skills appropriately in other subjects, for example, science and history.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. In science, pupils in Years 1 and 2 undertake with increasing confidence a suitable range of practical, investigative work that helps them to think for themselves in a scientific way and thus improve their understanding in the subject. By Year 6, pupils have a satisfactory understanding of all areas of science, competently carry out investigations independently of the teacher and show an appropriate understanding of how to use the principles of fair testing.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

9. The test results show that boys consistently do better than girls in all three subjects. However, year groups are small and some have a considerable gender imbalance. The inspection team did not find any significant differences between the attainment of boys and girls currently in the school. Pupils with special educational needs (SEN) make satisfactory progress towards the clear targets set in their individual education plans (IEPs). They and the less able pupils are appropriately supported through teachers’ planning and through the help they receive from well- deployed teaching assistants. The school does not cater well for its more able pupils. They could and should reach higher standards, but are not given sufficiently demanding work to enable them to do so. This adversely affects the school’s overall National Curriculum test results. Under its new leadership, the school is beginning to tackle this issue.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

10. The school exceeded the target it set for English in 2001, but did not reach its target for mathematics. Early indications are that it has not met the targets it set for 2002 in either subject and that, given the attainment and progress of pupils currently in the school, the targets for 2003 are unrealistically high for the majority of pupils. The school does not yet analyse its test results well enough or track pupils’ progress rigorously enough, for example, to identify and tackle weaknesses as a whole school or at individual level. It has sensibly identified these areas as priorities in the draft School Development Plan.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils in all classes, including those new to reception, settle quickly into well-established routines. They are proud of their school and are eager to talk about their favourite subjects and activities. They are polite, look after their environment, respect and form good relationships with each other and with adults. They engage confidently in conversations with visitors and in discussions in lessons. The majority of pupils take great delight in their learning, especially those in reception and Year 1, where there is a buzz of excitement as pupils go about their tasks and take great delight in their learning. Parents are pleased with the attitudes and values the school promotes. There have been no exclusions in the last year.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. Behaviour is good in and around the school. Pupils have a good understanding of the ‘Golden Rules’ and from the youngest age, they are clear about the way they should behave. Older pupils are aware of the need to have rules to enable society to run smoothly. In lessons, the majority of Millhouse Primary School - 11 pupils respond quickly when, occasionally, their attention wanders and noise levels rise. In some classes, however, there is an underlying restlessness that the teacher has to check often enough for it to slow the pace of the lesson and consequently hinder progress. Pupils move sensibly around school and use the equipment available to them with care and with a good degree of attention to their own and others’ safety. For example, they carry scissors and other tools correctly and work sensibly on equipment in physical education lessons and in the playground. Lunch times are calm, sociable affairs during which pupils respond well to the good supervision

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. The majority of pupils have good personal and social skills, because these are very effectively developed from an early age. Reception aged children and pupils in Years 1 and 2 confidently work together in groups, sharing equipment, taking turns and gaining good levels of independence. For example, as they selected their three activities for the afternoon session, pupils in the mixed reception/Year 1 class showed good awareness of the need to cover all activities in the week, concentrate, work hard and use time well. Older pupils have fewer opportunities for group work, but most readily co-operate with each other when required to do so. Pupils with special educational needs work well alongside their class mates in most lessons, often participating fully in mixed ability group work, supported by a teaching assistant. When withdrawn for specialist help, they concentrate very well and try hard to improve their learning.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. Throughout the school, pupils willingly take on a range of responsibilities and develop greater confidence in themselves as they grow older. For example, younger pupils get equipment out and tidy away after themselves, and older pupils set up the hall and operate equipment during assemblies. Every class has an appropriate range of monitor duties that the pupils are eager to perform and, in doing so, contribute well to the daily routines of the school. Responding well to a new initiative set up last term, the school councillors take their roles and responsibilities seriously and are eagerly anticipating a much greater involvement in the running of the school as the council’s work gains momentum this year. Pupils develop a good awareness of their local and regional culture. For example, by participating in a dry stone walling activity with a volunteer parent, pupils in Years 5 and 6 have become more aware of the need to care for the countryside

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

and to respect nature and the environment. Through taking part in local events such as the annual Penistone well dressing, they gain sound knowledge and understanding of their local cultural heritage. A good number of pupils attend the wide range of activities the school runs outside the normal school day and appreciate that most are held at lunchtime so that they may attend. Following a highly successful visit to Cleethorpes, the pupils in reception, Year 1 and Year 2 showed a very good awareness of the difference between their own rural environment and that of the seaside town of Cleethorpes. The pupils’ good attitudes, behaviour and involvement in all that the school has to offer have a positive effect on their attainment and progress, on their personal development and on their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

15. Attendance is satisfactory, although it fell to below the national average earlier this year due to an outbreak of illness and because some families took holidays during term time. Unauthorised absence is low. Most pupils are punctual and are keen to come to school. Registration and lessons start on time and there is an efficient and orderly start to the day.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

16. Although a significant amount of teaching seen in lessons during the inspection was judged to be good or better, evidence from the pupils’ previous work and discussions with them about their work reveal that, over time, the quality of teaching and learning is only just satisfactory. This is the result of the instability in staffing, leadership and management that the school has suffered in recent years. This situation has now been resolved and there is clear evidence that teaching is improving. No lessons were deemed to be unsatisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

17. The quality of teaching is excellent in the Foundation Stage. The three reception aged children are currently taught alongside the majority of Year 1 pupils. The teacher’s very good understanding of how the areas of learning in the Foundation Stage feed into the requirements of the National Millhouse Primary School - 12 Curriculum programmes of study results in very detailed planning that ensures that all pupils engage in tasks that are very well suited to their different ages and stages of learning. The staff’s excellent understanding of how children of this age learn and make progress is used to great effect to engage all pupils in all of the highly motivating activities prepared for them, using, for example, role play and structured play. The staff very successfully encourage the children to take responsibility for their own learning. The teaching assistant is used very effectively and provides

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

invaluable support for the class teacher in teaching the Foundation Stage curriculum alongside the National Curriculum. She is also very effectively involved in assessing and monitoring each child’s progress and the information gained is used very well to discuss the children’s work with them and to plan further work. This is resulting in the children learning very rapidly to recognise how well they are doing, what they find difficult, and what action they need to take to improve their learning, for example, through having the confidence to ask questions of and respond to each other and to approach the staff for help. Staff teaching pupils in Years 1 and 2 plan together. This provides appropriate continuity between the classes, both of which cater for mixed age groups. The quality of teaching in Years 1 and 2 is satisfactory, as it is in Years 3 to 6.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

18. The teaching of English and mathematics is satisfactory. Appropriate attention is given to developing pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills through other subjects, though this is not yet specifically planned for throughout the school. Recent improvements in planning include appropriate use of the national strategies for literacy and numeracy. This has resulted in well planned, well structured lessons that successfully promote all pupils’ acquisition of new knowledge, skills and understanding in English and mathematics.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

19. Most teachers use their good subject knowledge to plan activities that match the pupils’ prior attainment. For example, in Year 1, the teacher’s excellent knowledge of physical education and good demonstration led to all pupils demonstrating a very good range of imaginative movements. In Years 3 and 4, the pupils' throwing skills improved greatly during the lesson as a result of the teacher’s good instruction, demonstration and use of what the pupils could already do. The analysis of pupils’ work shows that this has not always been the case, especially for more able pupils. In the past, teachers have not had high enough expectations of these pupils and this has hindered their progress.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

20. All teachers use teaching assistants well, particularly to support the learning of less able pupils and pupils with special educational needs. This ensures that these pupils make satisfactory progress. For example, an assistant supported Year 2 pupils effectively in working out which coins could be used to make amounts up to 20p. In most lessons, teachers successfully use different ways of teaching, for example, whole class and group activities that enable pupils to learn satisfactorily. In a good religious education lesson with pupils in Years 5 and 6, the pupils’ thinking skills were effectively promoted because the teacher successfully used the first hand experience of two pupils in the class to foster the interest of their classmates in different branches of Christianity. However, most of the lessons seen in Years 3 to 6 involved teacher-led activities that did not sufficiently promote pupils’ independence or their involvement in their own learning. In the

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

majority of lessons, teachers manage their pupils well, keep them on task and use time effectively to ensure good levels of concentration and a good work rate. There are a small number of occasions when low-level, underlying restless behaviour goes uncorrected for too long, or the teacher has to remind the class too often that they should be getting on with their work. This sometimes slows the pace of learning for parts of lessons.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

21. The majority of teachers make accurate on-going assessments of pupils’ achievements in lessons and intervene appropriately to move their learning forward. In most lessons, teachers share lesson objectives with the pupils and return to them frequently during the lesson to help pupils check where they are up to. However, the scrutiny of pupils’ past work shows that teachers mark work regularly, but marking consists mostly of ticks and crosses. Very few supportive comments accompany the marking and rarely do teachers set targets to enable pupils to improve their work. Therefore, pupils do not have a clear understanding of what they need to do in order to improve.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT?

22. During the inspection, homework was used effectively to support pupils’ learning in English and mathematics and a minority of pupils volunteered to undertake further activities at home. However, Millhouse Primary School - 13 discussions with pupils and parents indicate that, in the past, homework has always been used effectively. There is a homework policy that was last reviewed in 1999. It is now incompatible with current recommendations. Millhouse Primary School - 14

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PUPILS?

23. The curriculum is unsatisfactory. For most subjects, policies are out of date and do not meet current requirements. During the school’s recent period of instability there was only one permanent member of staff and a series of temporary or supply staff, and policy review had to be put aside. However, an appropriate overall curriculum plan was drawn up by the acting headteacher who was in post last October. It is soundly based on nationally recommended schemes of work and the local agreed syllabus for education. It ensures that statutory requirements are met and, despite the out-of-date policies, brings the school into line with the requirements of the National Curriculum that were laid down in 2000. Appropriate attention is given to sex education and to teaching about the dangers of drugs. The new headteacher has prepared a draft policy for personal, social, health and citizenship education for discussion with staff and governors and satisfactory provision is

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PUPILS?

made on the timetable for pursuing relevant topics and themes relating to this aspect of education.

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PUPILS?

24. Curricular planning is excellent in the Foundation Stage and it is good in Years 1 and 2. Because of the mixed age classes, curricular planning is very carefully constructed to ensure a match between the areas of learning for the Foundation Stage and the National Curriculum requirements for Year 1. The joint planning and close working together of the staff in the mixed reception/Year 1 class and the mixed Year 1/Year 2 class now ensure that there is continuity of learning from reception to Year 2.

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PUPILS?

25. The school makes appropriate use of the National Literacy and Numeracy Strategies to plan English and mathematics work. In the past year, it has received much support in these two areas and the overall planning now makes appropriate provision for pupils to learn continuously as they proceed through a year and from year to year. The same is not true of other subjects. In Years 3 to 6, the long term planning clearly identifies the units of work for each year group, as recommended in national or local schemes of work. There is a clear timetable in the school development plan, showing how and when this is to be reviewed to assess how well it meets the needs of the school. However, insufficient thought is given in medium or short term planning to adapting the units to build more effectively on pupils’ prior learning. There are very few records of what pupils have done or of how much progress they have made, to enable the school to do this.

p.16

PUPILS?

There is no whole school approach to medium or short term planning and no way of ensuring that pupils’ learning is continuous as they move through the school.

p.16

PUPILS?

26. Satisfactory provision is in place for pupils with special educational needs. The new Code of Practice has been implemented appropriately and satisfactory individual education plans are in place for all relevant pupils. They have measurable, achievable targets and are reviewed termly to ensure that they remain accurate. All pupils are fully included in all that the school has to offer and appropriate attention is paid to equality of opportunity.

p.16

PUPILS?

27. There is a good range of extra-curricular activities, which are open to all pupils, and involve a good number of staff and pupils and also some parents and external providers. The school combines with other small schools in the area to give pupils the opportunity to participate in competitive sport. The curriculum is further enriched for pupils who wish to play a musical instrument. Good teaching ensures that they make satisfactory and often good progress as they learn new musical skills. Pupils take part in a wide range of special events that enhance and enrich their learning. These have included a science fun day at Kelham Island, theatre visits, involvement in the Penistone well dressing and a local brass band working in school. Local clergy support the school by visiting to lead assemblies. The local environment is used very well as a learning resource.

p.16

PUPILS?

28. Good links have been established with the community that make a valuable and valued contribution to the work of the school by providing a range of practical and financial support. For example, a local construction firm is currently offering to organise a science day for pupils and another local business is providing additional resources such as a water cooler, a new notice board for the playground and some refurbishment to the accommodation. The school supports work experience students from a local high school. More recently, because staffing is now stable, Millhouse Primary School - 15 the new headteacher has established appropriate working relationships with a local initial teacher training college and the school is looking forward in the near future to welcoming its first student teacher for some time.

p.16

PUPILS?

29. Overall, the provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is satisfactory. It appropriately enriches the quality of the school’s life as a community, helping pupils to develop positive attitudes, a sense of responsibility and good levels of self-esteem.

p.17

PUPILS?

30. The pupils’ spiritual development is satisfactorily fostered. In religious education, appropriate opportunities are taken to enable pupils to explore the values and beliefs promoted in the major world religions and in different approaches to Christianity. In subjects such as history, although not explicitly planned for, pupils are successfully encouraged to consider the different attitudes and values of world leaders and the effect they had on others. For example, role play was used effectively in a Year 5/6 history lesson to enable pupils to feel the powerlessness of refugees and evacuees, as they became victims of World War 2. During appropriate acts of collective worship, pupils are afforded time for reflection on the beauty of nature, the world around them and the responsibility they have to care for it. Pupils’ ideas and efforts are valued appropriately throughout the school and very highly in the foundation stage. Here, the excitement and wonder at finding out

p.17

PUPILS?

new learning very effectively enables the youngest children to talk about things that are special to them and to realise that different things are special to different people.

p.17

PUPILS?

31. There is good provision for moral and social development. The pupils are successfully encouraged to develop good moral values through the examples set by staff and by following the well-known ‘Golden Rules’. The teachers effectively promote a sense of fairness amongst the pupils and are successful in teaching them to respect each other, adults and their environment, and to take responsibility for their actions, including working and playing together amicably. When they start school, pupils are provided with very good opportunities to work collaboratively in pairs and small groups, to help each other, to show initiative and to take responsibility for day-to-day tasks and for their own learning. For the older pupils, social development and a sense of citizenship is effectively promoted through their participation in local and regional activities and through fundraising for local and national charities, giving them a developing understanding that there are others less fortunate

p.17

PUPILS?

than they. The provision for personal, social, health and citizenship education is sound and is being further developed appropriately through regularly timetabled slots and through initiatives such as the school council.

p.17

PUPILS?

32. The provision for cultural education is unsatisfactory, overall. The pupils’ own local cultural heritage is effectively fostered and through the good range of visitors into school and visits out of school, they are appropriately introduced to local and regional culture. In religious education, pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the beliefs and traditions of other faiths and cultures is appropriately fostered. For example, different creation stories were explored in assemblies and pupils were introduced appropriately to the legend of the Kookaburra bird and its significance in Aboriginal folklore. However, too little is done to teach pupils about the richness and diversity of the cultures that make up Great Britain today, or to prepare them for life in a multicultural society.

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

33. Since the last inspection, the school has continued to provide a safe and caring environment for all pupils. Its provision for their pastoral care and welfare is satisfactory. This includes a sensible and practical whole school approach to ensuring that pupils are protected from accessing unsuitable information via the Internet. Parents feel that their children are well cared for and agree that most teachers deal with any problems sensitively and calmly. Even at this early stage in the school year, staff know their pupils well. This has enabled a good start to the year and makes a positive contribution to pupils’ attitudes to school and to learning. The satisfactory support that pupils with special educational needs receive from all staff enables them to take full advantage of all educational opportunities. Good induction procedures ensure that children and their parents understand how the school operates and that children settle quickly into the established routines

p.17

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

Millhouse Primary School - 16 evident in the very happy and secure environment that is provided for them in the Foundation Stage. Pupils in Year 6 receive good support to ease their transfer to the secondary school.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

34. While the procedures for ensuring health and safety are satisfactory, the governing body has not reviewed its health and safety policy, or adopted a formal and organised approach to risk assessment, a fact that was highlighted at the time of the last inspection. The head teacher has overall responsibility for safety issues and staff are vigilant in reporting any potential areas of concern. In line with Local Authority guidelines, the head teacher ensures that concerns are recorded and dealt with promptly. At present, the governors are not fulfilling their statutory duties for health and safety regarding their involvement in a regular risk assessment of the site. Electrical equipment is checked regularly, and regular fire drills ensure that all concerned know how to evacuate the building in an emergency. The provision for First Aid is satisfactory with two trained members of staff on site. Parents are contacted where necessary and accidents are well recorded.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

35. Satisfactory procedures are in place to deal with Child Protection issues. The head teacher has overall responsibility, has undertaken the relevant training and ensures that concerns are well recorded and monitored. All staff are aware of the procedures and further training is planned for later this term to update existing staff and ensure that new staff know the relevant procedures. The school uses outside support agencies appropriately to support pupils both personally and academically. The school finance and administration officer is efficient in keeping up-to-date computerised personal records for every pupil and these are used well to support individual needs. The provision for sex and drugs education is appropriately organised. The school nurse assists the school in the planning and delivery of sex education and the drugs awareness programme benefits from the input of a theatre group.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

36. The procedures for monitoring and promoting good attendance are satisfactory. Registers are completed in line with the statutory requirements. Most parents are very reliable in contacting the school with information about absence. However, the school’s arrangements for following up any unauthorised absence are insufficiently prompt to ensure that registers are consistently accurate on a daily basis. The Education Welfare Officer supports the school well with attendance problems and related concerns.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

37. There are good procedures for monitoring and promoting good behaviour, but there are some inconsistencies in the way these are implemented throughout the school because of the changes in staffing. The ‘Golden Rules’ provide pupils with a clear and sensible set of guidelines and expectations. Involving pupils in the recently organised school council is a good initiative and is linked closely to the school’s procedures for behaviour management and personal development. There is a good and positive system of reward and celebration of success, which pupils value. In addition, pupils in all classes receive regular and appropriate verbal praise and encouragement. This raises their self esteem and is particularly successful in the Foundation Stage and Year 1. Procedures to monitor and eliminate bullying or oppressive behaviour are good and the headteacher deals promptly with any inappropriate behaviour in this area. The school’s procedures

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

for monitoring and supporting pupils’ personal development are satisfactory. A suitable draft policy for personal and social education has recently been written, but has not yet been adopted by the governing body. The school has no formal system of recording personal development, though personal achievements and progress are monitored on an informal basis.

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

38. The procedures for monitoring pupils’ academic progress are unsatisfactory. Very good procedures are evident in the Foundation Stage, where children’s progress is assessed and recorded very well and the information used very effectively to plan the next stages of learning. Good procedures have also been drawn up for use in all subjects in Years 1 and 2, that have, when implemented, the potential to provide good records of progress in these year groups. They also provide a good model for the rest of the school. Whole-school assessment and recording procedures exist only for English and mathematics, but even these are not used well to help teachers plan activities that build on the prior learning of all pupils. The effect of this is that not all pupils are sufficiently challenged, particularly those who are more able. There are no formal assessment procedures or agreed ways of recording pupils’ progress in Years 3 to 6 for any other subjects. This adds to the

p.18

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

Millhouse Primary School - 17 school’s inability to evaluate its curriculum to ensure that what is planned meets the needs of all pupils. Millhouse Primary School - 18

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

39. The school’s partnership with parents and the parents’ involvement in their children’s learning are satisfactory. The school recognises this as an area for development following the long period of staffing instability and parental concerns about the future of the school. Parents are now satisfied with the quality of education and speak highly of the improvements that have taken place since the appointment of the headteacher and permanent staff. The majority of parents now feel that the school works closely with them and they are comfortable to ask questions or discuss problems. Nevertheless, some parents feel that the school does not contact them early enough about problems and learning difficulties and this has had a negative effect on pupils’ progress. Current arrangements in school require that staff contact parents as soon as any cause for concern is raised and the school is taking steps to ensure that all teachers follow the appropriate guidelines.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

The headteacher and staff are readily available to speak to parents informally at the start and end of the day.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

40. The school welcomes parents and works hard to encourage them to help with activities and to work with their children at home. Most parents support the work of the school and provide additional help at home by listening to reading and assisting with homework topics. This makes a satisfactory contribution to pupils’ progress. Evidence from pupils’ work in the past year confirms that the parents were right to be concerned about teachers’ different approaches to homework. However, all teachers have now provided parents with a homework timetable to enable them to help their children at home and the inspection team found appropriate homework had been set regularly in the first three weeks of this year. Pupils also take home reading books regularly, and there is a home/school reading diary which in the majority of cases is used well as a communication between home and school. A small number of parents help regularly in

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

classrooms and many more help when pupils are taken out on trips. Most parents assist the school by signing the Home/School Agreement and the Internet Protection System form. The school has recently sought parents’ views on the reorganisation of holidays to fit in with the farming calendar in an endeavour to discourage parents from continuing to take holidays during term time. The Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is a supportive group of parents who organise regular fundraising events for the school. Through their hard work and commitment and the good support of the community the school has benefited from a range of additional resources.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

41. The quality of information for parents is satisfactory. The head teacher produces attractive regular newsletters that contain a range of helpful information about organisation and activities, and has recently produced a friendly and helpful ‘Helping Hands’ leaflet that provides clear guidelines to encourage volunteer helpers in school. Parents find the newsletters interesting and amusing, but felt that they contained insufficient information about what pupils are learning. The school has responded effectively to this and class teachers have provided parents with a list of topics to be taught for the term to enable them to help their children at home. The school has also acknowledged parents’ and pupils’ uncertainties about target setting in English, mathematics and science and has arranged an information evening to include this topic. These swift responses show that the school is listening to parents’ suggestions and complaints and taking appropriate

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

action. Parents are invited to attend two open evenings each year to discuss their children’s work and the school arranges specific evenings prior to the Year 2 and Year 6 National Curriculum tests to explain the procedures to parents. Very few parents attended those meetings in the summer term.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS

42. Although parents consider that the pupils’ annual reports are very thorough and informative, the inspection finds that, overall, reports are unsatisfactory. At the Foundation Stage, reports contain a very good amount of information about how well children are progressing in all six areas of learning. In the other year groups, there are inconsistencies in the amount and quality of information about progress. The reports give no indication as to what pupils need to do to improve their work and few show clearly how well pupils are doing in relation to what is expected for their age or stage of learning. Since the last inspection, the prospectus and governors’ annual report to parents have been reviewed and combined. The resulting document contains a good amount of information about the school’s aims and organisation and now meets statutory requirements. Millhouse Primary School - 19

p.20

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

43. Overall, the quality of leadership and management is satisfactory. The new headteacher has quickly gained the confidence and respect of the staff, pupils and parents. He is leading staff appropriately in the drive to raise standards, setting up the management systems and procedures to enable the school to move forward. He is keenly aware of the difficulties the school faces and has drawn up a draft school development plan with appropriate priorities for improvement that show he has a good understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Working without a deputy headteacher, he has a senior teacher and one other allowance holder who together with him, form the senior management team. Being new to this way of working, they have still some way to go to work together as an effective team, drawing on the skills and expertise of each other to move the school forward. The headteacher moved swiftly upon his appointment to establish

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

more stability amongst the staff and for the first time in recent years, all staff are on permanent contracts, committed to the school and to raising standards. The school now has the capacity to improve and the minutes of staff meetings and discussions with staff, pupils, parents and governors show that it has begun to do so.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

44. Because this is a small school, subject co-ordinators carry several responsibilities, many of which, because of the changes in staffing, are new this year. Most co-ordinators have a satisfactory understanding of how to improve standards and progress in their subjects, but have not yet had the opportunity to carry out subject audits, or to evaluate teaching and learning in them. The development of the role of the co-ordinator was identified in previous school development plans, but, because of the previously temporary nature of the staffing, it was not addressed. Appropriate plans are in place to begin to address it this year. The headteacher has undertaken some evaluation of teaching since his appointment in January 2001. He has understandably concentrated on literacy and numeracy and the implementation of the national strategies. There is secure evidence that this monitoring is becoming sharper and more focused in identifying

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

strengths and weaknesses and offering advice for improvement. However, currently, there is insufficient monitoring of the school’s overall performance or that of different groups of pupils and, consequently, a lack of secure information from which realistic targets can be set.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

45. Governors have understandably been very concerned about the uncertain future of the school and have worked hard to avoid its closure. They have not given enough attention to checking the standards the pupils are attaining, or to holding the school to account for the quality of education it provides. A small number of governors visit the school regularly and attend relevant courses to update their knowledge and understanding. However, there are no formal mechanisms for reporting their findings to the full governing body, or for using their findings as part of the school self evaluation process. This has led to under-achievement and unsatisfactory progress for a significant minority of the pupils, evident in their work from last year. Governors are not sufficiently involved in helping to set the direction of the school, for example, by ensuring that policies are reviewed and updated. Although the curriculum plan meets the requirements of Curriculum 2000, many of the

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

policies predate the plan and do not reflect the current practice in the school. The headteacher has now drawn up a realistic timetable for doing this over the next few months. The governors have not adopted a formal and organised approach to risk assessment, a fact that was highlighted at the time of the last inspection and has not reviewed its health and safety policy for some time.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

46. The leadership and management of special educational needs are satisfactory. All files have been appropriately updated to meet the requirements of the new Code of Practice. Individual education plans are reviewed regularly and all relevant parties, including parents and pupils, are appropriately involved in the reviews. The money allocated to the school for this area is spent wisely and the school has added to it to provide additional teaching assistants to support pupils better in their work. This has a positive effect on the pupils’ progress.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

47. Finance is allocated appropriately to the priorities in the draft school development plan for the coming year, but there is no strategic financial planning beyond 2003. Governors are not sufficiently involved in the school development planning process, or in ensuring that the school obtains best value from its spending. They do not have a sufficiently well developed understanding of the principles of best value as they relate to standards and progress. Appropriate systems and Millhouse Primary School - 20 procedures are in place to manage and monitor the school’s spending. The school finance and administration officer keeps a close check on the budget. She keeps the headteacher well informed about it and ensures that the governors’ finance committee receives regular budget reports. Day to day administrative procedures are efficient and unobtrusive and add to the smooth running of the school.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

48. The number of teachers and teaching assistants is generous, given the size of the school. However, they are suitably qualified, well deployed and are having a positive impact on pupils’ learning. The current level of staffing has allowed the new headteacher to undertake a number of leadership and management tasks that have been necessary as a result of the school’s recent history, for example, building teamwork amongst the staff, engendering an ethos of monitoring and self-evaluation and improving relationships with parents and the community. Records show that staff have undertaken a suitable range of in-service training and that through performance management and staff reviews, this is becoming more closely linked to the needs of the school. The school has adopted the local authority’s policy for performance management and meets statutory requirements in this area. The headteacher undertook a review of all performance

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

management targets last term and these were sharpened up to help move the school forward more quickly. Appropriate job descriptions are now in place for all staff and there is a suitable induction policy for staff new to the school.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

49. The classroom accommodation is satisfactory and is used appropriately. A small but attractive non-fiction library is situated in the entrance hall and a suitable selection of fiction books is available in each classroom. Good displays enhance the school’s appearance, especially in the reception area. The school hall limits indoor physical activity, but good use is made of the extensive outdoor accommodation for physical education activities when weather permits. The headteacher took the wise decision to spend a significant amount of the surplus he inherited in the budget to improve the learning environment for the pupils, both indoors and out, and to purchase further resources to support the curriculum. As a result, most subjects now have an appropriate level of resources. The exceptions are music and design and technology, where resources remain unsatisfactory because there are not enough to ensure that all areas of the subjects are

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

sufficiently well covered. Book resources are satisfactory in history, but the limited range of artefacts available to pupils impedes their learning at first hand about the past.

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

50. All governors and staff should put firmly behind them the school’s recent period of instability and support the new headteacher effectively in the drive to raise standards and improve the progress pupils are making. In order to do this, the following key issues have been identified:

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(i) Strengthen the leadership and strategic management of the school and make it more effective by:

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• drawing up and implementing an action plan for the governing body that clearly establishes the ways in which governors will contribute more effectively to managing the school and holding it to account for the standards that pupils reach; • establishing a strong senior management team that makes effective use of the skills and expertise of all its members in the drive to raise standards; • ensuring that co-ordinators have the appropriate skills, expertise and opportunity to carry out their subject leadership roles effectively

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(Paragraphs: 34,44,45,47,76,73,78,82,85,90,96,103,106,110)

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(ii) Further raise standards in reading and writing by, for pupils in Year 2, building more effectively on the good start they have prior to that year, and, for pupils in Years 5 and 6, by extending the range of writing required of them.

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In addition, bring standards in music up to the national expectation by improving resources for the subject and ensuring that pupils have sufficient and regular opportunities to develop fully their skills, knowledge and understanding progressively throughout the school. Millhouse Primary School - 21 (Paragraphs: 6,64,101-102) Millhouse Primary School - 22 (iii) Sharpen up the assessment, recording and reporting of pupils’ progress throughout the school by:

p.22

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• making better use of the information gained from analysing the results of the English, mathematics and science National Curriculum tests and assessments to identify and address weaknesses as a whole school; • devising and implementing rigorous, but manageable, procedures in all other subjects and using the information gained to plan the next stage of pupils’ learning; • improving marking and target setting to ensure that pupils are more involved in their learning and know what they need to do to improve their work.

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(Paragraphs: 10,21,38,44,67, 76,73,78,82,85,90,96,103,106,110

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

(iv) Further review, evaluate and improve the curriculum to ensure that medium and short term planning takes better account of the learning needs of different groups of pupils, including the more able, so that all pupils reach the highest standards of which they are capable.

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

Parts of all of the above key issues are already included in the draft School Development Plan that the new headteacher drew up when he took up his appointment in January of this year.

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In addition to the above key issues, the governing body should consider including the following minor issues in their action plan:

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• governing body involvement in statutory risk assessments (paragraph 34); • further improvements to the pupils’ annual reports (paragraph 42); • monitor the setting of homework to ensure consistency throughout the school and throughout the year (paragraphs 22, 41); • improve resources in design and technology and in music and build up a suitable range of artefacts for history and religious education (paragraphs 49, 85, 96, 103, 110). Millhouse Primary School - 23

p.24

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

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

p.25

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor

p.25

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. Care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents almost four percentage points.

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 91

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 12

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 0

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 17

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 0

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 2

p.25

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 5

p.25

Attendance

School data 5.8 School data 0.1 Millhouse Primary School - 24 National comparative data 5.6 National comparative data 0.5

p.25

Attendance

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

p.26

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* 2001 8 6 14

p.27

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.27

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

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls - - -

p.27

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

Percentage of pupils School 86 (87) 93 (87) 100 (93) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (83) 86 (84) 91 (90)

p.27

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.27

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

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls - - -

p.27

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

Percentage of pupils School 86 (87) 93 (80) 86 (87) at NC level 2 or above National 85 (84) 89 (88) 89 (88)

p.27

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

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

p.27

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* 2001 10 10 20

p.27

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

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.27

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

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls - - -

p.27

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

Percentage of pupils School 80 (71) 70 (76) 100 (94) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 71 (72) 87 (85)

p.27

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

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.27

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

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls - - -

p.27

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

Percentage of pupils School 80 (76) 70 (76) 90 (76) at NC level 4 or above National 72 (70) 74 (72) 82 (79)

p.27

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

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

p.27

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

* Where the number of boys and/or girls is fewer than ten, totals only are given in the tables. Millhouse Primary School - 26

p.27

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

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

White – any other White background 0 0 0

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – any other mixed background 0 0 0

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British - Pakistani 0 0 0

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 0 0 0

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 0 0 0

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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

p.28

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.

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 5 Financial year 2001/2002

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 18.2

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total income 296585

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 5 Total expenditure 308973

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 82.75 Expenditure per pupil 3000

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. Balance brought forward from previous year 25270

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 12882 Millhouse Primary School - 27

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Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 8

p.29

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 2

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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. Millhouse Primary School - 28

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Percentage of responses in each category

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

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 55 38 5 0 3

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 73 25 3 0 0

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 25 20 33 23 0

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 58 25 15 3 0

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 73 23 0 3 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 65 33 0 0 3

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 50 38 8 3 3

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 60 35 5 0 0

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 63 30 5 0 3

p.30

Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 50 48 3 0 0

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Other issues raised by parents

Road safety at the beginning and end of the school day. Millhouse Primary School - 29

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

51. The inspection took place in the third full week of a new term in a new school year and only three children were in their reception year (the Foundation Stage). Reception children are taught alongside younger Year 1 children in a mixed age class and there are three intakes each year. The majority start school with levels of attainment that are as expected for their age. Effective induction procedures help them and their parents settle quickly into the well-established school routines. The very good relationships that the staff have with parents are evident in their readiness to listen to parental concerns at the start and end of the school day and to offer advice and support when necessary. Educational provision is excellent in the Foundation Stage and provides a highly effective start to school. The staff have an excellent understanding of how young children learn and of how the areas of learning in the Foundation Stage feed into the requirements of the National

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Curriculum programmes of study. This results in very detailed planning, which ensures that all pupils engage in tasks that are very well suited to their different ages and stages of learning. The teacher and her assistant work very closely together to assess and monitor the children’s progress and to plan what they should learn next. The highly effective organisation of the curriculum, and the excellent use that the staff make of a wide range of teaching strategies ensure that the children very successfully take the small steps in learning that they require at this age to learn very effectively and make very good progress in all six areas of learning.

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Personal, social and emotional development

52. This area of learning is very strongly promoted and permeates all activities. Almost all children exceed the early learning goal in this area of learning and the new reception children had already fitted very well into the routines and expectations of the classroom. Highly successful teaching presented them with very effective opportunities to engage in role play, imaginative play, and more structured and formal lessons. They responded with confidence and a self assurance that belied their age. For example, in a literacy lesson, they coped extremely well, with the support of the teaching assistant, to the teacher moving in and out of role. In afternoons devoted to ‘Independent Pupil Activity’, the children confidently select their tasks and move to their tables when expected to do so, showing very good levels of co-operation with each other and with adults. The children talk confidently to adults, including visitors, about their work and experiences. They are very keen

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Personal, social and emotional development

to take part in all activities, listen to others and work well together. The very effective use of ‘talking partners’ contributes in great measure to this, as children discuss their ideas with each other prior to presenting them to the whole class. Their behaviour is excellent because they are very well motivated and thoroughly enjoy their learning.

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Communication, language and literacy

53. Children develop good communication skills by the end of their reception year. These skills are used effectively in all other areas of learning, as the staff take every opportunity to reinforce the correct use of language, introduce new vocabulary and encourage the children to listen carefully to each other’s ideas and suggestions. The new reception children, with the very effective support of the classroom assistant, contribute well to discussions. They participate wholeheartedly in imaginative activities that very effectively develop their reading skills and, for example, thoroughly enjoyed miming their ‘secret’ sentence for the rest of the class to guess. They showed a strongly developing understanding that print carries meaning and that it is read from left to right. They recognise the same words in different sentences and are already developing an appropriate range of ways to work out how to read words by using, for example, the initial letter sounds as a first

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Communication, language and literacy

guess and ‘reading’ a picture or photograph to work out what a word might be. They carry this learning over into their writing as they make good attempts at spelling simple words and sequencing sentences. Their initial attempts at writing show that they try hard to copy letters accurately. An analysis of the work of previous reception children shows that work is very well matched to each individual pupil’s ability and that almost all pupils respond well to the challenges Millhouse Primary School - 30 they are set. Almost all pupils write their own names legibly and make very good progress, moving quickly from mark making to recognisable writing and appropriate sentence construction. More able children write stories with several sentences, using punctuation accurately.

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Mathematical development

54. Similar very good progress is seen in mathematics and almost all children reach the early learning goals. Very good teaching and very effective input from the classroom assistant is resulting in the new reception children quickly learning to count objects one by one accurately and to recognise numerals up to 20. They have a satisfactory understanding of ‘more than’ as, for example, they write numerals in the sand, count farm animals and make up number sentences. They have a developing understanding of ‘less than’ as they enthusiastically join in songs that require them to answer questions such as ‘how many are left?’ By the end of reception, children have a well developed sense of number and of symbols such as + and = , and use these appropriately to add 2,3,4 and 5 onto a given number. More able children extend this to include adding numbers up to 20 and all pupils give good explanations of how they arrived at their answer, for example, by

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Mathematical development

counting on from the bigger number. At this point in the year very little work had been recorded, but the teacher’s planning and children’s work from the previous year show that all areas of mathematics are covered well.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

55. Outstanding teaching ensures that all children make very good progress and reach the early learning goal for this area of learning by the end of their reception year. In one lesson that very effectively linked scientific and technological activities, the staff helped the children to use the knowledge gained on a recent visit to articulate what they understood by movement and what actions were required to cause movement. Terms such as ‘force’, ‘push’, ‘pull’ were introduced successfully and through describing their movements as they climbed up the climbing frame, they quickly understood that they pulled with their arms and pushed with their feet to do so. Using a wide range of construction materials very effectively, the children went on, with support, to make models of some fairground equipment, using a wide range of construction tools and materials. The children are very well prepared for their work in history and geography. They develop a sense of

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

place by ‘reading’ a map, going on visits around the school and further afield and consider life in the past by comparing a holiday photograph taken fifty years ago with their experiences of holidays now. They use the computer competently to support their language and mathematical work and develop a sense of the world around them by comparing real animals and people with the cartoon versions in a computer program.

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Physical development

56. All children reach the early learning goals for physical development by the end of their reception year because of outstanding teaching that engenders very effective learning. In an excellent lesson, they showed a very good sense of space and used their physical and creative skills very effectively to create an imaginative dance in which they became underwater creatures. All pupils, including the new reception children, participated in the lesson fully and confidently because of the teacher’s very effective use of demonstration, her ability to build the children’s ideas into the movement and her very good use of praise and encouragement. The children have a good understanding of the importance of warming up for exercise. The time spent travelling from their classroom to the hall for their lesson is well used for this and ensures that they move in a controlled and orderly manner. The children control and co-ordinate their movements well as they

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Physical development

work and play safely and confidently on the new equipment the school has purchased for outdoor activities. This area of learning has improved significantly since the last inspection because of the recent acquisition of such resources. All children use an appropriately wide range of small and large equipment, tools and materials safely and with increasing control. For example, they cut and glue pictures onto their books and posters and know how to carry scissors safely to avoid accidents. Millhouse Primary School - 31

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Creative development

57. Highly effective teaching also leads to very good progress in this area of learning and almost all children reach the early learning goals by the end of their reception year. The children use their voices very well, showing a good understanding of pitch, dynamics and duration as they sing with a high or low voice, a loud or quiet voice and even use their thinking voices through silences in action songs. They successfully learn the meaning of terms such as ‘pitch’ and ‘phrase’, both of which were taught very effectively in a singing session. The ‘Good morning’ song, sung in English and then in very good German demonstrated the children’s very good listening skills, as did an action song using parts of their bodies. The progressive demands made of the children resulted in their acquiring a good understanding of the concept of phrasing in a song and was very well related to their rhyming work in literacy. The teaching assistant was used very well in this lesson to

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Creative development

support children with speech and language difficulties to ensure correct enunciation. All children respond very well to music, for example, as they create imaginative dance routines to express their ideas and feelings of what it is like to be an underwater creature. The children learn continuously from investigating and finding things out for themselves. For example, they confidently select appropriate tools, materials and other resources and engage in imaginative role play as they ‘become’ tourist officers, making posters to advertise Cleethorpes, or mime secret sentences in literacy. The good demonstrations from the staff and their effective intervention in all activities ensure that children make very good use of the limited amounts of time set for learning in this way. Although no art activity was seen during the inspection, the work in the children’s books and on display show they also have good learning experiences in this area.

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ENGLISH

58. Standards match the national expectation for the majority of pupils in Year 6 and their progress over time is satisfactory. Pupils who have special educational needs are well supported with reading and writing and this ensures that they, too, make satisfactory progress. Fluctuations in the small number of pupils in Year 6 mean that year on year comparisons cannot be totally reliable. For example, one pupil’s absence at the time of the tests meant that the school did not meet the challenging targets it set for English this year. Nevertheless, standards have kept pace with the rising national trend over the last three years. Although national comparisons are not yet available, early indications are that results have declined slightly in 2002. The standards of work seen in the current Year 6 suggest that the target set for 2003 is unrealistically high. In its drive to raise standards, the school has also set targets for pupils in Year 2 for 2003. While standards in

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ENGLISH

writing have followed the national trend upwards for this age group, standards in reading have declined. Currently, speaking and listening and writing match the national expectation for pupils in Year 2 and, in these aspects of English, progress is satisfactory. Standards in reading are below the national expectation and, given their average attainment when the start school, progress in reading has not been good enough in the past. This situation is now changing. The pupils currently in Year 2 are making satisfactory progress and are catching up rapidly as a result of improvements in the quality of teaching.

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ENGLISH

59. Speaking and listening skills are satisfactory throughout the school. Pupils are confident and articulate speakers by the time they reach Year 6. Pupils are willing to express their ideas in small groups or to the whole class. The majority participate well in discussions and talk freely to each other and to adults. Year 1 pupils make effective use of the opportunities presented to them to discuss their ideas and opinions with a ‘talking partner’. They therefore organise their thoughts well and share them more confidently with the whole class. Pupils use their listening skills well in other subjects. For example, older pupils in Years 5 and 6 expressed their ideas clearly and gave sensible opinions in a history lesson, when they planned questions for a World War 2 refugee child. In a good art lesson, pupils in Years 1 and 2 listened very attentively as the teacher explained how to make a pop-up book and pupils offered their own ideas as to how they might

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ENGLISH

make theirs. Almost all pupils throughout the school listen carefully to their teachers, and to each other.

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ENGLISH

60. Reading standards have declined for pupils in Year 2 since the time of the previous inspection, when they were above the national average. The learning opportunities for more able pupils have Millhouse Primary School - 32 not been sufficiently challenging to enable them reach the higher standards of which they are capable. Raising standards in reading is now a priority in the current school development plan. Although no Year 2 pupils reached the higher levels in the 2001 reading tests, a small number did so in 2002, as a result of better teaching.

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ENGLISH

61. Year 1 and Year 2 pupils visited Cleethorpes recently and the teachers have made good use of the experience to provide interesting learning activities in class to promote literacy skills. For example, in one excellent lesson in Year 1, the teacher used a well-planned mix of role-play, character acting and sentence building activities that successfully inspired the pupils to read with care and understanding. The practical activities after the seaside visit helped less able pupils to make good progress in their reading because they recognised and remembered words such as ‘collected’ and shells’ that they would otherwise have found difficult. When activities were not closely matched to their ability, some pupils in Year 2 found it difficult to select the correct words to complete a passage. The more able pupils in Year 2 competently read ‘amusement arcade’ without prompting. They used appropriate expression and emphasis to add meaning and showed a good

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ENGLISH

understanding of the text. Most Year 2 pupils have a satisfactory range of strategies that they use appropriately to help them read unfamiliar words. For example, they know how to break the word up and identify its component sounds and how to use picture for clues. They are also confident enough to ask a partner or their teacher. Some less able pupils are making slower progress, because their books are not always well matched to their ability.

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ENGLISH

62. Pupils with special education needs make satisfactory progress in English throughout the school. Those pupils who participate in the ‘Reading Recovery Programme’ with the trained learning support assistant receive regular intensive teaching and make good progress, moving quickly from reading words with one syllable to reading words such as ‘scratching’ and ‘inching’ in a book of poems about Monsters.

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ENGLISH

63. By the time they are in Year 6, most pupils show good comprehension skills, and confidently support their answers with examples from the text. When reading a poem aloud during a good literacy lesson, pupils used different voices to add emphasis and meaning. They use their research skills competently when gathering information in the school library and on the Internet. Most pupils throughout the school read at home and a suitable selection of fiction books is available in each classroom. However, while pupils are aware of current favourites such as the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling, they do not have a broad enough knowledge of books and authors and suggest only a limited range of preferred types of literature or favourite stories. The school provides a small library of non-fiction books situated in the entrance hall, but there is limited scope for the pupils to work there independently. Books for the infants are kept in bright,

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ENGLISH

animal-shaped boxes, but the junior books are in tall bookcases where the top shelves are inaccessible to pupils. The mobile library visits school every fortnight so that pupils may borrow from a wider range of fiction and non-fiction books.

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ENGLISH

64. The current school development plan identifies the need to continue to improve pupils’ writing. Evidence from younger pupils’ books over the past year shows variations in the quality of teaching of writing. Books were not marked and work was undated, with no evidence that pupils’ progress was being monitored or that work was planned to challenge or develop pupils’ abilities, which resulted in some underachievement. These shortcomings are now being addressed and teachers are planning activities that more closely meet the needs of different groups of pupils. For example, more able Year 1 pupils move quickly from mark making to recognisable writing and sentence construction. They form letters accurately and, unaided, write sentences such as ‘I played football’, and ‘I went to watch Sheffield’. Pupils now in Year 2 have made slower progress due to inconsistent teaching in the past. Although their spelling is often inaccurate, pupils’ writing is

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ENGLISH

understandable. The teaching assistants are well directed to support the less able pupils, helping them to put the words in the correct order and to write brief short sentences correctly, for example, ‘I am big’, and ‘This is a sheep’. More able pupils accurately select the correct words to complete gaps in stories. They write thank you letters and post cards, setting the text out correctly and using full stops and capital letters in the right places. Millhouse Primary School - 33 65. Pupils in Year 3 and 4 use their ‘Reading Diary’ to record their responses to books and retell the main points of the stories, showing a good understanding of what they have read. This age group has also experienced teaching of variable quality previously and pupils have not been taught how to plan, redraft and improve their written work. This situation is now improving. Year 6 pupils successfully hold the reader’s attention when they write a story, but do not always sustain the

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ENGLISH

dramatic effect to the end. They make imaginative choices of vocabulary and use dictionaries well to extend their vocabulary. Most pupils use more complex sentence structures and punctuation satisfactorily to add emphasis and effect in their writing. They have studied the works and written biographies of Shakespeare and painted pictures after reading Longfellow’s Hiawatha poem, showing a sound understanding and interpretation of the text. Although they have many opportunities to write imaginative stories at length, their books show little evidence of planning, of writing for different purposes or of using different styles such as records, notes and instructions. All pupils are given spellings to learn, often for homework, and reach satisfactory standards by the end of Year 6. Handwriting is also practised regularly and pupils learn to write legibly and neatly. By the time they are eleven, most pupils have developed regular, well-formed handwriting, and the

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ENGLISH

presentation of their work is generally satisfactory.

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ENGLISH

66. At the previous inspection, the quality of teaching in English was good, overall. Since then, there have been frequent staff changes, the quality of teaching has varied considerably and standards have fallen. Recent improvements mean that the quality of teaching is now satisfactory throughout the school and some excellent teaching occurs in the youngest class. In the better lessons, the teacher’s enthusiasm for language and literacy motivates the pupils well, developing in them a willingness to learn and make progress. Teachers use their often good subject knowledge to plan activities that meet the needs of all pupils and prepare interesting and progressively demanding activities that make learning enjoyable and encourage the pupils to think for themselves. This is not always the case, however, and, in some classes, all pupils are given the same work to do, regardless of their age or ability. This hinders progress, particularly for the more able pupils.

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ENGLISH

Pupils’ social development is well promoted during English lessons because they often work in different groups, sharing ideas and discussions. Their spiritual development is appropriately fostered through the wide range of texts used, including poetry and drama, which require them to reflect on the meaning that the authors were trying to convey.

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ENGLISH

67. Resources for English are adequate and the leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The co-ordinator has undertaken an appropriate range of professional development that has enhanced her expertise, particularly with regard to implementing the requirements of the National Literacy Strategy. However, she has not had the opportunity to share this with the rest of the staff. The policy for English is out of date and does not provide a basis for consistent and progressive teaching through the school. The headteacher and the local authority literacy consultant have undertaken some monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning. Plans for extending this good start are included in the current school development plan with a view to raising standards. Although the school makes full use of national and optional tests, very limited use is made of the analysis of results or of assessments of pupil’s progress in reading, writing or

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ENGLISH

speaking and listening in order to plan the next steps in their learning. These factors, combined with the inconsistent quality of teaching over recent years, the decline in reading standards, and the lack of challenge for more able pupils, means there has been unsatisfactory improvement in English since the previous inspection.

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MATHEMATICS

68. The number of pupils in each year group is small and this causes significant fluctuations in attainment. Effective action has been taken to raise standards in mathematics over the past two- and-a-half terms, which, although it was not taken soon enough to make an impact on the Year 6 test results in 2001 or 2002, is evident in the work of the pupils currently in Year 6. Standards in mathematics are at the national expectation for pupils’ ages in Year 2 and Year 6 and, with the exception of some of the more able pupils, progress is satisfactory throughout the school. The analysis of the pupils’ work indicates that more able pupils are not always sufficiently challenged and, therefore, do not always reach the standards of which they are capable. Millhouse Primary School - 34 69. In Year 1, pupils build effectively on their prior learning in the reception class. The majority have good mental recall of the solutions to adding two numbers up to 5 and demonstrate this using

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MATHEMATICS

domino cards. More able pupils know and accurately record the addition of two numbers to beyond 10. Pupils further extend this knowledge in Year 2 and the majority select the correct operation to solve simple number problems, including those involving money. For example, they calculated accurately the change from 40p when spending 36p. The majority of pupils in Year 2 accurately name circles, squares, rectangles and triangles, but are less secure with the names of 3-D shapes, knowing cube but not cuboid or cylinder. More able pupils understand that subtraction is the opposite of addition and measure objects accurately to whole centimetres.

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MATHEMATICS

70. The majority of pupils make satisfactory, progress in number between Year 3 and Year 6. They learn their multiplication tables well and by Year 6, have good mental recall of all relevant tables. When required to do so, they accurately round numbers to the nearest ten. The majority have a good understanding of square numbers and some have a satisfactory knowledge of triangular numbers. They accurately multiply and divide thousands by single digit numbers and have a good understanding of simple decimals, which they use appropriately when solving problems involving money. The majority also have a sound understanding of the equivalence of fractions, for example that 3/4 is equivalent to 24/32. All pupils have a satisfactory range of mathematical vocabulary by the time they are in Year 6. For example, they have a good understanding of the words diameter, radius and circumference and accurately describe the properties of parallelograms, squares and

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MATHEMATICS

rectangles. Pupils in Year 6 consolidated their own learning in mathematics as they created ‘maths trails’ around the school for younger pupils to follow. Typically, these involved around 20 questions covering all areas of mathematics, for example, in the hall, ‘Which two windows are identical?’ and ‘How many axes of symmetry has one of these windows?’ These trails also made a good contribution to the mathematical understanding of the pupils who followed them and to the personal development of those who constructed them. Pupils use their mathematical skills satisfactorily in other subjects, for example to construct time lines in history and take measurements in science. However, a scrutiny of pupils’ past work indicates a lack of opportunities for using and applying mathematics in problem solving activities apart from those contrived in published schemes. Also, insufficient opportunities are presented to pupils to develop

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MATHEMATICS

their skills in handling data and drawing graphs.

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MATHEMATICS

71. The quality of teaching is satisfactory, overall, as it was in the previous inspection, and there was an example of very good teaching in the youngest age group. All teachers use their sound subject knowledge, their knowledge of the National Numeracy Strategy and planning materials provided by the co-ordinator effectively to plan their lessons. The three-part lesson structure is soundly established and basic numeracy skills are taught satisfactorily. The better lessons begin well with a snappy session of mental mathematics where teachers ask appropriate questions that are well targeted at individuals and move all pupils’ learning forward. In these lessons, activities are planned that motivate pupils well by requiring them to use their thinking skills. For example, in a lesson with pupils in Years 5 and 6 the pupils were highly stimulated by playing the ‘Er-Um’ game. They concentrated hard, behaved well and effectively reinforced their knowledge of the multiplication

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MATHEMATICS

tables. Occasionally, teachers’ questioning lacks pace and is not sufficiently targeted at the different ability groups within the class. This results in a lack of challenge for some pupils. They become restless and do not make as much progress as they would otherwise have done, especially where the restlessness goes unchecked. In the best lesson, in Year 1, the teacher planned activities that were highly stimulating and she had an excellent relationship with the pupils. This ensured that all pupils had an excellent attitude to their work, behaved excellently and made very good progress.

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MATHEMATICS

72. During the inspection most teachers planned activities that matched pupils’ prior attainment. However, scrutiny of pupils’ work shows that this has not always been the case, especially for more able pupils. These pupils have not been given hard enough work to do and have, therefore, not reached the higher levels of which they are capable. This is reflected in the National Curriculum test results for Year 2 and Year 6. Teachers make accurate on-going assessments of pupils’ progress during lessons, but these are not used consistently well to plan further activities. This, too, contributes to the lack of challenge for above average pupils. Teachers mark work regularly but marking consists almost entirely of ticks and crosses, rarely setting targets for improvement. Millhouse Primary School - 35 Therefore, pupils do not have a clear understanding of what they need to do in order to improve. All teachers use support staff well to help less able pupils and those with special educational needs.

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MATHEMATICS

Both groups make satisfactory progress. Insufficient use is made of information and communication technology to consolidate or extend mathematical skills. During the inspection, teachers used homework effectively to support pupils’ learning in mathematics. However, discussion with pupils and parents and the analysis of pupils’ previous work indicates that this is not always consistent from class to class or throughout the year.

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MATHEMATICS

73. The subject is well led and managed by an effective co-ordinator. She has had the responsibility only since November 2001, but has already made a significant impact on standards and on the quality of teaching and learning throughout the school. She has helped teachers to plan effectively for all pupils by providing materials adapted from the Internet. She has also developed an appropriately detailed assessment and recording system, but this is not yet used consistently throughout the school to record pupils’ achievements or to plan future activities. The co-ordinator has very recently drafted an effective policy for the subject, which is currently under discussion with the staff. She has effectively monitored and supported teachers’ planning which has contributed to the good implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy. This explains why standards in Year 6 are now broadly in line with national expectations. The headteacher has

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MATHEMATICS

undertaken some direct monitoring and evaluation of teaching in the classroom, but the co- ordinator herself has not yet had the opportunity to do so. Therefore, her role is not yet fully developed. She has carried out an audit of resources which led to her developing individual mental mathematics bags which teachers use very effectively to support mental starter activities in every lesson. There has been some analysis of statutory assessment data. However, this is not done in sufficient detail or used effectively, for example, to identify possible areas of common weakness that need to be worked on as a whole school, and enabling all teachers to realise how each has a responsibility for raising standards in Year 6.

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SCIENCE

74. Due to past staffing instability, the inspection taking place very early in the autumn term and science lessons not being timetabled for all classes during the inspection, only a limited amount of work was available in some year groups. Judgements are, therefore, made using discussions with pupils, observations of lessons and an analysis of pupils’ work over the past year.

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SCIENCE

75. The attainment of the majority of pupils in the current Year 2 and Year 6 matches the national expectation and progress is satisfactory throughout the school. This was also the finding of the last inspection. Pupils with special educational needs are well supported and make satisfactory progress.

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SCIENCE

76. Year 1 pupils build effectively on their prior learning and have a good understanding of the effect of a force on movement, for example, the harder you push a model the faster it goes, and that in order to climb, you push with your feet and pull with your arms. The majority of pupils in Year 2, have a satisfactory understanding of how to make a bulb light, given a battery and two wires, and they know that all metals conduct electricity. They have a satisfactorily developing knowledge of what animals and plants need in order to survive, for example, water, light and food. They name accurately the external parts of the human body and show an appropriate understanding of the world around them, recognising and accurately identifying common animals and insects such as a seagull, a blackbird, a wasp and a fly. The majority of pupils have a sound understanding of what is required for a test to be fair. They explained this appropriately during an investigation to see

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SCIENCE

whether a truck with weights in it went faster down a slope than one without weights. The majority of pupils in Year 6 have an appropriate knowledge and understanding of light and light sources and of how shadows are formed. They also know that gravity is a force that pulls objects towards the centre of the earth. They have a good understanding of what is meant by a ‘saturated solution’, evident in their accurate description of the process of evaporation, namely that crystals of salt and sugar were left after the water had evaporated from their saturated solutions. Most pupils know that sounds are made when objects vibrate and have a good understanding that sounds travel through some materials better than others. Millhouse Primary School - 36 77. In the two lessons seen during the inspection the teaching was good in one and very good in the other. The analysis of pupils’ work, past and present, and discussions with them indicate that,

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SCIENCE

over time, the quality of teaching has been satisfactory and that more able pupils have not always been sufficiently well challenged to enable them to reach the higher levels of which they are capable. In the lessons observed, the teachers used their own good knowledge of the subject to give clear explanations that enabled pupils to deepen their understanding. The planned activities were well matched to pupils’ prior attainment and all groups of pupils made good progress. Teaching assistants are used very effectively to support less able pupils and pupils with special educational needs, enabling them to make the same progress as their class mates. In both lessons observed, teachers planned activities that caught the pupils’ imaginations. They made the lesson objectives clear at the outset so that pupils knew exactly what they would be learning and investigating. Good questioning techniques required the pupils to think carefully and apply

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SCIENCE

considerable intellectual effort in their work. In one lesson, the pupils’ behaviour was very good because they were very well managed and this had a positive effect on learning for the whole class. In the other lesson, two boys were restless for a while before being corrected. This distracted other pupils, making it hard for them to concentrate. Pupils throughout the school have positive attitudes to science and particularly enjoy undertaking investigations.

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SCIENCE

78. Leadership and management are satisfactory. The curriculum is appropriately planned, using a nationally recommended scheme of work and statutory requirements are met through this. Some adaptation of the national scheme has taken place and other schemes are appropriately included to ensure compliance with the two-year rolling programme. At the time of the inspection, the co- ordinator had been in the school just over two weeks. Through talking to staff and checking overall planning, she has quickly acquired a satisfactory understanding of what needs to be done to raise standards in science. She has rightly focused on the need to create and implement whole school procedures for assessing and recording pupils’ attainment and progress and the need to use the information gained to inform planning. None of this is in place at the present time. The policy for science is considerably out of date and does not provide teachers with guidance related to current

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SCIENCE

practice. There has been no monitoring or evaluation of teaching and learning in science in the past and, to date, the role of the co-ordinator is insufficiently developed to enable this to take place.

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ART AND DESIGN

79. It was possible to see only one art and design lesson during the inspection because of the organisation of the school timetable. It is not possible, therefore, to make an overall judgement on the quality of teaching. Evidence from the pupils’ work, gleaned from displays and their art books, and from discussions with them, enable a secure judgement to be made about standards. The majority of pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 reach standards that match the national expectation for their ages and they make good progress throughout the school. Standards have been maintained since the previous inspection.

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ART AND DESIGN

80. Pupils in Year 2 readily explain, using an appropriate art vocabulary, the preparatory work that they have done in their art books. They show a good understanding of colour in their selections of, for example, the blues and yellows they use to represent sea and sand and the use of dark colours to represent a house in a thunderstorm, with lighter patches to represent lightning. Using some of the sketches they made on a recent visit out of school, the pupils also explained clearly the purpose of a viewfinder in helping them to focus on the detail in a picture so that they might examine it more closely and, in their words, ‘draw it better’. Good links were made with design and technology in a short session observed, where pupils used their imagination effectively to produce creative decorations for their pop-up books, based on their work about sea creatures. They followed the teacher’s very effective demonstration and worked creatively with good attention to

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ART AND DESIGN

detail. Work on display shows a good understanding of pattern, as pupils translated fabric pattern onto paper, using pastels and paint, and created imaginative paper weaving using fold and coloured paper.

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ART AND DESIGN

81. In a good lesson with pupils in Years 3 and 4, the teacher used her own good subject knowledge effectively to demonstrate to the pupils the need for close first-hand observation, with attention to Millhouse Primary School - 37 light and dark, shape and pattern. The pupils very quickly suggested how different types of pencils might be used to create texture in their drawings, using their prior knowledge gained through experimentation in their sketchbooks. In response to the teacher’s effective questioning, they explained the importance of ‘working into’ their sketches to ‘add detail’, and of the importance of working with ‘bold strokes’ to create their intended effects, showing a good understanding of the vocabulary associated with art techniques. The work of pupils in Years 5 and 6, on display in their classroom, was very effectively linked to literacy and demonstrated their good use of imagination

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ART AND DESIGN

in pastel drawings of fantasy flowers based on ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. They also drew inspiration from ‘The Tempest’ to produce good representations of a ship in a stormy sea, using watercolours.

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ART AND DESIGN

82. The leadership and management of art and design are satisfactory. The co-ordinator gives help and advice to her colleagues and the curriculum is appropriately planned, using a nationally recommended scheme. Further work is planned to collate an annotated portfolio of pupils’ work for assessment purposes. Currently there are no formal assessment procedures in art and design and no way of checking that pupils acquire skills progressively from year to year. Work on display in the entrance hall confirms the school’s coverage of, for example, printing techniques and tie and dye work and there is provision for three-dimensional and large scale work in the planning, although none was seen in school. Art makes a satisfactory contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, requiring them to work together, share resources, value the opinions and ideas of others, reflect on the meaning of their own work and that of other artists, and

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

83. Insufficient evidence was available during the inspection to make a secure judgement about standards in design and technology in Years 2 and 6. Scrutiny of teachers’ planning, very limited samples of completed work and observation of activities in the mixed reception/Year 1 class provide evidence of the design and making processes being taught. However very little evidence was found that pupils evaluate processes or products.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

84. In Year 1, the teacher makes very good links between design and technology and both art and design and science. A science lesson on forces involved making models, using a variety of construction materials. In an art activity where pupils were making a pop-up card they developed good cutting and gluing skills. In Year 4 there is evidence of pupils designing and making illustrated paper bags and Year 6 pupils have made houses in connection with their history topic on Tudors. They have also designed and made a bridge to hold 100g in the middle of the span, using just two sheets of A4 paper, 30 cm of adhesive tape and a glue stick. The results of these products provide limited evidence that pupils have skills at a level appropriate for their age, but it is not clear whether they make sufficient progress in relation to their prior attainment.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

85. The co-ordinator for the subject has been on the staff for just over two weeks. She is well qualified in design and technology and has already used her specialist knowledge to support teachers’ planning in Years 1 and 2. Curricular planning follows a two-year rolling programme, using a nationally recommended scheme of work that ensures coverage of the National Curriculum. However, this has not been sufficiently adapted to meet the needs of the school and there are insufficient materials and tools to enable it to be taught effectively. The subject policy is out of date and there are no whole school procedures for assessing and recording pupils’ attainment and progress. Therefore, teachers do not have the information they need to plan activities that build on pupils’ prior learning. There has been little improvement in this subject since the last inspection.

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GEOGRAPHY

86. Standards in geography match the national expectations for pupils in Year 2 and Year 6. All pupils, including those who have special educational needs make satisfactory progress. Millhouse Primary School - 38 87. Geography work is often appropriately linked with history studies. For example, pupils in Year 1 and 2 recently visited Cleethorpes and this has provided much valuable practical experience that has enhanced their work in class in both subjects. Year 1 pupils were very highly motivated during a role-play activity when they selected information about the features of the resort to include in a guide, providing them with a good basis of knowledge about a location that is different from their own. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 acquired sound mapping and observational skills by, for example, taking photographs and recording in writing, important information about their journey. They are beginning successfully to recognise the main features of their own environment. For example, they

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GEOGRAPHY

have a satisfactory understanding of the fact that it is the rivers, roads, hills and moors that give the village its particular character. During a walk round the locality the pupils also explored how the environment had changed as they examined the large grindstones that are now disused.

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GEOGRAPHY

88. In Years 3 and 4 pupils can make and read more detailed maps, recording their journey to school. More able pupils give precise directions on a closely drawn, small scale map and use world maps appropriately to discover locations where dolphins may be found. They have a sound understanding of how the weather varies around the world. They confidently compare the heat of Death Valley or equatorial Africa with our own temperate climate, but do not yet understand how humans have adapted to their own, local climate. By the time they reach Year 6, pupils use their literacy skills well to construct a persuasive case to support an argument for or against a traffic free zone in an imaginary town. In a good lesson, the activity became more meaningful because the teacher helped the class to relate it to the real traffic problems in the village. This lesson made a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as they planned in

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GEOGRAPHY

mixed groups, realised that there can be various sides to any argument, and accepted that different view points have equal rights to consideration. Pupils study India to learn about life in a less economically developed country and make links to their studies of the Hindu religion. They show a limited knowledge of the water cycle and its effect on the landscape.

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GEOGRAPHY

89. Although only two geography lessons could be observed during the inspection, additional evidence was gathered from the scrutiny of pupils’ books, from displays and long-term curriculum plans. These also show that there is full coverage of the National Curriculum requirements and that pupils are engaged in an interesting range of experiences and activities that increase their understanding and awareness of the local environment and wider environmental change. Teaching and learning are at least satisfactory and one excellent lesson was observed in the youngest class. The way teachers plan lessons has improved and they follow a nationally recognised scheme of work. Resources are used well to make learning meaningful, for example, pupils’ own photographs. There are good links with other subjects. Due to the mixed age classes, studies of geography alternate with history over a two-year cycle to avoid repetition. There is little use of information and

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GEOGRAPHY

communication technology, although older pupils have researched weather conditions, using the Internet. Pupils show good attitudes to geography and behave well in lessons, responding with enthusiasm to the interesting practical activities they are given to do in lessons that proceed at a lively pace.

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GEOGRAPHY

90. The leadership and management of geography are satisfactory. The co-ordinator has clear plans for future development in the subject. There is no formal system for assessing and recording pupils’ progress in geography and the policy is out of date. At the previous inspection, pupils’ attainment was in line with standards expected nationally and their progress was satisfactory. This situation has been maintained and there has been satisfactory improvement.

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HISTORY

91. At the end of Year 2 and Year 6, pupils attain standards that are in line with those expected nationally. All pupils make satisfactory progress. Pupils who have special educational needs also make satisfactory progress because they are fully integrated into all activities and often work in mixed ability groups. Standards and provision have been maintained since the previous inspection.

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HISTORY

92. The pupils in Year 1 and 2 used their own recent visit to Cleethorpes to make comparisons showing how visits to the seaside have changed over the past hundred years. The teachers use old photographs of the seaside very effectively as a source of information to help the pupils Millhouse Primary School - 39 understand changes over time and link these well to photographs taken by pupils themselves during their visit. Pupils discuss their observations confidently, appropriately comparing the formal dress of one hundred years ago as people wore their best clothes and walked on the pier, with their own more relaxed style as they play in the beach or in the water. Time lines are used well to help pupils develop a sense of how time passes. History lessons are often carried out orally with younger pupils and their books show little evidence of previous work covering the topics set out in the long-term curriculum plan. They have only a limited knowledge of notable figures and events in

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HISTORY

British history because their progress has been limited in the past by the instability of the staffing. Progress is improving with more consistent teaching and better planning that ensures pupils learn through practical activities in a more structured way.

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HISTORY

93. Pupils in Year 3 and 4 apply their numeracy skills well as they count back over the centuries when studying the life of King Henry VIII. Resources are used effectively to help pupils focus on the court style of the Tudor monarch. Effective questioning such as “Why do you think Henry VIII wears jewels?” prompts pupils to think hard and apply their previously acquired historical knowledge and understanding. However, pupils do not recognise the difference between portraits painted during the monarch’s lifetime and pictures of wax models as primary or secondary sources of evidence respectively. Pupils empathised well with the plight of refugees in World War 2. The teacher added real meaning to pupils’ learning by relating how children evacuated from industrial cities actually attended the school during the war. This helped the pupils to prepare sensitive questions to ask the ‘refugee’ during a role-play exercise. They had interviewed their grandparents to find out how

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HISTORY

hobbies, holidays, pocket money and family life have changed since the end of the war. This showed that they know how to conduct a historical enquiry. Pupils are developing a good sense of chronology, but, by Year 6, they do not know enough about interpreting and evaluating different sources of evidence and do not understand that events in the past can be interpreted differently.

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HISTORY

94. History is appropriately linked to other subjects. For example, in English, pupils study William Shakespeare and identify how the English language has changed and developed over time, showing that ‘doth’ has become ‘does’ and ‘enthralled’ has become ‘thrilled’. Models of Tudor house combine art and design technology appropriately with history. Studies of the experiences of refugees and evacuees make a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as they consider and discuss the issues involved, link them to local history and study the British tradition of visiting the seaside. However, little use is made of information and communication technology for research or for presentation.

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HISTORY

95. The quality of teaching is satisfactory. Teachers plan their lessons well, using their secure subject knowledge to combine the effective use of resources with practical experiences that motivate the pupils well. Pupils’ attitudes and behaviour are satisfactory in history, unless the pace of lessons is slow and they lose concentration.

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HISTORY

96. Leadership and management are satisfactory, although the co-ordinator has had many other additional roles to fill in recent years. As all classes cover two year groups, the curriculum covers two years to avoid repetition and studies are linked to geography where appropriate. Resources are limited. Although there are sufficient books, there are not enough artefacts to enable pupils to explore and investigate firsthand evidence. A nationally recognised scheme of work is used to ensure that the curriculum is fully covered, but the school policy is out of date. There are no whole school procedures for assessing and recording pupils’ progress.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

97. By the end of Year 6, pupils attain standards in line with what is expected nationally. After only limited previous experiences, pupils currently in Year 2 are not yet in line with national expectations for their age. However, better teaching and increased resources are helping them to catch up fast and make satisfactory progress. There are several computers in each classroom and the school has recently acquired two wireless laptop computers for the pupils to use. At the time of the previous inspection, standards were below national expectations and information and communication technology was identified as a key issue for improvement. There has been satisfactory improvement since then. A new policy has been introduced, based on local authority Millhouse Primary School - 40 guidelines. All staff have improved their skills, knowledge and confidence by undertaking training and there is a better range of software, plus a scanner, digital camera and microscope. The

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

technician shared by the local cluster of schools visits each week, but frequent problems with the systems mean that valuable lessons and skills development are missed.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

98. Pupils in Year 2 successfully learned the purpose of the delete key when typing a simple sentence. They control the mouse competently, make appropriate use of the space bar and shift key but do not yet retrieve work or use tables and images. When the teacher introduced a new program, Year 1 pupils needed further, simpler instructions before they could operate it independently, but responded well to the challenge. They enjoyed the humour in the program, and confidently used appropriate vocabulary such as ‘text’ ‘ cursor’ ‘point and click’. The classroom assistant and a parent helper gave useful support to pupils in this activity. In an effective lesson with pupils in Years 3 and 4, they made good progress in learning how to choose different fonts, alter the size and add colour to their work. A group of more able pupils moved on independently and added rainbow colouring and shadows, becoming quite excited by the effects they were able

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

to achieve. The pupils record control techniques, methods and ideas in individual ‘computer books’ to use for reference, and this enables them to recall and build successfully on their prior learning. 99. By Year 6, pupils use the computers with greater confidence and identify accurately an appropriately wide range of uses for information and communication technology. They are well aware of the way the microchip influences their lives, from games consoles to the microwave oven. They confidently use Internet search engines, for example, when studying the weather or seeking information about the Nile basin. Some have used email to contact pupils in schools around the world, but this is still limited. They make some use of their skills in other subjects, writing word- processed biographies of William Shakespeare and presenting mathematical data in graph form, utilising a range of colours and styles to make the information easy to interpret. Most pupils have

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

a satisfactory understanding of how to use an art program, but do not develop their ideas sufficiently well to make full use of colour or repeating patterns. Less able pupils consolidate their own skills by producing an interesting ‘Maths Quiz’ for the younger pupils. However, pupils have not yet learned to make presentations combining information and graphics, or to predict and explore patterns in their findings and they do not make enough use of the ‘spellchecker’ facility. The unreliability of the systems disrupts regular activities and limits pupils’ opportunities to develop their skills in a wide range of applications.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

100. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall, as is the leadership and management of the subject. Since undergoing training, teachers’ knowledge and confidence has increased and lessons are well planned, enjoyable and motivating. As a result, pupils are enthusiastic users of computers, have good attitudes to the subject and listen attentively because they want to learn. They share equipment and help each other willingly. Each pupil has a ‘floppy disk’ on which to store their individual work and this acts as a simple system for recording their progress. Otherwise, there is little formal assessment or monitoring of progress. Many pupils have home computers and use the skills and knowledge acquired at home to support their work in school. Curricular planning and pupils’ books show that the requirements of the National Curriculum are covered appropriately. Pupils with special educational needs are fully integrated into all activities.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

They work alongside their class mates in mixed ability groups and make similar progress to all pupils. There is still a need to update equipment and provide more hardware and this is included in the development plan for the subject and in the school development plan. A whole-school approach to Internet safety has been adopted to protect pupils. This follows the local authority learning network guidelines, and parents have recently been asked to read and sign the agreement.

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MUSIC

101. It was possible to see only two class lessons in music and, therefore, it is not possible to make an overall judgement on the quality of teaching throughout the school, or on the standards pupils reach in Year 2. From the lesson observed with pupils in Years 5 and 6, it is clear that standards are below the national expectation for pupils’ ages in Year 6. While their warm-up rhythm work showed that the pupils could individually compose and repeat simple rhythms, the composition work that followed was at a level more suited to much younger pupils. However, the pupils showed an appropriate understanding of some of the Italian terms used in music, and responded well to Millhouse Primary School - 41 the opportunity to refine the class composition to illustrate some of these. The teacher drew well on the good knowledge of some of the instrumentalists in the class to help other pupils to understand what to do.

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MUSIC

102. Pupils who play musical instruments make good progress in their lessons because effective teaching and good demonstrations help them to improve their technique. Visiting teachers assess and record their pupils’ progress appropriately and refer to the information when introducing new learning. However, there are no assessment and recording procedures in place in the school itself and, therefore, no way of knowing how well the pupils are acquiring musical knowledge, skills and understanding. Pupils’ instrumental work makes a good contribution to their musical development, as does the work of the two recorder groups that meet on a weekly basis with a teacher and a teaching assistant to learn to play that instrument.

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MUSIC

103. The leadership and management of music are unsatisfactory. The co-ordinator is new to the role this year, but there is little evidence that music has been managed satisfactorily in the past. The new co-ordinator has already linked with the local authority performing arts department to raise the profile of the subject in the school as a means of starting to improve standards. There are insufficient resources for the school to cover all of the activities in the nationally recommended scheme that it has adopted to ensure that statutory requirements are met and there is little guidance for teachers as to how to teach the subject. Music’s contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is unsatisfactory.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

104. During the inspection, it was possible to observe just two physical education lessons. Standards in physical education are as expected nationally for pupils’ ages in Year 2 and Year 6. The pupils enjoy their lessons, and make satisfactory progress. Swimming is offered to pupils in Years 5 and 6 for one term and the great majority of pupils gain their certificate for swimming 25 metres, which is the national expectation for pupils at the age of eleven.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

105. It is not possible to make a judgement about the quality of teaching, overall, from just two lessons. However, in the lessons observed, teaching was good in one and excellent in the other, showing good expertise amongst the staff. Pupils in Year 1 used the walk from the classroom across the playground to the hall as a lively ‘follow-my-leader’ warm up activity, hopping, skipping, stretching and running. Their swift response showed they know the importance of warming their muscles before exercise. A small minority of pupils find it difficult to skip and hop because their co- ordination is less well developed. In an excellent dance lesson, the pupils worked confidently, making good use of their own space. The teacher’s high expectations of their behaviour and performance, supported by praise and encouragement ensured that the pupils made very good progress in the imaginative use of their bodies when moving as underwater creatures. The teacher

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

showed very good subject knowledge and demonstrated clearly to show the pupils how to extend their range of movements successfully and acquire and refine their skills. A good games lesson for pupils in Year 3 and 4 was held outside on the large school field. The teacher shared her enthusiasm and made good use of demonstration as pupils practised throwing and catching. She intervened sensitively to help each group improve their performance skills and the pupils made good progress. These pupils understand that exercise affects pulse and breathing rates and their skills and co-ordination are at the level expected for their age. However, the lesson did not move on to developing tactics as planned because the pupils were not ready for this, showing that their prior learning and attainment had not been used when planning the activity.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

106. The school runs a good number of extra sports activities at lunchtimes, including netball, football and gymnastics to enrich the curriculum. All pupils are offered the chance to participate in at least one of these extra activities, and the response is good. There are limited opportunities for sports matches with other schools, although some links exist with the neighbouring school. Whilst resources for physical education are adequate, lack of storage space means that equipment is stored in a shed across the playground and lessons require careful organisation to ensure that everything is ready for use. The small school hall limits indoor physical activities and inhibits pupils’ ability to move round freely and expressively in dance or gymnastics. Planning shows that Millhouse Primary School - 42 National Curriculum requirements are fully met, but the school policy is out of date and there are

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

no formal whole school procedures for assessing and recording pupils’ progress. The leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The co-ordinator uses her expertise and training well to the benefit of the pupils, but the role does not include monitoring teaching or standards, or managing a budget. The position at the previous inspection has been maintained and, despite the uncertainties over the school’s future, there has been satisfactory improvement in physical education.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

107. For the majority of pupils, attainment matches the expectations of the local Agreed Syllabus for religious education in Year 6 and their progress is satisfactory, as is that of pupils with special educational needs. There was insufficient evidence during the inspection to make a secure judgement about pupils’ attainment or progress in Year 2.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

108. The majority of pupils in Years 3 and 4 have a satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the Christian story of the creation and of the role given to Adam and Eve to care for the world and all that is in it. They demonstrate a sense of wonder and curiosity in their discussions about deity and have good recall of previous learning about Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam and Sikhism. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 have a good understanding of the beliefs of Roman Catholics and Jehovah’s Witnesses, gained from the first hand experiences of pupils in their class, whose knowledge was used very effectively in the class’s religious education lesson. The pupils have a sound knowledge of religious symbolism, for example, that church lecterns are frequently in the shape of an eagle to represent the word of God being taken out to all people, and that Christians light candles to represent Jesus as the Light of the World. They have a sound knowledge of the

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

story of Rama and Sita and the significance of Rangoli patterns in the Hindu faith, and of the festival of Hanukah and the main features of a synagogue, following their visit to one as they studied Judaism. The daily acts of collective worship, sometimes led by ministers from different local churches, are used well to support pupils’ learning in religious education.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

109. Two lessons were observed during the inspection. The quality of teaching was good in one and satisfactory in the other. In one lesson, the teacher’s good subject knowledge was used to ask appropriate questions to deepen and challenge pupils’ knowledge of Christianity. The lesson was well planned to use pupils’ personal knowledge and experiences to inspire other pupils and resulted in almost all pupils showing a high level of interest, listening carefully to what their class mates had to say and, consequently, learning a great deal about other beliefs. In the other lesson, the teacher used her good subject knowledge to stimulate discussions enabling pupils to reflect appropriately on the Christian story of the creation and the part they should all play in sustaining the beauty of their world. She applied sound management techniques to maintain satisfactory behaviour in a challenging class. However, some pupils became restless because the lesson took

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

place at the end of a day in which there had been few opportunities for pupils to engage in practical work and opportunities for some were missed in the lesson itself.

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

110. The leadership and management of the subject is one of a large portfolio of responsibilities for the post holder and is unsatisfactory. Development of the subject has not been a priority for some time. Topics to be covered each term are identified in the school’s two-year cycle of planning and are supported by the local agreed syllabus. However, these documents do not constitute a scheme of work with sufficient detail to support teachers’ planning. There are no whole school procedures for assessing and recording pupils’ attainment and progress in the subject and lessons are seldom planned to take account of pupils’ prior knowledge and understanding. There is an appropriate range of books, but no religious artefacts for pupils to gain first hand experiences of different religions. Nevertheless, through the topics taught, and the contribution of assemblies, religious education makes a satisfactory contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural

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RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

development and to their personal development.

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