Hartshead Junior and Infant School

HARSTHEAD JUNIOR AND INFANT SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 22 nd - 24 th September 2003

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HARSTHEAD JUNIOR AND INFANT SCHOOL

Inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 Hartshead Infant and Junior School - ii 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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HARSTHEAD JUNIOR AND INFANT 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. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - iii

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Primary School category: Community Age range of pupils: 5 to 11 years Gender of pupils: Mixed Number on roll: 82

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: School Lane Hartshead Liversedge

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Telephone number: 01274 335221 Fax number: n/a

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body Name of chair of governors: Mr R Foale

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

In this very small rural school, pupils are taught in three mixed-age classes. 75 per cent of pupils come from outside the immediate area. A high proportion of pupils are of white British ethnic background; a very small proportion of pupils are of Asian or Asian British backgrounds or of black British or Caribbean backgrounds. There are three pupils for whom English is not their mother tongue, though none are at an early stage of acquiring English. The school’s socio-economic context is above average. When children first start school their attainment is broadly typical for children of their age. 19 pupils (23 per cent) are on the register of special educational needs, which is a little above average. A below average proportion of pupils has a statement of special educational needs. Most of the pupils receiving additional help have moderate learning or social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Most members of the teaching staff, including the

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

headteacher, were new to the school in September 2002. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - iv

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Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

25431 Lesley Clark Lead inspector English Art and design Design and technology Music Special educational needs English as an additional language. 8988 Joan Cross Lay inspector 17685 Linda Spooner Team inspector The Foundation Stage Religious education Geography History 3240 David Wilkinson Team inspector Mathematics Science Information and communication technology Physical education

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Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

Primary Associates Ltd Suite 13 West Lancs Technology Management Centre Moss Lane View Skelmersdale Lancashire WN8 9TN

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Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be made initially to the inspection contractor. The procedures are set out in the leaflet ‘Complaining about Ofsted Inspections’ , which is available from Ofsted Publications Centre (telephone 07002 637833) or Ofsted’s website (www.oftsed.gov.uk). Hartshead Infant and Junior School - v

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 3

Standards achieved in areas of learning, subjects and courses

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 3

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL 5

Teaching and learning The curriculum Care, guidance and support Partnership with parents, other schools and the community

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OVERALL EVALUATION

The school provides a sound education overall. It has an even balance of good features and areas where it could do better. Teaching and learning is satisfactory overall. While most pupils learn well in lessons and reach the standards expected of their age, more able pupils need more challenges as do children in the reception year whose achievement is not as good as it could be. The school is well led and the satisfactory management has ensured that the school has kept on an even keel during a period of substantial changes. The school gives satisfactory value for money. The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are: • Pupils attain good standards in mathematics and reading, but they do not write well enough; some higher attaining pupils could do better; • The school is a happy, caring community, with good links with parents and so pupils want to come to school to learn; they have few opportunities, however, to work independently;

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OVERALL EVALUATION

• Reception children underachieve because the school does not provide well enough for their needs, including the provision of adequate accommodation and learning resources; • Marking and assessment of what pupils know and can do is not used well enough to indicate to pupils what they have to do to improve their work; • The leadership of the headteacher is good and strategic thinking and planning are effective in promoting improvement, such as the well advanced plans for the improvement of the accommodation. Most of the key issues identified in the last inspection report were left to the new headteacher to tackle, which he has done successfully within the last year, notably developing more opportunities for parents to be directly involved in their children’s learning. There is still work to be done, however, on improving the use of assessment, the management of some subjects and the curriculum. Teaching and learning are now monitored effectively by the headteacher and most staff. The

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OVERALL EVALUATION

weaknesses in the teaching and learning of reception children have been identified and appropriate support offered. Overall, the school has made satisfactory improvement since the last inspection in May 1998.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

all schools similar schools Results in National Curriculum tests at the end of Year 6, compared with: 2000 2001 2002 2002 English C B C C mathematics D A* D D science D A D E Key: A - well above average; B – above average; C – average; D – below average; E – well below average Similar schools are those whose pupils attained similarly at the end of Year 2. Pupils, including those with special educational needs, achieve satisfactorily. Caution is needed in interpreting the above results as numbers of pupils in each year group are small. Grades fluctuate dramatically from year-to-year depending on the proportion of pupils with learning difficulties in a particular year group. Over a five-year period, the school’s results resemble the national trend. There is an element of underachievement in all three subjects, however, compared to similar schools. While the school tends to get pupils to nationally expected levels a small number

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

of higher attaining pupils do not perform as well as they should. Pupils achieve more in some years than in others. In the Foundation Stage, reception children achieve the goals they are expected to reach in personal, social, emotional and physical and creative development. They could do better, however, in communication, language, literacy, mathematical development and knowledge and understanding of the world, for a substantial proportion do not reach the goals expected of them at the end of the reception year. This is because lessons are not planned well enough to let the children learn independently through carrying out purposeful activities. By Year 2, pupils read well Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 2 for their age; their writing though is below average in terms of accuracy and legibility. Although their test results in reading, writing and mathematics are often above average nationally, this is not

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

reflected at the moment in their work in class. Pupils continue to achieve satisfactorily in Years 3 to 6, attaining average standards in most subjects and above average standards in reading and mathematics. Standards in writing, however, are below average at the end of Year 6 because pupils do not write at length or as accurately as they should.

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Pupils’ personal qualities, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

are reasonably well nurtured. Pupils’ attitudes and behaviour are good. Pupils arrive punctually, like their lessons and behave well. They get on well with each other and with the adults they work with. Attendance is above average.

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION

The school provides a satisfactory quality of education. This reflects the overall satisfactory teaching in Years 1 to 6. The teaching of mathematics, including numeracy, is good. Teaching of literacy is satisfactory overall, with strengths in the teaching of reading and weaknesses in teaching writing, particularly in Years 3 to 6. Satisfactory teaching of the basic skills in literacy and numeracy in Year 1 contributes well to pupils’ later learning and pupils in Year 2 are well taught. The teaching of the small groups of reception children in the Year 1 class is unsatisfactory because the children do not get as much adult attention as they need or enough opportunities to learn through finding out for themselves. The accommodation and learning resources for children in the reception are not good enough and restrict pupils’ progress. In the other two classes, teachers do not always provide more able pupils with more challenging work. Marking of pupils’ work is inconsistent. Teaching

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION

assistants are used well and have opportunities to use their specialist skills as in teaching music, for example. Teachers know their pupils well and have their best interests at heart. In all classes, pupils would like more chances to take responsibility and contribute their views. Parents make a good contribution to their children’s learning and homework is used effectively.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and management are satisfactory overall, with good leadership provided by the headteacher. The recently appointed headteacher together with new staff has made his mark on the school and has implemented clear plans to ensure school improvement. Management is satisfactory. The governing body meets its statutory responsibilities satisfactorily. The governors take their responsibilities seriously and are supportive of the headteacher’s accurate evaluation of what the school needs to do next.

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PARENTS’ AND PUPILS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

The parents think this is a good school and welcome the greater degree of openness, which

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allows them to be more involved in their children’s education. Pupils like coming to school

and feel they are well looked after. They would like a bit more independence.

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

The school has accurately assessed what it needs to do to improve and has already taken steps to improve the accommodation. The most important things the school should do to improve are:

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

• Raise standards in writing throughout the school; • Raise achievement in the reception year; • Increase the level of challenge for higher attainers and give all pupils more opportunities for working independently; • Improve the quality of marking and make better use of assessment to help pupils to know how they might improve their work. And to meet statutory requirements: • The governors should publish their draft race and relations policy. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 3

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Standards achieved in areas of learning, subjects and courses

Achievement overall, in Years 1 to 6 is satisfactory. Boys and girls achieve equally well. Some higher attainers underachieve, as do children in the reception year. Where there was sufficient evidence to make a judgement, inspection findings show that standards are above average in mathematics and reading and broadly average in all other subjects.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Reception children do not achieve well enough in communication, language and literacy, mathematical development and knowledge and understanding of the world; • While most pupils, including those with special educational needs achieve satisfactorily, a small proportion of higher attainers could do better; • Standards in reading and mathematics are above average because pupils are well taught; • Standards in writing are below average because it is not taught systematically.

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Commentary

1. Pupils’ rate of progress, though satisfactory overall, varies throughout the school. Pupils underachieve in the reception year because the curriculum is geared more to the needs of the pupils in Year 1 who are in the same class. This is too formal, however, for these young children and they have too few opportunities to learn through finding out for themselves. This limits their development in knowledge and understanding of the world and means they have few informal occasions to practise their skills in mathematics through undertaking interesting activities on their own, for example. The planning does not relate closely enough to the different stages of learning and so lower attainers miss out on specific aspects to develop their skills in language, literacy and communication.

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Commentary

2. Standards are similar to those at the time of the last inspection in English, mathematics and science when they were judged to be broadly average overall, by the end of Year 6, and above average in some aspects of each subject. The national test results do not give a very clear picture because the small numbers in each year group mean that individual pupils’ performance has a disproportionate effect when calculating an overall grade. Thus the percentage of pupils with learning difficulties in a group tends to depress the results, as happened lest year. When the results over a period of time are considered, however, it is plain that pupils’ achievements in mathematics and reading tend to be better than in writing for both younger and older pupils. This is also true when the results are compared to those in similar schools.

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Commentary

3. In Years 1 to 6, there are several reasons for pupils’ variable rate of achievement, which result in better standards in some subjects than in others. Standards are above average in mathematics because pupils build on what on what they know and understand. The subject is well taught. Standards are average overall in English. There is good provision for reading, it is well taught and there is a consistent approach to teaching reading skills throughout the school. Parental involvement is also good and helps pupils to learn well. Standards are below average in writing because teachers do not have a consistent approach to planning, setting and marking work. Thus pupils in Years 2 and 3 have greater opportunities to write at length than pupils in Years 4 to 6 where much work is begun and left unfinished. Throughout the school handwriting and presentation are poor, reflecting the lack of a consistent approach to forming letters when pupils are young and teachers’ tolerance of

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Commentary

untidy and scruffy work over a long period of time. Standards are average in science, and the recent reorganisation of the curriculum based on national guidance is helping to ensure Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 4 that pupils reach the standards expected of their age. Pupils in Years 1 and 2 are taught basic skills in reading and numeracy well and this stands them in good stead when it comes to national tests when most tend to achieve expected standards. This is also true in Years 3 to 6. Teachers tend to aim at helping pupils to reach average standards rather than pushing them on to achieve even more. This results in an element of underachievement for higher attainers. While pupils’ performance is not markedly different to that in similar schools, over time pupils’ achievements at the higher levels tend to fall slightly below those achieved both nationally and in similar schools in Years 2 and 6.

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Commentary

4. The headteacher and subject co-ordinators for English, mathematics and special educational needs have picked up on the way in which pupils achieve more in some years than in others. Measures are in place to raise the achievement of pupils in the reception class and also higher attainers. Recent improvements in curricular planning have contributed successfully to plugging the gaps in some pupils’ learning. There are still inconsistencies, however, particularly in the teaching of literacy, which adversely affect the attainment of more able pupils. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) are in line with those expected at the end of Years 2 and 6 as are standards in religious education. Broadly satisfactory standards are attained in all other subjects apart from design and technology and music at the end of Year 2 where no judgement was made.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

Pupils' attitudes, behaviour and personal development are good helped by the good provision for their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils enjoy school and value their friends and the staff highly; • Attendance is good and there is no unauthorised absence; • Pupils are interested in their work and generally behave well; • Anti-social behaviour, such as bullying is not tolerated by the staff; • Pupils are willing to take responsibility for making changes for the better; • Pupils are not given enough opportunities to be independent learners.

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Commentary

5. Pupils hold their school in high regard. They greatly appreciate the friendships that they form and the help that they receive from the staff with their work. They attend regularly and punctually and are enthusiastic learners in lessons that capture their interest. Although not quite so strong as 5 years ago, pupils' attitudes, values and other personal qualities remain key to their achievements.

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Commentary

6. Behaviour is generally good in lessons and around the school. Occasionally, however, a small number of pupils are disrespectful to adults. They do not always heed their teacher's requests for full attention and sometimes continue to chatter amongst themselves when they should be listening. This takes up valuable lesson time, as the teacher has to wait until they are quiet again before continuing. In the playground, older pupils show great care and concern for younger ones who they embrace into mixed-gender friendship groups and impromptu games. Last term, bullying was an issue that concerned parents and resulted in a high number of fixed period exclusions for several Year 6 boys. These pupils have since transferred to secondary school. The school has worked hard to re-establish positive behaviour and enlist the support of parents. Staff now track the behaviour of individuals effectively throughout the school day and pupils say that they have better strategies to deal

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Commentary

with bullying should it reoccur. No anti-social behaviour or racism was witnessed during the inspection period. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 5

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Attendance

Attendance in the latest complete reporting year (%)

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Attendance

Authorised absence Unauthorised absence School data 5.0 School data 0.0 National data 5.4 National data 0.5 The table gives the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year.

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Exclusions

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

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Exclusions

Categories used in the Annual School Census No of pupils on roll Number of fixed period exclusions Number of permanent exclusions White – British 78 5 Black or Black British – Caribbean 3 3 The table gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Exclusions

7. Pupils would like to be trusted to do more things on their own. Staff need to provide more opportunities for pupils to work and function independently, particularly in the reception year. This would further boost their personal, social and emotional development. The school council provides suitable opportunities for pupils from Years 2 - 6 to be actively involved in decision making processes. Representatives have discussed issues that matter to them, such as ways to deal with bullying, and they have set up a much enjoyed tuck shop that sells healthy snacks and Fair Trade products. This gives them good insight into running a small business and ethical trading. They are not encouraged to take enough responsibility for chairing their council meetings, note-taking or reporting back to others, which would increase their independence and maturity.

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Exclusions

8. The school's race equality policy, which should legally have been adopted by the governing body by now, is still at a draft stage though it is being used in practice. Multicultural education, nevertheless, has improved since the last inspection and better prepares pupils for life in a multiethnic society. Parents and visitors of different ethnic heritages share their experiences and expertise with the pupils and the school has successfully established links with a multiethnic inner city school. Pupils from the two schools have enjoyed participating in sports activities together.

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL

The quality of education is satisfactory with strengths in teaching in Years 2 and 3 and in mathematics and reading throughout the school.

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Teaching and learning

Teaching overall is satisfactory. Pupils know clearly what their teachers expect of them so they make satisfactory progress in their learning. However, for pupils in the reception year the teaching and the children’s’ learning experiences are unsatisfactory. The assessment of pupils’ work is also unsatisfactory.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teachers and teaching assistants work well together and the school makes good use of the expertise of the assistants; Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 6 • All teachers manage their pupils well, encouraging them to work hard and co-operate with others; • The teaching of children in the reception year gives too little focus to those learning experiences set out for this age group in the national guidelines; • The marking of pupils’ work is poor and there are inconsistencies in how different teachers go about assessing work; • There are too few strategies to extend the learning of the more able pupils; • Homework is used effectively.

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Commentary

9. The overall quality of teaching and learning in the school has declined since the 1998 inspection. The majority of teachers are new to the school. It has taken some time for new staff to settle in and establish an up-to-date curriculum for the school. Senior management has begun to monitor teaching and learning. Teaching is improving. Consequently, in most of the lessons observed during the inspection period the teaching was good, but a careful analysis of large sections of the pupils’ work in recent months indicates that much of the teaching has been satisfactory and the pupils’ achievements largely average.

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Commentary

10. Teaching assistants make a valuable contribution to pupils’ learning experiences. Teachers often use them to help those pupils who find learning more difficult. This extra adult support gives them confidence and the assistants are able to reinforce the new learning for the pupils, for example, in an art lesson the assistant clearly demonstrated to pupils how to join materials together to make their sculpture. One very successful music lesson was led entirely by an assistant and her own infectious enthusiasm for the subject inspired and motivated pupils so that they achieved well in their two-part singing.

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Commentary

11. The recently adopted strategies for behaviour management are working well. Most pupils are willing to be industrious and their involvement helps them to develop their skills and understanding. The majority of pupils have positive views about their lessons and almost all pupils believe they have to work hard.

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Commentary

12. Teaching for reception children is unsatisfactory. Planning does not make clear what is to be taught, activities are not sufficiently stimulating or linked well enough to the different areas of learning so as to ensure that children of all abilities make good progress. Because the assessment of what children know and can do is not carried out regularly or systematically, this results in children’s underachievement.

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Commentary

13. Whilst teachers conscientiously mark pupils’ work, much of it is superficial and does little to give pupils a clear understanding of how well they are achieving or what they must do to improve. Too often, work of an unacceptable nature goes unchecked particularly in relation to presentation of pupils’ recorded work in all subjects. Consequently, pupils’ written work is often untidy and inaccurate. Teachers and subject coordinators are developing strategies for assessing work in order to track pupils’ progress. The good procedures in place, such as the analysis of pupils’ performance in end-of-year tests in mathematics in upper Key Stage 2, need establishing throughout the school so that pupils’ progress and achievements can be tracked more thoroughly.

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Commentary

14. The more able pupils have too few opportunities to extend their learning because they have few occasions to learn independently. For example, in the topic work in science pupils seldom have the opportunity to use reference material to further their understanding or acquire new knowledge for themselves. In some lessons they mark time because they are able to complete the work set in a very short time.

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Commentary

15. The use of homework has developed significantly since the previous inspection. Previously no homework was set. Pupils regularly take home numeracy and literacy work and parents Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 7 make a valuable contribution to hearing pupils read, an area in which the pupils achieve well.

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Commentary

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in16 lessons

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Commentary

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Commentary

0 (0%) 2 (13%) 7 (44%) 6 (38%) 1 (6%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) The table gives the number of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons; figures in brackets show percentages where 30 or more lessons are seen.

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The curriculum

The quality of the curriculum is satisfactory.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• The new headteacher has made good progress in addressing the weaknesses identified at the time of the previous inspection; • The National Numeracy Strategy has been adapted well to meet the needs of pupils; good skills in teaching numeracy results in pupils achieving well by the age of 11 years; • The curriculum for reading is very well organised. Parents play an effective role in supporting their children’s reading. As a result, pupils achieve well in this aspect of learning; • Curriculum provision for the reception children does not adequately meet their learning needs; • Higher ability pupils are not provided with enough challenge in some subjects; • The quality of the accommodation is poor.

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Commentary

16. The curriculum meets statutory requirements in all of the National Curriculum subjects, including religious education and collective worship. It ensures satisfactory progress in learning. The headteacher has been successful in leading the improvements in curriculum provision and planning, identified as a weakness in the 1998 inspection.

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Commentary

17. This is an inclusive school that ensures equality of access and opportunity for most pupils. However, planning does not provide enough challenge for higher ability pupils in writing, science, history and geography and they do not achieve as well as they might. The Foundation Stage curriculum is not systematically planned to meet the learning needs of children in the reception year. Consequently, children do not learn as much as they should through following an interesting and varied curriculum. The quality of provision for pupils with special educational needs enables them to achieve as well as others in the school. A personal, social and health education programme is in place that provides opportunities for pupils to develop an awareness and understanding of sex and relationships, and alcohol and drugs misuse, appropriate to their age.

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Commentary

18. Some out-of-school activities are run, such as the art and football clubs and there are opportunities for older pupils to take part in a residential activity each year. A few subject- linked visits are organised throughout the year, for example, pupils in Years 4, 5 and 6 will be visiting Whitby as part of their study of a contrasting locality in geography. Enrichment provision in Hartshead is similar to that seen in most small schools.

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Commentary

19. The quality of the accommodation, judged as unsatisfactory at the time of the previous inspection, is now of poor quality and hinders pupils’ learning. Most of the pupils are still housed in two mobile classrooms that lack toilet facilities and do not have wheelchair access. Practical subjects, particularly physical education, art and design, and design and technology are hampered by lack of space. The library and small computer suite, although Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 8 satisfactory resource areas in themselves, are part of the headteacher’s office and staff room. There is no outdoor learning area for children in the reception class and the internal accommodation for this group of children is poorly planned and organised. The accommodation is due to be radically upgraded. Detailed building plans indicate that these accommodation problems should be successfully addressed.

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Commentary

20. Except for the outdoor learning and play equipment for children in the reception class, resources are adequate for most pupils and this helps them to achieve satisfactorily. There are sufficient teachers and support staff to cater for the learning needs of most of the children.

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Care, guidance and support

Staff take good care of the pupils and give them sound support and advice. Pupils' comments and ideas are welcomed.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Staff place a high emphasis on pupils' welfare, health and safety; • Teachers know the pupils well and respond to their personal needs effectively; • Parents appreciate the arrangements to help new pupils settle in; • Pupils do not receive enough advice on how to improve their work; • Pupils' views about the school are regularly sought and suitably acted upon.

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Commentary

21. Staff and governors remain alert to health and safety issues. They make frequent safety checks of the premises, particularly in relation to the poor state of the temporary classrooms. Teachers find out about pupils' health and dietary needs when they first start school and inform those who need to know accordingly. Child protection procedures promote pupils' welfare effectively with appropriate involvement of outside agencies. Families are assured that the school operates an effective Internet safety policy whereby pupils are always supervised during its use.

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Commentary

22. Pupils who have been excluded from other schools integrate well in the caring atmosphere that successfully raises self-esteem and promotes strong relationships. Lunchtimes are relaxed and pleasantly sociable occasions. The midday staff are nicely involved in rewarding pupils who are most co-operative and they keep notes of any incidents. Pupils who repeatedly misbehave at lunchtime are temporarily excluded over this period. Some of the midday supervisors are quite recently appointed and have not yet had any training in their important role. This disadvantages them in maintaining a consistent approach to managing pupils' behaviour.

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Commentary

23. Good induction arrangements ensure that new entrants soon gain confidence and feel safe and secure in their surroundings. These procedures include home visits by the reception staff to share information. The local parent and toddler group meets on site, which helps families to get to know the staff and the premises in advance of their children starting school. There is little liaison between the school and local nursery schools to find out about pupils' academic needs and capabilities.

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Commentary

24. Pupils with special educational needs receive satisfactory support and guidance. Their individual education plans match their needs suitably and outside agencies and parents are involved as and when appropriate.

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Commentary

25. The school involves pupils satisfactorily in its work and development. Trusting relationships are established throughout the school and staff respond positively to practicable ideas that Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 9 pupils come up with for improvements. Through a school council initiative, for example, an older pupil has been chosen as a 'buddy' to befriend others. This is a sensible move considering that a small number of pupils feel they have no adult to turn to if they are worried. Staff, however, do not involve pupils sufficiently in assessing their work and in setting targets to help them improve it.

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Partnership with parents, other schools and the community

The school has good links with its parents. The school has strengthened its partnership with parents since the last inspection and staff involve them much more in their children's learning. Links with the local community and other schools are satisfactory.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• The school's partnership with parents is effective now; • Parents think highly of the school; • They are well informed about the curriculum and homework expectations; • The school consults parents regularly and responds well to their suggestions; • Beneficial links are established with local Beacon schools; • Annual written reports about children's progress have some deficiencies.

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Commentary

26. Five years ago, the school was not involving parents enough in their children's learning and this was reported as a key issue for action to raise standards. Staff have successfully tackled this by providing helpful information, opportunities to see what goes on in school, and suitable channels for communication. Older pupils' half termly class newsletters, for example, explain clearly what they will need to find out in relation to their homework projects. Such information enables parents to support their children at home effectively. Parents are much happier with homework provision than they were 5 years ago and they appreciate the diaries that offer them two-way dialogue with teachers. Another successful initiative has been the introduction of an open afternoon that encourages parents to observe the school in action. Parents value the open culture that welcomes them onto the premises and gives them more direct contact with the staff. Many travel from outlying areas to the

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Commentary

school because of its justifiably good reputation for caring for pupils as individuals.

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Commentary

27. The school consults widely with parents about developments and responds appropriately to their suggestions. It has suitably involved them in reviewing its behaviour and anti-bullying policies, and in implementing its sex education and drugs education policies. At parents' request, staff are working to provide better information about their child's progress. They are now offering a consultation in the spring term and are working to improve pupils' annual written reports. Although satisfactory overall, and including suitable targets, these reports do not always explain clearly enough to parents how well their child is doing compared with national expectations. Some are too impersonal because they change very little in wording from one year to the next. Others focus too much on what has been taught rather than standards attained and progress made.

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Commentary

28. A considerable number of much-appreciated parents and other adults volunteer to help the staff, for example, as 'reading friends' or with the support group that raises funds for equipment. The school is the focal point of the village for meetings of uniformed organisations and other groups. Pupils visit the local church and other places of interest in the locality, and visitors, such as representatives from local sports clubs, enrich their learning effectively.

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Commentary

29. Links with local Beacon schools have successfully enabled staff to share ideas regarding development of the curriculum. Older pupils are given suitable opportunities to visit their Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 10 prospective secondary schools when invited. There are strong sporting links with the closest geographically and with local primary schools. Little liaison takes place with the several secondary schools that pupils traditionally transfer to in relation to building progressively upon what has already been taught and learnt.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and management are satisfactory . The leadership of the headteacher is good and that of other key staff satisfactory overall. The governance of the school is also satisfactory .

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• The leadership of the headteacher is good and extensive monitoring has done much to strengthen weaknesses in the curriculum and to highlight those in teaching and pupils’ learning; • Management is satisfactory with some strengths in the management of English, mathematics and special educational needs; • The governors give satisfactory support to the school; their role as a critical friend is developing.

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Commentary

30. The leadership of the headteacher is good and has been the driving force to bring about changes required by the key issues for action in the last inspection. Scrupulous self- evaluation characterises the leadership of the school and as a result a great deal has been accomplished in a short time.

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Commentary

31. When there was a substantial change in the leadership and teaching staff of the school, this exposed the lack of information available for those coming in new to the school. Much has been done to put into place more effective management systems, in line with recommendations in the previous inspection report. The key issue to monitor the curriculum and the teaching and learning in the school, has been carried out meticulously and other staff are involved effectively in monitoring work in English, including literacy, and mathematics, including numeracy. A management structure is now in place that reflects the responsibilities of the staff. Curricular responsibilities and jobs have been defined and action plans for most subjects have been drawn up. Staff training is linked to the schools, as well as individual needs. The leadership is well aware that more needs to be done and has accurately established which areas require most immediate improvement. The weaknesses

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Commentary

in the provision for reception children have been identified and appropriate support put into place. The headteacher’s vision for the school to link with others both in this country and overseas and so broaden the curriculum is shared by parents who are keen for the school to become less insular.

p.15

Commentary

32. Management is satisfactory. The school day runs smoothly and there is a clear delegation of responsibilities. There is a satisfactory emphasis on raising standards but although target setting and assessment procedures have been introduced they are not applied systematically in all classes. The school’s self-review has identified all the major areas of weakness and appropriate guidance from the local education authority sought where necessary. The school improvement plan gives very clear guidance about what needs to be done and how it should be tackled, involving key staff and governors as appropriate. The school now consults those who use it to understand how to fulfil their needs. As a result, links with parents have improved as have links with other small schools locally. The school is beginning to compare its performance to other schools though more work is still to be done on assessment. Financial management is satisfactory and linked appropriately to the

p.15

Commentary

33. The governing body gives satisfactory support to the school. In the last few months, the governors’ grasp of the school’s performance has strengthened as a result of the good leadership and management of the headteacher. This has enabled the governing body to Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 11 act more independently than formerly. Governors have a sound understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and are prepared to take difficult decisions when necessary. Most recently, they have assiduously brought the school’s policies up to date, in order to meet their statutory responsibilities. Significantly, governors have helped to strengthen the links with parents through their consultative processes. All governors now have a clear role and those who support literacy and special educational needs offer active support in the form of monitoring what goes on in school. The governing body was slow to

p.15

Commentary

respond to the issues of the last inspection but with the appointment of a new headteacher quickly grasped what needed to be done. As a result, much has been accomplished in a short time. Plans to extend the building and to rectify urgently its deficiencies are now in place. The governing body has been instrumental in getting this achieved. The governing body still relies on the headteacher for information and direction to a certain extent, but it now questions before acting. The degree of informality which characterises this small school is both a strength and a weakness. It helps governors to know and understand the school well, but its informal procedures mean that occasionally discussions are over-long, important issues deferred and some time wasted.

p.16

Financial information

Financial information for the year April 02 to March 03

p.16

Financial information

Income and expenditure (£) Balances (£) Total income 254,397 Balance from previous year 24,999 Total expenditure 239.282 Balance carried forward to the next 11,428 Expenditure per pupil 2,918 Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 12

p.16

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Provision for children in reception is unsatisfactory.

p.17

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Relationships are good; • Links with parents are good; • Teaching is unsatisfactory and the majority of children do not achieve as well as they should; • The curriculum does not fully meet the children’s needs; • The accommodation is poor and there is little space for creative or practical activities. The school is aware of this and detailed planning to address this is already well in hand as part of the new building programme due to start in the spring term; • Resources for learning are crowded and poorly organised. The provision of larger play equipment and wheeled toys, is inadequate; • The weaknesses identified at the time of the previous inspection have not been adequately dealt with.

p.17

Commentary

34. The ten reception children are taught alongside Year 1 pupils. Five of these children currently attend mornings only. Attainment on entry to the school year-on-year is similar to most other schools. Evidence from the annual assessment of last year’s reception children indicates that a larger than expected proportion of the children did not achieve the expected learning goals by the end of the year. At this early point in the school year there is insufficient evidence to judge how well the current reception children are achieving over time. However, in the lessons seen, many of the children were underachieving. This was for the following reasons:

p.17

Commentary

§ The teacher has insufficient knowledge of the Foundation Stage curriculum to ensure the needs of individual children are fully met in all six areas of learning; § Lesson planning does not build accurately on what the children already know and can do. Ongoing assessment is not adequately kept in all six learning areas and learning objectives in lessons are not precise enough; § Many activities are dull and lack purpose. At times, children are left to their own devices in situations where they would clearly benefit from carefully planned and well structured interaction with an adult. At other times, they are expected to sit in whole class sessions alongside the Year 1 pupils but are not always encouraged to take an active part; § The teacher and support staff carefully manage the transition from home to school and have quickly established routines and expectations of behaviour in an atmosphere of mutual trust. However, not enough opportunities are provided for the children to develop

p.17

Commentary

independence through making choices within a wide range of exciting and challenging experiences.

p.17

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

35. The children are developing a sense of belonging through knowing what is expected of them in daily routines and opportunities to take part in whole-school assemblies. They behave well and relate positively with each other in all situations. This is because they are Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 13 given good guidance in what are acceptable attitudes and behaviour. Independent learning skills are not well developed because the children are not provided with enough opportunities to be involved in, for example, organising learning resources, solving problems or taking part in planning their own activities.

p.17

COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

36. Not enough opportunities are provided for the children to develop speaking and listening skills through carefully planned and focused activities. In small group activities, the children do not always listen attentively to what others are saying. This is because expectations are not clearly set out at the start of the lesson. In some activities, the children are given a good amount of time to talk about what they are doing and to share their thoughts and ideas. For example, where the children were making pictures of the seaside, they were confident to talk about a range of things that interested them as well as to describe what they were doing. Many opportunities are missed, however, because the children are too often left without adult support to guide them in the development of these skills.

p.18

COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

37. The children are in the early stages of reading at this point in the school year. During the inspection they responded appropriately to stories, such as ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ and demonstrated a satisfactory understanding of the main events in the story as they acted out the parts in small groups.

p.18

COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

38. The writing of the majority of children is broadly at the expected level, but at this early part of the year, it is not possible to judge progress and achievement over time. The children recognise that writing is a means of communication and most make an attempt to write or copy their first names. Much of the work in books consists of an adult scribing for the children and not enough opportunities are planned for them to develop independent writing skills. Adult writing in the children’s books does not offer a good model for the children to follow.

p.18

MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

39. The small amount of evidence in the children’s books and focus activities in lessons indicates that the children’s number knowledge is as expected at this point in the year. Planning for mathematical development is unsatisfactory because it does not build systematically on what the children know and can do and too much time is wasted in lessons. For example, when the activities in a mathematics lesson were completed, the children were left without specific adult support for much of the remaining time.

p.18

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

40. The children come into school with a range of experiences and knowledge of the world around them. In a lesson about the seaside, they were all able to talk about some of the features they identified in photographs and holiday brochures. The children are provided with satisfactory support in developing ICT skills. During the inspection, individuals and pairs often worked with an adult and as a result, the majority can use the mouse to control events on the screen. Planning for this area of learning does not take enough account of the needs of the reception children. This weakness in planning and related assessment is a significant barrier in meeting the children’s learning needs. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 14

p.18

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

41. There was insufficient evidence to make an overall judgement on standards or teaching and learning in this area. The children have access to the school hall for a range of activities but this is dependant upon the timetable for the rest of the school. Skills that require smaller, more precise actions such as cutting and pencil control are similar to those seen in most schools.

p.19

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

42. The cramped and poorly organised internal accommodation and lack of an outdoor learning area present a barrier to the development of a range of physical and practical skills.

p.19

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

43. There was insufficient evidence to make a judgement on standards in this area of learning. The lack of space and uninspiring role play area resulted in few opportunities for the children to be purposefully involved in creative and imaginative activities. During the inspection, small groups visited the ‘home corner’. From time-to-time, the classroom support assistant visited and supported the children in developing language and imaginative play. Opportunities for the children to paint, draw, make things and play in the sand and water areas are very limited and too often used as an unstructured activity following the ‘main’ part of the lesson.

p.19

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Standards in reading are above average because pupils are well taught, resources are good and parents make a valuable contribution; • Standards in writing are below average because pupils do not write accurately or at sufficient length. Some tasks are undemanding and teachers’ marking varies too widely from class to class; • The subject is well led and managed. Recent changes have yet to have sufficient impact.

p.19

Commentary

44. Standards in English are broadly average by the end of Years 2 and 6. Standards in reading are higher than those in writing. This reflects the school’s results in national tests in which standards in writing are often below average. Although with small numbers in a year group the school’s test results tend to fluctuate widely from year-to-year, depending on the balance of pupils with special educational needs or more able pupils, overall, too few higher attainers exceed expected levels. Pupils are often well taught in lessons and clearly enjoy their work. There is good provision to develop pupils’ skills in speaking and listening and to read together. There are, however, inconsistencies in the way literacy is taught throughout the school. This particularly affects the teaching of writing and the quality of pupils’ written work. The quality of marking veers from unsatisfactory to very good. There are inconsistent

p.19

Commentary

expectations therefore of pupils’ achievements.

p.19

Commentary

45. The teaching of reading is good. Parents play an active part in encouraging their children to read. Younger pupils are eager to get their parents to sign their reading diaries, collecting Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 15 stars for every three signatures in a week. As well as reading together in a group each week with the teacher, most younger pupils read individually to an adult each day and older pupils have time to read on their own. The good quality of books both in classrooms and in the library indicates the value the school places on reading. Regular library lessons ensure that pupils know how to find information and the library itself gives them a wide selection of books from which to borrow each week.

p.19

Commentary

46. Standards of writing are below average. Presentation is poor and much of the handwriting is hard to read because letters are ill formed and there are untidy crossings out. There is no agreed method of teaching handwriting. In Years 2 and 3 the teacher’s marking is detailed, spellings are corrected and written comments help pupils to learn. Pupils write each day and there is measurable progress. In Years 4 to 6 quite a lot of written work begins well and then peters out, unfinished. The marking varies from teacher to teacher and so pupils are not always clear about what they have to do to improve their work. Although pupils undertake a wide range of different types of writing, there is a lack of consistent attention to punctuation, spelling and paragraphing. Within lessons, it is evident that planning for writing also varies widely from class to class. Writing tasks are not always well planned to suit the age and

p.20

Commentary

stage of development of pupils of different abilities in the class. Pupils therefore do not learn to write confidently or independently at an early enough age because they are not involved in setting their own targets for improvement.

p.20

Commentary

47. In a year, the Literacy co-ordinator had made a good attempt at introducing a coherent programme of work in 3 mixed-age classes with demonstrable success in reading. The introduction of writing targets is too recent to have had an impact on the quality of work. The development plan for the subjects shows a good grasp of the issues and recognises that teachers need to agree how to teach writing and also base their lessons more firmly on the National Literacy Strategy.

p.20

Language and literacy across the curriculum

48. These are used satisfactorily. Pupils are encouraged to discuss their ideas and this develops their skills in speaking and listening well. There is scope for a greater range of writing to be used in other subjects in order to foster pupils’ independence. Poor presentation mars their written work in other subjects.

p.20

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching is good and pupils generally make good progress; • All teachers pay good attention to the teaching of numeracy in order to help pupils to have quick recall of number facts; • Mathematics skills are not developed well in other subject areas; • The teachers’ marking of pupils’ work is poor.

p.20

Commentary

49. Results in tests at the end of both key stages have normally been high but can fluctuate greatly due to the small number of pupils in each year group. For example, recently the overall results for the school appeared to dip significantly but this was essentially because the class contained two pupils with specific learning difficulties. At present, standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are above average and average at the end of Key Stage 1 where a substantial number of pupils have special educational needs. Pupils with special needs make good progress, visual aids and practical work give them a better understanding of the subject, for example, the group cutting out paper shapes to illustrate fractional amounts. At Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 16 both key stages, the pupils achieve well but more challenging work could be set for the more capable pupils.

p.20

Commentary

50. The subject remains a strength of the schools’ provision much as it was at the time of the previous inspection. There continues to be good curriculum leadership in the subject. The teachers adapt the National Numeracy Strategy well to cater for the mixed-age groups in each class, for example, they alternate regularly between oral work and written recording in order to maintain the interest and attention of pupils.

p.21

Commentary

51. The quality of teaching is good within Year 2 to 6 and satisfactory in Year 1 enabling the majority of pupils to achieve well. Teachers plan well to cater for the large range of age and ability in each class, although the more able children often need more challenge than they receive. The kind of challenge such as when a higher ability group was asked to quickly find two numbers that would add up to 12, needs to feature more commonly in lessons.

p.21

Commentary

52. A variety of strategies and resources are used to teach mental arithmetic including games such as bingo, the use of whiteboards to quickly display answer and the use of an overhead projector to enable pupils to visualise the fractional parts of a circle. This makes learning interesting and engages the pupils well.

p.21

Commentary

53. The marking of pupils’ work is poor. Presentation and unfinished work goes unchecked and poor presentation leads to inaccuracy. Comments which would enable pupils to know how well they are doing or how they might improve are missing. The setting of targets for individual pupils has just begun in one class. In another class, the teacher keeps a record of what individual pupils can and cannot do. These ways of checking on pupils’ progress need unifying in order that a consistent policy operates in school.

p.21

Mathematics across the curriculum

54. The systematic application of mathematics into other areas of the curriculum and the development of practical skills such as accurate measuring are a weakness of the present provision. Many of the Year 2 and 3 pupils, when measuring the circumference of one another’s heads with tape measures, lacked the confidence and accuracy that might be expected of this age of pupil. However, there are some good features, such as the use of graphs in science, which helps develop pupils’ understanding of data.

p.21

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teachers provide interesting first-hand experiences for their pupils and teaching and learning is satisfactory at the end of both key stages; • Teachers have too few strategies for extending the learning of those pupils who are more capable; • Pupils’ weak writing skills inhibit their progress; • The subject co-ordinator has made little impact on the subject’s development; • The teachers’ marking of pupils’ work is poor as is the pupils’ presentation of their work.

p.21

Commentary

55. Standards at the end of both key stages are in line with the national average and the achievement of most pupils is satisfactory but the more capable pupils underachieve. The school recognises, for example, that in the end of year tests at Key Stage 2 more pupils should be achieving Level 5. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 17 56. Standards within Key Stage 1 remain similar to those at the time of the previous inspection but in Key Stage 2, standards are lower. Great caution needs to be taken when looking at the results year-on-year due to the fluctuations than can occur due to the make up of the small number of pupils in a year group.

p.21

Commentary

57. Pupils enjoy their science lessons, which often involve them in practical activity and first- hand experiences, for example, they plant seeds to observe plant growth or investigate the distance travelled by different model cars speeding down a sloping ramp. From an early age, these simple experiments enable teachers to encourage their pupils to make simple scientific deductions. In one lesson, pupils deduced that the size of circumference of the skull might relate to how tall a person is. All teachers manage their pupils effectively so that pupils work well together. Overall, the teaching and learning experiences of pupils are satisfactory at both key stages although some lessons are good.

p.22

Commentary

58. There are missed opportunities to extend the more able pupils, for example, by developing the pupils' ability to seek their own information. The present Year 2 and 3 class is presently involved in a ‘My Body’ topic but there are far too few reference books to-hand, for these pupils to extend their own learning further. Similarly, the completion of the same photocopied worksheet by nearly all pupils in a class does little to challenge the more able pupils or make demands on pupils’ writing skills.

p.22

Commentary

59. The subject co-ordinator has made little impact on provision for the subject or put strategies in place, which are likely to improve standards. The recently introduced topic cycle based on the content of national guidelines does not match the way the school is organised where in some classes there are three age groups. Whilst individual teachers have tried to compensate for this problem, the issue needs to be resolved at a whole school level.

p.22

Commentary

60. A variety of presentation methods are used by children in their work, including tables, drawings, graphs and writing. Whilst this is good, it is too often let down by poor presentation, which is untidy and slipshod. Teachers too seldom challenge the unacceptable in order to raise standards.

p.22

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The pupils have a satisfactory range of experiences based on the national scheme of work; • Sensible working practices are adopted, for example, pupils are able to log on and off the computers themselves and have their own ICT folders to retain their work; • The lack of quality accommodation means that the cramped layout of the small computer suite makes teaching difficult, even for half a class; • Pupils do not have enough opportunity to use their skills in other subjects.

p.22

Commentary

61. Standards of attainment at the end of both key stages, are in line with the national expectation and remain similar to those at the time of the previous inspection. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils can open up a simple graphics programme to create patterns and pictures. They select tool buttons such as those for symmetry to create colourful images or seascapes that are on display in the school. Older Key Stage 2 pupils are able to retrieve, from their own computer files, work undertaken with databases. They have created spreadsheets of household running costs and can remember how they entered formulae and highlighted cells in order to produce pie charts of the data. Pupils make satisfactory progress as they move through school. They systematically develop their word-processing Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 18 skills and by upper Key Stage 2, they use an increasing number of options such as spell

p.22

Commentary

checks, banner headlines and adjust the size and position of images they have imported from other software to create bookmarks for example. Pupils are achieving satisfactorily.

p.23

Commentary

62. The use of the national guidelines for the subject enables pupils to have a range of experiences. They have used simple music composition software, explored ‘yes’ and ‘no’ branching data programmes to identify animals and have controlled access to the Internet. Some older pupils quickly accessed one of their favourite Internet sites giving information about the seaside town of Whitby and knew how to enter web site addresses to search for other information.

p.23

Commentary

63. Generally, pupils are keen to learn, interested in their work and behave well. Pupils are taught effectively and where the teacher expertise is lacking, the classroom assistant’s expertise is used to good effect. In the computer suite, the accommodation hampers learning because pupils’ backs are to the teacher and to the projector screen and pupils are sometimes oblivious to the teacher’s demonstration. The school also has the help of a part- time technical assistant. The assistant’s time is used well both in supporting the teaching of the subject and in trouble shooting of technical problems. The school has no systems to record the skills the pupils have acquired. Consequently, pupils do not always build up their skills in small steps of learning, based upon experiences received both at home and at school. Overall, teaching and learning is satisfactory.

p.23

Information and communication technology across the curriculum

64. This aspect of the work is not well developed. There is patchy provision. Within Key Stage 1, pupils have the opportunity to practise their mental arithmetic using simple software, which is in the context of a game. As a whole class, they have created a simple block graph of their shoe sizes and used a programmable toy to learn about distance and angles. Within Key Stage 2, pupils have used the Internet in connection with a river study and in mathematics/geography have used graphic programmes to create plans of their classroom. However, there are many missed opportunities to develop this work further so that pupils apply ICT skills they have acquired to support their learning in other subjects. The greater use of CD-ROMs for information retrieval in subjects such as science is one such area.

p.23

Main strengths and weaknesses

• There are no agreed assessment procedures in place to enable teachers to keep a record of how well pupils are doing and what they need to do next.

p.23

Commentary

65. At this early point in the school year, there was insufficient evidence to make an overall judgement on the standards currently being achieved. No history lessons were observed and there was not enough in pupils’ books to form a judgement. Samples of work from the previous year indicate that by the ages of 7 and 11, pupils reach standards similar to those seen in most other schools and achievement is satisfactory. This indicates that the school is maintaining the standards seen at the time of the previous inspection. Last year, aspects of the history curriculum for the infants were sometimes too difficult for the younger and less able children, as it was based on areas of study more suited to older pupils. Higher ability pupils in the junior classes were not always challenged to help them reach higher than Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 19 average standards. The sample of work of junior pupils was often well presented in booklet

p.23

Commentary

form. This contrasted with the work of the infants, where writing was often untidy.

p.24

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils achieved well in the one lesson seen in the Year 4/5/6 class. This was because the teaching built well on pupils’ previous learning; • Work in books from the previous year indicates that higher ability pupils in the junior classes were not always provided with enough challenge; • There are no whole school assessment procedures in place to enable teachers to record what pupils know, understand and can do and identify the next steps in learning.

p.24

Commentary

66. There was insufficient information to make a judgement on standards by the age of 7 years. No infant lessons were seen and there was little recorded evidence from last year. Standards by the age of 11 years are in line with expectations and are similar to those seen at the time of the previous inspection. In the Year 4/5/6 lesson, teaching was of a good quality and because of the teacher’s good subject knowledge, skilful explanations and questioning, and opportunities for practical work, pupils rapidly gained skills in identifying physical and human features on an aerial map and learned how to use a compass accurately. As a result, standards for each year group were securely in line with expectations and all pupils achieved well.

p.24

Commentary

67. A sample of junior pupils’ work from last year confirms the standards currently being attained. As with history, work was well presented in booklet form. However, a similar weakness resulted in higher ability pupils not being offered enough challenge to help them reach higher than average levels. Good opportunities were provided for the pupils to link their mathematical and scientific skills to measure the flow of a river and study the effects of evaporation and condensation.

p.24

Religious education

There were no religious education lessons timetabled during the part of the week when the inspection took place. Since much of the teaching and learning takes place through discussion, there was little written work to scrutinise in pupils’ books. This means that there is no judgement on standards by the age of seven. However, discussions with older pupils about what they have learnt, indicates that provision in religious education is satisfactory.

p.24

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Older pupils recall much of what they have learnt and talk about their religious education lessons enthusiastically. Their knowledge and understanding of the subject is at the level expected of their age.

p.24

Commentary

68. Discussions with pupils indicate that by the age of 11 years, they have a satisfactory knowledge and understanding of Christianity and Islam, the two religions they have studied most recently. They know the significance of important events, symbols and festivals and are developing an understanding that religious belief is experienced in different ways by people in this country and across the world. A recent visit to a local school has provided Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 20 pupils with a good insight into the Muslim faith community. They have a secure understanding of Christianity and are able to relate stories from the Bible and retell the main events in the Christian calendar. They are beginning to reflect at a deeper level. This was evident as they talked about the disciples’ feelings as Jesus ascended into Heaven. Although work in last year’s books indicates satisfactory factual knowledge, there were few

p.24

Commentary

opportunities for them to make a more reflective response through recording their opinions and feelings. Although the school does not have an adequate collection of artefacts to support learning about different faiths, they take appropriate advantage of library and museum loan facilities.

p.25

Commentary

69. There are good links between religious education and assemblies. For example, as part of the current theme of world faiths, the headteacher skilfully linked the forthcoming harvest festival to the Jewish festival of Succot and its history. Many of the older pupils already knew some of the story of the Exodus from Egypt and were able to make a valuable contribution.

p.25

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Good teaching in music leads to rapid improvement in pupils’ musical knowledge and skills.

p.25

Commentary

70. One lesson was seen in art and design and physical education, and two in music, but none in design and technology. There was little work to examine as pupils had taken home most of last year’s work because the school has very limited space in which to store it. There is a thriving art and craft club which contributes well to develop pupils’ skills. Leadership and management in these subjects are satisfactory.

p.25

Music

71. The two music lessons seen were in Years 4, 5 and 6 where pupils were taught in two groups divided according to age. No lessons were seen in Years 1 to 3, so no judgement can be made about standards in Year 2. Standards in Year 6 are in line with those expected at this stage. Teaching was good in both lessons, reflecting the good subject knowledge and good skills in managing pupils demonstrated by the educational support assistant who teaches them. This arrangement for teaching music started this year, and so to a large extent, pupils in all three year groups, are doing the same work. While this is entirely appropriate at the moment, given the pupils’ knowledge and understanding, the level of challenge is greater for younger pupils who are attaining above the expected level as a consequence. The teacher’s love of music enthuses the pupils and helps to create the sense of a musical community in which music is shared and enjoyed. Pupils sang an African

p.25

Music

song in two parts, keeping the rhythm going on drums and xylophone as they used their hands to indicate pitch. They listened very attentively to each other’s performance and celebrated success with lots of smiles.

p.25

Physical Education

72. Not enough was seen to make an overall judgement on standards. Despite very limited indoor space and a very limited range of large apparatus for gymnastics, the school makes satisfactory provision for pupils’ physical development. Pupils are offered a balanced programme of work – gymnastics, games, dance and swimming in Years 4 to 6. By the end of Year 6 the vast majority of pupils attain standard expected for swimming and many Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 21 achieve well beyond it. Regular extra-curricular activities for football and dance and some inter school sports activities, including a swimming gala, further develop pupils’ skills.

p.25

Physical Education

73. One dance lesson was observed for pupils in Years 2 and 3 in which all achieved high standards because of the very good teaching and many opportunities to practise and refine movements.

p.26

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION AND CITIZENSHIP

74. Class discussion times and the school council offer pupils good opportunities to express their feelings on issues, such as bullying. Pupils elect their council representatives which gives them useful practical experience of democracy. Hartshead Infant and Junior School - 22

p.26

The overall effectiveness of the school 4

How inclusive the school is 4 How the school’s effectiveness has changed since its last inspection 4 Value for money provided by the school 4

p.27

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities 3

Attendance 3 Attitudes 3 Behaviour, including the extent of exclusions 3 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 3

p.27

The quality of education provided by the school 4

The quality of teaching 4 How well pupils learn 4 The quality of assessment 5 How well the curriculum meets pupils needs 4 Enrichment of the curriculum, including out-of-school activities 4 Accommodation and resources 5 Pupils’ care, welfare, health and safety 3 Support, advice and guidance for pupils 4 How well the school seeks and acts on pupils’ views 4 The effectiveness of the school’s links with parents 3 The quality of the school’s links with the community 4 The school’s links with other schools and colleges 4

p.27

The leadership and management of the school 4

The governance of the school 4 The leadership of the headteacher 3 The leadership of other key staff 4 The effectiveness of management 4

p.27

The leadership and management of the school 4

Inspectors make judgements on a scale: excellent (grade 1); very good (2); good (3); satisfactory (4); unsatisfactory (5); poor (6); very poor (7).

p.27