Leesland Church of England Controlled Junior School

LEESLAND CE JUNIOR SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 20 th - 22 nd October 2003

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LEESLAND CE JUNIOR SCHOOL

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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LEESLAND CE JUNIOR 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. Leesland CE Junior School i

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Gordon Road Gosport Hants Postcode: PO12 3QF

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The governing body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Mrs Tracy Nicholls

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 18 May 1998

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

Number on roll 365 (Above average) Pupils entitled to free school meals 13% (Below average) Pupils whose mother tongue is not English 0.0 Pupils on the register of special educational needs 22% (Above average)

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

This is a large junior school serving an area of mixed owner-occupied and rented housing, including some areas with significant social and economic deprivation. Nearly all the pupils are of white British origin and none have English as an additional language. In the last school year 17 pupils joined and 23 left other than at the start of a school year. Around 22 per cent of those who took the 2003 National Curriculum tests for Year 6 did not start school in Year 3. Around a quarter of the pupils who took the tests for Year 6 in 2003 had special educational needs. Pupils with special educational needs mainly have specific or moderate learning difficulties, some have emotional and behavioural problems and others have speech and communication problems. The school is currently working towards the Investors in People award and the building is well used by local community groups. Attainment on entry is well below average.

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Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

14032 Marion Saunders Lay inspector 23658 Stephen Parker Team inspector English; Art and Design; Design and Technology. 19765 Pauleen Shannon Team inspector Geography; History; Religious Education. 10204 David Vincent Team inspector Mathematics; Information and Communication Technology; Music; Physical Education.

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Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

VT Education Ltd Old Garden House The Lanterns Bridge Lane, London SW11 3AD

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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). Leesland CE Junior School iii

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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 6

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

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OVERALL EVALUATION

Leesland Junior School provides a satisfactory quality of education. Pupils’ achievement and progress are satisfactory overall, though this is not enough to raise standards to the expected levels in English and mathematics and writing remains a particular weakness. The leadership of the head, governors and senior staff is good; they have a clear, shared vision and a strong commitment to do the best for all pupils, whatever their ability, gender or cultural background, by helping them to understand how to learn most effectively. Management is satisfactory overall with strengths in the way the school manages the moral and social development of pupils. However, systems for checking how well the school is doing are not rigorous enough and are not used effectively enough as a basis for school improvement planning. Teaching is satisfactory overall, although there is some good teaching in all year groups and some consistently very good teaching in Year 6. The school

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The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are:

• The effective leadership by the head, governors and senior staff has led to a positive school ethos, based on mutual care and respect, in which pupils’ moral and social development are promoted well and behaviour and relationships are good. • Achievement is good in science, information and communication technology (ICT), art, design and technology, geography, history and music. • The school provides a rich curriculum that keeps a good balance between the subjects and includes a good variety of after-school clubs and activities. • Provision for pupils with special educational needs is good, so that they are well supported and achieve well in lessons. • The arrangements for checking how well pupils are doing are not good enough to enable the school to set sufficiently precise targets for individuals to aim for on a regular basis. • The school is not rigorous enough in checking how well it is doing in all areas of its work and

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The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are:

in using such checks as a secure basis for improving provision. • The range and quality of pupils’ writing is below average.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

all schools similar schools Results in National Curriculum tests at the end of Year 6, compared with: 2001 2002 2003 2003

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

English E E E D mathematics D E E C science C E D B 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.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

Achievement overall is satisfactory. Achievement is good in science, ICT, art, design and technology history, geography and music and pupils attain broadly average standards. In English and mathematics achievement is generally satisfactory though standards are below average. Pupils with special educational needs achieve well in lessons. In the 2003 National Curriculum tests at the end of Year 6, the school attained standards that were well below the national average in English and mathematics and below average in science. This represents satisfactory progress and achievement overall, given that pupils enter with standards which are well below average. Of the pupils who attended the school for all four years, nearly 60 per cent progressed the expected two National Curriculum Levels or more in English, 70 per cent did so in mathematics and 93 per cent achieved this in science. Half of these pupils attained the higher Level 5 in science, though only

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

three per cent did so in English and 10 per cent in mathematics. The school did not achieve its Leesland CE Junior School 2 targets for the 2003 tests. The work of the current Year 6 pupils shows that standards in English and mathematics to be below average. Standards in religious education, and physical education are average. There was little evidence of any significant differences in the attainment or achievement of boys and girls in work seen during the inspection.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

Pupils’ attendance, punctuality, attitudes to school and behaviour are good. Overall the school’s provision for pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, social and moral development, is good. Provision for their cultural development is satisfactory.

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION

Teaching is satisfactory overall, although there is some good teaching in all year groups, with some very good teaching in Year 6. Assessment procedures are unsatisfactory because they are not rigorous enough or frequent enough and are not used effectively to set manageable targets for pupils to achieve and build upon. The school provides a rich and varied curriculum, with a good balance between subjects. The provision for pupils’ care, welfare and health and safety is good. The provision for the support and guidance of pupils is satisfactory. The school is very good at involving pupils through seeking, valuing and acting on their views. The school has satisfactory links with parents, the community and partner schools.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and governance are good. The governors, head and staff share a clear vision for the future and want the best for each pupil, whatever their ability, disability, cultural background or gender. They are pledged to maintain a rich and varied curriculum so that all pupils can find an area in which they can be successful. Management is satisfactory overall but systems for checking how well the school is doing are not rigorous enough to show how effective all aspects of its work are, and the impact each aspect has on standards and achievement.

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PARENTS’ AND PUPILS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

Parents have mainly positive views of the school, though some feel that access to staff is not as good as it should be at the end of the day, now that they can no longer go into classrooms directly from the playground. Some are not happy about the consistency of homework. Pupils have positive views of the school, though some think that lessons could be more interesting and others feel that pupils’ behaviour should be better.

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The most important things the school should do to improve are:

• Improve pupils’ writing by having higher expectations of how well they can write, giving them more exciting things to write about and setting very precise targets for improvement on a regular basis. • Improve the systems for checking how well pupils are doing in all subjects, telling individuals regularly and frequently what is good about their work and how to improve it, and basing lesson plans on those targets for improvement. • Increase the rigour with which the school checks how well it is doing in all aspects of its work in order to highlight more precisely where it could do more to help to improve pupils’ achievement and raise standards. Leesland CE Junior School 3

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS

Standards achieved in areas of learning, subjects and courses.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS

Achievement overall is satisfactory . Achievement is good in science, ICT, history, geography and music and pupils attain broadly average standards. In English and mathematics achievement is generally satisfactory though standards are below average. Pupils with special educational needs achieve well in lessons.

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Achievement is good in science, history, geography, ICT, and music, art, and design and technology. • Nearly all pupils, around 93 per cent, who spent all four years in the junior school made at least the expected amount of progress in science between the tests taken in Year 2 in 1999 and those taken in Year 6 in 2003, with half of them exceeding the expected rate of progress. • Around 70 per cent of pupils who spent all four years in the junior school made at least the expected amount of progress in mathematics. • Although achievement is generally satisfactory in English and mathematics, standards remain below average. • Standards in writing are well below average when pupils enter the school and despite broadly satisfactory achievement they remain that way in Year 6.

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Standards in national tests at the end of Year 6 – average point scores in 2003

Standards in: School results National results English 24.03 (25.5) 27.2 (27.0) mathematics 25.17 (25.3) 27.0 (26.7) science 28.31 (27.7) 28.6 (28.3) There were 96 pupils in the year group. Figures in brackets are for the previous year

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Standards in national tests at the end of Year 6 – average point scores in 2003

1. Standards of attainment on entry to the junior school are well below average. Many pupils in Year 3 do not listen carefully during lessons and most read simpler books than usual for their age. Very few pupils write confidently, handwriting is often poorly formed and spelling is generally weak. Many pupils enter school with poor numeracy skills and their social skills are below those normally expected of this age.

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Standards in national tests at the end of Year 6 – average point scores in 2003

2. In the 2003 National Curriculum tests for Year 6, standards were well below average in English and mathematics and below average in science compared with all schools. Compared with schools where pupils attained similar standards in their Year 2 tests, the Leesland pupils were below average in English, average in mathematics and above average in science. In English, standards have been consistently well below average compared with all schools in recent years, although compared with similar schools in 2002 they were average. In mathematics standards have been below average except for 2002 when they dipped to well below average and were below average compared with similar schools. In science standards have fluctuated from below average in 2002 to above average in 2001. Part of the reason for such variations in performance may lie with the numbers of pupils who enter and leave the school without spending all four years here. However,

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Standards in national tests at the end of Year 6 – average point scores in 2003

the school does not have accurate enough tracking information to substantiate this hypothesis. The school did not achieve its targets in the 2003 tests as shown in the table below. Leesland CE Junior School 4

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2003 target achieved

English Level 4 81 61% Level 5 17 5% Maths Level 4 75 63% Level 5 17 16%

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2003 target achieved

3. Of the pupils who took the tests in 2003 and did spend all four years at Leesland, 57 per cent progressed at least the expected two National Curriculum Levels in English but only three per cent progressed by three levels. Writing proved a particular weakness. In mathematics around 70 per cent made at least two levels progress with 10 per cent making three levels. In science, 93 per cent progressed at least two levels with 50 per cent making three levels progress.

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2003 target achieved

4. Of these pupils around 23 per cent had special educational needs which were likely to affect their English results more than those in mathematics, and around 20 of the pupils had readers for the science test to ensure they were not handicapped by being unable to read the questions. Pupils are judged to make satisfactory progress in English and mathematics and good progress in science, given their attainment on entry to school, the progress made between their Year 2 and Year 6 tests, and the work seen during the inspection. However, satisfactory achievement and progress are not enough to ensure that pupils reach the expected standards by Year 6.

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2003 target achieved

5. Only five per cent of pupils gained the higher-than-expected Level 5 in English, which is well below average compared with all schools and compared with similar schools. In mathematics the proportion gaining this level was just under 16 per cent, well below the national average but broadly average compared with similar schools. In science the proportion was 42 per cent, matching the national average and being well above that of similar schools.

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2003 target achieved

6. Boys’ results improved between 1998 and 2002, whilst girls’ results declined in English and mathematics and did not rise as fast as results nationally in science. In English and science boys improved their results faster than boys nationally and in mathematics their results just about kept pace with those nationally. Girls’ results, on the other hand, declined in English and mathematics and did not keep pace with the national improvement in science so that the gap is widened between their results and those achieved nationally for girls. Overall therefore, despite the good improvements of boys in English and science, the overall trend for improvement between 1998 and 2002 was below the national average. The inspection was too early in the Autumn term to allow for such a detailed analysis by gender to see if the 2003 results had altered this picture. There was little evidence during the inspection of significant differences between the achievements and attainment of boys

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2003 target achieved

and girls, although it was noticeable in some lessons that boys tended to dominate question-and- answer sessions, and that teachers were not always aware of this. In some lessons pupils work in single gender groups to try to alleviate the problem, which was identified recently by the school through its monitoring of test results. The school is continuing to monitor the outcomes of this initiative and it seems to be encouraging greater involvement and concentration of the girls.

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2003 target achieved

7. Achievement is good in ICT, history, geography, music, science, art, and design and technology. The school has made good improvements in the provision for ICT so that pupils enjoy their lessons and attain average standards by Year 6. In history and geography, the school goes out of its way to make lessons stimulating and interesting for the pupils. This includes activities to bring the subjects to life through dressing up, acting in role and special events that capture the imagination and interest of the pupils. In music, the school provides plenty of opportunities for pupils to play instruments and to sing in the choir. It enhances the normal lessons with special performances that pupils enjoy taking part in. However, the school misses some good opportunities to encourage writing through other subjects and to capitalise on some of the more imaginative lessons by providing exciting things to write about.

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2003 target achieved

8. Most pupils with special needs are well below national expectations in their writing and mathematical skills. The school works hard to get some pupils to a position where they are ready to Leesland CE Junior School 5 learn. As a result, most make at least satisfactory progress over time. Pupils, who have additional support, make good progress towards their targets and many achieve well in lessons. This is because of the good quality teaching and targeted support they receive from the special needs co- ordinator (SENCO) and the learning support assistants (LSAs).

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

Pupils’ attendance, punctuality and attitudes to school and behaviour are good . Overall the school’s provision for pupils’ personal development, including their social and moral development, is good .

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• The school sets high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. • Pupils have a clear understanding of the principles of right and wrong. • Pupils are keen and responsive. • Pupils do not have enough opportunities to explore their role in a multi-cultural society.

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Commentary

9. The school sets high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. The impact of this is that overall pupils’ behaviour is good and in the most effective lessons, is very good. Pupils move sensibly around the school. Behaviour in the hall at lunchtime is very good. There is a very noticeable improvement in pupils’ behaviour as they get older. They learn to behave in the way that is expected of them by the school, and are less tolerant of poor behaviour in others. Pupils generally feel confident that the school deals effectively with bullying and this is an issue that has been discussed by the school council where suggestions for further improvements have been made. Pupils are trusted to take increasing levels of responsibility as they move through the school. For example, Year 6 pupils staff the entrance desk at lunchtimes.

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Commentary

10. Pupils have a clear understanding of the principles of right and wrong because the school promotes pupils’ social and moral development well through the positive school ethos and good relationships. The school council is very effective in providing pupils with an opportunity to take responsibility for some areas of school life. Adults throughout the school are consistent in their use of rewards and sanctions and most pupils think that they are treated fairly.

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Commentary

11. Pupils are keen and responsive because lessons interest them and a variety of teaching methods is used which take account of individual learning styles. Some pupils, however, think their lessons are not interesting or fun. Pupils have good relationships with the class teachers.

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Commentary

12. Pupils with special educational needs are well catered for within lessons through well focused support. Teachers provide frequent opportunities for pupils to work together and collaborate on common tasks. Pupils enjoy working in this way. A wide range of extra-curricular activities enables many pupils to participate in chosen activities and develop their particular interests and talents.

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Commentary

13. The school provides opportunities to study Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism in line with the Agreed Syllabus for Hampshire. Leesland CE Junior School 6

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Attendance

The attendance rate for 2002 to 2003 was below average and the rate of unauthorised absence was broadly average.

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Attendance in the latest complete reporting year (%)

Authorised absence Unauthorised absence School data 5.9 School data 0.2 National data 5.4 National data 0.4 The table gives the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year.

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Exclusions

There were no exclusions during the last school year.

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL

14. Teaching is satisfactory overall, although there is some good teaching in all year groups, with some very good teaching in Year 6. Assessment procedures are unsatisfactory because they are not rigorous enough or frequent enough and are not used effectively enough to set manageable targets for pupil to achieve and build upon. The school provides a rich and varied curriculum, with a good balance between subjects. The provision for pupils’ care, welfare and health and safety is good . The provision for the support and guidance of pupils is satisfactory . The school is very good at involving pupils through seeking, valuing and acting on their views. The school has satisfactory links with parents, the community and partner schools.

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Teaching and learning

The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall, but assessment procedures are unsatisfactory .

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Pupils achieve well in music, ICT and history because of teachers’ good subject knowledge. • Assessment procedures do not provide full enough information about pupils’ needs on a regular enough basis. • Teachers’ high expectations for behaviour means that pupils learn to work well on their own and with others. • Teaching assistants make a good contribution to learning, particularly that of lower-attaining pupils. • Individual targets are set to guide improvement in pupils’ writing.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very poor 0 5 13 11 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. Leesland CE Junior School 7 15. The impact of teaching is satisfactory overall when account is taken of pupils’ previous work, current levels of achievement and standards reached. The quality of teaching was good or better in six out of every ten lessons in the sample seen. This is similar to the findings of the previous inspection. Teaching has improved in that no unsatisfactory lessons were seen and the proportion of very good teaching has risen to almost two lessons in ten. The very good lessons were all in one Year 6 class and covered a range of subjects.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

16. Teaching is satisfactory in English and mathematics. Teachers in each year group plan together, using the targets and teaching methods recommended by the national strategies. This consistent approach ensures that pupils make sound progress through the school.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

17. Teachers hold pupils’ attention well through brisk questioning at the start of literacy and numeracy lessons to check and develop their understanding. All pupils are fully included in class discussions, so they develop confidence in exploring ideas through talk in these and other subjects. They enjoy writing down answers on their own whiteboards during class instruction. However, planning in other subjects does not always make specific enough links to the current targets in literacy and numeracy of each class.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

18. Teachers’ knowledge of ICT was a weakness noted in the previous report but this has now been improved through recent training. Teachers and assistants give effective instruction and help when pupils have difficulty, so that they stay on task and reach satisfactory standards. It is a strength of planning in all subjects that the role of teaching assistants is clearly identified, with the result that they make a good contribution.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

19. Pupils achieve well in science, mainly because teachers ensure that pupils learn the science facts that they need in order to do well, and pupils enjoy it. Pupils also achieve well in geography, history and music where there is a substantial amount of practical activity. They respond particularly well to the imaginative teaching methods used in history, where staff plan appealing activities such as dressing in historical costume and acting out parts. Teachers make good use of a wide range of resources to illustrate important points in all subjects.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

20. Staff have good relationships with pupils, based on strong encouragement for their achievements and high expectations for their behaviour. The school has recently helped staff and pupils to discover how each individual learns best as part of its initiative to help pupils to learn more effectively. Though potentially useful, it is not clear how this information is to be used to change existing practice and there was little evidence in lessons or in pupils’ books of the impact of this initiative because it is fairly recent. Homework is set regularly but some of the impact is lost because not all parents encourage their children to do it.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

21. Pupils with special educational needs are well taught when they are taken by the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO). Care is taken to ensure that pupils with any physical disabilities, such as impaired vision, are catered for. They participate successfully in lessons. Most learning support assistants (LSAs) are well briefed; consequently they know the pupils’ needs well. They are caring and committed to the children and make a significant contribution to the pupils’ learning. Assessment information is generally used well, to plan the next steps of learning. However, not all teachers refer sufficiently to the pupil’s individual plans or match the work closely enough to the pupils’ previous learning. When this happens pupils struggle.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

22. Assessment procedures are unsatisfactory overall. Teachers have some tests, checklists and guidelines in each subject, but in total these do not provide enough thorough, regular information on pupils’ changing needs. As a result, teachers cannot accurately monitor the effectiveness of their teaching and adjust it where necessary. The lack of a thorough and precise procedure to identify individual needs and track progress in writing is a significant weakness. Leesland CE Junior School 8 23. In some lessons across the range of subjects, tasks are not adjusted finely enough to meet the needs of pupils of differing ability, particularly in the wide and large band classed as ‘average’. At worst, the mismatch means the pupils affected work slowly and are sometimes frustrated. The lack of formal progress records in subjects such as art and ICT makes it difficult for future teaching to challenge all pupils appropriately.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

24. Teachers mark pupils’ work regularly and are successful in giving encouragement to raise their self-esteem. However, marking needs to be followed up more rigorously with tasks that focus on each pupil’s specific needs.

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 29 lessons

25. It is a strength that results of national and optional tests at the end of each year are analysed for trends in English, mathematics and science, and these are clearly explained to staff and governors. It is a good development that each pupil is now given targets to guide improvement in their writing, though some targets are too broad and need refining into small, measurable steps. Individual target setting does not take place in other subjects.

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The curriculum

The school provides a rich curriculum which stimulates pupils to learn.

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Strengths and weaknesses

• The school provides a rich and interesting curriculum. • Provision for children with special needs is a strength. • There is good provision for pupils’ speaking and listening skills, however there are some missed opportunities for pupils to extend their writing skills. • Personal, social and health education (PSHE) is well promoted. • Accommodation and resources contribute well to the learning environment.

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Commentary

26. The school provides a rich, relevant and interesting curriculum, which is taught through many practical first hand experiences. Very good use is made of high quality resources to excite pupils’ imagination.

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Commentary

27. There is considerable enrichment of the curriculum. Many events such as the ‘Roman Feast Day’ really motivate pupils to learn. Pupils benefit from regular visits to places of educational interest and an impressive range of after-school clubs. There are many opportunities to perform in musical and dramatic events and a good range of visitors to add interest. These help pupils to develop their self confidence and talents. Pupils and parents are enthusiastic about the range of experiences available. Whilst lessons are mainly interesting, some pupils find that those over an hour in length are too long, which affects their concentration.

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Commentary

28. Provision for pupils with special needs is good and ensures that they achieve at least satisfactorily. A significant minority are making good progress towards their targets. The SENCO and LSAs, work closely with the teachers to provide a suitable curriculum. The school has a number of imaginative strategies to motivate pupils, such as ‘The funky groovers and movers’ physical skills programme. Daily sessions, run before the school day and during lunchtimes, aimed at improving reading, spelling and typing skills, are well attended.

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Commentary

29. The school is committed to including all pupils in the full range of activities. They have good access to the curriculum whatever their ability, disability, gender, cultural or social background. The school makes every effort to let pupils know that they are valued as individuals. There are many strategies to raise the self esteem of pupils with emotional and behavioural difficulties. The school meets the requirements for disability access. Leesland CE Junior School 9 30. Provision for PSHE is good. Staff provide many opportunities for pupils to work together, and encourage pupils to take on responsibilities. Health education is well promoted through physical education and the science curriculum. There is regular input from the police service and health agencies. Pupils discuss issues such as prejudice, slavery, justice and the changing role of women. Considerable efforts are made to help pupils develop as mature and responsible young people. As a

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Commentary

result, pupils learn to act in a mature and sensible way and parents believe the school does well in this respect.

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Commentary

31. There are good links between subjects, such as English, history and art, with many subjects taught through topics. An impressive feature is the school’s emphasis on developing pupils’ speaking and listening skills in all subjects. Pupils have many opportunities to talk in pairs, make presentations and discuss their ideas. This is helping to raise pupils’ attainment in their speaking and listening skills. There are appropriate opportunities for pupils to use their number, art and computer skills. However, opportunities are missed for pupils to use and extend their writing skills in all subjects.

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Commentary

32. The accommodation is very good, with a good range of resources to support all subjects. The library, computer suite, swimming pool and music rooms are in constant use. Care is taken to provide a bright and attractive environment. There is a lot of encouragement for pupils to do their best as they enter ‘the learning zone’. The grounds are used well, to further children’s achievement in science, environmental awareness, physical development and geography. Overall, the accommodation and resources contribute well to the school’s good learning environment. Some opportunities are missed to display pupils’ writing around the school. The provision for ICT has improved since the previous inspection. It is now good and contributes to pupils achieving well in their computer skills. Staff say that the heating system does not work efficiently, causing great discomfort in the winter.

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Care, guidance and support

The provision for pupils’ care, welfare and health and safety is good . The provision for the support and guidance of pupils is satisfactory . The school is very good at involving pupils through seeking, valuing and acting on their views.

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Pupils feel they have a good and trusting relationship with one or more adults in the school. • There are good procedures to ensure pupils’ health and well being. • Pupils’ views are actively sought and acted upon. • Specific learning targets for individual pupils are not yet in place.

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Commentary

33. Pupils have a good and trusting relationship with one or more adults in the school. They are able to discuss problems that may be preventing them from concentrating on lessons. Pupils with special needs feel able to ask for support when necessary. Pupils talked willingly, confidently and openly to members of the inspection team.

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Commentary

34. Procedures to ensure pupils’ health and safety are effective. Arrangements for first aid ensure that appropriately qualified staff are available and that clear records of accidents are kept. In classes. All staff are familiar with the school policy for child protection. They make effective use of the ‘concern sheets’ to alert the headteacher to those pupils causing concern. Pupils are given opportunities to consider how to stay safe, and they receive appropriate relationship and sex education.

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Commentary

35. Pupils’ views are actively sought and acted upon. The school council is very effective at establishing pupils’ views through circle time and receiving and considering those views. Pupils believe that the school council is effective in achieving change. This has resulted in some changes Leesland CE Junior School 10 in the way school meals are organised and to the introduction of additional activities such as ‘boules’ at lunchtime. Pupils are provided with a wide range of opportunities within lessons to express their views and feel comfortable in doing so. They feel that their views are respected.

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Commentary

36. Pupils with special educational needs are well cared for because the school has a positive learning environment and care is taken to ensure that pupils with special needs are included in all activities. The school has good systems for identifying, assessing and supporting pupils when they enter school. The targets in the education plans are specific and regularly reviewed, however, pupils are not involved sufficiently in the formulation of their own targets.

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Commentary

37. Specific targets for individual pupils are not yet in place, except for writing. This means that pupils do not have a clear enough understanding of what they need to do to improve in each area of learning. Parents are not given a clear enough understanding of how they might help and encourage their child at home.

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Partnership with parents, other schools and the community

The school has satisfactory links with parents, the community and partner schools.

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• The school is working hard to involve parents through valuing and acting on their views, and gives due attention to parents’ concerns and complaints. • The school provides a good range of opportunities for parents to discuss their child’s progress. • Annual reports on pupils’ progress do not include clear targets in all areas.

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Commentary

38. The school is trying to find the most effective means of communicating with parents and to encompass the broad range of views which exist within the parent community. A recent initiative has been the introduction of coffee mornings to allow interested parents to discuss issues and suggestions in greater depth.

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Commentary

39. Parents are provided with good opportunities to talk to teachers about their child’s progress. The annual report on pupils’ progress is provided in the spring term to allow time for the school to address any issues that arise during the year. Annual reports are comprehensive in explaining what pupils can and can’t do and the areas of work covered. They do not yet include specific targets in all subjects, which would enable parents to support their child’s learning at home.

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Commentary

40. Information on what pupils will learn is provided at the start of each school year. It would be helpful to parents for this to be provided on a termly basis so that greater detail of the topics to be studied could be included.

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Commentary

41. The school has developed a range of links with the local community, in particular with the local branch of Barnardos, where the school helps with fundraising, and the charity makes an effective input into the curriculum. Links with neighbouring schools are satisfactory. They include systems to pass on information about pupils’ achievements but do not as yet include particularly strong curriculum links.

p.15

Commentary

42. Parents of pupils with special educational needs are encouraged to be involved. However, many do not attend the regular reviews of their children’s learning. The school keeps parents well informed regarding new targets so that they can help their children at home. At the parents’ meeting, several parents expressed very positive views about the level of support their children received. They commented favourably, on the good communications with the school, concerning their children’s special needs. Leesland CE Junior School 11

p.15

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Leadership and governance are good with governors, head and staff sharing a clear vision of providing the best for each pupil, whatever their ability, disability, cultural background or gender, including a rich and varied curriculum so that all pupils can find an area in which they can be successful. Management is satisfactory overall but has not been good enough to ensure that systems for evaluating all aspects of provision are rigorous enough to determine their impact on standards and achievement.

p.16

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Governors and senior staff are fully committed to including all pupils, whatever their ability, disability, gender or cultural background into the whole life of the school. • The head, governors and staff share a clear vision for the future of the school. • Senior staff and governors share an understanding of the priorities for improvement. • Provision for pupils with special needs is well managed. • The school has helped pupils to understand how they learn best. • Monitoring and evaluating all aspects of provision has not been rigorous or systematic enough.

p.16

Commentary

43. Governance of the school is good. Governors are very clear about the school’s strengths and weaknesses and, in discussions, quoted the same areas as the head, staff and parents. They are fully conversant with the information they receive about the results of National Curriculum tests and are aware how their school compares nationally and with similar schools. They are also very clear that school is about much more than test results and national comparisons. They know they need to keep trying to raise standards but are also very committed to not losing the breadth of the curriculum in the process. Governors have a real concern to ensure that all pupils find something to be successful at in school, even if they struggle with some of their work. They fully support the school in its drive to ensure that learning is interesting and stimulating and that all pupils are valued whatever their academic achievements. They ensure that they meet all their statutory requirements,

p.16

Commentary

although they still had to ratify their draft policy on race equality at the time of the inspection. They are fully involved in school improvement planning.

p.16

Commentary

44. Governors have a clear understanding of the concept of best value, having recently received training, and they understand that value for money is about spending resulting in raising standards and achievement. They keep a close eye on the budget and ensure that funding allocated for specific purposes, like special educational needs, is used appropriately. They ensure that any amounts carried forward from one year to another are reasonable. Given the low attainment on entry to the school, the overall achievement of pupils throughout their four years at Leesland and the overall funding available to the school it provides satisfactory value for money.

p.16

Commentary

45. The head provides good leadership with a clear vision of the kind of school she wants. This includes a clear commitment to meeting individual needs, to ensuring that all pupils find something at which to be successful, and to providing a rich and stimulating curriculum that goes beyond a narrow focus on reading and writing. She shares her vision with the staff, governors and parents to ensure an effective team approach. Staff are fully aware of the need to raise standards to bring pupils up to the expected levels in English and mathematics. They have implemented a range of strategies to do this, including the usual national initiatives like literacy and numeracy hours and the extra support related to these strategies. Having met with limited success in some of these initiatives, the school has been innovative enough to focus on teaching pupils how to learn. This has included helping staff

p.16

Commentary

and pupils to identify their own preferred ways of learning and what this means for how they organise themselves and their work. This initiative is being monitored currently to check its impact on achievement and standards. The school is also trying to establish appropriate links between subjects to make learning more coherent, exciting and interesting. For example, teachers use Leesland CE Junior School 12 history texts in the literacy hour to try to gain pupils’ interest. However, whilst this approach enhances pupils’ learning in history, the school is less successful in using other subjects to stimulate pupils’ interest in writing and help to raise standards. Underpinning the initiative on learning styles is a review of school improvement planning, which is based on a very clear set of values to which all staff and governors are fully committed. With these values as a base the school is now

p.16

Commentary

working to produce a clear improvement plan with measurable targets for the future that will raise standards without compromising the core values of the school. The senior management team share the head’s strong sense of vision and have a clear understanding of the core values of the school and what they mean for teaching, learning, standards and achievement. They understand that outcomes depend upon the quality of provision and that they need to evaluate provision in terms of its impact on how well pupils achieve.

p.17

Commentary

46. Management is satisfactory overall. Whilst there are some strengths in the day-to-day management, and the school runs smoothly, some areas require improvement. The head and senior managers understand the need to monitor the quality of what the school provides and the outcomes that result from that provision. To this end, performance management is effectively in place in line with statutory requirements and the governors’ policy, and all the senior management team have responsibilities in this area. However, systems for using assessment are not rigorous enough. The links between the information provided by assessment results and the provision that might have caused such results are not developed well enough. Consequently, the school cannot effectively trace any shortfalls in how well pupils are doing to the quality of what it provides. This means that it cannot highlight specific areas for improvement in provision precisely enough.

p.17

Commentary

47. The management of special educational needs is good. The co-ordinator gives clear leadership. She has worked with staff to improve the support for special needs within classes. She guides staff by having good systems in place and by providing useful materials. Weekly meetings are held with the LSAs, to check pupils’ progress and provide training as requested. As a result, the team of support staff, is confident and knowledgeable. The governor with responsibility for special needs is kept well informed.

p.17

Financial information for the year April 2003 to March 2003

Income and expenditure (£) Balances (£) Total income 1,018,901.00 Balance from previous year 97,747.00 Total expenditure 971,009.00 Balance carried forward to the next 47,891.00 Expenditure per pupil 2,576.00 Leesland CE Junior School 13

p.17

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Pupils make good progress in speaking and reading. • Standards in writing are too low. • Targets set for individuals are helping to guide their improvement.

p.18

Commentary

48. Standards in the present Year 6 are average in listening, below average in speaking and reading, and well below average in writing. Results of the Year 6 National Curriculum tests have been well below the national average in recent years largely because standards in writing are so much lower than those in reading. In the most recent tests, in 2003, only one pupil in four reached the expected level in writing compared with almost three in four in reading. Pupils in Year 6 are making satisfactory progress in writing compared with their low standards on entry, but the school does not have a clear strategy for raising standards.

p.18

Commentary

49. Standards in the present Year 3 are well below average in the broader range of work outside the national tests. Many pupils do not listen carefully during instruction and some have a very limited range of vocabulary and sentence patterns. A few read at well above the expected level but most read simpler books than usual for their age. Very few pupils write confidently at length. Handwriting is often poorly formed and spelling is generally weak.

p.18

Commentary

50. Pupils make good progress through the school in listening and speaking because teachers work hard to focus their attention and involve them in class discussions in all subjects. By Year 6, they are confident in speaking informally in Standard English, though many find it difficult to explain formal processes, such as cause and effect following a science investigation.

p.18

Commentary

51. Progress in reading fiction is good and most pupils read aloud with expression and understanding by Year 6. The school library is well managed and used effectively to boost interest. Pupils borrow regularly and are helped to choose books that match their ability and interest. They are confident in finding books, though they prefer fiction. Because they lack experience, a significant number of pupils find difficulty in reading non-fiction, particularly instructions.

p.18

Commentary

52. By Year 6, most pupils write in a joined style, though presentation is often untidy. Punctuation is sound but spelling is generally weak. The school is tackling this with additional time each day for spelling practice. Pupils are encouraged to use a dictionary in some lessons, but they need to be trained more rigorously in checking their work for accuracy.

p.18

Commentary

53. It is a significant weakness that pupils throughout the school write slowly and lack confidence. Much of their work is brief and that of lower-attaining pupils is often unfinished. A group in Year 6 commented that they enjoyed writing stories but this was rare. One boy with special needs said he had wanted to finish his story about a dragon but had not been given enough time, and he was disappointed. Leesland CE Junior School 14 54. Girls have performed less well than boys in the National Curriculum tests in recent years, though they outperformed the boys in the 2003 tests. Nevertheless, inspection evidence suggests that girls tend to take less care over correctness and presentation than girls generally, and their performance in writing is closer to that of boys than is usual. Pupils with special needs make sound progress overall because they are helped during class activities and withdrawn at times for intensive

p.18

Commentary

55. Teaching is satisfactory overall. Half the lessons seen were good or better, and one was very good. The remainder were satisfactory. Strengths in teaching include: * Clear explanations of language features, with effective use of the board. * Active involvement of all pupils in writing on their individual whiteboards. * Vigorous questioning, with high expectations for participation. * The support given by teaching assistants to lower-attaining groups. * High expectations for attentiveness and behaviour.

p.19

Commentary

Weaknesses of otherwise satisfactory lessons include: * Too much time spent studying grammar and too little enjoying creative use of language. * Tasks that are not adjusted closely enough to match the needs of pupils of differing abilities, particularly in the large group in each class described as ‘average’. * Too little use of the final review (plenary) to check pupils’ progress and challenge speaking skills.

p.19

Commentary

56. Pupils generally behave well and stick at the tasks they are given. However, in discussion, a group of Year 6 pupils reported that they found English dull. Inspection evidence suggests that the curriculum in all years needs a higher interest level to motivate pupils, for instance through more stories in literacy hour, fewer changes of topic so that pupils have more time to develop confidence, and more opportunities to develop their own ideas in writing.

p.19

Commentary

57. Test results are analysed to identify broad trends and it is a good feature that targets are then set for classes, groups and individuals to guide improvement, particularly in writing. Nevertheless, some individual targets are too broad, and assessment procedures as a whole are not specific enough or used regularly enough. In consequence, teachers lack the ongoing information they need to adjust instruction and tasks to meet the differing needs of pupils as they develop. Marking is usually well aimed to give encouragement, but it needs to be more consistently followed up with focused tasks that tackle pupils’ weaknesses. Print is displayed well throughout the school but more displays of pupils’ work are needed to stimulate their interest and motivate better presentation.

p.19

Language and literacy across the curriculum

58. Satisfactory opportunities to develop reading and writing skills are planned into other subjects, but links with literacy targets need to be stronger. For example, pupils need more structured training and experience in reading for information in other subjects, and expectations for accurate writing need to be more consistent. Pupils achieve well when they plan, improve and correct writing for display, for example, the very good results achieved when Year 5 wrote letters home imagining they were evacuees in World War II. Leesland CE Junior School 15

p.19

MATHEMATICS

Provision in mathematics is satisfactory.

p.20

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Pupils’ achievement and progress are satisfactory as they move through the school, although by Year 6 standards are still below the national average. • Pupils’ attitudes are good throughout the school. • There is thoughtful analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of provision but monitoring of teaching and learning is not good enough. • The school has accurately identified some ways in which the mathematics programme can be improved and is taking suitable steps to address them. • Not all pupils present their work with sufficient care and pride. • The setting arrangement is having a positive impact upon standards and achievement, and lower-attaining pupils are well supported. • The school has a satisfactory range of procedures for checking how well pupils are progressing but does not use them well enough to provide precise, measurable targets for individual pupils, so that they can clearly understand what they need to do to improve.

p.20

Commentary

59. Pupils enter school with numeracy skills that are below average. Whilst attainment at the end of Year 6 is still below average, this constitutes sound overall progress and most pupils achieve satisfactorily in relation to their capabilities. Although pupils achieve satisfactorily overall, problem- solving in mathematics is a weakness. Satisfactory achievement and progress are not enough to raise standards to the expected level by Year 6.

p.20

Commentary

60. Teaching is satisfactory. This is because teachers manage the pupils well and employ a range of interesting techniques in their lessons. There is also a good focus on ensuring that learning proceeds with sound mathematical understanding rather than upon rote techniques. However, there is some variation in the care with which pupils present their work. Figures and words are sometimes written carelessly and some books are interspersed with untidy worksheets. This does not give the appearance of work produced with pride or high aspirations, or of teachers expecting the best from their pupils all the time. Marking and assessment are not used well enough to tell pupils very precisely what they need to do to improve. Teachers do not use marking routinely to set very small measurable targets for pupils to aim for in following lessons.

p.20

Commentary

61. Teaching in some lessons is good because of particularly good subject knowledge, and the ability to develop pupils’ understanding by encouraging them to reason and explain their mathematical thinking. This also helps to promote more effective speaking and listening and social development.

p.20

Commentary

62. Pupils’ attitudes are good throughout the school with almost all showing interest, concentration and maturity. This has a good impact on their learning because the positive attitudes of the pupils mean that most strive to do well and little time is wasted in lessons. Working in groups helps to reinforce the pupils’ social and moral development.

p.20

Commentary

63. Leadership is sound. The subject manager has a clear understanding of her responsibilities, has carefully and thoughtfully analysed information on how well the school is doing and has instigated a number of initiatives designed to improve the school’s performance in mathematics. This has included addressing the trend, in recent years, of boys outperforming girls. Different approaches and ways of grouping pupils, including single gender groups in some lessons, appear to be redressing this difference. Leesland CE Junior School 16 64. The measures to improve the mathematics curriculum are appropriate but there has not been sufficient time for some of their impact to be fully effective. Further refinement is needed so that there is a sharper definition of what teachers need to do to raise achievement. This includes improving the quality of marking, for example, to make pupils more aware of what they need to do to

p.20

Commentary

65. The setting arrangements are having a positive impact upon standards because they help to meet the needs of pupils with differing mathematical attainment. Graded tasks within each lesson further promote work that is suitably matched to pupils’ capabilities. Lower-attaining pupils and those with special educational needs are well supported through the careful match of work to their capabilities and the sensitive support from teachers and from LSAs.

p.21

Mathematics across the curriculum

66. The use of numeracy skills to support the work in other subjects is satisfactory. There are some useful links with work in ICT, for example, when pupils produce graphs on the computer. The school is developing ways in which such links can be strengthened further and mathematical approaches applied in other subjects to reinforce learning and raise standards.

p.21

SCIENCE

Provision in science is satisfactory overall.

p.21

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• The 2003 National Curriculum tests for Year 6 show a slight improvement in standards on the previous year. • Of the pupils who spent all four years at the school nearly all made at least the expected two National Curriculum Levels progress since taking the tests in Year 2 and half of them improved by three levels. • A good proportion of pupils, 41 per cent, gained the higher than expected Level 5. • Pupils make good progress in learning facts about the science topics they study but they do not make enough progress in learning the skills they need to plan, organise and evaluate their own scientific investigations.

p.21

Commentary

67. The work in pupils’ books shows a good coverage of the scientific facts they need to do well in the National Curriculum tests, and a systematic progression year on year to build upon earlier learning. The work seen showed no obvious differences in the attainment or achievements of boys and girls, or of pupils of different cultural backgrounds. Pupils with special needs appear to achieve as well as most other pupils. All pupils appear to achieve well in their knowledge of scientific facts.

p.21

Commentary

68. The work also showed that all pupils, regardless of ability, appear to do much the same work in much the same way. There was very little indication of tasks being targeted at different ability groups, based on a rigorous analysis of their individual needs. However, the proportion gaining the higher-than-expected Level 5 in the national tests would seem to show good achievement for the higher-attaining pupils. The low proportion not reaching the expected level suggests good achievement for lower-attaining pupils, including those with special educational needs.

p.21

Commentary

69. There were some good examples of marking telling pupils what was good about their work and how to make it better but these were the exception rather than the rule. Procedures for checking how well pupils are doing are satisfactory. They include a useful tick list of skills acquired. However, there is no indication that the results of such checks and records are used on a regular and systematic basis to set very precise and measurable targets for individual improvement or that they have much influence on the planning of future work. The results of assessments are not used as a Leesland CE Junior School 17 basis for evaluating the quality of provision, to check where it could be better, linking such evaluations to a subject or whole school improvement plan, or to the school’s performance management cycle.

p.21

Commentary

70. The discussion with pupils and the work in their books confirms that teachers provide many practical activities for pupils in science. Pupils like this approach but they expressed some reservations about the way teachers prescribe the task, the methods, and the equipment and reinforce comprehensively what pupils are going to do, rather than letting them make some of these decisions for themselves. Some said that teachers take so long explaining what the pupils are going to do that they lose interest before they get started.

p.22

Commentary

71. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to develop the skills of scientific investigation. Because the questions, activities, methods and equipment are all provided for them they are not developing the skills, and gaining the experience they need, to plan, conduct and evaluate their own investigations and experiments. In discussions with pupils at Year 6, it was clear that they did not really appreciate the idea of a fair test in scientific terms.

p.22

Commentary

72. It was only possible to see one lesson being taught during the inspection and whilst it was broadly satisfactory it did appear to confirm much of what the pupils and the work scrutiny suggested. It was a practical session but the teacher set all the activities and there was very little scope for pupils to take the initiative and organise their own learning. The lesson did, however, include good opportunities for pupils to work together, share equipment and develop their social skills.

p.22

Commentary

73. The science co-ordinator had only held that post for a few weeks before the inspection. She is committed to continuous improvement, and to making the learning more exciting and interesting for the pupils. However, she had not used those few weeks prior to the inspection to gain a clear view of the subject’s strengths and weaknesses, and to draw up an initial list of priorities for the future. She had little idea of how well pupils had done in the 2003 tests and had done no analysis of test results to show which aspects of the tests had gone better than others. Leadership and management are good enough to show the vision and the management needed to arrange for around twenty pupils to have readers for the science test in 2003 to make sure they were not hindered in their achievements in science by their lack of reading ability. Overall, while leadership shows a satisfactory commitment to improvement, the management does not match this and the

p.22

Commentary

clarity of thinking is not good enough to drive the subject on to further improvements.

p.22

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Achievement is good and standards by Year 6 are similar to those found nationally. • The co-ordinator provides sound leadership. • The programme has been broadly defined but needs to be further refined in order to ensure that teachers know precisely what to teach, and when, and that skills, knowledge and understanding are built more systematically. • A significant investment in resources and teacher training has made a good impact upon standards and achievement. • The availability of a computer suite makes an important contribution to the effectiveness of learning but the area is somewhat cramped and too warm at times. Leesland CE Junior School 18 • There is no system in place for rigorously measuring pupils’ progress and ensuring that each pupil covers every element of the programme. • The school is actively engaged in promoting the use of ICT to support other subjects in the curriculum. • The school has made a good response to the shortcomings identified in the previous Ofsted

p.22

Commentary

74. Achievement is good. Many pupils enter school with limited experience of computers but skills and knowledge are built incrementally as pupils move through the school, and most reach standards that are securely in line with those expected nationally across all elements of the subject by Year 6.

p.23

Commentary

75. Leadership of the subject is sound. This is because the subject manager is committed to improvement and demonstrates a clear, longer-term vision for the subject. He has thoughtfully analysed the requirements of the subject and has instigated a number of initiatives designed to raise standards. In spite of this significant recent improvement in the provision for ICT, there is no sense of complacency. The monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning in ICT are limited, however.

p.23

Commentary

76. The school has put in place guidance for teachers which broadly defines the programme they should follow to ensure full coverage of the National Curriculum requirements. However, this is not detailed or specific enough to ensure that all teachers know precisely what should be covered and when. Teaching is satisfactory because teachers have the confidence to teach basic skills and help pupils to learn how to open and close programs, work through various elements of ICT, print and save their work and log off again. However, there is no cohesive system for assessing pupils’ progress. Consequently, there is little evidence of different abilities being given different tasks to match their prior learning, or of pupils being given precise individual targets for improvement.

p.23

Commentary

77. The availability of the computer suite makes an important contribution to the effectiveness of learning since it allows direct teaching of skills to be followed by immediate, hands-on experience for all pupils in the class. The room is somewhat confined and, at times, the heat generated by the machines leads to uncomfortable working conditions.

p.23

Commentary

78. The school has made a good response to the shortcomings identified at the time of the last inspection. Standards are higher, progress is now satisfactory, the programme is better defined and resources have been considerably improved. These measures have helped to raise standards and improve achievement.

p.23

Information and communication technology across the curriculum

79. The use of ICT to support the work in other subjects is satisfactory. Graph work in mathematics and the use of the Internet to research historical topics help to reinforce ICT skills whilst also making an important contribution to learning across the subjects. The school is in the process of specifying more precisely where ICT should be used in each subject. The range of associated software is being improved and the computers in classrooms are being networked.

p.23

HUMANITIES

Provision in religious education is satisfactory .

p.23

HUMANITIES

By the end of Year 6, pupils’ achievement is satisfactory. Attainment matches the requirements of the locally Agreed Syllabus. There was too little evidence to make a judgement about the quality of teaching and learning. Of the two lessons observed, one was satisfactory and the other very good.

p.23

Main strengths and weaknesses:

Leesland CE Junior School 19 • Religious education makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. • Religious education makes a satisfactory contribution to pupils’ knowledge of different faiths and cultures. • Good use is made of high quality resources and books to stimulate interest. There is less evidence of pupils’ use of computers. • Although pupils develop their listening and speaking skills, they do no have enough opportunities to extend their writing skills.

p.24

Commentary

80. The curriculum makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. Pupils are encouraged to write their own prayers and think about why prayer is important in different religions. They are given opportunities to consider sensitive issues such as how religion can help create a community, but also create conflict. For example, in a very well taught lesson, Year 6 pupils explored sensitive issues relating to the Holocaust while learning about Jewish family Shabbat rituals. Pupils’ personal views and experiences are valued. Consequently, pupils are comfortable to share their own religious experiences and to ask sensitive questions.

p.24

Commentary

81. Religious education makes a satisfactory contribution to pupils’ knowledge of different faiths and cultures. Pupils have appropriate knowledge and understanding of the significance of religious practices in Christianity and Judaism. They have some knowledge of Hinduism, based on their topic work on India but it is less detailed than their knowledge of the other two religions and pupils struggle to recall and use the correct vocabulary. There are no visits to non- Christian places of worship. This is the same position as at the time of the previous inspection.

p.24

Commentary

82. The use of high quality resources stimulates pupils’ enthusiasm. In a lesson on Judaism, handling religious objects helped pupils to focus and talk about their learning. This was particularly beneficial to pupils with special educational needs. However, pupils do not have enough opportunities to use ICT.

p.24

Commentary

83. Whilst the school covers the Agreed Syllabus, last year’s work shows that very little written work is required. The focus is on speaking and listening. Pupils are given time to talk in small groups and to share their ideas and views with the rest of the class. There are some good examples of pupils recording their ideas as a group and presenting them. However, this lack of emphasis on written recording of work means that pupils have limited opportunities to extend their writing skills. Pupils’ written work is not displayed and teachers do not have high enough expectations of pupils’ presentation in books. The more able pupils are capable of writing more than they are required to.

p.24

Commentary

84. Leadership and management are broadly satisfactory. The co-ordinator is committed and enthusiastic but there is little opportunity for monitoring how well the school is doing in religious education.

p.24

HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY

Provision for history and geography was not a focus area for this inspection. Sampling suggests that the good provision and standards at the time of the previous inspection have been maintained. However, there was too little evidence to make a judgement about the quality of teaching and learning. Leesland CE Junior School 20

p.24

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Achievement in history and geography is good and by Year 6 pupils attain the national average. Pupils with special needs get good support and achieve well. • Pupils experience a rich and interesting curriculum, which excites them and motivates them to learn. • There is good provision for pupils’ speaking and listening skills, however there are missed opportunities for pupils to extend their writing skills. • Both subjects make a significant contribution to pupils’ social and cultural development. • Both subjects are well led.

p.25

Commentary

85. In both subjects pupils’ achievement is good and by Year 6 pupils reach standards in line with the national average. Although much of the history and geography curriculum is approached through topics, attention is paid to building skills progressively. Discussion with Year 6 pupils showed that they have a secure grasp of both map work and the characteristics of their local area. They are beginning to understand the impact of tourism on the lives of people in Brazil, Britain and India. Pupils with special needs have good support in lessons. Consequently they take a full part in them and most achieve well. In a Year 4 geography lesson, the teacher’s good behaviour management, helped a group of pupils with behavioural difficulties to stay focused.

p.25

Commentary

86. The school provides an interesting curriculum that fires the pupils’ imagination. Year 4 pupils showed great excitement during their ‘Roman Feast Day’. Year 6 pupils talk with real enthusiasm about their history work on the Tudors and Victorians and also their geography work on Brazil. Both subjects make a significant contribution to pupils’ social and cultural development and awareness of the wider world.

p.25

Commentary

87. There is a clear focus on using high quality resources. Pupils in Year 3 gasped on first seeing a selection of historical objects about Egypt. They were keen to investigate and learn more. The school also has a good range of visits and visitors, to capture pupils’ imagination.

p.25

Commentary

88. Writing and number skills are generally used appropriately, with pupils using the library and internet for research. When folders on Brazil and work concerning evacuation are displayed, they are of a high standard. However, these are an exception. Pupils’ written work is not regularly displayed and teachers do not have high enough expectations of pupils’ presentation in books. The more able pupils are capable of writing more than they are required to. Speaking skills are well promoted. Pupils are encouraged to talk about what they are doing, discuss in small groups and make presentations. Acting sessions are used well, to bring facts to life and stimulate interest in the lives of people who lived in the past.

p.25

Commentary

89. Leadership is good because the profile of both subjects has been significantly raised, resulting in an interesting and relevant curriculum. Management remains satisfactory because co- ordinators do not have regular opportunities to monitor teaching and learning.

p.25

Art, design and technology, music and physical education

Provision for art, design and technology, music and physical education was not a focus area for this inspection. Sampling shows that provision for music is good and that for art is satisfactory. There was too little evidence to make a judgement on overall provision in design and technology or about the quality of teaching and learning in other subjects. Leesland CE Junior School 21

p.25

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Provision is well planned to develop skills across a wide range of media. • Good links are made with other subjects. • Closer monitoring is needed to ensure that pupils make consistent progress through the school.

p.26

Commentary

90. One lesson and one part lesson were seen in art, together with a small sample of current work. This indicates that standards meet national expectations by the end of Year 6, and they have been maintained at this level since the previous inspection.

p.26

Commentary

91. The lesson seen in Year 5 was well planned and resourced, with the result that all pupils, including those with special needs, made good progress in skills and understanding. They had been carefully taught to appreciate the work of L S Lowry, so were confident in planning and painting street scenes in his style. The approach encouraged them to imagine social conditions at the end of World War II, making a good contribution to their learning in their current history topic. Pupils appreciate such links between subjects, and a group from Year 6 said they had particularly enjoyed painting scenery for last year’s Shakespeare production. However, work seen in one Year 6 lesson was not challenging enough for pupils with the potential for higher attainment, who were mainly involved in a cutting and pasting activity. By contrast, other pupils in the lesson were given good guidance in mixing colours in sensitive shades to show various skin colours.

p.26

Commentary

92. The co-ordinator has developed a useful set of examples of pupils' work across the age and ability range to guide teachers' planning and judgement of standards. Nevertheless, teachers' subject knowledge and expectations are not consistently high across all classes in each year, and closer monitoring of provision is needed.

p.26

Design and technology

93. No lessons were seen and not enough evidence was available for a secure judgement to be made on standards in Year 6 or on the quality of teaching and learning overall. Planning shows that pupils' skills are developed over a broad range of topics. Pupils in Year 4 last year made colourful and well finished models of fish from wire and papier-mâché. Pupils in Year 5 reach the expected standard in making pictures move in different ways in pop-up books, building well on techniques learned in Year 3.

p.26

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Achievement is good and standards by Year 6 are similar to those found nationally. • Pupils’ attitudes are good and they enjoy their music lessons and activities. • The programme provides a range of musical experiences for pupils which enriches their experience and raises their confidence and self-esteem. Leesland CE Junior School 22

p.26

Commentary

94. Most pupils in Year 6 are on course to reach the expected standards. It is clear that music has a strong place in the curriculum and that there is proper coverage of the elements required by the National Curriculum. Pupils sing accurately, tunefully and expressively. Given that many pupils enter the school with limited musical experiences, the standards reached constitute good achievement.

p.27

Commentary

95. There is a strong commitment to providing a rich musical curriculum both within and beyond lessons. Opportunities for pupils to learn to play guitar, violin, trumpet, clarinet, flute, recorders and drums are available and involve a significant number of pupils. Extra-curricular activities include dance, drama, orchestra and a choir. The school regularly organises productions that include a large number of pupils and embrace singing, dancing and instrumental music. These productions are of good quality and do much to enrich pupils’ experience and to raise their confidence and self- esteem. Pupils have a positive attitude to music. They participate with obvious enjoyment and discuss their work with animation and enthusiasm.

p.27

Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Standards at the end of Key Stage 2 are similar to those found nationally. • Achievement is satisfactory. • The facilities and accommodation for physical education are good.

p.27

Commentary

96. Standards in those aspects observed are similar to the range generally expected for pupils of similar age. Although the number of lessons observed during the inspection was small, overall evidence confirms that physical education has a secure place in the curriculum and that all elements of the required programme are included.

p.27

Commentary

97. Pupils make sound progress as they move through the school and achievement is satisfactory because teachers follow a programme which builds skills and confidence steadily.

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Commentary

98. The school has very good outdoor facilities, including hard surfaced areas and a grassed playing field. The hall is somewhat small but is satisfactory for gymnastics and dance. The availability of a swimming pool within the school complex enables pupils in every year group to attend swimming lessons. This has a good impact on attainment, with over 90 per cent of Year 6 pupils on course to reach the swimming standards expected by the National Curriculum.

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Main strengths and weaknesses:

• Personal, social and health education (PSHE) has a high profile in the curriculum and through the life of the school. • Pupils become mature and responsible. • Staff provide good role models for responsible and caring citizenship. Leesland CE Junior School 23

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Commentary

99. Evidence was drawn mainly from discussions with pupils and teachers and study of planning documents, together with part of one lesson seen in Year 3.

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Commentary

100. Aspects of PSHE and citizenship are thoroughly covered through a combination of specific lessons, school assemblies and topics in other subjects. For instance, sex education and drugs awareness are taught in science. There is no single policy or scheme of work drawing these strands together, but teachers are given good guidance in planning appropriate activities. They have had recent training in organising ‘circle time’ sessions, where pupils are introduced to issues of concern through focused games, activities and discussion.

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Commentary

101. The effectiveness of such training was seen in the Year 3 lesson, where pupils made good progress in learning to concentrate hard in silence while co-operating on a precise task. All were actively involved, even though some had found it difficult to concentrate in other lessons. Pupils interviewed in Year 6 showed a good awareness of the responsibilities of citizenship and strong moral values in condemning anti-social behaviour. The school has helped them to understand themselves better through an interesting recent initiative. This involved using tests to reveal which approach to learning is most effective for each individual, whether through hearing, seeing or practical activity. They do not, though, fully understand how they should best use this new information about themselves.

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Commentary

102. Staff create good opportunities for pupils to take initiatives in the wider life of the school. Pupils raise substantial funds for charities. They learn to work in a team through such initiatives as building ‘robot wars’ models and role play in history. The school council is becoming increasingly important to them, as they learn about the democratic process through voting for council members then making their views known. Overall, provision makes a good contribution to pupils’ personal development and attitudes towards school. Leesland CE Junior School 24

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The overall effectiveness of the school 4

How inclusive the school is 3 How the school’s effectiveness has changed since its last inspection 4 Value for money provided by the school 4

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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

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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 3 Enrichment of the curriculum, including out-of-school activities 3 Accommodation and resources 3 Pupils’ care, welfare, health and safety 3 Support, advice and guidance for pupils 4 How well the school seeks and acts on pupils’ views 2 The effectiveness of the school’s links with parents 4 The quality of the school’s links with the community 4 The school’s links with other schools and colleges 4

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The leadership and management of the school 4

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

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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).

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