St Mary and St John Church of England Primary School

SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 8 th – 11 th March 2004

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SCHOOL

Inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 2 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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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. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Primary School category: Voluntary aided Age range of pupils: 5 – 11 Gender of pupils: Mixed Number on roll: 303

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Hertford St Oxford Oxfordshire Postcode: OX4 3AJ

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Telephone number: 01865 248865 Fax number: 01865 725156

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: Governing body Name of chair of governors: Mrs R Conway

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 11 th – 14 th May 1998

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

SS Mary and John Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is larger than other primary schools and has 303 pupils on roll. Most pupils are white of United Kingdom heritage, but 71 pupils come from a Pakistani background, 35 from a mixed white and black or Asian background, and 17 from any other white background. Eighty-seven pupils are supported under the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant and 18 are at the early stages of speaking English, which is higher than in most schools. Around 11 per cent of pupils are entitled to free school meals, which is broadly average. Thirty-six pupils have special educational needs, which is below average. The main needs are social, emotional and behavioural, severe learning difficulties, specific learning difficulties and physical difficulties. Seven pupils have Statements of Special Educational Needs, which is broadly average. A below average number of pupils join or leave the school at other than the normal times

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

during the year. Attainment on entry to school varies year-by-year. This year it is at expected levels.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

There is a local education authority Reading Centre on site that provides places for up to seven pupils with specific learning difficulties. This centre includes an outreach support service for primary schools throughout the county. The provision provided by the centre has been inspected, but the management of the centre has not because it is managed by the local education authority. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

2905 David Shepherd Lead inspector Science Geography History Physical education 8991 Pamela Goldsack Lay inspector 22657 Mark Madeley Team inspector Mathematics Foundation Stage English as an additional language 33082 Jan Hilary Team inspector English Art and design Design and technology Music 2746 Roy Lund Team inspector Information and communication technology (ICT) Special educational needs

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Altecq Education Ltd 102 Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7JX

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be made initially to the 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.ofsted.gov.uk). SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 5

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 8

Standards achieved in areas of learning, subjects and courses

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 8

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL 11

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

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS 31

SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 6

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OVERALL EVALUATION

SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School provides a satisfactory education for its pupils and gives satisfactory value for money . The achievement of pupils is satisfactory overall. Most pupils are expected to reach the nationally expected standards by the end of Year 6. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. Leadership and management are satisfactory.

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The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are:

• Standards in English and mathematics are above average in Year 6. • Provision for pupils’ personal development is good and pupils’ attitudes and behaviour are good. • A good range of additional clubs and activities is provided for pupils. • The marking of pupils’ work does not indicate what pupils need to do to improve. • On occasions, tasks are not set at the correct levels for higher and lower attaining pupils. • Data from the assessment of pupils’ progress is not used well enough to raise standards. • Computers are not used often enough across the curriculum. • Attendance is unsatisfactory and below average.

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The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are:

The school has changed its status from a first to a primary school since the last inspection. It now has pupils in Years 5 and 6. This is the first year that the school has had Year 6 pupils on roll. The school has gone through a period of significant change during the last twelve months as it relocated pupils aged 7 – 11 years into the former middle school building on a separate site just over a mile away from where pupils aged 5 – 7 years are taught.

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The school’s main strengths and weaknesses are:

In spite of this upheaval, the school has made satisfactory improvement since its last inspection when it had pupils aged 5 – 9 years on roll. Teaching and learning and leadership and management have improved since the last inspection. Most of the key issues identified at that time have been corrected, with the exception of marking.

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STANDARDS ACHIEVED

Achievement is satisfactory overall. Pupils at the school are in Year 6 for the first time and no previous National Curriculum test data is available. Consequently, data from Year 2 pupils is included here.

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Year 2 results

all schools similar schools Results in National Curriculum tests at the end of Year 2, compared with: 2001 2002 2003 2003 reading C D C C writing D D C C mathematics D B D D Key: A - well above average; B – above average; C – average; D – below average; E – well below average Similar schools are those with similar percentages of pupils eligible for free school meals

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Year 2 results

In the 2003 the attainment of these pupils on entry to the reception class school was below average. Since that time, they have achieved well in reading and writing and at satisfactory levels in mathematics. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 7 Overall, children start school with average levels of attainment. However, pupils in Years 1, 3 and 4 started school with below average levels of attainment. Children achieve satisfactorily in the reception class and, by the time they enter Year 1, reach average standards in all areas of learning for children of this age. The achievement of pupils throughout the school is satisfactory overall. Standards in reading, writing and mathematics in Year 2 are at expected levels and those in science above those levels. From the information available, the trend of improvement in English and mathematics over the past five years for pupils in Year 2 is broadly similar to that in other schools.

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Year 2 results

Standards in English and mathematics in Year 6 are above expected levels, and those in science at those levels. The achievement of higher- and lower-attaining pupils is satisfactory overall, but they are sometimes set tasks that are not matched to their levels of ability and this limits their achievement. Pupils with English as an additional language achieve well and make good progress in learning English when they receive specialist teaching and their achievement is satisfactory on other occasions.

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Year 2 results

Pupil’s personal development is good . Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good . Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to school are good . Their attendance is unsatisfactory and their punctuality satisfactory .

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION

The quality of education provided by the school is satisfactory . Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall with some good features. The school assesses pupils’ attainment against National Curriculum standards well, but does not use this data well enough to help raise standards. Tasks are sometimes not planned at the correct levels for pupils of high or low attainment. Marking does not provide pupils with enough information about how they can improve. The curriculum is satisfactory, but the school provides pupils with good opportunities for enrichment. The school provides pupils with satisfactory levels of care and good levels of personal support and guidance. The school has good links with the community and other schools and satisfactory links with parents.

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LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

The leadership and management provided by the school are satisfactory . The headteacher provides satisfactory leadership and receives good support in this from the assistant headteachers. Subject leadership is satisfactory . Governors are supportive of the school and governance is satisfactory .

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PARENTS’ AND PUPILS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

The majority of parents are satisfied with the school, but a significant minority brought a number of concerns to the attention of inspectors. Inspectors agree with the concerns expressed about the inconsistencies in setting homework throughout the school, but not with the other concerns raised. Leadership and management are judged satisfactory, parents are well informed about their children’s progress, and annual reports are of good quality. The school provides pupils with a good range of activities including visits to places of interest and after-school clubs and activities.

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IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED

The most important things the school should do to improve are: • Plan tasks more consistently for higher- and lower-attaining pupils that are closely matched to their abilities. • Use data from the assessments of pupils’ progress to raise standards and ensure that marking indicates to pupils what is good about their work and what they need to do to improve. • Use computers more to help learning across the curriculum. • Improve attendance. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 8

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Standards achieved in areas of learning, subjects and courses

Overall, pupils’ achievement is satisfactory standards are average .

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils in Year 6 reach standards in English and mathematics that are above nationally expected levels. • Pupils in Year 2 reach standards in science that are above nationally expected levels. • Standards in investigative science are below expected levels.

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Foundation Stage

1. Overall, attainment on entry is at nationally expected levels. However, this is not the case for pupils in Years 1, 3 and 4 where attainment on entry was below average. A feature of pupils’ attainment at the school is that a few higher-attaining pupils are very able and talented in specific aspects of the curriculum, while a minority of pupils are unable to speak English well enough to follow the curriculum without specialist help. During their time in reception, pupils receive teaching that is satisfactory and their achievement is satisfactory. The majority of pupils join Year 1 with standards expected of pupils of this age in all areas of learning and a few with standards above those levels. However, a few pupils, particularly those who are learning English from scratch, do not reach these standards, especially in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Key Stage 1

2. Standards in National Curriculum tests over the past four years in Year 2 have varied year-by- year, but, overall, have followed the national trend. The results achieved in 2003 were average in reading and writing, and below average in mathematics. Given that these pupils joined school with standards that were below average overall, the results indicate that the achievement of these pupils was good in reading and writing and satisfactory in mathematics. The following table indicates the standards achieved.

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Key Stage 1

Standards in national tests at the end of Year 2 – average point scores in 2003

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Key Stage 1

Standards in: School results National results reading 16.1 (15.4) 15.7 (15.8) writing 15.0 (14.0) 14.6 (14.4) mathematics 15.9 (17.2) 16.3 (16.5) There were 35 pupils in the year group. Figures in brackets are for the previous year.

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Key Stage 1

3. The achievement of pupils in Year 2 is good. This is because the teaching and learning in these classes are consistently good. Both teachers in Year 2 are new to the school this year and are having a significant impact on raising standards in all subjects. Inspection evidence indicates that standards in reading, writing and mathematics are at expected levels and those in science above those levels. The achievement of pupils in Year 1 is satisfactory because the teaching and learning are not as good as in Year 2. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 9

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Key Stage 2

4. The achievement of pupils in Year 6 is satisfactory. Standards in English and mathematics are above expected levels. This represents satisfactory achievement overall since these pupils were in Year 2 when their attainment in English and mathematics was above average at that time. The school has set itself realistic targets in English and mathematics for these pupils to achieve by the end of Year 6. Standards in science are at expected levels, but standards in investigative science are below expected levels because pupils are not given enough opportunities to use their initiative and plan their own investigations. The achievement of pupils in Years 3 to 5 is satisfactory overall and standards are at expected levels. Overall, this represents a satisfactory picture of achievement given the turbulent circumstances at the school during the past two years. During this time, four out of the seven teachers in Years 3 to

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Key Stage 2

6 have been appointed and are new to the school and it has taken time for them to settle into school routines and teaching the school’s programmes of work. In addition, pupils in Years 3 to 6 moved from the Hertford Street site to the one in Meadow Lane. While this move went smoothly, the packing and unpacking during the summer term 2003 caused disruption to the education of these pupils. These two factors, although managed well, have had an adverse effect on pupils’ learning, but, nonetheless, their achievement is judged satisfactory.

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Key Stage 2

5. Throughout the school, the achievement of pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. They make satisfactory progress in achieving the learning targets that are set for them in their individual programmes of work. When they receive help in their work from the specialist teacher or teaching assistants, they make good progress. However, when this help is not available, with the exception of mathematics, tasks are occasionally set for them that are too hard and they do not achieve as well as they should on these occasions. The achievement of higher-attaining pupils is satisfactory overall, but that of a few of the highest-attaining pupils is unsatisfactory. These pupils occasionally know the content of the lesson before it is taught and they are not set tasks that cause them to deepen their understanding of the topic. Their time is often wasted in these lessons. In Years 2 and 6, the achievement of both these groups

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Key Stage 2

of pupils is good overall because they receive good help from their teachers and teaching assistants that encourages them to work at the levels at which they are capable. Pupils with English as an additional language receive good help from the specialist teacher at the school and teaching assistants. On these occasions, they make good progress in learning English and achieve well. However, they do not achieve as well as this when the specialist help is not available to them. Their achievement on these occasions is satisfactory and not good because the tasks set for them are occasionally too hard for them. Overall, the achievement of pupils in the early stages of learning English is satisfactory.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

Pupils’ attitudes are good and their behaviour is satisfactory . Their personal development, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is good . Pupils’ attendance is unsatisfactory and their punctuality is satisfactory .

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils work hard and like school very much and this helps them learn. • Relationships are good and this promotes racial harmony effectively. • Provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. • The attendance rate continues to be well below the national average.

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Commentary

6. The majority of pupils have positive attitudes towards their work and respond well to all that the school has to offer. In lessons, they are attentive and ask and answer questions readily. After- school clubs are popular and well supported by pupils. Throughout the inspection, there was a SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 10 clear link between high quality teaching and enthusiastic responses from pupils. Parents’ and pupils’ responses to the pre-inspection questionnaire confirm that pupils like school. Pupils’ positive attitudes towards their work help them to learn well and make good progress. This is an improvement since the last inspection.

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Commentary

7. Behaviour is satisfactory overall. The school is an orderly and friendly community. The school promotes moral development well and pupils are well aware of what is expected of them. Lessons in personal, social and health education enable pupils to understand the importance of good behaviour and treating each other fairly. Each class agrees its own rules at the beginning of each year in accordance with the school rules and includes a fair and effective system of rewards and sanctions. The few instances of unsatisfactory behaviour in lessons are related to teaching that lacks interest and challenge, and where the management of pupils’ behaviour is unsatisfactory. Bullying occurs in the school from time-to-time. The school has procedures for dealing with it, but these are not always effective, because some bullying re- occurs, often among girls. During the inspection there was no evidence of bullying. Overall,

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Commentary

parents are pleased with the behaviour of the pupils.

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Commentary

8. Pupils grow in confidence and maturity as a result of the school’s good provision for their social development. This is an improvement since the last inspection. The school council, comprised of two pupils from each class in Years 3 to 6, is an effective forum for pupils to work together for the good of the whole school. Pupils are confident that their views are valued and they contribute to discussions about aspects of the school willingly. Year 6 pupils successfully run a tuck shop with healthy snacks during morning break. The tuck shop was established in response to pupils’ concerns about the length of the morning session. This illustrates how well the school values and acts on pupils’ views. Pupils, including those with special educational needs, feel valued by their teachers. They are involved and motivated in lessons. Pupils with special educational needs feel supported by their teachers and teaching

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Commentary

assistants and say they are not made to feel different by them or by the other pupils.

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Commentary

9. Pupils’ spiritual and cultural development is good. Pupils are provided with opportunities to reflect on human values in assemblies and in lessons. For example, in a geography lesson during the inspection, Year 6 pupils were learning about life in Ghana in preparation for a visit from a representative from an African children’s charity. During this lesson, pupils showed empathy for those less fortunate than themselves by reflecting on their daily lives and comparing them with their own. Pupils are interested in each other’s backgrounds and relationships are good. All pupils of whatever ability, race or gender are fully included in all aspects of the school. The school places a high value on the cultural diversity of its pupils and this is acknowledged by parents. Different religious and cultural festivals are celebrated well throughout the year along with traditional British events, such as harvest festival and

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Commentary

Remembrance Day. There are several displays around school illustrating ethnic and religious diversity around the world and pupils’ study of the world’s faiths enables them to compare and contrast different religious and cultural traditions and beliefs. Pupils are prepared well for life in our multi-cultural society, Provision for pupils’ personal development in the reception class is satisfactory.

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Attendance

10. Attendance is below the national average and has not improved since the last inspection. A significant minority of families visit their home countries during term time. Many of these visits are for an extended period of time and sometimes result in the pupils being taken off roll. Despite the school’s efforts to provide work while they are abroad, pupils’ learning, particularly in speaking English, deteriorates as a result of these absences. Attendance figures are also adversely affected by a minority of parents who take their children on holiday during term time. Overall, the school does not do enough to promote the importance of good attendance. Punctually is satisfactory and pupils generally arrive on time and any lateness is usually the result of traffic delays. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 11 Attendance in the latest complete reporting year (%)

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Attendance

Authorised absence Unauthorised absence School data: 7.0 School data : 0.5 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

11. There were two exclusions during the last school year. The issues surrounding these have been resolved.

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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 151 0 0 White – Irish 2 0 0 White – any other White background 17 0 0 Mixed – White and Black Caribbean 9 0 0 Mixed – White and Black African 2 0 0 Mixed – White and Asian 4 1 0 Mixed – any other mixed background 20 1 0 Asian or Asian British – Indian 2 0 0 Asian or Asian British – Pakistani 71 0 0 Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 2 0 0 Asian or Asian British – any other Asian background 3 0 0 Black or Black British – Caribbean 3 0 0 Black or Black British – African 3 0 0 No ethnic group recorded 5 0 0 The table gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL

The quality of education provided by the school is satisfactory. The curriculum provided by the school is satisfactory . The school provides satisfactory levels of care for pupils. Links with parents are satisfactory and with the community and other schools good .

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Teaching and learning

Teaching and learning are satisfactory with good features. The quality of assessment is satisfactory . SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 12

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching and learning are consistently good in Years 2 and 6. • Very good relationships and high levels of teacher expertise in a few subjects are features of good teaching. • Tasks are not always set at the ability levels for higher and lower attaining pupils. • Marking does not always help pupils to improve. • A few teachers do not insist effectively enough on high standards of behaviour. • Pupils’ work is assessed well, but not enough use is made of this information to raise standards.

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Commentary

12. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. In over half of the lessons observed during the inspection, teaching and learning were judged to be good or very good. These were mainly in Years 2 and 6. Overall, teaching and learning have improved since the last inspection.

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Commentary

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 46 lessons

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Commentary

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactor y Poor Very Poor

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Commentary

0 (0 %) 6 (12 %) 19 (42 %) 19 (42 %) 2 (4 %) 0 (0 %) 0 (0 %)

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Commentary

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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Commentary

13. The strengths in the teaching are based upon very positive relationships between teachers and pupils. Teachers go out of their way to help pupils by offering them good advice and guidance and pupils respond well to this and behave well adopting positive attitudes to their work. The working atmosphere in the best lessons is calm and orderly. Overall, teachers subject knowledge in English, mathematics and science is good. In addition, a few teachers have particular expertise in a number of subjects, such as music and physical education. Teachers with good subject knowledge answer pupils’ questions very well, particularly the searching questions asked by higher-attaining pupils, and this helps pupils learn well.

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Commentary

14. Teachers plan lessons in detail. They indicate what the focus of the lesson is and the activities that pupils will carry out. However, teachers do not indicate well enough how they will match tasks at the correct levels for higher and lower attaining pupils. As a result, some work is too easy for higher-attaining pupils and too hard for lower-attaining pupils. For example, on one occasion a few higher-attaining pupils already knew what they were about to be taught before the lesson began. As a result, they achieved little in those lessons. In a few lessons, too much is expected of some lower-attaining pupils and they became a little dispirited as a consequence.

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Commentary

15. Teachers mark pupils work and often include encouraging comments in pupils’ books. This helps pupils feel good about their work. However, marking does not often indicate to pupils what is good about their work or what they need to do next to improve, and this sometimes impedes their progress.

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Commentary

16. Overall, pupils behave well and get on with their work enthusiastically. However, in a few classes, teachers do not insist on high enough standards of behaviour. On these occasions, a few pupils become restless and distract their classmates from their work. Achievement made during these lessons is too slow as a few pupils waste too much of their time for learning. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 13 17. With the exception of ICT, teachers assess pupils’ performance and compare it to levels in the National Curriculum at the end of each unit of work in all subjects. At the end of each year, these assessments are then collated and an overall judgement of the levels achieved compared with the National Curriculum standards is determined. This is helpful because teachers then know the standards pupils are achieving compared with nationally expected levels. In English and mathematics, these assessments are used to set learning targets for

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Commentary

pupils for the next year. However, this is not the case in other subjects where assessment information is not used effectively enough to raise standards.

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Commentary

18. Pupils are assessed for reading and spelling when they join the school. This helps teachers identify pupils with special educational needs and who are likely to need extra help with learning. The school also makes an assessment of pupils’ behaviour at this time and judges whether or not pupils need additional help in this direction. Once pupils with special educational needs are identified, they receive extra help from their teachers and teaching assistants. This help is satisfactory overall.

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Commentary

19. Most teachers plan effectively with their teaching assistants to include all pupils with special educational needs; making good use of the learning targets set for these pupils. Where the teaching of pupils with special educational needs is particularly effective, teachers and teaching assistants use a wide range of teaching approaches in order to include them in lessons: they ask questions at their levels of understanding. They plan different activities for them; they encourage them well and they teach them in groups effectively in order to help them. As a result of this, these pupils are motivated by the teaching and many behave well. The recently introduced monitoring sheets, which the teaching assistants use to monitor pupils’ progress towards meeting their targets in each lesson, are working well. However, overall, pupils with special educational needs are insufficiently aware of what they need to do to

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Commentary

20. Specialist teaching of pupils with English as an additional language is very good. The specialist teacher uses resources very well to help pupils learn and understand English. She speaks clearly and uses objects so that pupils link the object to the words they are learning. Pupils have to repeat their answers until they use the correct form or speak in a whole sentence. This practice means that pupils form correct speech habits. In class, a few teachers try out similar methods with success to help pupils understand. However, a number of teachers do not have enough expertise to teach English as an additional language and pupils in these classes do not make as much progress as they should when specialist help is not available in lessons.

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The curriculum

The curriculum is satisfactory . The school provides a good range of extra-curricular activities for pupils. Staffing, accommodation and resources are satisfactory overall.

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Visits to places of local interest are used effectively to relate the curriculum to life. • The accommodation for pupils with special educational needs is good, but that for the Foundation Stage is unsatisfactory.

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Commentary

21. The school’s planning and class timetables indicate that the National Curriculum is taught as required by statute. It includes a systematic programme of personal, social and health education, including sex and relationships education and drugs education. The curriculum is taught through a satisfactory programme of topics in each class that ensures pupils do not repeat a topic unnecessarily the following year. This is particularly important because pupils in Years 3 and 4 are in mixed-age classes. The school makes satisfactory use of national SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 14 guidance when planning lessons and topics. Pupils are prepared well for the next stage of their education. Provision for the curriculum is similar to that reported at the last inspection.

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Commentary

22. The curriculum for pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. Two pupils attend the local education authority’s Reading Centre, which is based on the school site. The Reading Centre offers intensive help and support to pupils from other schools in the area, currently there are two of these. Pupils attend the centre for up to three terms and they receive a good curriculum that meets their special educational needs well. In the centre, they make rapid progress in literacy and in their personal and social development and, as a result of this, take part in all aspects of the school’s curriculum much more effectively when they return to their classes and schools.

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Commentary

23. The school offers pupils a good range of visits to places of interest and extra-curricular activities. Visits to places of interest in the locality of the school are used well in all classes as an additional resource to help pupils learn well. These include visits to the local church, a Tudor mansion and the libraries, museums and parks of Oxford. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 have good opportunities to take part in residential visits. These promote well their moral, social and cultural development and contribute effectively to helping pupils develop into responsible young citizens. A good range of extra-curricular clubs in sport, music and art are held regularly and these are well-attended by pupils. Music clubs and additional activities are well-attended. There are two choirs, one on each site, and more than seventy pupils learn to play a musical instrument taught by specialist teachers.

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Commentary

24. Accommodation and resources are satisfactory overall. The school is located on two sites over a mile apart, and the journey between them is very difficult and sometimes hazardous. This is because of the main road that has to be crossed and the narrow roads with parked cars that line the route between the two sites. On the other hand, the school has an extensive field for sports and games on one of the sites, a large sports hall, two computer suites and adequate hard play areas for the number of pupils on roll. There are significant additional difficulties that are created because the school is located on two sites. Communication between staff on the two sites is not easy and not always successful. Occasionally staff on one site are unaware of the thinking of staff about certain school issues on the other site. Additional resources for subjects are required on both sites because it is not practical to share

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Commentary

many resources between the sites, and additional support staff, such as caretaking, cleaning, office and teaching assistants, are required because it is not practical to share these staff between the sites. These issues represent considerable additional costs for the upkeep and maintenance of these buildings.

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Commentary

25. The accommodation for pupils with special educational needs is good. There is a small room for small group work and also the opportunity to use the accommodation of the Reading Centre. Resources and staffing for pupils with special educational needs are satisfactory. The special educational needs co-ordinator and teaching assistants are well-qualified and experienced in teaching pupils with special educational needs. However, the co-ordinator does not have sufficient time to monitor teaching and learning effectively on the school’s two sites.

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Commentary

26. The accommodation and resources in the Foundation Stage are unsatisfactory. The school recognises this and plans are already underway to improve the situation. The current teaching space is too small for the effective delivery of the Foundation Stage curriculum and is located on the first floor. There is no outdoor learning environment that can be used by the children throughout the day without close supervision of an adult. This slows down the children’s physical development. There are not enough resources to teach the curriculum well. For instance, the role-play hospital is uninviting and poorly equipped.

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Care, guidance and support

SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 15 Provision for pupils’ care, welfare, health and safety is satisfactory . The provision of support, advice and guidance based on the monitoring of pupils’ achievement is good . The involvement of pupils through seeking, valuing and acting on their views is good .

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Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils with special educational needs are well cared for and this makes them feel safe and secure. • Teachers know their pupils well and check the progress they make systematically. • The school acts on pupils’ views well.

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Commentary

27. The headteacher plays a leading role in ensuring that pupils are looked after and properly cared for. Pupils are introduced into the reception class well and this helps them to settle into school life quickly and learn. Pupils who are unwell know to whom to turn for help, and this helps pupils feel secure and looked after well in school. Accident books are kept up-to-date at both sites, and reflect the usual bumps and falls common among pupils of this age. Pupils are adequately supervised during breaks and at mid-day. Arrangements for child protection are satisfactory. Arrangement for health and safety are satisfactory. However, the pillars in the hall at the Hertford Street site present a potential hazard during physical education lessons and they need to be covered in protective padding. Pupils at the Meadow Lane site are encouraged to change into indoor footwear during the day to protect the carpeting. In response to this,

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Commentary

many pupils wear bedroom slippers and these present a potential safety risk and are inappropriate. For example, pupils need to exit from the building quickly during fire drills and some designs of slippers make it difficult to walk quickly.

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Commentary

28. Pupils with special educational needs feel safe and valued. They are not treated differently by other pupils and feel part of the whole-school community. They appreciate the help and support they receive from their teachers and teaching assistants. Although pupils with special educational needs are involved in setting and checking on their own programmes of work, not all of them know what they have to do next in order to achieve them. This occasionally limits the progress they make. The school makes good use of external agencies, particularly those provided by the local authority, to help these pupils effectively. Provision for pupils’ care and welfare is similar to that reported at the last inspection.

p.15

Commentary

29. Teachers provide pupils, including those with special educational needs, with good levels of support and guidance. They keep informal records about pupils’ personal development and record progress well in pupils’ individual records. The shortcomings regarding the monitoring of pupils’ personal development identified in the last inspection have been corrected. The school makes good use of the results of national tests to guide pupils in their work. The results of these tests are used effectively to set pupils individual targets for the next year to help them improve their skills in literacy and numeracy. The school recognises and acknowledges well pupils’ efforts and achievements. For example, pupils’ best efforts are praised at a special assembly each week. Support and guidance for pupils has improved since the last inspection.

p.15

Commentary

30. The school values and acts on pupils’ views well. The school council meets each week and discusses aspects of school life. Council members consult their classmates and report back about what has been discussed. Pupils regard the school council as a worthwhile forum for them to voice their thoughts about the school, both positive and negative. Pupils’ views are also expressed clearly during lessons in personal, social and health education. The good relationships within the school ensure that most pupils feel they can talk to an adult if they are worried about something.

p.15

Partnership with parents, other schools and the community

SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 16 The school’s links with parents are satisfactory overall. Links with the community and other schools are good .

p.16

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Parents are provided with good information about school and how well their children are getting on. • Parents, including those of pupils with English as an additional language, make a good contribution to pupils’ learning. • Links with parents of pupils with special educational needs are good. • The school’s good links with the community provide good opportunities to improve pupils’ learning. • A significant minority of parents are critical of some of the work that the school does.

p.16

Commentary

31. The school enjoys the confidence of most of its parents. The quality of information provided for parents is good. The school prospectus and governors’ annual report to parents include all the information required and are both well-written. Newsletters about school activities are sent to parents regularly. Those that were sent out during the past few months included helpful updates about the move to a second site along with an insight into some of the difficulties the school faced. Pupils’ reports are well written and inform parents effectively about their children’s progress in each subject, along with targets for improvement in English and mathematics. Parents are provided with regular information by teachers about the curriculum that their children will be studying. Display boards in each school include a range of information that is helpful to parents. Meetings between parents and teachers take place each term. Bi-

p.16

Commentary

lingual teaching assistants are helpfully deployed on these occasions to act as interpreters for parents who do not speak English. A significant minority of parents are dissatisfied with the information they receive from the school. The findings of the inspection do not support their views. Communication with parents is similar to that reported at the last inspection.

p.16

Commentary

32. The school works well with the parents of pupils with special educational needs. Most of these parents welcome the support and help that the school provides for their children, especially that provided through the Reading Centre. Annual reviews of Statements of Special Educational Needs are thorough and provide parents with good information about the progress their children are making. The special educational needs co-ordinator involves parents well in the identification and monitoring of their children’s needs.

p.16

Commentary

33. The school has forged good links with parents of pupils with English as an additional language. Classes to help them learn English and about school life are held for these parents and these are well attended. For instance, a group of these parents and their children worked very well together to make resources in the form of a ‘story sack’ for the story of ‘The hungry caterpillar’. These were presented to the school at an assembly during the inspection. This helped these parents and their children feel important and valued as they made a good contribution through their work to helping pupils learn.

p.16

Commentary

34. Parents’ views are sought and a few are acted on by the school. For example, a clear majority of parents voted for the school to be extended to one primary school on two separate sites and that became a reality. Parents have been invited to comment on the draft of the revised behaviour policy. There is no school uniform because parents did not wish to have one. However, in spite of this, a significant minority of parents do not feel that enough account is taken of their views. The inspection team does not agree with this minority of parents because the school acts according to the views of the majority of parents.

p.16

Commentary

35. Parents make positive contributions to learning through their efforts as volunteers in classrooms and as members of the parents’ association. The efforts of parents have improved facilities at both sites. A significant amount of funding is raised each year and many events SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 17 successfully enlist the support of local businesses and charities. Parents from minority ethnic groups provide very good support for the annual ‘International Evening’ but are not as well represented at other activities.

p.16

Commentary

36. The school’s good links with the community and other schools successfully support and extend pupils’ learning. A few retired members of the community from the charity ‘Full Circle’ come into school and provide good help for pupils who need additional guidance with their social skills. Two volunteer readers visit the school twice each week to help individual pupils in Years 3 and 4 with their reading. Pupils take part in local social and cultural events, such as the Festival of Voices and the Oxford Prom. Through its link with other schools in the Isis Partnership, students on work experience from local secondary schools provide an extra pair of hands and help in lessons. Students on community service from Magdelen College also help in lessons on a regular basis. Teachers rely on this help because it enables them to prepare additional activities in lessons because they know that supervision for these groups is

p.17

Commentary

available. This helps pupils learn effectively, often in practical ways. The school liaises effectively with secondary schools in order to ensure that pupils, including those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language, are well provided for when they transfer to secondary education.

p.17

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Overall, the leadership and management of the school are satisfactory . The leadership of the school by the headteacher is satisfactory . Subject leadership is satisfactory . Governors are supportive of the school and governance is satisfactory .

p.17

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The headteacher has managed the re-organisation well so that the school is functioning smoothly and she receives good help in her work from the assistant headteachers. However, a significant number of parents are not fully supportive of the work of the headteacher. • Staff work well as a team, but there is not a systematic induction programme for staff new to the school. • Teaching and learning are not monitored and evaluated well enough to ensure consistency of standards across all year groups.

p.17

Commentary

37. The headteacher has worked hard and successfully to create stability in the school during a period of significant upheaval as pupils in Years 3 to 6 moved on to the site at Meadow Lane. Quite rightly, there has been an emphasis this year on managing building works and the school is now a safe and attractive place in which to learn. The headteacher is ably supported by the two assistant headteachers who work effectively, one on each site. Although both new to their posts, they act as good role models of effective teaching and subject leadership and have good plans to share their good practice wider with the staff team. Together, this senior team is, quite rightly, looking at ways in which standards can be raised further. Their plans for this are sound and form the foundation upon which further improvements can take place once all the building works have been completed and the school settles down into its new status as a

p.17

Commentary

38. However, a significant number of parents are critical of the work of the headteacher. Inspectors have not found evidence to support parents’ views about lack of communication with them and about not taking their views into account well enough.

p.17

Commentary

39. Staff morale is high and there are good relationships amongst the staff. Staff work well together and are excited about their part in developing the work of the school. The appointment of new staff this year has been successful in driving up standards in Years 2 and 6, in particular, and in bringing effective management into the Hertford Street site. The induction of SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 18 staff new to the school is satisfactory overall, but the school does not have a systematic induction programme for all new staff.

p.17

Commentary

40. Leadership and management of subjects are satisfactory overall. Because of being located on two sites, the school has wisely appointed a ‘shadow’ co-ordinator for each subject who operates on the other site from the ‘main’ co-ordinator. The ‘shadow’ co-ordinator acts as a useful point of reference for teachers on that site. Subject co-ordinators monitor teachers’ plans and analyse the standards of work produced by pupils. A few have observed their colleagues teaching their subjects and indicated to them the strengths and areas for development in their teaching. This is especially the case in English, mathematics and science. As a result of this monitoring, the co-ordinators for English, mathematics and science have drawn up plans for improvement that the school is now implementing successfully. This is not the case in other subjects where monitoring is not leading to direct improvement in standards.

p.18

Commentary

41. The leadership and management by the special educational needs co-ordinator are satisfactory. The co-ordinator gives good help and guidance to teachers and teaching assistants and works well with parents and carers. Leadership and management of English as an additional language are satisfactory. The co-ordinator has evaluated the impact of her work on pupils’ national tests scores in Year 2 and written a good action plan to correct the weaknesses identified by this analysis. Extensive resources have been collected and used by the co-ordinator and other staff to support pupils’ learning. However, the co-ordinator has not trained other staff in teaching methods which will help pupils with English as an additional language learn more when specialist help in not available in class.

p.18

Commentary

42. The governing body is well organised and works hard. Governors take an active role in planning improvements at the school and challenge proposals made by the school in positive and supportive ways. They check on standards of pupils’ attainment through analysing the school’s published test data and by receiving reports from the headteacher about standards throughout the school. They ask probing questions about the strengths and weaknesses of the school, and the quality of teaching and learning. However, governors are unaware how well pupils in Years 5 and 6 are achieving because they have not identified the performance of these pupils against nationally expected levels of progress.

p.18

Financial information

Financial information for the year April 2002 to March 2003

p.18

Financial information

Income and expenditure (£) Balances (£) Total income 565,033 Balance from previous year 16,426 Total expenditure 597,469 Balance carried forward to the next -16,010 Expenditure per pupil 2,419

p.18

Financial information

43. The school receives below average funding. Governors spend funds prudently and follow the principles of best value well when purchasing goods and materials. High staff costs during 2001-02 contributed significantly to the deficit budget at the end of this financial year. During 2003-04, the school has incurred and will continue to incur considerable costs in being located on two sites. The appointment of additional staff, such as two assistant headteachers, extra teaching assistance, administrative staff and cleaning staff have been necessary for the smooth running of both sites. In addition, more resources are needed for subjects to enable teaching to be adequately resourced on both sites. This has included two computer suites that are now established and in working order. Additional costs, such a these, are the reason why the school had a deficit budget at the end of the 2002-03 financial year. At the present time, the

p.18

Financial information

school is anticipating a much larger deficit budget this year because it has not yet received funding from the local education authority for the Reading Centre at the school. When this SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 19 funding is received, most of the deficit budget will disappear. However, on an on-going basis, additional costs that the school will continue to incur will be those associated with running the school on two sites. These need to be anticipated and budgeted for from the funding available to the school. Overall, given that pupils enter school with average attainment and leave with standards that are average, the school is providing satisfactory value for money. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 20

p.18

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Provision in the reception class is satisfactory overall and the achievement of children in satisfactory .

p.20

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

44. Attainment on entry of children currently at school is average, though this varies year-by-year. One factor that causes the variation in attainment is the number of children starting school speaking little English. Currently, only three children are at the early stages of speaking English in the reception class, but there have been considerably more than this in previous years. The school has good links with the local nursery and plans are well underway to locate the nursery and reception class in the same building at the school from this September. Close links with the nursery already exist and this enables children to settle in well at the school.

p.20

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

45. Procedures for assessing children’s achievement are satisfactory. Teachers and teaching assistants check how well children are achieving and keep brief records of their observations. This provides a satisfactory overview of children’s attainment and enables staff to plan work at the children’s levels of attainment. Leadership and management are satisfactory overall. The Foundation Stage co-ordinator is working under difficult circumstances at present in restricted and unsatisfactory accommodation until the new accommodation is ready in September. This is adversely affecting provision, particularly with regard to physical development and resources in other areas of learning where there is not enough room to use properly the resources the school has.

p.20

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

46. There are no judgements on improvement since the last inspection because there were no children under five in school at that time.

p.20

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in pupils’ personal, social and emotional development is satisfactory.

p.20

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Most children are very confident and this helps them learn. • Children do not have enough opportunities to choose what to do because there are too few resources for them.

p.20

Commentary

47. Standards are average and children’s achievement is satisfactory. Most children develop confidence well and are willing to take part in discussions because the teacher has created a positive atmosphere in which every child’s suggestions are valued. Children learn successfully to be independent. Many children change for physical education lessons without asking for help with buttons and they collect materials and equipment from around the classroom by themselves. However, lack of resources prevents them from having more opportunities to choose and develop their independence further. This slows down the progress they make in this area. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. Some routines are not established well enough. For instance, children do not tidy away materials and equipment quickly enough after they have been using them. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 21

p.20

COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Provision in communication, language and literacy is satisfactory .

p.21

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Early reading skills are developed well. • Children’s speaking and listening develop well. • Most children do not form letters well enough and children do not have enough opportunities to practise writing.

p.21

Commentary

48. Standards are average and children’s achievement is satisfactory. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Children listen attentively. For example, during a physical education lesson, they listened well and learned effectively the meaning of new words about how to move. Higher- attaining children achieve well. They speak confidently and clearly using a good range of words. Children in the early stages of learning English are beginning to understand the meaning of a few commonly used words. Very good teaching by specialist teachers helps them to use them and speak in brief sentences. They achieve well on these occasions, but do not achieve as well during other activities where they receive very little adult help. Children know that words convey meaning. They talk well about their storybooks and use the pictures effectively to help them. Higher-attaining children read simple books with accuracy. Children

p.21

Commentary

get good help for their reading from home because everyone takes home a book each day. Most children follow a story successfully and know how to arrange events in familiar stories when they are mixed up. Most children recognise and write their own names because they have regular practice at doing so. Few children are writing brief sentences yet because they have too few opportunities to do so, many do not form letter shapes well enough. No children are currently identified as having special educational needs in the reception class.

p.21

MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in mathematical development is satisfactory .

p.21

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children learn to count well and this helps them with work successfully in other areas of learning. • Practical work is not linked well enough to lesson themes.

p.21

Commentary

49. Standards are average and children’s achievement is satisfactory. Children count well because they are taught well. They are given many opportunities to count in lessons and sing number songs. Most count correctly to ten whilst higher-attaining children count to 20 and beyond. Many children do not write down numbers correctly because they are not taught to do so often enough. Children learn mathematical words well, such as ‘heaviest’ and ‘square’ through the activities in which they are engaged. A good example of this was when they found out which of three jars was the heaviest and lightest. They later used this language in other activities, like the shop, in which they developed further their understanding of the words. Children in the early stages of learning English receive good support from the bi-lingual teaching assistant who explains activities in their home language. This helps these children

p.21

Commentary

learn quickly. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 22

p.21

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Provision in knowledge and understanding of the world is satisfactory .

p.22

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children are confident when using the computer. • They have a good awareness of ‘people who help us’.

p.22

Commentary

50. Standards are average and children’s achievement is satisfactory. Children have been taught well to use the computers in the suite with confidence. Using an art program, they select colours and experiment with the different effects they can get. The computer in the classroom was not used often during the inspection so children missed the opportunity to practise their skills further and reach higher standards.

p.22

Commentary

51. Children recalled well a recent topic they had been taught on ‘people who help us’. They referred to the display in the classroom and tried to read the labels on the pictures. During the inspection, children enjoyed a science-based activity because they were provided with plenty of resources with which to work. Higher-attaining children used correct vocabulary to describe the ice. Children in the early stages of learning English as an additional language make satisfactory progress in this area because most activities are very practical and are not as dependent on the use of language as are literacy and mathematics. However, these children do not have enough knowledge of English to express what they have learnt. The bi-lingual teaching assistant, helps these children effectively to record what they have learnt. Overall, teaching and learning are satisfactory.

p.22

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision in physical development is unsatisfactory.

p.22

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children have good control of their movements. • Provision for outdoor learning is unsatisfactory. • Children do not receive enough opportunities to develop their physical skills by choosing what to do next.

p.22

Commentary

52. Standards are average. However, children’s achievement is unsatisfactory because provision is unsatisfactory overall. Teaching and learning are unsatisfactory overall, mainly because the school’s provision is unsatisfactory. Children are taught effectively to handle small tools like crayons and paintbrushes and they do so skilfully for their age. Children move around the hall with good control and find space easily without bumping into each other. However, they are not given enough opportunities to use their own initiative when moving around in physical education lessons. They follow the teacher’s directions well and move with their beanbag in the required way, but are not asked to devise their own ways of moving around the hall. Because of this, children do not make the progress they should in physical education lessons. Children in the early stages of learning English as an additional language have satisfactory access to

p.22

Commentary

lessons because they can copy the actions of other children around them. The only outdoor area available to the class is the playground. Because it is so far away from the classroom down a flight of stairs, children can only use it under the direction of an adult. This inhibits children’s learning because they cannot choose to use the outside area when they wish to do so. This limits the amount of progress children make and makes their achievement SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 23 unsatisfactory. The school is aware of this and has plans to correct this in the new building in September.

p.22

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Provision in creative development is satisfactory .

p.23

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Lack of resources makes it difficult for pupils to be provided with enough opportunities for role- play and art. • Children enjoy painting and drawing.

p.23

Commentary

53. Standards are average and achievement is satisfactory. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. Children are taught to paint well using big brush strokes and have a good understanding of mixing colours, which they have used well in their hospital pictures. They enjoy experimenting with colours. Lower-attaining children do not draw well because their hand and eye co-ordination is not developed well enough to do so and they do not receive enough guidance in order to improve.

p.23

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The quality of teaching in Years 2 and 6 is very good but, in other classes, a few tasks set for high-attaining pupils are too easy and those for lower-attaining pupils are too hard. • The teaching of writing is good in some classes, but unsatisfactory in others. • The subject leader has a thorough understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in the subject and acts as a good role model in her teaching. • Pupils are not given enough opportunities to write in other subjects.

p.23

Commentary

54. By Year 6, standards are above expected levels. By the end of Year 2, standards in reading and writing are average. The achievement of pupils is satisfactory overall but good in Year 2. The achievement of pupils in Year 6 is only judged satisfactory because this group of pupils achieved above average results in reading and writing when they were in Year 2 in 2000. Standards and achievement are similar to the last inspection, when the school only had pupils up to the end of Year 4.

p.23

Commentary

55. Standards in speaking and listening are at the levels expected for the pupils’ ages. Higher- attaining pupils speak with maturity and confidence. They explain at length what they wish to say and their choice of vocabulary is very mature for their ages. This is especially the case in Years 2 and 6 where these pupils are given time to expand on their ideas during whole-class discussions. Pupils with English as an additional language receive good help from specialist teachers and teaching assistants, and this helps them to make good progress on these occasions. However, these pupils are not given enough opportunities to practise their speaking and listening skills in lessons when there is no specialist help available and they do not make the progress they should on these occasions. Overall, these pupils make satisfactory progress in learning English. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 24

p.23

Commentary

56. Pupils benefit from the satisfactory teaching of reading. In the younger classes, they are taught successfully the sounds letters make and how to sub-divide longer words into sections and this helps them when they are stuck with new words. They enjoy stories. For example, one group of pupils continued to talk about an Australian story they had read in class as they walked to lunch. They delighted in re-telling it and used the different voices for different characters that had been suggested by their teacher. Standards in reading are at expected levels in the younger classes, but are above those levels in Year 6. Overall, pupils’ achievement in reading is satisfactory.

p.24

Commentary

57. The teaching of writing is satisfactory overall, but there are a number of weaknesses. At best, the teaching of writing is very good. For example, in Year 6 there is an outstanding display of writing that describes and illustrates the different stages of writing. The final drafts of writing are typed out and carefully mounted so that they can read clearly. This provides a stunning example of what pupils are capable of achieving when the teacher holds high expectations of their achievements and teaches with considerable imagination. The most effective ways of teaching writing were noted in Years 2 and 6. However, throughout other classes, pupils are not developing their writing skills systematically. Standards of handwriting, spelling and presentation are sometimes unsatisfactory and pupils do not achieve as well as they should. Pupils sometimes choose pencils, pens or biros at random and there is not enough

p.24

Commentary

consistency in the development of joined-up writing. Sometimes, tasks are not set at the correct levels for higher-attaining pupils. They are too easy for them and their achievement is unsatisfactory on these occasions. Marking does not help pupils to know how they can improve their work. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise and develop writing in other subjects. These factors mean that pupils do not make as much progress as they should in writing. When computers are used to help pupils in their writing, the results are often good. However, there are too few opportunities for pupils to use computers to help them in their writing and this slows down the progress they make.

p.24

Commentary

58. The achievement of pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. They receive good help from teachers and teaching assistants overall, but, on occasions work set for them is too hard and they do not make the progress they should on these occasions. The quality of support from teaching assistants is most effective when they have a clear understanding of what the pupils are to achieve. However, this is not always the case. A few teaching assistants are not aware of the help these pupils require and they do not achieve well on these occasions. Pupils with English as an additional language learn well and achieve well when they receive specialist help from teachers and teaching assistants. When specialist help is not available, these pupils do not achieve as well. Many teachers do not have enough expertise to teach English as an additional language and they do not prepare enough visual prompts and provide

p.24

Commentary

enough opportunities for these pupils to talk as a foundation for building literacy skills. In spite of this, their achievement overall is satisfactory.

p.24

Commentary

59. Leadership and management of English are satisfactory. The subject co-ordinator has a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in the subject. She has produced good plans to raise achievement in English and these are beginning to lead to improvements in the subject. The co-ordinator teaches English well and acts as a good role model in her teaching. She is keen to help other teachers to raise standards. The National Literacy Strategy is used satisfactorily to guide the teaching of basic skills in English.

p.24

Language and literacy across the curriculum

60. Pupils have opportunities to use their literacy skills in other subjects, but these are not planned well enough to develop their writing skills. Overall, pupils do not write enough in subjects such as geography, history and science. As a result, their skills in writing for different purposes are lower than they should be. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 25

p.24

MATHEMATICS

Provision in mathematics is satisfactory .

p.25

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language achieve well because they receive good help from their teachers and teaching assistants. • On occasions, higher-attaining pupils do not achieve as much as they should because the work set for them is too easy. • Assessment is good overall and used well to help raise standards. However, marking does not indicate how pupils might improve often enough.

p.25

Commentary

61. Standards are above average overall. Pupils in Year 6 reach standards that are above nationally expected levels. These pupils achieved above average results in national tests when they were in Year 2 and these standards have been maintained. Their achievement, therefore, is satisfactory. Standards in Year 2 are similar to the national average. This is an improvement on last year’s national test scores because last year’s group had a higher than usual number of pupils with special educational needs. Achievement in Year 2 is good. Throughout the school, higher-attaining pupils achieve satisfactorily. No differences between the performance of girls and boys were noted during the inspection. Pupils in the early stages of learning English as an additional language are supported well in mathematics because teachers use practical apparatus to help these pupils understand. These pupils respond positively to this and

p.25

Commentary

achieve well. The achievement of pupils with special educational needs is satisfactory. They often receive additional help from teaching assistants who help them understand well what is being taught.

p.25

Commentary

62. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. It is best in Years 2 and 6 where teachers think of a good range of ways to capture the interests of pupils. For instance, in Year 2, a mental arithmetic session involved questioning, rhythmic clapping to chant odd numbers and discussions with a partner. This variety of teaching styles helped to maintain pupils’ interest in what was being taught. In Year 3 teachers used resources well to explain ‘doubling’ and, in Year 5, the teacher used the paving stones outside the classroom well to engage the pupils in a study of area. Most teachers use published lesson plans well and this helps them provide work at the correct level for pupils of different abilities and helps pupils learn. In a few classes, teachers do not give pupils enough opportunities to use their initiative. Activities are not challenging enough for some pupils, especially higher-attaining pupils, and they do not make

p.25

Commentary

63. Assessment is good overall. The school gives pupils national tests at the end of each year and analyses the results well to identify what pupils do and do not know. In the light of these results, the teaching of mathematics is modified to correct the weaknesses identified and improve standards. Pupils are also given tests every half term and the school uses the information from these tests to record the progress pupils are making through the school. Most pupils’ work is marked accurately and often rewarded in some positive way but rarely are pupils given pointers on how to improve.

p.25

Commentary

64. Leadership and management are satisfactory. The subject co-ordinator knows the strengths and weaknesses of mathematics and has devised sound plans for raising standards in the subject. Pupils’ scores in the national tests have been analysed and, as a direct result, teachers have been asked to place greater emphasis on the teaching of subtraction and division that were identified as weaknesses in the tests. This has helped to raise standards in these areas. The co-ordinator has also introduced regular testing of pupils, which has helped the school identify those who need harder work or those who need more help. Extra help has been provided for those pupils identified in this way and this is helping them to improve. There SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 26 has been satisfactory improvement since the last inspection when the school had pupils up to Year 4.

p.25

Mathematics across the curriculum

65. Mathematics is used satisfactorily in other subjects. Graphs are used in science to indicate visually the results of investigations. Pupils measure how far toy cars have travelled when learning about friction. Pupils measure accurately when making models in design and technology topics and they use co-ordinates to identify places on maps. These skills are used successfully to help pupils learning in other subjects. However, overall, computers are not being used enough in mathematics and this slows down the progress pupils make.

p.26

SCIENCE

Provision in science is satisfactory overall.

p.26

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils, especially higher- and lower-attaining pupils, achieve well in Year 2, but, in other classes, work set for them is sometimes not matched closely enough to their abilities and they do not achieve as well as they should. • Pupils are not given enough opportunities to carry out investigations. • Pupils are not taught to record the results of their work well enough. • Marking does not help pupils to improve.

p.26

Commentary

66. Overall, standards are at expected levels and the achievement of pupils is satisfactory. Pupils’ achievement in Year 6 is satisfactory and standards are at expected levels. On the other hand, because of good teaching, pupils in Year 2 are making good progress and standards are above expected levels. This is higher than the standards reported in the 2003 national tests. Standards are higher than they were at the last inspection.

p.26

Commentary

67. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. Most teachers plan lessons and prepare materials and equipment well. They use scientific vocabulary well and pupils learn the correct terms, such as germination, fertilisation, pollination, to describe what is happening. Good links are made to other subjects, such as art, literacy and numeracy. Relationships are very good and pupils respond positively to this and behave well. Overall, teachers teach in a calm working atmosphere. Their subject knowledge is good. However, there are a number of general weaknesses in the teaching that prevents standards from being higher than they are. Pupils are not given enough opportunities to act like scientists and carry out their own investigations. They do not record their work in a scientific style. Standards in this aspect of science are below expected levels, especially for higher-attaining pupils. Lower-attaining pupils

p.26

Commentary

also do not achieve as much as they should because they are not given enough guidance in how to record their work. Marking does not let pupils know what is good about their work and what they need to do to improve and this slows down the progress pupils make.

p.26

Commentary

68. Leadership and management are satisfactory overall. The subject co-ordinator monitors pupils’ work and has observed the teaching in each year group. This has provided the school with a clear view about some of the strengths and weaknesses of the teaching of the subject. These have been discussed with teachers and have led to improvements being made in teaching. This, in turn, is helping to raise standards. Pupils’ attainment is compared to the levels in the National Curriculum at the end of each unit of work and again at the end of each year. The strengths and weaknesses of provision in science are then summarised and a useful plan of action drawn up. The subject co-ordinator has included in the action plan each of the weaknesses in the subject identified during the inspection. However, information from end-of- SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 27 year assessments is not used well enough to set learning targets for pupils and help raise

p.26

Commentary

standards. Leadership and management are better than they were at the last inspection.

p.27

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The teaching and learning observed during the inspection were good. • The use of ICT in other subjects is unsatisfactory. • The assessment of the pupils’ progress in ICT is unsatisfactory.

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Commentary

69. The school experienced major difficulties in provision in the two terms prior to the inspection because of the re-siting of the two ICT suites, one on each site. Despite the teachers’ best efforts, including using their own computers from home, pupils have produced too little work during this time to judge standards. Pupils’ achievement is good now, but over the past few months, it has been unsatisfactory. It is not possible to compare standards with those at the time of the last inspection.

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Commentary

70. The teaching and learning observed during the inspection were good and these are helping pupils to achieve well and make up the ground they have lost during the past few months. However, because of the lack of provision of computers during the past two terms, teaching and learning over time have been unsatisfactory. Teachers plan effectively and provide pupils with stimulating and interesting activities on computers. This encourages them to concentrate on their work and learn effectively. Pupils clearly enjoy working with computers and other ICT equipment and their attitudes and behaviour in lessons are good. Good support is provided from teachers and teaching assistants and this helps pupils effectively, including those with special educational needs and those with English as an additional language, when they are stuck.

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Commentary

71. Leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The subject co-ordinators, one on each site, have worked hard to improve provision of ICT since the last inspection. However, the re-siting of the two computer suites during the past two terms has hindered the progress they were making. All teachers have been trained and have enough subject knowledge to teach the subject well and this is now helping to raise standards. The provision of computers has improved recently and is much better than at the last inspection. This is important and contributing to pupils achieving well now. However, because of the difficulties in establishing two new computer suites during the past few months, little ICT has been taught immediately prior to the inspection and the school does not have good enough records of pupils’ performance in the subject. A start has recently been made to monitoring and evaluating

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Commentary

teaching and learning and this should help to identify what the school needs to do to raise standards further. Following the recent upheaval in ICT, the school now has the capacity to raise standards in the subject.

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Information and communication technology across the curriculum

72. Most classrooms do not have computers and this is hindering the systematic use of ICT in other subject. In the few classes where computers are used in other subjects, they are helping pupils improve their learning. For example, in a Year 6 science lesson the teacher used a laptop computer to project information about an investigation on a big screen to enable all pupils to see clearly and learn effectively what was being taught. In a Year 2 history lesson, pupils successfully found information on the Internet to help them with their project on transport. Pupils logged on and found a suitable web address and found out some useful information about transport. In a Year 5 literacy lesson, computers are used effectively by two SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 28 pupils who have difficulties with their writing. Good attention is paid to Internet safety. However, little evidence was found of a systematic use of ICT in other subjects and this slows down the

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HUMANITIES

73. Geography and history were not the main foci of the inspection and not enough evidence was collected to form overall judgements about provision, standards and teaching in these subjects. Teachers’ planning was inspected, discussions were held with the subject co- ordinators and with pupils and three lessons were observed in geography. One lesson was observed in history.

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HUMANITIES

74. The school teaches the National Curriculum in geography as required by statute. Some of the teaching observed was good and pupils have an accurate picture of the ways of life and culture of other places. For example, Year 6 pupils are acquiring a very good understanding of life in Ghana. This is because one of the teachers has spent some time in that country and knows the ways of life and culture of Ghanaian people very well. The organiser of the charity, ‘Afrikids’, has also visited the school to talk to pupils about the lives of Ghanaian children and their families. Pupils gain a good understanding of maps. This includes maps of the locality of the school as well as of the world. One of the classrooms has a map of the world with the places pinpointed that are the original homes of the families in the school. This helps to give pupils a good understanding of how children and their families move around the world to live. Overall,

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HUMANITIES

pupils do not produce enough written work in geography to help consolidate and improve their literacy skills. The marking of work does not indicate to pupils how they might improve next time. Leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The subject co-ordinator has monitored samples of pupils’ work from each class and checks teachers’ plans to ensure that the National Curriculum is being taught. Pupils’ work is assessed at the end of each unit and at the end of each year and compared with levels in the National Curriculum. However, the subject co-ordinator has not observed lessons and does not use the data from assessment to set learning targets for pupils to help them improve. Residential visits to Woodlands and Kilvrough for pupils in Years 5 and 6 provide those pupils who attend with good opportunities to improve their geographical skills.

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HUMANITIES

75. Teachers’ plans and pupils’ work indicate that the National Curriculum for history is likely to be taught satisfactorily. Good links are made to some other subjects. For example, pupils in Year 2 place some of the transport used in the past on a time-line from 1880 to 2010 to help them understanding how long these forms of transport were used. History is linked to art and design as pupils create some panels in the style of those produced for Egyptian pyramids or paint portraits of Tudor kings. However, pupils do not produce enough written work in history to help improve their literacy skills. Older pupils carry out their own research and produce booklets on topics such as `Life in Britain in the 70s`. Many of these booklets include pictures and illustrations and too little writing to indicate pupils’ understanding of why things were as they were at that time. The marking of pupils work does not indicate to pupils what is good about

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HUMANITIES

their work and how it might be improved. This slows down the progress pupils’ make in history. Leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. The subject co-ordinator regularly checks on the standards being achieved in history. Teachers assess pupils’ work at the end of each unit of work and at the end of each year and compare the standards achieved with the levels in the National Curriculum. The end-of-year assessments are recorded systematically year-by-year. In this way, the subject co-ordinator gains an overview of standards throughout the school. However, this information is not used to set learning targets for pupils and help raise standards. The subject co-ordinator has not observed any lessons being taught in history. Visits to museums and other places of interest provide pupils with good opportunities to bring to life their studies in history. Pupils in Year 1 have produced an effective museum of

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HUMANITIES

their own in school. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 29

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

76. Lack of evidence means that no judgements were made about the quality of provision in art and design, design and technology, music and physical education. Subject co-ordinators are working hard to improve provision and resources in these subjects to enable standards to rise.

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

77. Displays of pupils’ work in art and design are of good quality, attractive and well presented by staff. They indicate that art and design are linked effectively to other subjects. For example, in Year 2 a display about life in Ancient Egypt includes fabric weavings and hieroglyphics made from a range of materials and indicates that good links have been made between art and design and history. In Year 3, pupils have had learned some of the techniques used by famous artists to help them in their work. In this case, pupils learned about the techniques used by Andy Goldsworthy. Pupils used the Internet to find out about his sculptures in nature and have experimented with his technique of using unusual resources, such as twigs and feathers. Impressive pastel drawings of African masks and batik work show pupils’ understanding of a range of different cultural influences in art.

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

78. Opportunities for pupils in design and technology to design, make a product of good quality and evaluate its effectiveness are planned effectively. In Year 1, pupils have designed and made a swing using construction kits and other materials. Their ideas were well developed in their finished products and they succeeded in making a product fit for purpose intended after adapting their original designs in a number of ways. In Year 2, pupils made moving vehicles with axles, wheels and chassis and had great fun testing them for speed and durability. An album of photographs shows pupils using a range of tools for making models, clothes, games and food. It is clear that the development of pupils’ skills in design and technology is good as pupils move up the school.

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

79. In music , pupils’ singing in assemblies is of good quality, tuneful and enthusiastic. The subject co-ordinator has good subject knowledge and enables pupils to sing well in parts and produce a good quality sound. He holds high expectations of pupils’ performances and challenges them well to improve. Pupils respond positively to this and sing well. The school has recently adopted a sound music syllabus that provides non-specialist teachers with a good range of ideas to help improve their teaching. Pupils are offered good opportunities to learn to play musical instruments taught by visiting specialist teachers and this helps them increase their musical skills well from a young age.

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

80. The school provides a full curriculum in physical education that includes all aspects of the subject. Lessons in outdoor and adventurous activity are provided on the school’s residential visits in Years 5 and 6. A wide range of after-school activities and clubs, including gymnastics and football, add to this provision and helps the many pupils who attend to develop their physical education skills further. The teaching in the one games lesson observed during the inspection was very good. The teacher’s subject expertise was good and pupils were effectively encouraged to think about their movements and how to coordinate them successfully. They evaluated their own performances honestly and this helped them to understand how they might improve next time. Leadership and management of the physical education are satisfactory. Pupils’ attainment in physical education is assessed at the end of each unit of activity and at the end of each year and compared with levels in the National

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CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

Curriculum. This provides the school with good information about standards in the subject.

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION AND CITIZENSHIP

81. The school teaches a systematic programme of personal, social, health and citizenship education. This well-thought out programme combines the best elements of two commercial publications and includes sex and relationships education and drugs education. The school uses lessons in personal, social, health and citizenship education to discuss issues of moral and social concern to pupils. Lessons in personal, social, health and citizenship education are SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 30 used successfully to promote pupils’ positive attitudes to school and good behaviour. Pupils are caring and helpful around school. SS Mary and John Church of England Primary School - 31

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

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

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Overall standards achieved 4 Pupils’ achievement 4

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities 4 Attendance 5 Attitudes 3 Behaviour, including the extent of exclusions 4 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 3

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

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

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

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

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PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

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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