Alderbrook Primary School

ALDERBROOK PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 4 th - 6 th October 2004

p.1

ALDERBROOK PRIMARY SCHOOL

Inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

p.1

ALDERBROOK PRIMARY SCHOOL

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Alderbrook Primary School - 1

p.2

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Type of school: Primary School category: Community Age range of pupils: 3-11 Gender of pupils: Mixed Number on roll: 240 School address: Oldridge Road Balham London Postcode: SW12 8PP Telephone number: (0208) 673 4913 Fax number: (0208) 675 8866 Appropriate authority: The governing body Name of chair of governors: Mrs Helen Haddon

p.3

INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 30 th November 1998

p.3

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

Alderbrook Primary School is an average-sized school with currently 240 boys and girls aged between three and 11. Pupils’ attainment when they join the school is generally well below that usually found. Three quarters of pupils are from ethnic minority backgrounds and a number of ethnic groups are represented, including nine pupils who are refugees. About two pupils in every five are from homes where English is not the first language and Urdu, Somali and Arabic are the main first languages spoken. The school has identified 11 pupils as being at the very early stages of acquiring English, and a total of 27 pupils are supported through additional Ethnic Minority Grant Funding. The proportion of pupils identified as having special educational needs is similar to that found nationally. A relatively large proportion of these are, however, on the higher stages of the Code of Practice, including four pupils who have a Statement of Special Educational Need. Pupils’ particular

p.3

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCHOOL

needs relate to their learning, speech and communication, autism and behavioural difficulties. The social and economic backgrounds of pupils are very mixed and are below those usually found. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is above the national average. Pupil mobility is fairly high. The school received a School Achievement Award in 2002 and is part of Excellence in Cities and the Leadership Development Strategy. Alderbrook Primary School - 2

p.3

Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

22424 Kathryn Taylor Lead inspector Mathematics Design and technology 9163 Geoffrey Humphrey Lay inspector 26232 Christopher Grove Team inspector Information and communication technology Special educational needs Science Music 23354 Evelyn Adams Team inspector English Provision for pupils learning English History Personal, social and health education 20063 Gerry Slamon Team inspector Provision in the Foundation Stage Art and design Religious education Physical education

p.4

Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

Tribal PPI Barley House Oakfield Grove Clifton Bristol Alderbrook Primary School - 3 BS8 2BN

p.4

Members of the inspection team Subject responsibilities

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be made initially to the inspection contractor. The procedures are set out in the leaflet ‘Complaining about Ofsted Inspections’, which is available from Ofsted Publications Centre (telephone 07002 637 833) or Ofsted’s website (www.ofsted.gov.uk). Alderbrook Primary School - 4

p.5

STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 6 - 9

Standards achieved in areas of learning and subjects

p.6

STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS 6 - 9

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

p.6

QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL 9 - 13

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

p.6

OVERALL EVALUATION

Alderbrook Primary School provides a happy, safe and secure environment for pupils from a wide range of backgrounds. It provides a satisfactory standard of education but has serious weaknesses in its leadership and management and in the curriculum in Years 1 to 6. This limits school improvement. Value for money is unsatisfactory.

p.7

THE SCHOOL’S MAIN STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES ARE:

• The very good provision in the Nursery and Reception classes provides children with a very good start to their education. • The curriculum in Years 1 to 6 is unsatisfactory. • Senior managers and governors do not critically evaluate what the school is providing so as to make sustained improvements and raise standards. • Staff deployment is weak. • The school is not making enough use of assessment to raise standards. • Pupils’ attitudes, behaviour and relationships are good, but attendance levels are too low and too many pupils arrive late. • The school does not have a clear and consistent strategy for dealing with the challenging behaviour that a minority of pupils present. • The headteacher has established good links with parents, the community and other schools. • Pupils are well cared for.

p.7

THE SCHOOL HAS NOT MADE ENOUGH PROGRESS SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

IN 1998 . THERE HAVE BEEN IMPROVEMENTS TO TEACHING, PROVISION IN NURSERY AND RECEPTION, THE ACCOMMODATION AND RESOURCES, LINKS WITH PARENTS AND STANDARDS OF CARE. ALTHOUGH THE HEADTEACHER, STAFF AND GOVERNORS HAVE TAKEN ACTION TO ADDRESS THE WEAKNESSES IN LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT FOUND AT THE TIME OF THE LAST INSPECTION, THESE HAVE NOT BEEN RESOLVED. THE CURRICULUM HAS NOT BEEN DEVELOPED SUFFICIENTLY AND STANDARDS ARE NOT HIGH ENOUGH, DESPITE THE ACTION THAT THE SCHOOL HAS TAKEN.

p.7

Children in the Nursery and Reception achieve well . Pupils in Years 1 to 6 only

achieve satisfactorily, despite the high staffing levels. Standards are low when children start school. Although they make good progress in Nursery and Reception, many children’s attainment in mathematics and English is still below expectations when they join Year 1. In all other areas of learning, attainments are broadly in line with those expected. Pupils’ attainments in English, mathematics and science improve steadily as they move up through Years 1 to 6, but remain below national expectations by the age of seven and 11. The table below shows that in 2003 at the age of 11, test results in English, mathematics and science were well below those found nationally. Pupils’ test results at the age of seven were also well below national levels. In 2004, test results in English and mathematics at the age of 11 Alderbrook Primary School - 6 improved, but those in science fell. Test results at the age of seven were much the same in

p.7

Children in the Nursery and Reception achieve well . Pupils in Years 1 to 6 only

all schools similar schools Results in National Curriculum tests at the end of Year 6, compared with: 2001 2002 2003 2003 English D E E E mathematics B D E D science E E E C Key: A - well above average; B - above average; C - average; D - below average; E - well below average. Similar schools are those whose pupils have a similar number of pupils entitled to free school meals.

p.8

Children in the Nursery and Reception achieve well . Pupils in Years 1 to 6 only

Pupils’ attainments in information and communication technology (ICT) and music are line with those expected at the ages of seven and 11. In religious education, pupils’ attainment meets that expected at age 11, but is below that expected at the age of seven. Pupils make satisfactory progress in religious education and ICT and good progress in music. Too little work was available in other subjects to make secure judgements. However, there are clear indications that standards and pupil achievement in these subjects are not high enough and are limited by the fact that too little time is given to teaching them.

p.8

Most pupils behave well and develop good attitudes to learning . The school

promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development satisfactorily. Relationships and racial harmony are good amongst pupils from a very wide range of backgrounds. Attendance levels and punctuality are unsatisfactory and are not improving fast enough.

p.8

learning are very good in Nursery and Reception and are satisfactory in Years 1

to 6. Teachers in Years 1 to 6 teach the basic skills effectively and there is also some good teaching. Music and ICT are taught well. In many subjects, the limited curriculum and weaknesses in the use of assessment and the support staff prevent teaching and learning from being better than satisfactory. The curriculum is unsatisfactory. In Years 1 to 6, too much time is spent on English so that a number of other subjects receive too little attention. Not enough has been done to develop the overall curriculum so as to make it more meaningful and interesting, except in Nursery and Reception, where the curriculum is good. The school makes satisfactory use of visits, visitors and after-school activities to support and extend pupils’ learning. All staff ensure that pupils are well cared for and safe at school. The school works well with parents.

p.8

The headteacher’s and senior managers’ leadership and management are

unsatisfactory. Governance is unsatisfactory . The headteacher and senior managers work well with parents and the community but they are not providing a clear direction for the school’s work. Staff with subject and management responsibilities manage their work satisfactorily, but do not have enough guidance and direction from senior managers. A number of subjects do not have a designated co-ordinator to lead on them, which is unsatisfactory. The governors are involved in the school and support it, but they do not sufficiently challenge it to improve so as to raise standards. Alderbrook Primary School - 7

p.8

PARENTS’ AND PUPILS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

Parents are largely satisfied with the school and like many things about it. Most feel that their children are getting on well. They are happy with the standards that their children attain and the quality of teaching. They appreciate the way the staff make them welcome and give time to talk with them. A number of parents felt, and inspectors agree, that not enough time is given to some subjects and that the school does not manage some pupils’ unsatisfactory behaviour. Pupils enjoy coming to school. They say they find staff and other pupils friendly and enjoy lessons, especially those in art and design, design and technology, and physical education. They like and trust their teachers and the support staff. Pupils do not have a strong sense of what they do well and what they need to do to improve because of weaknesses in the curriculum and the use of assessment.

p.9

RAISE STANDARDS ARE:

• Improve the leadership and management of the school. • Improve the curriculum in Years 1 to 6 to ensure that all subjects are taught in sufficient depth. • Improve staff deployment. • Ensure that the school takes a much more rigorous approach to evaluating what it provides. • Ensure that governors develop a more critical approach and challenge the school to improve. • Improve the use of assessments. • Take more rigorous action to improve a minority of pupils’ attendance, behaviour and punctuality.

p.9

STANDARDS ACHIEVED IN AREAS OF LEARNING AND SUBJECTS

Children in the Nursery and Reception classes achieve well , often from a low starting point on entry to school. In Years 1 to 6, pupils’ attainments in English, mathematics and science at the age of seven and 11 are generally below those expected. Pupils’ achieve satisfactorily .

p.9

MAIN STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

Alderbrook Primary School - 8 • CHILDREN IN THE NURSERY AND RECEPTION CLASSES ACHIEVE WELL. • PUPILS THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL ACHIEVE WELL IN MUSIC. • STANDARDS IN ENGLISH, MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE ARE NOT RISING FAST ENOUGH. • PUPILS IN YEARS 1 TO 6 DO NOT SPEND ENOUGH TIME ON A NUMBER OF SUBJECTS TO ENABLE THEM TO REACH THEIR FULL POTENTIAL.

p.10

COMMENTARY

1. Many children enter the Foundation Stage of Learning (Nursery and Reception classes) with much lower attainment levels than are usually found. Their communication, language and literacy skills and mathematical skills are particularly low. As a result of the very good provision that is well matched to their needs, the children progress well across all areas of learning. Their attainment in literacy and in mathematical development nevertheless remains below that expected when they join Year 1. Children’s knowledge and understanding of the world, physical development, creative development, and personal, social and emotional development meets expectations by the end of the Reception year.

p.10

COMMENTARY

2. In Years 1 to 6, although pupils progress satisfactorily in English, mathematics and science as they move up the school, overall standards are still not rising fast enough. Despite the large amount of time and money spent on these subjects, overall standards remain below those expected by the age of seven and 11. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) have improved and are now in line with that expected at the age of seven and 11. Pupils’ attainment in religious education is below the expectations of the locally agreed syllabus by the age of seven but meets expectations by the age of 11. Inspection evidence did not highlight any significant differences between the achievements of boys and girls, pupils of different capabilities or those from different ethnic backgrounds.

p.10

COMMENTARY

3. Test results in English, mathematics and science fell between 2002 and 2003 at both key stages, as the table below shows. National comparative data shows that in 2003 at the age of seven pupils’ results in writing and mathematics were well below national results, and standards in reading were very low. At the age of 11, test results in English, mathematics and science were all well below national results. The school’s test results compared slightly more favourably with those in similar schools.

p.10

COMMENTARY

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

p.10

COMMENTARY

Standards in: School results National results reading 14.7 (15.0) 15.7 (15.8) writing 13.7 (13.8) 14.6 (14.4) mathematics 15.4 (15.9) 16.3 (16.5) There were 25 pupils in the year group. Figures in brackets are for the previous year.

p.10

COMMENTARY

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

p.10

COMMENTARY

Standards in: School results National results Alderbrook Primary School - 9 English 23.5 (25.9) 26.8 (27.0) mathematics 25.1 (26.5) 26.8 (26.7) science 24.9 (28.1) 28.6 (28.3) There were 22 pupils in the year group. Figures in brackets are for the previous year.

p.10

COMMENTARY

4. Test results at the age of seven in 2004 were similar to those in 2003. At the age of 11, English and mathematics results improved, but science results fell. In this school, test results alone are not reliable as a measure of the school’s yearly improvements because pupil mobility is fairly high and cohort sizes vary from one year to the next, as does the proportion of pupils with special educational needs. Senior staff analyse test results to determine common errors that pupils make, so that they can then feed this back into future curriculum planning. They have also begun to set individual pupils’ results against their attainment when they started school to help them to determine how well individual pupils are doing.

p.11

COMMENTARY

5. The school has extended its provision for higher-attaining pupils and some parents were particularly pleased with this improvement. Children with special educational needs and those learning English progress well in the Foundation Stage, because there is strong emphasis both on planning work that is well matched to pupils’ individual needs and on developing children’s spoken language. Elsewhere, pupil progress is only satisfactory. The school allocates a very large amount of additional time, money and resources to special needs provision and that for pupils learning English. However, it has had only a limited impact on enabling pupils to make progress that is better than satisfactory. This is in part because the precise impact of the school’s actions and spending decisions is not rigorously evaluated to determine what works well and what does not.

p.11

COMMENTARY

6. Pupils achieve well in music as a result of the good teaching. In most other subjects, there is too little evidence from lessons or from pupils’ past work to make secure judgements about standards or pupil progress. The lack of pupils’ past work is due to an imbalance in the curriculum. Clearly, this indicates that pupil achievement and standards in these subjects are not good enough.

p.11

Pupils’ attitudes, values and other personal qualities

Pupils’ attitudes and behaviour are good overall. Attendance is unsatisfactory and a significant number of pupils arrive late for school in the mornings. Provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is satisfactory .

p.11

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils of all ages enjoy coming to school. • A minority of pupils do not behave as well as they should and the school does not always deal firmly enough with them. • The relationships and the racial harmony within the school are particular strengths. • Most pupils are keen to take responsibility and contribute to the work of the school. • A significant minority of pupils do not attend regularly and arrive late in school. • The narrowness of the curriculum in Years 1 to 6 limits its contribution to pupils’ spiritual and cultural development. Alderbrook Primary School - 10

p.11

Commentary

7. In the Nursery and Reception classes, children’s attitudes and behaviour are very good. Most pupils in Years 1 to 6 also demonstrate good attitudes towards their learning, enjoy school and say that they find the work interesting. Most pupils behave well. A few, some with specific behavioural needs, sometimes present very challenging behaviour in class, which can interrupt their own and others’ learning. This view was also expressed by parents in the questionnaires, at the pre-inspection meeting and during the inspection. Parents also felt that sometimes the school does not deal firmly enough with incidents of unsatisfactory behaviour, both within lessons and when it occurs around the school. Inspection evidence supports their views. Inspectors found that expectations of behaviour were sometimes not high enough, and that there is not a clear structure or whole-school approach to tackling the

p.12

Commentary

8. The good relationships and racial harmony among pupils from very diverse ethnic backgrounds are real strengths of the school. Pupils co-operate well, value the contribution and opinions of others and are caring and supportive towards their peers. Around the school, the majority of pupils are courteous to each other and towards adults. They extend a warm welcome towards visitors and demonstrate confidence when engaged in conversation. Incidents of bullying and harassment are infrequent, but pupils say that when such behaviour is reported it is dealt with quickly and fairly. There have been seven incidents that have led to temporary exclusion in the last 12 months, as the table below shows. These incidents involved four pupils and relate to totally unacceptable behaviour. Overall, pupils’ good attitudes and behaviour have been maintained since the previous inspection.

p.12

Commentary

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

p.12

Commentary

Categories used in the Annual School Census No. of pupils on roll

p.12

s

White – British 47 0 0 White – Irish 1 0 0 White – any other White background 8 1 0 Mixed – White and Black Caribbean 8 1 0 Mixed – White and Black African 2 0 0 Mixed – White and Asian 2 0 0 Mixed – any other mixed background 5 1 0 Asian or Asian British – Indian 3 0 0 Asian or Asian British – Pakistani 22 0 0 Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 5 0 0 Asian or Asian British – any other Asian background 8 0 0 Black or Black British – Caribbean 36 2 0 Black or Black British – African 20 1 0 Black or Black British – any other Black background 7 1 0 Chinese 1 0 0 Any other ethnic group 13 0 0 The table gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded. Alderbrook Primary School - 11

p.12

Attendance

9. Attendance has fallen since the last inspection and is unsatisfactory. For some years, it has remained well below the national average. New initiatives aimed at improving attendance have recently been introduced, but these have not yet produced the desired results. Morning punctually in the school is also unsatisfactory, as it was at the time of the last inspection, with a significant percentage of pupils arriving after registration has been completed. Alderbrook Primary School - 12 Attendance in the latest complete reporting year 2002/3 (%)

p.13

Attendance

Authorised absence Unauthorised absence School data 7.0 School data 0.7 National data 5.4 National data 0.4 The table gives the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year.

p.14

Attendance

10. The school makes satisfactory provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils are encouraged to take on responsibilities around the school. The school house system provides good opportunities for pupils to develop cooperation and leadership skills. Class councils enable pupils to discuss their opinions on a range of issues and these in turn are fed through to the whole-school council. School councillors take their responsibilities very seriously and influence the life and work of the school. At the celebration assemblies, held every Friday, pupils are encouraged to nominate their peers for awards that acknowledge any special contribution they have made to the life and work of the school. The successful ‘friends’ scheme, whereby older pupils are empowered to support and care for younger pupils, has recently been re-established. Whole-school activities such as international celebrations

p.14

Attendance

and drama performances help them to develop a sense of the school as a community.

p.14

Attendance

11. Pupils develop self-awareness through the teaching of spiritual and moral values in assemblies, religious education and personal, social and health education and citizenship lessons. The ethos of the school successfully encompasses all faiths and pupils develop a good appreciation. The school strives to promote the principles of equality, inclusion and diversity. What prevents the overall provision for pupils’ personal development from being better than satisfactory is the narrowness of the overall curriculum because too little time is given to subjects such as history, geography and the arts. This also limits the school’s ability to draw on and reflect pupils’ diverse cultural traditions.

p.14

Attendance

QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED BY THE SCHOOL

p.14

Attendance

The school provides a satisfactory quality of education. Teaching and learning are s atisfactory . The curriculum is unsatisfactory and curricular enrichment is satisfactory . The school provides good levels of care. Links with parents and with the community are good .

p.14

Teaching and learning

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall. Assessment is un satisfactory .

p.14

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching and learning in the Nursery and Reception classes are very good. • In Years 1 to 6, all teachers have the basic skills to teach effectively and there is some good and better teaching. • Music and ICT are taught well. • Some pupils’ challenging behaviour and interruptions to lessons impact negatively on the overall quality of teaching and learning in a few lessons in Years 1 to 6. Alderbrook Primary School - 13 • Assessment in all subjects is carried out regularly, but there are weaknesses in the use that is made of the information gained from this.

p.14

Commentary

12. Teaching and learning in the Foundation Stage are very good. The main strengths are the way that teachers and support staff work very well together and with parents. This establishes children’s very positive attitudes to school and learning and very good routines. Work is well planned to ensure that good attention is given to each area of learning. Teaching methods meet individual children’s needs very well, including children with special educational needs and children learning English. Children’s progress is regularly assessed and staff build on this when planning future work, which ensures that children of different ability levels all learn very well.

p.15

Commentary

13. In Years 1 to 6, there is now more consistency in the quality of teaching than was the case at the time of the last inspection. Teaching and learning in English, mathematics, science and religious education are satisfactory. There are common strengths in teaching across classes. All teachers have secure knowledge of subjects and are well organised so that lessons get off to a good start. Lessons have a clear structure and teachers routinely explain to pupils what they will be learning. Staff encourage pupils and develop good relationships with them. Where teaching is good or better, questioning is often challenging, teachers have high expectations of pupils and maintain a good pace to lessons. They provide interesting activities, which motivates pupils to stay on task and work hard.

p.15

Commentary

14. The teaching of ICT is good. Staff training has helped to extend teachers’ knowledge and skills and develop their confidence. Pupils’ good attitudes and interest in the subject also supports their learning well. Music teaching is good. It captures pupils’ interest and motivates them to work hard and learn well. The specialist teacher has very good skills and music teaching seen in Year 2 was also of a high standard. No overall judgement can be made on teaching in other subjects as too little teaching was seen and there was only limited evidence of pupils’ past work to draw upon.

p.15

Commentary

15. Factors which sometimes detract from good teaching and learning occur when staff experience difficulty in managing some pupils’ behaviour, or as a result of weaknesses in the way that additional staff in the school are deployed. Too often in lessons, there are a number of additional teachers or support staff who make too little contribution to pupils’ learning. They sit passively in lessons, or spend more time correcting pupils’ behaviour than influencing their learning. Furthermore, pupils’ learning is often inhibited by interruptions to lessons when other pupils are taken out of class for extra teaching or behaviour support and brought back. Despite teachers’ attempts to help pupils who have missed parts of lessons to catch up, this sometimes proves impossible because there is so much coming and going.

p.15

Commentary

16. The school has satisfactory systems for regularly assessing pupils’ attainment and progress in all subjects. Statutory and optional test results in English, mathematics and science are also analysed to identify key weaknesses that then feed back into whole-school curriculum planning. The information from assessment is appropriately used to identify which pupils might benefit from additional special needs support, input from the teacher funded by Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant, or from catch-up provision and booster classes. On a day-to-day Alderbrook Primary School - 14 basis, however, some teachers do not make enough use of the assessment of pupils’ past attainment to adapt standard lesson plans, although they do have a picture of which pupils in their class fall into the broad categories of average, above average and below average attainment. Some individual education plans written for pupils with special needs are detailed

p.15

Commentary

and useful, but others are imprecise about the major concerns, expected outcomes and the current needs of pupils, to be useful to class teachers and support staff. Class teachers are not sufficiently involved in assessing pupils’ additional needs in learning English. The inspection process also highlighted that senior managers do not have an accurate picture of exactly how many pupils at this school actually are at the early stages of acquiring English.

p.16

Commentary

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection in 53 lessons

p.16

Commentary

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very poor

p.16

Commentary

1 (2%) 9 (17%) 17(32%) 24 (45%) 2 (4%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) The table gives the number of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons; figures in brackets show percentages where 30 or more lessons are seen.

p.16

The curriculum

The overall curriculum in Years 1 to 6 is unsatisfactory . The curriculum in the Foundation Stage is good . Curricular enrichment is satisfactory . There are a good number of teachers and support staff. The accommodation and resources are satisfactory .

p.16

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The curriculum for children in the Nursery and Reception classes is good. • In Years 1 to 6, because too much time is spent on English, not enough time is spent on a number of other subjects. • The school is not making best use of relevant links between subjects. • The school is not getting the best from its good staffing levels. • There are insufficient dual-language texts, and some mathematics resources need replacing.

p.16

Commentary

17. Since the last inspection, there have been significant improvements to the curriculum in Nursery and Reception. The curriculum provided here pays good attention to all six areas of learning, is exciting and is well adapted to children’s backgrounds and learning needs. The transition from the Reception class to Year 1 is well managed. The Year 1 teacher is also liaising well with the staff in Nursery and Reception to help develop this aspect, so as to ensure that children more gradually make the adjustments to Year 1 and the different methods of teaching and learning found there. Alderbrook Primary School - 15 18. The curriculum in Years 1 to 6 includes all subjects, sex education, drugs awareness and personal, social and health education. The balance is, however, unsatisfactory and the curriculum is not broad enough to cater for the interests, aptitudes and particular needs of all pupils. Schemes of work have not been adapted to reflect

p.16

Commentary

pupils at this school. Pupils in each class spend approximately ten hours a week on English, which means that the time left for subjects such as physical education, art and design, design and technology, history and geography is too short. The school also does not make best use of opportunities to link mathematics, English and ICT work to other subjects. The school wants to make the curriculum more interesting, to provide more first-hand experiences and improve opportunities for pupils to work independently. The school does not, however, have any firm plans for exactly how it will achieve this.

p.17

Commentary

19. Provision for pupils learning English and those with special educational needs is satisfactory overall. Pupils receive additional support in lessons and some specialist provision, which helps them to progress at the same rate as other pupils. However, the high level of additional support and extra provision is not managed well enough to enable pupils to make good progress and so catch up on lost ground.

p.17

Commentary

20. The school has a satisfactory range of clubs that pupils participate in. Visits and visitors also support the curriculum and provide good links with school work, especially in history, drama and religious education. The school employs a good number of appropriately trained teachers in addition to class teachers and a large number of support staff, including a full-time Learning Mentor. The school is not making best use of its good staffing levels to raise standards and some of the support staff require further training in how to support pupils’ learning.

p.17

Commentary

21. The accommodation is satisfactory and has been much improved since the last inspection, including the quality of decoration. The large school hall and a smaller hall provide good, flexible spaces. The ICT suite is a well-equipped facility, and adjacent to the library, which is satisfactorily stocked. The Nursery has a well-equipped outdoor area, to which children in the Reception class have planned access. Playground space is limited, but the quality of equipment is good. Some classrooms have also been fitted with acoustic equipment to improve the sound. Resources to support the curriculum are satisfactory overall, but there is a shortage of dual-language texts and some of the mathematics equipment needs replacing and updating.

p.17

Care, guidance and support

The standard of care is good . The personal advice and academic guidance given to pupils is satisfactory . Pupils trust their teachers and other staff and know that their views and opinions are valued.

p.17

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Pupils are well cared for. • Arrangements for child protection, health and safety have improved well since the last inspection. • Pupils and staff respect one another. Alderbrook Primary School - 16 • The school values pupils’ views and opinions.

p.17

Commentary

22. Staff know their pupils and are sensitive to their personal needs and support them well. Pupils feel safe and are encouraged to try hard, as a result. Child protection arrangements are very good and have improved since the previous inspection. There is a very good awareness of the needs of vulnerable pupils. The school regularly draws on advice and support from social services and other external agencies, as and when required. However, with pupils drawn from eight London boroughs, maintaining close links with all the relevant support agencies presents a challenge for the school.

p.18

Commentary

23. Health and safety procedures are much improved since the previous inspection. Regular risk assessments are now undertaken and the site manager and governors regularly monitor standards, practice and procedures. Pupils are well supervised and are taught to use school equipment safely and to observe good standards of personal hygiene. The school is cleaned and maintained to a good standard.

p.18

Commentary

24. There are good arrangements for welcoming and supporting pupils when they first enter the school. The arrangements for pupils when they transfer to a very large number of available secondary schools are satisfactory. There is good provision for those pupils who may find the transition especially demanding, which involves support through the school’s Learning Mentor. The relationships and trust among pupils and between pupils and staff are good. Pupils express confidence that, when they have concerns or need to seek help or guidance, staff will listen and respond to their needs. The work of class and school councils ensures that pupil opinion is sought, considered and acted upon.

p.18

Partnership with parents, other schools and the community

The school has developed good links with parents, the local community and other schools and colleges.

p.18

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Parents like many aspects of the school. • The school and parents largely work well together, but a few parents do not send their children to school regularly and punctually. • The parent teacher organisation makes a good contribution to the school. • There are strong links with the local community, other schools and colleges.

p.18

Commentary

25. The school’s partnership with parents and parents’ views of the school have improved since the last inspection. Most parents expressed positive views through the pre- inspection questionnaires and at meetings with inspectors. Parents appreciate the way that staff make themselves accessible to them. The main area of concern parents raised relates to the school’s approach to behaviour management. A significant number felt that senior managers do not take a firm and consistent approach to dealing with the unsatisfactory behaviour and inspectors agree. A number of parents Alderbrook Primary School - 17 also expressed a desire to see more time being spent on subjects such as physical education, music and art and design.

p.18

Commentary

26. As part of a joint provision of extended educational support, the school is managing and running a family-learning programme which is enhancing parents’ understanding so that they are better equipped to support their children’s learning. The annual progress reports provide a good overview of pupils’ personal development, progress, attainment and attitudes towards their work. Parents also receive the results of assessments and the targets that pupils need to work on next so that they can contribute to their children’s future learning. Parent/teacher consultation evenings are well attended. A minority of parents do not support the school by ensuring that their children attend regularly and arrive on time.

p.19

Commentary

27. The parent-teacher association organises regular fundraising and other social events and makes a good contribution towards the life and work of the school and the community spirit. A number of parents also regularly help in school. Links with the wider community and other schools and colleges are good and have developed well since the previous inspection. The buildings and facilities are used regularly by a number of community and religious organisations. The close working partnership with the local cluster of primary schools and with two secondary schools, one a specialist sports college and the other a specialist media and arts college, enables the school to draw upon specialist tutors and facilities for gymnastics, volleyball, tennis and art and design.

p.19

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

The overall leadership and management of the headteacher and key staff are unsatisfactory . Governance of the school is unsatisfactory .

p.19

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

• Although action has been taken to address the key issues from the last inspection, similar weaknesses are still evident in a number of key areas. • The headteacher has established better links with parents and the community. • Staff deployment is unsatisfactory and the precise roles of senior managers are not clearly defined. • The school has established systems for regularly monitoring and evaluating pupils’ work, teaching and learning to ensure consistency, but the effectiveness of some of the school’s other decisions is not rigorously evaluated. • Governors support the school but they do not rigorously evaluate the outcomes of spending decisions or sufficiently challenge the school to explain why standards are not improving as a result of actions taken. • The Foundation Stage of learning is very well led and managed. • Some subjects have been developed successfully, but a number of other subjects are

p.19

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

underdeveloped because no co-ordinators have been appointed to lead them. COMMENTARY Alderbrook Primary School - 18 28. SINCE THE LAST INSPECTION, THERE HAVE BEEN IMPROVEMENTS TO THE FOUNDATION STAGE PROVISION, TEACHING, THE ACCOMMODATION, STANDARDS OF CARE, LINKS WITH PARENTS AND THE PROVISION FOR ICT. GOVERNORS’ CONTRIBUTION TO THE SCHOOL HAS ALSO BEEN STRENGTHENED. NEVERTHELESS, THERE HAS BEEN UNSATISFACTORY PROGRESS IN OTHER KEY AREAS SUCH AS SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT PLANNING AND IMPROVING THE STRATEGIC ROLES OF SENIOR MANAGERS. THIS LIMITS SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND THE PACE OF CHANGE, DESPITE THE FACT THAT THE HEADTEACHER AND STAFF ARE WORKING TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS. STANDARDS IN ENGLISH AND MATHEMATICS HAVE NOT RISEN SIGNIFICANTLY, DESPITE MUCH ADDITIONAL TIME, RESOURCES AND MONEY THAT HAVE BEEN ALLOCATED TO THESE AREAS. FURTHERMORE, SENIOR MANAGERS CANNOT EASILY EXPLAIN IN ANY DETAIL WHY TEST RESULTS ARE NOT

p.19

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

RISING, DESPITE ALL THE EMPHASIS PLACED ON DEVELOPING WORK IN ENGLISH, MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE.

p.20

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

29. The headteacher ensures that the school runs fairly smoothly on a day-to-day basis. She also promotes racial harmony and good relationships within the school and with the wider community and parents. As a result, parents and the community are now more involved in the school and pupils feel secure and valued. The headteacher’s strategic role in ensuring that the school is effective in all areas is, however, unsatisfactory. Staff and governors are all involved in the school development planning process. The current one-year school improvement plan shows that the school has some understanding of what needs to be addressed. However, the plan does not show clearly what action is to be taken to bring about the desired improvements, nor does it set out clear, measurable criteria by which to judge the impact and success of various actions. There are also sometimes tenuous links between the results derived from the monitoring of teaching and pupils’ work with the

p.20

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

priorities for development in the subject co-ordinators’ action plans.

p.20

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

30. The governing body has been strengthened since the last inspection. Governors now have a clear structure and good awareness of the school’s strengths and many of its weaknesses, derived from regular feedback from the school as well their own regular monitoring visits. They support the school well and fulfil their statutory responsibilities. However, they do not step back and rigorously and critically evaluate the school’s overall provision and determine, for example, why standards are not rising, and why attendance is not better. They have also not given enough attention to evaluating the overall curriculum and the impact of their decisions on how the school’s finances are be spent. Governance is therefore unsatisfactory.

p.20

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

31. The subject managers have the enthusiasm and potential to lead and make improvements within their own subject areas, but lack clear direction from senior managers. The management of English as an additional language and Ethnic Minority Achievement is satisfactory overall. The designated teacher manages provision effectively, on a day-to-day basis, but senior managers have not given a high enough status to developing all of the staffs’ skills in this crucial area of the school. For example, the designated teacher has not led any specific in-service training for class teachers or support staff in order to spread good practice and there has been little liaison between the Ethnic Minority Achievement teacher and the English subject leader. The Foundation Stage of Learning is led and managed very well. This ensures that provision is effective, the staff work well as a team and any new developments

p.20

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Alderbrook Primary School - 19 are tackled promptly and thoroughly. This is why children in Nursery and Reception achieve well.

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

32. The staff responsible for the Foundation Stage of Learning, English, mathematics, science and ICT have time every week to develop and monitor the provision. This has helped to ensure that teaching is consistent, which has been particularly important at times when there has been a high turnover of teachers. This has not, however, led to any sustained improvements in standards in English, mathematics or science and the school has been slow to determine why this is the case. The school’s continued emphasis on developing work in these subjects has also meant that it has been slow to develop that in other subjects, many of which do not yet have co-ordinators. Two of the staff just out of their first year of teaching are to take on some of these responsibilities in the near future, but some subjects will still not have a designated leader. Furthermore, the least experienced staff will be leading on subjects in

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

which there has been too little development in the past.

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

33. The management of special educational needs is satisfactory overall. The co-ordinator ensures that the day-to-day management of provision is satisfactory. The policy for special educational needs makes clear the expectation that in English, mathematics and science, pupils’ work is matched to their previous attainment. However, this is not always evident in practice, indicating inadequate monitoring of provision. The special- needs governor has a good understanding of her role. However, governors as a whole have not yet sought evidence that the school is getting the best from the very high financial spending in this area.

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

34. Strengthening the role of the deputy headteacher and senior managers was a key issue from the last inspection. Although the role of the deputy headteacher has been extended and she liaises regularly with the headteacher, she still does not have a clear strategic role in developing and improving the school. A new senior management team has been set up since the last inspection, but senior managers’ job descriptions do not contain any details of what is expected of a senior manager. It is also unclear who in the school has overall responsibility for key areas such as managing pupils’ behaviour and developing and overseeing the curriculum. Some job descriptions are also out-of-date, including those of the headteacher and deputy headteacher.

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

35. Day-to-day finances are managed satisfactorily. The school is good at attracting additional funding, including that from lettings. This has helped it to make improvements to the accommodation and provide a more attractive learning environment. The school is carrying forward too much of its budget each year and more than the five per cent that is recommended, although some of this has been earmarked to pay for an additional Year 6 teacher in the current academic year. The school provides an overall satisfactory standard of education, but it has serious weaknesses in its leadership and management and in the curriculum. The school is well funded and the cost of educating pupils is high. The school is not making best use of its spending to raise standards across all subjects and ensure that pupils progress at a rate that is better than satisfactory. The value-for-money that the school provides is therefore unsatisfactory.

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Financial information for years 2003/2004

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Income and expenditure (£) Balances (£) Alderbrook Primary School - 20 Total income 1, 016,437 Balance from previous year 119,274 Total expenditure 1, 048,150 Balance carried forward to the next year 87,561

p.21

LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT

Expenditure per pupil 4,142 Alderbrook Primary School - 21

p.22

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Provision for children in the Nursery and Reception class is a strength of the school. Since the last inspection, there have been very significant improvements. Staff have responded very well to national developments in the curriculum. The quality of teaching is very good overall in the Nursery and Reception class because it is based on good understanding of how children learn together, with high expectations of what they can achieve. Staff work very well as a team. The nursery nurse and teaching assistant make an excellent contribution to children’s learning. Staff plan work well and use assessments of children’s learning to inform their planning. Appropriate records are kept to monitor the progress that children make in all areas of learning. The high quality assessment folders celebrating children’s achievements reflect the pride staff take in their own and children’s work. There is a consistent approach to teaching and learning which helps children to settle into school

p.23

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

life. All members of staff work hard to provide a rich learning environment, attractive displays of children’s work and photographs of them at work. This raises children’s self- esteem and encourages them to work harder.

p.23

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Children make good progress from a well below average level of attainment on entry to school. Those with special educational needs have clear targets for improvement and are helped to reach these through the provision of appropriate activities and very good support. Those who are learning English as an additional language also receive very good support because staff are well trained to cater for their needs. This support helps them to increase their range of vocabulary and develop confidence when speaking. By the time they start in Year 1, children currently in the Reception class are likely to reach national standards in personal, social and emotional development, creative and physical development and knowledge and understanding of the world. Standards are likely to be below those for children of the same age nationally in communication, language and literacy and mathematical development.

p.23

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

p.23

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

Provision for personal, social and emotional development is very good .

p.23

AREAS OF LEARNING IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

• Staff work hard to form good relationships with children and parents and there is a good induction programme. • The quality of teaching is very good and children achieve very well.

p.23

COMMENTARY

36. Children’s personal and social development is given high priority, which underpins all the work in the Nursery and Reception classes. As a result, most children will have achieved the recommended levels by the time they enter Year 1. Children quickly settle into a caring and safe environment where basic routines and high expectations Alderbrook Primary School - 22 are fostered. The outstanding working relationships between all members of staff and parents are effective in showing children how to relate to each other. Staff share the vision ‘to offer the best possible Foundation Stage practice to allow each individual child to achieve her/his full potential through enjoyment and fulfilment in learning.’ Care is taken to assess children’s different experiences before they come to school and adults work hard to instil a sense of belonging, based on personal care and making children feel comfortable and liked. Very good teaching, which emphasises

p.23

COMMENTARY

kindness to each other, and planned activities that both entail and require co- operation, result in good social development. Staff place great emphasis on the development of children’s self-esteem, confidence and independence. As a result, children respond well to new challenges, such as changing independently for physical education lessons and tidying away after activities. Girls and boys are encouraged to play and work together and take part in rich learning opportunities so that they develop a good range of skills across all areas of learning. The very good links the school has with the pre-school, and the highly structured induction arrangements, do much to ensure that children’s first experiences of school are happy ones. They are encouraged to recognise the importance of keeping healthy and are aware of personal hygiene issues. This was demonstrated, for example, during lunchtime when children

p.24

COMMENTARY

and staff eat together and children brush their teeth after eating.

p.24

Communication, language and literacy

Provision for communication, language and literacy is very good .

p.24

Communication, language and literacy

• Children receive a very good range of activities which develops their speaking, listening, reading and writing skills. • The quality of teaching and learning is very good. • Members of staff use every opportunity to engage children in conversation.

p.24

Commentary

37. A large number of children show low levels of speech and communication in English on entry to school. Some find it difficult to talk about what they are doing and others are difficult to understand. Staff recognise this and provide a rich learning environment which encourages speaking and listening skills and develops children’s vocabulary. No opportunity is missed to extend children’s speaking skills and this is a strong feature of all activities because staff appreciate that many children are still learning at this stage. Very good examples of this were seen throughout the day as, for example, when children were closely examining breads from a variety of countries. They were challenged to describe them in terms of soft, hard, flat, sweet. Small group teaching is particularly effective in ensuring that all children are included in discussions.

p.24

Commentary

38. Children are encouraged to enjoy books and handle them carefully and, as a result, they show pleasure in a range of stories. They have regular opportunities to listen to stories and they respond very well. Children in the Nursery were thoroughly involved Alderbrook Primary School - 23 as the teacher re-read the story of ‘The Three Billy Goats Gruff’, joining in with key phrases and anticipating what would happen next. Children in the Reception class respond well to stories such as ‘The Hungry Caterpillar’ and ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. Groups were seen completely absorbed when using the computer to watch and read stories using the ‘Living Books’ program. Regular sessions help them in their recognition of letters and sounds. Parents are advised how they can help their children’s reading at home, which has a significant effect on the progress that they make and the standards they achieve. However, despite the very good progress and

p.24

Commentary

achievement in reading, standards are, overall, below those seen nationally because of the low starting point of many of them.

p.25

Commentary

39. On entry to the Nursery, children develop their writing skills by learning how to hold a pencil correctly and recognising and writing their own names. They become aware of writing for different purposes through, for example, when writing books about themselves with help and sticking in photographs brought from home. These skills are developed in the Reception class when children are encouraged, for example, to write their news, and to rewrite the caterpillar story using simple sentences. Lots of words are displayed on the ‘Word Wall’ and around the classrooms to support children’s reading and writing. Alderbrook Primary School - 24 MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

p.25

Commentary

Provision for mathematical development is good .

p.26

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching is good and children achieve well. • Children are given good opportunities to reinforce their learning.

p.26

Commentary

40. Children’s mathematical skills and understanding are effectively taught during specific sessions, and consolidated through practical experiences and play. Children enjoy their work and respond well to activities provided. In the Nursery, they develop their counting skills and hand-eye co-ordination and throwing skills as they throw beanbags into numbered hoops, and read and record the number they have landed on. Children in the Reception class make tally charts to record their results. They string coloured beads onto cotton to record given numbers to ten, and learn simple addition and subtraction. Small group teaching is very effective in involving all children in mathematical discussion.

p.26

Commentary

41. Children are shown how to count in their many home languages such as English, Portuguese, French, Urdu and Bengali. This celebration of each other’s languages gives good support to children’s social and cultural development. In both classes, children get regular opportunities to count and match numbers and to develop their understanding of capacity through playing with sand and water. Very good practical activities such as making cakes are well used to teach children how to measure. Towards the end of the Reception year, lessons follow the structure advised in the National Numeracy Strategy, to help them prepare for work in Year 1. Mathematics packs are available on loan to parents who wish to help their children at home.

p.26

Knowledge and understanding of the world

Provision for knowledge and understanding of the world is very good .

p.26

Main strengths and weaknesses

• The quality of teaching and learning is very good. • Very good links are made with other areas of learning.

p.26

Commentary

42. Children are provided with a wide range of experiences which help extend their understanding of the world around them. Very well planned activities, such as walks within the local environment to note the changes in nature over the different seasons, for example, are very well used to develop their understanding of the world. As a result, children are able to talk about and describe features of the wider world, and to express their views about features they like or dislike. Visitors are well used to Alderbrook Primary School - 25 support children’s learning, their health, safety and social development. Children in the Nursery develop an understanding of different textures and how to describe them. They are encouraged to act out roles, for example, those of working in a hospital or a shop. The outside environment is very good and offers them a range of opportunities to see how things grow and experience playing in different weathers.

p.26

Commentary

43. In the Reception class, children further develop their understanding of texture and growth through use of the well-designed ‘Interest Table’. They are shown and talk about plants. Opportunities like these are well used to develop children’s speaking skills and to develop their interest. They also learn what plants need to grow as they plant and water sunflowers. In ICT, children are very well taught to use the mouse to control the screen cursor when moving images across the screen. They are taught to program a ‘Roamer’ to move in a given direction, as was seen in a very good lesson based on the story ‘The Billy Goats Gruff.’ In this lesson, the high but realistic expectations of the nursery teacher ensured that all made very good progress in small groups. Children in both classes develop an understanding of their own personal history through the use of photographs of themselves now and while younger.

p.27

Commentary

Teachers and support staff effectively teach children that some families within the community have similar beliefs to theirs, but that others do not. They do this by celebrating not only Christian festivals but also festivals such as the Chinese New Year and Diwali. As a result of the very good, imaginative provision, most children are on course to achieve the recommended standard.

p.27

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Provision for physical development is very good .

p.27

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching and learning are very good. • The outdoor area has been improved and children have regular opportunities to develop their physical skills.

p.27

Main strengths and weaknesses

44. The quality of teaching and learning is very good and almost all children reach standards appropriate for their age. They receive regular opportunities for physical activities such as running, jumping, climbing and balancing, both in timetabled lessons for the Reception class and during regular opportunities for physical activity in the very well organised and resourced outdoor learning area. Children in both Nursery and Reception have regular swimming lessons. The very good relationships established by adults result in all the children having fun as well as learning to use space. These very good relationships are a common feature in the Nursery and Reception classes and encourage all children to ‘have a go’ during physical activities. Children are given frequent opportunities during the school day to use small tools and instruments, including paint brushes, pencils, scissors and crayons, to develop their

p.27

Main strengths and weaknesses

fine motor skills. They use construction materials confidently and like to talk about what they are making. Management of children is very good, which ensures their safety when using apparatus and tools. Alderbrook Primary School - 26

p.27

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

PROVISION FOR CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT IS VERY GOOD .

p.28

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Children enjoy their creative work and achieve very well. • Teaching and learning are very good. • Good links are made with other areas of learning.

p.28

Main strengths and weaknesses

45. Children are provided with a rich environment in which creativity and expressiveness are valued. Teaching is very good in this area of the curriculum. Members of staff are very effective in getting responses from children in relation to what they see, hear, feel and imagine, and most children reach the standard expected for their age at the end of the Reception Year. Their creative development is successfully fostered through a wide range of experiences such as mixing paints, choosing particular colours, and making constructions, collages and paintings. They have many opportunities to glue, stick and join materials together. Children enjoy the activities very much. They were observed exploring clay by patting, pinching and rolling it, describing the subsequent changes using accurate vocabulary. In music lessons, children explore how sounds can be made, sing simple songs from memory and match movements to music. A very good singing lesson was observed in the

p.28

Main strengths and weaknesses

Reception class where children sang songs such as ‘In a Cottage in a Wood’ and ‘If You’re Happy and You Know It’ with enthusiasm and joy. The teacher used her expertise and musical skills to accompany the children on the piano and to raise the standard of their singing. Children in the Nursery are introduced to a range of musical instruments. The well-designed role-play areas provide very good opportunities for children to play co-operatively and develop their imagination.

p.28

Main strengths and weaknesses

• There is some good and very good teaching. • Too much time is devoted to teaching English and there are few opportunities to link English work with that in other subjects. • The subject leader’s regular monitoring of lessons and pupils’ work has brought about consistency and ensures pupils progress at a satisfactory rate. • The impact of the use of the support staff and extra time given to the subject has not been rigorously evaluated. Alderbrook Primary School - 27 COMMENTARY

p.28

Main strengths and weaknesses

46. ALTHOUGH PUPILS’ ATTAINMENT IS BELOW THE NATIONAL EXPECTATIONS BY THE AGE OF SEVEN AND 11, THEY ACHIEVE SATISFACTORILY, GIVEN THE LOW ATTAINMENT OF MANY ON ENTRY TO SCHOOL. TEST RESULTS AT THE AGE SEVEN AND 11 ARE BELOW THOSE IN SCHOOLS NATIONALLY. THERE ARE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE ACHIEVEMENTS OR ATTAINMENT OF BOYS OR GIRLS OR BETWEEN PUPILS FROM DIFFERENT ETHNIC GROUPS.

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

47. Standards in reading are below those expected. By the time they are in Year 2, pupils are starting to develop a range of reading strategies. They learn the difference between fiction and non-fiction books and can, in very simple terms, predict what might happen next in a story. A few pupils currently in Year 2 read confidently and fluently, but many are still at the relatively early stages of reading. In Years 3 to 6, pupils have opportunities to read a wide range of books. By the age of 11, they talk confidently about books they have read and use words they have learned in lessons to describe their preferences. For example, a group of Year 6 boys, from different ethnic groups, explained that they were “conferring about their opinions of ‘Zlatta’s Diary’. Not all pupils in Year 6 read fluently, however, and a significant number still need support from the support staff. Pupils are encouraged to take reading books

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

home every night and to read to members of their family, which makes a good contribution to their learning.

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

48. A significant number of pupils enter school with poor speaking skills, due to speech and language difficulties and because a high proportion of pupils are at the early stages of learning English. Although standards in speaking and listening are below national expectations by the end of Year 2 and Year 6, pupil achievement is satisfactory. Most pupils develop confidence to speak openly in lessons and can make themselves understood, and some higher-attaining pupils are well spoken and use a good range of vocabulary. A significant minority, however, are restricted by a limited vocabulary. Improving pupils’ speaking and listening is rightly a key priority identified by the school. Most lessons include an objective relating to this, although in practice, in a number of lessons, pupils have far more opportunities to listen than they do to speak. In a few classes, good use is made of paired talk. In most lessons, pupils listen

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

attentively and respond well to teachers’ questions. However, when occasionally lesson introductions go on for too long, pupils lose concentration.

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

49. Standards in writing are below national expectations. The work of higher-attaining pupils is fairly accurate and meets nationally expected standards by the end of Year 6. Analysis of pupils’ work clearly shows that they make satisfactory progress in writing from a low starting point. They are taught the conventions of writing within different genres and try hard to incorporate what they have learned into their own writing. Standards of handwriting are below national expectations and, despite the amount of time dedicated to handwriting lessons and practice, improvement across the school is very erratic. Alderbrook Primary School - 28 50. Teaching and learning in lessons is always at least satisfactory. All teachers have at least secure subject knowledge and lessons have clear objectives and a sound structure. Often, lessons get off to a good start because a number of teachers have good teaching skills. Weaknesses in the use of support staff is one factor that

p.29

Main strengths and weaknesses

sometimes detracts from good teaching and learning. In the best lessons, as seen in Years 2 and 5, teaching was lively and interesting, and tasks were well matched to pupils of different abilities, including those pupils who are still learning English. Good use of talk partners meant that all pupils were involved. The pace of learning was fast throughout the lesson. Pupils’ progress in English is regularly assessed. The results of assessments help to identify the broad ability bands in each class. Weaknesses in assessment relate to a lack of systems to assess pupils’ speaking skills and sometimes a lack of information about some individual pupils’ precise and specific needs.

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

51. The full-time teacher responsible for Ethnic Minority Achievement provides specialist support for small groups of pupils within lessons in Year 1 to Year 6. This support is effective. The teacher does not, however, spend sufficient time team-teaching with class teachers in order to model and extend good practice, such as ensuring that teachers provide visual clues for pupils and emphasise the development of key vocabulary.

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

52. In its attempts to raise standards, the school has given additional time to teaching English. Pupils in each class currently spend about ten hours per week on English. The impact of this on raising standards in English has been limited and the senior management team have not, as yet, rigorously evaluated why this is the case.

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

53. Improvements since the last inspection are satisfactory. The subject has been led and managed satisfactorily and regular monitoring has led to greater consistency in teaching and learning. The new co-ordinator has the experience, enthusiasm and potential to make further improvements.

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

54. THE ANALYSIS OF PUPILS’ WORK SHOWS THAT THEY HAVE FEW OPPORTUNITIES TO READ AND WRITE AS PART OF THEIR WORK IN OTHER SUBJECTS. THERE IS ALSO AN OVERUSE OF WORKSHEETS IN SOME SUBJECTS, WHICH LIMITS INDEPENDENT WRITING. THE SCHOOL IS TRYING TO DEVELOP CROSS-CURRICULAR LINKS, BUT THIS IS HAMPERED BY THE FACT THAT WORK IN A NUMBER OF OTHER SUBJECTS IS UNDERDEVELOPED AND THERE ARE NO CO-ORDINATORS LEADING ON THESE SUBJECTS.

p.30

Mathematics

Provision for mathematics is satisfactory .

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Standards in Year 2 are set to improve because the teaching there is very effective. • Teaching is always at least satisfactory and it is good or very good in some lessons. • Pupils have good attitudes to learning. • Some teaching assistants do not make enough contribution to pupils’ learning. Alderbrook Primary School - 29 • The withdrawal of pupils from class lessons for small-group support sometimes interrupts all pupils’ learning. • The co-ordinator has been effective in bringing greater consistency to teaching and learning. • The results from assessment should be used more effectively to raise standards. • There are few opportunities to link mathematics work with that in other subjects.

p.30

Main strengths and weaknesses

55. Inspection evidence shows that, although pupils’ attainment at age seven and 11 is below national expectations, all pupils, including those with special educational needs and those learning English, achieve satisfactorily during their time at the school. There are no significant differences in the standard that boys and girls and pupils from different ethnic groups attain. The proportion of pupils attaining the expected Level 2 at age seven in the national test has declined over the past few years. In Year 6, the proportion attaining the expected Level 4 has been quite consistent, except in 2003, when test results fell.

p.31

Main strengths and weaknesses

56. Standards in the current Year 2 class are set to improve this year because the teaching is very good. It is brisk and very challenging. This is helping to improve pupils’ learning and their interest and engagement in lessons. Good teaching was also evident in two other lessons, in Year 3 and in a Year 5 and 6 set. Strengths included challenging questioning, good management of pupils and a brisk pace. Teaching and learning has improved since the last inspection. All teachers have at least a secure understanding of the subject. They identify clear learning objectives simply and in a way that pupils can understand. They use classroom displays and equipment well to support learning, although in two lessons there was insufficient equipment to go round. Good relationships between pupils and teachers encourage them to persevere and to develop good attitudes to learning. The current focus on encouraging pupils to talk about their learning is a good initiative and was particularly evident

p.31

Main strengths and weaknesses

57. Setting arrangements whereby pupils in Years 5 and 6 are taught in small ability groups for all of their mathematics lessons were introduced last year. This arrangement has the potential to raise standards and parents feel the most able pupils are being presented with greater challenge. Nevertheless, the quality of much of the teaching and learning seen in lessons within these sets was only satisfactory. Given the very small teaching groups of around 12 pupils, the school is not making enough use of this opportunity to push pupils to work harder so as to accelerate their learning.

p.31

Main strengths and weaknesses

58. In some lessons, teaching assistants make a good impact on pupils’ learning, but some support staff would, however, benefit from further training. General weaknesses in staff deployment had a negative impact on teaching in some lessons. In two lessons seen, teachers were frequently interrupted when pupils were returned to or withdrawn from class for extra support. These arrangements are also not sufficiently well thought out to ensure that pupils being given additional support do not then miss out on vital class teaching.

p.31

Main strengths and weaknesses

59. The school has secure systems for assessing pupils’ work and progress and analysing test results and data. These have recently been extended so as to more frequently assess and track all pupils’ progress against age-appropriate National Curriculum levels. Information gained from analysing test results is used effectively to highlight where improvements to teaching and learning might be needed, and to identify those Alderbrook Primary School - 30 pupils who appear not to be keeping up. The information is not consistently used to adapt teachers’ weekly and daily plans so that they more precisely match the attainments of pupils within each class because some teachers tend to teach directly to the published plans.

p.31

Main strengths and weaknesses

60. The co-ordinator currently in post has a clear educational direction and leads and manages the subject well. Her regular and rigorous monitoring of teaching, pupils’ work, and the good support she provides for class teachers, has helped to ensure greater consistency in teaching, learning and pupils’ progress. This has been especially important because there has been a high turnover of teachers and a number of inexperienced teachers joining the school. Improvement since the last inspection has been satisfactory.

p.32

Mathematics across the curriculum

61. The school makes too little use of opportunities to develop and apply pupils’ mathematics skills as part of their work in other subjects. This is because of weaknesses in the overall curriculum, which means that pupils spend too little time on subjects such as history, geography and design and technology. The use of ICT to support work in mathematics is still, as yet, limited.

p.32

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Although overall standards are below national expectations, pupils achieve satisfactorily. • There is some good and very good teaching, but also some weaknesses related to the management of pupils’ behaviour and the use of additional staff. • The science co-ordinator has a clear educational direction. • Assessment is not used well enough.

p.32

Commentary

62. Inspection evidence shows that, although standards in science are below national expectations at the age of seven and 11, pupils’ achievement is satisfactory when taking account of their attainment on entry to school. Science test results are generally below or well below the national average by the age of seven and 11.

p.32

Commentary

63. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall. Teachers have at least a secure understanding of the subject. They give appropriate attention to discussing scientific methods and vocabulary, and question pupils effectively. In the best lessons, very good planning and organisation, and the teacher’s very good relationships with pupils, helped them to learn and achieve well. This was evident in Year 2, for example, where pupils were learning about ideas such as ‘fair test’, ‘prediction’ and ‘variable’, as they discussed what sort of ramp allowed a toy vehicle to travel furthest. Pupils reached a good understanding through planning and carrying out investigations. Similarly, in a lesson in Year 5, the teacher used her very good Alderbrook Primary School - 31 relationship with her class to motivate pupils well, and her good questioning helped them to learn at a good pace.

p.32

Commentary

64. Where teaching was less effective and sometimes unsatisfactory, pupils had to listen for too long before practical work began, and had too few opportunities to be independent. Some pupils still learning English, or who have special educational needs, were given worksheets which were not well tailored to their needs. A few pupils lack concentration and in the best lessons, teachers manage pupils very well, but others are not as skilled at managing difficult behaviour. Sometimes, additional staff did not play a big enough part in supporting pupils’ learning, especially during whole-class teaching sessions. Assessment is overall unsatisfactory because staff do not use it well enough to plan precise tasks for pupils of different abilities. Pupils’ written work is regularly marked, but marking does not give pupils enough guidance about how to improve.

p.33

Commentary

65. The science curriculum has improved well since the last inspection to give much more attention to scientific investigation. A key weakness is in Year 6, where pupils’ work from last year indicates that from an early point in the spring term, too little new learning takes place because pupils are preparing for the tests. The subject is soundly led and managed. The co-ordinator has a good understanding of the present strengths and weaknesses in provision. She regularly checks teachers’ planning and monitors teaching and pupils’ written work. This has helped to bring greater consistency to teaching and secure satisfactory improvements since the last inspection.

p.33

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

Provision for information and communication technology (ICT) is satisfactory .

p.33

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching and learning are good. • The curriculum and resources have improved well since the last inspection. • Pupils are eager to learn. • Links between ICT and other subjects are not yet well developed.

p.33

Commentary

66. Standards are in line with those expected and pupils of all abilities achieve satisfactorily. In Year 1, for example, pupils can move objects on the screen using the ‘drag and drop’ technique. By the time they are in Year 3, pupils are confident users of the mouse and the keyboard and show good facility with the drop-down menus in a word-processing application. Pupils in Year 6, when beginning to design an ICT presentation on The Blitz, were able, for example, to enter text, capture picture material from the Internet and re-size it.

p.33

Commentary

67. The quality of teaching and learning is good. Lessons are well planned and teaching methods are often good. One teacher, for example, involved pupils well by asking for directions to complete a task and later provided an instruction sheet to support individual work to apply the technique demonstrated. Most teachers have good knowledge and skills so that they demonstrate confidently, including using the interactive whiteboard facility. They model the use of ICT well at the beginning of Alderbrook Primary School - 32 lessons, as, for example, in Year 4, when the teacher showed her pupils the technique to produce a repeating pattern and how new colour could be introduced to good effect into the design. Teaching usually proceeds at a good pace and teachers challenge pupils to improve. In lessons where teaching and learning were satisfactory, the pace of the lessons was slower so that pupils did not learn as fast. When working

p.33

Commentary

with individual pupils with special educational needs, teaching assistants often provided good support through effective explanations and good question-and-answer work. The most effective support also encouraged pupils’ independence. In whole- class work, however, some teaching assistants are not allocated a specific role that enables them to support pupils better.

p.34

Commentary

68. Pupils have good attitudes to ICT. Most are attentive, enthusiastic and well behaved in lessons. They enjoy opportunities to extend their skills. The provision for ICT has improved well since the last inspection when weaknesses in the curriculum and resources were identified. The curriculum now fully includes all aspects of the subject.

p.34

Commentary

69. The leadership and management of the subject are satisfactory. There is good evidence that planning and teaching are effectively checked. Subject development planning is diligently undertaken. However, too much of the current subject development plan relates to whole-school issues, rather than a clear focus on the improvement of ICT.

p.34

Information and communication technology across the curriculum

70. There is some good use of ICT to support work in other subjects. For example, in science lessons, pupils made good use of an ICT program to locate body muscles, and to design a cover for a science folder. In Year 6 pupils used ICT to assist them in producing a presentation on the Blitz. This aspect is not yet fully developed and is a current school development focus. Many of the resources purchased last year were bought specifically to support developments in this area.

p.34

HUMANITIES

Geography was not inspected as no lessons were timetabled during the inspection period and there was very little past work available in pupils’ books for inspectors to look at. Judgements about history are based on looking at the limited amount of pupils’ past work from last year and two lesson observations.

p.34

HUMANITIES

71. There is insufficient evidence to make a secure judgement about provision, teaching and standards throughout the school. However, the available evidence indicates unsatisfactory provision and that pupils in Years 1 and 2 are working below the expected level. There is very little recorded work in older pupils’ books to judge standards there. However, in the two lessons seen, the standard of a significant minority of the pupils was below that expected. In a Year 3 lesson on Boudicca, for example, most pupils were able to recall the key facts that the teacher had told them during the lesson, but, in discussion, they did not have a secure understanding of past learning. In this lesson, the teacher provided an interesting selection of Roman and Celtic artefacts and books to support learning and to motivate pupils. Although pupils carefully drew representations of Boudicca, they produced little written work. Similarly,

p.34

HUMANITIES

Alderbrook Primary School - 33 in a lesson in Year 5, although pupil showed good attitudes and levels of interest, they were given little time to record their ideas and the use of a worksheet limited their attainment. Analysis of class timetables, as well as pupils’ past work, shows that coverage of the history curriculum is scant and that very little time is spent on the subject. Senior managers’ own monitoring of pupils’ work also showed that little work was covered in a number of classes. The school does not have a history co-ordinator, which inhibits developments in the subject. Visits to places of historical interest and visitors to the school contribute positively to the provision.

p.35

HUMANITIES

Provision for religious education is satisfactory .

p.35

HUMANITIES

• There is no co-ordinator to guide teaching and learning. • A significant number of pupils have a good understanding of the nature of religious belief. • Pupils show good attitudes to the subject and behave well in lessons. • Teachers work hard to make their lessons interesting.

p.35

Commentary

72. Pupils’ attainment by the end of Year 2 is below the expectations of the locally agreed syllabus and in line with expectations at the end of Year 6. Pupil achievement is satisfactory. A high number of pupils join the school with low attainment in communication, language and literacy and this hampers their ability to explain the meaning of religious stories, to describe religious practices and to express their inner thoughts and feelings. This is particularly true for pupils in Years 1 and 2. Pupils are, however, drawn from a wide range of religious backgrounds, which contributes positively to their own and others’ knowledge and understanding of religions. By the end of Year 6, pupils know that special books such as the Bible, the Qu’ran and the Torah set rules for living. Discussions with pupils show that they know that different religions share some common features, such as caring for each other and the

p.35

Commentary

environment. In lessons and assemblies, pupils are also taught about the importance of major festivals such as Ramadan, Eid, and Christmas to a variety of religious communities. Pupils are interested, show good attitudes to learning and behave well in lessons.

p.35

Commentary

73. Four lessons were seen during the inspection. These lessons, discussions with pupils and an analysis of their work, show that the quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall. In some classes, however, an over-dependence on worksheets deprives pupils of opportunities to write and to extend their thinking. Teachers understand the importance of teaching pupils through religion as well as about religion. As a result, pupils link religious teaching with everyday life. Due to the good relationships teachers create in their classrooms, pupils listen to each other with respect. Teaching assistants are not always used to best advantage to ensure that less able pupils are fully included during whole-class sessions. Alderbrook Primary School - 34 74. The provision is enriched by interesting and well-planned assemblies, personal, social and health education lessons, and good opportunities for pupils to visit places of

p.35

Commentary

worship, such as churches, mosques, Gurdwara and synagogues. The school does not have a co-ordinator to guide teaching and learning to help ensure that pupils achieve well year-on-year and that the subject is regularly taught in all classes.

p.36

CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

Music was inspected in full. Judgements in all other subjects are made on a small amount of evidence since few lessons were timetabled to take place during the inspection and class timetables show that too little teaching time is given to most of these subjects.

p.36

CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

75. Too little evidence of pupils’ work in art and design was available during the inspection to make firm judgements on provision or standards. All indications are, however, that provision is unsatisfactory. There is currently no co-ordinator to ensure that skills are regularly and systematically taught and developed. Evidence shows that there are intervals of half a term when no art is taught. These gaps in continuity make it difficult for pupils to make sufficient progress developing skills in this area. Parents have indicated in questionnaires returned at the time of the inspection that they would like to see more time given to the teaching of art, and inspection evidence supports their views. A teacher runs a weekly art club which gives some pupils the opportunity to develop new skills. Pupils in the Year 5 art club created a large picture entitled ‘The Wandsworth Experience’ on the occasion of a local festival to celebrate

p.36

CREATIVE, AESTHETIC, PRACTICAL AND PHYSICAL SUBJECTS

the spirit of the community within the borough. This experience contributed well to the social and cultural development of the pupils concerned. The teacher also organised an art week with a visiting artist to add edge to pupils’ interest.

p.36

Design and technology

76. The sample of pupils’ past work indicates satisfactory standards and achievement within the work that is covered. Appropriate attention is given to developing the skills of designing, planning, making and evaluating finished products. The key weakness in provision is the amount of time given to the subject, which means the curriculum cannot be covered in depth. Pupils say they enjoy design and technology and evidence collected by the co-ordinator shows that pupils have good attitudes to their work. The co-ordinator has made good improvements to provision since taking on this role. She provides good support and guidance to staff as well as regularly monitoring the quality of pupils’ finished work. The curriculum is based securely on national guidance, but, as yet, it has not been adapted to reflect and build on pupils’ diverse cultural backgrounds.

p.36

Design and technology

77. Only two physical education lessons were observed during the inspection so no firm judgements can be made on teaching or standards. In the lessons seen, boys and girls of all abilities and backgrounds were fully included. A significant number of pupils in these lessons show good skills and potential. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to refine and apply these skills so as to fulfil their full potential. Evidence from class timetables, discussions and parents’ questionnaires indicates that too little Alderbrook Primary School - 35 time is given to the subject for skills to be progressively and systematically developed. All pupils benefit from being taught swimming in the school’s own pool at some time during the year so that most pupils can swim by the time they leave. Pupils in Years 3 to 6 also benefit from some specialist teaching of games and gymnastics, and class teachers observe these lessons as part of their own professional development. Year 6

p.36

Design and technology

pupils have good opportunities for outdoor and adventurous activities during the annual residential trip. There is a small range of extra-curricular activities on offer to pupils. Parents and pupils have expressed the wish for more sports clubs to enrich the curriculum and to support pupils’ social and physical development. The indoor accommodation is adequate for effective teaching of the subject, but outdoor space is limited.

p.37

Main strengths and weaknesses

• Teaching is effective. • Very good use is made of resources. • Pupils achieve well in singing and in percussion work. • Pupils enjoy music lessons.

p.37

Commentary

78. Pupils’ achievement is good, and standards are in line with national expectations. Most pupils by Year 6 have developed a good sense of rhythm, which they can apply in a new context. They sing confidently and incorporate actions well with their singing. Pupils in Year 2 play a range of percussion instruments together in groups, and as a whole-class.

p.37

Commentary

79. The quality of teaching and learning is good. This is as a direct result of the expertise both of the specialist visiting music teacher and of the Year 2 teacher, who teaches her own class for music. Teachers engage their pupils’ interest and create an effective working atmosphere from the start of lessons. They provide good models of singing, and very effective demonstrations, as, for example, of a particular rhythm, which pupils then follow well. Pupils learn to listen attentively and to recall sounds. Their listening skills are developed alongside their appreciation of the spiritual dimension of music. Teachers’ lesson preparation and organisation are very good. Pupils are effectively introduced through demonstration and discussion to the specialist language needed to describe aspects of music.

p.37

Commentary

80. Pupils enjoy music and usually behave well because they are interested and because teachers manage pupils well and ensure all pupils are fully included. The Year 2 teacher, in particular, was especially deft in re-focusing pupils’ attention whenever necessary, whilst maintaining the purpose and direction of the lesson. Support staff were also effective in helping pupils with weak concentration to engage with the lesson. Alderbrook Primary School - 36 81. The school employs a specialist teacher for one day each week, but this is insufficient to ensure that pupils have a lesson every week. The current teacher is fairly new to this role. She is very well qualified and is keen to develop and extend what the school already offers, including encouraging class teachers to get more involved in teaching the subject to their own classes.

p.37

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION AND CITIZENSHIP

82. Provision for pupils’ personal, social and health education (PSHE) is satisfactory. The school has recently implemented a commercially produced scheme of work, which aims to help pupils to interact with others and behave responsibly by providing a range of Internet and workbook-based activities on health, sex, drugs and personal safety. However, opportunities to explore specific issues that are directly affecting individuals or class groups in this school are overlooked during lessons when there is too rigid adherence to the published scheme. For example, in one class with a number of pupils with particularly disruptive behaviour, this issue was overlooked during a PSHE lesson. Pupils instead completed a workbook-based task on “Achievements”. The school and class councils work effectively and the school is an orderly community with a good anti-bullying record. In the one lesson seen during

p.38

PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH EDUCATION AND CITIZENSHIP

the inspection, whilst pupil behaviour was very challenging, the overall teaching and learning was satisfactory. Alderbrook Primary School - 37

p.38

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 5 Value for money provided by the school 5

p.39

PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

Overall standards achieved 5 Pupils’ achievement 4

p.39

PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

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

p.39

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 5 How well the curriculum meets pupils’ needs 5 Enrichment of the curriculum, including out-of-school activities 4 Accommodation and resources 4 Pupils’ care, welfare, health and safety 3 Alderbrook Primary School - 38 Support, advice and guidance for pupils 4 How well the school seeks and acts on pupils’ views 4 The effectiveness of the school’s links with parents 3 The quality of the school’s links with the community 3 The school’s links with other schools and colleges 3

p.39

PART D: SUMMARY OF THE MAIN INSPECTION JUDGEMENTS

The leadership and management of the school 5 The governance of the school 5 The leadership of the headteacher 5 The leadership of other key staff 5 The effectiveness of management 5

p.40

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).

p.40