Eyam CofE Primary School

This inspection was carried out under section 3 of the School Inspections Act 1996 and was deemed a section 10 inspection under the same Act

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Derbyshire Education Authority

Dates of inspection: 14-15 June 2004 reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

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Derbyshire Education Authority

Inspection reports are available on the Ofsted web site (www.ofsted.gov.uk).

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Basic information about the school

Address of school: Church St Eyam Hope Valley Derbyshire S32 5QH

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Basic information about the school

Name and address of appropriate authority: The governing body, address as above

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Basic information about the school

Local education authority area: Derbyshire

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Basic information about the school

Name of reporting inspector: Mrs K M Gisborne HMI

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Basic information about the school

Dates of inspection: 14-15 June 2004 Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Introduction

1. Eyam CE Primary School is a small rural school situated in Eyam, a village in the Hope Valley area of Derbyshire. The pupils are from the mixed privately owned and rented properties of Eyam and the surrounding villages and their attainment on entry to the school is generally in line with that expected for their age. Currently there are 48 pupils on roll. The pupils are taught in three mixed-age classes in the mornings and in two key stage classes in the afternoon. Almost all the pupils in the school are from white, English speaking backgrounds and none are in the early stages of learning English. The proportion of pupils identified as having special educational needs is in line with the national average; six per cent of the pupils have a formal Statement of Special Educational Need. Six per cent of the pupils are known to be eligible for free school meals, which is well below the national average.

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Introduction

Two of the school’s three teachers have been appointed since the inspection of January 2002.

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Introduction

2. The school was inspected in January 2002. The inspection was critical of many aspects of the work of the school and the school was made subject to special measures because it was failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education.

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Introduction

3. The governors drew up an action plan to address the key issues from the inspection of January 2002. The school was visited by Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Schools (HMI) on six occasions to monitor the progress being made.

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Introduction

4. In June 2004 an HMI inspected the school, assessing the standard of education provided and the progress the school has made, in particular in relation to the main findings and key issues in the inspection report of January 2002.

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Main findings

5. In accordance with section 14 of the School Inspections Act 1996, I am of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures, since it is now providing an acceptable standard of education for its pupils. The main findings of the inspection are:

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Main findings

 in the 2003 national tests at the end of Key Stage 1, all eight pupils achieved at least the basic level expected for their age in reading, writing and mathematics, but too few pupils achieved the higher sub-level 2a and very few achieved Level 3. This pattern was reflected in the test results of the seven pupils in Year 6. All attained the level expected for their age in English, mathematics and science, but too few achieved higher levels. These results indicated considerable underachievement in both of these year groups The small number of pupils who completed the tests make year-on-year comparisons unreliable;

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Main findings

 the improvements in classroom practice over the past two terms, and the corresponding improvements in the pace at which pupils learn, are raising standards;

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Main findings

 pupils enter the reception class with standards of attainment that are generally in line with those expected for their age, although a significant minority are attaining at higher levels. Many pupils have made slow progress during their time in school, but there have been good improvements in the pace of their Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Main findings

14-15 June 2004 Page 2 learning over the past term. The majority are on course to achieve the standards expected of pupils at the end of the Foundation Stage of learning, but too many are not achieving the results of which they are capable;

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Main findings

 in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, standards are improving. The majority of the pupils attain the levels that are appropriate for their age in literacy and numeracy, and an increasing proportion of pupils is working within the higher levels. Standards in writing are generally lower than those in reading and mathematics. Pockets of underachievement remain;

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Main findings

 the pupils’ scientific knowledge is good and their skills of investigation and enquiry are improving as a result of the focus given to this aspect of the subject. Overall, the pupils reach a satisfactory standard in science. Attainment in the foundation subjects is generally sound; standards of attainment in religious education are good;

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Main findings

 the co-ordinator for information and communication technology (ICT) does not have a sufficiently clear view of the progress that all pupils are making or the standards that they are achieving. The school does not have a secure process through which it can track the development of skills and the success of their application in other subjects;

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Main findings

 the quality of pupils’ learning was never less than satisfactory, and in six of the eleven lessons the pupils made good progress;

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Main findings

 pupils are polite and good mannered at all times. They behave well in lessons, and in almost three quarters of the lessons their attitudes to learning were good;

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Main findings

 the school’s provision for the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of its pupils is good. Every effort is made to ensure that pupils broaden their knowledge of the world in which they live;

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Main findings

 the quality of teaching is generally good. In the 11 lessons seen, there was no unsatisfactory teaching, and in over half the lessons the teaching was of good quality. This is a good improvement since the school’s inspection of January 2002;

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Main findings

 teaching assistants are used well to support the pupils in lessons. They make a good contribution to learning in all classes;

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Main findings

 the school’s curriculum is broad and balanced. The time given to individual subjects is appropriate and intervention programmes are well thought out and carefully planned, taught and evaluated. Planning in all key stages is good;

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Main findings

 the school’s procedures and practice for assessment in reading, writing and mathematics are good. Pupils’ individual targets are shared with parents and are motivating pupils to learn; Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Main findings

14-15 June 2004 Page 3  the school’s provision for pupils who have special educational needs is good. The school is aware that it has not identified and addressed the needs of gifted and talented pupils in a sufficiently formal manner;

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Main findings

 the school has good relationships with its local community, and opportunities for parents to become involved in their children’s learning have improved considerably over the past two terms;

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Main findings

 the headteacher leads the school well and the strong sense of teamwork is a very positive feature of the school;

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Main findings

 a good start has been made to developing the role of curriculum co-ordinators. To date only the co-ordinators for literacy and numeracy have had the opportunity to focus on the development of their subjects;

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Main findings

 the school improvement plan is sound. It is based on a thorough evaluation of all available information and gives a strategic overview of the school’s development over the next three years. Action plans in support of the school’s priorities follow a good format, but not all have been completed;

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Main findings

 the governing body is well informed about the school’s performance. A good structure of committees has been established with clear terms of reference. Governors have an increasing knowledge of the curriculum and monitor and evaluate the work of the school effectively;

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Main findings

 the support that the local education authority (LEA) has provided for this school has been of a satisfactory standard overall. Throughout the time that the school has been subject to special measures the LEA has moved quickly to provide the headteacher and individual staff with good levels of support from practising teachers and headteachers. This support has served the school well.

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Key issues

6. In order to improve the pupils’ quality of education further, the governors, headteacher, senior managers and staff need to:

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Key issues

 ensure that all pupils attain the standards of which they are capable;

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Key issues

 review, complete and rigorously implement the school improvement plan;

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Key issues

 put in place procedures to ensure that the development of the pupils’ skills in ICT, and their cross-curricular application, is secure in all year groups;

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Key issues

 continue to develop the knowledge and skills of curriculum co-ordinators. Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Standards achieved by the pupils

7. In the 2003 national tests at the end of Key Stage 1, all eight pupils achieved at least the level expected for their age in reading, writing and mathematics, but too few pupils achieved the higher sub-level 2a and very few achieved Level 3. This pattern was reflected in the test results of the seven pupils in Year 6. All attained the level expected for their age in English, mathematics and science, but too few achieved higher levels. These results indicated significant underachievement in both of these year groups. The improvements in classroom practice over the past two terms, and the corresponding improvements in the pace at which pupils learn, are raising standards. The small number of pupils who completed the national tests in 2003 make year-on-year comparisons unreliable.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

8. Pupils enter the reception class with standards of attainment that are generally in line with those expected for their age, although a significant minority are attaining higher levels. However, not all have had pre-school experiences and many find it difficult to settle into school routines. Until recently, the quality of teaching that these pupils were receiving was not good enough to maintain these standards. The appointment of a new member of staff, and focused training and development, has improved the quality of the teaching and the curriculum. The teacher and teaching assistant work well together to ensure that the curriculum is taught through practical tasks that are matched to the pupils’ abilities and their developmental needs. The majority of pupils are on course to achieve the standards that are expected at the end of the Foundation Stage of learning, but too many are not achieving the

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Standards achieved by the pupils

9. At Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, the pupils demonstrate good speaking skills. They speak with confidence and interest, often drawing on a wide range of experiences, and using a good vocabulary. Listening skills have improved. The majority of the pupils listen attentively to their teachers and demonstrate their understanding of what they have heard through their responses and their actions. In lessons, the older pupils listen to the views of their classmates with interest and respond to what they have heard. The younger pupils find this difficult. Most are happy to offer their opinions, but they find it hard to listen to the views of others.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

10. In reading, almost all pupils are achieving the levels expected for their age, with many on course to reach higher levels by the end of the key stage. They are achieving well. Most pupils in Year 2 read with accuracy and understanding. Their good levels of general knowledge and their rich vocabulary help them to make sense of the written word, and the more able are beginning to understand beyond the literal. The pupils read aloud with confidence, but few read with expression. Most can describe the content of books they have read, often in much detail, but find it harder to talk about the kind of book that they enjoy or to name favourite books and authors.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

11. The pupils in Year 6 read with interest and enjoyment. They give reasons for their choice of reading matter and express preferences for a particular style; for example, the humorous writing of Roald Dahl or the fantasy of J R R Tolkein. When discussing favourite books and authors the pupils demonstrate their breadth of reading and discuss what makes a particular text “come alive”. In this context they talk about the author’s use of inference or Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Standards achieved by the pupils

14-15 June 2004 Page 5 language. These pupils have benefited from the school’s staged approach to guided reading; standards are generally good and the pupils are achieving well.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

12. Standards in writing, at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2, are generally in line with expectations for the pupils’ ages, but fewer pupils attain higher levels than in reading and mathematics. Although some pupils are achieving the standards of which they are capable, a degree of underachievement remains. In Year 2 and Year 6, the pupils, particularly those of higher ability, have imaginative ideas and use a good range of vocabulary, interesting verbs and in some cases alliteration to make their writing more interesting to the reader. For example, Year 6 pupils describe how “his eyes darted from side to side” and “it was the most frightful and frightening thing I have ever seen”. However, the pupils’ spelling and handwriting lets them down. Work is not always as tidy as it could be and sometimes there is little to show that the pupils have read what they have written to ensure it makes sense. The

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Standards achieved by the pupils

spelling of common words is not secure. The pupils have made good improvements in their writing over the past year, but not all have caught up on what they have missed.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

13. Standards in mathematics are generally in line with the expectations for the pupils’ ages, with many on course to achieve higher levels. The majority are achieving the levels of which they are capable, but despite improvements in the pace of learning, some underachievement remains in Years 5 and 6. This reflects the legacy of unsatisfactory provision that these pupils experienced earlier in their school lives.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

14. By the end of Key Stage 1, the pupils reach good standards in mathematics and the majority reach their potential. The pupils have a good knowledge of number and an understanding of place value that is higher than expected. Their basic number skills are generally secure and they apply these skills when solving addition and subtraction problems. When carrying out mathematical investigations, many of the pupils see patterns in their answers. They use their knowledge to good effect; for example, when given the definition of a triangular prism they predicted the names of rectangular and pentagonal prisms.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

15. Standards in Year 6 are satisfactory overall with a small number of pupils close to or achieving the higher Level 5. The pupils have a good understanding of place value and identify the value of individual digits in numbers to three decimal places. Most use an appropriate range of strategies such as rounding or their knowledge of multiples when adding and subtracting numbers. However, their knowledge of multiplication tables is not good enough to help them to solve multi-stage problems as well as they should. Many pupils convert fractions to decimals and the more able reduce a fraction to its simplest terms. Their understanding of percentages is less well developed.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

16. The pupils’ scientific knowledge is good and their skills of investigation and enquiry are improving as a result of the focus given to this aspect of the subject. By the end of Key Stage 2, the pupils plan their own scientific enquiries. More-able pupils put forward a good range of ideas as to how best to plan their investigation and turned their predictions into the questions that they intended to investigate. When discussing their ideas, many used appropriate scientific vocabulary, and pupils of higher ability discussed whether what they intended was a fair test. Overall, the pupils reach a satisfactory standard in science.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

17. In Key Stage 2, the pupils’ skills in ICT are developing well and there have been improvements in the use of ICT as a tool for learning across a range of subjects. In some strands of the subject, the pupils in Year 6 are achieving the levels that are expected for their Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Standards achieved by the pupils

14-15 June 2004 Page 6 age. However, the development of skills and their cross-curricular application is not secure in all year groups. The co-ordinator does not have a sufficiently clear view of the progress that all pupils are making or the standards that they are achieving. The school does not have a secure process through which it can track the development of skills and the success of their application across other subjects.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

18. Attainment in the foundation subjects is generally sound and standards of attainment in religious education are good.

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Standards achieved by the pupils

19. The pupils in the reception/Year 1 class make satisfactory and sometimes good progress in their lessons, but progress for too many of the reception pupils has been too slow. This is the result of the unsatisfactory teaching that they have received over much of the past year. The pupils in Years 2, 3 and 4 have made good progress over the past year; most aspects of underachievement have been addressed and the majority are achieving in line with their abilities. In the Year 5/6 class, the pupils currently make good progress in their lessons, but in some aspects of their learning, such as their investigative skills in science and their spelling in English, pockets of underachievement remain. This reflects the legacy of unsatisfactory provision that these pupils experienced earlier in their school lives.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

20. The pupils are polite and good mannered at all times. They behave well, and in almost three quarters of the lessons their attitudes to their learning were good. There has been a considerable improvement in the pupils’ attitudes to their work over the past term and, as a result, the pace of learning has improved. The pupils settle quickly to the tasks they are given and respond especially well to practical activities. Almost all are able to focus on their work without adult supervision. They are proud of their achievements and increasingly confident to talk about and demonstrate their skills. The pupils work well together, in pairs and in small groups. Older pupils appreciate the achievements of others; they show good levels of care and concern for their classmates and for those younger than themselves.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

21. Attendance figures over the past three years have been generally above the national median and the pupils arrive promptly at the beginning of the school day. Phone calls on the first day of unexplained absence are used to investigate the reasons for a child not attending school.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

22. The provision for the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the pupils is good. The school has close links with its church and members of the local clergy lead assemblies and visit the school regularly. There is an appropriate pattern of assemblies which provides opportunities for collective worship, an increased knowledge and understanding of the scriptures and the celebration of achievement. However, although the content of these assemblies is appropriate, their delivery is not always sufficiently active to hold the attention of the youngest pupils. Religious education lessons are of good quality. They raise the pupils’ awareness of religions and cultures other than their own and provide good opportunities for them to discuss their ideas and feelings. The pupils are encouraged to appreciate and to thank God for the beauty of the area in which they live.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

23. Relationships within the school are harmonious and pupils are positively encouraged to consider the needs of others. All staff manage the pupils’ behaviour well and there is an appropriate system of rewards and sanctions. The staff have a good knowledge of individual pupils which they use to ensure that sanctions are effective. The pupils’ visits to a local old Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14-15 June 2004 Page 7 peoples’ home and a village luncheon club help them to understand the obligations they have to others.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

24. Extracurricular activities are plentiful and provide good opportunities for social interaction. They are well co-ordinated and supported by parents. These, together with the school’s involvement in many local events, help the pupils to consider their place within society and understand the benefits and responsibilities of community life.

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The pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

25. Every effort is made to ensure that pupils broaden their knowledge of the world in which they live and of different beliefs and cultures. Visits to a multicultural centre every two years in Derby provide pupils with first-hand experiences of a mosque and a Hindu temple. They visit shops that sell Asian goods and have experience of celebrations from other religions such as a Hindu wedding. A recent visit from an African artist raised the pupils’ awareness of the artistic styles and interpretations of different cultures, and watching productions of the works of Shakespeare has given them an early experience of their own cultural background.

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The quality of education

26. The quality of teaching is generally good. In the 11 lessons seen, there was no unsatisfactory teaching, and in over half the lessons the teaching was of good quality. This is a good improvement since the school’s inspection of January 2002. There was good teaching in all the classes and almost all the satisfactory lessons had many aspects of good practice.

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The quality of education

27. In all lessons, the teachers had good relationships with their pupils and their planning matched the needs of pupils of all abilities. They managed the pupils well, and the relationships between the teachers and the support assistants provided a good model for the pupils to emulate. Pupils knew what they were expected to learn and the teachers reinforced the learning objectives as the lesson progressed and reviewed them at its end. In whole-class sessions, teachers ensured that all pupils were involved through the use of targeted questions matched to the pupils’ levels of ability, and white boards so all could record their ideas. The teachers used questions well to encourage the pupils to find their own solutions to the problems they had been set. In most lessons, the pupils’ independent working skills were good enough to allow the teacher to focus on teaching a group, whilst still having an

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The quality of education

overview of all. When pupils were working individually or in pairs, the teachers appropriately picked up general difficulties, stopped lessons and reinforced learning.

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The quality of education

28. In stronger lessons, teachers used games and a range of practical, investigative activities to motivate and challenge their pupils. They extended the learning of the more able pupils when they gave them problems to solve or investigations to plan. Pupils were encouraged to use their prior learning to solve more complex problems or to check the accuracy of their work. In these lessons, the teachers had the confidence to match their methods of teaching to the learning of the pupils and were not restricted by the approach of the national strategies.

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The quality of education

29. Although all the lessons seen were at least satisfactory there were areas in which the teaching could be improved. Teachers’ questioning skills were sound, but there was little evidence of teachers asking their pupils to consider, refine and improve their answers. Not all teachers gave their pupils sufficient time to consider their answers and they did not pick up and deal quickly enough with the small number of pupils who did not pay good attention in group activities. Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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The quality of education

14-15 June 2004 Page 8 30. The school’s curriculum is broad and balanced. The time given to individual subjects is appropriate, and intervention programmes are well thought out and carefully planned, taught and evaluated. Guided reading sessions are taught outside the literacy hour and good systems for the successful teaching of this area are consistently applied in all classes. Planning for the mixed-age groups is matched well to the pupils’ levels of ability.

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The quality of education

31. Planning is good. In the Foundation Stage it is suitably based on the national guidance for pupils of this age, and in Key Stages 1 and 2 the school successfully follows the national strategies for literacy and numeracy. Planning for other subjects is based on nationally recognised schemes of work. In adapting these plans to meet the organisational needs of this school, the headteacher has differentiated well between the development of content and skills in history and geography. Teaching in the mixed-age-group classes is to a common theme and the development of skills is matched to the pupils’ levels of ability. In design and technology and art and design, a two-year programme suitably ensures links between themes. There is a thorough scheme of work for physical education.

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The quality of education

32. Teaching assistants are used well to support learning, particularly in some Key Stage 2 lessons where there are up to four year groups in one class. They offer good support to the teachers and the pupils, and often teach specific year groups within a class. This ensures a better match of work to ability, and an improved pace to learning and is leading to higher standards.

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The quality of education

33. The school’s procedures and practice for assessment in reading, writing and mathematics are good. A thorough analysis of data from national and internal tests helps the school to identify pupils who require additional support, to plan appropriate interventions to improve the pace of their learning and to evaluate their success. Teachers have a clear understanding of predicted levels of attainment, and how intervention can be used to devise challenging targets. The teachers formally discuss the progress of individual pupils following regular assessments, which is good practice. The school has recognised the underachievement in some year groups and has taken suitable account of this when setting ambitious targets.

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The quality of education

34. All pupils have targets for their attainment in reading, writing and mathematics against which their progress is measured. The targets are progressive and are used consistently in all classes. The staged learning objectives for guided reading are a useful tool. They have given the teachers a better understanding of how to improve the pupils’ reading skills and have enabled them to assess the pupils’ progress and the levels at which they are working. The tracking format used to plot the pupils’ progress and to monitor the effectiveness of interventions is good. The school ensures that parents know the small-step targets for mathematics and reading that their children are currently working towards. This allows parents to make a more effective contribution to their children’s learning.

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The quality of education

35. The provision for pupils who have special educational needs is good. All teachers know their pupils well and use this knowledge to identify pupils whose progress causes concern. The school is aware that it has not identified and addressed the needs of gifted and talented pupils in a sufficiently formal manner.

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The quality of education

36. The school has good relationships with its local community and the Parent and Teacher Association organises events such as the village bonfire. Opportunities for parents to become involved in their children’s learning have improved considerably over the past two Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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The quality of education

14-15 June 2004 Page 9 terms. The school provides parents with useful information about helping their children improve their mathematics and their reading skills, and runs termly meetings on curriculum matters. Parents have increased their support for out-of-school activities. They run clubs, support professionals who organise activities and cover the cost of an outside provider. Parents are supportive of the school and feel that if they had concerns about their children they could approach the school with confidence, knowing that their views would be heard.

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Leadership and management

37. The headteacher leads the school well. She systematically monitors and evaluates the effectiveness of the school’s provision and uses the information she gleans to move the school forward. Throughout the time that the school has been in special measures she has listened to the advice she has been given, assessed its value to the school, and acted on it when appropriate. All staff are committed to improving the school’s provision, and the strong sense of teamwork is a very positive feature of the school.

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Leadership and management

38. A good start has been made to developing the role of curriculum co-ordinators, and guidelines provide a firm foundation for the development of subject leadership. However, training on the role of the co-ordinator has been very recent and, to date, only the co- ordinators for literacy and numeracy have had the opportunity to focus on the development of their subjects. These co-ordinators have subject files that contain useful information, but they are not well organised and the information they contain is not consistent. The school has yet to ensure that all staff understand the role of co-ordinator and have a clear view of the standards in their subjects and the strengths and weaknesses in the teaching in all year groups.

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Leadership and management

39. The school’s improvement plan is sound. It is based on a thorough evaluation of all available information by the headteacher, staff and governors and gives a strategic overview of the school’s development over the next three years. In the shorter term, key areas for development are supported by detailed action plans. They are written to a good format, and include: appropriate actions; a clear delegation of responsibilities; and, where possible, measurable success criteria. In some cases, the criteria and the actions to achieve them are not secure; for example, with only five pupils in Year 2 and six in Year 3, the use of comparative data for similar schools is not a reliable measure of success. The school has not yet finished action plans for all areas of improvement and the plan is incomplete.

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Leadership and management

40. Governors are well informed about the school’s performance and draw their information from a wider range of sources than in the past. The reconstituted governing body has a good structure of committees with clear terms of reference. When parental concerns have arisen, the governors have responded in an open and honest manner and have ensured that parents are better informed about developments within the school and how they can best support their children. Governors have an increasing knowledge of the curriculum and monitor and evaluate the work of the school effectively. They hold the school to account for the standard of education that it is providing for its pupils. They ask challenging questions.

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Leadership and management

41. Overall, the LEA has provided satisfactory support for the school. Throughout the time that the school has been subject to special measure the LEA has moved quickly to provide the headteacher and individual staff with good levels of support from practising teachers and headteachers, which has served the school well. Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Implementation of the action plan

42. The inspection report of 2002 required the school to address five key issues. These principally related to improving: the quality of teaching and learning; the leadership and management of the school; the curriculum; procedures for assessing pupils and using information to guide lesson planning and the school development plan; and the efficiency of budget spending. The rate of improvement has fluctuated, but has been reasonable overall. There has been good improvement over the past term.

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Implementation of the action plan

43. During the first year that the school was subject to special measures, improvements in the teaching and learning were slow to materialise and there was too high a proportion of unsatisfactory teaching and no good teaching. In the summer of 2003, good teaching and learning began to emerge and subsequently increased. Unsatisfactory teaching took longer to eliminate. Over the past 18 months, the teaching and learning of the pupils in the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 has been the main area of concern but this is much improved. The teaching is now never less than satisfactory and in many cases it is good.

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Implementation of the action plan

44. The early support of a mentor headteacher enabled the headteacher to break down the school’s action plan into more manageable units, and the joint monitoring of planning and the scrutiny of work had a positive effect on leadership and management. The headteacher initially found it hard to evaluate the school’s position and provide a clear vision for the future. Although she was managing the day-to-day affairs of the school well she was not leading with sufficient rigour. Over the past six months she has become more proactive and has evaluated the school’s current position and developed a sound plan for the future development of the school. She is now leading the school well.

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Implementation of the action plan

45. The school moved quickly to improve the curriculum. The timetable was rearranged to ensure that the length of lessons was appropriate and some issues, such as the movement of furniture for assemblies, were quickly resolved. Improvements in planning were given high priority and planning in all year groups is now of good quality. Well-planned adjustments were made to half-termly plans for the foundation subjects, when the school was obliged to move to teaching these subjects to a class containing Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 pupils in September 2003. These changes enabled the school to successfully teach these subjects. The school has identified and addressed appropriate priorities over the past two terms. They have included the development of problem-solving skills in mathematics and of speaking and listening skills in English.

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Implementation of the action plan

46. The school’s procedures for assessing pupils and using the information to guide lesson planning are now good. Improvements in this area have proved the key to developing many other aspects of the school’s practice such as ensuring an appropriate match of work to ability for all pupils, and intervening to improve the pace of learning for pupils who are underachieving.

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Implementation of the action plan

47. The school’s budget is now being used effectively to improve the quality of the education that the pupils receive. Inspection Report Eyam CE Primary School

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Appendix – Information about the inspection

Eyam CE Primary School was inspected under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 by a Registered Inspector and a team of inspectors in January 2002. The inspection was critical of many aspects of the work of the school and, in accordance with that Act, the school was made subject to special measures because it was failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education.

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Appendix – Information about the inspection

The school was visited by HMI in July and November 2002, in March, June and November 2003, and in February 2004 to assess the progress it was making to implement its action plan and address the key issues in the inspection report of January 2002.

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Appendix – Information about the inspection

In June 2004, an HMI returned to inspect the school for two days. The inspection was carried out under section 3 of the School Inspections Act 1996, which gives Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Schools the authority to cause any school to be inspected. The inspection was also deemed a section 10 inspection under the same Act.

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Appendix – Information about the inspection

Eleven lessons or parts of lessons, one assembly and two registration sessions were inspected. The pupils were observed at break and samples of their work were inspected. Meetings were held with the headteacher, all teaching staff, the chair of governors and a representative of the LEA and informal discussions were held with pupils. A wide range of the school’s documentation was scrutinised. Account was also taken of the evidence from previous monitoring inspections.

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Appendix – Information about the inspection

The inspection assessed the quality of education provided and the progress the school has made, in particular in relation to the main findings and key issues in the inspection report of January 2002 and the action plan prepared by the governing body to address those key issues.

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