Moseley Primary School

Inspection Report Moseley Primary School

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103697 Unique Reference Number Coventry LEA 276976 Inspection number 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006 Inspection dates Lorna Brackstone AI Reporting inspector

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This inspection was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Moseley Avenue School address Primary Type of school Coundon Community School category Coventry, West Midlands CV6 1AB 3 to 11 Age range of pupils

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024 76593572 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 024 76593572 Fax number 397 Number on roll Mrs Janet Sutton Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Miss Arlene Wood Headteacher 27 May 2002 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 276976 27 March 2006 - 3 to 11 28 March 2006 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report 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.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Moseley is a large primary school near the centre of Coventry, which serves a mixed population. During the past two decades there has been a change in the local community and the area has become one of significant social and economic deprivation. Two thirds of the pupils are White British. The majority of the other pupils are Pakistani and Indian and most speak English as a second language. A new school building is being constructed on an adjacent site for occupation in September 2006.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006

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Grade: 3

Moseley Primary provides its pupils with a satisfactory education. This judgement accords with the school’s own view of itself. The school gives satisfactory value for money and parents are very happy with the education it provides. Although standards are below average at the end of Year 6, achievement is now satisfactory. Leadership and management are satisfactory. Under the secure guidance of the headteacher and her deputy, the new leadership team has perceptively identified the needs of the school. They have successfully introduced a range of initiatives that are improving standards. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall and is good in Years 2 and 6. Pupils have positive attitudes to their work, enjoy learning and most behave well. They are provided with a satisfactory curriculum and the school is working hard to make stronger links between subjects to help pupils’ learning. Personal development is good

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Grade: 3

overall but the school recognises that the provision for pupils’ personal, social, health and emotional development and spiritual awareness needs to be more consistent. Pupils are well cared for and guidance in their academic studies is good. The quality of provision and standards in the Foundation Stage (Nursery and Reception) are satisfactory. Links with the local secondary school are good and parents are fully involved in the life of the school. The school has made satisfactory improvement since its last inspection and has good capacity to improve further.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Improve the consistency of teaching and learning to raise standards in English, mathematics and science further. • Enhance the curriculum by making stronger links between subjects and providing more opportunities to develop pupils’ spiritual awareness. • Implement the new personal, social, health and emotional programme consistently throughout the school.

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Grade: 3

Achievement is satisfactory overall. With skills and knowledge that are much lower than usually found when they enter the school, children achieve satisfactorily in the Foundation Stage. By the start of Year 1, attainment is just below the nationally expected goals for learning for this age group. By the end of Year 2 standards are average and achievement is good in relation to the pupils’ starting points. This is because the quality of teaching and learning is particularly good in Year 2. In recent years pupils’ achievement has been inconsistent because of instability in staffing in Years 3 to 6. This culminated in results that were below average in mathematics and science and exceptionally low in English in the Year 6 national tests in 2005. However, as a result of initiatives to widen teaching approaches and the introduction of systematic tracking and rigorous procedures for assessing pupils’ work, standards are

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Grade: 3

improving. This is noticeable in Year 6 where standards are just below the national average, although showing some improvement since the test results in 2005. Pupils 2 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006 with learning difficulties, those who are gifted and talented and those for whom English is an additional language make satisfactory progress in relation to their starting points. The school has set itself challenging targets and, given the commitment of the staff, is on course to meet them.

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Grade: 2

The personal development and well-being of pupils are good. In the Foundation Stage children’s personal and social skills develop well. Pupils enjoy coming to school and their satisfactory levels of attendance illustrate this. Most are enthusiastic about their work and concentrate well. Behaviour is generally good but a small number of pupils are boisterous during playtimes. Pupils understand the reasons for school rules and appreciate the systems of sanctions and rewards. Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Most pupils have a sense of right and wrong and respond well to each other and the adults within school. Pupils are well prepared for the diversity of living in multicultural Britain today. Whilst pupils develop their spiritual awareness during assembly times and quiet moments of reflection, these are not consistently planned for through the curriculum. Pupils have a satisfactory understanding of the

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Grade: 2

need to stay safe and keep healthy because these are effectively promoted within the school. For example, many pupils take advantage of the ‘fitness for sport’’ activities that are organised at lunchtime in the playground and are working hard to achieve a Healthy Schools Award. They demonstrate responsibility for their school community through an effective council and protect the rights of each other through ‘playground pals’. Whilst pupils’ basic skills of literacy and numeracy are still below average when they leave in Year 6, they have reached the expected levels in information and communication technology (ICT) and have a good understanding of work and life skills.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Well focused teaching in Year 2 and Year 6 has led to accelerated achievement in these year groups. The rate of learning is also improving in other year groups but remains inconsistent. Teachers are tracking pupils’ progress well and working hard to close gaps in their learning. Marking and assessment are consistent. Most teachers make good use of the information gained from these activities to plan work and set targets for individual pupils in English and mathematics. They encourage and check pupils’ own evaluations of their work and, through their insightful comments, leave pupils in no doubt as to what they need to do to reach their targets. However, this is not consistent across the school. At times, comments are too general and are less helpful in taking pupils’ learning forward. This means that identified areas for development are not followed up rigorously enough. The school’s

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Grade: 3

records show that where this happens pupils do not make as much progress as they 3 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006 should. Pupils with specific learning needs receive good support from teaching assistants.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory in all age groups, including the Foundation Stage. The school is developing ways of promoting literacy and numeracy skills more effectively across the curriculum and is devising new consistent programmes of work throughout Years 1 to 6. The school is also working hard to make stronger links between subjects and has successfully used the construction of the new school to provide interesting projects, which are based around the building works. A satisfactory range of activities, visits and visitors enrich the curriculum. These contribute well to the pupils’ learning and personal development. The provision for pupils with learning difficulties and those for whom English is an additional language is good. A new programme for personal, social and health education has been recently introduced but is not consistently applied through the school.

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Grade: 2

The quality of care, guidance and support for pupils is good. The school is welcoming and has a calm atmosphere. Staff liaise closely with a range of outside agencies to ensure that all pupils receive good care and guidance. A systematic approach ensures that pupils with learning difficulties, the gifted and talented and those for whom English is an additional language are identified at an early stage. Well understood health and safety routines, clear child protection procedures and up-to-date training ensure that the pupils are well protected. The pupils themselves feel safe in school and most know who to talk to if they want to discuss a personal problem. The school has clear systems for rewarding good behaviour. Pupils are increasingly involved in setting their learning targets. They confidently discuss the standard of their work and know what they need to do to improve. Older pupils speak highly of how their learning

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Grade: 2

has improved this year because they know the steps they need to take to reach higher levels in their work. The younger pupils’ good understanding was evident when a Year 2 pupil proudly explained why he had drawn a smiley face and written the comment ‘I understand’ on his work. Many of the teachers successfully encourage pupils to realise they can meet their literacy and numeracy targets in other subjects and good examples of this were noted in Year 6 history books. However, this is not consistently applied across the school.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory. After a disruptive period of staff instability that affected standards, the headteacher has successfully created a new leadership team that has created a common sense of purpose throughout the school. 4 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006 They have a satisfactory understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and take account of the views of parents, governors and pupils. The headteacher and her new leadership team know that the decline in standards last year was unacceptable and have implemented a good range of strategies which have already started to have a positive influence on pupils‘ achievement in Year 6. The personal development and well-being of all the pupils in school are important to the leadership team and they effectively ensure that everyone is kept safe and fully involved in all aspects of school

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Grade: 3

life. Many governors are new but are developing a satisfactory understanding of their role in challenging the school. They use their own professional expertise to support the school. The school runs satisfactorily on a day-to-day basis and resources are used well to support the pupils in their learning. Links with the local secondary school are good and this enables effective transfer arrangements and specialist support for gifted and talented pupils. The school receives good support from the local authority and the parents are very happy with the quality of education it provides. The school has made satisfactory progress since its last inspection and with a more stable staff has good capacity to improve further. 5 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006 .

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set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s

website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Moseley Primary School, 27 March 2006 to 28 March 2006

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Overall

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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learners?

NA 2 How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? NA 3 The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 3 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation NA Yes The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

NA 3 How well do learners achieve? NA 3 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 3 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

NA 2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 2 The behaviour of learners NA 3 The attendance of learners NA 2 How well learners enjoy their education NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 2 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 3 How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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needs and interests of learners?

NA 2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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needs and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low.

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and supporting all learners?

NA 3 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 3 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 3 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 3 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 3 The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities NA Yes The adequacy and suitability of staff to ensure that learners are protected

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The extent to which schools enable learners to be healthy

Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to eat and drink healthily Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to take regular exercise Yes Learners are discouraged from smoking and substance abuse Yes Learners are educated about sexual health

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The extent to which providers ensure that learners stay safe

Yes Procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements Yes Risk assessment procedures and related staff training are in place Yes Action is taken to reduce anti-social behaviour, such as bullying and racism Yes Learners are taught about key risks and how to deal with them

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The extent to which learners make a positive contribution

Yes Learners are helped to develop stable, positive relationships Yes Learners, individually and collectively, participate in making decisions that affect them Yes Learners are encouraged to initiate, participate in and manage activities in school and the wider community

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The extent to which schools enable learners to achieve economic well-being

Yes There is provision to promote learners’ basic skills Yes Learners have opportunities to develop enterprise skills and work in teams NA Careers education and guidance is provided to all learners in key stage 3 and 4 and the sixth form NA Education for all learners aged 14–19 provides an understanding of employment and the economy

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Dear Children Thank you for the part you played in the inspection of your school. We very much enjoyed meeting you and getting to know your school. These are the things that are good about your school • You enjoy coming to school and are interested in your lessons. • You are looked after well and like your teachers. • Most of you know how to improve your work and reach higher standards. • Those of you who have particular learning needs are given good support. • Your parents are very happy with the school. These are the things we have asked the school to do to make it even better • Help you all to reach higher standards by making sure the teachers share best practice. • Make stronger links between subjects to help you learn and give you more time to think more deeply about different ideas. • Make sure that the new personal, social, health and emotional programme of study is taught throughout the school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you again for helping us find out more about your school and best wishes for the future. Yours sincerely Mrs Lorna Brackstone (on behalf of the team)

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