Copley Primary School

107480 Unique Reference Number Calderdale LEA 277758 Inspection number 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005 Inspection dates Mrs Lesley Clark CfBT Lead Inspector Reporting inspector

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

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Wakefield Road School address Primary Type of school Copley Community School category Halifax, West Yorkshire HX3 0TP 4 to 11 Age range of pupils

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01422 354209 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01422 369910 Fax number 222 Number on roll Mr Chris Giddings Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Ms L McGregor Headteacher 29 November 1999 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 277758 7 November 2005 - 4 to 11 8 November 2005 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 two additional inspectors.

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Description of the school

This is an average size school in Copley on the edge of Halifax. Socio-economically the school is broadly average though the number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (15 per cent) is a little lower than average but the number with significant difficulties is high. Five pupils have statements of special needs. Almost all the pupils are of white British heritage. A small number are looked after children. When children start school their attainment is average. There have been several changes of staff in the last two years, including the appointment of a deputy headteacher. Currently, boys significantly outnumber girls in Years 3 to 6.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005

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Grade: 2

This is a good school with some outstanding features. The school succeeds in its aim to 'inspire and develop an interest in learning for life within a safe and happy environment'. It gives good value for money. Attendance and behaviour are outstanding and the school prepares pupils extremely well for their future economic well-being. Standards are above average overall at the end of Year 6 and outstanding in mathematics. All pupils make good progress throughout the school, becoming articulate and out-going people. This is because of good teaching and outstanding provision for their personal development. Provision for children in the Foundation Stage is good and children have a good choice of interesting indoor and outdoor activities. The curriculum is good, giving pupils a balanced education. The school has identified a need to integrate more fully into the curriculum opportunities to expand pupils'

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Grade: 2

multicultural awareness. Pupils are extremely well looked after and lead healthy lives. All pupils are valued at the school and their views are sought and acted upon. Leadership and management are good and governors give effective support to all aspects of school life. The school recognises that pupils' performance in science is lower than that in English and mathematics and agrees that more could be done to reinforce the use of technical vocabulary in this subject. The school's self-evaluation is accurate and excellent use is made of it to raise standards. Improvement since the last inspection is good and the school is well placed to improve at the recent accelerated rate noticeable since the appointment of the deputy headteacher.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Reinforce pupils' use and understanding of technical vocabulary in science so as to improve their performance in national tests. • Expand pupils' multicultural awareness by integrating multiculturalism into curricular provision.

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Grade: 2

Achievement and standards are good overall. Children make good progress in the Foundation Stage. Most children reach the level expected at the start of Year 1 and about a third exceeds it. This good progress continues, resulting in consistently above average standards at the end of Year 2 with a large proportion of pupils exceeding nationally expected levels notably in reading and mathematics and more recently in writing. By the end of Year 6, standards are above average in English, well above average in speaking and listening and outstanding in mathematics. This is because of outstanding teaching in which solving mathematical problems is an integral part of pupils' daily learning and pupils are encouraged to question and discuss. The trend in the school's results is upward, particularly in English. Pupils read widely and think that the school library and information and communication technology (ICT) has helped

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Grade: 2

develop their skills. Their writing is accomplished - it is accurate, fluent and uses a 2 Inspection Report: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005 wide range of punctuation. In science, pupils' performance in national tests is average though their investigative work is better. Their use and knowledge of scientific language is less assured than in English or mathematics. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make good progress and almost all pupils reach the level expected of their age by the end of Year 6. Boys and girls achieve equally well.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development and well-being is outstanding. Pupils really enjoy coming to school to learn. Attendance is outstanding and awards such the 'WOW' certificate for 'worker of the week' inspire them. Behaviour is outstanding. Pupils treat each other with respect. Bullying is rare and pupils understand what to do if they are in trouble. They feel very comfortable at school and declare: 'Our teachers do listen to us'. The school council effectively represents pupils' views and pupils are proud of what it achieves on their behalf. They have excellent economic awareness and are mature enough to understand that they cannot have everything at once; for example, they explained, 'We really wanted some new toilets but knew that we couldn't have them at the moment because the money has been spent on the new fence which we also needed.' Pupils' spiritual, moral and social awareness is extremely good but their multicultural

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Grade: 1

awareness is less strong. Each class has devised its own code of conduct, contributing to their thoughtfulness towards others. Playground 'buddy guards' from each class take it in turns to make sure everyone has someone to play with. Pupils raise funds for a wide range of charities and have an excellent understanding of the problems facing those with disabilities through working with a special school. In particular, the school's 'signing choir' in which pupils use their hands to convey the words of songs, gives them spiritual as well as intellectual insight.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good and outstanding in mathematics. Outstanding lessons were seen in Years 2, 6 and the Foundation Stage where, for example, children assiduously 'write' and 'read' their own books. Teachers' good subject knowledge means they teach confidently and with touches of playfulness. Pupils say: 'Our teachers make our lessons very interesting and fun.' The level of challenge is high for more able pupils and in Year 6, small teaching groups in English and mathematics means that pupils receive considerable individual help. Teachers carefully organise groupings so that more able and less assured learners or those with learning difficulties learn equally well. Skilled questioning and competent use of technology injects pace into teaching and ensures active learning, particularly in those classes where boys heavily outnumber girls. Outstanding features include frequent opportunities for pupils to

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Grade: 2

3 Inspection Report: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005 apply what they have learnt such as creating mathematical questions or incorporating new punctuation when writing an autobiography. Marking is very effective, indicating what needs to be improved and how.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is well planned to link different subjects effectively under scientific themes such as 'light and dark'. Good provision for literacy and numeracy enables pupils to use basic skills well in other subjects. Education for living healthily and safely is good. Pupils are aware of the importance of exercise, as when Year 5 energetically practised a dance routine, striving for perfection. The Foundation Stage curriculum is well planned to provide many varied indoor and outdoor activities in all areas of learning. The strong element of play and choice continues in Years 1 and 2, enabling pupils to make good progress. The extensive range of after school clubs, some targeted at pupils with specific needs, such as tennis for Year 1 and 2 pupils who lack confidence, and 'special weeks' devoted to the arts, contribute to pupils' well rounded education. The multicultural week made a start on highlighting this aspect of the curriculum but

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Grade: 2

this needs integrating much more fully into the teaching programme.

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Grade: 1

This is outstanding. The school's assessment is over-modest. Academic and personal development of pupils, including those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, is tracked very thoroughly and their needs are fully met. Pupils know their targets and what they need to do to improve. This results in increasingly high standards and happy, confident pupils. The needs of gifted and talented pupils are fully catered for, particularly in literacy, numeracy and the arts, as are the needs of those who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The pupils feel that they come first in this school and their parents agree. There are very effective child protection and health and safety systems in place. Links with parents are strong and parents appreciate the support the school gives their children. There are excellent relationships between pupils and staff which help to create the delightful ethos throughout the school in

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Grade: 1

which children feel they have a definite part to play.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good and all staff work well as a team. Self-evaluation is accurate and planned developments will undoubtedly further improve the school. The initiative to raise boys' achievement through catering for different learning styles is proving successful. More active learning through practical tasks and extensive use of ICT equipment as a tool for teaching and learning is improving boys' performance. The headteacher's vigorous leadership of mathematics is reflected in outstanding standards. There is now a need to sharpen pupils' scientific explanations through a 4 Inspection Report: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005 similar concentration on accurate terminology. The leadership team is currently developing the curriculum, concerned that pupils' multicultural awareness is rather narrow. Successful procedures are in place to monitor the school's work and creative

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Grade: 2

use of staffing has brought greater diversity to both teaching and learning as well as giving staff time for management, planning and preparation. Financial management is good and parents are extremely supportive. Governors are involved well and add to its efficient running through monitoring what goes on. The principle that pupils should learn with confidence and enjoyment lies at the heart of this school. Displays show the value placed on pupils' work and photographs highlight children's delight in new experiences such as exploring nineteenth century medical equipment in a local museum. It is a school where children matter and their views are sought on a wide range of topics from mathematics to improvements to the playground. With recent changes in the leadership team the pace of change is racing ahead and the school is well placed to improve further. 5 Inspection Report: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005

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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: Copley Primary School, 7 November 2005 to 8 November 2005

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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 2 The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 1 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 2 How well do learners achieve? NA 2 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 2 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 2 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 1 The behaviour of learners NA 1 The attendance of learners NA 1 How well learners enjoy their education NA 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 1 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 1 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 2 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 1 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 2 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 2 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 2 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

Thank you for welcoming us to your school and for being so friendly. We enjoyed talking to you and hearing about the books you like reading. We enjoyed our visit and want to share with you what we thought about your school. What we liked most about your school: - we think that you are taught well and that your teachers make lessons interesting and fun - we are pleased that you all get on so well together and we liked the way you make sure that everyone has someone to play with - we think you have an interesting range of extra activities and that your signing choir is very special - your school council has lots of good ideas and we are pleased that you are proud of your school. What we have asked your school to do now: - we think you need to learn and use technical words in science more accurately - we would like you to know and understand more about people from other cultures. We liked meeting you and watching you learn and wish you well for the future.

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