Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School

Inspection Report Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School

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107742 Unique Reference Number Kirklees LEA 277829 Inspection number 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006 Inspection dates Mrs Elisabeth Linley HMI Reporting inspector

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

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Goose Green School address Primary Type of school Upper Denby Voluntary aided School category Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD8 8UN 5 to 10 Age range of pupils

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01484 222913 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01484 222909 Fax number 46 Number on roll Mrs S Smith Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs C Hall Headteacher 3 April 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 277829 18 January 2006 - 5 to 10 19 January 2006 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006

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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 one of Her Majesty's Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided School is situated in the parish of Denby and Ingbirchworth. It is very small in comparison to other schools that provide for primary aged pupils; because of this, pupils' attainment on entry to school can vary significantly year on year. At the time of the inspection, 46 pupils are attending the school and a much lower than average number of pupils are eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average and there are no pupils who have statements for their special educational needs. All pupils are from white British backgrounds.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006

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Grade: 4

In accordance with section 13 (3) of the Education Act, HMCI is of the opinion that this school requires significant improvement, because it is performing significantly less well than in all the circumstances it could reasonably be expected to perform. The school is therefore given a notice to improve. The school has a number of strengths; however, significant improvement is required in relation to the leadership and management of the school. Governors and the headteacher recognise the need for significant action to improve leadership and management which is currently inadequate. Pupils enjoy coming to school and their attendance is good; this is because the school is a friendly community. Pupils behave well and show good attitudes to learning. Many are keen to take on responsibility, although there are few opportunities in place for pupils' independence to be developed. Pastoral support and care for pupils are effective. Pupils' academic progress, however,

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Grade: 4

is not guided as well as it should be. The rigorous analysis of data to help school set challenging targets for pupils has yet to be developed. The quality of teaching is satisfactory. Some of the teaching staff are fairly new to teaching and are gaining in confidence and expertise. Assessment information is used to meet the needs of most pupils in lessons although more able pupils are not consistently challenged to do as well as they can. Achievement and standards are satisfactory overall. Standards in writing however, are too low. The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage are satisfactory overall. Staff have worked hard to improve opportunities for children to have greater access to outdoor activities and to learn through play which was an issue identified at the last inspection. The school has made some headway in tackling the remaining weaknesses identified in the previous inspection. School improvement planning and the rigorous monitoring

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Grade: 4

and evaluation of the school's work remains inadequate. Self-evaluation is not effective in focusing on the need to raise standards. The relatively new staff team is able to share responsibilities and together they have the capacity to address the remaining weaknesses. The school provides inadequate value for money.

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What the school should do to improve further

The school should: • improve the quality of leadership and management at all levels; • raise standards, particularly the quality of writing; • improve the analysis and evaluation of progress by identifying very clear and measurable targets to gauge whether improvement is taking place; • improve the monitoring and evaluation of the school's work by staff and governors to aid future planning and pupils' achievement. 2 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006

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Grade: 3

Achievement and standards are satisfactory overall although standards in writing are too low. In the 2005 national tests, pupils aged seven attained standards that were well below average in writing, below average in reading and average in mathematics. These results, however, must be treated with caution, given that there were only six pupils in the year. When children start school their skills are generally in line with expectations for their age. Children's skills vary considerably each year, however, because there are only a small number of pupils in each year group. Children make satisfactory progress in the Foundation Stage in relation to their capability and by the time they start Year 1 pupils attain average standards overall. During their time in school pupils make satisfactory progress from Year 1 to Year 5. This is because teaching and learning are satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' personal development and well-being are satisfactory overall. Children's personal development in the Foundation Stage is effective and they grow in confidence as they learn new routines. Pupils behave well throughout school and they show positive attitudes in lessons and at play. They enjoy school and their attendance is above the national average. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are satisfactory. Their social development is promoted effectively through the good relationships between pupils and adults of all races. Pupils are aware of the needs of others and are keen to contribute and support members of the school community and beyond; for example with initiatives such as the Tsunami appeal. Pupils understand the difference between right and wrong and are learning to develop the skills of working together. Pupils would like to take on more responsibilities but as yet there

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Grade: 3

are few opportunities for them to do so. They would also like to have a system so that their views or opinions can be expressed but at the moment this is not in place. Pupils are developing a sensible attitude towards their own health and safety. They understand the importance of keeping a healthy diet and exercise to keep fit.

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Grade: 3

Pupils make satisfactory progress in lessons. Teachers work hard to make lessons interesting and to meet the needs of the different ages and abilities of the pupils in their class. On some occasions, however, pupils who are more able are not challenged well enough in lessons. Where teaching is good, effective questioning helps to promote pupils' thinking. In other lessons, opportunities are missed for pupils to develop their independence and this does not aid their learning and achievement as well as it should. 3 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006 Teachers set individual targets for pupils, for example, in writing and mathematics. Marking, however, is inconsistent both in quality and in the use that is made of it to help pupils understand how to improve their work. For example, some staff identify points for development, but there are too few examples of this. All staff promote

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Grade: 3

caring relationships with pupils. This contributes well to their good behaviour. The teaching of all pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory and meets statutory requirements. In the Foundation Stage, children have more opportunities to work outside and to learn through play than at the time of the last inspection. The school has also worked hard to enrich the curriculum with lessons such as French. In September 2005, lessons in personal, social and health education were introduced. Pupils say that these lessons are helping them to learn about how to keep safe. Visitors to school, such as the school nurse, also help to develop pupils' understanding of safe practices and healthy lifestyles. Visits out of school, including a residential experience for pupils in Years 4 and 5, are used well to enrich school life. In addition, a good range of activities, such as in sport and music enhances pupils' learning. The school's provision for PE and pupils' achievement in their sporting activities has been rewarded with Active Mark Gold Status. Provision

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Grade: 3

for children who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities is satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

The school promotes a caring ethos and this is evident in the good relationships that exist in school. Adults use praise well to encourage and develop pupils' consideration for others. Care is taken to ensure pupils' safety and initiatives such as the 'walking bus' help to raise pupils' awareness of how to keep safe. Pupils are made aware of the misuse of drugs through the effective links with specialist visitors. Teaching about relationships and sex education is supported by the school nurse. Support and guidance for pupils' learning are satisfactory. Teachers keep track of their pupils' achievements on a regular basis and use this information to plan for their steps in learning. Work for more able pupils, however, is not always as challenging as it should be. Targets are set to help pupils know how to improve their work but whole-school targets have yet to be planned to ensure that standards are systematically raised.

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Grade: 4

The leadership and management of the school are inadequate. The school has been subject to change with new staff joining who are also new to the profession. The headteacher and all staff work hard to provide effective pastoral support for pupils. They are a new team, however, and the headteacher carries the majority of leadership and management responsibilities as subject leadership for staff is at an early stage. 4 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 2006 Day-to-day management of the school runs smoothly but weaknesses identified in leadership and management at the time of the last inspection have not improved sufficiently. Action planning is particularly weak in using measurable data to judge success. The analysis of performance data, and the use of the information gathered from it, are not thorough enough to set challenging targets to raise standards.

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Grade: 4

Self-evaluation is ineffective because it does not focus enough on the impact that actions have on pupils' achievement and so it is not contributing sufficiently to improving standards. Monitoring of the school's work has not improved. By the effective delegation of subject co-ordination and the sharing of more of the day-to-day administration, however, the headteacher is in a good position to tackle these remaining weaknesses. The governing body has also not been rigorous enough in monitoring and evaluating the work of the school. This hampers their ability to make value for money judgements about the use of resources; for example staff training and development. Value for money is currently inadequate. Parents are supportive of school but they share concerns that relationships with them have not been strong. Since September 2005, the governors and headteacher, with external support, have focussed sharply on specific

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Grade: 4

issues, such as communication with parents. Some improvements have been made and others are planned; however, much remains to be done. 5 Inspection Report: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 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: Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, 18 January 2006 to 19 January 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 3 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 4 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation NA Yes The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA No 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 3 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 2 The behaviour of learners NA 2 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 3 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 3 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 4 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 4 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 4 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

I visited your school this week to find out if it is giving you the education you should receive. I enjoyed talking to you, finding out about the things you like to do and looking at your work. These are some of the things I found out: - you are polite, friendly and helpful and your school is a happy place to be; - you enjoy coming to school and the activities you do, especially the after school clubs in gymnastics and different types of dancing; - you behave well and you show good attitudes to your work; - everyone in school works hard to keep you safe and to care for you; - you would like more responsibilities and the chance to share your views. I also discovered ways in which your learning could be better and your school will work hard with you to sort these out: - all the people who work with you in school are going to help you do better in your writing; - they are also going to keep a closer eye on how things are going so they know how to make

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

changes for the better; - they will regularly check that improvements they make are working well. Thank you very much for making me so welcome when I visited you. I wish you all the best for the future.

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