Brodetsky Primary School

Inspection Report Brodetsky Primary School

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108054 Unique Reference Number Leeds LEA 277889 Inspection number 24 May 2006 to 25 May 2006 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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George Lyttleton Centre School address Primary Type of school Wentworth Avenue Voluntary aided School category Leeds, West Yorkshire LS17 7TN 3 to 11 Age range of pupils

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0113 2930578 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0113 2930578 Fax number 319 Number on roll Mr Ian Coupland Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Janet Simmons Headteacher 28 February 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 277889 24 May 2006 - 3 to 11 25 May 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

This larger than average primary school is situated in a socio-economically advantaged area in Leeds. It serves both the local and other Jewish communities across the city. All children are Jewish but from September 2006 the school admits all children, regardless of denomination. The majority of children are of White British heritage and about a quarter come from mixed race but white backgrounds. Five per cent are learning English as an additional language. The proportion with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is about average. Five children have statements of special educational need, an above average proportion. Almost all children attend the school's privately run pre-school group before joining the Nursery part-time at the age of three. Twenty per cent of curricular time is given to Hebrew and Jewish studies, which are financed by voluntary parent contributions and run as a limited company by the governors. This

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Description of the school

section of the school's work is inspected separately under section 48 of the education act. The school has gone through an extremely unsettled period since the last inspection with many staff changes in the last three years. Two headteachers have been in post since 2001 with two periods of interim leadership and management by the deputy headteacher who is currently acting headteacher for the second time. In November 2005, the local authority put in additional leadership support at the request of the acting headteacher and governors.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 2006

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Grade: 3

This school offers a satisfactory education, a view that the school shares. It gives satisfactory value for money. The school's self-evaluation is largely accurate though errs on the generous side. Standards are above average as might be expected, given that children enter school with above average attainments. Children make satisfactory progress in response to satisfactory teaching quality with the exception of more able children who rarely perform as well as they should because much of the work lacks challenge and does not require them to work things out for themselves. The curriculum is satisfactory rather than good as the school believes because it does not make sufficient links between subjects, and some opportunities are missed to devise programmes of work to stretch the more able. Standards and quality of provision in the Foundation Stage are good and children flourish, growing in confidence and

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Grade: 3

independence, and learning to read and write at an early age. Throughout the school, behaviour is good and children have good attitudes to learning. Attendance is high, reflecting children's enjoyment of what the school has to offer. One summed up the views of most saying, 'Brodetsky: big, bright, brilliant, simply the best!' A sizeable proportion of parents, however, express reservations because the school does not respond as quickly and effectively as it should to their concerns. Children are given satisfactory levels of care, support and guidance rather than good as the school believes because the provision for children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is not sufficiently robust. The interim leadership and management are satisfactory and with local authority support the above weaknesses are being tackled effectively. Governance, while satisfactory overall, has yet to resolve the balance between running the provision

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Grade: 3

for Hebrew and Jewish studies and acting in a supporting role at all other times. The school has reasonable capacity to improve.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Implement a clear leadership and management structure with clearly defined roles for the school staff and ensure governors have training and guidance so they fully understand and implement their roles and responsibilities. • Improve the provision for children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. • Develop further the curriculum opportunities for more able children. • Improve communication with parents and establish systems to ensure their concerns are dealt with quickly and effectively.

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Grade: 3

Children's achievement is satisfactory. From an above average starting point, children make broadly satisfactory progress, attaining above average standards in English, mathematics and science by the end of Years 2 and 6 as shown in the 2005 national tests. The picture, however, is more complicated. There is a declining trend in the number of children attaining the higher levels at the end of Year 6 because more able 2 Inspection Report: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 2006 children are not challenged sufficiently. This is confirmed by the school's targets which, although accurate, they are not consistently challenging. In lessons where children are required to question and to think for themselves and where they are involved in assessing their learning, their achievement soars because they are stimulated and learn with ease. Gifted and talented children achieve well in mathematics because of good

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Grade: 3

provision for them to learn with older children at a local high school. Achievement is good in the Foundation Stage and most children start Year 1 comfortably above average in all their areas of learning. Children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress despite inadequate individual education plans because teachers are mindful that they need support. Children who learn English as an additional language make good progress because they have lots of practice in developing their speaking and listening skills.

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Grade: 2

Children's personal development and well-being are good. In the Foundation Stage, children quickly learn to work and play together, benefiting from a wide range of stimulating resources both inside and outside. Attendance is high and punctuality is good because children like their school. They behave well and have good attitudes to learning because it comes easily to most of them and they enjoy pleasing their teachers. Occasionally, children talk inappropriately among themselves when required to sit and listen for too long. Relationships between children and adults are harmonious. Children are developing a good awareness of health education. Children's friendliness and consideration for others is nurtured by their shared religious beliefs and strengthened through the strong social and moral teaching they receive. Their spiritual awareness is tangible in assemblies, reflecting the good provision for this and for Jewish culture.

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Grade: 2

Their awareness of the many other different cultures represented in British society is more limited. Members of the relatively new school council are proud of their recent work to improve playground resources. Older children relish the responsibility they are given for charity fundraising and feel that in Year 6, 'You have more opportunity to be in control of what you are doing'. Children make good overall progress in developing the personal qualities that will aid them in their future lives.

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Grade: 3

The quality of teaching is satisfactory as is children's learning. In the most effective lessons, imaginative and challenging tasks make children think. A notable feature is the involvement of children in assessing their own learning. Children explained that they found this type of learning intensely interesting because 'there is more than one way of doing things' and they can 'figure things out'. In these lessons, teachers' subject knowledge lends confidence to their teaching styles and all ability groups learn purposefully and productively because the work is carefully tailored to meet their 3 Inspection Report: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 2006 individual needs. In less effective lessons, assessment is not used sufficiently well to determine what is taught. Consequently, the level of challenge is not high enough. The pace slows because there is too much emphasis on behaviour rather than instruction

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Grade: 3

and children learn passively. The quality of teaching in the Foundation Stage is good and children's learning blossoms in response to the well chosen activities designed to stimulate their curiosity and foster their independence. Although children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities learn satisfactorily overall, individual education plans are rarely used to guide what they are taught.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory and meets statutory requirements. It provides well for children's personal and physical development. While providing adequately for literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology (ICT) in terms of time, some content is not sufficiently well adapted to meet the needs of more able learners or those who have learning difficulties. The curriculum does not link fully aspects of different subjects so as to get the best use out of the available time and provide vibrant learning experiences; for example, linking Hebrew and Jewish studies with the rest of the curriculum. The Foundation Stage curriculum is good with a strong emphasis on personal, social and emotional development and lots of opportunities for independent learning from a wide range of indoor and outdoor activities.

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Grade: 3

The quality of care, support and guidance given to pupils is satisfactory on balance. Child protection arrangements are good, risk assessments are carefully attended to and the school offers a safe and supportive environment where children reach reasonably challenging targets. Progress is monitored satisfactorily though the systems are too newly in place to have full effect on raising achievement. Staff have the welfare of the children at heart and are generally competent at promoting their health and safety though the procedures for informing parents about accidents in school are not tight enough. The systems and procedures for supporting and guiding pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities are not sufficiently robust. Although these children make satisfactory academic progress because of their teachers' attentiveness, support staff are not sufficiently well deployed to ensure that the full range of needs

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Grade: 3

of all the children with learning difficulties are met. Although individual education plans are in place, these have only recently been updated and shared with parents and are not used extensively.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory. The school has coped well with a three-year period of difficult circumstances caused by unavoidable staff changes and 4 Inspection Report: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 2006 absences. The acting headteacher and governors sensibly sought the local authority's support when faced with a second period of interim management within three years. The decision to appoint short-term acting deputy headteachers with specific remits is proving successful and assessment systems, for example, are now fully operational and all staff confidently use ICT as a teaching aid. It is a measure of the leadership's success that standards have held up, children's learning has not suffered unduly and their enthusiasm for school remains undiminished because of the school's well organised learning environment. However, as yet, there is no long term leadership and management structure in place. The Foundation Stage is flourishing and provides a

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Grade: 3

good role model for the rest of the school. The school is rightly targeting underachievement by more able children and addressing the lack of sufficiently robust systems in several areas of the school's work. Much remains to be done, however, to ensure that provision adequately meets the needs of those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. A start has been made on opening communications with the parents through governor newsletters and open meetings, however, the systems to ensure that parental concerns are dealt with immediately and effectively are not sufficiently robust. The school's self evaluation is inclined to be optimistic rather than realistic like the accurate school improvement plan. Financial management is sound and the school runs efficiently. Governance is satisfactory overall but the dual role within the school of providing Hebrew and Jewish studies as well as governance creates difficulties

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Grade: 3

for governors in understanding and implementing their roles and responsibilities. These difficulties are not yet fully resolved, particularly since circumstances have forced governors to play too large a part in the daily running of the school which has reduced the effectiveness of governance. The school has reasonable capacity to improve. 5 Inspection Report: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 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: Brodetsky Primary School, 24 May 2006 to 25 May 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 2 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 2 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 2 The attendance of learners NA 2 How well learners enjoy their education NA 2 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 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 No 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 being so friendly, helpful and welcoming. We thoroughly enjoyed talking to you and should like to tell you what we thought about your school. What we liked most about your school: - we like the way you all get on well together and can see why you enjoy coming to school - we think that children in the Foundation Stage learn really well because of the way their timetable is organised so they have lots of opportunities to work and play both indoors and outdoors, choosing what they do for much of the time - some of your lessons are very good, particularly those where you work with a partner or take part in assessing your learning - your acting headteacher and the deputy headteachers who are helping have good ideas for making your school even better. What I have asked your school to do now: - we would like your school to sort out the staffing structure and help the governors to do their job properly

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

- make big improvements in the way children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities are provided for - develop a lively curriculum that provides imaginative and stimulating learning experiences so that those of you who find learning easy might achieve the highest possible standards - improve communication with your parents so they know what is going on and to make sure that if there are any problems they are dealt with quickly. We really enjoyed meeting you and watching you learn and wish you well for the future.

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