Backworth Park Primary SchoolOfsted inspection, 18 Jan 2006

Inspection Report Backworth Park Primary School

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108580 Unique Reference Number North Tyneside LEA 278003 Inspection number 17 January 2006 to 18 January 2006 Inspection dates Mrs Margaret Shepherd Reporting inspector

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

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The Park School address Primary Type of school Backworth Community School category Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear 3 to 11 Age range of pupils

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0191 200 8355 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0191 200 8325 Fax number 132 Number on roll Mrs Eileen Goodwin Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Carol Crerar Headteacher 1 March 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 278003 17 January 2006 - 3 to 11 18 January 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 an additional inspector.

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Description of the school

Backworth Park is a small primary school. A high proportion of children are eligible for free school meals and a high proportion have learning difficulties or disabilities. Year group numbers vary from year to year. Overall standards on entry are below average and well below average in English. In Year 4 children regularly leave to join a neighbouring three tier system. The school has changed from being a first school to a primary school and staff redundancies have occurred.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 January 2006

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school that provides sound value for money. This matches the school’s own evaluation. Standards and achievement are satisfactory overall. Standards in writing are lower than other aspects of English. This is because children do not have enough opportunities to write for different purposes. Teaching is satisfactory. Teachers’ management of behaviour is good, but some lessons lack pace. While good systems are used to set targets for children, they are not used regularly enough in lessons to help children improve their work. Teachers support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities effectively. The curriculum is satisfactory. Personal development and well-being are good and the school provides good levels of care, guidance and support. The quality of education and the children’s achievement in the Foundation Stage are satisfactory. Leadership and management are satisfactory and there is a

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Grade: 3

corporate determination to raise standards. The school has made satisfactory improvement since the previous inspection and has sound capacity for further improvement. not applicable

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What the school should do to improve further

Raise standards in writing by: • broadening the opportunities for writing in different subjects • making tasks in writing relevant to the children. Improve the quality of teaching by: • providing a consistently good pace in the teaching • making good use of the children’s targets to show them how to improve their work lesson by lesson.

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Grade: 3

Achievement is satisfactory. Despite making satisfactory progress, Year 6 pupils leave the school with standards that are below average. In 2005, standards were well below average. This was due to a higher proportion than usual of pupils with learning difficulties who were recent arrivals at school. In English, standards in writing are lower than listening, reading and speaking. This is because children are not given enough opportunities to write in other subjects, for example, to record work regularly in their own words in science. Standards and achievement in mental mathematics are higher than in the rest of this subject. This is due to the school’s efforts to improve the teaching and curriculum in mental mathematics. The school sets itself demanding targets. These targets were not met last year owing to the late changes to the pupils in the year group. 2 Inspection Report: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 January 2006

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Grade: 3

Achievement is satisfactory by the end of Year 2. They make satisfactory progress in lessons with standards below average overall. Achievement in nursery and reception is satisfactory overall. Children who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities achieve as well as other groups of children, as a result of sensitive support given in lessons. More able children also make satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 2

Personal development and well being are good. Children have a good understanding of healthy and safe living and explain clearly why this is important and how they try to carry it out. Behaviour is good in lessons, around the school and in the playground. Children enjoy their learning and are enthusiastic about school. They approach new work positively because teachers provide interesting tasks, such as counting with a puppet on a number stick. Children have good relationships with each other and with adults. Older children have a clear understanding of their responsibilities in setting an example for younger children and in supporting them around the school. They see themselves as part of the school family. They are proud to represent their school at events in the wider community, such as rugby matches. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Children have a good understanding of moral issues, such as the importance of caring for others with

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Grade: 2

disabilities. They enjoy working co-operatively in groups in tasks such as finding good and bad characters in fairy stories. The development of economic well-being is satisfactory. Children make steady progress in basic skills and offer adequate reasons for the choices that they make. Attendance levels are average and have improved since 2003 when they were below average.

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Grade: 3

The quality of teaching and learning are satisfactory. Teachers all manage behaviour well and use the school’s reward systems effectively. They provide good quality support for children with learning difficulties or disabilities. Teachers use ICT well in lessons to extend children’s learning. Teachers emphasise the importance of listening carefully in lessons but they do not give children enough opportunities to talk to each other or the teacher during whole class sessions. The pace in some parts of lessons is brisk, such as mental starters in mathematics. However, in other parts of lessons the pace drops and the rate of children’s learning slows. Tasks in writing sometimes have too little relevance for the children and do not give them a clear sense of purpose to inspire their interest. Targets set for the children are well chosen to help them improve but they are not used with sufficient regularity in lessons to help children understand the

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Grade: 3

importance of the work. 3 Inspection Report: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 January 2006

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Grade: 3

The quality of the curriculum is satisfactory with some good features. The school provides a balanced curriculum both in the Foundation Stage and in the rest of the school. There are good quality initiatives for developing children‘s understanding of healthy living, such as the annual Health Week, which children appreciate. The good quality computer suite extends the curriculum in ICT effectively. Children appreciate the good range of sporting activities available to them both in lessons and in specialist clubs.

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Grade: 2

The quality of care, guidance and support is good. The school places a high priority on this aspect of their work. Children appreciate the support they receive when they are hurt or ill. They feel very confident that there are adults who will listen to their concerns. There are effective arrangements for safeguarding children. Parents appreciate the school’s efforts to create strong partnerships with them. The school is working effectively to improve their links with parents even further by providing more specific targets for children’s academic development. The school provides good quality open days where parents can learn about the curriculum through taking part in activities with their children. Links with the local health and sporting organisations are good.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory. The school has been working under some difficult circumstances due to staff absence and changes in subject leader roles. The leadership and management of the headteacher are satisfactory overall with good features. Under the headteacher’s leadership, the school works effectively to promote children’s personal development and well-being. Personal monitoring by the headteacher of individual children and overall trends has successfully raised levels of attendance. While many helpful actions have been initiated with a view to raising standards, they are not always having the desired effect because they are not implemented with enough consistency. Along with the school’s senior leaders, all teachers and support staff are keen to raise standards to match the quality of the children’s personal development provision. The school’s evaluation strategies are satisfactory and realistic. They are based on the

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Grade: 3

current context of the school’s development. Governors are committed to developing the work of the school and have a good understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. Governors and the headteacher have worked hard together with the local authority to resolve the issues of their deficit budget. They have clear plans to establish a balanced budget by 2007. Improvement since the previous inspection is satisfactory. The school has worked hard to improve the quality of education in information and 4 Inspection Report: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 January 2006 communication technology and children are benefiting from the additional resources and teachers’ expertise. Although some aspects of the issue related to English have improved, writing in particular remains an issue for further action. The school’s current capacity to improve is satisfactory. 5 Inspection Report: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 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: Backworth Park Primary School, 17 January 2006 to 18 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 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 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 2 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

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0207 421 6800 F 0207 421 6707 Ofsted helpline 08456 404045 Backworth Park Primary School The Park Backworth Newcastle upon Tyne Tyne and Wear NE27 0AH 19 January 2006 Dear Children Thank you very much for welcoming me into your school. I really enjoyed talking to you and looking at your work. The best things about your school are: the confidence you have in mental mathematics your behaviour in lessons and around the school your enthusiasm for learning and the way that you settle down to work and co-operate with each other the way that you try to eat healthy food and take part in sports the way that your school and your parents work together the special weeks that your teachers organise, like the Health Week the way that all the staff work together to look after you. One of the things that I have asked your school to do is to help you to improve your writing. Some other things are for your teachers to help you to keep learning fast all through your

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

lessons and to get better at knowing what you need to do next to improve your work. Best wishes Maggi Shepherd Lead inspector

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