Collingwood Primary School

Inspection Report Collingwood Primary School

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108602 Unique Reference Number North Tyneside LEA 278007 Inspection number 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 Inspection dates Mrs Sheila Mawer Reporting inspector

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

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Oswin Terrace School address Primary Type of school North Shields Community School category Tyne and Wear, NE29 7JQ 3 to 11 Age range of pupils 0191 2005038 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0191 2005255 Fax number 429 Number on roll Mr David Corkey Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Dr Jim Crinson Headteacher 1 March 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 278007 13 July 2006 - 3 to 11 14 July 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

Collingwood is a large primary school in North Shields that serves a wide area of high social deprivation. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is higher than that found nationally. An above average number of pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities and numbers are rising. Nearly all pupils are from White British backgrounds but the school has a small number from minority ethnic groups. Attainment in the nursery is well below average. The school has gained the Healthy Schools award, Artsmark and Investors in People.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006

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Grade: 2

This is a good school with some outstanding features. This judgement matches the school’s own self-evaluation of its effectiveness. The school provides all pupils with every opportunity to succeed and offers good value for money. Adults put the well-being of pupils at the heart of their work and provide outstanding care. As a result, pupils are keen to learn and behave well. Parents are fully justified in the confidence they have in the school when they say, ‘Every Child Matters at Collingwood and we are proud our children go there’. Children benefit considerably from an outstanding start in the Foundation Stage, making excellent progress. In the rest of the school, teaching and learning are good with some outstanding lessons, resulting in good progress and achievement. Pupils attain broadly average standards by the time they leave the school. However, not enough emphasis is given to improving pupils’ spoken language skills. Very good

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Grade: 2

support for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities enables them to achieve very well. The good curriculum provides considerable enrichment and enjoyment for pupils, but there are not enough opportunities for older pupils to develop their writing skills in subjects other than English. Leadership and management are good. The care and vision of the headteacher and deputy headteacher, supported by committed staff, ensure that the school grows and flourishes. Governors lead and manage well with a strong sense of purpose. The school is much better than it was at the previous inspection and has a very good capacity to improve further.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Raise the standards and quality of spoken language in both key stages. • Extend opportunities for writing in subjects other than English in Years 3 to 6.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good because pupils make good progress to reach average standards. Standards have risen in both key stages since the previous inspection through better teaching and improved provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. In the Foundation Stage, the very clear focus on developing communication skills is a significant factor in the outstanding progress that children make. Despite this, only about half reach the expected standards by the start of Year 1 because their language skills are exceptionally low on entry to the nursery. In Key Stage 1, pupils make good progress and by the end of Year 2 achieve well. In the national tests in 2005, results were slightly below average. This year, a higher proportion reached the expected Level 2 or above and standards have improved. 2 Inspection Report: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 Pupils make good progress in Key Stage 2 and achieve well. Standards have risen well

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Grade: 2

over the past three years in the national tests at the end of Year 6. In 2005 they were average in English and just above average in mathematics and science. Standards are lower this year for the current Year 6. Fewer pupils reached the expected Level 4 or met their challenging targets, but progress remains good. This is because these pupils started school with exceptionally low levels of attainment and nearly half have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Throughout the school, the spoken language of a significant number of pupils is below average. Although this aspect is given a high priority in the Foundation Stage and Year 1, it receives less planned focus in teaching in the rest of the school. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make very good progress.

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Grade: 2

Personal development is good. Pupils enjoy their learning and take pride in it. Their good attendance demonstrates their pleasure in coming to school. Throughout the school, pupils learn to work together well. Cooperation skills are promoted particularly well in Year 2. All pupils understand and value the system of sanctions and rewards. Behaviour is good because teachers work hard to make lessons interesting. Members of the school council have worked effectively with the learning mentor to improve behaviour. They are very clear why racist name calling is wrong and are keen to find ways to stamp out ‘verbal bullying’. The school provides many opportunities for pupils to learn about healthy lifestyles and work displayed demonstrates their understanding. Pupils’ spiritual, social, moral and cultural development is good overall. An excellent opportunity for peaceful reflection on feelings was observed in Year 4. Pupils value

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Grade: 2

the many opportunities to learn about their own culture from visits to places of interest and two residential visits. Their understanding and appreciation of the lives and heritage of other cultures are satisfactory.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good overall and some outstanding. Lessons are well organised and interesting so that pupils are eager to learn and behave well. Relationships are very good and pupils’ contributions to lessons are valued, leading to increased confidence and self-esteem. Because pupils are organised in classes according to ability in English and mathematics, they are presented with an accurate level of challenge that helps them to achieve well. The school makes very good use of teaching assistants in its work with pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Their expertise is also used in the good teaching of art and design and information and communication technology (ICT). Where teaching and learning are outstanding, pupils are fully engrossed in their learning because lessons are imaginative and 3 Inspection Report: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 challenging. Teaching and learning in the Foundation Stage are excellent. Teachers

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Grade: 2

make good use of assessment and tracking systems in order to check progress and to set targets for improvement. Marking is good in English and satisfactory, but developing well, in other subjects.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good with some outstanding features. The school provides a rich and varied curriculum, which is challenging, enjoyable and responsive to the needs of all pupils. The school teaches French, Spanish and German and all pupils have the chance to play a musical instrument. The very popular extra-curricular clubs help to extend learning that is further enriched by an outstanding variety of out-of-school visits, complemented by many visitors who share their expertise. However, there are not enough opportunities for older pupils to extend their writing skills by using them in subjects other than English. Provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is very good and has improved since the previous inspection. Provision is excellent in the Foundation Stage where skilful planning across all areas of learning ensures that children receive a very good balance between exciting activities led by

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Grade: 2

adults and activities they choose themselves.

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Grade: 2

The care, guidance and support for pupils are good overall. Care and support are outstanding. The learning mentor is a key factor in this quality work, particularly in improving behaviour and attendance. Procedures for ensuring pupils’ health, safety and well-being are thorough and child protection procedures are in place. Pupils feel safe in school and value the ‘buddy’ system for supporting vulnerable pupils in the playground. They are well supported in learning about dangers in society. Very good procedures identify those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, who are very well supported. The support from outside agencies, other schools and the local church is very good. Pupils are involved in setting and reviewing their own targets in writing and are advised on how well they are doing. In other subjects, guidance through target- setting is in the early stages of development.

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Grade: 2

Good leadership and management are the outcome of the outstanding leadership of the headteacher and deputy headteacher. Their exceptional leadership skills have ensured that all staff are strongly committed to high achievement and adding value to pupils’ lives and well-being. This high quality has resulted in excellent progress in addressing weaknesses from the previous inspection. The Foundation Stage leader has been inspirational in promoting high quality provision. All staff work together purposefully as a team to bring about improvements. The measure of their success is 4 Inspection Report: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 the way that recent initiatives to improve reading are now leading to better progress throughout the school. The rigorous monitoring and evaluation procedures of the effective senior management team and subject leaders support the steady improvement in progress and achievement.

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Grade: 2

The school development plan accurately identifies the school’s strengths and weaknesses and the way forward. The views of pupils, parents, staff and governors contribute to the implementation and review of these plans. The role of the governing body has improved significantly from the previous inspection. They are now fully involved in setting and monitoring the school’s overall direction. They work in close partnership with the headteacher and are totally committed to the aims of the school. They have had a significant input into the development of pre-school education at the adjacent community centre, to ensure that pupils get the best possible start to their education. The successful track record of improvement and good leadership skills at all levels demonstrate the school’s very good capacity to improve even further. 5 Inspection Report: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 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: Collingwood Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 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 1 The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 2 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 3 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 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 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 2 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 2 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 2 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 2 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

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0207 421 6800 F 0207 421 6707 Ofsted helpline 08456 404045 The Pupils Collingwood Primary School Oswin Terrace North Shields Tyne and Wear NE29 7JQ 13 July 2006 Dear Pupils Thank you for welcoming us to your school. We really enjoyed our visit. We agree with Dr Crinson, the governors, your parents and yourselves that this is a good school. We know you are proud to be its pupils and enjoy your learning. This is what we liked most: Dr Crinson and Mrs Hammond lead your school exceptionally well the youngest children in the school make first rate progress those of you with learning difficulties and/or disabilities do very well you are all working hard and learning well because of good and sometimes excellent teaching your behaviour is good and you get on well with each other adults in the school care for you greatly your time in school is made very enjoyable by lots of clubs, visitors and visits.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We have asked Dr Crinson and the governors to make your school even better by helping you to improve your spoken language and giving you more chances to improve your writing in subjects other than English. Good luck to you all in the future. Yours sincerely Sheila Mawer David Earley Jane Randall Lead Inspector Additional Inspector Additional Inspector

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