Brington CofE Primary School

Inspection Report Brington CofE Primary School

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110827 Unique Reference Number CAMBRIDGESHIRE LEA LEA 278527 Inspection number 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 Inspection dates Mr. Ian Nelson AI Reporting inspector

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

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Church Lane School address Primary Type of school PE28 5AE Voluntary controlled School category 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 01832 710383 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01832 710196 Fax number 121 Number on roll Mr.Andy Harding Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr. Peter Allen Headteacher 17 January 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 278527 13 July 2006 - 4 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 an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

This is a small primary school that serves families from several villages, and from local American military bases. Nearly all the children are White British with a small number of Americans. All the children have English as their home language. Very few families are eligible for free school meals. The number of children who need extra help with their learning is about the same as in most schools. The number of children with statements of special educational needs is very low. The skills and knowledge children have when they start in Reception are generally those expected for their age. There have been several changes of staff in recent years as established staff have retired. The headteacher has been in post since September 2004.

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Key for inspection grades

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

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Grade: 2

This is a good school with some outstanding features. It has an accurate view of how well it is doing and what it needs to do to get even better. It provides good value for money. Younger children describe it as, 'A very nice school' and this is confirmed by their parents. One wrote, 'The school has a wonderful atmosphere and my children are extremely happy'. Another wrote, 'Brington School has a culture of caring'. This high quality care underpins all that the school does and reflects its status as a church school. As a result, children are happy and enjoy lessons and the wealth of after school clubs. Their behaviour is exemplary so that no time is lost in lessons or in moving around the school. These positive factors, added to the good teaching and wide range of interesting learning activities, result in children making good progress throughout the school. Teachers are making increasing use of computers to add interest to lessons

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Grade: 2

but they do not make the most of all opportunities to do so. Children are well taught and cared for in Reception so that they exceed the expected standards when they enter Year 1. By the time they reach Year 6 standards are well above average. In the 2006 national tests at Year 6 standards were exceptionally high, though children did better in English and science than in mathematics. The school's success is due to good leadership and management. The headteacher shares a clear vision for the future of the school with staff and governors. A strong team spirit based on mutual respect and support prevails. The school has successfully tackled the issues for improvement from the last inspection and improved results at Year 6 indicating that it has what it takes to carry on improving in the future.

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What the school should do to improve further

- Help children to get better at written mathematics problems and reading scales and measures so that their achievement and standards in mathematics matches that in English and science. - Consolidate the use of computers in all subjects to aid children's learning.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good. Children start school with the knowledge and skills typical of their age, get a good start in Reception because of the good quality teaching and care and exceed the standards expected when they enter Year 1. Good teaching and interesting learning activities ensure that children reach standards that are above average by Year 2 and well above average by Year 6. Standards in English, where children exceeded their challenging targets, and in science at Year 6 were outstanding in the 2006 national tests. However, children had difficulty with word problems in mathematics so standards and achievement did not match those in English and science, although their targets were achieved. Children who need extra help with their learning make good progress because of the good support they receive. The school identified that some more able boys did not achieve as well as they should have done in the 2005

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Grade: 2

2 Inspection Report: Brington CofE Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 national tests for Year 6 and redressed this issue. Currently there is no evidence of any groups of children underachieving.

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Grade: 2

Children's personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Behaviour is outstanding and children understand and appreciate the behaviour codes, rewards and sanctions. They thoroughly enjoy school and are attentive in lessons because teachers give them interesting things to do. Their enjoyment is illustrated in their outstanding attendance. Children know what is needed for a healthy and a safe life and enjoy plenty of energetic physical activity. They readily accept responsibilities as class or school councillors and as helpers in class and at lunchtimes. However, the school and class councils are fairly new and there is scope for more children to be more actively involved in their own learning and in taking on responsibilities around the school. Children are well involved in the local community through links with the church, charity fundraising and concerts. Children learn about

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Grade: 2

and appreciate cultures other than their own through lessons in religious education and geography and visits to places of worship. Their good numeracy, literacy and personal skills provide a good foundation for success in later life.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good. Teachers expect hard work and good behaviour and children respond well, so no time is lost in establishing order in lessons. Teachers explain clearly to children what they will do in the lesson, but are not always as clear about what children will learn as a result of the activity. Children are well motivated because teachers gain and hold their attention through the effective use of the interactive whiteboards. They also plan interesting activities, such as when children in Years 1 and 2 enjoyed learning about Mary Seacole through role play, and children in Years 4 and 5 enjoyed designing advertisements based on the Wizard of Oz story in a literacy lesson. Lessons are well paced and children generally get work at the right level though occasionally the work is too easy or too hard for some. Children who need extra help get good support and achieve their targets. There are good systems for

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Grade: 2

checking how well children are doing with their work and setting them targets for improvement.

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Grade: 2

The school provides a good range of learning activities that interest and enthuse the children. These include good opportunities for all subjects, including the arts, while ensuring plenty of time for basic skills in literacy and numeracy. Personal, social and 3 Inspection Report: Brington CofE Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 health education is good and ensures that children know how to stay safe and healthy. Children get plenty of physical exercise and sport in lessons and after school. Learning is made interesting through visits, including residential trips and visitors into school, as in science week, and the recent farm trip. There is a good outdoor area, well stocked with wheeled vehicles for Reception children to use. However, the classroom is too small to allow all the activities that staff would like to provide to be available all the time. Teachers make increasing use of computers to help children to learn, but the

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Grade: 2

children do not get enough opportunities to practise their computer skills and use these skills to develop their learning in other subjects.

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Grade: 2

Care, guidance and support are good. The school has a very caring culture so that children feel happy and secure and ready to learn. They know they can go to an adult for help if they are worried and their concerns will be taken seriously and dealt with properly. Procedures for child protection are in place and adults undergo the required statutory checks. Children who need extra help are identified early and given good support to reach their targets, with some making exceptionally good progress. The very close cooperation with parents ensures that staff know children extremely well. The school regularly celebrates their achievements from activities outside school, whether it be success in ballet, horse riding, trampolining or piano exams. American Independence Day is marked to make the American children feel more at home. The school has sound systems for checking how well children are doing but these are still

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Grade: 2

being refined to give an even more precise match of task to ability.

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Grade: 2

The good leadership and management are recognised and appreciated by parents, one of whom wrote, 'Brington school was a strong school when my daughter started and under Mr Allen's leadership is going from strength to strength'. The headteacher shares a very clear vision for the future of the school with staff and governors so that a real team spirit exists and mutual respect and support underpin the school's successes. The governors keep a close eye on how well the school is doing. They have the confidence and expertise to ask challenging questions on issues such as finance and health and safety. However, they recognise the need to be more knowledgeable about the information the school receives about the national test results so that they can ask pertinent questions about the school's performance. Teachers in charge of subjects are growing into their roles and taking increasing responsibility for checking standards,

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Grade: 2

progress and teaching quality. School development planning is sound but focuses on accomplishing tasks rather than on how those tasks will help children learn better. The school recognises the important part that parents play in their children's education and works closely with them. One parent commented that the school 'fosters well the partnership between home and school'. Another wrote, 'As a parent I feel my views are sought regularly and that comments I make are well received'. This seeking of the 4 Inspection Report: Brington CofE Primary School, 13 July 2006 to 14 July 2006 views of parents, and of children, is integral to the procedures the school has to check its performance and identify priorities for improvement. The result is that the school knows how well it is doing, is able to identify areas for improvement, and is continually getting better. This is demonstrated in the way the school identified issues with the

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Grade: 2

results in the Year 6 English tests in 2005, took action and greatly improved them in 2006. This commitment to continuous improvement shows that the school has what it takes to get even better. 5 Inspection Report: Brington CofE 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: Brington CofE 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 1 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 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 1 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 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 1 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 1 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 making me feel so welcome when I came to inspect your school in the summer. I enjoyed meeting you and looking at the work you were doing. This letter is to tell you what I think is good about your school and how it could be better. You told me that Brington is a good school and I agree with you. The adults go out of their way to make you feel cared for so that you can concentrate on your learning. You know that when you take worries to an adult they listen to you. You work very hard in class. This is because teachers are good at giving you interesting things to do and arranging exciting trips for you. You enjoy using the interactive whiteboards in lessons but could be using computers more to help you to learn. Because you work hard you do very well in your tests in Year 2 and Year 6. However, you did better in English and science than in mathematics in the latest Year 6 tests. Those of you who find the work a

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

bit hard get plenty of help so that you do well. Your headteacher and the other adults have some good ideas for making the school even better. I have asked them to help you to get better at word problems in mathematics and to give you more opportunities to use computers in your work in all subjects. I am sure that your school will continue to get better and better and you can play your part by continuing to behave as excellently as you do and working as hard as ever at your lessons.

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