Dale Community Primary School

Inspection Report Dale Community Primary School

p.1

112720 Unique Reference Number City of Derby LEA LEA 279001 Inspection number 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005 Inspection dates Mr. David Simpson LI Reporting inspector

p.1

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

p.1

Porter Road School address Primary Type of school DE23 6NL Community School category 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 01332760070 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01332272491 Fax number 551 Number on roll Dr.Steve Buller Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs. Pat Eno Headteacher 29 November 1999 Date of previous inspection

p.1

Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279001 7 December 2005 - 4 to 11 8 December 2005 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.1

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.

p.2

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.

p.2

Introduction

The inspection was carried out by one of Her Majesty's Inspectors (HMI) and two Additional Inspectors.

p.3

Description of the school

Dale Primary School is larger than most primary schools. It serves the most deprived ward in the city of Derby and 20% of the pupils are known to be eligible for free school meals. The number of pupils coming from homes where English is not the first language has risen and is now in the top 2% nationally. A third of the pupils have learning difficulties and disabilities, which is above the national average. Up to a fifth of pupils join the school at the start of Year 3 and over a quarter of pupils join the school after the start of statutory schooling. A new headteacher has been appointed for January 2006 following the retirement of the previous post holder. Currently the school is led by an acting headteacher.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005

p.3

Grade: 4

Dale Community Primary School provides pupils with a stable and happy learning environment which is tolerant and integrates a diverse multicultural and multi-ethnic community well. Care and guidance are a strength and there is a clear shared ethos which focuses on the welfare of the individual pupils. The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage are satisfactory, with some good features. The school is very effective at managing the conduct of the pupils, in order to establish and maintain a calm learning atmosphere. This is particularly important when an unusually high proportion of them join the school after the start of their compulsory schooling. However, the school judges its performance too generously because its self-evaluation has not sufficiently focused on raising achievement over time or identifying underperformance promptly enough. The school's overall effectiveness is inadequate and it gives

p.4

Grade: 4

unsatisfactory value for money. It has correctly identified raising attainment as its priority with particular focus on enhancing the pupils' speaking, listening and literacy skills. Recent developments in monitoring demonstrate the leadership's capacity to improve the school, although it is too soon to measure their impact on standards. The quality of teaching is too variable and unsatisfactory overall, but the school has several good teachers who demonstrate that the pupils are stimulated and engaged when expectations are high. In accordance with section 13(3) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector 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. Significant improvement is required in relation to raising

p.4

Grade: 4

achievement and improving the quality of teaching.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

- Improve achievement, especially in literacy and speaking and listening. - Keep a more rigorous check on the pupils' performance in order to identify underachievement and take appropriate action where their progress is insufficient. - Share good practice in teaching more widely, especially in how to make it clear to pupils what they are learning so that they make quicker progress.

p.4

Grade: 4

The pupils join the school with well below average attainment and their average point scores in Key Stage 1 assessments are well below the national average. However the proportion of pupils who attained the nationally expected levels improved in 2005, especially in reading. Many pupils underachieve in Key Stage 2, especially those whose attainment was average in Key Stage 1. The progress of some of the pupils is adversely affected by their diverse linguistic, learning and behavioural needs. Nearly three quarters of the pupils attain the expected Level 4 or better in mathematics in the national tests at the end of Key Stage 2. However, the performance of pupils in science 2 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005 and, particularly, English is well below national results. More able pupils are not achieving as well as they should and too few pupils attain the higher Level 5. The

p.4

Grade: 4

school recognises raising attainment to be its top priority and that this will require more consistent challenge throughout the school and the development of the pupils' speaking, listening and literacy skills.

p.5

Grade: 2

The school rightly judges this to be a strength. The personal development of the pupils, including their spiritual and moral development, is good. The pupils enjoy coming to school and the induction programme builds confidence and self-esteem. They have good attitudes and behave well in lessons and around the school. Relationships are very positive, reflecting the pupils' very good social and cultural development. There is little bullying or harassment of any kind. The pupils make a good contribution to the school and wider community. The school council meets regularly to make suggestions about improvements to their school and say that they feel safe and secure. Older pupils act as 'Dale Dudes' resolving playground squabbles or helping others to play new games. They have a good knowledge of healthy food and lifestyle choices. Attendance is satisfactory and most pupils arrive at school on time. The personal,

p.5

Grade: 2

social and health education programme and the work of the learning mentors are having a very positive influence on pupils' personal development and on parents' involvement in supporting their children's learning.

p.5

Grade: 4

The quality of teaching and learning is inadequate overall. Where teaching is good, the pupils achieve well. However, the quality of teaching is too variable and learning activities are not well enough matched to the pupils' needs. As a result the pupils make uneven progress as they move through the school and do not attain what they should. The school has identified aspects of teaching needing improvement. For example, it recognises that often teachers do not adequately check what the pupils have learnt and should use a range of questioning techniques that meet the needs of different learners. Teachers are not consistently sharing the learning objectives so that the pupils know what they have to achieve by the end. As a result, pupils sometimes have little ownership of their learning. Marking is not yet consistently linked to the pupils' own targets for improvement although the school has begun to address this. Effective

p.5

Grade: 4

teaching assistants work well alongside teachers and make a positive contribution to pupils' learning. They intervene beneficially to support the many pupils for whom English is an additional language and who have learning difficulties and disabilities. 3 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005

p.5

Grade: 3

The school's curriculum meets statutory requirements and is satisfactory. It successfully builds on the pupils' own experiences. Their learning is enlivened by the many visits and visitors and the strong promotion of the benefits of physical activity. The pupils are happy to come to school because they believe that many lessons are fun. However, some activities are not carefully enough structured or are too over-reliant on worksheets to meet the individual needs of pupils. The curriculum is successfully enriched by a wide variety of out-of-school activities. Pupils from Years 2 to 6 say they enjoy a range of clubs including football, netball, sewing, Spanish and information and communication technology. One pupil commented that the clubs were an opportunity to meet old friends and make new ones.

p.6

Grade: 2

All members of staff have a genuine concern for the pupils' welfare and provide very good care. There are good health and safety systems for the pupils, including rigorous procedures for child protection. Risk assessments are thorough and appropriate to different activities. Good relationships exist with other agencies to support the educational and behavioural needs of pupils. The majority of parents who completed the questionnaire said that their views were listened to; they expressed confidence in the school. There are good procedures to help new pupils settle into school life quickly. The progress of pupils who have learning difficulties and disabilities is monitored rigorously and these pupils are supported effectively by teachers and assistants. High expectations of pupils' behaviour establish a safe learning community in which people look after one another and treat each other with respect. Effective procedures are in

p.6

Grade: 2

place to tackle unsatisfactory behaviour and reward good work or conduct.

p.6

Grade: 3

The acting headteacher and deputy headteacher are leading the school with passion and commitment and have a good knowledge of the school community. The dispersal of responsibilities amongst staff is providing the new leadership team with an emerging overview of the school's work. Similarly the learning teams plan carefully how to deploy teachers and teaching assistants. This work has the potential to become more effective once the new systems for checking the pupils' progress are regularly generating information. However, at present no one has a clear overview of the numbers of pupils who are underperforming across the school. Linking performance management to targets for the pupils' progress is a helpful development. The quality of subject co-ordinators is variable in terms of their accountability for standards. An effective evaluation of lesson observations conducted across the school accurately identifies

p.6

Grade: 3

the main areas needing development. However, the school's monitoring is not having sufficient impact in overcoming the wide variation in teaching. The governing body is 4 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005 knowledgeable and plays a full part in the construction of the school development plan. It has a useful timetable for monitoring throughout the year but it does not receive regular information on the progress of the pupils. The leadership and management of the school are undergoing significant change and the team is becoming more evaluative and has correctly identified the priorities for improvement. 5 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005 .

p.6

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s

website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Dale Community Primary School, 7 December 2005 to 8 December 2005

p.8

Overall

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

p.9

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 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

p.9

Achievement and standards

NA 4 How well do learners achieve? NA 4 The standards 1 reached by learners

p.9

Achievement and standards

NA 4 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

p.9

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

p.9

needs and interests of learners?

NA 2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

p.9

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.

p.9

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 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 4 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

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for welcoming us to your school. We really enjoyed talking with you, visiting your lessons and coming to your assemblies. We could see that you try hard to do your best and help each other. Well done! We also had a good time talking with your teachers and the many other adults who help you with your learning. We were very pleased to see how you all get on with each other in lessons and around the school. It was good to see that your learning included going on many interesting trips such as to Shugborough Hall. We were very impressed with the range of clubs and activities available to you. Your school council is helping to improve your school. The 'Dale Dudes' is an excellent idea and shows just how well you look after one another. Your teachers, Mrs Eno and other adults in the school work very hard to make sure that you are safe and have an interesting and worthwhile time at the school. We have asked Mrs Eno to

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

do a few things that should help you all get on even better than you are doing now! We want Mrs Eno and your new headteacher to make sure that you keep working your hardest and get the best possible results you can before you leave the school. To help you with this we have asked your teachers to check more often that you are getting on with your work as well as you should do. Finally we have asked the teachers to work more closely together to ensure that you can work at your best. Someone will be coming back in about a year to see how you're getting on. I hope it will be me! Thank you again for being so helpful and friendly.

p.11