Mapperley CofE Controlled Primary School

Inspection Report Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School

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112836 Unique Reference Number DERBYSHIRE LEA LEA 279032 Inspection number 29 March 2006 to 30 March 2006 Inspection dates Mr. Ian Nelson LI Reporting inspector

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

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Lodge Road School address Primary Type of school DE7 6BT Voluntary controlled School category 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 0115 932 5386 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0115 932 5386 Fax number 59 Number on roll Mr.Shaun Jackson Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr. Phillip Millard Headteacher Not applicable Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279032 29 March 2006 - 4 to 11 30 March 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 one Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

Mapperley CE Controlled Primary is a small school and and serves the village of Mapperley and the surrounding area. Nearly all the pupils are of White British heritage. Few pupils are eligible for free school meals and a small proportion have special educational needs. There are only two classes and pupils are mainly taught in mixed aged groups.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 2006

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Grade: 2

The school accurately considers itself to be good and it provides good value for money. Good leadership and management set a clear direction and a shared ethos where every child matters. The quality of care is outstanding and is recognised as such by parents and pupils. Consequently, pupils' personal development is excellent and they grow into very self-assured young people with the confidence to have a go at things even if they are daunting, like playing an instrument in assembly for the first time, or taking part in sporting competitions. Good teaching ensures that pupils make good progress and attain above average standards by Year 2 and Year 6, although their writing is not quite as good as their reading. Staff compensate well for the lack of a hall by making effective use of local facilities for physical education lessons. The school lacks the space to provide all the activities that it would like for children in Reception.

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Grade: 2

Nevertheless children make sound progress and reach the expected standards because staff do the best they can with the space they have. The school has continued to raise standards since the last inspection and successfully tackled the issues for improvement. These successes and the commitment of the staff and governors indicate that the school has what it takes to continue improving.

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What the school should do to improve further

- Help pupils to improve their ability to write in different styles and for different purposes. - Seek to improve the accommodation and provision for Foundation Stage children.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good. Children start in Reception with the skills and knowledge expected of their age but within a wide ability range. Satisfactory provision in Reception ensures that children make sound progress and achieve the goals expected by the time they enter Year 1. Pupils make good progress through Years 1 to 6, resulting in above average standards in the national tests at Year 2 and Year 6. Standards in reading, writing and mathematics at Year 2 have generally been above average over recent years and were exceptionally high overall in 2005. At Year 6 standards in English, mathematics and science were well above average overall. Since the last inspection standards have risen steadily in English and science, though in mathematics they have fluctuated from year to year which is not uncommon in such a small school. There is no significant difference in the standards pupils are attaining in English, mathematics

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Grade: 2

and science currently. The school met its challenging targets for mathematics and exceeded them for English in 2005, although writing was not as strong as reading. This was because pupils found it hard to write in different styles and for different purposes. The school has improved provision for information and communication technology and pupils achieve the standards expected of their age. There are no significant differences in the achievement of different groups of pupils because the 2 Inspection Report: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 2006 teaching is well matched to their individual needs whatever their age, ability, gender or background.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is excellent. Their behaviour in lessons and around the school is exemplary. They care for each other at break times with older pupils looking after younger ones. They have excellent attitudes to their lessons, pay close attention and work very hard. Attendance is above average. Pupils know how to stay healthy and they opt for fruit at snack times. They play energetically in the playground. They feel very safe in school because the adults take excellent care of them. Pupils say there is always someone to talk to if they are worried or upset and that the adults always help them to resolve their problems. The good literacy, numeracy and social skills they develop lay the firm foundations for later life. Pupils enjoy playing an active role in the school and wider community. For example, they happily help to clear up after

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Grade: 1

lunch, perform concerts locally and support a wide range of charities. Pupils learn about their own culture and that of that of other faiths, including visits to a mosque and to a Diwali festival. This gives them a very good insight into a wide range of cultures.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good. The school makes very effective use of part time teachers and well trained teaching assistants to split classes into smaller groups for some lessons. For example, pupils in Key Stage 2 benefited from two teachers and a teaching assistant in a mathematics lesson. This enabled staff to target work to the needs of individual pupils as shown in a session on rounding numbers up or down, when the more able pupils in Year 3 were challenged to work in thousands while others worked in hundreds. Consequently, pupils learn well and make good progress. The infant class includes Reception and Key Stage 1 pupils and the team work between the teacher and teaching assistant enables some split lessons to give the different age groups appropriate activities. However, the lack of space means that learning for Reception children is rather more structured than staff would like and there is too

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Grade: 2

little scope for organising a range of activities throughout the day from which children can choose. Teachers regularly check what pupils know, and set them targets to aim for in their learning. Pupils know what their targets are and say teachers tell them how to improve their work. 3 Inspection Report: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 2006

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Grade: 2

The school provides a good range of activities to help pupils to learn. They cover all the subjects that are required and effectively meet the needs of the pupils in Years 1 to 6. Learning is enriched by the very good use of visits and visitors to bring topics to life. However, the lack of space means that it is almost impossible to provide Reception children with all that they need all the time, though the school does the best it can with the space it has. The school has plans for improving the building which will create the space needed to resolve this issue. The school makes effective use of village facilities and after school sports clubs to ensure pupils take part in appropriate physical education activities despite the lack of a hall. Success in inter-school sports competitions is testament to the success of these measures. Children enjoy a wide range of art activities resulting in good standards throughout the school.

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Grade: 1

The quality of care, guidance and support is outstanding. Staff know the pupils and their families exceptionally well. Parents speak very highly of the quality of care. One rightly writes, 'Mapperley Primary School promotes a very special family ethos where our children feel safe and where their emotional and educational needs are well catered for'. This is one of the school's key strengths. All the required policies and procedures for ensuring pupils' health, safety and welfare are in place. The school has very good systems for checking how well pupils are learning and making sure they are on track to reach their targets. These ensure that pupils who need extra help are identified early and given the support they need to catch up. The school also has a clear policy for identifying and supporting the most able to ensure they do as well as they can. Staff seek the views of pupils regularly through the school council and act upon their

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Grade: 1

ideas, for example in providing the friendship bench in the playground and trolleys for lunch boxes.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. The headteacher has a very clear view of where the school is going and shares this with all staff and governors. As a result there is a shared understanding of how well the school is doing, and how it can be even better, based upon rigorous checks of its performance. The good school improvement plan includes all the main priorities for improvement though it could be sharper in setting measurable targets. The headteacher regularly checks the quality of lessons so that he has a clear view of the quality of teaching though these observations do not focus strongly enough on pupils' learning. The governors and staff are highly committed and supportive and the school plans to build on the enthusiasm of those recently appointed to help them to become fully effective in their leadership roles. The staff and governors work closely with parents and ask them regularly how well they think

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Grade: 2

4 Inspection Report: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 2006 the school is doing and take account of their views when planning improvements. Close links with the community and with other local schools and organisations help the pupils to appreciate their place in society. The school has successfully tackled the issues for improvement from the previous inspection and continued to raise standards. It has what it needs to continue improving in the future. It makes good use of the resources at its disposal to give good value for money. 5 Inspection Report: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 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: Mapperley CE Controlled Primary School, 29 March 2006 to 30 March 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 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 2 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 1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 1 The behaviour of learners NA 2 The attendance of learners NA 1 How well learners enjoy their education NA 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 1 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 1 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

Thank you for making me so welcome when I came to inspect your school recently. I enjoyed meeting you and talking with you about your school. This letter is to tell you what I think is good about your school and how it could be even better. You were right when you told me you go to a good school. The adults go out of their way to look after you. You always have someone to turn to with worries. Your behaviour is excellent and you are very polite and well mannered. You look after each other in the playground and care for the younger ones well. Your school council makes a good job of telling the adults your ideas for making the school better. Your teachers make lessons interesting so that you work hard and learn a lot. This helps you to do well in your tests, although your writing is not quite as good as your reading. Although you have not got a hall for PE lessons you do very well in sports and win competitions. Your school

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

building is small and there is not really enough space for the teachers to do all the activities that they would like to with the children in Reception. I have asked the teachers to help you to get better at writing in different styles and for different purposes, like stories, reports or letters, so that your writing becomes as good as your reading. I have also asked them, and the governors, to try to improve the building to create enough space for the children in Reception to enjoy a bigger choice of activities. You are lucky to have such caring adults at your school and I am sure that they will do all they can to make the school even better than it is now.

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