Great Sampford Community Primary School

Inspection Report Great Sampford Primary School

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114970 Unique Reference Number ESSEX LEA LEA 279486 Inspection number 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005 Inspection dates Mr. David Cosway LI Reporting inspector

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

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Finchingfield Road School address Primary Type of school CB10 2RL Community School category 5 to 11 Age range of pupils 01799586280 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01799586261 Fax number 82 Number on roll Mrs.S Gant Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr. Ian Pollard Headteacher 21 November 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279486 19 September 2005 - 5 to 11 20 September 2005 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 a small primary school, very much at the heart of the community it serves. It provides a wide range of extended services to the local area, such as a doctor's surgery on site. Almost all of the pupils are of white British descent, and even the few who are not speak English as their home language. No pupils are eligible for free school meals. A smaller percentage than nationally have learning difficulties or disabilities, arising mainly from moderate learning or social and behavioural needs.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005

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Grade: 1

This is a very effective school, where every child is known and valued as an individual. It fully lives up to its motto 'Small enough to care, large enough to inspire', and pupils make very good progress as they move through the school. The provision is good overall and sometimes outstanding in Reception. Pupils build on this good start and, by the age of eleven, they achieve high standards in English, mathematics and science. Outstanding leadership and management have ensured that the school has not been complacent since its previous positive inspection report, but has continued to improve. The recommendations for improvement from the last report have been successfully implemented. The school is very well placed to improve further, because of the high quality of the work of the governing body, the commitment of the staff and the growing effectiveness of the school's use of data for self analysis. Not all staff have

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Grade: 1

yet been fully trained for leadership roles and not all subjects are making full use of assessment data to help pupils to improve, but these matters are in hand. The pupils make outstanding progress in their personal development, as well as good progress in their learning, because of the good, and sometimes outstanding teaching. Everyone in the school feels exceptionally well cared for and valued. All, from the Chair of the governing body to the youngest pupil, know that they matter and that their opinions are heard and respected. The school judges itself to be good overall and the inspection has found that it is outstanding. Pupil numbers have risen rapidly as its reputation has grown in the surrounding area. Pupils and their parents and carers think the school is very good indeed. It gives good value for money.

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What the school should do to improve further

- Continue to develop tracking systems to monitor pupils' progress across the curriculum; - Develop the monitoring role of subject leaders so that they are able to evaluate the effectiveness of their subject areas and raise standards.

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Grade: 2

Pupils make good progress and attain above, and sometimes well above average standards by the age of eleven. Over time, they have attained high levels in English and mathematics. Standards in science have been lower but the 2005 results improved considerably and are likely to be well above average when national comparisons are available. Many pupils exceed their targets, based on their prior attainment, and standards are rising faster than they are nationally. Pupils make good progress in Reception from average levels of attainment on entry to the school. Overall attainment is above average by the end of Year 2. As they move through the school, the good start they make in the reception class and Years 1 and 2 stands them in good stead since they work co-operatively, listen and concentrate well. They enjoy their lessons and work very hard to meet the challenging targets that teachers set for them. Girls

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Grade: 2

attain higher standards than boys, as is the case nationally, but boys and girls alike 2 Inspection Report: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005 make good progress. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities and those who are gifted or talented make good progress because teachers are very aware of their individual strengths and weaknesses and plan to meet their needs. The school believes that pupils make good progress and the inspection findings agree with this.

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Grade: 1

The school believes that pupils' personal development and well-being are good. The finding of the inspection is that they are outstanding compared with other schools. The pupils' behaviour is rarely less than satisfactory and often exemplary. Almost all have very positive attitudes and really enjoy coming to school. Older pupils take care of younger ones and there is a real sense of family. Parents recognise this and praise the happy and caring environment our children thrive here. A very few of the boys find it difficult to sustain concentration, but the school is aware of this and is putting support in place to help them. Pupils develop confidence and independence, because of the inclusiveness of the school and the ways it plans to meet their individual needs. Attendance is satisfactory and improving as the school takes a firm line against family holidays taken in term time, which are one of the main reasons for absence. Almost

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Grade: 1

all children are punctual to school and to lessons. The spiritual, moral, social, cultural and physical development of pupils is good overall. Moral and social issues are taught very well, and adequate emphasis is placed on cultural diversity. There is excellent spiritual development. They learn very well how to keep themselves safe and adopt a healthy lifestyle. Every child is a valued member of the school community.

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Grade: 2

The inspection findings agree with the school that teaching is good and sometimes outstanding. Teachers plan their lessons very well to interest and enthuse their pupils. For example, having read a poem by Michael Rosen Year 1 and 2 pupils were excited to be asked to write a similar poem and worked at a furious pace to produce lively work of their own on a similar theme. As in all classes, the tasks were carefully devised to provide a range of levels of work, so that the higher attaining pupils were set more challenging tasks than those who need more help and support. As a result, pupils enjoyed their work and made rapid progress. Teachers have excellent relationships with their pupils and all the children spoken to agreed: We like our teachers and our lessons are fun! Their learning skills are developed quickly. They can work co-operatively, research, answer questions and think for themselves. This helps them

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Grade: 2

to learn quickly and independently. 3 Inspection Report: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005

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Grade: 1

The school's own evaluation of the curriculum is that it is good. The inspection has judged the curriculum to be outstanding. There is very clear emphasis on the teaching of literacy and numeracy, very good provision for ICT, and good coverage of other subjects such as art and history. Work that the pupils do in literacy and numeracy supports work in other subjects. A commitment to the individual is at the heart of the school's work. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities and those with special gifts and talents are provided for well and so make good progress. A particular strength is the way in which pupils can work with a higher or lower year group if this is appropriate for their stage of development. There is an excellent range of clubs and the many trips make learning real and enjoyable to pupils. Personal, social, health and citizenship education helps to ensure the pupils' health and well-being and prepares

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Grade: 1

them very well to become economically aware and make effective contributions to the community.

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Grade: 1

The care of pupils is outstanding. The school has excellent systems in English and mathematics to help pupils understand how well they are doing and how to improve. Good use is made of assessment information to enable the school to track pupils' progress. They are planning to extend these systems to other subject areas. Parents and carers are very pleased with the care and guidance that their children receive and the ways that the school keeps them well informed, so that they can in turn support their children's learning at home. They particularly value the fact that the school is small enough for every child to be known and cared for by everyone. One wrote: 'This is a very special little school.' They are pleased with the open-door policy and the friendly welcome they receive from the school office staff. The school has outstanding procedures for ensuring the health, safety and well-being of all its pupils. Child

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Grade: 1

protection and health and safety procedures are in place and up-to-date. All staff have had appropriate training. Procedures for dealing with minor accidents and illness are very good. As a result, pupils feel safe and know that they have an adult to turn to if they need help. The level of care that pupils show towards each other is exceptional across the school, for example older pupils caring for the younger ones in mixed age classes. The pupils, through their active School Council, asked for a friendship bench for the playground so that any child feeling lonely could quickly make a friend. They helped to raise money to purchase the bench, showing enterprise and responsibility.

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Grade: 1

The school's evaluation of leadership and management is that they are good. The inspection has found that they are outstanding. The school has improved considerably since the time of the last report. ICT was a weakness at that time. The teachers' 4 Inspection Report: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005 understanding and skills have improved significantly as a result of well-directed training and the school is now very well resourced. ICT is now a strength of the school. There has been a history of relatively low performance in science. This was recognised by the leadership team and a number of very effective measures put in place. It is now one of the most successful subjects in the school. Parents value the leadership of the headteacher and they and the pupils recognise that their opinions are taken account of in the running of the school. The governance of the school is excellent. The governors

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Grade: 1

have an excellent knowledge of its work and play a significant part in its development. They are very well organised and effective. The governors, leadership team and all members of the school's staff are a cohesive team and their combined efforts have created a happy, caring, hard-working ethos in which pupils and adults flourish. Some staff have been trained in their role of subject leaders. They are now evaluating teaching and learning in their subjects, principally literacy and numeracy very well. The school recognises that this is an on-going programme of staff development. 5 Inspection Report: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005 .

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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: Great Sampford Primary School, 19 September 2005 to 20 September 2005

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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 NA The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 1 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 2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 1 The behaviour of learners NA 3 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 1 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 1 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 1 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 very much for helping me when I visited your school. It was delightful to meet you and I was very impressed indeed by your excellent behaviour and your friendliness. You all told me how much you like your school and I am not surprised. It is an excellent school. All the adults in school care for you very well and a special feature of your school is the way that you care for each other too. Your teachers work hard to give you interesting and enjoyable lessons and a number of you told me how much you enjoy learning. You make good progress at school and by the time you reach Year 6 you have learned a lot, reaching standards that are better than lots of other schools. You are growing up into responsible and confident young people. Your school is led very well indeed by your headteacher and other teachers are giving him enormous help to make the school even better. I have asked the school to continue to train

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

teachers to be excellent leaders so that everything you learn is interesting and taught as well as possible. You told me how useful the marking of literacy and numeracy is and how helpful you find the targets that you are set. I have asked the school to begin to do this in other subjects as well. Your parents think that this is a really good school and they are right. As well as good lessons, you have lots of good clubs, activities and trips that help you to learn other things that make your education even more exciting. Enjoy your time at school and continue to work hard.

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