St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, South WealdOfsted inspection, 27 Jun 2006

Inspection Report St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

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115164 Unique Reference Number ESSEX LEA LEA 279531 Inspection number 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006 Inspection dates Mr. Peter Lewis AI Reporting inspector

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

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Wigley Bush Lane School address Primary Type of school CM14 5QN Voluntary aided School category 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 01277 215577 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01277 210655 Fax number 317 Number on roll Mr.John Long Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr. Andrew Binnell Headteacher 11 September 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279531 26 June 2006 - 4 to 11 27 June 2006 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006

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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 a team of three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This popular and consistently over-subscribed primary school is located in South Weald in Essex. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive. The school is above-average in size. The majority of the children start the school with standards that are above average. Pupils come from a range of social and economic backgrounds, although few are from minority ethnic groups and all speak English at home. The school's population is very stable. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is less than the majority of schools nationally. A broadly average proportion of the pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006

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Grade: 1

This is an exceptionally effective school which provides very well for its pupils and prepares them very well for the next stage in their education. This view is supported by the school's perceptive self-evaluation, which is extensive and accurate, and provides a very good basis for improvement. As it is such an effective school in all aspects, staff are very able to maintain its many strengths and to continue to develop and improve it further. The school offers excellent value for money. Provision in the Reception classes is in line with that in the rest of the school. The children are given a flying start to their education and make very clear progress from their entry to the school. Most achieve the expected learning goals by the end of the Reception year, with a good proportion exceeding them. The school is outstanding in all aspects of its work. Standards and achievement are both very high. Following a dip in pupils' achievement

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Grade: 1

in English in 2005, the school took swift and decisive action which secured rapid improvement. Teaching and curriculum planning, together with the exceptional tracking of children's progress, in both their academic and personal development, are very effective. This helps create conditions favourable to both the achievement of very high standards and the exemplary level of care offered to children. The very strong and effective leadership provided by the headteacher, senior management team and governing body keep the school focused on its core purpose and provides a constant focus on high achievement and success for all pupils. Very good improvement has been made since the last inspection.

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What the school should do to improve further

- The leadership is very aware of priorities and these accurately form the basis for its development planning. To continue improving and to maintain the current exceptional provision, the school should put its plan into action.

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Grade: 1

From the time they start school, children make excellent progress, consolidating and developing their skills. They do so well because the quality of teaching is outstanding and the exciting curriculum stimulates and interests them. Achievement and standards are outstanding through Key Stages 1 and 2. The progress made throughout the school continues to build on the firm foundations set in the Reception classes. Pupils are set and achieve challenging targets, and this supports their learning very effectively. The test results in 2005 for the end of Year 2 and Year 6 showed standards to be considerably above those expected. Although Year 6 pupils did not progress as rapidly as they had in 2004, particularly in writing, the school took swift action, which led to the significant progress made this year. Good opportunities for high quality writing in different subjects abound, showing how well the school has responded to this issue.

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Grade: 1

The school's assessment information clearly shows that the proportion of children reaching the higher levels in English, mathematics and science is likely to be very high 2 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006 when compared with that found nationally. This shows how well the pupils, particularly those who were already higher attainers, have progressed throughout the school. This is due to the work done with the pupils to develop their confidence and ability in writing. Standards and, particularly, pupils' progress have improved considerably as a result.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is excellent and reflects a very strong Christian ethos. Pupils are well informed about the diversity of other cultures, particularly through their reciprocal visits with a more multi-cultural school. Attendance is good. Outstanding behaviour and an eagerness to learn help pupils to enjoy school immensely. They are polite and considerate to others, particularly when being playground monitors. They say that bullying is not a concern. 'It is like a big family here and everyone is friendly.' Pupils' contribution to the community is exceptional. The school council plays an important part in the running of the school, for example, organising ballots to choose charities to support. They have also led an assembly to encourage pupils to think about the impact of their behaviour on others, with a resulting improvement in behaviour. They

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Grade: 1

know that their views are taken seriously. The school council asked for improved playground facilities and now they have them. They know how to lead safe and healthy lives exceptionally well, choosing healthy meals at lunchtime, including the healthier sausages that they had requested! There are excellent opportunities for sport and exercise, including a wide range of competitive sports and regular swimming lessons. Pupils have an excellent grounding for the world of work through the very strong emphasis on literacy, numeracy and computer skills and the opportunities to work collaboratively. They are prepared for their future lives very well by completing application forms for such responsibilities as librarians and office helpers.

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Grade: 1

The quality of teaching and learning are outstanding. Excellent relationships, superb classroom management and teachers' detailed knowledge about their charges, contribute significantly to pupils' success throughout the school. Teachers plan very well for lessons. They understand how pupils learn and make teaching clear, relevant and often exciting, which stimulates a love of learning throughout the school. This has been added to by the regular opportunities that computer-based learning offers to pupils to learn for themselves. Work is invariably matched to pupils' precise needs so that each makes maximum progress. At the end of lessons, teachers assess their progress with them very effectively. Pupils know their targets and the teachers' high quality and focused marking tells them what they must do to reach the next level. They enjoy critically assessing their own work and that of their peers, which facilitates

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Grade: 1

3 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006 progress and encourages ownership of their learning. The success criteria and summary check lists constantly on the desks of older pupils provide very effective aids to improving achievement in literacy. Committed and experienced teaching assistants guide pupils' exceptionally well in their learning.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum is outstanding. Great care is taken to ensure a broad and balanced range of well resourced activities which create a journey of learning. It is planned carefully and excellent links between subjects are being increasingly made to further pupils' enjoyment and access to learning. At the Foundation Stage, children are entranced by the imaginative indoor and outdoor activities available to them. The provision for information and communication technology has advanced rapidly since the last inspection, with a skills based curriculum in place throughout the school. A major strength of the curriculum is the degree to which it is planned from an assessment of learners' individual needs. There is excellent provision for able and talented pupils who are exposed to specific master classes and broader experiences to quicken and extend their learning. The learning of all pupils is enriched by productive links with

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Grade: 1

secondary schools, enabling increased resources and wider learning opportunities, including specialist teaching in physical education. This is part of a well thought out package which also aids transition to secondary school. Learning is enhanced by an unusual and large choice of very popular out of school hours' activities such as the orchestra and choir.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' care, guidance and support are outstanding. Arrangements for safeguarding pupils are robust and regularly reviewed. Pupils feel safe in school and know that there is an adult to turn to if they need help. The school shows exceptional concern for the safety of its pupils, as shown by the very thorough risk assessments that are carried out. All the required checks on adults working in the school are made. Child protection procedures are securely in place. The school's commitment to the pupils and their families shines through and links between home and school are very strong. The school tracks pupils' progress exceptionally well, ensuring equal opportunities for all. This includes very good tracking of personal development that reinforces assessments of pupils' academic progress. Pupils have their own targets to work towards; they know what these are and when they have achieved success. The school is very good at helping

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Grade: 1

pupils assess their own progress. Those with learning difficulties are given very thorough guidance, which helps them make excellent progress. 4 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 2006

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Grade: 1

Leadership and management are outstanding and match the school's self-evaluation. The headteacher, staff and governing body are fully aware of the school's strengths and areas they wish to improve in the future. The governors bring a very good level of challenge. Most have specific links to a subject or other aspect of the school and are perceptive in their reports to other governors. The school's development planning is exemplary in its detailed and effective promotion of change. It supports the school well in, for example, taking swift and appropriate action to maintain the outstanding level of achievement. The school is very effective in its performance management and this has a positive impact on the quality of education. Teachers are very well supported and make the most of opportunities to develop their skills through further training. The requirements of workforce reform and teachers' preparation time have been very

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Grade: 1

successfully and creatively introduced using extra funds generated by the school. Pupils feel they are fully involved in the school, particularly through the school council. The headteacher is involved in a range of opportunities for supporting other schools through national and local agencies. These links bring considerable benefit to St Peter's as they widen the staff's horizons and help to generate a vision of continual improvement through evaluation. Through the development of management roles at all levels the headteacher, exceptionally well-supported by the skilled deputy, has been at pains to ensure that the time taken in these activities has no detrimental effect on the school's development or on pupils' learning. The evidence of the excellent and consistently effective leadership and management points to the school having a very clear capacity to improve further in the future and to maintain the exceptional standards

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Grade: 1

currently achieved. 5 Inspection Report: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 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: St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, 26 June 2006 to 27 June 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 1 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 1 How well do learners achieve? NA 1 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 1 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 1 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 1 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 1 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 1 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 for making us so welcome when we visited your school recently. You and your parents told us that you go to an excellent school and we agree with you. Your teachers, teaching assistants and lunchtime staff look after you very well. You always have someone to go to if you are upset. You older children do an excellent job of being monitors in the playground and helping to look after the younger ones. We agree with you that you have excellent teachers who help you with your learning. They help you to do very well in lessons and in the tests you take. You are particularly good at writing, at which you and your teachers have worked so hard this year. Your behaviour is excellent and you are very polite and well mannered. You enjoy telling visitors about your work. We think that Mr Binnell does an outstanding job of running the school. He, the governors and staff work extremely hard to make sure you enjoy your

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

lessons and other activities. We know that they will continue to work hard to make your school better and better. Keep working hard and enjoy your time St Peter's.

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