Sedgeberrow CofE First School

Inspection Report Sedgeberrow CofE First School

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116848 Unique Reference Number Worcestershire LEA 279920 Inspection number 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 Inspection dates Mary Hamby HMI Reporting inspector

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

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Main Street School address First Type of school Sedgeberrow Voluntary controlled School category Evesham, Worcestershire WR11 7UF 4 to 10 Age range of pupils

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01386 881391 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01386 881391 Fax number 164 Number on roll Mr C Bull Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs F Smith Headteacher 29 November 1999 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279920 23 May 2006 - 4 to 10 24 May 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 of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

This village school draw its pupils from a variety of pre-school settings. It has no Nursery class and so most of the pupils join the school in the Reception class. The pupils come from mainly White British backgrounds and the proportion of them who speak English as an additional language is much lower than average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006

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Grade: 2

This is a good school which gives good value for money. The school is correct in judging its work to be effective and is justly proud of the numerous achievement awards that it holds. The school has developed well since the last inspection and is well placed to continue its successful path. Leadership and management are good and well focused on school improvement, but systems for tracking pupils’ progress are not effective enough. The children in the Reception class now make excellent progress because the teaching is outstanding and there are effective procedures to introduce the children to school life. Standards this year are above average. Most of the pupils in Years 1-5 make good progress, but some of the more able pupils are not doing as well as they might because some work is too easy. ‘The teachers are dedicated, talented, firm and kind’ is a view expressed by one parent and is endorsed by inspection evidence. The pupils feel safe and enjoy their learning

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Grade: 2

because the staff care for them and lessons are fun. The teaching is good. Work is marked regularly and excellently in some instances, but this is not evident in all classes and so some pupils are not clear enough about how they can improve their work. The curriculum is enriched by a diverse array of activities. All subjects are included, but there is not enough emphasis on those aspects of science and mathematics which would help the pupils to think for themselves and learn through their own investigations.

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What the school should do to improve further

•Improve the level of challenge for some of the more capable pupils.. •Extend opportunities in mathematics and science for the pupils to experience more opportunities to investigate problems for themselves.. •Refine monitoring so that information about pupils’ progress is easily accessible and used to set and review challenging targets, and ensure that marking consistently helps the pupils to understand what they need to do next.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good. The pupils enter school with skills that are broadly average and leave in Year 5 with skills that are above average. The children make rapid progress in the Reception class and leave well prepared for the challenges of Year 1. Achievement in writing is very good through Years 1-5 and is developed well through a wide range of purposes. Another good feature of achievement is that the pupils make good progress in the arts. Progress in most aspects of mathematics and science is satisfactory, but pupils do not show enough progress in applying and developing their skills in problem solving and investigations. 2 Inspection Report: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 The school meets its targets. Most of these are set thoughtfully but targets for some of the more capable pupils are not high enough. Although these pupils do make reasonable progress, they could do better if tasks were matched to their specific needs.

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Grade: 2

The pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities are well served by the school and make good progress in each class.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good. The pupils enter school with skills that are broadly average and leave in Year 5 with skills that are above average. The children make rapid progress in the Reception class and leave well prepared for the challenges of Year 1. Achievement in writing is very good through Years 1-5 and is developed well through a wide range of purposes. Another good feature of achievement is that the pupils make good progress in the arts. Progress in most aspects of mathematics and science is satisfactory, but pupils do not show enough progress in applying and developing their skills in problem solving and investigations. The school meets its targets. Most of these are set thoughtfully but targets for some of the more capable pupils are not high enough. Although these pupils do make reasonable progress, they could do better if tasks were matched to their specific needs. The pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities are well served by the school and

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good. The teachers have very good relationships with the pupils and their effective behaviour management means that lessons are productive and enjoyable. The pace of the lessons is brisk and this helps to keep the pupils interested. However, some of the more able pupils show less interest and made less progress when the tasks do not challenge them enough. The teaching of writing is highly effective and the teachers are skilled in using such things as the ‘punctuation pyramid’ to help the pupils to edit their work. The teaching of science and mathematics is satisfactory. Teachers introduce new ideas well, but do not always use questions effectively enough to really make the pupils think for themselves. Verbal comments and marking in some classes are excellent. However, this is not consistent across the school and so some of the pupils are not clear enough about what their learning targets are or what they need to do to achieve them.

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Grade: 2

The staff work very effectively together and with volunteers and this enables the pupils to have easy access to help when they need it. Pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities are very well supported in lessons and this gives them the confidence to learn. The teachers are skilled in using the new interactive whiteboards but do not yet give the pupils enough opportunity to use them for themselves. 3 Inspection Report: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good, with some excellent features in the Reception class where the children learn through work and play inside the classroom and in the open air. The curriculum for Year 1 to Year 5 is enhanced well through themed days and other activities. There is a strong commitment to extra-curricular activities and these are very popular with the pupils. Activities such as the recent performance of ‘Everything Goes’ develop pupils’ confidence very well and contribute well to their enjoyment of school. The school considers some aspects of the curriculum carefully, for example the need to ensure that pupils have opportunity to experience multicultural diversity in its largely monocultural circumstances. However, the curricular planning does not include sufficient emphasis for pupils to work investigatively or on problem solving. This is evident in mathematics and science where some aspects of the subject are not

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Grade: 2

The care, guidance and support of pupils are good and are the basis of the positive ethos which pervades the school. Health and safety procedures are reviewed regularly and sound risk assessments are suitably in place. Procedures for safeguarding the pupils and child protection procedures are given high priority and are communicated well to all staff. The school works very closely and productively with parents and professionals from a range of backgrounds to support pupils experiencing difficulties. Assessment data is gathered in all classes; however, these are not analysed well enough to track pupil progress and identify strengths and weaknesses across or within key stages. Individual Education Plans are regularly monitored but, in some instances, evaluations are not specific enough.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. The leadership team works very effectively with the governors to promote a vibrant learning environment in which the pupils make good progress. Governors support the school well by their clear commitment to the school and by providing a helpful degree of challenge to the senior team. The school also works well with parents and pupils and takes account of their views when considering school improvements. The school has continued to develop well since the last inspection. Under the strong leadership of the headteacher, the school has rectified issues from the last inspection and made further improvements from its own agenda, for example opportunities for enrichment through the arts and sport. 4 Inspection Report: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 There is a very strong sense of teamwork and this has helped to support newly qualified teachers successfully through their early career development. The senior team is very

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Grade: 2

supportive of staff and monitors the quality of teaching regularly. Their perceptive comments help teaching to improve. However, checking of pupils’ work is not monitored formally enough and so the inconsistent practice in marking was not identified. The school is well placed for further improvement because there are good systems for self-evaluation. Through its self-evaluation, the senior team recognises the need for improvements to aspects of mathematics and science. The school has an array of useful evidence to take into account in its evaluations, but is not making sufficient use of assessment data to track the progress of groups of pupils. 5 Inspection Report: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 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: Sedgeberrow CofE First School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 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 1 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 3 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 2 The behaviour of learners NA 2 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 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 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

We are writing to you to tell you about all the things we found out when we visited your school before the half-term holiday. Before we do that, we would like to say a big ‘thank you’ to you and to your parents for helping us to gather all the information we needed. Your parents think that you have a good school and so do we. We were very pleased to see how well you behave and how kind and polite you are to each other. Mrs Smith and the other staff are rightly very proud of you all because you work hard and try your best in lots of subjects. We were amazed to see some of the wonderful art you do, particularly the recent sculptures in the garden. We were also impressed with the way you are trying to make your writing interesting by using ‘wow words’. We liked the way that the children in the Reception class were taught and thought that they had lots of interesting things to do. There were some things that we thought your good school could make even better. One of

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

these is that some of you are not getting hard enough work in lessons, so if you find the work too easy, please tell your teachers. We thought that the teachers could also help you more by writing more specific comments in your books to help you understand how to make your work better. When we looked at the teachers’ planning, we thought that most of it was fine, but that you needed more time to investigate things for yourselves and to have interesting problems to puzzle about. Perhaps you could suggest some things for yourselves that you would like to study. We thought that your headteacher runs the school very well. She is a very busy person and has helped the school to improve. We have asked her to work with some of the other teachers to track how well you are all getting on – so make sure you do your best or they will want to know why! Good luck in everything you do. Try hard and achieve your goals.

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