Appleton Wiske Community Primary School

Inspection Report Appleton Wiske Community Primary School

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121371 Unique Reference Number North Yorkshire LEA 280999 Inspection number 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006 Inspection dates Mr John Heap CfBT Lead Inspector Reporting inspector

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

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Front Street School address Primary Type of school Appleton Wiske Community School category Northallerton, North Yorkshire DL6 2AA 4 to 11 Age range of pupils

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01609 881398 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01609 881558 Fax number 65 Number on roll Mr Ken Blackwood Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Pam Rounce Headteacher 17 January 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 280999 8 March 2006 - 4 to 11 9 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

This is a small school with three classes that each has more than one age group. It serves an area with little social and economic deprivation. Children enter the school with average attainment. All children are from white British backgrounds, including a very small number from the travelling community. A small proportion of children is entitled to a free school meal. The proportion with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average. The school has Healthy Schools status and has been designated highly effective by the local authority.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school with good features which is a little below the school's own judgement. The school provides sound value for money. Inspectors agree with the school that achievement and standards are satisfactory. Provision in the Foundation Stage (Reception) is sound and standards are average. Across the school, children make satisfactory progress, including those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. By the end of Year 6, results in national tests are above average and this is confirmed by inspection findings. A highlight is the good standards in music. Teaching and learning are satisfactory, with examples of good practice, particularly in the Foundation Stage. Children's personal development is good. They love school and show a lot of care for each other. As one older child put it, 'We look after the younger ones and make sure that they like school as much as we do'. Parents are rightly satisfied that

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Grade: 3

the school cares for their children well and the good links with outside agencies are a strong feature of this. The school is successful at providing equally for children and making the school safe and secure. The curriculum is satisfactory with plenty of good enrichment activities. These are much appreciated by parents and children alike. Leadership and management are satisfactory. The headteacher and governing body rightly judge that there have been good improvements since the last inspection. Moreover, they know that improvements are needed in children's rate of progress and in leadership and management. The school has a sound capacity to improve further.

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What the school should do to improve further

Improve children's academic progress by: • setting challenging individual targets • marking rigorously to the targets • providing more opportunities for independent study. Improve leadership and management by: • more rigorously monitoring teaching and learning • developing and implementing governors' monitoring and evaluation procedures and skills.

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Grade: 3

Achievement and standards are satisfactory. Foundation Stage children make sound progress and reach standards typical for their age. Personal, social and emotional development is strong. By Year 2, standards are above average and progress is satisfactory. Standards in national tests are strongest in mathematics, but weaker in writing. Evidence from children's books in Year 2 show inconsistent basic skills because of shortcomings in teachers' expectations and marking. By Year 6, standards are above average and progress is satisfactory. In 2005, national test results showed English as the strongest subject and mathematics the weakest. However, there were good 2 Inspection Report: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006 standards from the highest attaining children in English and science. Analysis of mathematics results showed that some of the children, who were expected to reach

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Grade: 3

higher levels of attainment, just failed to do so. Furthermore, results in English and science exceeded the challenging targets set. Equally challenging targets are in place for this year and children are in line to achieve them. However, presentational skills are inconsistent because of shortcomings in marking and expectations. Across the school, standards in information and communication technology (ICT) are average and clearly better than the previous inspection. Standards in music are above average and progress is good. The few children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make sound progress.

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Grade: 2

Children's personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural, development, is good. Children behave well, show courtesy and respect for others and are excited by the many enrichment activities provided for them. Children settle well to lessons and usually concentrate hard. Attendance is good. All children know that a healthy lifestyle is important, including regular exercise and a good, balanced diet. Children play safely and a have a clear idea of what is right and wrong. All children are keen to work and play with others and welcome newcomers warmly. As one parent put it, 'This is a friendly school; really it is like a big family. I like the way the older ones help the younger ones.' Through the effective school council and its procedures, all children know about aspects of positive citizenship. They also make a good contribution to school and community life through music. The sound development of their basic skills means that children

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Grade: 2

are appropriately placed for their future schooling and the world of work. Children reflect on a wide range of issues, often in personal, social and health education lessons and assembly. Children know a lot about their local culture and have a keen understanding of other cultures.

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Grade: 3

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. However, there are plenty of examples of good teaching. The main strengths of teaching include: • the increasing development of investigative work in mathematics and science • the very strong teaching of music, in particular the instrumental work • the effective support by classroom assistants • the use of information from tracking children's achievements to set broad targets for learning. As a result, children are confident learners who mostly know what they are doing and what is expected from them. Classroom management is strong and good behaviour 3 Inspection Report: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006 supports learning. The Foundation Stage teachers provide the youngest children with a good balance of independent activities and those led by staff. Children's learning and progress are satisfactory but: • the individual targets set for children are not specific enough and consequently

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Grade: 3

progress slows • marking, although regular, does not provide clear guidance as to how well the child is doing and what is needed to improve further. Consequently, errors are repeated and, for instance, in writing the quality of basic skills varies. While planning for lessons is detailed, there is too little detail about what is expected of individual children. Children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities benefit from sound support and make satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory, with good enrichment activities. Legal requirements are fully met. Provision for ICT is much better than at the time of the last inspection. This is vividly seen in its use in other subjects, such as mathematics, literacy and music. The curriculum effectively meets the needs of children in relation to their personal, social and health needs and in understanding the diverse nature of society. All children benefit equally from what the school offers. The school provides a good range of visits and visitors, such as an artist and musical performers. Good links with local schools is providing impetus for broadening provision. However, there are missed opportunities for children to use their basic skills more widely. In particular, there are few chances for older, more able children to engage in long-term studies which include planning activities, investigating ideas and researching facts. As a result, progress is slowed.

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Grade: 2

Children are well cared for and procedures for health and safety are good. Child protection procedures are robust and well known. Consequently, children feel safe and secure. Staff know the children well and tracking of attendance, behaviour and academic achievement is strong. The vast majority of parents are satisfied with the school's work. Good links with outside agencies, such as the educational welfare officer and behaviour support, benefit individual children. Moreover, there is a strong partnership with the pre-school group and this helps to ensure that the induction of the youngest children is good. These children settle very quickly and enjoy being in the school. Governors are well informed of the very few behavioural incidents that occur. The school is well aware that the links between the strong tracking of academic achievements and individual target-setting have not been firmly established.

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Grade: 2

4 Inspection Report: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory and contribute soundly to the school's on-going development. This is a little lower than the school's own judgement because of the need for greater rigour in monitoring, particularly of teaching and learning. The headteacher provides good leadership in all areas of care and personal development. Her management systems have ensured that issues identified in the previous inspection have been improved, for instance, the effective development of ICT. She correctly evaluates standards and recognises that progress could be better. Delegation of responsibilities is good. Communication with children, staff, parents and governors is effective and their views are adequately taken into account. The school welcomes, and takes notice of, evaluation from outside agencies and this has been positive from the local authority and Her Majesty's Inspectorate. However, the regular monitoring

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Grade: 3

of teaching and learning provides insufficient focus on children's learning and progress and more on teachers' performance. As a result, there is an unclear view of how much progress children are making in lessons and over time. Financial management is good and funds are managed prudently. The governing body provides helpful monitoring in activities such as health and safety and getting value for money when purchasing supplies and services. Governors have been active and effective in supporting the school's successful plans to improve the accommodation. The governors recognise that they: • are too reliant on the headteacher providing them with information • need to move quickly towards a more rigorous monitoring and evaluation of the school's strengths and weaknesses. 5 Inspection Report: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 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: Appleton Wiske Community Primary School, 8 March 2006 to 9 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 3 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 3 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 3 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 3 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 3 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 3 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 3 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

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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

I really enjoyed being in your school this week. I am grateful for your warm welcome, courtesy and the help you provided. Please give a special thanks to those who talked with me. What I really liked about your school: - the improvements that have been made in ICT teaching and learning - the good standards and progress in music - your good behaviour and attitudes to school - the way that you all contribute to a safe and caring ethos in the school - the wide range of activities that enrich your curriculum. I have asked Mrs Rounce and the teachers to improve the way that they set targets for each of you and mark your work. I have also suggested that there is a need for you to do more independent research on various topics. You can be a great help by always doing your best work and following the advice from your teachers. In addition, I have asked that teachers and governors who come into your classes to see how you are doing, pay more attention to what

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

you are learning rather than what your teacher is teaching. The inspection team wishes you well and good luck for the future.

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