Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School

Inspection Report Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School

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121373 Unique Reference Number North Yorkshire LEA 281000 Inspection number 15 February 2006 to 15 February 2006 Inspection dates Mrs Linda Murphy 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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Cayley Lane School address Primary Type of school Brompton by Sawdon Community School category Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO13 9DL 5 to 11 Age range of pupils

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01723 859359 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01723 850245 Fax number 35 Number on roll Mrs A Jackson Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr N Davis Headteacher 21 January 2001 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 281000 15 February 2006 - 5 to 11 15 February 2006 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 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 an additional inspector.

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Description of the school

This small school serves a rural community close to the villages of Brompton and Sawdon. It includes a range of socio-economic backgrounds. Nearly all pupils are of White British heritage. The number of pupils joining the school other than at the start of the Foundation Stage is higher than average. The proportions of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and of those entitled to free school meals are below average. Pupils' attainment on entry is broadly typical for their age. Since 2003 the school has held an Investor in People award and held a Quality Mark for its arrangements for pupils with learning difficulties.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 2006

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Grade: 2

This is a good school with some outstanding features. It is well led and provides good value for money. Standards are consistently above average by the end of Year 6. This represents good progress from pupils' broadly average starting points. Pupils do well at learning basic skills in reading and mathematics. The content of writing is good: a weakness is the quality of their handwriting. Foundation Stage provision is satisfactory. It is adversely affected by a lack of good facilities for learning outdoors. By the end of the Reception year pupils reach the standards set nationally for their age group and higher attainers exceed them. The school has an advantageous ratio of teachers to pupils and nurtures an individual approach to pupils' learning. Good quality teaching and learning and an enriched curriculum at Year 1 to Year 6 provide the challenge pupils need to achieve well. Pupils' personal development is outstanding and

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Grade: 2

underpinned by excellent care, guidance and support. Attendance is above average. Pupils really enjoy their time at this school yet look forward with relish to the challenges they will meet in their secondary education because they are very well prepared for them. The headteacher has an almost full-time teaching commitment and maintains a high profile around school. This means that there is insufficent time during the school day to attend to all aspects of management. Some management tasks are completed in the headteacher's own time. The school has made good progress since the last inspection, leadership is well informed and the school has the capacity to improve further.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Improve the quality of pupils' handwriting. • Provide the Reception class with appropriate resources for outdoor learning and play. • Ensure that the headteacher has sufficient time for management responsibilities.

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Grade: 2

The school accurately evaluates pupils' achievement as good. Pupils make good progress overall. Attainment on entry, while broadly average, varies from year to year because of the very small groups of pupils starting school at any one time. Pupils in the Reception class make satisfactory progress. By Year 2 pupils almost always attain standards that are at least at the expected level. This year standards are above average and progress is good. This is because the teaching in the mixed age class of Reception to Year 2 caters well for pupils' individual needs. By Year 6 pupils attain higher than average standards. A good proportion exceeds the expectations for their age and all meet the challenging targets set for them. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, and pupils with particular gifts or talents achieve well. The school deploys teaching staff well to meet the needs of individuals. Pupils are particularly successful

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Grade: 2

at reading at high levels because the school works in a strong partnership with parents 2 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 2006 to develop pupils' interest and success in reading. Pupils do well in writing in terms of the content but the quality of handwriting lets them down.

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Grade: 1

The school is rightly proud of the outstanding way in which it promotes pupils' personal growth including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. This results in outstanding behaviour and fantastic attitudes to school underpinned by good attendance. As one pupil said about their days in school, 'Its just great to be alive!'. Pupils are exceptionally mature. They take personal responsibility for their actions and use their initiative in work and play. Pupils also take pleasure in working together and contribute much to team work. They often work with pupils from other local schools, which widens their friendships and view of the world. These factors, together with good progress in their basic skills of literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology, prepare them well for their future economic well-being. Pupils have a wealth of opportunities to develop a healthy lifestyle: for example, the

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Grade: 1

school has a clear say in the dinner menus and the quality of food cooked there. The school provides healthy snacks at break time and pupils understand the importance of staying healthy and safe. Pupils make an excellent contribution to the school and wider community and take part in a variety of performances and activities out of school.

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Teachers challenge the more able pupils and provide good support for those who find learning more difficult. Excellent relationships support learning. Teachers plan lessons well. They are good at telling pupils how well they are doing and what they need to learn next although written marking is less helpful. Learning is pitched to pupils' needs and lessons move at a good pace because they are well organised and pupils enjoy their learning. Dialogue is of high quality so pupils are confident to express opinions and raise questions. Teaching assistants contribute well to pupils' learning. The teaching of handwriting is not good enough to bring about a neat joined hand that is well presented and easy to read.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is of good quality. It is exciting and meaningful to pupils. It is much enhanced through the school's collegiate work with a group of local schools. In Year 3 to Year 6 pupils are taught literacy and numeracy each day in small groups which benefits their learning considerably although it means that the headteacher has little time away from teaching to complete managerial responsibilites. The curriculum is enriched through the addition of French in Year 1 to Year 6 and through visits and 3 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 2006 visitors, which broaden the opportunites for pupils to understand the wider world about them. The programme for pupils' personal, social and health education is good. The limited access and lack of sufficient equipment restricts opportunites for outdoor learning and play in the Reception class.

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Grade: 1

The care, guidance and support that the school provides are outstanding. The high level of pastoral support is reflected in pupils' excellent personal development. Arrangements for health and safety including child protection are up to date and exceedingly thorough. Pupils are very confident that there is always someone they can turn to for help. Staff know the pupils and their families so well that any concerns are dealt with very quickly and sensitively. Pupils receive an extremely smooth induction into school and are very well prepared for their move to secondary education. The school ensures, through its partnership with other schools, that pupils have plentiful opportunities to meet new friends and work alongside pupils from other schools prior to transfer to their secondary school. Quite a few pupils join the school other than in the Reception class. Staff swiftly assess the attainment of pupils new to the school

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Grade: 1

and identify any particular needs that individuals may have. New pupils are helped to make friends very quickly.

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Grade: 2

Good leadership by the headteacher, governors and subject leaders builds well upon earlier success. Areas for improvement at the last inspection have been dealt with and the school is well placed to improve further. The school accurately evaluates strengths and areas for development and identifies effective strategies for improvement always with an emphasis on pupils' achievement. For example, the school improvement plan identifies the need to extend the provision for pupils in the Reception class. Governors play an active role in the life of the school, being supportive but also being willing to challenge the proposals of the headteacher and other staff. Governors have a good understanding of the school's strengths and areas to develop because they ensure they are well-informed. Many give freely of their time to support the broad curriculum through, for example, regularly accompanying pupils for swimming lessons. The school

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Grade: 2

takes on the views and ideas of parents and pupils very well and responds quickly to any concerns. Parents are fully supportive of the school and are pleased they chose this school for their children. The headteacher leads by example through a large teaching commitment which on occasion leaves little time for administrative aspects of management during the school day. Management responsibilities have been delegated sensibly and are closely monitored. Staff work well together as a team and have excellent links with external agencies and other schools to bring about the best for their pupils. Leaders at all levels provide excellent role models for pupils and reflect the school's recognition as an Investor in People. 4 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 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. 5 Inspection Report: Brompton and Sawdon Community Primary School, 15 February 2006 to 15 February 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 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 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 1 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 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 telling me about your school. It helped me to judge that this is a good school with some excellent features. The adults in school are excellent at looking after you and your behaviour is outstandingly good. The teaching is good and enjoyable and you learn new things quickly. You are very grown up and responsible. You also benefit greatly from working with children from other schools. Your parents like all of these things very much. Your headteacher does a good job at leading the school and teaching children. The school now needs to find a way to help your headteacher get a better balance of work so that there is plenty of time allowed to run the school and make it even better for you. I have also asked the adults connected with the school to help you improve the quality of your handwriting and to provide an area where the youngest children can extend their learning outside. You can help by always doing your best and by trying really hard to improve your handwriting.

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