Rampton Primary School

Inspection Report Rampton Primary School

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122671 Unique Reference Number NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LEA LEA 281322 Inspection number 26 September 2005 to 27 September 2005 Inspection dates Mrs. Pat Cox LI Reporting inspector

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

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Retford Road School address Primary Type of school DN22 0JB Community School category 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 01777248251 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01777248136 Fax number 75 Number on roll .Rev Martin Leaton Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr. J Day Headteacher 3 October 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 281322 26 September 2005 - 4 to 11 27 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 one additional inspector.

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Description of the school

Rampton is a small school, where almost all the pupils are of white British ethnic origin and all have English as their first language. The proportion of pupils identified as having special educational needs is similar to the national average. No pupils are entitled to free school meals, much lower than the national average. There is higher than average mobility, with many pupils joining the school or leaving it after the reception class. The children's attainment on entry to reception varies considerably from year to year. Overall, it is broadly similar to other children of their age, although their personal, social and emotional development is more advanced than is the usual case. The senior teacher has taken on the role of acting headteacher during the headteacher's absence due to illness. Two of the four teachers are new this term.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 September 2005

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Grade: 4

The school provides an adequate education, but is not sufficiently effective. In accordance with legislation, the school requires significant improvement in relation to leadership, management and the curriculum. The acting headteacher has done well in keeping the school operating smoothly during the headteacher's absence. However, the senior management of the school has not identified many key areas where improvement is needed or taken effective action to remedy weaknesses. Consequently, it has an over-optimistic view of its own provision and does not provide satisfactory value for money. There has been insufficient improvement since the previous inspection, nor is there enough capacity to improve further. Parents are supportive of the school but they have concerns about its future well-being. The expertise of staff as subject co-ordinators and class teachers has not been developed. Teaching is satisfactory, and

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Grade: 4

some activities are lively and interesting. However, some lessons move too slowly and teachers do not always use their knowledge of the pupils' attainment to set the work at appropriate levels. The pupils make satisfactory progress overall and standards are similar to those expected in Years 2 and 6 in mathematics but below this in writing. However, there has been a decline in test results in recent years; previously, standards in mathematics and science have been above average. Standards in the Foundation Stage are those expected for this age, but there are weaknesses in the curriculum for the reception children. The curriculum in the rest of the school is not planned well enough and the time for lessons at Key Stage 2 is below that recommended. There is a good range of extra-curricular activities. The provision for the pupils' personal development is sound, and their behaviour is satisfactory. They have a good knowledge

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Grade: 4

of a healthy lifestyle. Procedures for ensuring the pupils' safety and health are good, but those for monitoring their academic performance need improvement.

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What the school should do to improve further

- Improve the leadership and management at all levels, including governance, so that there is a clear direction, rigorous identification of areas where improvement is needed and effective action to remedy the shortcomings - Raise standards in English, particularly in writing - Improve the planning of the curriculum, so that all subjects receive adequate time and the teaching time at Key Stage 2 meets the recommended level - Improve the use of assessment for planning lessons and tracking the pupils' progress through the school

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Grade: 3

As is usual with small schools, the test results have varied from year to year. This has particularly been the case for the Year 2 results, which were below the national average in 2004. The Year 6 results have been above average over the years, as they were in 2004. However, the trend of results has been downwards in both year groups. Nevertheless, the results show that the Year 6 pupils in 2004 had made satisfactory 2 Inspection Report: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 September 2005 progress from Year 2, and in mathematics their progress was good. The results in 2005 continued to show attainment in mathematics and science to be above the national average at the end of both key stages. However, the English results were below average, particularly in writing. Nevertheless, the Year 6 pupils had again made good progress in mathematics from their results in Year 2, which were unusually low. The school's

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Grade: 3

targets were not challenging enough in mathematics, where they were greatly exceeded, but in English they were unrealistically high. The overall decline in standards has continued, so that the pupils presently in Years 2 and 6 are working at the expected level in mathematics but below this in writing. The school's records of pupils' progress show that, while satisfactory overall, it has been slower than would be expected in Years 1 to 4. However, progress accelerated significantly from Year 5, and the lost ground was recovered. The evidence demonstrates that the pupils currently in Years 5 and 6 are making satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 3

Provision for the pupils' personal development is satisfactory, and consistent for their social and moral development. All staff are consistent about managing behaviour and the pupils respond soundly. The reception and nursery children behave well and thoroughly enjoy their activities. The behaviour of the pupils in Years 1 and 2 is very good when they have the opportunity to work in an active way, taking responsibility maturely. However, some of the older pupils lose concentration in class and are occasionally silly. Behaviour around the school is good, and the Year 6 'playground peacemakers' say they have little to do. Attitudes to school are satisfactory, and good in the Foundation Stage. The older pupils enjoy school but are not very enthusiastic about lessons. Their basic skills and independence are developed adequately. There is some provision for the pupils' spiritual development through acts of worship and

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Grade: 3

links with the local church but insufficient emphasis is given to religious education. There are adequate arrangements for the pupils' cultural development, but opportunities for them to develop an understanding of the diversity of cultures in society are limited. Attendance is satisfactory; the school took appropriate action to remedy the situation when rates fell in 2004. The school develops the pupils' understanding of a healthy lifestyle well and school meals give a balanced choice. There are suitable opportunities for pupils to make a contribution to the community, for example by raising money for charity. The school makes adequate provision for them to make their views heard through the school council.

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Grade: 3

Teaching is satisfactory overall. Relationships in class are good and discipline is usually effective. The teachers plan their work adequately and have a reasonable idea of what they want their pupils to learn. The activities are often set at different levels for the 3 Inspection Report: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 September 2005 range of age and ability in the class. However, although the teachers keep detailed records of their assessments of the pupils' attainment and progress, these are not used sufficiently to plan further work. Consequently, there are times when the activities do not build well enough on the pupils' knowledge and understanding. Some interesting methods and resources are used and the teachers occasionally encourage the pupils to work independently. However, there are occasions when the pupils are not concentrating on their work well enough, and therefore do not make as much progress

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Grade: 4

Although all subjects are taught, the curriculum is not balanced well enough to ensure that the pupils receive a thorough grounding in all subjects. Insufficient time is devoted to some subjects, particularly religious education, and there are long periods between the times they are taught. The teaching time for Key Stage 2 falls significantly short of the recommended time and the timetable is not organised efficiently, so that time is wasted. The new curriculum planning document has been introduced without consultation and without the staff having an adequate understanding of how to teach it. The school has identified that standards in writing are too low, and has given additional time to the subject. But this has restricted further the time for other subjects without a clear rationale for the use of the additional time for writing. Nevertheless, the provision of activities outside school hours is good for a school of this size. The

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Grade: 4

provision for the Foundation Stage is satisfactory in the morning and children of different ages are given suitable experiences. However, the practice of teaching the full-time reception children with the Key Stage 1 class in the afternoon, using the Key Stage 1 curriculum, is not catering satisfactorily for their needs.

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Grade: 3

Care, guidance and support are satisfactory. The school takes good care of its pupils' health and safety and their physical well-being. Suitable arrangements for child protection are in place, understood by staff, and the school site is secure. Risk assessments are carried out when necessary and there are satisfactory measures for discouraging aggressive behaviour. Pupils report that incidents of bullying are rare, and most are confident any occurrences will be dealt with. However, because the school does not pay sufficient attention to its own information about the progress pupils make over time, the provision for their academic guidance and support is not effective.

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Grade: 4

Leadership, management and governance are inadequate. There is no clear educational direction for the school and decisions have been made about, for example, the 4 Inspection Report: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 September 2005 deployment of staff, for which the rationale has not been clear and that have had a detrimental effect on the school's efficiency. There have been occasional observations of lessons, some scrutiny of work and test results. However, few significant priorities have been identified because the systems are not rigorous enough. Where shortcomings have been discovered, such as the slow progress being made in some classes, too little has been done to rectify them. Planning for school improvement is poor and lacks a reasonable understanding of which actions would be most effective. Most issues identified at the time of the previous inspection, such as standards in writing and the

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Grade: 4

role of the subject co-ordinators, remain weaknesses because they have not been tackled well enough. Consultation and communication are weak; staff have not always been consulted about major decisions or informed about the reasons for them. The teachers have not been enabled to develop their teaching expertise or their roles as subject co-ordinators. In the brief time she has been in post, the acting headteacher has brought about some closer teamwork and enhanced the staff's understanding of their role in school improvement, but these areas are still at an early stage of development. The governors support the school and hold it to account in some ways. However, they do not have sufficient knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of the school to provide adequate support and challenge to school leadership. 5 Inspection Report: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 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: Rampton Primary School, 26 September 2005 to 27 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 3 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 4 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation NA No The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA No 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 3 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 3 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 3 The behaviour of learners NA 3 The attendance of learners NA 3 How well learners enjoy their education NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 3 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 3 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 4 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 4 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 4 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 4 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 the way in which you made me welcome when I visited your school. I enjoyed watching you in lessons and talking to you in class, in the dinner hall and around the school. You were very helpful and polite. I think that you are well-mannered and that you play sensibly together but some of you sometimes forget to listen to your teacher in class, and get a bit fussy. Your teachers organise your work carefully but sometimes the activities are either too hard or too easy for some of you. I agree with you that some of the lessons could be more interesting, and could be a bit quicker. I think that the older pupils should spend longer in lessons, and that you should have some subjects, like music and religious education, more often. You are fairly good at mathematics and you read quite well but I think you could write much better. So, while your teachers are helping you to write more neatly, you could do your

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

bit by learning your spellings and working harder. Your school is a nice place to be, but I have asked the headteacher and staff to think more carefully about how to make things better for you, especially in making sure that the things that need improving are done quickly. Good luck and thank you again for looking after me.

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