Beckley Church of England Primary School

Inspection Report Beckley Church of England Primary School

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123175 Unique Reference Number Oxfordshire Local Authority 281422 Inspection number 18 September 2006 Inspection date Graham Lee Reporting inspector

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

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Church Street School address Primary Type of school Beckley Voluntary controlled School category Oxford OX3 9UT 4 °11 Age range of pupils 01865 351416 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01865 351416 Fax number 150 Number on roll (school) Mrs Patricia Carver Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Grace Zawadzki Headteacher 14 February 2000 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection date Age group 281422 18 September 2006 4 °11 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 an additional inspector.

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Description of the school

This rural school serves Beckley and a number of surrounding villages. It is smaller than average, although it has grown substantially in recent years. Many pupils come from relatively advantaged backgrounds and none are entitled to free school meals. Most pupils are of White British origin and none speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities is broadly average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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Grade: 1

This is an outstanding school. Pupils thrive in its caring and supportive Christian ethos and most parents hold it in high regard. One commented that the school 'is effective, fun and hugely important to our children'. Pupils are clearly proud of their school and all that it has to offer. They are enthusiastic about their learning and their behaviour is exemplary. As a result, their achievement is outstanding and they reach very high standards in English, mathematics and science by the time they leave the school. These very positive attitudes and exceptional basic skills mean that they are extremely well prepared for secondary school and the world beyond. Pupils achieve so well for a variety of reasons. The curriculum is outstanding and meets the needs of pupils of all abilities. It is also creative and fun, encouraging pupils to see the links between different subjects. For example, in a Year 3 literacy lesson, pupils

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Grade: 1

were writing imaginative accounts of Viking raids from the perspective of the raiders, a topic they have been learning about in history. Pupils also do well because the quality of teaching is always good and often outstanding. Teachers plan effectively and creatively and use interactive technology to good effect. They manage their classes well and have excellent relationships with pupils. However, there are occasional variations in teachers' expectations of what pupils can achieve. Children make a very positive start in the Foundation Stage where the provision is generally good and they quickly become confident and eager learners as a result. The school continues to improve because of the outstanding leadership of the headteacher who is determined that the school does not rest on its laurels. This ensures that the school's performance is examined rigorously to identify areas where they can do even better. The headteacher is supported by an extremely effective staff team

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Grade: 1

and governing body who share her drive and commitment. At the heart of the school's work is a determination to include all pupils in all that it does to ensure that they all achieve well. As a result, pupils with a complex range of learning difficulties and disabilities are very well supported and achieve extremely well in relation to the targets that have been set for them. The supportive ethos of the school ensures that the care and guidance of pupils is outstanding. One pupil said 'I like the school because all the staff are kind and help us to sort out any problems'. A particular noteworthy example of the care of pupils is the variety of ways in which the school encourages pupils to lead a healthy lifestyle. Pupils respond very well and one commented that 'it is important to exercise, eat healthily and sleep well'. Pupils also make an excellent contribution to their immediate environment through recycling, composting and

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What the school should do to improve further

• Ensure that teachers' expectations of what pupils can achieve are consistently high throughout the school. 2 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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Grade: 1

Pupils' achievement is outstanding. Although children have a variety of skills and understanding on entry to the school, in most years their attainment is above average. They make good progress in the Foundation Stage and many exceed the targets set for children of that age by the time they enter Year 1. They make rapid progress in Years 1 and 2 and reach high standards in reading, writing and mathematics by the age of seven. They continue to make very good progress from years 3 to 6. The very high standards reached by the age of eleven have continued to rise from year to year and most pupils reach higher than expected levels in English, mathematics and science.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development and well being, including their social, moral, spiritual and cultural development, is outstanding. They demonstrated these attributes very clearly in an assembly when pupils of all ages were able to reflect sensitively on the importance of respecting the environment. Their enjoyment of their education is clear as pupils talk enthusiastically about all aspects of their school. It is also illustrated in their good attendance which is above average despite the significant number of holidays taken during school time. Pupils feel secure in school and know how to keep themselves safe. This is evident in the way they conduct themselves responsibly around the rather cramped site. Year 6 pupils learn first-aid skills to help them to look after themselves and others. Pupils make a considerable contribution to the school community through the school council. One commented that their role was 'to try to improve the school and make it more

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Grade: 1

environmentally friendly'. They have helped to initiate features such as 'Milky Monday and 'Fruity Friday' to support the school's healthy living policies. At a wider level they are very involved in church and community events and raise money for a wide variety of charities.

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching is good overall. This together with the high quality curriculum and very positive attitudes ensures that pupils' learning is outstanding and results in rapid progress. Teachers use a variety of innovative approaches to engage and motivate learners of all abilities. During the inspection, for example, teachers were using imaginative strategies to stimulate pupils' writing. In a Year 2 lesson there was an excited buzz as pupils worked in groups to act out a scenario from the point of view of different animals. Where teaching is particularly effective teachers have high expectations of what pupils can achieve, which result in learning of high quality. In a 3 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006 Year 6 poetry lesson, for example, pupils were inspired to develop poems using slow, steady and fast beats which produced lines such as 'clustered stones below settled

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Grade: 2

streams'. In a Year 5 lesson on narrative texts pupils were continually challenged to justify their views from the text. Occasionally, in otherwise good lessons, teachers' expectations of what pupils can achieve are not quite high enough. Teachers use assessment and target setting very effectively to help pupils understand what they need to do in order to improve their work.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum is carefully designed to support pupils' outstanding personal development and high levels of achievement. For example, the school is developing strategies to ensure that gifted and talented pupils are able to achieve even more through the use of problem solving activities to develop their thinking skills. Good use is made information and communications technology (ICT) to support learning in other subjects. The curriculum in the Foundation Stage has been successfully adapted since the move to a single point of entry and provides a range of stimulating activities to support all areas of children's learning although not all pupils are fully involved in these activities at all times. The curriculum also allows pupils to be creative and enjoy their education. Physical education has a high profile and music is a strength of the school. This provision includes an orchestra who perform at a range of events. The

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Grade: 1

curriculum is also enriched through a variety of visits and visitors to the school as well as a range of additional clubs which take part during the school day or as part of the after school provision.

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Grade: 1

The outstanding levels of care, guidance and support ensure that pupils feel very safe in school, and enables them to flourish and achieve exceptionally well. The care and welfare of all pupils is a high priority for all staff. Academic guidance is strong and there are good systems for monitoring the progress of individual pupils and to ensure that support is given when it is needed. Additional support is provided to pupils and their families through the after school provision. The school enjoys a productive partnership with the vast majority of parents who hold it in high regard. One commented 'my son did extremely well in tests but equally importantly has had a very happy and well rounded primary education at Beckley'.

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Grade: 1

Leadership and management are outstanding and lead directly to the high quality of provision and the exceptional achievement of pupils. The headteacher has led the school very successfully over many years and seen it grow from strength to strength. She has developed a strong ethos of teamwork and, consequently, staff share a clear 4 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006 sense of direction. Governors are enthusiastic and involved and offer a good balance of support and challenge to school leaders. The collective drive of staff and governors and record of continuous improvement ensure that the school has good capacity to improve even further. The monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning is thorough and now involves all members of staff. This ensures that they are all clear about the strengths and weaknesses in the school and take appropriate action where necessary. For example,

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Grade: 1

in response to a slight dip in standards in pupils' writing the school has instigated a range of measures to ensure that all pupils are now doing very well. 5 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006 .

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Grade: 1

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 2 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

1 How well do learners achieve? 1 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

1 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

I am writing to thank you all for making me so welcome when I visited the school recently. I really enjoyed my time at Beckley and you all helped by being so friendly and welcoming. I thought you would like to know what I found out. You are right to be very proud of your school because it is outstanding. You all feel safe in school because the staff look after you very well. You enjoy everything about the school. I was very impressed with your behaviour and your positive attitudes in lessons. I also liked the way you are all so aware of the need to live healthily and the way you look after the school environment. These are very important matters which will help you throughout your lives. You all do really well at school because lessons are interesting and teachers help you to improve your work. Those of you who find things a little bit more difficult are given lots of help. By the time you move on to secondary school you reach very high standards in English, maths and

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

science. One of the main reasons that the school is outstanding is because your headteacher has worked hard over many years to make the school as good as it can be. All the staff work very well together to help her and together they are determined to make things even better for you. I have asked them to do one thing that I think might help. I have asked them to share what they are best at to make sure that all of you do as well as you possibly can in every lesson. Yours truly Graham Lee Lead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Beckley Church of England Primary School, 18 September 2006

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