Heather Ridge Infant School

Inspection Report Heather Ridge Infant School

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125017 Unique Reference Number Surrey LEA LEA 281861 Inspection number 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006 Inspection dates John Earish AI Reporting inspector

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

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Martindale Avenue School address Infant Type of school Heatherside Estate Community School category Camberley GU15 1AY 4 to 7 Age range of pupils 01276 24918 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01276 675881 Fax number 173 Number on roll Rev P Dykes Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Ms J Whatling Headteacher 7 February 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 281861 8 March 2006 - 4 to 7 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 two Additional Inspectors

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Description of the school

Heather Ridge is about the same size as most infant schools. It is situated in the relatively prosperous Heatherside Estate near Camberley, where most houses are owner occupied. Attainment on admission is broadly average. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties is below average, but the proportion with statements of special educational need is average. The vast majority of pupils are of white British heritage. There are very few pupils who have English as an additional language. The proportion of children entitled to free school meals is below national figures.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Heather Ridge Infant School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006

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Grade: 1

This is an outstanding school which gives excellent value for money. It is very welcoming and values all its pupils equally. Pupils achieve very high standards because they are very well taught. Teachers know the pupils extremely well and are exceptionally good at using what they know to ensure pupils make excellent progress in reading, writing and mathematics. Quality and standards in the Foundation Stage are excellent. Children quickly develop skills as independent learners because of the very good range of activities designed for them and the high quality teaching given to them. Pupils are very well supported by their parents and are eager to learn. Their personal development is outstanding because they are very well cared for at school and as a result feel secure and happy. The leadership of the school is very effective, and has an accurate understanding of its strengths and weaknesses. It has identified the need

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Grade: 1

to upgrade the already good provision for information and communication technology (ICT) in order to raise standards to those achieved in literacy and numeracy. The school knows itself very well, although it modestly assesses its own effectiveness as good. The capacity to improve is very good and has been demonstrated in its good improvement since the last inspection.

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What the school should do to improve further

* Improve provision for ICT to give pupils the opportunity to extend their skills.

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Grade: 1

Achievement and standards are outstanding for all groups of pupils. This is due to the very good teaching and the detailed tracking so that all pupils meet their challenging targets and achieve highly. Pupils' attainment when they first join the reception class is broadly average. The children settle quickly to school routines and make excellent progress. All are on track to meet the goals expected of them by the time they enter Year 1 and the vast majority will exceed them. Pupils continue to make rapid progress in Years 1 and 2 because teachers effectively engage and motivate them. Standards are significantly above average in reading, writing and mathematics and have been so for the last five years. Boys and girls perform equally well. Computer skills are used well to support learning in other subjects but standards are not as high as those achieved in literacy and numeracy. Pupils withlearning difficulties make very good progress because their individual needs are

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Grade: 1

clearly identified and support is tailored to meet them. The very small number of pupils with English as an additional language achieve equally as well as other pupils. 2 Inspection Report: Heather Ridge Infant School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. Pupils are extremely well behaved and show remarkable care and courtesy. From an early age children learn to cooperate with each other, give and receive help and quickly gain the independence to tackle tasks on their own. Older pupils show great respect for the views of others and through work in assemblies develop a spiritual dimension to their understanding. Pupils clearly enjoy their learning. Attendance levels are good and pupils are rightly proud of the high quality displays of their written work and artistic endeavours. This is further evidence that they are happy at school. Pupils know about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and staying safe. They speak enthusiastically about healthy eating and are very aware of the importance of drinking plenty of water and taking regular exercise, 'because it helps your brain work'.

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Grade: 1

Pupils develop well their understanding of how to play their part in the community through, for example, the school council. Councillors are adamant that they make a difference. For example, they no longer have an end-of-school bell because they felt it detracted from the quiet reflective atmosphere at the end of assembly. Pupils greatly value having extra responsibility and they enjoy helping others. For example, they willingly take on extra duties to support the smooth running of the school and act as 'playground friends'. Pupils rapidly acquire literacy, numeracy and ICT skills that will equip them for later life and learning.

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Grade: 1

Teaching and learning are outstanding. Lesson planning is of high quality and is very well matched to pupils' differing capabilities. Teachers and teaching assistants are very skilled at challenging the more able pupils and providing additional support for those who need it. They carefully choose the activities and have high expectations of work and behaviour. As a result, pupils listen very carefully, work hard and behave in an exemplary manner. In addition, they are expected to talk to each other about their work. This helps them to clarify their thinking and deepens their understanding. Throughout the school, the very best teaching makes use of highly effective questioning skills to discover the full extent of pupils' understanding. Their responses are used very successfully to consolidate previous learning, clarify new ideas and to move pupils on to more challenging work. Teachers of the youngest children are expert at creating

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Grade: 1

a stimulating and welcoming environment where children rapidly grow in confidence. Teachers' use of assessment is outstanding. The teachers makes very good use of what they know about pupils to provide highly effective help for those with specific learning difficulties or whose progress is slow, and to challenge those who are identified as 3 Inspection Report: Heather Ridge Infant School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006 higher attainers. This information is regularly reviewed and updated. The procedures for checking how well children are doing in the reception class are excellent. They cover all areas of learning and enable the teachers to provide well for children's individual needs.

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Grade: 1

The school provides an outstanding curriculum for all groups of pupils. This is because lesson planning and assessment are so closely linked together that teachers are able to make daily adjustments to the learning activities to ensure the curriculum is always matches pupils' needs. This is a key feature of the pupils' outstanding progress, particularly in literacy and numeracy and provides a sure foundation to future learning. The curriculum for pupils with learning difficulties is exceptionally good. The clear and detailed individual education plans for these pupils contribute strongly to their rapid progress. This is also true for the very few pupils who arrive at school with little or no English. Pupils' computer skills are developing well and are used well to support learning in other subjects. However, the school has prioritised the upgrading of the existing good provision in order to raise standards even further to match those achieved in literacy

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Grade: 1

and numeracy. The curriculum is enriched with a good range of after school clubs, some run by teachers and others organised on a commercial basis. These additional activities have a positive impact on pupils' confidence and greatly increase their enjoyment of school.

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Grade: 1

The school gives its pupils outstanding care, guidance and support, a view endorsed by the overwhelming majority of parents. Teaching assistants, alongside teachers, play a vital part in ensuring such high quality provision. Pupils speak confidently about the many trusted adults they can turn to for help and support. They also value greatly the 'playground friends' who sort out any problems at playtime. Bullying is not a concern for these pupils and they are happy that any incidents will be dealt with quickly. There are clearly defined procedures for keeping pupils safe and statutory requirements are complied with. As a result pupils feel safe and secure. The school works effectively in partnership with a range of service providers to ensure excellent care and support for all its pupils. The tracking of pupil's academic and personal development is exemplary. As a result, pupils feel happy, secure and able to achieve their very best. Pupils with learning

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Grade: 1

difficulties and English as an additional language are cared for extremely well and additional provision is well matched to their needs. 4 Inspection Report: Heather Ridge Infant School, 8 March 2006 to 9 March 2006

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Grade: 1

Leadership and management are outstanding. The headteacher provides inspirational leadership that focuses strongly on raising standards and improving the achievement of all pupils. This ethos is shared by all staff and governors who work tirelessly to make sure that pupils do well. Parents overwhelming support this view and write, 'The headteacher is fiercely committed and rightly proud of the school'. Teachers are exceptionally good at monitoring performance to ensure the school meets it challenging targets. Their detailed and systematic analysis promotes highly focused school improvement and provides very good capacity to improve further. The school works hard to involve parents in school life and in their children's learning, with the overwhelming proportion of parents being supportive of the school. They write that, 'the school's course is steered with sensitivity, common sense as well as imagination....an absolutely fabulous school!'

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Grade: 1

Governance is outstanding. Governors are involved in all areas of school life and are fully committed to sustaining high standards. They have very good systems to support and challenge the school so it can account for its performance. Team work is a very strong feature of this school and teachers fully understand what they must do to play their part in raising standards. The development plan drives school improvement forward and is matched by good opportunities for training, closely linked to staff responsibilities and the school's needs. The school has maintained the many strong features identified at the time of the last inspection and continues to improve provision and sustain the very good outcomes as seen in test results over the last five years. 5 Inspection Report: Heather Ridge Infant 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: Heather Ridge Infant 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 1 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 1 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 1 How well do learners achieve? NA 1 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 1 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 1 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 1 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 1 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 1 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 1 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 1 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 1 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

Pupils As you know, Mr Gray and I visited your school recently. Thank you all for being so welcoming, polite and helpful. We were glad to talk to some of you in lessons and in break times. We would also like to thank those members of the School Council who told us about the school. We think these are the best things about your school:* children in the reception class settle in quickly and make a good start because everyone is so friendly and helpful* you make excellent progress in your work because you are thoughtful and work very hard in lessons* your teachers spend a lot of time looking at what you have done in class and working out how to help you to make your work even better* your headteacher, with governors and others, lead the school in an outstanding way and they are always thinking of how to make your learning even more interesting. To improve even further we have asked the teachers to give you even more opportunities to

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

use computers during lessons in lots of different and exciting ways.All of your parents told us how pleased they are with the school. We feel that all members of the school are right to be proud of your achievements. We wish you all the very best for the future. Yours faithfully, John Earish Lead Inspector

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