Harnham Infants' School

Inspection Report Harnham Infants' School

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126206 Unique Reference Number Wiltshire LEA 282077 Inspection number 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 Inspection dates Patricia Davies AI Reporting inspector

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

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Saxon Road School address Infant Type of school Salisbury Community School category Wiltshire SP2 8JZ 4 to 7 Age range of pupils 01722 327338 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01722 341004 Fax number 211 Number on roll Mrs S Key Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs C A Smith Headteacher 29 November 1999 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 282077 23 May 2006 - 4 to 7 24 May 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

Harnham Infant School is situated just outside Salisbury. It is broadly average in size. Most pupils are from White British backgrounds. A few pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds and a very small number speak English as a second language. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties is below average. When children enter the Reception classes their attainment overall is above that of children of a similar age. However pupils’ attainment varies considerably in relation to some aspects of language and literacy skills.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006

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Grade: 3

The school’s overall effectiveness is satisfactory, with some outstanding aspects in its pastoral care. Pupils’ good behaviour, sense of responsibility and concern for others reflect the example set by the dedicated adults who work in the school. In this safe and happy environment, and in response to a wide range of interesting activities, pupils’ confidence and motivation grow from the moment they start school. The school’s view of its overall effectiveness is more positive than that of inspectors. It is not monitoring its work closely enough to identify weaker areas within its provision, or share the many successful practices of individual staff members. As a result, although there is a mix of good and satisfactory teaching the quality is only satisfactory overall. Teaching is consistently good in the Reception classes. These children make good progress and standards are above average. Progress is more varied across Years 1 and

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Grade: 3

2. Achievement as a whole is, therefore, satisfactory and standards are above average when pupils leave the school at the end of Year 2. Assessment practices have improved and enabled the school to focus on some key areas of weakness in pupils’ attainment. However one significant shortcoming is the quality of marking, which does not give pupils essential information about how they could improve their work. Nevertheless, successful strategies have helped to arrest a decline in national test results and demonstrated that the school has the capacity to move forward effectively. Value for money is satisfactory.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Rigorously monitor the school’s work, particularly the quality of teaching and learning, to ensure that pupils are consistently well taught and achieve as well as they should. • Use marking to give pupils feedback on how to make their work better.

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Grade: 3

Standards are above average when children start school and by the end of Year 2 overall achievement is satisfactory. Children get off to a good start in the Reception classes and maintain above average standards into Year 1. In their first year at school, children make good progress. Thereafter, progress is satisfactory, rather than good, because of variations in the quality of teaching. This picture is true for pupils of all abilities, including the more able and those with learning difficulties. However, the few children learning to speak English do so at a good pace. The school has taken action to successfully arrest a decline in national test results, and especially to resolve weaknesses related to reading and writing. Staff appropriately looked closely at the particular academic profile of its current group of Year 2 pupils and adjusted its class organisation and teaching strategies to meet their needs. As a

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Grade: 3

result, pupils are meeting appropriately challenging targets, and standards in the 2 Inspection Report: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 current Year 2 are above national expectations in reading, writing and mathematics. The improvement is most marked in writing, where test results in the previous year dropped to just below the national average. Initiatives to improve pupils’ speaking and listening skills are having a positive effect in all year groups. There has been similar success with the drive to increase pupils’ awareness of letter sounds, particularly in the Reception classes.

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Grade: 2

Pupils’ good personal development is reflected in their confidence, motivation and productive relationships with one another and with adults. Pupils say that they like their teachers and the way in which they make learning fun. Attendance is good. The school works closely with outside agencies to improve the poor punctuality of the few pupils who tend to be late. Good spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding helps pupils to become well-rounded individuals with personal qualities that will stand them in good stead in later life. Behaviour is good. Pupils work and play happily together. They are keen to take on responsibility and help each other out. Good independent learning habits are encouraged right from the start in the Reception classes. Pupils have a strong voice through the school council and enjoy having the opportunity to find playmates for others when they take charge of the ‘friendship stop’ at break time. Pupils readily

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Grade: 2

discuss their ideas and give thoughtful answers, although some do not always give their full attention to what others have to say. An awareness of other cultures and traditions has grown through the varied activities and visitors during ‘multi-faith’ weeks. Pupils eat healthily and are developing a broad range of sporting skills that alert them to the need for exercise. Their response to simple everyday reminders show they have a good understanding of how to stay safe. This was seen, for example, during the swift exploration of the purpose of an ‘exit’ in an emergency during a ‘phonics’ lesson!

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Grade: 3

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. During the inspection there was no unsatisfactory teaching and individual lessons were often taught well, however, evidence from pupils’ work shows that good teaching is not a consistent feature right across the school. Teaching is consistently good for Reception aged children but the picture is mixed across Years 1 and 2, where teaching and learning are satisfactory. At its most successful, teaching had some outstanding elements that captured and sustained pupils’ full attention. Particularly good progress was secured through challenging discussion and well targeted questioning. Careful preparation for written tasks, combined with opportunities for pupils to use their own ideas and discuss them 3 Inspection Report: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006 with others, ensured that they were well focused on their tasks. The most successful

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Grade: 3

lessons also placed considerable emphasis on listening carefully. Where the promotion of good listening skills did not receive this close attention, there was an element of restlessness and inattention among pupils that restricted good levels of progress. There are higher expectations of pupils in some classes than others. For example, more work is completed in some classes than in other classes in the same year group. Sometimes, there is too great a reliance on worksheets for teaching mathematics. Most importantly, the quality of marking varies. At its best, pupils are given lots of praise and encouragement. However, overall, they are given very limited feedback about how they can make their work better and accelerate their progress further

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Grade: 2

The good curriculum is well supported by extra and additional activities. Good links with the community bring in visitors to take country dancing with every class, or talk about different religions and traditions. An enthusiastic group of singers gave a lively performance at the popular music club after school. Pupils also appreciate the wide range of sporting activities provided by the local sports college. Indeed, the school’s willing participation in the pilot community sporting scheme was covered in the local news. A focus on eating healthily introduced a positive change to the school’s lunchtime menu and physical health is also promoted through initiatives such as the ‘Walk to School Week’. The well established profile of information and communication technology (ICT) has been raised still further with the introduction of interactive whiteboards in every classroom. The increased use of practical activities is making the everyday curriculum more

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Grade: 2

interesting and effective, particularly in mathematics. Children in the Reception classes benefit from a stimulating range of activities blended with close attention to developing early literacy and numeracy skills. Pupils’ confident and fluent explanations illustrate the success of the focus on encouraging speaking skills. However, the drive to improve listening skills has not yet had such a strong impact across the school.

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Grade: 2

These aspects of the school’s work are good, and some aspects of pastoral care are outstanding. The care and consideration shown by staff to pupils is of a high quality, and parents’ appreciation of this level of support was often expressed in their comments to inspectors. The consideration pupils give to each other is also a testament to the model set by staff members. Systems for ensuring pupils’ health and safety are well established and understood by all staff. So, too, are child protection arrangements and those for supporting pupils with particular difficulties and vulnerabilities. Pupils say any bullying is dealt with quickly and they can turn to any adult to help them out. There is a comprehensive induction programme for those about to join the Reception Year, and for their parents. This programme is reviewed and modified each year to 4 Inspection Report: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 2006

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Grade: 2

suit changing circumstances and needs. The school offers breakfast and after-school clubs that are well attended. More regular and comprehensive assessments of pupils’ attainment, and the use of targets, are already helping to increase achievement, although feedback to pupils about the quality of their work is limited. Nevertheless, these arrangements ensure that pupils with learning difficulties are identified rapidly so that they can be given extra support in small groups to boost their attainment.

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Grade: 3

The school’s leadership and management are satisfactory. The school is held in high regard by the great majority of parents, many of whom wrote in glowing terms about how their children prosper under its care. Parents’ views are actively sought, taken very seriously and acted upon; although some parents feel they could receive a little more feedback. Governors are regularly consulted and play a supportive and helpful role in planning the school’s future. The school’s analysis of academic data enabled it to identify weaknesses in attainment. This review resulted in the increasingly successful whole-school strategies to improve pupils’ achievement, and has halted the gradual decline in standards illustrated in the Year 2 national tests. This timely action and its positive effect show that the school has the capacity to build on these initiatives and bring about further improvement. However, the school is well aware that it needs to look at all aspects of its work more

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Grade: 3

rigorously so that subject leaders, for example, have a much clearer picture of what is happening within their subject. A lack of detailed information means that the school does not yet have a wholly accurate picture of its overall effectiveness. In particular, teaching and learning are not monitored closely enough. Consequently, shortcomings sometimes go undetected and unresolved and many of the strengths and skills within the staff tend to be used in isolation and successful teaching strategies are not always shared with others. 5 Inspection Report: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 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: Harnham Infants' School, 23 May 2006 to 24 May 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 NA 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 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 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

We thoroughly enjoyed visiting your school and thank you for welcoming us and being so friendly when we talked to you. We are sending this letter to tell you what we found out about your school. What your school does well: All the adults look after you extremely well and you really appreciate their care and help. You are very happy and confident at school and are thoughtful and considerate towards others. You have lots of interesting activities and you really enjoy them. Those of you in the Reception classes do well, particularly in learning your letter sounds and how to work sensibly on your own. Adults have planned activities that help you to do better in reading, writing and mathematics. What we have asked your school to do now: Look very closely at how teachers can make lessons even better than they are now, so that you all do as well as you can, all of the time. Tell you how you can improve your work when it is marked.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We wish you all the very best for the future.

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