Crudwell CofE Primary School

Inspection Report Crudwell CofE Primary School

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126319 Unique Reference Number Wiltshire LEA 282093 Inspection number 15 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 Inspection dates Eileen Chadwick RISP Reporting inspector

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

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Crudwell School address Primary Type of school Malmesbury Voluntary controlled School category Wiltshire SN16 9ER 4 to 11 Age range of pupils 01666 577357 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01666 575397 Fax number 81 Number on roll Mr Ian Churchill Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Helen Cooper Headteacher 18 October 1999 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 282093 15 November 2005 - 4 to 11 15 November 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 two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This small school mainly serves the village of Crudwell and also attracts children from a wider area. Nearly all children are White British and none speak English as an additional language. The proportion of children with learning difficulties and disabilities (special educational needs) is well below average. Attainment on entry is above average overall but ranges from very high to below average. No children receive free school meals.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 2005

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Grade: 4

In accordance with section 13(3) of the Education Act 2005, HMCI is of the opinion that this school requires significant improvement, because it is performing significantly less well in all circumstances than it would reasonably be expected to perform. The school is therefore given a Notice to Improve. Significant improvement is required in relation to children’s inadequate progress in Reception, Years 1, 2 and 3, in reading, writing and mathematics, and in relation to the inadequate quality of teaching found in these years. Inspectors judge that the school is not fully effective, which is how the school judges itself. The recently appointed headteacher and governors are successfully tackling many of the crucial issues for improving the school. The quality of teaching for older children is now good and these children catch up from their earlier underachievement and reach above average standards. However, there is still much to be done to improve

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Grade: 4

the school as teaching quality is inadequate in Reception/Year 1 and Years 2/3. This leads to children underachieving because their work is not matched well enough to their learning needs. Children’s personal development is good. They enjoy school and are well cared for. There are now effective systems in place for checking the progress children make. Provision for children with learning difficulties and disabilities is also rapidly being improved. These children make good progress in the juniors but there are still gaps in their progress in the infants. The headteacher’s strong leadership is providing a clear direction for school improvement. She is supported by the governing body and has the backing of staff and parents. Most issues from the previous inspection report have been successfully tackled. However, subject leadership for English and mathematics in the infants and the Foundation Stage is inadequate because these areas have only

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Grade: 4

just begun to be improved. The school has a good capacity to improve, although at present it provides unsatisfactory value for money.

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What the school should do to improve further

•Improve standards and children’s progress in Reception and Years 1 to 3 in reading, writing and mathematics so they do not underachieve. •Improve the quality of teaching in Reception and Years 1 to 3 by making better use of assessments to match work to children’s differing abilities. •Improve the leadership of the Foundation Stage and English and mathematics in Years 1 to 3.

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Grade: 4

Standards in Year 2 have been low for several years. This means that junior teachers have much to do to redress children’s earlier underachievement. Children enter Reception with overall attainment that is above average. However, this is not built upon and standards are only average by the end of Reception. Further 2 Inspection Report: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 underachievement in the next two years means that standards drop even further and are well below average in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 2. Progress is inadequate for infant children and also for the minority of Year 3 children in the mixed Year 2/3 class. In Years 4 to 6, progress much improves and is now good. Consequently, standards have started to improve from the low standards reached in 2004 by Year 6 children. They are now above average in English, mathematics and science. An important reason for rising standards is the recent improvements in the

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Grade: 4

checking of children’s progress and in the support for those with learning difficulties. The school’s targets are challenging and were exceeded in 2005 for the few 11 year olds who took them.

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Grade: 2

Children’s personal development and well-being are good. Children are keen to learn and succeed. They enjoy school and say how friendly and cheerful it is. They are well behaved, feel safe and understand how important it is to eat healthy food and take regular exercise. Their attendance is good and they are punctual. Children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. The strong links with the church, for instance the ‘Bible Buddies’ programme, enhances pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. Children willingly accept responsibility and they like the way their ideas are valued. Year 6 children really enjoyed the ‘Circus Day’, which the school council instigated. The school plays a key role in village life and children help to organise community activities, make decisions and play a full part in helping the local community to flourish. Children develop good understanding of the world of work through visits

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Grade: 2

to a pizza manufacturing company. Practical activities at the company and in school enable the children to develop the decision-making and teamwork skills that are vital for their economic understanding. The development of problem solving is now a strong focus throughout the school.

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Grade: 4

Teaching and learning are unsatisfactory because the quality of teaching is too variable. Teaching and learning are good for the two older classes but inadequate in the two younger classes. In the two older classes, teachers’ good subject knowledge, class management and use of a range of learning styles ensure children make good progress. The main weaknesses in the two younger classes are a lack of match of learning activities to children’s attainment, low expectations of what they can achieve and weaknesses in how they are organised and managed. The school now carries out rigorous checks on children’s progress and has identified the weaknesses in teaching for younger children. As a result, action is now rapidly being taken to improve teaching and learning. Assessment systems are now good and have improved considerably since the headteacher’s arrival. 3 Inspection Report: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 2005

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Grade: 4

The curriculum is unsatisfactory. The curriculum for junior children is good but provision in literacy and numeracy is weak in Reception and Years 1, 2 and 3. The curriculum for all children is broad and they benefit from learning French, the rich provision in music and a wide range of extra-curricular activities. The school has recently improved provision in spelling, writing and homework although it is too early to measure the impact on standards. In Reception and Year 1, too much planning is aimed at average attainment. There is a lack of challenge for more capable children and lower attaining children are not helped to learn the smaller steps in literacy and numeracy. In Reception, children do not have enough opportunities to take some responsibility for their own learning. In Year 2, there is not a steady enough build-up of reading, writing and numeracy skills for children of all abilities.

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Grade: 3

The care provided by the school is satisfactory. The small school environment means that staff know all children well and there is good attention to their health, safety and personal care. Child protection procedures are sound. Children feel they can turn to adults if they are worried and are confident that their views are heard. Parents of children with learning difficulties are kept well informed about their progress and they appreciate how this has recently improved. Parents who commented before the inspection were pleased with the happy school atmosphere. The school’s systems for checking children’s progress are now much improved due to rapid improvements since the headteacher was appointed last April. Systems are now good, with particular strengths in the juniors. However, closer attention is needed to identify the exact reading and writing standards being reached within English in the infants.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory, with good leadership by the headteacher. When the headteacher took up her post she quickly identified the critical areas that needed to be addressed in order to raise standards and achievement for older children. There were considerable staffing issues to resolve. Recently appointed staff are having a good impact on raising standards in the juniors. Teaching issues are being dealt with and there will be staff changes for younger children at the beginning of the spring term. The headteacher has conducted effective consultations with both parents and children, and written comments to inspectors from parents show they are pleased with the changes the new headteacher is making. The management of subjects has, however, lagged behind. Staff have only recently started to use data adequately to track how well children are achieving. The temporary absence of the senior teacher means that

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Grade: 3

the headteacher is currently shouldering much subject and management responsibility. There have been regular reviews of teaching and learning in each class by the 4 Inspection Report: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 headteacher, who has also enlisted the help of the local education authority to support this process. However, more effective subject leadership in English, mathematics and for the Foundation Stage is needed for younger children. The governors fully understand the position the school is in and what is needed to improve. They are clear partners in the process. The improvements brought about so far show a good capacity for further progress. 5 Inspection Report: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 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: Crudwell CofE Primary School, 15 November 2005 to 15 November 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 2 How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? NA 4 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 4 How well do learners achieve? NA 3 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 4 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 4 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 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 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 4 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 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

Crudwell C of E Primary School Crudwell Malmesbury Wiltshire SN16 9ER 16 November 2005 Dear Children, Thank you for your help when we visited your school in November. We enjoyed our visit, talking to you and seeing you at work and at play. We liked the way you and your teachers welcomed us to the school. We thought these things were good about your school: •you are kind and helpful to each other, your teachers and visitors •you are interested in learning and enjoy school •you behave well in lessons and in the playground •your headteacher is making some good improvements so all of you can do well •you make good progress in English and mathematics in Years 4 to 6 because teaching helps you to learn well •you produced some very good work after you visited the pizza restaurant •you arrive on time and attend regularly •you have good opportunities to attend music sessions and after-school clubs. We have suggested these things that would help your school do better:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

•improve your progress in Reception, Years 1 and 2 and, for some of you, in Year 3 in reading, writing and mathematics •ensure work is not too easy or too hard in these classes •make better checks on how well you learn in younger classes. We hope you continue to enjoy your school. With our best wishes, Eileen Chadwick Lead Inspector

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