Hunters Hall Primary School

Inspection Report Hunters Hall Primary School

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131844 Unique Reference Number Barking and Dagenham LEA 282268 Inspection number 14 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 Inspection dates Judy Keiner AI Reporting inspector

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

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Alibon Road School address Primary Type of school Dagenham Community School category RM10 8DE 3 to 11 Age range of pupils 020 8270 4768 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 020 8270 4771 Fax number 649 Number on roll Mr J Fryer Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Miss Pamela Nuttall Headteacher 18 October 1999 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 282268 14 November 2005 - 3 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 four additional inspectors.

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Description of the school

Hunters Hall Primary School is a popular, large three form entry 3-11 school in an area of high social disadvantage. The number of pupils with special needs is around the national average. There is a higher than average proportion of pupils with statements. Around 7% of pupils are from black African backgrounds. There are small numbers of pupils from other minority ethnic backgrounds. Some 8% of the pupils have first languages other than English. Attainment on entry is below average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 November 2005 to 15 November 2005

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Grade: 4

The school judges its overall effectiveness as good. The inspection team judges it inadequate. The school gives inadequate value for money because resources are not being used effectively enough to secure improvements.Standards are not high enough, particularly for pupils aged 7-11, and many groups such as the higher and lower attainers are underachieving. Staff do not know the pupils' academic needs well enough to plan for their learning and as a result many pupils are making little or very slow progress. Teachers' marking is inconsistent and does not always tell the children how to improve their work. The quality of education in the Foundation Stage is good. It enables children who enter the nursery with below average standards to make rapid progress and begin Year 1 having achieved many of the goals expected of five-year-olds. The school's capacity to improve is inadequate. Although improvements

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Grade: 4

have been made since the last inspection in information and communication technology (ICT) and whole-school curriculum planning, standards in English and mathematics are lower. The senior management and governors are committed to improvement. However, the action they have taken has not been based on a rigorous and robust monitoring of standards and the quality of provision. There is not enough evidence of sufficiently prompt and effective action leading to the improvement needed. In accordance with section 13 (3) of the Education Act 2005, HMCI is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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What the school should do to improve further

In order to raise standards, particularly in English and mathematics, the school needs to:* identify and plan more effectively for the pupils' individual needs* make more effective use of data to identify potential and actual under-achievement* ensure that pupils know how to improve their work* develop approaches to monitoring that are consistently rigorous, evaluative and based firmly upon measurable outcomes* ensure that timely and reliable feedback from monitoring is undertaken so that everyone knows whether improvement is being secured.

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Grade: 4

The school judges standards and achievement to be good, but the inspection team disagrees. Standards overall are inadequate. At the end of Key Stage 1, they are average, but able pupils do not do as well as they should. Standards at the end of Key Stage 2 have fluctuated, but are now well below average and lower than they were at the time of the last inspection. The trend over the last five years has been one of decline. Although the 2004 Key Stage 2 test results improved, they declined sharply in 2005 in English and mathematics. The most recent Key Stage 2 test results show 2 Inspection Report: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 that boys do notably less well than girls in reading and writing. The proportion of pupils who attain higher than expected levels is lower than national averages. Pupils attain good standards in science. Most pupils make too little progress in English and

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Grade: 4

mathematics, and a majority make less progress year on year than is expected nationally. A significant number of pupils made little progress in English over the last three years. Some groups of pupils, such as the more able, pupils with black African backgrounds and the less able make too little progress overall. Pupils who have special educational needs make good progress.Good teaching enables children in the Foundation Stage to do well. While they start the nursery with below average standards, they reach the standards expected for their age by the time they enter Year 1.

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Grade: 3

The school judges personal development and well-being as good. Inspectors judge it to be satisfactory. Pupils enjoy coming to school. They are well behaved and polite in and out of lessons. Attendance is satisfactory.Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is satisfactory. Teachers use assemblies and personal health and social education to enable pupils to know right from wrong. Displays across the school reflect a variety of cultures and some pupils have visited the local synagogue. Inspectors agree with the school that more needs to be done to encourage pupils' awareness of different cultures. Pupils take responsibility for keeping safe when moving around the school. Pupils spoke positively about there being no crisps, sweets or fizzy drinks available. The School Council has discussed healthy meals at lunchtime. Older pupils are given responsibility in the 'Nature Garden'. They have raised money for various

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Grade: 3

charities, distributed food parcels and entertained local senior citizens. However, pupils are not fully able to develop the skills needed for their future economic well-being because of the inadequate standards in literacy and numeracy.

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Grade: 4

The quality of teaching and learning is inadequate. Where the teaching style is lively and explanations are clear, pupils respond with interest. On these occasions teachers frequently make good use of questioning to both encourage pupils to participate and also to check on their progress.However, there are weaknesses in the teachers' planning. Too often the tasks set for pupils are not well matched to their capabilities and this prevents them from making sufficient progress over the longer term. More able pupils frequently find the work too easy. Many less able pupils find the work too challenging. Teachers do not choose the right improvement targets for individuals. Pupils consequently do not understand them or use them to guide their own progress. Marking does not give enough guidance to pupils on improvement. Pupils with learning disabilities achieve well because of the extra support they receive. Teaching in the

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Grade: 4

Foundation Stage is good and pupils learn well. A particular strength is the way in 3 Inspection Report: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 November 2005 to 15 November 2005 which lessons are planned to provide a wide range of stimulating learning activities. This promotes the children's good levels of participation and concentration

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory. It covers national requirements and is well balanced. There is good provision for art and music, and a variety of enrichment opportunities, including instrumental tuition, and a range of clubs including a popular breakfast club. Modern foreign languages are taught to all pupils in Years 5 and 6. Classrooms are well organised and attractive, with very good facilities that make the most of modern technologies. However, the curriculum does not yet offer sufficient opportunities for pupils to practise and apply their skills of literacy and numeracy across the curriculum.

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Grade: 3

Care, support and guidance are satisfactory. Pupils feel very safe and secure in the school's very caring and warm atmosphere. Parents greatly value the school and speak warmly of its 'village' feel. Staff know the children and their families very well, and give very strong pastoral support. The school has secure and sensitive procedures for child protection. Potentially vulnerable pupils are given excellent support enabling them to be fully included in school life. Health and safety, including careful attention to risk assessments, first aid and security are promoted and monitored very well. Pupils and parents report that potential issues relating to bullying are dealt with very promptly and effectively. They all feel that they can discuss any problem with equal confidence with any member of staff. Pupils find the School Council a very good forum to express their views, which are valued. Pupils with learning difficulties are supported well.

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Grade: 3

Pastoral arrangements for the pupils' transfer to secondary school are satisfactory. Academic support is inadequate. Pupils are not sufficiently aware of their targets, what they have to do to achieve them, and what progress they are making. The school works well with parents and other agencies to support pupils' personal development.

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Grade: 4

Leadership and management are inadequate. The school has only very recently identified the need to improve the quality of teaching and learning and its monitoring and evaluation procedures. Current arrangements are inadequate and lack rigour. The way the school checks the quality of teaching and learning is too narrowly focused on one priority. The focus of wider monitoring is left too much to year group leaders and is ineffective in raising standards. The school does not analyse data sufficiently well to identify weaknesses. There is inadequate and insufficiently prompt action to help individual pupils and groups who are making too little progress. Assessment has not been used until very recently as a tool to identify lack of progress over time. This has contributed to the continuing decline in standards. Although the governors have been 4 Inspection Report: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 November 2005 to 15 November 2005

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Grade: 4

adequately informed about the school's performance data, the provision of this information alone does not provide sufficient depth of understanding to allow them to act as a strong 'critical friend'. Parents are very supportive of the school and their views are taken into account.School self evaluation is inadequate because the judgements made by the leadership are inaccurate. The inspection team therefore concludes that there is insufficient capacity to improve. The exception to this lies in the leadership and management of the Foundation Stage, which is good because of well targeted planning and effective staff management. 5 Inspection Report: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 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: Hunters Hall Primary School, 14 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 2 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 4 How well do learners achieve? NA 4 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 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 2 The behaviour of learners NA 3 The attendance of learners NA 2 How well learners enjoy their education NA 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 2 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 4 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 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 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 for making us so welcome when we visited your school. We very much enjoyed our time at Hunters Hall. It was a pleasure to see how many of you greeted us and how well you behaved as we moved round the school. We enjoyed the many opportunities we had to talk to you, including your School Council. I am writing to you now to let you know what we found out about your school.These are the things that we liked about your school:* You told us that you enjoy coming to school and particularly like the wide range of clubs and other extra activities.* You feel very safe at school and know that if you have a problem, there is always an adult to talk to.* You feel teachers treat you all fairly, and you like the few simple 'Golden Rules', because they make it so clear what you can and can't do.* You like the fact that you were able to take part in the decisions on what sports equipment to buy for the playground.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

However, some of you told us you find your work too easy and we agree with you. We feel that many of you are not doing as well as you could be. You also told us many of you felt you did not know how you were doing, and what you need to do to do better. So we have asked your teachers to make sure that your work is just right for you and you get clear advice on how to improve your work. This will help you learn more quickly and do better. We also feel that your school needs help, so we have said that 'special measures' are needed to help it improve. This means that you and your teachers will get extra support and Her Majesty's Inspectors will visit your school regularly to see how well you are doing.We hope that you will enjoy the rest of your time at Hunters Hall School. Thank you for being so ready to answer our questions and we wish you good luck for the future.

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