Myton Park Primary School

Inspection Report Myton Park Primary School

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132808 Unique Reference Number Stockton-on-Tees LEA 282294 Inspection number 9 June 2006 to 9 June 2006 Inspection dates Mr Eric Jackson Reporting inspector

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This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 which gives Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools the authority to inspect any school in England. The inspection is to be treated as a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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Blair Avenue School address Primary Type of school Ingleby Barwick Community School category Stockton on Tees, TS17 5BL 3 to 11 Age range of pupils 01642 754658 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01642 750717 Fax number 264 Number on roll Mr Patrick Mallon Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Dorothy Begley Headteacher Not applicable Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 282294 9 June 2006 - 3 to 11 9 June 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

An Additional Inspector spent a day in the school. The inspector visited every classroom, observed assembly, lunch and playtime. Meetings were held with the headteacher, other key staff, the chair of governors, the school council, and a group of parents. Discussions were also held with other small groups of pupils and volunteer helpers. The inspector also scrutinised a range of pupils’ work and school documentation, including 88 parental questionnaires. A lesson observation was undertaken jointly with the headteacher.

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Description of the school

Myton Park opened in September 2003, to meet growing demand locally. It was built under a private finance initiative as part of a community campus with a high school and the local library. There are 264 pupils on roll, including 65 part-time in the nursery. Most of the pupils are from fairly affluent homes, and the uptake of free school meals is low. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is broadly average, as is the number with statements of their needs. There are small numbers of pupils of British Asian heritage, and a small number in public care. The school has achieved the Gold Healthy School Award.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 2006

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Grade: 1

‘The best education there is happens right here in this school!’ This parent’s view was echoed by almost all others at a meeting, or through questionnaires. The school’s overall provision for its pupils is outstanding, confirming the essence of these parents’ comments. The school’s own thorough and careful self-evaluation judges it good. This is an understandably cautious assessment because the school has only been open for three years. Convincing evidence exists from these three years that the school has high expectations set by the staff for all areas of the school’s work, and high standards are reached by the pupils in response. The school is also very well placed to build further on its current successes through a range of strong partnerships, including with an African primary school, parents and local services. It gives excellent value for money. There are moments in pupils’ learning that reveal excellence in teaching. In this school,

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Grade: 1

this excellence is expected by the headteacher, planned for and delivered by the staff, and achieved by the pupils. A parent described this effect as ‘inspirational’, a reflection of the outstanding leadership and management. The unerring focus is on pupils improving on their previous best, based on thorough and specific assessment of their progress in all areas of learning and subjects. Let us consider some of these moments from a day in the school’s life. Here are nursery children at play in the purpose-built outdoor classroom. The three adults each oversee an area, including a pitched tent for group picnics with a copious hamper, a petrol station with busy car wash, an ‘assault course’ under construction, along with a number matching activity including teddies and a variety of other equipment that stimulate active learning and high achievement through play. There are Reception children, none older than five, choosing instruments to accompany

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Grade: 1

the flow of a favourite story. The high level outcome of this activity occurs when six children at a time play their own compositions read from their notations on whiteboards, following a conductor, slowly the first time, then played speedily backwards to match the story. Quality and standards in the Foundation Stage are excellent. Now, Year 1 pupils solve challenging number problems, one girl working out in her head that if 21 coins will provide three pirates with seven coins each, seven pirates would get three coins each. Year 2 write high quality letters as though from Captain Cook to his mother, explaining his career change, prior to their eagerly anticipated visit next week to the museum of his birthplace. Very exciting! Next, we have Year 3 pupils singing a traditional French song with real enthusiasm and a very good accent, many of them joining Year 4 pupils later to sing in the ‘very junior choir’ to high and polished levels for their age. The Year 4 pupils have constructed

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Grade: 1

accurate artefacts from clay to support their work in history, with detailed and high quality research notes to support their display. This is excellent work. Then, in mathematics, Year 5 pupils explain very clearly the difference between the perimeter and the area of a shape, illustrating it graphically using the edges and surface of their desk. They calculate the area of regular and irregular shapes with high levels 2 Inspection Report: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 2006 of skill and understanding for their age. Year 6 pupils write their own story in the style of a famous pupils’ author, rewriting, correcting and refashioning their work to meet the criteria for the above average Level 5 in English and be exciting writing as well. High level expectations indeed! Add the excellence of the full choir singing movingly with the control usually heard from much older pupils; three Year 5 girls’ on-screen animation from the after-school

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Grade: 1

information and communication technology (ICT) club, using exquisite plasticine models and patient multi-layered digital images, sounds and effects to produce an extremely high quality sequence; and the thoughtful, constructive and powerfully supportive views of the school council on the school and its staff. The pupils say, ‘the staff are the best thing about this school.’ Perhaps the pupils undervalue themselves here, in line with the school’s overall modesty about itself. They make excellent progress in their personal development because they behave very well, and engage in learning with vigour and great enthusiasm. However, they are sometimes too quiet when they speak to large groups. The quality of teaching that provides these experiences is excellent. It leads to very good progress in pupils’ learning and in their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Parents who have transferred their children from other schools say that

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Grade: 1

they cannot believe how well their children have developed since they came here. Parents of children with learning difficulties give the highest praise. The evidence from their children’s excellent progress supports their views. This is because the care, support and guidance they receive are timely, precise and very effective. At the centre of the outstanding provision is the headteacher. Through her skilled and visionary leadership, she drives the school to achieve its ambitious aims. Other key staff support her very successfully in encouraging, supporting and training the rest of the staff to deliver high quality outcomes for the pupils. Very effective systems to check how well the school is doing provide precise information on pupils’ progress that is used very well to set new and challenging targets. Equality of opportunity is closely monitored to ensure that all groups of pupils make very good progress.

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Grade: 1

Governors are well-informed and have a good overview of the school’s work, some of them involved very closely as volunteer helpers. Let a parent summarise this. ‘Both my children love Myton Park. Transferring them here when it first opened was a good decision’. It is a lovely environment in which to learn and my children are doing very well.’

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 From above average levels at entry to the Reception class, standards by the end of Year 2 are high in reading, writing, mathematics and science. The school’s extensive and thoroughly evaluated data shows that pupils in Years 3 to 6 consistently achieve well above expected levels in English, mathematics and science. Pupils also achieve very well in other subjects, including ICT, design technology (DT) and music. 3 Inspection Report: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 2006

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 The pupils are very confident learners who behave very well because they are fully engaged in interesting and demanding tasks. They take responsibility seriously, and look out for one another. One Year 6 boy said, ‘We work as a team with the staff. We all get on really well.’ A parent summarised this when writing, ‘Myton Park has a good community feel and all staff are friendly, helpful and caring.’

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 Pupils say that the staff make learning enjoyable, but also make sure that they learn what they should. This is because the staff plan very carefully to meet individual needs based on a clear understanding of what the pupils have already achieved. They work very closely with support staff, and encourage pupils to take control of their own learning through assessing their own performance. The teachers’ marking of pupils’ work is thorough and developmental.

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 There is an appropriate concentration on the core subjects of English, mathematics and science. The staff have been creative in using national guidance to ensure excellence is delivered through enjoyment. They exchange classes for specialist teaching, have themed days and weeks, and enrich pupils’ learning in a wide variety of ways. For example, after a week studying art, music and dance from countries in Africa, the whole school displayed and performed what had been learned.

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 A parent of a child with learning difficulties writes, ‘The encouragement and support that she receives from everyone is outstanding.’ The teacher who coordinates support staff believes that the extra training they have attended, some in their own time, equips them very well to support and guide all pupils very effectively. The evidence supports this view, including the progress made by pupils from minority ethnic groups, or those who are gifted or talented. 4 Inspection Report: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 2006

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Grade: 1

Grade: 1 The school is led and managed with panache, verve and determination. At its heart is the pupils’ progress in all areas of their learning. All pupils are fully included in the school’s work, and all are equally valued for what they bring to the school. For example, a drawing and message with plausible but inaccurate spelling produced by a child in Reception has been laminated and proudly displayed in the entrance to encourage visitors to wipe their feet. 5 Inspection Report: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 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: Myton Park Primary School, 9 June 2006 to 9 June 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 1 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 2 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

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0207 421 6800 F 0207 421 6707 Ofsted helpline 08456 404045 To the pupils of: Myton Park Primary School Blair Avenue Ingleby Barwick Stockton on Tees TS17 5BL 09 June 2006 Dear Pupils Thank you for welcoming me to your school. I very much enjoyed my day with you. You will remember that I came to check how well your school cares for you and helps you to learn. You and your parents are rightly very proud of your school. Some of your parents said that they think that it is excellent. So do I! Your headteacher and staff make sure that you really enjoy your work, but also that you reach high levels in your reading, writing, mathematics and science. The staff also help you to learn many new skills in such areas as music, DT and ICT. I enjoyed listening to the two junior choirs – they sound very professional! Your school council said that there is always someone to help you if you are stuck or in difficulties. That is because

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

the staff’s care and support for you is excellent. I could tell during the ‘celebration assembly’ that you develop a very good range of personal skills. You behave outstandingly well, and work together in pairs or teams to very good purpose. Your excellent attitudes to your work and your school help the staff to help you. Sometimes though, I found it hard to hear what you were saying in the hall about your success. Perhaps you could practise speaking out more. You are very lucky to have such an excellent school, and I know from talking with you and your parents that you enjoy coming to school very much. The staff work hard to help you, and you can help them by continuing to try your best in all you do. With best wishes for your future, Yours sincerely Eric Jackson, Lead Inspector.

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