Sandhurst Primary School

Inspection Report Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School

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100703 Unique Reference Number Lewisham Local Authority 285851 Inspection number 12 °13 December 2006 Inspection dates Madeleine Gerard Reporting inspector

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

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Sandhurst Road School address Infant Type of school London Community School category SE6 1NW 3 °7 Age range of pupils 020 8698 5810 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 020 8461 5200 Fax number 278 Number on roll (school) Ms Maggie Selman Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Val Edwards Headteacher 14 October 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 285851 12 °13 December 2006 3°7 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 three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

The school is larger than other similar schools. Socio-economic conditions locally are below average and the proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is above average. Pupils come from a range of ethnic backgrounds with Black Caribbean being the largest group. The number of pupils who speak English as an additional language is above average, the most common languages being French, Yoruba and Tamil. A few pupils are at the early stages of learning English. An average proportion of pupils have learning difficulties and disabilities.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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Grade: 3

Sandhurst Infant and Nursery is satisfactory overall. This is a caring school with a strong sense of community where pupils make good progress in their personal development. Behaviour in lessons and around the school is good. Pupils develop confidence and enjoy taking part in school performances. Pupils achieve broadly average standards. Most children enter the school with levels of knowledge and understanding below those nationally. In particular, their skills in English and their personal, social and emotional development are limited. Procedures to welcome children to the start of their education are particularly successful in helping them to settle quickly. For example, staff visit all pupils at home, prior to entering the nursery. One parent commented, 'the children are happy and settled and I have observed a noticeable difference in their level of independence and confidence'. Pupils make sound progress in Nursery and Reception where classrooms are attractive and

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Grade: 3

the outdoor play areas are well equipped. Standards are closer to the national average by the start of Year 1. Rates of progress for older pupils have fluctuated over the last four years. In 2006, standards were average as a result of additional support in Year 2 for pupils inside and outside the classroom. A strength of the school is the way it successfully involves parents and carers in their children's learning by providing workshops, guidance and resources for use at home. Many parents praise the school and are in no doubt that their children are safe and well cared for. The relationship between parents and school is close and effective. The curriculum, an issue at the time of the previous inspection, is now satisfactory. As a result of the action the school has taken it is broad and balanced although there are inconsistencies in planning work to meet the needs of all learners. The school emphasises creativity well across the curriculum including art and singing.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management are satisfactory. The school has an accurate understanding of what needs to be improved. Appropriate action is being taken which is beginning to bring about improvements. The quality of teaching is satisfactory. New systems to monitor teaching are appropriate but are not used rigorously enough to improve consistency and ensure all pupils make good progress.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Ensure monitoring at all levels leads to consistently good teaching so that all pupils make good progress. • Make more effective use of assessment information to plan work matched to all pupils' needs. 2 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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Grade: 3

Standards are broadly average and given their starting points, pupils' achievement is good. By the time they complete the Foundation Stage they are close to the standards expected of them in creative development and counting but are below expectations in communication, language and literacy. Pupils who speak languages other than English at home receive effective support and make good progress. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities make satisfactory progress towards their individual targets because of the individual support they receive. In 2006, the school exceeded national averages for pupils reaching the higher levels in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' personal development is good. They say they enjoy school because 'it's fun and you learn lots of stuff'. They have strong respect for each other and work and play together in harmony. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are good. Attendance is satisfactory and the school works hard to emphasise the value of coming to school regularly. Pupils learn about the importance of taking care of each other and their environment, for example, by being buddies to new arrivals, and looking after the war memorial garden.The school promotes healthy lifestyles through the curriculum and pupils have a strong awareness of how to eat healthily. They participate in decision making through the school council and are proud of the influence they have had, for example on keeping the school free from litter and the newly improved toilets. They contribute to the wider community by raising funds for charities. Pupils'

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Grade: 2

basic skills are satisfactory and this enables them to make a sound start to the next phase of their learning.

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Grade: 3

Teaching is satisfactory overall. Most teachers develop pupils' basic skills successfully and use satisfactory teaching methods. Teachers use thinking skills and brain gym exercises well in some lessons to support pupils' learning. For example, they give pupils in Reception good opportunities to discuss their ideas in pairs. However, the use of these methods is not yet consistent enough. New resources such as interactive whiteboards hold pupils' attention well. Although assessment is used satisfactorily, in a number of classes, teachers' marking could be improved. Teachers do not always make clear to pupils what the next steps are in their learning so they can work at higher levels. Staff do not plan the role of teaching assistants in lessons carefully enough to ensure they always contribute fully to pupils' learning. 3 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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Grade: 3

An ongoing review of the curriculum is leading to improvements, especially in literacy. The Foundation Stage curriculum is practical and interesting with a strong emphasis on meeting the children's language needs. Throughout the rest of the school, the curriculum provides a satisfactory framework for developing pupils' key skills in a creative way. The school now uses a cross-curricular approach to topics such as 'rainforests' or 'food and fasting' to capture the interests of pupils, with a strong emphasis on personal development. Planning links the curriculum well to the local community, with, for example, studies of black history and performing arts. Visiting actors, musicians and local figures, together with visits to local places of interest, enliven the curriculum. Pupils have opportunities to develop their computing skills in a range of subjects and the school is continuing to develop this further. However, the

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Grade: 3

curriculum is not yet enabling pupils generally to achieve as well as they should because work planned is not based firmly enough on regular assessment of what the pupils can do. Further extending provision for extra curricular activities is an area identified by the school for development.

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Grade: 2

The school provides pupils with good care, guidance and support and as a result their personal development is good. Procedures to safeguard pupils' welfare, including child protection are suitable. The school takes appropriate steps to ensure that adults who work with the pupils are suitably checked. Staff work closely with each other and with outside agencies' to ensure that the needs of all pupils, in particular those who are vulnerable are met. The school has very effective links with the neighbouring junior school which helps pupils to transfer smoothly to the next phase of their education. Pupils are set appropriate individual targets. The school uses assessment information to set pupils individual targets. However, they are not always actively involved in assessing their own progress.

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Grade: 3

The head teacher is a good leader and works in effective partnership with the senior leadership team. Good communication means that staff work well together. School leaders have a sound view of the school's strengths and weaknesses. The school is able to demonstrate that where it has put maximum effort - for example, to improve reading in Year 2 - standards have risen. However, sometimes the school's actions to bring about improvements are not as effective as they could be. For example, the monitoring of teaching is not sufficiently rigorous to swiftly remedy weaknesses and improve pupil attainment. The school's capacity to improve is satisfactory. Subject co-ordinators are enthusiastic. Their roles have recently been enhanced through 4 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006 training. As a result, they have begun to demonstrate good practice in the leadership and management of their subjects. However, these positive developments have not

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Grade: 3

had sufficient time to impact fully on pupils' achievements. The governors are committed, supportive and have a realistic overview of the strengths and development needs. 5 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006 .

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Grade: 3

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 3 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 3 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

3 How well do learners achieve? 3 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The behaviour of learners 3 The attendance of learners 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for making us so welcome and helping us when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and watching lessons. We would like to tell you what we found. Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School is a satisfactory school. Here are the things that we think are best about your school: • Your behaviour is good and most of you enjoy schoolThe school works hard to involve your parents and carers in your learning by inviting them to school to find out more about the work you are doing and how they help you. • Staff work hard to make sure everyone is cared for, helped and safe. • Your school council is starting to make a difference for all pupils at the school by making some good suggestions. These are the things we have asked the school to do to make it even better: • Ensure the teaching you receive is consistently good. • Make thorough checks on your progress so teachers can plan work that is just right for you.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you again and best wishes for the future to you all. Yours sincerely, Madeleine GerardLead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Sandhurst Infant and Nursery School, 12 °13 December 2006

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