Honeywell Junior School

Honeywell Junior School Inspection report

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101011 Unique Reference Number Wandsworth Local Authority 285941 Inspection number 9 °10 January 2008 Inspection dates Sue Rogers 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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Junior Type of school Foundation School category 7 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 355 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr T Dignan Chair Mr D Roberts Headteacher 9 December 2002 Date of previous school inspection Honeywell Road School address Battersea London SW11 6EF 020 7223 5185 Telephone number 020 7738 9101 Fax number

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7-11 Age group 9 °10 January 2008 Inspection dates 285941 Inspection number .

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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

Honeywell is a large junior school serving an urban area of above average prosperity and the number of pupils who receive free school meals is below average. At about one third, the proportion of pupils who come from minority ethnic backgrounds is above average. Twenty percent of pupils in the school are bilingual and this figure also exceeds the national average. The school holds the Gold Sports Mark and the Healthy School awards.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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Grade: 1

Honeywell Junior an outstanding school that provides a very high quality education for its pupils. Pupils reach consistently high standards in their work and their personal development is outstanding because of excellent care and guidance and exemplary relationships. The school is deservedly popular and parents fully appreciate the excellent school leadership and the consistently high quality of the teaching. Pupils are delightfully confident in talking to adults and are exceptionally polite to everyone and kind to each other. Those questioned could find nothing bad to say about the school and they thoroughly enjoy their education. As one said, 'When I get up I can't wait to get to school'. As a result, and because of the school's efforts to discourage term-time holidays, attendance is good. Pupils have the utmost respect for their teachers and say that they are all, without exception, 'Good, but different, so that makes it exciting'. They therefore respond with excellent

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Grade: 1

behaviour and work hard. The excellent school ethos, promoting the very clear understanding that learning is important and is valued, underpins all the school's work. Pupils enter the school working at levels that are well above national averages. They maintain this differential, making progress that is consistently good. As a result, when they leave at the end of Year 6 standards are consistently well above average. Over recent years, they have made exceptionally good progress in English, due to the school's work on improving standards in writing. This has had a notable impact on the achievement of boys in English. Although pupils do well in mathematics the proportion of pupils, who attain the higher levels, is lower than it is in English. The school has already begun to focus its attention on this area and is taking further steps to ensure that there is always optimum challenge in mathematics lessons. The

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Grade: 1

inclusion of all pupils is excellent. Pupils who need additional support, because they have learning difficulties or because they require help with English, also make consistently good progress. The curriculum is good and pupils make outstanding progress in learning to be healthy and in understanding how to be safe. Their spiritual, moral and social education is excellent. They contribute exceptionally well to the community at all levels, through innovative projects such as rearing trout to return to the River Wandle. They are very well prepared for the next stages in their education. The pupils do so well because of excellent leadership and management. Parents and staff agree that the headteacher is superb. He manages a very effective team of staff, who are very conscientious, very reflective and extremely welcoming. He makes extremely good links outside the school to further support the pupils' education. Curriculum links with the local secondary

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Grade: 1

schools are especially noteworthy. The governing body is also excellent, and monitors and supports the school very successfully. The schools' current successes indicate that it has an excellent capacity to continue to improve.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure consistent challenge for all pupils, so that attainment in mathematics matches the current very high standards in English. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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Grade: 1

Test results at the end of Year 6 are consistently well above average in English and mathematics and pupils do exceptionally well in English. Progress in reading is a continuing strength of the school and recent improvements in English are a result of the school's review of the teaching of writing. Their new scheme helps staff to focus effectively on specific aspects of writing, such as punctuation, that were previously relatively weak. Pupils make very good progress in English and good progress in mathematics. The school is working hard to narrow the gap between these subjects. They have been partially successful, through developing the teaching of thinking skills and investigation. However, on a few occasions, the progress of more able pupils is limited in this area, because too much time is spent covering old ground when new topics are introduced. Pupils with learning difficulties and those who need support with English make very good

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Grade: 1

Pupils show great enjoyment in their lessons, want to learn and do well, so the vast majority attend regularly and promptly. The school is a happy and industrious place in which everyone is valued and encouraged to develop their individual talents. Social skills are very well developed and lunch and break times are enjoyable occasions. Pupils are proud of their school and they care for each other. Bullying or name-calling is rare. A few pupils demonstrate challenging behaviour at times, but they are well managed and do not hinder the progress made in lessons. In addition to their excellent awareness of how to live a healthy life and be safe, pupils have an excellent understanding of other faiths and cultures and share fully in the values and ethos of the school. Pupils have very good opportunities to express their ideas about school, especially through the work of the school council. A wide range of responsibilities are accepted with pride

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Grade: 1

and older pupils undertake important roles, such as acting as 'playground pals' or reading partners with younger pupils. Their excellent social skills mean they are very well prepared for their future.

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Grade: 1

Pupils achieve so well because teaching is outstanding. Pupils behave well in lessons because relationships are excellent and because the lessons are lively and exciting. Teachers keep pupils engaged through the use of interesting activities that include stimulating presentations on interactive whiteboards. For example, Year 6 pupils learned to take notes effectively by pretending to be reporters at the scene of a flood in Boscastle, whilst watching a film of the event. Exemplary use is made of teaching assistants who work alongside pupils who have learning difficulties and explain the learning at the appropriate level. Teachers make good use of pupil tracking information to plan their work, and their planning is detailed and thorough. However, on occasion it lacks the detail to ensure that pupils who are more able are fully stretched. Teachers provide a stimulating working environment and are very open to advice,

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Grade: 1

being keen to improve still further. They mark pupils' work conscientiously, and the quality of 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008 feedback to pupils has improved recently due to school development work and is now good. However, it is still a little inconsistent across the school.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is well balanced, so that provision across all subjects is good and the needs of all pupils are met very well Initiatives are currently being implemented to improve links between different subject areas and so further enhance enjoyment and develop understanding. However, these are still in the early stages of development. For example, there are missed opportunities to use Information Communication Technology (ICT) in other lessons. Consistently good planning for personal, social and health education ensures that pupils respect and care for each other and understand the need for healthy lifestyles. Music is strong, and opportunities to learn to play musical instruments, sing in the choir and perform add to achievement and excitement for learning. The school is also proactive in obtaining useful curriculum support in French, art and sport from the local secondary schools. Most pupils make use of the wide range of after

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Grade: 2

school clubs. Visits and visitors such as theatre groups, storytellers and musicians help bring the curriculum to life.

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Grade: 1

Parents value the fact that staff know pupils well and that they assign a very high priority to their care. One said that the school is 'a place for children to flourish regardless of their abilities'. Pupils feel confident that they can seek help when they need it. Procedures for child protection and pupils' safety are robust. Attendance is good and has improved because of the diligence of the school in this area. Strong pastoral care ensures pupils feel settled and ready to work. Pupils' guidance in their learning is also good because increasingly efficient use is made of assessment information throughout the school. Termly targets are valued by pupils and parents and these give them clear goals to help them improve their work. The new approach to writing is successful in encouraging pupils to be involved in assessing their own work. There is outstanding support from additional staff for pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities

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Grade: 1

and those for whom English is an additional language. This ensures that they achieve as well as the other pupils.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' achievements demonstrate that leadership and management are outstanding. The headteacher knows everyone in the school community very well and this aids the school in establishing effective consultation. The headteacher is ably assisted by a committed, very well organised, deputy headteacher and a senior leadership team. The subject leaders and middle managers have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of their subjects. The English leaders have carried out a thorough audit and have implemented effective strategies that have led to very good improvements in pupils' achievement and standards. The mathematics leader has worked very hard and evaluation in mathematics has been detailed, but is still being developed. The focus on higher-attaining pupils in mathematics has therefore rightly been identified as an area for improvement. The monitoring of performance is very good, involves

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Grade: 1

leaders at all levels and employs effective strategies such as focused lesson observations and 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008 target setting. Clear targets are set through performance management. The headteacher is extremely well supported and challenged by the fully informed and highly committed governors. They play an active part in setting targets and evaluating progress and are rightly seen as full partners in school improvement. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008 .

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Grade: 1

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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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? Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

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

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 1 The behaviour of learners 1 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?

1 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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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 1 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

21 January 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Honeywell Junior School,London,SW11 6EF Thank you so much for the welcome you gave us when we visited your school this week. Those of you who spoke to us were delightful. You were polite and very happy to tell us how much you love coming to school. We think that your school is an excellent school that gives you an exceptionally good education and we can understand why you are so keen to attend. You could not think of a single thing that needs improving! We found that all of you, including those who need extra help, make consistently good progress in your lessons. You do extremely well in your tests, especially in English. Your behaviour is very good and you are nearly always kind and considerate to each other. You learn a great deal about being safe and healthy and your school council works well to make sure that you all have a voice. You are very well looked after and the teachers spend a lot of time making sure that

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

you understand what to do. We agree with you that your headteacher is excellent and that all the teachers and other staff are excellent too. You do very well already, but we have asked the teachers to make sure that your results in mathematics are as good as your results in English. Occasionally teachers spend time teaching something that you already know and we think it would be helpful if they could always check to make sure that this does not happen. With best wishes for an even more successful future. Sue Rogers Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Honeywell Junior School, 9 °10 January 2008

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