Christ Church Primary School

Inspection Report Christ Church Primary School

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101316 Unique Reference Number Barnet Local Authority 286027 Inspection number 13 °14 November 2006 Inspection dates Natalia Power 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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Byng Road School address Primary Type of school Barnet Voluntary aided School category EN5 4NS 3 °11 Age range of pupils 02084402198 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 02084414700 Fax number 240 Number on roll (school) Mrs Janet McIntyre Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Mike Dean Headteacher 4 March 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 286027 13 °14 November 2006 3°11 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

Christ Church is of average size in an advantaged area. The majority of pupils come from a white British or other white background. The proportion of pupils for whom English is not a first language is higher than the national average, but these pupils are proficient in English. There is a lower than average percentage of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities. A much smaller proportion of pupils than average are entitled to free school meals. The proportion of pupils joining or leaving the school at other than the usual times is lower than average. Attainment of pupils at entry into reception is above average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006

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Grade: 3

The school provides a satisfactory quality of education with good features. Pupils enter the Foundation Stage with above average skills. Results in the national tests taken at the end of Years 2 and 6 are consistently above average. This indicates that standards are high and that pupils make satisfactory progress as they move through the school. Many pupils, however, do not do as well as they could. This is because, to a large extent, the school leaders have not directed a sufficiently energetic drive to raise standards for all pupils. The school takes its commitment to the Christian ethos seriously. Within its Church of England foundation it welcomes pupils from other faiths wherever possible. In assembly teachers celebrate the beliefs of the whole community. The school encourages pupils to think beyond their own community and provides well for their moral, social and cultural education. Music, hymns and the sincere use of prayer play a crucial part

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Grade: 3

in developing pupils' spiritual awareness. Pupils feel valued and report that they greatly enjoy all aspects of school life. They welcome the opportunities provided by the school to show initiative in serving the school and in helping the wider community. Measures introduced by the school to encourage a healthy lifestyle have had a good impact on pupils. They enjoy eating healthily and are proud of the school's success in sport. Parents on the whole are appreciative of the school. One parent wrote and;quot;I feel it is a very warm, secure and friendly environmentand;quot;. However, some parents feel that the school does not help all pupils to make as much progress as they can especially the higher-attaining pupils and those with learning difficulties. Inspectors agree that more needs to be done to raise achievement of all pupils by expecting more from them. Some teachers expect a great deal from the pupils and are rewarded by an enthusiastic

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Grade: 3

response. In general, however, teachers expect too little from pupils and give them work that is too easy. The result is that they do not make as much progress as they could, and sometimes become restless. The drive to improve the quality of writing shows that a concerted effort by leaders and managers has an impact on improving standards. The leaders, managers and governors are aware of the strengths and weakness of the school, but lack urgency in bringing about improvements. The effect of the lack of urgency in setting up robust systems is clear: some pupils do not achieve as well as they should, as their needs have not yet been identified or action taken.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Raise standards for higher-attaining pupils. • Develop robust leadership and management to promote improvement. • Raise expectations of what pupils can do. • Raise the attainment of pupils with learning difficulties. 2 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006

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Grade: 3

Pupils' standards are high. They enter and leave the school with attainment that is above average. As a whole they make the progress expected of them, but no more. This represents satisfactory achievement. In the Foundation Stage, they engage adequately in activities that build experience and reinforce vocabulary and skills. Overall, the pupils in the Foundation Stage make satisfactory progress. Their attainment at the end of the stage is above average in each of the expected areas of learning. In Key Stage 1, pupils make satisfactory progress. They gain confidence in exploration and enquiry, develop good skills for reading and satisfactory foundations for writing and mathematical understanding. By the end of Year 2, pupils reach above average standards. Standards remain average at the end of Year 6. The school's assessment arrangements have enabled the staff to identify underachievement and to begin to put in place more

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Grade: 3

consistent provision, for example, to promote pupils' writing. Pupils make satisfactory overall progress through this key stage. The school recognises, as do some parents, that a significant number of pupils do not make sufficient progress. Pupils who have learning difficulties do not make as much progress as pupils did at the time of the last inspection. Those who enter the school with high attainment are not challenged enough to progress to higher levels.

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Grade: 2

The personal development and well-being of pupils is good. Pupils are confident and articulate, and clearly enjoy school. In the Foundation Stage pupils' emotional needs are well met through effective support by teachers and teaching assistants. Pupils speak knowledgeably and confidently about the school's healthy eating policy. They feel safe because of the support the school gives them through such measures as 'playground friends'. Most pupils feel that bullying is not a problem. Pupils show they enjoy school through their good attendance and good behaviour in class and in corridors. They contribute well to the outside community using their own initiative to respond to emergency appeals. Within the school community they are effectively involved in the school council. Pupils are well prepared for 'workplace' skills when applying to become a playground friend or house captain. Provision for their moral,

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Grade: 2

social and cultural development is good and, within the Christian ethos of the school, their spiritual development is outstanding. 3 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006

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Grade: 3

The overall quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Teachers are experienced and have confidence and sound subject knowledge. Lessons are planned in detail, conducted with good control and make good use of resources to stimulate interest. Some lessons are particularly effective, where teachers expect pupils to think for themselves. Pupils who have learning difficulties are supported well by teaching assistants. Teachers respond to pupils' work constructively and with good advice. There are, however, lessons which do not stimulate pupils to learn well. At times lessons lose pace because they are too long or activities are given too much time. Some take too long to engage pupils in demanding activities. In some lessons teachers do too much work for the pupils, instead of encouraging them to take responsibility for their own learning. In others, teachers' expectations are not high enough and as a result

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Grade: 3

the more capable pupils do not make enough progress.

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Grade: 3

Overall, the school's curriculum is satisfactory. Statutory requirements are met. The Foundation Stage adequately covers each of the areas for learning. There is adequate provision for literacy, numeracy and Information and Communication Technology (ICT), and pupils make satisfactory progress in these subjects. Music is an area of strength, and talented individuals have good opportunities to share their skills and to inspire others. Lessons are complemented well by a valuable programme of activities, including visits and visitors. These are effective in providing good additional opportunities for the pupils to learn and to make contributions to the wider community. The curriculum adequately meets the needs of most pupils, though more able pupils are insufficiently stimulated by demanding work. For some, the time available in the school day is not sufficiently productive.

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Grade: 3

Care guidance and support are satisfactory. The school's safeguarding arrangements are on the whole adequate, but they do not meet government requirements, and there has been little recent child protection training for the staff. Currently, the school is reviewing the information it holds on adults who work with its pupils. Teachers supervise the pupils systematically at playtimes, and encourage sensitive and helpful attitudes through arrangements such as a friendship bench. Risk assessments are made and reviewed for visits and other unusual activities. Responsibilities for child protection are allocated appropriately. The school's policies and procedures, and the attention of the staff, provide well for the emotional support of pupils. A programme 4 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006 of personal, social and health education builds pupils' understanding of important

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Grade: 3

topics including health, relationships and safety. However, as some parents feel, the school does not provide enough academic support to encourage pupils to do as well as they might.

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Grade: 3

Overall, the leadership and management of the school are satisfactory. The school runs smoothly on a day-to-day basis, and issues which arise are dealt with speedily. The school seeks the views of parents, pupils and other stakeholders and uses them effectively to plan for the future. The senior management team, consisting of the headteacher and two senior teachers, is currently too small to enable a wide range of staff to develop focused plans for improvement. Though managers and governors have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school, they do not adopt sufficiently robust measures to drive up standards and ensure that all pupils achieve their best. The lack of a clearly defined role for subject leaders, mentioned in the last inspection, has not been effectively addressed. Measures to improve the school through new development teams have not been implemented robustly. Some deadlines

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Grade: 3

for improvement, for instance in the provision for gifted and talented pupils, are too relaxed. Measures to improve the effectiveness of governors by ensuring that they play a full part in planning for the school are beginning to take effect. The school has acted on some areas for improvement outlined in the last inspection, such as in the monitoring of teaching and the introduction of ICT. Overall, the school has a satisfactory capacity to improve. 5 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 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: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 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? 2 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 2 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?

3 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: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 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 No 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: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We very much enjoyed meeting and speaking to many of you during the inspection of your school. Thank you for welcoming us and being so polite. We liked the way you were ready to tell us how proud you are of your school, and how much you contribute to its smooth running. Your school gives you a satisfactory education. It looks after you well, and makes sure that you lead a healthy life, and eat all the right things and take lots of exercise. The school also looks after you in the playground, making sure that you have someone to turn to if you are upset. We liked hearing you sing hymns, and enjoyed the way you celebrate the special talents of each pupil. We feel that you could learn even more than you do already and that some of you could work harder. We have asked your teachers to give you harder work to encourage you to think for yourselves. We have also asked the people in charge of the school to make sure that you do as

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

well as you possibly can. We know you already enjoy learning. Now we want you to raise your sights even higher, and do your best. We have asked the school to help those of you who find learning easy to be given more challenging work. We have also asked them to find ways of helping those of you who need extra support. The fact that so many of you improved your writing skills when the school made a real effort to help you, shows that you can all improve. With very best wishes for the future, Dr Natalia Power Lead inspector 9 Inspection Report: Christ Church Primary School, 13 °14 November 2006

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