Donnington Primary School

Donnington Primary School Inspection report

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101520 Unique Reference Number Brent Local Authority 286093 Inspection number 12 °13 November 2007 Inspection dates Alison Thomson 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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Primary Type of school Community School category 3 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 238 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr K Cookson Chair Mr R Roberts Headteacher 8 July 2002 Date of previous school inspection Uffington Road School address London NW10 3TL 020 8451 0761 Telephone number 020 8459 1145 Fax number

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3-11 Age group 12 °13 November 2007 Inspection dates 286093 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 two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Donnington Primary School is an average sized primary school in a disadvantaged socio-economic area. The percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is higher than average. The pupils come from a wide range of ethnic minority groups and more than half do not have English as their first language. The percentage of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is higher than average, although the number with statements of special educational need is in line with the national average.

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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: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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Grade: 3

Donnington Primary School is a satisfactory school with some good features. One parent commented, 'The school has lots of real strengths that I value as a parent'. Another parent said, 'The school is a very friendly, multicultural school which I would recommend to anyone'. The personal development of the pupils is good. Pupils enjoy coming to school and this is evident in their good behaviour and willingness to learn. The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils is good and they demonstrate a good understanding of how to lead healthy lives and how to keep themselves safe. Through the school council, they contribute well to making the school a happy and interesting place. The skills they learn give them a sound preparation for the future. The school works well in partnership with parents and governors, as well as the local community. The senior management team is reflective and committed to raising standards. Governors are

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Grade: 3

supportive and know the key areas for improvement. They are providing an increasingly effective challenge to the school. The school, however, does not evaluate the impact of its provision on pupil progress sufficiently sharply. Therefore, self-evaluation to raise standards and accelerate the pace of improvement is not effective enough. Standards have been rising slowly over the past four years, apart from a dip in 2007. They are in line with those seen nationally. This represents satisfactory progress considering the broadly average starting points of the pupils. Progress throughout the school, including in the Foundation Stage, is satisfactory, resulting in satisfactory achievement. The achievement of the high numbers of pupils for whom English is not their first language is in line with that of other pupils. The school has an improved tracking and monitoring system in place and there is evidence that this is already having an impact.

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Grade: 3

Teaching is satisfactory overall. Pupils enjoy their lessons and have a good range of learning experiences. Teaching assistants support pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities well. The work provided for pupils in lessons does not always match the ability of all pupils well enough and sometimes expectations are not high enough. There is not enough good teaching that challenges pupils to achieve well. The curriculum is good, including the enrichment activities, which impact well on the pupils' personal development and well-being. The school provides pupils with a satisfactory level of care, guidance and support. While the pastoral aspect of this is good, the academic side is not as strong. This is because there are inconsistencies in the use of assessment to inform pupils of the next steps in their learning. As a result, some pupils do not know how they can improve their work. The school has addressed the areas for improvement raised in the previous inspection. The

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Grade: 3

positive impact of recent school's initiatives indicates the school has satisfactory capacity for improvement.

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Grade: 3

Staff in the Nursery and Reception class support pupils effectively and ensure that they have a positive and nurturing start in school. The analysis of the entry profile of all pupils has been improved this year and carefully identifies the attainment of the current group as well as that of individuals. This is an effective base line for future tracking of pupil progress. Home visits to new entrants in the nursery play an important part in setting the base line whereby the school can start to track the progress of pupils throughout the school and intervene when 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007 necessary. When children are admitted to the nursery most are working at the standard expected of children of that age and by the end of Reception in 2007, most had achieved the expected learning goals. This represents satisfactory progress made during the two years.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the effectiveness of self-evaluation to raise standards and accelerate the pace of improvement. ■ Improve the proportion of good teaching, so that all pupils are challenged to achieve well.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Use assessment more effectively to ensure that all pupils know how to improve, and what the next steps are in their learning. A small proportion of the schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory but which have areas of underperformance will receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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Grade: 3

Attainment on entry to the nursery is broadly as expected and has been so for a number of years. Children make satisfactory progress in the Foundation Stage and by the time they leave the Reception year most children have reached the standards expected for their age. This satisfactory progress continues in Years 1 and 2, so that pupils reach standards in reading, writing and mathematics in line with those seen nationally at the end of Year 2 and achievement is satisfactory. Standards in mathematics have particularly improved following carefully implemented strategies. Progress continues to be satisfactory throughout Years 3 to 6. By the end of Year 6 pupils reach standards overall that are in line with those achieved nationally and achievement overall is satisfactory. Standards in science are better than in other subjects. They have improved because of the focus the school has given to the subject, particularly in

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Grade: 3

developing pupils' investigative skills. The relatively weaker attainment in English in the 2007 national tests taken at the end of Year 6 has been addressed and standards in English at the time of the inspection were judged to be average, meaning that achievement in English is now satisfactory. Throughout the school, the achievement of pupils who have learning difficulties or disabilities and those for whom English is not their first language is satisfactory, in line with that of their peers.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' enjoyment of school is clear in their enthusiasm for learning and good behaviour, both in and out of the classroom. Most parents agree with this judgement. Pupils feel that they have a part to play in the school with the school council influencing initiatives such as the reorganisation of the layout of the playground. Older children feel responsible for the welfare of younger pupils. Year 6 work as peer mentors, or and;quot;Red Hatsand;quot;, and Year 5 act as play leaders. Spiritual, moral, cultural and social education are good and pupils feel that the wide range of ethnic backgrounds in the school is a way for them to learn about each other. Pupils feel secure at school and know how to stay safe. They talk knowledgeably about the dangers of being overweight and understand the need for exercise and healthy eating. The school has achieved the Healthy School Status and Active Mark. Attendance is within the

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Grade: 2

expected range and is given a high profile with pupils. The classes that achieve the best 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007 attendance and punctuality each week have the 'Barnado Bear' and 'Cilla the Pillow' to look after for the week.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory, but inconsistent. There is much good practice within the school, which is not shared well enough at present. Pupils are eager to learn and cooperate well with each other when given the opportunity to work together. In most lessons teaching is well planned with interesting activities so that pupils enjoy learning and work with enthusiasm. Pupils particularly enjoy learning when teachers make good use of interactive whiteboards. However, in some lessons the activities are not tuned finely enough to meet the needs of all pupils. Sometimes tasks are not challenging enough and expectations of what pupils can achieve are not high enough. In the best lessons, the teachers maintain the pace of the lessons well and they continually check the extent to which all pupils meet their learning objectives. In addition, these teachers discuss with pupils how to attain their next steps in their learning.

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Grade: 3

Learning support assistants work effectively in partnership with class teachers, ensuring that pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those for whom English is not their first language make satisfactory progress equal to that of their peers. Marking is carried out regularly, but does not always inform pupils clearly enough how to improve their work.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum supports the personal development of pupils particularly well. Visits to places such as the Science Museum, Kew Gardens and the Gordon Brown centre enrich the pupils' learning experience. Visits from puppet makers, local artists and religious groups help pupils understand the richness and diversity of their community. Inter-school sports events develop the ability of working as a team, as well as encouraging pupils to play sports. All pupils in Years 3 - 6 have the opportunity to swim every week. Many pupils take part in after school and lunch-time clubs such as knitting, art and choir, as well as a variety of sports and gymnastics. There are good links across subject areas to make learning enjoyable and meaningful to pupils and, as a result, the curriculum is adapted to the needs of pupils so that they all make satisfactory progress. There are good links with local secondary schools, which not only support the secondary

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Grade: 2

transfer process but also develop teaching expertise within the staff.

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Grade: 3

Pupils receive a satisfactory level of care, guidance and support. They feel well supported by staff and know who to turn to if they need help or advice. There are effective arrangements to ensure the health and safety of pupils and the school works well with outside agencies and parents. Statutory requirements for child protection are in place and all members of staff are familiar with procedures. Tracking of pupil progress is becoming more rigorous, but it is too early to see the full impact of this. Strategies to raise the achievement of pupils who are not making expected progress are beginning to have a positive effect on their learning. There is good support for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language to help them achieve as well as their peers. Not enough pupils are 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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Grade: 3

actively involved in assessing how well they have done in class and in their written work. This means they do not know the next steps they must take in their learning.

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Grade: 3

The headteacher and deputy headteacher know the children and their families well and effectively promote the caring ethos of the school. This contributes significantly to pupils' good personal development and well being. The school takes into account the views of pupils and parents well. One parent commented, 'The communication between parents and teachers is wonderful'. The school has recognised the need to improve standards and the deputy headteacher has recently improved systems for checking pupils' attainment. Although these are at an early stage, they are already having an impact. However, self-evaluation, monitoring and moderating at all levels of management are not sufficiently consistent or incisive to raise standards fast enough. The governing body is supportive and is increasingly becoming aware of the school's strengths and weaknesses. Effective steps have been taken to address areas of

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Grade: 3

weakness identified at the previous inspection. Staffing is now more stable and there is a common purpose and energy in wanting to raise standards. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007 .

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Grade: 3

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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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? 3 The effectiveness of the Foundation Stage 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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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 extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 3 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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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 3 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 3 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: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

26 November 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Donnington Primary School,London,NW10 3TL Thank you very much for welcoming us into your school. We enjoyed talking to you and seeing all the interesting work that you do. Here are some of the things that we liked best.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You are developing good personal skills that will enable you to have a successful adult life.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You know how to stay healthy by eating the right food and by taking plenty of exercise.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Adults in school ensure that you are safe and well cared for.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Your school provides you with interesting and varied opportunities, such as school visits and clubs. Here are some of the things that we think could be better.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Your teachers need to think carefully how they can help you improve your learning more quickly. ■ Your teachers need to keep finding better ways to teach so that you achieve even better results in your work than you do at present. ■ You need to work more closely with your teachers to find out how to improve your work.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We enjoyed our visit to your school. Thank you once again. Best wishes for the future. Alison Thomson Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Donnington Primary School, 12 °13 November 2007

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