Valley Primary

Inspection Report - Amended Valley Infant School

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104052 Unique Reference Number Solihull Local Authority 286843 Inspection number 19 °20 September 2006 Inspection dates Linda Rockey HMI 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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Fallowfield Road School address Infant Type of school Solihull Community School category B92 9HQ 3 °7 Age range of pupils 0121 7433175 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0121 7223551 Fax number 220 Number on roll (school) R Pascoe Chair The governing body Appropriate authority R Narroway Headteacher 24 September 2001 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 286843 19 °20 September 2006 3°7

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Amended Report Addendum

Report updated to resolve formatting inconsistency

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Amended Report Addendum

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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Amended Report Addendum

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 one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Schools and an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

The school serves a residential area of Solihull. Most of the children are from White British backgrounds. The proportion of children entitled to free school meals is lower than average, as is the number of children who have learning difficulties and disabilities. Children start part time in the nursery. Some have attended 'First Steps', a privately run on-site nursery which also provides an after-school club. 'First Steps' was inspected at the same time and will be reported on separately. There has been a significant turnover of staff in the last two years, including the appointment of a new headteacher two weeks before the inspection. The school has gained the 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: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006

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Grade: 2

This is a good school. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about all aspects of the care given to their children. They say teachers know their children well, have high expectations and support them to achieve success. One parent commented: 'My child loves school ° she can't wait to come'. Children really enjoy school; they attend regularly and on time, behave exceptionally well and have good attitudes to learning. This well-rounded education means that children leave school well prepared for their future lives. Children get off to a good start in the Foundation Stage, where planned activities are based on first-hand observations and there are strong links with parents and carers. Teaching is good throughout the school. Children thoroughly enjoy their lessons, engage well with activities and collaborate effectively in practical tasks. Learning assistants provide children with valuable support; they are skilled at encouraging

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Grade: 2

children to keep working and not give up. Positive marking is used consistently and most children understand what they need to do to improve. The good teaching, together with well focused support for children with learning difficulties and disabilities, ensures that most children make good progress and standards are high by the end of Year 2. That said, more able children are not always stretched as much as they should be and the school has rightly identified the need to ensure a greater degree of challenge for them in every lesson. The school has satisfactory systems for tracking children's progress. It is aware that this information needs to be used by all staff to maximise rates of progress and to ensure there is appropriate intervention if any child is not making their expected progress. The new headteacher has a positive presence around the school and her calm, authoritative manner is well received by children and parents. She has a clear vision

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Grade: 2

for the school's future which she has begun to communicate very effectively to staff and children. The school has an accurate view of its effectiveness: staff and governors are aware of the school's strengths and weaknesses. They recognise that the current system for monitoring teaching, learning and provision is not rigorous enough. The headteacher is well supported by a leadership team and she has empowered them to lead key developments. This means the school has a good capacity to improve further. Governors are very supportive and committed to the work of the school. However, they do not yet hold the school sufficiently to account.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Use assessment and tracking data more effectively to check whether all groups of children, particularly the more able, are making the expected progress and take swift action if they are not • Develop a more systematic and rigorous approach to the monitoring and evaluation of performance and promote good practice across the school. • Provide training and support governors to carry out their role and responsibilities as critical friends. 2 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006

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Grade: 2

Children join the school with skills and knowledge typical of three- and four- year-olds. They make a good start and achieve well by the end of the Foundation Stage because of the good teaching they receive. Children make exceptionally good progress in personal, social and emotional development because of the very strong emphasis adults place on helping children to settle in happily and know what is expected of them. Most, including those with learning difficulties and disabilities, continue to make good progress in Years 1 and 2 so that when they are formally assessed at the end of Year 2, results are well above average in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Grade: 2

The children's personal development is good. One of the parents wrote to the inspectors: 'My eldest child has just left Valley…the school gave her the best start she could have had'. Children are polite and courteous. They are self-assured, articulate and confident to approach adults. This, together with good progress in their academic skills, prepares them well for life. Circle time is a positive feature in the school and its impact on children's personal development is very clear. In a Year 1 session, the teacher successfully modelled some appropriate responses to feelings. As a result, children were able to describe and talk about their own feelings. This led them to a growing understanding and appreciation of their own and others' emotional responses. Children know about the importance of keeping safe and living a healthy lifestyle. In the dining room, they were able to explain about healthy food. One said: 'Carrots are full of

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Grade: 2

vitamins and yoghurt contains calcium'. They are also able to explain the importance of exercise and the need for water to make your brain work. Children are also aware of the needs of others. They take part in various fund raising and community events such as donating harvest food parcels to the Salvation Army and sending shoe boxes of toys to children in Europe through 'Operation Christmas'.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good because lessons are well planned, with an effective balance between adult-led and child-initiated independent work. In one lesson, children confidently organised their 'Plan and work'. They used their planning cards to make choices and used their initiative to complete a wide range of indoor and outdoor learning activities. The adults made good use of opportunities to assess through observation and direct, open questioning. Excellent relationships between adults and children encourage positive attitudes and an eagerness to learn. 3 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006

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Grade: 2

The themed curriculum is good, and is enriched well by planned trips and visits. Children talked enthusiastically about their current work on the seaside and recalled visits to the park and a museum. A Muslim parent came in to talk to children about prayer, and such activities support children's cultural development well. The football club, run after school by an external agency, is very popular with both boys and girls and usefully promotes regular exercise. In the Foundation Stage, the curriculum is satisfactory. Right from the start in the Nursery, children are encouraged to be independent learners. However, the outdoor learning areas are not being used sufficiently well to provide exciting opportunities for independent learning throughout the day and in all weather conditions.

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Grade: 2

Care, guidance and support are good in all aspects of school life. The school's welcoming atmosphere and concern for individuals mean that children feel safe and secure. Parents comment on the good induction procedures for new children and value highly the home visits which ensure a smooth start to school. Academic targets in child-friendly language are in place across the school and most children are able to discuss their targets and explain why they need them. Careful and effective attention is given to health and safety issues and child protection. There are effective links with external support agencies to safeguard the needs of the most vulnerable children.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. There is a strong teamwork among the staff and newly appointed teachers have been inducted well. Having rightly identified the need to track the achievement of groups of children more effectively, the new leadership team already has plans to implement a new information and communication technology based system. Since the last inspection, the Foundation Stage leader has successfully tackled an area for improvement, introducing a shared language for discussing the assessment of children's learning. The two governors who met with the inspectors agreed they were not sufficiently informed about the school's performance to give the headteacher maximum challenge and support. 4 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006 .

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Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 5 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 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? 2 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 2 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

2 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 2 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 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 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. 6 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 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? 7 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you all for making us so welcome when we visited your school. Here is a list of the things we liked about your school ?You were polite, friendly and extremely well behaved. ?Your mums, dads and carers think that Valley is a good school and we agree with them. ?You enjoy school, come everyday and on time. ?Teachers encourage you to 'plan and do' your work. ?Adults care about you and make you feel safe. ?Circle time is fun and helps you to listen and take turns. ?Adults help you to have a healthy lifestyle. These are the things that we think need to improve • Teachers should check how much you are learning to make sure everyone is doing as well as they should. • Teachers should watch each other's lessons more often and look out for ways of making lessons even better ° you might have ideas for this as well. • Your governors need to ask more questions about how the school is run. Thank you again for being so helpful and friendly when we came to see you.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

8 Inspection Report: Valley Infant School, 19 °20 September 2006

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