Travis St Lawrence CofE Primary School

Inspection Report Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School

p.1

106766 Unique Reference Number Doncaster Local Authority 287604 Inspection number 6 °7 December 2006 Inspection dates Bill Keast Reporting inspector

p.1

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

p.1

Cuckoo Lane School address Infant Type of school Hatfield, Doncaster Voluntary aided School category South Yorkshire DN7 6QE 3 °7 Age range of pupils 01302 840200 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01302 849875 Fax number 181 Number on roll (school) Mr R Silvester Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Elizabeth Hallett Headteacher 19 March 2001 Date of previous school inspection

p.1

Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 287604 6 °7 December 2006 3°7 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.1

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.

p.2

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.

p.2

Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two Additional Inspectors.

p.3

Description of the school

This is an average sized school that draws its pupils from an area with pockets of deprivation. Nearly all pupils are of White British heritage. A small number of pupils are Traveller children and a very small number are at an early stage of learning English. An average proportion of pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The school has the Investor in People award.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.3

Grade: 1

This is an outstanding school that gives excellent value for money. Outstanding leadership and management have ensured that all adults understand what the school is trying to achieve for its pupils and how they can contribute towards this, whatever their role. The school lives out its mission statement through its Golden Rules and its care and concern for each pupil's well-being, development and achievement. The good curriculum meets the needs of all pupils well and there is consistently good teaching across the school. The quality of care, guidance and support for pupils' personal and academic development is excellent. Procedures for safeguarding pupils meet current government requirements. In this very positive learning environment pupils flourish. They enjoy coming to school and work hard and enthusiastically at the tasks and activities they are given. Their personal development is excellent; they are polite and behave well. Working closely

p.4

Grade: 1

with parents and the local junior school, an effective induction to the school and a smooth transfer onwards are achieved. Parents are helped to support their children's learning through innovative family learning projects. Experts, consultants and visitors are also very effectively used to promote pupils' learning and well-being. Pupils make outstanding progress from their attainment when they join the school. Attainment on entry to Nursery varies but overall is broadly as would be expected for children this age. Children's individual needs are quickly identified and tasks and activities are well planned to meet these. Standards and the provision in the Foundation Stage are good. When children begin Year 1, most have attained or exceeded the expected learning goals. At the end of Year 2 standards are well above average and have been so for the last six years. The most recent national assessments of Year 2

p.4

Grade: 1

pupils suggest even further improvement. Overall, standards in reading, writing and mathematics are exceptionally high. Pupils also make good progress in other subjects but do not attain as well at the higher levels as they do in English and mathematics. The school has identified this as an area for development. Leadership at all levels has ensured that monitoring and evaluation is accurate, detailed and focused, if sometimes a little modest. Areas for improvement are clearly identified and effective action is taken. Developing staff expertise is a high priority and resources are used efficiently to achieve this. The result is an effective, competent and forward-looking workforce that is driving the school forward. Improvement since the previous inspection has been very good and the school has an outstanding capacity for further improvement.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

• Increase the proportion of pupils attaining the higher levels in subjects other than English and mathematics. 2 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.4

Grade: 1

By the end of the Foundation Stage pupils have made good progress and attained the expected goals in all areas of learning. Standards at the end of Year 2 have been well above average for several years. In the 2006 national assessments standards rose even further and were exceptionally high in reading and writing and well above average in mathematics. This outstanding achievement is the result of consistently good quality teaching and the challenging targets that are set for pupils. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities also achieve well and have exceeded their similarly challenging targets. Standards in subjects other than English and mathematics are above expectations but fewer pupils than expected reach the higher levels. In their endeavour to raise standards further in these subjects the school is compiling portfolios of assessed work to help teachers accurately identify work at the higher levels to

p.5

Grade: 1

challenge pupils more. Throughout the school, there is no significant difference in the progress of different groups. Those at an early stage of learning English make good progress, as do Traveller pupils, although the standards of this latter group are affected by irregular attendance.

p.5

Grade: 1

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. Pupils understand the school's five Golden Rules and the impact these have on their relationships with each other and with adults. With the help of a 'feelings tree', pupils learn to talk about their own feelings from an early age. Consequently they can discuss and reflect on issues important to their daily lives. Pupils' enjoyment of learning is apparent in lessons and through their positive attitudes and good attendance. Parents commented on the quality of pupils' development: a typical report is 'My child has developed a love for learning.' The number of pupils choosing salad options to have with their meals shows their good understanding of healthy lifestyles; they also write knowledgeably about this issue. Pupils know about safe practices and have written to the local Member of Parliament expressing their concerns about the busy road by the

p.5

Grade: 1

school entrance. Pupils make a particularly strong and effective contribution to their school community through, for example, the playground buddy system and the regular school forum. All pupils are involved in the school forum and the quality of discussion is high. They take very seriously the application and interviewing procedures for being a buddy. All this, together with the excellent progress in basic skills, prepares pupils extremely well for the future. 3 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.5

Grade: 2

Work and activities are planned at different levels to meet pupils' differing needs. Very good relationships, based on the school's Golden Rules, lead to a positive learning environment. Teaching assistants and teachers work effectively together to promote learning. Marking shows pupils what they are doing well and how they can improve their work further. Teaching allows pupils time to think and clarify their ideas. Questioning is used effectively to encourage pupils to extend their explanations so that teachers can see how much they have understood. School procedures for praise and reward are effectively used to boost self-esteem and to motivate. Consistently good quality teaching, together with pupils' excellent attitudes to learning and their hard work, underpins their outstanding progress.

p.6

Grade: 2

The curriculum meets the needs of all pupils well. Good planning ensures that important skills, for example speaking and listening, are developed within all subjects. Focus days and weeks are effective in promoting understanding of aspects such as safe working and healthy lifestyles. Golden time, golden awards and the school forum are regular activities that effectively promote pupils' personal development. Parents are pleased with the curriculum, reporting, for example, 'We particularly like how children are given the opportunity to develop self-confidence and take on responsibilities.' Additional support programmes help those with identified learning difficulties and/or disabilities, or those identified as low attaining, to make good progress. Extra-curricular activities, often provided by volunteers or other experts, provide good enhancement and are very popular with pupils and their parents.

p.6

Grade: 1

Child protection procedures are comprehensive and all new staff are familiarised with the procedures. Pupils feel safe and are confident that they have someone to talk to if they have a problem. Burt the puppet is used very effectively to help pupils discuss important life issues and reflect on the needs of others. The school identifies potentially vulnerable pupils through rigorous analysis and tracking. Subsequent support often results in these pupils exceeding expectations in national assessment tasks. Teaching assistants play a key role in helping pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities to make good progress. Outside agencies and expertise are used as appropriate. Support for pupils with very individual needs is planned before they come to school, for example through specialist staff training. Rigorous procedures are used to track and monitor all pupils' achievement and pupils know their individual literacy and numeracy targets.

p.6

Grade: 1

These are regularly reviewed and updated so levels of attainment continue to rise. 4 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.6

Grade: 1

Leadership in the school is clearly focused on raising standards and promoting pupils' personal development. Maximising the progress made by each pupil is paramount. The very effective monitoring of performance is achieved through rigorous analysis of assessments and regular consultation with parents and pupils. Accurate and thorough self-evaluation, followed by well planned and focused action, leads to improvements. Issues raised by the previous inspection have been effectively tackled. Attendance has been raised from below to above average and the teaching of science investigations has improved, leading to more pupils reaching the higher levels. Governance is good. Governors know the school well and fulfil their responsibilities. They are very supportive, and through their challenging questions, are useful critical friends. 5 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.7

Grade: 1

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.8

Inspection judgements

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

p.9

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 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

p.9

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 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

p.9

learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 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 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

p.9

and interests of learners?

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

p.9

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: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.9

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: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you very much for being so welcoming when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and seeing you at work. Yours is an excellent school. Your headteacher is an outstanding leader and has made sure that all those working in school help you learn and develop as much as you can. You told us you enjoyed school and that you felt safe. You are very well cared for and your teachers are extremely good at giving you the help that you need. Good teaching and your hard work enable you to do really well. You enjoy all the activities that your teachers provide. These are helping you to understand how to stay safe and the importance of a healthy lifestyle very well. You understand your five Golden Rules and by following these you create a very happy and caring school. Your behaviour is good, you are polite and you take care of each other. Through your school forum you have a great opportunity to affect what goes on in your school and we

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

saw how you thought about ways you could improve wet playtimes. You learn how to put across your ideas and listen to others. You take responsibilities seriously, for example being playground buddies. All this is preparing you very well for your future both at school and beyond. Your teachers clearly understand the strengths of your school and where it could be improved. They work well together and with your parents to help you learn. We have asked them to make sure they all know what you need to do in all of your subjects to reach the highest standards. You can help by continuing to work hard and help each other. Well done. We hope you continue to enjoy your school and wish you and your school well for the future. 9 Inspection Report: Hatfield Travis Church of England Infant and Nursery School, 6 °7 December 2006

p.11