Alderman Payne Primary School

110644 Unique Reference Number CAMBRIDGESHIRE Local Authority 288730 Inspection number 21 °22 June 2007 Inspection dates David Wynford-Jones 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 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 78 School

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The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Paul Grooms Chair Mr Michael Hill Headteacher 16 September 2002 Date of previous school inspection Main Road School address Parson Drove Wisbech Cambridgeshire PE13 4JA

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01945 701401 Telephone number 01945 701275 Fax number

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4 °11 Age group 21 °22 June 2007 Inspection dates 288730 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 an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

This is a smaller than average primary school serving the village and the surrounding fenland area of Wisbech. The school shares the site with a pre-school group and a day centre for the elderly. The present headteacher took up his post in October 2006. Attainment on entry is broadly in line with the expected levels for children aged 4. Pupils come from diverse socio-economic backgrounds and many, but not all, are affected by the consequences of social deprivation. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is above the national average. The large majority of pupils are from White British backgrounds. The school holds the Basic Skills Quality Mark.

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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: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school. Following the recent appointment of the headteacher, appropriate steps are being taken to bring about improvements. The decline in standards is being tackled successfully; pupils' behaviour is much improved and more rigorous systems for monitoring and assessing pupils' progress have been introduced. Pupils say that, 'the headteacher puts pupils first'. Pupils' achievement is satisfactory. There are good links with the pre-school and children settle quickly into the reception class. They are given a sound start to their schooling and attain the nationally expected levels by the time they enter Year 1. Pupils with learning difficulties make satisfactory progress in relation to their starting points and needs. At Year 2, standards in reading and mathematics are broadly in line with national expectations. Standards at Year 6 are similar to those expected for pupils aged 11 although standards in mathematics and science

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Grade: 3

are higher than those in English. In 2006, standards in writing were low when compared to the national average but are now broadly in line with expectations. This is because the school has placed greater emphasis on ensuring pupils improve their skills in English. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Teachers know their pupils well and relationships are good. Recently introduced systems for assessing and tracking pupils' progress are being implemented successfully. As a result, teachers' expectations are higher and pupils who need additional support are identified earlier. Teachers are increasingly using information communication technology (ICT) to support their teaching and make lessons more interesting. Teaching assistants provide valuable support but are not always used effectively, particularly when pupils are taught as a whole class rather than in small groups. Pupils make satisfactory

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Grade: 3

progress overall but most pupils tend to make better progress in Years 5 and 6 because teaching is more often of a good standard. The curriculum is satisfactory. It is supported appropriately by a sound range of extra curricular activities, visits and visitors to the school. The curriculum supports aspects of pupils' personal development well. Overall, their personal development and well-being including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is satisfactory. Pupils have a good understanding of being healthy and staying safe. One pupil said 'we must not open doors to strangers because it could be dangerous'. They are developing their knowledge of supporting the local community well. Although pupils say they enjoy school, attendance levels are below average. Despite the school's attempts to encourage better attendance there is a small number of pupils whose rate of attendance is poor.

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Grade: 3

Care, support and guidance are satisfactory. This is because the school ensures pupils are well looked after and cared for. Health and safety and safeguarding requirements are met. Pupils are aware of their targets but much of the marking does not provide pupils with sufficient guidance on how to improve their work. Leadership and management are satisfactory. Sound progress has been made since the last inspection; although much of it has been achieved relatively recently. The school development plan clearly identifies the areas for improvement because the headteacher has a good grasp of the school's performance. He is rightly delegating responsibilities to other staff so that skills and expertise can be used more effectively to bring about improvements in pupils' learning. Governance is sound. Governors are supportive of the school and some hold the school to account well. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007

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What the school should do to improve further

• Raise standards and improve pupils' achievement in English. • Use the skills of teaching assistants and opportunities provided through marking to ensure pupils make better progress. • Use the skills and expertise of key staff to strengthen the school's ability to identify areas for improvement and take appropriate corrective action. • Raise the level of attendance to at least match the national average. A small proportion of 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

Achievement is satisfactory. When they enter the reception class, children's skills and knowledge in mathematics tends to be slightly better than their abilities in communication, language and literacy. The lack of space and direct access to the outdoor area hinders their physical development and restricts their ability to take the initiative for their learning. Nevertheless they make sound progress and their attainment is broadly in line with national expectations by the time they start Year 1. Overall standards in Year 2 for the last three years have been broadly similar to the national average. However, the overall figures mask significant variations. In 2006, standards in reading and mathematics were above average but were low in writing. There is a similar pattern of lower standards in writing over the last five years but this is now being successfully reversed because teachers are focussing more on teaching the basic skills

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Grade: 3

of reading and writing and providing more opportunities for pupils to speak and listen in lessons. In 2006, standards by the end of the year in Year 6 were above average in English and mathematics and average in science. Standards over time in English have varied significantly. Standards in the current Year 6 are broadly in line with national expectations. Although the standards in Year 6 are lower than previous years, these pupils are making satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' personal development is satisfactory overall. Pupils are developing a good understanding of healthy living. Many are eager to take part in sporting activities and know the importance of eating healthily. They are keen to become members of the school council and make a contribution to the day-to-day running of the school. Links with the local community are good and pupils enjoy raising funds to support charities. Pupils say they 'enjoy their visit to the day centre and entertaining the senior citizens'. They agree 'they like seeing the smiles on the people's faces'. This contributes effectively to pupils understanding of their social responsibilities. Pupils stated that teachers deal fairly with any incidents; they feel safe and know who to talk to if they are worried. They are confident that behaviour is improving following the recently introduced changes and all know the school theme of R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Although

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Grade: 3

there are still a few pupils who do not behave as well as they should, overall, behaviour is good. Most pupils like coming to school and the attendance and punctuality of the majority is satisfactory. However, the attendance figures are well below the national average because, despite the efforts of the school, a small but significant number of pupils fail to attend regularly. Pupils develop the basic skills to support them in their future lives satisfactorily. They are keen 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007 to find out about other ways of life and religions, but their knowledge of other cultures is less well developed.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. There is some, but not enough, good teaching, as a result pupils only make satisfactory progress. In the better lessons teachers use questioning strategies effectively, provide pupils with the opportunity to discuss their work and challenge their thinking. Pupils are given clear targets in English and mathematics and pupils have a reasonable understanding of what they need to do to improve their work, but this is not the case in science and other subjects. In some lessons the pace is too slow and the work is not well matched to the interests of the pupils. This results in some pupils losing interest and, at best, only making satisfactory progress. Skills taught in English and mathematics lessons are not systematically re-enforced in other lessons. The monitoring and assessment of pupils' work in English and mathematics is developing satisfactorily and information from assessments is being used appropriately to plan lessons.

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Grade: 3

These are better matched to the needs of the pupils. Teaching assistants often work well with groups or with individuals but they are not always used to best effect while the whole class is being taught. Pupils with learning difficulties receive sound support and this enables them to make the expected rate of progress.

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Grade: 3

The school provides a broad curriculum. An appropriate emphasis is placed on developing pupils' basic skills in literacy and numeracy lessons but these skills are not always reinforced well enough in other subjects. Links between subjects are being identified but this work is not yet sufficiently well developed to impact on provision. The headteacher has produced a sound curriculum plan, to be implemented in September 2007, which tackles these matters. There are strengths in the art and physical education curriculum and pupils achieve well in these subjects. Appropriate use is made of the new computers and the interactive white boards as an aid to pupils' learning. Aspects of healthy living, staying safe, and the development of skills to help pupils in their future lives are re-enforced well. However, there are insufficient opportunities for pupils in the reception class to use the outdoor areas for learning. Pupils enjoy the sound

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Grade: 3

range of after-school activities and opportunities to take part in sporting competitions. They appreciate visits to places of interest and benefit from visitors to the school. They spoke enthusiastically about visiting the theatrical company and the 'Egyptian performance'.

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Grade: 3

The school provides a safe and secure environment where all pupils are well looked after. Child protection arrangements are effective and those pupils who are particularly vulnerable are treated carefully and sensitively. Procedures to identify pupils with learning difficulties are satisfactory and advice and support is secured from outside agencies when appropriate. Pupils appreciate the caring attitude shown by all staff and pupils. One pupil said, 'If you are not 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007 happy, people come over to you'. Risk assessments are in place and the statutory requirements relating to the monitoring of staff appointments are being met. The recently introduced system for recording pupils' assessments and identifying targets is beginning to have a positive effect on raising teachers' expectations and starting to impact on standards in English and mathematics. Pupils are aware of their targets but are not always clear

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Grade: 3

about what they have to do to achieve them. Much of the marking in other subjects is superficial. Some work is unmarked.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management of the school are satisfactory. The headteacher has been particularly successful in promoting a caring and inclusive school. One pupil said 'we know everyone and everyone is nice most of the time'. Much has been accomplished within the last nine months including, promoting the values of the school; reviewing the curriculum and establishing a system to track pupils' attainment and progress. This is contributing to improving standards and pupils' behaviour. Co-ordinators are not yet sufficiently involved in monitoring and evaluating the quality of teaching and learning and contributing to the overall development of the school. The school development plan is sound and has been updated but some measures by which it can be evaluated lack clarity. Many of the development areas are not linked to pupils' learning and outcomes. Communication with parents could be improved to avoid some

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Grade: 3

misunderstandings. Governance is sound. Governors are supportive and know there is still work to be done to bring about further improvements to the school. Overall the school's capacity to improve is satisfactory. Given the standards the school achieves and the progress the pupils make, the school provides sound value for money. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 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: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 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? 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? 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?

3 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The behaviour of learners 3 The attendance of learners 3 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 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 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

23 June 2007 Dear Pupils, Inspection of Payne Primary School, Parsons Drove, Wisbech, PE13 4JA Thank you very much for making me so welcome when I visited your school. I really enjoyed my visit and meeting and talking to you. I thought that you were very friendly and polite. Your behaviour in class and in the playground was good. I was very pleased to hear that you like coming to school but surprised that the attendance of so many of you is not good enough. Your school is a satisfactory school and does a lot of things well. Your headteacher and teachers work hard to make certain that you are safe and well cared for. You have certainly learnt a lot about being healthy and being safe. The standards you reach in reading, writing and mathematics are similar to those in other schools. You have made a lot of improvements in your writing recently. Well done! Your school can improve further. You can make better progress in your work and achieve higher

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

standards, especially in English. Your teachers will help you to do this by making sure your work is always marked as thoroughly as it can be. This will include giving you more guidance on what you have to do next to improve the standards that you are reaching. Teachers who have responsibilities for subjects will check carefully that you are making good progress. You too can play your part by working hard and by being in school. Your teacher cannot teach you if you are not there. Let's see those attendance figures improving rapidly! Once again, thank you for making our visit so enjoyable. Best wishes David Wynford Jones Lead inspector. 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Payne Primary School, 21 °22 June 2007

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