Henry Bradley Infant School

Inspection Report Henry Bradley Infant School

p.1

112519 Unique Reference Number DERBYSHIRE Local Authority 289310 Inspection number 5 March 2007 Inspection date John Foster Reporting inspector

p.1

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

p.1

Princess Street School address Infant Type of school Brimington, Chesterfield Community School category Derbyshire S43 1HR 3 °7 Age range of pupils 01246 273857 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01246 540795 Fax number 200 Number on roll (school) Mr Nigel Sumner Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Irene Birkin Headteacher 19 November 2001 Date of previous school inspection

p.1

Inspection number Inspection date Age group 289310 5 March 2007 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 one Additional Inspector.

p.3

Description of the school

Henry Bradley Infant School is of average size and almost all pupils are of White British descent. A few are of other White, mixed or Asian heritage. A very small number do not have English as their first language. When they start school, children's attainment is well below that expected for three-year-olds. Though the percentage of pupils with learning difficulties is below average, the percentage with a statement of special educational need is higher than average. The proportion of pupils entitled to a free school meal is similar to that found in most schools.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

p.3

Grade: 1

This is an outstanding school giving excellent value for money. Leadership and management are excellent. Superbly led by the headteacher, all the staff work hard to maintain the high levels of achievement and standards reached by pupils. The systems established for monitoring the school's performance are excellent, giving a clear indication of its many strengths and enabling staff to plan exceptionally well to improve its performance even further. The governors are well involved in the life of the school and play an active part in checking how well it is doing. Parents are fully supportive of the school and, as one parent wrote, 'To me this is a lovely school, which I would recommend to anyone.' Pupils make outstanding progress and achieve exceptionally well. For the past four years, their attainment has been significantly above average when they leave the school. This is the direct result of the excellent teaching they receive. From the outset,

p.4

Grade: 1

when they start in Nursery, children are encouraged to work hard and do their best. Meticulous planning of activities in the Foundation Stage gives children an excellent start to school life, though more outdoor activities should be undertaken. Throughout the school, challenging targets are set for pupils and the teachers give them clear and accurate guidance on how to achieve these. The outstanding quality of teaching is due to high quality planning for pupils of all ability levels, the teachers' expertise and the high expectations they have of their pupils. Pupils' personal development and the arrangements for their care are outstanding and paramount to the overall provision. Child protection arrangements are well established and children say that they feel safe in school. The school caters for pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development excellently, through, for example, links to local

p.4

Grade: 1

churches and activity weeks that enhance their understanding of a wider range of cultures. Attendance levels are below those found nationally as some parents do not recognise the benefit of regular attendance. Whilst the school monitors the situation very efficiently, levels of absence remain too low. Pupils are encouraged to live healthy lifestyles and the school provides many activities, both in school time and as after-school clubs, to allow pupils to engage in physical activities. They take a very active part in the community. Within the school, for example, the school council represents the voice of pupils in suggesting how the school could be improved. The outstanding curriculum is arranged so that all pupils take part in an excellent range of exciting activities. These include visits, such as to theatres and work places, which enable the children to experience first-hand what life is like beyond their village. The

p.4

Grade: 1

school aims to make learning fun and is very successful in doing so.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

• Develop the facilities for outdoor learning for children in the Foundation Stage and use these to greater effect to extend learning opportunities. • Further monitor pupils' attendance and punctuality in order to improve attendance levels. 2 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

p.4

Grade: 1

Pupils' achievement is outstanding and they reach well above average standards due to the excellent teaching. Children start in the Nursery with attainment that is well below that expected for their age. Identified by the school as particular weaknesses, the areas of communications, language and literacy and knowledge and understanding of the world, form the basis of much of the work in the Foundation Stage. As a result, they make excellent progress in the Nursery and Reception classes and by the time they enter Year 1 reach standards that are broadly average. This high level of progress continues throughout Key Stage 1 and in the 2006 Year 2 national assessments, more than half of the pupils reached above average standards (Level 3) in reading and mathematics, whilst twice the national figure reached this level in writing. Pupils' standards, year-on-year, are significantly higher than found in schools nationally,

p.5

Grade: 1

indicating outstanding progress made by the pupils. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities make similarly outstanding progress to other groups of pupils. The school sets very challenging targets and these are invariably met.

p.5

Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development is outstanding. The school plans very carefully to allow pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development to be of the highest quality. For example, the very small number of families from minority ethnic backgrounds in the area means that pupils have limited understanding of different cultures, so the staff ensure that pupils become aware of the multi-cultural mix in Britain. Attendance levels are low and, although the school has effective methods for monitoring pupils' attendance, these levels have failed to improve. The major reason for the low levels is the high rate of unauthorised absence which is condoned by parents. Pupils' attitudes are excellent and their behaviour is exemplary. The school council, selected by the staff, works well to develop the school through, for example, helping other children at playtimes by acting as playground buddies. Pupils know about and actively enjoy healthy lifestyles through such things as arranged

p.5

Grade: 1

physical activities and the provision of fruit. They contribute well to the community such as when they entertain the elderly with Christmas carols and mount displays in the village library. Pupils are well prepared for future life through the high standards they reach in English and mathematics and the close links established with the receiving junior school. 3 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

p.5

Grade: 1

The quality of teaching is outstanding, leading to excellent learning. Teachers' planning is precise and very effective in identifying the individual needs of their pupils. All pupils, including those with learning difficulties and disabilities and the more able, are set challenging work to enable them to achieve as well as they can. The very good relationships between teachers and their pupils help the pupils to make such good progress, because they trust their teachers totally, and work hard for them. The teaching assistants are fully involved in the teaching and their skills are used well by the teachers to give pupils exceptional support in their learning. The procedures for assessing pupils' work are well established and the results are used very well in setting challenging targets for future learning.

p.6

Grade: 1

The school provides an outstanding curriculum. From the time they arrive in Nursery, the curriculum is aimed at encouraging children to make the best progress possible. The school recognises, however, that the outdoor learning area for children in the Foundation Stage is not used regularly enough. Whilst difficulty of access for the Reception children is one reason for this, the school does not plan well enough for its regular use. Visits and visitors are used very well to enhance the curriculum. Pupils are taken to local supermarkets to see how they operate and to a local pizza maker to make their own pizzas, which they bring back to school for lunch, and the older pupils visit the theatre in Sheffield. During inspection an African week was being held, and pupils observed and drew African masks. To celebrate National Book Week, pupils were invited to dress up as characters from their favourite book and to bring a copy

p.6

Grade: 1

of the book to school, an excellent activity to encourage a love of books. Activities arranged for pupils beyond the normal school day help them to develop well. These include sporting and musical activities.

p.6

Grade: 1

The school's arrangements for care, guidance and support are excellent. The arrangements for child protection are fully established and all staff know the procedures to follow if they have concerns over any child. The children say that they feel safe in school and would readily go to an adult for help if they had a problem. The 'worry box' is an excellent support for pupils who are too reticent to ask for help. They write their name on a card if they have concerns and a member of staff will contact them to discuss their problem. Academic guidance is excellent. Teachers assess pupils' work carefully and ensure that the pupils know what they need to do to improve their work. 4 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007 This results in high levels of challenge for the pupils, leading to the outstanding progress.

p.6

Grade: 1

Leadership and management are outstanding. The headteacher is an inspirational leader and is fully supported by the excellent deputy headteacher. Together they form an outstanding leadership team which, coupled with the excellent role played by the subject co-ordinators in managing their subjects, is the major factor in determining the school's outstanding performance. A programme of regular lesson observations by senior managers and co-ordinators means that all managers know how effectively the school is developing. Governance is good. This is an improvement since the previous inspection. Governors visit the school regularly and hold the school to account for its performance. They undertake observations and discuss with the co-ordinators how well the particular subjects for which they have responsibility are developing. The school's systems for monitoring its performance are exemplary and used well to ensure

p.7

Grade: 1

further development through effective planning for the future. 5 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007 .

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: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

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 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

p.9

learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 3 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 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: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

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: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

6 March 2007 Dear Children Henry Bradley Infant School, Brimington, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, S43 1HR As you know, I came into school earlier this week to see how you were getting on with your work and I would like to thank you for the welcome you gave me and for the ways in which you helped me to do my work. This letter is to let you know what I found out about your school. You are extremely fortunate to go to such an outstanding school, where all the adults care for you greatly and do everything possible to give you the best education. Mrs Birkin and all the staff have arranged many activities for you to help with your learning and to make it fun, such as the African Week that was taking place when I was in school. The teachers work very hard to give you an excellent education and you told me that you enjoy coming to school. I was very impressed with your excellent behaviour and the ways in which you care for each other. You

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

told me that you feel safe at school and that if you have a problem there is always an adult you can talk to, or you can leave a note in the worry box. In order to make your school even better I have asked Mrs Birkin, the staff and governors to develop the outdoor area for Nursery and Reception children and to make sure that it is used regularly by the children in these classes to help them to learn. You can also make sure that you do even better at school by attending school regularly. Some of you have too many days away from school and this slows down the progress you make. With best wishes for the future Yours sincerely John Foster Lead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Henry Bradley Infant School, 5 March 2007

p.11