Speedwell Infant School

Inspection Report Speedwell Infant School

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112629 Unique Reference Number DERBYSHIRE Local Authority 289354 Inspection number 16 °17 January 2007 Inspection dates Andrew Cook 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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College Avenue School address Infant Type of school Staveley, Staveley Community School category Chesterfield, Derbyshire S43 3JJ 3 °7 Age range of pupils

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01246 472336 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01246 472336 Fax number 88 Number on roll (school) Mrs Julie Bacon Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Rowena Teather Headteacher 4 February 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 289354 16 °17 January 2007 3°7 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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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 one of Her Majesty's Inspectors and an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

This is a smaller than average infant school. The proportion of children who are eligible for free school meals is three times higher than the national average. The proportion of children with learning difficulties and disabilities is above average. The proportion of children with their first language not being English is well below the national average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school with good features. Achievement is sound and children think the school is a happy place to be in; they feel safe. The school is good at actively encouraging parents to get involved in the education of their children. For example, first thing in the morning parents are invited into school to help their children with a short task. Many parents, both mums and dads, take up this opportunity and the school becomes a hive of activity. The progress children make is satisfactory and improving. Recent improvements in the nursery are paying off. Children make satisfactory progress because of the effective teaching in a well managed room with good activities to help children learn. Children in the reception class also make satisfactory progress. Girls do better than boys but the school is working hard to help boys make better progress. Standards by the end of Year 2 are below average. The better progress has not yet resulted in more children

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Grade: 3

reaching average or above standards. Progress made by children with learning difficulties is sound; comparable with other groups in the school. Teaching is satisfactory but there is an increasing amount of good teaching that is helping children to make progress. In good lessons, teaching is lively, interesting and has high expectations for what children should be able to do. In satisfactory lessons, some opportunities are missed to help children learn quickly and move on to more challenging work. Children's personal development and well-being is good. Their behaviour is good and they look after and care for each other. Children know about healthy lifestyles and many drink water, eat fruit and exercise well. There are good opportunities for children to take on responsibilities, for example the 'Playground Friends,' who look out for children who need a friend. The curriculum is good, with a good range of extra clubs that children can choose

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Grade: 3

from, including the environmental club and French club. The school is constantly adapting the curriculum to meet the needs of different groups of children. Leadership and management is sound overall. The headteacher is good at leading a team of staff. She has made sure that governors and staff have an accurate overview of how well the school is doing and what needs to happen next to improve the school further.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Help boys to make better progress. • Increase the number of children who reach at least average standards by the end of Year 2. 2 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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Grade: 3

The progress children make from a below average starting point is satisfactory. This includes children in the nursery and reception class where the progress children make has significantly improved over the last three years and is now satisfactory. Girls make better progress than boys. The school is aware of this and is trying lots of different teaching styles to help boys learn more quickly. By the end of Year 2 standards are below average and too few children achieve standards that are average or above average. The school's checks on how well children are doing are beginning to show that some are making better progress. For example, more boys now make satisfactory progress compared to the group of boys that took the Year 2 tests in 2006. More children are making good progress in their writing and this proves that the work the children and teachers have done is having a good effect. The school is now on course for better

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Grade: 2

Children's personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is good. Children like coming to school, and attendance is good. The school is determined to improve attendance figures further with early start stickers, displayed percentages and telephone calls to parents. The children's good behaviour is evident throughout the day. They are keen to take part in lessons and other school activities. The children enjoy the school's reward systems and respond very positively to the 'Golden Rules' for behaviour. Children say they feel safe at school and know to whom they should turn to if they are having problems. As one six year old says, 'School is a happy place to be, I feel very safe.' Developing self-esteem is a school priority and achievements are acknowledged and celebrated in many ways so children can grow in confidence and feel proud. At lunch time they demonstrate a very good understanding

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Grade: 2

of healthy eating and taking regular exercise, enjoying the interesting activities provided. Year 2 children are given responsibility to be playground friends to help pupils of all ages play together safely and happily. Older children enjoy taking on responsibilities and the school council enables all pupils to contribute to improving the school. The skills children learn in literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology (ICT) give them a satisfactory chance of doing well in the future. 3 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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Grade: 3

Teaching is satisfactory with some good features. Teachers' management of children's behaviour is good and this helps them to get on with their work and learn. In some lessons seen, teachers were able to keep children working throughout the whole of the lesson by giving them tasks that were interesting and carefully matched to their different abilities. In one good lesson the children really enjoyed their teacher pretending to be 'Wiley Willy' the bad wolf in the story of the three pigs and they confidently joined in by shouting 'Huff Puff he blew that house down!' When teaching is satisfactory some opportunities are missed to help children learn quickly in all parts of the lesson. Lesson plans, although satisfactory, do not always make it clear how more able children will be challenged. The school has a number of part time teaching assistants who often provide good support for those who need extra help.

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Grade: 2

Watching Year 2 children concentrating in their T'ai Chi lesson is a good example of how the school has made the curriculum enjoyable. A good range of clubs also adds to the experiences children have. There are programmes to help those who need an extra boost to their learning and to help more able children do as well as they can. However, the curriculum does not always provide sufficient activities that engage boys and this is having a negative impact on their motivation and progress in some lessons. The school is making effective changes to the way boys are taught to compensate for this, and along with other initiatives, continues to develop the curriculum to match the needs of all. There are good opportunities for children to learn about different cultures and religions through visitors into the school and a good range of visits into the community. Provision for ICT has improved since the last inspection and is now

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Grade: 2

All children enjoy the safe and supportive environment the school provides. Good procedures for protecting and safeguarding pupils are in place. Procedures for vetting staff are fully in place, and health and safety checks are carried out regularly. Relationships in the school are good and children know that staff will help them overcome difficulties. These positive relationships, along with the work of the learning mentor, ensure children get good support to get on in school when they need it most. The older children are generally clear about what they need to do to improve their work by having targets in literacy and mathematics. Children with learning difficulties and disabilities are identified early and effective arrangements are put in place to help them make satisfactory progress. Lunch time staff make a significant contribution to 4 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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Grade: 2

the progress and well-being of the children by organising a good range of activities and encouraging children to behave well.

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Grade: 3

This is an improving school giving satisfactory value for money. The leadership of the headteacher provides a good role model for other leaders in the school. In a very positive way she encourages many in the school community to take on responsibilities. These include teachers, governors and parents. Her effective support and guidance ensures that satisfactory leadership and management in other areas makes things happen to improve the school. A good example is the successful work done in the nursery. The headteacher skilfully leads the work on checking how good the school is. Judgements made are accurate and clearly identify strengths and areas where improvements are needed. Parents and children are regularly asked to give their opinions and these are also used in a good way to help build up a picture of how effective the school is. Using all this information the school has written clear plans for improvements and is well on its way to achieving some challenging targets.

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Grade: 3

The governors provide satisfactory support and challenge. They have regular information that ensures they know what is happening but more could be done to help them know in greater detail about standards across the school and what is being done to improve them. The work of the headteacher and the way the school has improved is evidence that the school has a good capacity to continue to get even better. 5 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007 .

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Grade: 3

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 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 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

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 behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 2 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. 7 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 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? 8 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

18 January 2007 Dear Children Speedwell Infant School, College Avenue, Staveley, Chesterfield, Derbyshire, S43 3JJ I am writing to say thank you for being so friendly and helpful when we came to visit your school. We were very impressed with your good behaviour and the way in which you worked and played together. This is a list of some of the best things we found out about your school: • It was really good to see many of your mums and dads come into school in the morning to help you make a good start to the day. • Lots of children take on responsibilities like the play ground friends. • You have some good clubs to go to and some of your lessons are exciting. • All the adults care for you and make sure you feel safe in school. • Mrs Teather is doing a really good job as your headteacher and she is encouraging all the other adults to help. There are two things that we think everyone should work together to improve:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

• Boys - we have asked all the adults to help you work even harder than you do now to make sure you become very clever. • Boys and girls - we think more of you could try work that is a bit harder and we know that you will get help from the adults so that you can do it! I hope that everyone at Speedwell School keeps making it a special place to be in. Yours sincerely, Andrew Cook Her Majesty's Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Speedwell Infant School, 16 °17 January 2007

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