Bournmoor Primary School

Inspection Report Bournmoor Primary School

p.1

114018 Unique Reference Number Durham Local Authority 289779 Inspection number 12 °13 December 2006 Inspection dates Margaret Shepherd Reporting inspector

p.1

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

p.1

Lambourne Close School address Primary Type of school Bournmoor, Houghton le Spring Community School category

p.1

Tyne and Wear, DH4 6HF 4 °11 Age range of pupils 0191 3854291 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0191 3854291 Fax number 111 Number on roll (school) Mr Alan Ramsey Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Sheila Williams Headteacher 1 September 2002 Date of previous school inspection

p.1

Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 289779 12 °13 December 2006 4°11 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 an Additional Inspector.

p.3

Description of the school

The school is half the size of average schools and serves a small village. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is higher than average. Children enter the school with standards that are average in most areas of learning but below average in communication and language. There are more pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities than usual, as well as more pupils with statements of special educational needs, particularly behavioural disabilities. A very small proportion of pupils have English as an additional language. Two per cent of pupils are looked after. In recent years, the school has had considerable staffing difficulties caused by long-term sickness. The school buildings are used for before and after-school provision.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006

p.3

Grade: 2

This is a good school. Parents appreciate its work. It provides a caring and supportive context for learning. Pupils’ personal development is good, with outstanding behaviour. This is particularly impressive when the proportion of pupils with behavioural disabilities is taken into account. Pupils enjoy being part of a small school and village community and take their responsibilities seriously. There is a very good school council, which represents pupils’ views well. Opportunities for pupils to develop future life skills are good. They include a firm grasp of basic skills and the confidence to stand up and speak in front of a large audience of parents and members of the community. Pupils have a good understanding of keeping safe and healthy. Achievement is good. The school organises the Reception provision carefully and the good quality teaching team ensures that these pupils achieve well. Pupils in Years 1

p.4

Grade: 2

and 2 make satisfactory progress and attain average standards. By the end of Year 6, standards and achievement have been inconsistent over time due to the staffing difficulties. In 2003, Year 6 pupils’ achievement was among the best in the country. This dropped to satisfactory in the next two years but improved to good last year. More able pupils achieve well, pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make steady progress but some average pupils do not achieve well enough over time. This does not apply to reading where all pupils make very good progress. Standards in Year 6 are above average, with reading standards being higher than writing and mathematics. Staff work together in effective partnerships. Teaching and learning are good with outstanding features. Teaching assistants support individuals and groups well and teachers make good use of interactive whiteboards. The pace of teaching is not always

p.4

Grade: 2

brisk enough and there are not enough opportunities for pupils to talk to each other to share their learning in whole class sessions. The school provides a good curriculum with plenty of opportunities for visits out of school and to receive visitors into school to enhance pupils’ learning. The inclusion of French and music specialists enriches pupils’ learning. The focus on the cultural, spiritual, moral and social provision ensures that pupils develop well in these areas. The school takes very good care of its pupils and provides very good personal guidance. It is not as effective in providing academic guidance, and pupils do not have a clear enough understanding of what they need to do to improve in relation to National Curriculum levels of attainment. The school is well led and managed by the headteacher and the governors. They work well together to make key decisions with a clear focus on raising standards. The decision

p.4

Grade: 2

to employ an additional teacher to allow smaller teaching groups in literacy and numeracy is working well. The headteacher knows every pupil very well and has set up a good range of systems to manage the school’s development. Improvement since the previous inspection has been satisfactory. The headteacher, governors and staff are keen and able to improve the work of the school and now that the staffing situation has stabilised, the school has a good capacity to improve. The school provides good value for money. 2 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

• Increase the rate of progress of the underachieving average ability pupils in writing and mathematics. • Ensure the pace of learning is brisk in all lessons and there are plenty of opportunities for pupils to talk to each other in order to share their learning in whole class sessions. • Improve the pupils’ understanding of what they need to do to improve in relation to National Curriculum levels.

p.5

Grade: 2

Achievement is good and by the time pupils leave the school standards are above average. The high standards in English are a result of every pupil making very good progress in reading. This is due to the frequency that pupils receive individual attention to develop their basic skills. Not every pupil reaches similar standards in writing. Children enter the school with standards that are at the expected level in most areas of learning but below average in communication and language. They make good progress in Reception because the teaching team focus carefully on their individual needs and provide a well-balanced curriculum. By the end of Reception, children are at the nationally expected level for their age. The school has suffered from disruption in the continuity of staffing in infant and junior classes. This has had a negative impact on progress over time and has only just stabilised in the infant classes, resulting in achievement being satisfactory. By the end

p.5

Grade: 2

of Year 2, standards are average. In 2003, progress over time in the junior classes was extremely high. The negative impact of the staffing difficulties reduced this to satisfactory in 2004 and 2005. The stabilisation in the staffing has increased pupils’ rate of progress and achievement is now good. The data shows that in 2006 all more able pupils achieved well and pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities made steady progress. The progress of the average pupils was mixed. Many made very good progress, but some did not make enough progress in their junior classes. The underachievement of some of the average attaining pupils is due to teachers not consistently giving these pupils work to match their needs. The higher proportion of boys with learning difficulties and/or disabilities results in boys’ attainment being lower than girls. Looked after pupils make good progress; this is because the school works hard to raise their confidence and targets

p.5

Grade: 2

their individual needs well. Pupils with English as an additional language achieve well. Pupils achieve particularly well in English in the Year 4/5 class because of the high quality of teaching. 3 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006

p.5

Grade: 2

The school places a clear priority on personal development and well-being, which are good. Pupils enjoy being part of the small school and village community and they take their responsibilities seriously. For example, older pupils support younger pupils well in their role as playground workers and around the school. The school council works well with councillors taking their classmates’ views into account when they make decisions that affect the school, such as identifying the need for playground equipment and choosing what was bought. Standards of behaviour are outstanding. The school supports pupils with behavioural difficulties very effectively and these pupils are successful in managing their behaviour in school. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Pupils are reverential in assemblies and enjoy the different cultural opportunities to extend their learning. There was a drop in attendance rates

p.6

Grade: 2

last year, but the school has effectively raised the rates back to the above average levels of the previous year. Pupils have a good understanding of keeping safe and healthy; they enjoy the good range of sporting activities and try hard to eat a healthy diet. Pupils develop confidence in speaking aloud and performing to large audiences through opportunities such as the Christmas productions. These skills, together with their good level of basic skills prepare them well for their future economic well-being.

p.6

Grade: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is good. There are some outstanding features in the Year 4/5 literacy teaching, resulting in some very high quality imaginative writing. Teachers work well with the teaching assistants and this supports pupils with behavioural difficulties and/or disabilities effectively. The management of behaviour is very good and pupils concentrate on their learning. The pace in lessons varies between teachers and within lessons. In the best lessons, there is no slowing of pace and pupils strive to keep up with the teacher’s challenges. Teachers organise the teaching of reading very well resulting in every pupil making good progress. Teachers target individual pupils systematically in whole class sessions but miss opportunities for them to discuss their learning with each other. Teachers do not identify areas of improvement in their marking in writing and mathematics effectively enough. The

p.6

Grade: 2

Reception/Year 1 class teaching team organise their time very effectively to ensure that pupils from the different year groups receive teaching that matches their needs.

p.6

Grade: 2

The curriculum is good. The introduction this year of organising pupils in smaller classes for literacy and numeracy is having a positive impact on most pupils’ achievement. It provides opportunities for teachers to interact more frequently in the smaller classes. 4 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006 The reading curriculum is good with a clear emphasis on basic skills and weekly opportunities for pupils to receive individual support. This results in good progress as pupils move through the school. The school has identified the need to provide more continuity in mathematics and has introduced a new scheme of work for this subject. It is too early to judge its impact on standards. The school enriches the curriculum well. The inclusion of a specialist in French and music provides pupils with good opportunities to develop their skills in these subjects. Pupils enjoy the regular visits

p.6

Grade: 2

out of school and welcome visitors into their school. The Reception curriculum is well balanced with a good emphasis on outdoor activities.

p.7

Grade: 2

The school makes very good use of its small size to support and care for its pupils. For example, adults work very effectively together and know individual pupils well. Pupils say that they are confident to go to any adult if they are worried. Safeguarding systems are in place. Pupils receive very good guidance for their personal development. They are not as sure about what they need to do to improve in academic areas in the long term. The school creates very good partnerships in the locality to extend the quality of its provision and values the views of parents and pupils. Parents are very appreciative of the school’s provision. The use of school accommodation for before and after-school care supports pupils needs well at either end of the school day.

p.7

Grade: 2

The headteacher and governors work well together to manage the challenges of a small school. The headteacher sets a clear educational direction for developments with an emphasis on promoting pupils’ personal and academic development. She welcomes pupils with behavioural difficulties into the school and supports staff well to ensure that these pupils settle in and make good progress. She knows every pupil very well and uses the small size of the school to create many informal systems that take the work of the school forward. She works closely with the efficient administrative team, which ensures that the school’s systems run smoothly. Coordinators carry a heavy load, but they set clear priorities to extend the work of the school in their subjects. The governors have a good understanding of the work of the school and make key decisions in order to raise standards further. For example, they appointed an additional

p.7

Grade: 2

teacher to reduce numbers in literacy and numeracy classes in order to raise standards. Improvement since the previous inspection is satisfactory. Although the school has improved some key aspects of its provision, staffing difficulties reduced the consistency of achievement over time. The school has resolved those difficulties and brought in some effective key organisational developments. Monitoring and evaluation of the school’s provision and standards is effective and school self evaluation is accurate. The headteacher, governors and staff are all committed to improving provision and this gives the school a good capacity to improve. 5 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006 .

p.7

Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 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 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

p.9

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 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

p.9

learners?

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

p.9

and interests of learners?

2 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: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 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: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Bournmoor Primary School Lambourne Close Bournmoor Houghton le Spring Tyne and Wear DH4 6HF 12 December 2006 Dear Pupils Thank you for being so welcoming to me when I came to your school. You were all so friendly and helpful in answering questions. I was really impressed with your behaviour, whether around the school, in your lessons or in the playground. The playground squad were particularly good. I thoroughly enjoyed your Christmas production. You were very confident in speaking to such a big audience and your singing was delightful. You know about keeping safe and healthy and try hard to eat fruit and vegetables. I thought that you worked hard in your lessons and you are particularly good at learning to read. Your teachers worked well with your teaching assistants and the way that you work in different classes for literacy and numeracy in the juniors is helping you to learn better. Your curriculum is good, particularly all the different visits you have and the interesting visitors

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

that come into your school. I was impressed with how well you are learning French. The staff work hard to look after you. Your headteacher knows you all very well and your governors have a good understanding of the things that are happening in your school and how to make it better. Your writing and your mathematics are not as good as your reading and I would like you to really try hard to get better in these subjects. Sometimes your lessons get a bit slow and I have asked your teachers to make sure that you keep working hard right through from the beginning to the end of lessons. I have also asked them to help you to understand what you need to do to improve your work. I really enjoyed our visit to your school and hope that you all do your best in future to make it an even better place to learn. Yours sincerely Maggi Shepherd Lead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Bournmoor Primary School, 12 °13 December 2006

p.11