Roman Way Primary School

Inspection Report Roman Way Primary School

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116038 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 290406 Inspection number 2 °3 November 2006 Inspection dates Mike Thompson 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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Roman Way School address Primary Type of school Andover Community School category SP10 5JY 4 °11 Age range of pupils 01264352118 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01264352381 Fax number 183 Number on roll (school) Mr Tom Prentice Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Ruth Comley Headteacher 20 May 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 290406 2 °3 November 2006 4°11 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 two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Roman Way Primary serves a socially and economically disadvantaged area. Almost all of its pupils are of white British heritage. Over half have learning difficulties or disabilities. This proportion is more than twice the national average. At the time of the inspection the headteacher had been in post for about a year and the deputy headteacher for less than a term.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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Grade: 3

Roman Way Primary provides its pupils with a satisfactory education. It has a number of strengths, mostly relating to pastoral care and welfare. Children are given a sound start to their education in the Reception class. When they begin school, their levels of attainment are low. In particular, they have poor social and very poor communication skills. They make satisfactory progress, but fall well short of most of the goals expected of children by the time they transfer to Year 1. Pupils' achievement and progress are satisfactory in Years 1 to 6. By the end of Years 2 and 6 standards are significantly below average. The quality of teaching is satisfactory, but there are pockets of good practice. Teachers are generally good at managing their pupils but their skills in questioning their pupils vary, and so pupils learn better in some classes than in others. The curriculum is satisfactory, but pupils are not always given enough opportunities to apply the basic

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Grade: 3

skills learned in numeracy and literacy when they are working in other subjects. Computers not used often enough to help pupils learn. The quality of care, guidance and support provided for pupils is satisfactory, with strengths in day-to-day care offset by weaknesses in the systems used to check on pupils' progress. These weaknesses have resulted in pupils not being targeted accurately enough for extra help at an early stage of their education. The leadership and management of the school are satisfactory. The educational direction provided has not yet ensured that the pupils make good progress. The procedures in place for monitoring pupils' progress are mostly informal. Although they give a reasonably accurate general overview of standards and achievement, they are neither rigorous nor systematic. The lack of good quality, detailed information about the performance of individual pupils adversely affects the ability of leaders to consider

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Grade: 3

the impact of their actions on the achievement of the pupils. The leadership has, however, created a welcoming environment for the pupils in which they all feel safe, well cared for, and valued. One pupil summed this up well when saying, 'What I like best is the teachers. They are always there to help you when you need it.' The standards of pupils' personal development and well-being are good. Pupils generally behave well. Most pupils get on well with one another and show good social skills.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Improve the quality of teaching by sharing and adopting the good practice to be found in some classes. • Ensure that the systems for tracking pupils' progress provide good quality information, and that this information is used to give targeted help for individuals whenever it is needed. • Improve the monitoring of pupils' achievement and progress by leaders at all levels. 2 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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Grade: 3

Pupils' rates of progress vary from class to class, reflecting the inconsistencies in the quality of teaching to be found within the school. Children in the Foundation Stage make very good progress in developing their social skills. This happens because of the strong focus placed on this vital element of their early development. Progress in the other areas of learning is satisfactory. In Key Stages 1 and 2, pupils do best in Year 6. This is the result of good teaching and the targeted help provided through, for example, 'booster sessions' to help raise attainment prior to the annual national tests. Despite this, standards are generally well below average in English, mathematics and science. Pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities, who comprise the majority in most classes, make satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Attendance is close to the national average. Most pupils attend regularly and are punctual. They get on well with one another and have a keen awareness of right and wrong. Their behaviour is good. The reasons for the school's 'Healthy School' award are evident in the pupils' good understanding about sensible eating habits and how to keep healthy. However, the school cook reports a decline in the take-up for school meals since healthy-eating menus were introduced. Pupils' keen awareness of how to keep safe is apparent in the consideration they show as they play together. Pupils are satisfactorily prepared for the next stage of their education and their future as life-long learners. Their social skills are good, but they generally lack secure basic skills in numeracy and literacy. Pupils develop a good sense of community responsibility through, for example, their

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Grade: 2

school council and fund-raising efforts for organisations such as the 'Honey Pot' for underprivileged children in Hampshire.

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Grade: 3

In the Reception class, the teacher uses a range of resources and strategies to make learning enjoyable and appropriate to young children. As a result they become confident learners and achieve particularly well in their personal, social and emotional development. Throughout the school, teachers are good at managing their pupils and in creating a good climate for learning in which pupils are able to concentrate without being 3 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006 disturbed by others. Teachers also use their knowledge about pupils well to challenge and help them when working with individuals or small groups. However, not all teachers do this as effectively in whole class sessions. In these situations their questioning does not generally require pupils to explain their answers. Where this happens, not all pupils learn as well as they could. Teachers relate well to their pupils. In return, pupils are

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Grade: 3

keen to contribute to learning. Some teachers' expectations of pupils' presentation of their work are too low. Consequently, the work produced is often very untidy. This is an area the school has identified for improvement.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum in the Reception class is based on all areas of learning and provides good opportunities for children to be independent and confident learners. In Key Stages 1 and 2, the school rightly prioritises pupils' learning in literacy and numeracy. It also provides appropriate support for the large number of pupils with learning and behavioural difficulties. This helps all pupils to achieve satisfactorily from a low starting point. A good feature of the curriculum is the range of additional activities provided to help to enrich pupils' learning. These include visits to places of interest, such as the New Forest, and visitors to the school, such as the police 'Getting it Right' initiative. The good range of after school clubs, provided by the staff, is greatly appreciated by the pupils. One of them commented, 'Our school is good because we get to do a lot of extra things like music, drama and art'. There are, however, not enough opportunities

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Grade: 3

for pupils to apply their literacy and numeracy skills in other subjects. Too little use is made of information and communication technology (ICT) to help pupils learn in other areas of the curriculum. This is because the ratio of computers to pupils falls well short of the national average.

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Grade: 3

A particular strength in the care that is offered to pupils is the way in which staff build pupils' self-confidence and cultivate 'can do' attitudes towards work. Procedures to protect pupils are secure, and school is continually evaluating the effectiveness of systems to ensure pupils' safety. The school uses specially designed programmes to help develop pupils' social and emotional well-being and these are having a positive impact on their behaviour. The school recognises that the way in which it tracks pupils' progress lacks rigour and consequently the information gained is not detailed enough. As a result, the pupils who are not doing as well as they could are not always identified at an early enough stage, and therefore the specific extra help that they need is not being given. The school uses assessment information to set satisfactory targets for improvement. Although some pupils are aware of their targets, not all pupils are yet sufficiently

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Grade: 3

involved in evaluating what they do well and what they need to improve. 4 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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Grade: 3

The school's evaluation of its own effectiveness is satisfactory. It identifies the strengths to be built on and the weaknesses to be addressed. However, the judgements made are sometimes too generous and do not always give enough emphasis to the impact of weaknesses on pupils' achievement. The school has a satisfactory capacity for further improvement. In the short period since her appointment, the headteacher has put in place a number of initiatives designed to raise standards, including the development of more robust systems for assessing and tracking pupils' progress. However, it is too soon for the impact of these to be seen. The school works well in partnership with a range of outside professional groups, such as social services, to sustain good standards of pastoral care for its pupils. Academic standards remain well below average. To some extent this is because the actions of managers are not focused sharply enough on monitoring pupils' achievement.

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Grade: 3

The staff work well as a team and give good support to the headteacher. Governance is satisfactory. Governors are supportive and are well informed. However, there are vacancies on the governing body. This means that the responsibility for overseeing the work of the school has to be carried out by too few people. 5 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006 .

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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: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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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? 4 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 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. 7 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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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: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

I would like to tell you what your inspectors think about how well you are getting on and how well your school is helping you to learn. We think that your school is satisfactory overall, with some things that are good. We think that you are making reasonable progress, but we would like your work in English, mathematics and science to be much better than it is. We know that with the help of your teachers, you could do even better. Here are some of the things we liked best about your school. • Your school is a happy place to be in. Everyone is friendly and welcoming. Your behaviour is good. • There are lots of extra things for you to do, such as the after school clubs or trips to interesting places that help to make learning more interesting. • All of the adults in your school make sure that you are safe and are really well looked after. Your headteacher and all of the other people who help run your school want it to be even

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

better, so this is what we have suggested they should do next. • Make sure that when other teachers come to look at what you are doing they share the good things that they see with all the other classes. • Make sure that all the teachers and the governors keep really close checks on how well you are doing. • Make sure that you are quickly given extra help whenever you find any of your work difficult. With best wishes for your future success, Mike ThompsonLead inspector 9 Inspection Report: Roman Way Primary School, 2 °3 November 2006

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