Nightingale Primary School

Nightingale Primary School Inspection report

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116256 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 290473 Inspection number 29 January 2007 Inspection date 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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Primary Type of school Community School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 225 School

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The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Di Pound Chair Mr Matt O'Brien Headteacher 17 February 2003 Date of previous school inspection Blackbird Road School address Nightingale Avenue Eastleigh SO50 9JW

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02380613588 Telephone number 02380653048 Fax number

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4 °11 Age group 29 January 2007 Inspection date 290473 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

Nightingale is an average-size primary school. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities is broadly average. The pupils are grouped into nine classes. In all but two of these, pupils from two different year groups are taught together. There has been a high turnover of teaching staff within the past few terms. In addition, the headteacher left at the end of the summer term 2006. Following his departure, an acting headteacher took over the running of the school during the autumn term. At the time of the inspection, a new permanent headteacher had been in post for three weeks.

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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: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007

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Grade: 3

Nightingale Primary provides its pupils with a satisfactory education. Its overall effectiveness has been adversely affected by the significant changes in staffing over the past few terms. Many teachers are relatively new to their posts and have yet to develop skills in leading and managing the subjects areas for which they are responsible. The summer of 2006 was a difficult time for the school. The headteacher left and the Chair of Governors resigned. During the autumn term 2006, an acting headteacher did much to stabilise the school and raise the confidence of staff. Since then, the new headteacher has quickly developed a clear view of what needs to be done to improve the achievement and progress of the pupils. The accuracy of his evaluation of the school is confirmed by the outcomes of the inspection. Children in the Foundation Stage are given a satisfactory start to their education in the Reception

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Grade: 3

classes. When children begin school at the age of four their attainment is well below what is normally expected at this age. They make satisfactory progress, and are close to most of the goals expected of children by the time they transfer to Year 1. There is clear evidence of good teaching, but its impact on children's learning is lessened by the way in which the children in the Reception year are grouped. The current arrangements, in which there are two mixed-age classes of Reception and Year 1, adversely affect the provision for children's outdoor learning. The Reception children in one of the classes do not have ready access to the outdoor learning area, and those in the other class do not benefit enough from outdoor learning and the interaction with adults it generates. This is because the staff also need to work with the Year 1 pupils within the class. Pupils achieve satisfactorily and make steady progress in Years 1 to 6. By the time they leave

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Grade: 3

at the end of Year 6, standards overall are close to the national average. The teaching and the curriculum are satisfactory. There are many good features of the teaching, but teachers are not always good enough at planning different tasks for pupils of different ages and abilities within the mixed-age classes. The consequence of this is that, sometimes, not all pupils are challenged enough and progress is not quite as good as it should be. The school provides good care, guidance and support for its pupils. The 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. The new headteacher has not yet been in post long enough to have an impact on pupils' achievement, but he and his managers provide satisfactory direction for the work of the school. Some changes and initiatives, such as the increased focus on improving attendance are beginning

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What the school should do to improve further

• Improve the rates of progress made by pupils by ensuring that teachers always provide them with achievable challenges matched to their different ages or abilities. • Ensure that children in the Reception classes have full access to a good quality curriculum for outdoor learning. • Improve the leadership and management skills of subject leaders. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007

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Grade: 3

When pupils move from Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 2, at the end of Year 2, standards are below average in reading, writing, and mathematics. The pupils make satisfactory progress at best. One of the reasons for this, identified by the school, is that teachers' expectations of the pupils were not previously high enough. A clear plan of action is already in place to address this issue. About a quarter of the parents surveyed prior to the inspection returned their questionnaires. Of these, a small number commented that the progress of their children had, in previous terms, been adversely affected because there had been a high number of temporary supply teachers used in Year 2. There was no evidence of this at the time of the inspection. By the end of Year 6, standards in English are slightly below the national average, while standards in mathematics and science are slightly above. Pupils have satisfactory skills in literacy and

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Grade: 3

numeracy, and generally use them to good effect. All pupils progress at the same steady rate, regardless of gender or ability.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Pupils behave well in school and at play. They have positive views about their school, particularly regarding the good quality of relationships evident throughout. One pupil commented, 'I like this school because it's so much fun. People are often laughing and the teachers sometimes play tricks on us!' Pupils say that bullying is not a problem. When it does occur, they feel that teachers deal with it well. Attendance is below the national average. Despite the school's efforts, a very small number of pupils do not attend regularly enough or are late arriving, and their progress suffers. The school is now doing all it can to remedy this situation. The attendance records for the few weeks from the start of term to the inspection show that there has been an improvement since the appointment of the new headteacher. Pupils have a reasonable understanding of how to be

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Grade: 2

safe, and have a satisfactory knowledge about the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. They always eat healthily when taking school meals. Pupils are satisfactorily prepared for the next phase of their education and for their future economic well-being. Their skills in teamwork and their diligent approach to tasks are good, and their basic skills in literacy and numeracy are satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

Teachers usually manage their pupils well. They give clear explanations and generally relate well to their pupils. They are often good at making learning interesting and enjoyable. However, teachers make too little use of the information they have about pupils' abilities when they plan work for them. As a result, work is not always pitched at different levels to reflect the range of pupils' attainment within each class. Teachers' marking of pupils' work often provides pupils with useful suggestions as to how they could improve, but these comments are rarely acted upon. Further weaknesses in assessment have resulted in the over-estimation of children's capabilities in the Foundation Stage. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007

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Grade: 3

The school's curriculum gives appropriate priority to developing crucial skills in literacy and numeracy. Themes for study that combine subjects, such as a project about Eastleigh during the Second World War, make good use of local resources, are popular with the pupils, and help bring learning to life for them. Teachers report that, because the number and composition of the mixed-age classes changes from year to year, planning has to be constantly reviewed to ensure that work is neither repeated nor missed out. This occurs because the curriculum plan is not yet flexible enough to accommodate such changes. In addition, there is no evidence of teachers using their evaluations of pupils' learning to adapt their future planning or to plan consistently for the full range of abilities within the mixed-age classes. A good range of interesting activities extends pupils' learning beyond the classroom.

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Grade: 2

Pupils feel secure in school and there are good systems in place that are regularly reviewed to ensure their safety. The school works well with professional agencies, such as social services, to help ensure the good care of vulnerable pupils. The needs of pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities are monitored closely. The school provides a healthy menu for pupils at lunchtime, and this is popular with pupils. The quality of academic guidance given to pupils is satisfactory overall. The strengths of academic guidance relate to the systems for tracking pupils' progress and setting targets for them to achieve. The weaknesses relate to teachers' use of assessment information to ensure pupils' good progress. Older pupils have clear individual targets to achieve, and these are based on the National Curriculum statements of attainment. Pupils' progress is carefully checked. The school has recently changed from a paper-based system to the use of tracking software.

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Grade: 2

It acknowledges that this system needs to be refined further in order to give managers an overview of pupils' development from Year 1 to Year 6 in each subject. The school is aware of the mismatch between the assessment of children at the end of the Foundation Stage and their observed attainment in Year 1. It has responded to this by using assessments made at the start of Year 1 as the basis for tracking their progress from that point. It now recognises the need to review its assessment practice in the Foundation Stage.

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Grade: 3

The school's evaluation of its own effectiveness is satisfactory. The formal self-evaluation document, on which inspection is based, is almost a year out of date. This is because it was not reviewed and amended during the period in which the management of the school changed. Consequently, the impact of significant changes in staffing is not evaluated. Its judgements are far too generous and are not borne out by the inspection. The informal evaluation carried out by the new headteacher correctly identifies the strengths to be built on and the weaknesses to be addressed. This provides the school with a good basis for future development. 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007 The new headteacher has to shoulder responsibility for many aspects of the school's work. This is because many teachers lack skills in leading and managing. They are beginning to support the headteacher in monitoring the performance of the school, but lack expertise at this level.

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Grade: 3

Governance is satisfactory. The new Chair of Governors agrees that, in the past, governors did not always fulfil their role in holding the school to account for its actions. They have learned from this, and the most recent minutes of governors meetings show that detailed discussions take place. A significant underspend from the 2005-6 financial year is now being used to help address a previous lack of investment in resources. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 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: Nightingale Primary School, 29 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 3 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 3 The attendance of learners 2 How well learners enjoy their education 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 3 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 3 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

5 February 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Nightingale Primary School, Blackbird Road, Nightingale Avenue, Eastleigh, SO50 9JW Thank you for helping me so much when I came to inspect your school to find out how well you are getting on. I particularly enjoyed looking at your work and talking to some of you. Your school is satisfactory overall, with some things that are good. You are making reasonable progress, but your work in English, mathematics and science is not quite as good as it should be. I know that with a bit more effort, and the help of your teachers, you could do even better. Here are some of the things I liked best about your school. • Your school is a happy place to be in. Everyone is friendly and welcoming. Your behaviour is good. • Your teachers are good at making your lessons interesting, and the school provides a good choice of after-school clubs for you. • All of the adults in your school make sure that you are safe and are really well looked after.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Your headteacher and all of the other people who help to run your school want it to be even better, so this is what I have suggested they should do next. • I would like the school to make sure that children in the Reception classes have more opportunities to use their outdoor area. • I would like your teachers to plan their lessons so that people in the same year group are given different sorts of things to do, and at the same time make sure that everyone has to think really hard. • I would like all the teachers to become really skilled in taking charge of different subjects. With best wishes for your future success, Mike Thompson (Lead inspector) 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Nightingale Primary School, 29 January 2007

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