Defford and Besford CofE Primary School

Inspection Report Defford-cum-Besford CofE School

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116802 Unique Reference Number Worcestershire Local Authority 290639 Inspection number 30 January 2007 Inspection date Marian Harker 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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Hill View School address First Type of school Defford Voluntary controlled School category Worcester WR8 9BH 4 °9 Age range of pupils 01386 750321 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01386 750321 Fax number 37 Number on roll (school) John Monks Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Janet Brown Headteacher 27 January 2003 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection date Age group 290639 30 January 2007 4 °9 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 Additional inspector.

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Description of the school

Defford-cum-Besford is very small rural school with 37 pupils on roll. The school draws most of its pupils from the villages of Defford, Besford, Strensham and Birlingham. The school's social and economic context is relatively favourable and very few pupils are eligible for free school meals. A small number of pupils are registered by the school as having learning difficulties and disabilities. There are no pupils with a statement of special educational need. All pupils are of White British origin.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007

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Grade: 2

Defford-cum-Besford is a good school which is distinguished by a caring, family-centred ethos where everyone works together. Pupils enter the Reception class with standards expected for their age. As a result of the good provision, which is reflected in careful assessment, and a good appreciation of the individual needs of the pupils, a higher-than-average proportion of them gain the early learning goals. Pupils continue to make good progress in Key Stage 1 and Year 4, achieving above-average standards. In Year 3, the pupils' progress in mathematics and writing is too slow and standards are average. All the pupils are well cared for in a safe, secure and welcoming school community which successfully promotes the school's Christian ethos. The school has very strong links with the village church. The pupils' personal, social, emotional development and well-being are given high priority and are good. Secure academic guidance supports

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Grade: 2

the pupils to achieve well in most year groups. The pupils' behaviour and attitudes to learning are good. Pupils are enthusiastic, respectful and well mannered. They know about healthy eating and the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. The school council are good ambassadors for the school. They greatly appreciate their school and have confidence in the adults who work with them. Almost 80% of the parents returned inspection questionnaires and the responses were overwhelmingly positive. One parent said: 'My child loves this school. She has thrived in the friendly, one big happy family atmosphere.' The quality of teaching and learning is good. Expectations are high and relationships are positive. On occasions, there are too many objectives in lessons, which results in a lack of clarity to drive forward the learning at a fast enough pace, for example, in mathematics and writing in Year 3. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities

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Grade: 2

make satisfactory progress in light of their often complex difficulties and low starting points. The curriculum is good because it is carefully tailored to the needs of the pupils, and has a wide range of enrichment activities. Leadership and management are good. The headteacher has a passionate commitment to improving the life chances of the pupils, which is clearly shown through a good team spirit and a common sense of purpose in all aspects of the school's day-to-day life. Whole-school self-evaluation is satisfactory but is not sufficiently evaluative. The outcomes of monitoring the quality of teaching do not always result in the identification of clear targets for improvement or show the links between good teaching and effective learning.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Increase the rate of pupils' progress in mathematics and writing in Year 3. • Ensure self-evaluation of the school's performance is sufficiently rigorous and staff know what they need to do to improve their teaching. • Improve the quality of teaching and learning further by increasing the clarity of learning objectives. 2 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007

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Grade: 2

Pupils' attainment when they start school is broadly as expected, but with less well developed social skills. The good quality provision and individual support in Reception enable pupils to make good progress. There are very strong links with the local playgroup, which uses the school hall facilities, and the headteacher ensures the transition to school is very well managed. The 2006 Year 2 national assessments show standards at the end of Key Stage 1 to be above national averages in reading, writing and mathematics. This picture of good achievement is offset by the slower rate of progress made by the pupils in Year 3 in mathematics and writing. Nevertheless, by the end of Year 4, the pupils' progress accelerates and standards rise above the level expected for this year group.

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Grade: 2

One of the parents said: 'My son was very shy and insecure when he started school. He is now a happy and contented little boy who has many friends and beams with pride when he is on the achievement board.' This typifies how much the children enjoy coming to school. Behaviour around the school and in lessons is good and attendance, at 96%, is above the national average for primary schools. In recent years, there have been no exclusions and no recorded incidents of bullying. The pupils enjoy raising money for local and international charities, for example, selling items they have made in design and technology lessons at the Christmas Fayre. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. In Year 3, they visit a much larger, multicultural primary school in Birmingham and a Hindu temple, gaining an insight into traditions and cultures that are very different to their own. The school has achieved the Basic

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Grade: 2

Skills Mark, which reflects the good progress made by most pupils in literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology and which prepares them well for the next stage of their education. The pupils participate in mixed-age 'Muddle' sessions in mathematics and literacy, where older pupils learn how to support the younger ones.

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching is good and is having a positive impact on the pupils' learning. This is shown by the good progress made by most pupils. The hallmarks of this success are: accurately matching the pupils' work to their level of attainment; enabling pupils to work in pairs or groups; providing interesting and enjoyable tasks, and raising expectations of what the pupils might achieve. In most lessons there are clear learning objectives and these are used to measure progress, although in some lessons there were too many learning objectives and pupils were not so clear about what they were 3 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007 expected to do. Some relative weaknesses relate to teaching and learning in mathematics and writing in Year 3. Here the pace of learning is too slow and work is not matched well enough to their different learning needs.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum has been well planned and provides good opportunities for learning. It is responsive and flexible to accurately meet the needs of the pupils. The headteacher and all the teachers ensure that small cohort sizes do not impede the pupils' statutory rights to a broad and balanced curriculum. Residential visits to the Malvern Outdoor Centre provide opportunities for the pupils in Year 4 to develop their independence and sense of teamwork. There is a wide range of enrichment activities, including sports, music and arts, which are well attended and appreciated by the pupils. The school has also developed good links with other schools in the local area that provide specialist teaching for modern foreign languages. The Foundation Stage curriculum effectively meets the needs of the youngest pupils, developing independence and skills in all areas of learning. The forest school project currently being developed in Reception promotes creativity and encourages pupils to

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Grade: 2

The pupils receive a good level of care, support and guidance. This helps them achieve well and is shown clearly in their positive attitudes and good personal development. Pupils receive good academic guidance, which helps them to achieve well. Pupils have challenging targets for literacy and numeracy which are sent home to parents and reviewed termly. The arrangements when children come into school for the first time and transferring to middle school are well managed, helping the pupils settle quickly. The school works well with parents, providing them with useful information and encouraging them to support their children's learning. Parents praise the caring and sensitive support their children receive. Arrangements for safeguarding pupils and off-site risk assessments are good. On-site risk assessments are, however, out of date.

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Grade: 2

The headteacher provides clear and positive leadership. She has high aspirations and is determined to continue developing and improving the quality of education offered by the school. She is well supported by the teachers and the governing body. School improvement planning is systematic and appropriately takes into account the views of members of the school community. However, there is not enough emphasis on effectively monitoring the quality of teaching and learning and bringing about improvement through support and development. The governing body fulfil their 4 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007 statutory responsibilities. They have established a good range of procedures to monitor the school's work, for example, lesson-monitoring visits, and individual governors are attached to specific areas of responsibility. Although supportive of the school, they have not hitherto done enough to challenge and question staff. The good progress

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Grade: 2

made since the last inspection shows that the school has a good capacity to improve. 5 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007 .

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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: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 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? 2 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

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

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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: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 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: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for welcoming me to your school. I learned a lot about it through talking to you, seeing how you were getting on in your lessons and sharing your assembly. I could see that you enjoy your education, work enthusiastically and care for one another. Well done! Defford-cum-Besford is a good school. It has many strengths, not least your good behaviour and keenness to learn. The adults who work in your school know you very well, help you make good progress and ensure you are well looked after. You get the opportunity to be involved in a wide range of activities, including many after-school clubs, learning a foreign language and raising money for charities. I was particularly interested to hear about your visit to a school in Birmingham and to a Hindu temple recently. Everyone at the school wants your education to be even better. I have asked Mrs Brown to do a few things that should help you all get on even better than you are doing now! I've suggested

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

that your teachers make sure you make good progress in writing and mathematics every year you are at Defford-cum-Besford, that you know exactly what the teachers want you to learn in each lesson and that Mrs Brown and the governors look very carefully at how well the whole school is doing. I shall take away lots of good memories about your school and have really enjoyed the time I spent with you. Thank you again for being so helpful and friendly. 9 Inspection Report: Defford-cum-Besford CofE School, 30 January 2007

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