St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, Chinnor

St Andrew's Church of England Primary School Inspection report

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123126 Unique Reference Number Oxfordshire Local Authority 292588 Inspection number 13 °14 June 2007 Inspection dates Keith Sadler 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 Voluntary controlled School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 266 School

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The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs G Ambridge Chair Mrs G Copsey Headteacher 4 November 2002 Date of previous school inspection Station Road School address Chinnor OX39 4PU

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01844 351353 Telephone number 01844 354745 Fax number

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4 °11 Age group 13 °14 June 2007 Inspection dates 292588 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 three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

St Andrew's is an average sized primary school serving much of the village of Chinnor. Almost all pupils are from White British backgrounds and none are at an early stage of learning English. Pupils' socio-economic circumstances are average. Children's attainments on entry to the school are currently similar to those normally expected of four year olds, though the number with limited communication skills is higher than usually found. The school has two units for pupils with severe communication difficulties (autistic spectrum). Most of these pupils, many of whom travel some distance to the school, are integrated into classes for some of the day. At present the school is on two sites some 100 metres apart. There are extensive rebuilding plans to enable the school to have one site.

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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: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007

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Grade: 2

St Andrew's is a good school with some outstanding features and it has shown good improvement since the previous inspection. The headteacher, with good support from her deputy and governors, has steered the school through improvements in teaching and learning, the curriculum and pupils' achievement, both academic and personal. Leadership and management are good. The staff work closely as a team and teachers with responsibility check pupils' progress appropriately. These factors add to the school's good capacity to improve further. There is a strong and positive atmosphere of care and concern that permeates the school and helps pupils to feel confident and secure. This commences when children start in the Reception unit. They get off to a good start, settle into routines well and thoroughly enjoy the rich and varied curriculum provided. Children make good progress in all areas of learning and, by the

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Grade: 2

time that they enter Year 1, about two thirds attain the expected goals. Due to good teaching and learning, this good progress is maintained in all year groups and, by the end of Year 6, academic standards are significantly above average and are improving, particularly in mathematics and English. In science, the school rightly recognises that there is a need to ensure that more children gain the higher level. At present, in some Key Stage 2 classes, teachers do not track pupils' progress in science sufficiently well and this means that work is not always pitched at the right level to extend all pupils. However, there are a number of strengths in the teaching. Teachers have excellent relationships with the pupils and they generally provide interesting activities that capture the pupils' interests. They also teach the pupils to be effective learners. Pupils collaborate well together and there is a relaxed yet purposeful working atmosphere in

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Grade: 2

classes. The curriculum is good because staff have started to adapt it well to meet the needs of the pupils. The main strength of the current provision is the very good range of additional activities, many of them sports and arts based. Along with good care and support this results in outstanding levels of personal development and well-being, and does much to promote safe, healthy lifestyles and to increase pupils' enjoyment of learning. In consequence, pupils love school and learning. Their behaviour is excellent, their attitudes are very positive and they play and work happily together. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school and many made positive comments. Typical is the parent who said, 'It makes me very happy and proud that my daughter is so happy and confident in her abilities thanks to all the teachers.' The school works particularly well to support pupils that have learning difficulties and disabilities. The provision for these

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Grade: 2

pupils is good, well organised and well-matched to their needs.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Increase the proportion of pupils gaining the higher levels in science. • Strengthen the arrangements for the tracking of pupils' progress, particularly in science, and the use of this information to inform future lesson planning.

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Grade: 2

Achievement and standards are good. Children make good progress in the Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 because teachers help children to feel secure and confident, helping them to believe that they can achieve well. In the past, there was some under-achievement of boys in writing, shown by national assessments for pupils at the end of Year 2. This is not now the case 4 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007 and standards for seven-year-olds in writing are above average. Due to the good teaching and learning, the large majority of pupils make good progress in Key Stage 2. By the time that they reach the end of Year 6, standards are significantly above average and are strongest in English and mathematics. In science, although progress is good, it is more limited because work is not always challenging enough. Due to the well-organised and effective provision, the progress of pupils that have learning

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Grade: 2

difficulties and disabilities is good. This includes the pupils in the two units for pupils with severe communication difficulties. However, some pupils with average abilities make just satisfactory progress. This is because, on occasion, teachers' tracking of pupils' progress is not systematic enough and, in some lessons, these pupils do not achieve sufficiently well.

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Grade: 1

Pupils make excellent progress in their personal development and well-being and these areas are outstanding. Pupils speak enthusiastically of their friendly attitudes towards each other. They are very positive about the many activities offered by the school. These support their excellent spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, and is also reflected in their good attendance. Pupils feel particularly valued because opportunities such as those offered through the school council ensure that their voices are heard and they are helping to influence various developments. They are currently very engaged in monitoring the energy used by the school and ensuring that materials are consistently re-cycled. They are excitedly discussing ideas for the creation of a wildlife area and proud of the fact that they are invited to make presentations to the governors. Their healthy eating project has had a useful spin-off in the form of running

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Grade: 1

a fruit sale at breaks. This gives pupils an opportunity to take responsibility for tracking their takings and managing a budget. Behaviour is excellent and reflects the fact that they have a highly responsible attitude towards their own community and are developing a good awareness of wider issues. Pupils' good literacy, numeracy, and personal skills prepare them well for secondary education.

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is good. It is particularly effective in the Foundation Stage, where lessons are made relevant and interesting as plans successfully build on the children's own interests. Teachers provide a suitable emphasis on the development of basic skills, including information and communication technology (ICT). They adjust their teaching well to ensure that pupils' preferred learning styles are met. For example, the recent investment in interactive whiteboards is paying dividends because those pupils that like to learn visually are stimulated well by the carefully planned presentations. This adds to pupils' enjoyment of lessons. Teachers also help to promote effective learning by ensuring that the purposes of lessons are made clear, so pupils know what is expected of them. Above all, teachers create a positive and purposeful atmosphere. They consistently manage the pupils well and ensure that relationships are positive

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Grade: 2

and purposeful. Teaching assistants give effective support to all pupils, and especially to those who are vulnerable or have learning difficulties or disabilities. Pupils with severe communication difficulties are taught well in the specialist units. As a result, these pupils make good progress towards their targets. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007

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Grade: 2

The school has a good curriculum that has some areas of real strength. These include enrichment opportunities through the themed weeks that enable pupils to experience a good range of art work, the learning of French and other valuable cultural experiences. During the inspection, for example, Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 pupils were all studying transport for the week. This gave rise to an excellent range of activities that effectively linked many subjects together and made the learning have purpose. In addition, it was made more real because it was based on a visit to Didcot Railway Centre. The school has rightly begun the process of expanding this approach to curricular planning to cover all the themes taught, particularly in history, geography and design and technology. The provision that results from community involvement, such as the strong programme of sporting opportunities, enables pupils to reach good standards in a range of sports. Good

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Grade: 2

support enables pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities to participate in an interesting and enriching programme of learning that develops their confidence and their basic life skills. Pupils' personal development is promoted very well through a programme concerning road safety, the potentially damaging effects of drugs and how to ensure a healthy lifestyle.

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Grade: 2

The school takes good care of its pupils and is especially effective in providing support for those with learning difficulties. A parent of a child with special educational needs wrote, 'The progress our child has made in a few terms is astonishing.' There are well established procedures for risk assessment, child protection and measures to safeguard the pupils. Staff in the Reception unit pay particular attention to promoting children's personal, social and emotional development, and the children quickly grow in confidence. Academic guidance is satisfactory. Some teachers provide well focused comments in marking and there are appropriate systems for setting targets for the pupils to attain in mathematics and English. However, in science, pupils' progress is not sufficiently well tracked and this leads to some pupils not being sufficiently challenged. Pupils say that they feel well supported by their teachers and several said that they are listened to

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Grade: 2

and encouraged. One girl said, 'If I have a problem I go straight to my teacher and he helps me.'

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good and have improved since the previous inspection. The headteacher is deeply committed to the success of the school. She motivates the staff well by giving them a real part to play in improving the school. Teamwork is strong and morale high with views from all staff being sought and valued. The headteacher and deputy work closely together and have strengthened achievement from the previous satisfactory levels. Actions have been based on effective processes for evaluating the school's effectiveness and have led to good planning for school improvement. The impact of this is evident in pupils' overall good progress. Subject leaders take their responsibilities seriously and, in some areas such as English, mathematics, the Foundation Stage and for pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities, there is very careful tracking of pupils' progress. However, in science, pupils' progress is not

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Grade: 2

6 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007 sufficiently well checked. Governors play an important role in the school's improvement. They have a clear understanding of the school's strengths and they are good at holding the school to account for what it achieves. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007 .

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Grade: 2

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 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 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

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 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 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: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

26 June 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of St Andrew's Church of England Primary School,Chinnor,OX39 4PU We really enjoyed visiting your school. Thank you very much for the friendly way you welcomed us and for your help in finding out about the school. Both you and your parents told us that you love coming to school and that you feel safe and well cared for. We are not surprised. Yours is a good school and everybody who works there tries hard to help you to do well. Your teachers are good and work hard to make sure that lessons are made interesting and exciting. Your headteacher has done a good job in making sure that you all work and play together in such a friendly way and to make the school successful. We were very impressed with your behaviour, which is excellent, and your very positive attitudes to each other. Your teachers help you to learn well and also they make sure that everyone feels part of the family of your school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

You work hard in lessons so that you learn lots of new things. Your progress is good and you attain above average standards in English, mathematics and science. We have asked your teachers to do two things. Firstly, we asked teachers to make sure that more of you reach the higher level in science at the end of Year 6. Secondly we asked them to make sure that they check your progress more carefully, particularly in science, and to use the information when they plan lessons. You can help by working hard to meet your targets. Thank you once again for being so helpful to us. With very best wishes for your future Keith SadlerLead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, 13 °14 June 2007

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