Summer Lane Primary

Inspection Report Summer Lane Primary School

p.1

131459 Unique Reference Number Barnsley Local Authority 293760 Inspection number 11 °12 October 2006 Inspection dates Joe Peacock Reporting inspector

p.1

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

p.1

Summer Lane School address Primary Type of school Barnsley Community School category South Yorkshire S75 2BB 3 °11 Age range of pupils 01226 205363 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01226 294404 Fax number 304 Number on roll (school) Mr Peter Collins Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mr M Lock Headteacher 5 March 2001 Date of previous school inspection

p.1

Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 293760 11 °12 October 2006 3°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 three Additional Inspectors.

p.3

Description of the school

The school is larger than average with most pupils coming from a White British background. There is a small but increasing number who speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is broadly average. A smaller proportion than average has learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The attainment of most children when entering the Nursery is in line with the level expected for their age. There is a waiting list for places.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006

p.3

Grade: 2

The headteacher of this good school is an extremely effective leader who has created an excellent team spirit amongst staff. All are highly motivated and share his determination to make the school live up to its motto 'a school to be proud of'. The school offers good value for money. It is integrating successfully the increasing number of pupils who have English as an additional language. The leadership and management know the school well although they are modest in judging the standards and achievement of pupils as only satisfactory. Pupils' good progress in the Foundation Stage results from the good quality of support provided by teachers and teaching assistants. Pupils who speak English as an additional language, and the many pupils who find it difficult to settle, receive the individual help that they need. As a result, their progress is as good as that of other pupils. Most pupils do particularly well in their personal, social and emotional development.

p.4

Grade: 2

Pupils continue to make good progress in Years 1 and 2 although standards in reading and writing are not as high as those in mathematics, partly as a result of the difficulties some pupils have in speaking English. Boys in particular do not achieve highly enough in their reading and writing. By Year 6, pupils attain above average standards in English, mathematics and science. This represents good progress and shows a marked improvement in standards in mathematics since 2005 when relatively few attained above average standards. Pupils enjoy coming to school and attendance has been improved to reach the national average. The good progress pupils make is largely due to their good behaviour in class and around school and their good attitude towards their work. Pupils of all ages get on well together. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Very good initiatives and strategies exist to successfully promote pupils' social and moral

p.4

Grade: 2

development. Prefects, playground buddies and school council members all take their roles seriously and special lessons called 'circle time' help to reinforce acceptable behaviour and the importance of good relationships for future life. The quality of teaching is good. Lessons are well planned and pupils are challenged by and interested in the tasks that they are given to do. There is a good atmosphere for learning in the majority of classes. Teachers closely monitor and evaluate the standards pupils are attaining and use the wealth of assessment information well to set challenging targets for groups of pupils. The curriculum is good with close links established between subjects. Pastoral care and support are strengths and parents were keen to praise the school for how well it looks after their children. The school has a good capacity to improve because of its good quality of leadership and management. Senior managers have been those most responsible for monitoring

p.4

Grade: 2

the quality of teaching and learning, with middle managers not sufficiently involved in the process. As a result, good practice is not always best shared. Governors, led by their knowledgeable and deeply committed chair, are supportive and fully involved with the headteacher and staff in building the school's good reputation in the area. 2 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

• Improve standards in reading and writing by Year 2, especially for boys. • Share good practice effectively by involving subject leaders more actively in monitoring and evaluating the quality of teaching and learning.

p.5

Grade: 2

The Foundation Stage unit is well organised and ensures continuity in learning. As a result, most pupils make good progress in all areas of learning. The teachers and teaching assistants give a good emphasis to improving pupils' communication and language skills although in these areas, an increasing number of children are still experiencing difficulties at the time they leave Reception. Whilst Year 2 pupils achieve broadly what is expected of them in mathematics, their skills in reading and writing remain below average partly because of their limited language skills. The support for pupils who have English as an additional language is good and they make good progress as a result. The school has responded well to lower than expected standards in Year 6 in mathematics in 2005. Initiatives designed to improve standards are proving successful with a big jump in the number attaining above average standards in 2006.

p.5

Grade: 2

The achievement of those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is good as they benefit from the well organised and high quality support in the classroom.

p.5

Grade: 2

There is a strong emphasis on promoting pupils' well-being and achieving a bronze award for being a Healthy School has given them a good understanding of healthy lifestyle choices. Pupils are keen to attend and they enjoy school and what it has to offer. Initiatives to improve attendance are proving to be effective and it is currently in line with the national average. Behaviour and pupil's attitudes to learning are good. Overall, pupil's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good and is promoted well from the moment they enter the school. Setting children by ability in Reception is proving to be highly effective in building good relationships and in giving children confidence and the support that they need to learn.

p.5

Grade: 2

The quality of teaching is typically good but there is some variation. In one outstanding mathematics lesson, learning was made challenging and fun as pupils walked and counted the right angles they turned through. Where teaching was less successful, lessons lacked pace and teaching assistants were not used effectively. Foundation 3 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006 Stage teachers make good use of the spacious and well equipped accommodation. Their enthusiasm and care ensures that pupils feel secure and clearly enjoy their learning. Good relationships help to create a positive atmosphere for learning in all classes. Pupils work quietly and conscientiously. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make good progress. They are well provided for by teachers and teaching assistants who demonstrate a good range of specialist teaching skills. Assessment is thorough, especially in the Foundation Stage where it very clearly shows

p.5

Grade: 2

how much progress pupils make. Assessment information is used better in setting class targets than individual pupil targets.

p.6

Grade: 2

The curriculum is good and caters for all pupils' needs effectively. It is monitored closely by senior managers to ensure that there are no gaps or overlaps for the mixed-age classes. The youngest children get off to a good start because they have interesting and exciting things to do. Personal, social, health education and citizenship lie at the heart of the curriculum and this is evident in pupils' good personal development. Provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is very good. Individual plans for them include precise and realistic targets that are reviewed regularly and learning support assistants are deployed effectively. There are satisfactory opportunities to take part in a range of extra-curricular activities. Clubs such as gymnastics, the Samba Band and cheerleading benefit learning by adding enjoyment and helping to develop healthy lifestyles.

p.6

Grade: 2

Provision for pupils' welfare is good and child protection procedures are robust. Pupils are well cared for and are happy, secure and ready to learn because of it. The school has the capacity to manage successfully a range of challenging learning difficulties and behavioural problems because the systems are well established and the monitoring of pupils' attainment is very thorough. Individual education plans give precise, small steps of learning and parents and pupils are involved in seeing that targets are achieved. The systems to support pupils' progress work satisfactorily although several documents have to be consulted to give an overview of how well different groups of learners make progress. The school is trialling more efficient ways of using analysis of progress constructively and involving pupils more in assessing their own learning. 4 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006

p.6

Grade: 2

The headteacher's excellent leadership inspires loyalty from all staff and is supported exceptionally well by the deputy headteacher. Together, they have created a good team spirit with everyone united in their determination to make the school even better. Creating a school to be proud of is at the heart of the school's ethos which promotes the personal development and well-being of the pupils very effectively. The leadership team has accurately evaluated school strengths and areas for future development. The quality of teaching and learning is mostly monitored by the headteacher, and senior staff and subject leaders are not being sufficiently involved in the process. As a result, good practice is not shared effectively enough. The governors are very well led and all are committed to their role of providing a good level of challenge and support. Prudent financial management ensures that resources are used well to the best advantage for pupils but the school is short of books that

p.7

Grade: 2

will interest and inspire boys. The school has a good capacity to improve. 5 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 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: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 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 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

p.9

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 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: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 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: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

It was obvious to all of the inspectors how proud you are of your school. We are sorry that we did not have the time to see all that you wanted to show us, such as the film some of Year 6 made about Joey Lichen and the alien attack. Thank you for making us feel so welcome. We enjoyed talking to you all and looking around the school. The things that we thought were particularly good were: • how hard your headteacher, staff and governors have worked to give your school the good reputation it deserves • how well you behave in class and try your best to finish all your work - it was good to see you all getting on so well together at playtimes • the good start that you all have in the Nursery and Reception unit, with lots of interesting things to do both indoors and outdoors • how well you are cared for and supported by your teachers, their helpers and all the lunchtime staff - we are sure it really helps those of you who are learning to speak English

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

and those who find learning difficult. We are asking your headteacher to concentrate on improving two things in particular: • the standards you achieve in reading and writing before you move to the junior classes - we especially hope that all the boys will try even harder with their reading and writing and all of you will work hard to make your writing neater • to involve more of your teachers in checking how good lessons are in different classes and sharing what they find. Thank you again, for helping us with the inspection. We can see why you enjoy coming to school so much and why your parents were so keen to tell us what a good school it is. 9 Inspection Report: Summer Lane Primary School, 11 °12 October 2006

p.11