Cedarwood Primary School

Age group 4 - 11 Inspection date 22 May 2007 Inspection number 293903 Unique Reference Number 131962 Local Authority Suffolk Inspection number 293903 Inspection date 22 May 2007 Reporting inspector David Wynford Jones

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

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Type of school Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 4 - 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number on roll School 411

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Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Dr M Rowe Headteacher Mr D Stroud Date of previous school inspection 9 – 12 December 2002

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School address Wilkinson Drive Kesgrave Ipswich IP5 2ES

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Telephone number 01473 612981 Fax number 01473 612892 Cedarwood Primary School Inspection report Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk 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. Document reference number: HMI 2507 01 April 2007

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two Additional Inspectors.

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Introduction

Inspectors evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: achievement and standards, pupils’ personal development and well being, teaching and learning, care, guidance and support and the effectiveness of leaders and managers in raising standards. Evidence was gathered from observations of lessons, the pupils’ work and discussions with them, the staff and chair of governors and a scrutiny of school documentation and parent questionnaires. Other aspects of the school’s work were not investigated in detail, but inspectors found no evidence to suggest that the school’s own assessments, as given in its self- evaluation, were not justified, and these have been included where appropriate in this report.

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Description of the school

The school is larger than most primary schools. It was opened in September 2001 with approximately 100 pupils on roll and has grown steadily over the last six years. The vast majority of the pupils are of White British background. However, a few pupils are at the early stages of learning English as a second language. The socio- economic circumstances are favourable. Children enter the Reception classes with levels of attainment broadly in line with those expected for children aged four. The percentage of pupils identified as having learning difficulties and disabilities is broadly in line with the national average. The school holds the ‘Investors in People Award’.

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Key for inspection grades

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 2 Good Grade 3 Satisfactory Grade 4 Inadequate Document reference number: HMI 2507 01 April 2007

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

This is a good school with some outstanding features. It justifies its good reputation locally. Parental perceptions of the school are overwhelmingly positive. One parent wrote, ‘I believe this school to be the best in the area and provides a good all round education. I cannot praise the headteacher and his staff highly enough.’ This success has been brought about by the purposeful and strong leadership of the headteacher and senior members of staff who have established rigorous systems that help pupils settle quickly and achieve well. There is a five year trend of rising standards and, by the end of Year 6, pupils attain above average standards in English, mathematics and science. Their enjoyment of their education is outstanding. This is reflected in above average attendance, their good behaviour and their thirst for learning in lessons. The emphasis the school places on developing the pupils’ commitment to

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

healthy living and their adoption of safe practices ensures they have an excellent understanding of these issues. Pupils also have a very good awareness of environmental matters, promoted effectively by this ‘Eco’ friendly school.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

Overall pupils’ achievement is good. Provision in the Foundation Stage is also good. Children’s social skills are strong, they are keen to learn and have a positive attitude to school. By the time they move into Year 1, with the exception of their skills in reading and writing, which are similar to those found nationally; the vast majority of the children attain levels above national expectations in all other areas of learning. The school’s leadership identified reading and writing as areas for development and has taken effective steps to improve standards. Standards are being raised by focussing on developing the children’s understanding of the text and ensuring they know how to use letter sounds to build words (phonics). Very effective use is made of the outdoor area to promote the children’s social and physical development; their enjoyment of learning and their understanding of healthy living. In the 2006 tests

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

and assessments, pupils at Year 2 attained high standards in reading and writing and above average standards in mathematics. At Year 6, results were high in mathematics, and above average in English and science. Standards in the current Year 2 are not as high as last year but nevertheless are in line with pupils’ abilities and remain above national expectations. In Year 6, standards are broadly similar to those in achieved in 2006.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

Although none of the pupils have attended the school right through from Reception to the end of Year 6, the school’s records shows that, from the time pupils entered the school, the vast majority make good progress. However, unlike the good progress of most other pupils, the progress of many of those with learning difficulties and disabilities is satisfactory given their starting points and needs. While they receive competent support, the lack of clarity in some of their targets impedes their progress. Those pupils who are at the early stages of learning to speak English receive effective support and make good progress. The school’s leadership identified that boys were not making as much progress as girls in writing. As a result the content and approach to teaching has been modified to sustain their interest and improve their motivation. Recent assessments show that this is beginning to improve their rate of progress.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

Document reference number: HMI 2507 01 April 2007 The quality of teaching and learning are good. The vast majority of lessons seen were of a good standard. Teachers have good subject knowledge and are confident in their delivery. The electronic whiteboards are being used increasingly effectively to support learning and to sustain pupils’ interest. Teachers’ skills in assessing pupils’ level of attainment are more variable, but all teachers are increasing the amount of involvement pupils have in assessing their own learning. Lessons are generally well planned and matched to the needs of the vast majority of pupils. Questioning skills are used effectively to promote pupils’ thinking and to clarify their understanding. Relationships are good and adult support is deployed well to support pupils’ learning. However, in some lessons expectations are not high enough, the pace of the lesson is too slow and there are insufficient opportunities for pupils to contribute to the

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

lesson. In these lessons, the behaviour of a few pupils slips and they do not achieve as well as they could. There are some good examples of marking that gives pupils guidance on what they have to do next to improve their work and set clear targets, but this is not consistent throughout the school.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

Pastoral care is outstanding. The school fully meets the requirements for safeguarding pupils and all health and safety procedures are in place. However, care, support and guidance are good overall, because of the inconsistencies in academic guidance. Too many pupils do not fully understand their targets and what they have to do to achieve them.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

The curriculum is good. It is enriched effectively by a wide range of extra-curricular activities, visit and visitors to the school. Good links are being developed between subjects and information communication technology is used effectively to support learning. There are good links to the ‘Every Child Matters’ agenda and this ensures the pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Good opportunities are provided for pupils to take responsibility. Members of the school council are proud to represent their school and to contribute to its development. A class and whole-school ‘buddy’ system helps pupils to settle quickly and become part of this friendly community. The social skills pupils develop as a result of these, plus the effective curriculum, ensures that the pupils develop the skills to support them in their future lives well.

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

The leadership and management of the school are good. The headteacher provides very effective leadership and has successfully overseen the rapid growth and the improvements to the school over the last six years. He is supported well by members of the senior management and leadership teams. Subject leaders make a significant contribution to the development of the school by completing accurate subject self evaluations. These are used effectively by the senior leaders to inform the school’s overall development plan. The governing body provide a good balance between support and challenge. Systems for monitoring and accurately evaluating the work of the school are secure. The governors have identified the need to sharpen the measures in the school development plan to enable them to evaluate the work of the school more effectively. With the progress pupils make, the standards they achieve and the excellent personal skills they develop the school provides good value for

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Overall effectiveness of the school Grade: 2

money and demonstrates a good capacity for further improvement. Document reference number: HMI 2507 01 April 2007

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What the school should do to improve further

 Improve the accuracy of teacher assessment and use these assessments to help the pupils develop a clearer understanding of their targets and how they can be achieved.  Improve the quality of the individual targets set for those pupils who have learning difficulties and disabilities to enable them to make the same rate of progress as other pupils. procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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Inspection judgements

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate. School Overall

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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? The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements 2

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Achievement and standards

How well do learners achieve? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners 2

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Personal development and well-being

How good is the overall personal development and well-being of the learners? 2 The extent of learners’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community 2 How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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The quality of provision

How effective are teaching and learning in meeting the full range of learners’ needs? How well do the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of learners? How well are learners cared for, guided and supported? 2

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Leadership and management

How effective are leadership and management in raising achievement and supporting all learners? Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? Yes Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? No

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Leadership and management

1 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.

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Inspection of Cedarwood Primary School, Kesgrave, Ipswich, IP5 2ES

Thank you very much for making us so welcome when we visited your school. We really enjoyed our visit and talking to you. We think you are very lucky to go to Cedarwood Primary. You clearly like coming to school very much. It was very nice to see you making such good use of the wonderful grounds. We thought that you were well behaved, very friendly and polite. Looking at your books and talking to you about your school and your work helped us a lot in coming to our inspection findings.

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Inspection of Cedarwood Primary School, Kesgrave, Ipswich, IP5 2ES

We believe your school is a good school and does a lot of things well. You have made a lot of progress recently and are taking more responsibility for finding things out for yourselves. We are sure you all enjoy your lessons very much and we were really impressed by your knowledge of healthy living and staying safe. The standards you reach in English, mathematics and science are above those seen in most schools. Well done. You have many really great teachers at your school and they are helping you to learn by making their lessons interesting and fun. However, several of you told us you were not certain what your targets meant or what you had to do to improve your work. We agree and think your teachers could help you more to understand your targets and how to achieve them.

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Inspection of Cedarwood Primary School, Kesgrave, Ipswich, IP5 2ES

We know your headteacher and teachers work hard to make certain that you are safe and you are making progress. We hope you will continue to do well and enjoy your time at the school. Once again, thank you helping us with the inspection.

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Inspection of Cedarwood Primary School, Kesgrave, Ipswich, IP5 2ES

Best wishes to all the pupils at Cedarwood Primary School.

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