Great Binfields Primary School

Inspection Report Great Binfields Primary School

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132212 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 296540 Inspection number 17 °18 October 2006 Inspection dates John Earish 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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Binfields Farm Lane School address Primary Type of school Chineham Community School category Basingstoke RG24 8AJ 4 °11 Age range of pupils 01256460532 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01256334157 Fax number 190 Number on roll (school) Mrs Janet Cullinane Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mr S Cushing Headteacher 17 March 2003 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 296540 17 °18 October 2006 4°11 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 three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This popular school is located in a new development on the outskirts of Basingstoke. Mobility has been high with pupils joining at all stages each year since opening in September 2001. The school serves families from a variety of social backgrounds although the proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is well below the national average. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage. When children start school, their skills and abilities are similar to those expected of four year olds. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities is above that found nationally. Six visually impaired pupils are supported by a Visual Resource Unit.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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Grade: 2

The school provides a good quality of education for its pupils. One of the parents commented, 'I see Great Binfields as not just my children's school but more as a home away from home....like a small village school located in the middle of several large new housing estates'. Pupils' personal development and well being are outstanding. Relationships throughout the school are excellent. Parents are overwhelmingly positive in their views of the school. Several wrote to express their admiration at the commitment shown by staff at all levels which makes 'Great Binfields a very caring school that values pupils as individuals and motivates them to learn'. Leadership and management are good. Very effective leadership by the headteacher gives a clear direction to the work of the school. There is a strong shared commitment to including and doing the best for every child. Senior managers constantly evaluate the school's performance to identify any underachievement. This analysis is used

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Grade: 2

effectively to identify areas where changes are needed, and has resulted, for example, in recent improvements in pupils' facility with number. Good provision in the Foundation Stage helps young children settle quickly and effortlessly into school life. This is a very good preparation for future life and learning. Standards are above average by the time pupils leave school. They achieve well because they are well taught and have a good range of interesting and challenging tasks which inspire them to work hard. Teachers use assessment information skilfully to set work that matches pupils' varying needs and abilities. Target setting is particularly effective in English and enables pupils to fully understand how well they are working and what they must do to improve. However, this is less well developed in other subjects and consequently pupils have less guidance on the next steps in their learning. Pupils with

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Grade: 2

learning difficulties make good progress and enjoy learning. As one parent wrote, 'the children are taught in an exciting and inspirational way'. This has a very positive effect on pupils' behaviour and motivation. Pupils with visual impairment are fully integrated and spend some time with a specialist teacher and then work alongside pupils in class. They have a very good programme to help them develop skills related to their visual impairment and make good progress by the age of seven. However, older visually impaired pupils have insufficient time to work in small groups to improve their literacy and numeracy skills to sustain this good progress. Care, guidance and support are good. Pupils are well cared for and feel secure and happy. They enjoy coming to school, take responsibilities seriously and are very aware of how important it is to help others. There are very strong partnerships with the community and with outside agencies to promote learners' well-being. As a result,

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Grade: 2

pupils rapidly acquire the skills to become happy and confident learners.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Sustain the good progress made in Key Stage 1 by visually impaired pupils, by providing more time for older pupils to improve their literacy and numeracy skills in small groups. 2 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006 • Extend the very good target setting practice in English to other subjects so that pupils have a clear understanding of how they can improve.

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Grade: 2

Trends in attainment must be treated with some caution as data is based on a steadily rising school population with pupils joining the school at all stages since 2001, including significant numbers with learning difficulties and disabilities. Achievement is good overall. Children start school with skills and abilities that are similar to those expected of four year olds. They make good progress in all areas of the Foundation Stage curriculum and by the end of the Reception year most have achieved the standards expected for their age. Standards are above average by the time pupils leave school. Attainment in mathematics is not as consistent as in other subjects, but recent changes to the curriculum have addressed this weakness. Standards have improved again this year with good numbers of able children reaching higher levels. Most groups of children make good progress and achieve well, including those with learning difficulties. However, pupils with visual

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Grade: 2

impairment make satisfactory progress overall. They make good progress up to Year 2 but this is not sustained as they get older.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. Parents appreciate the strong emphasis on nurturing pupils' personal development and say, 'We love the ethos and the way children are encouraged to be well-rounded, confident individuals.' Pupils form excellent relationships with adults, and with each other, and have very positive attitudes to learning. Consequently, behaviour is outstanding. They greatly enjoy their education because 'teachers make learning interesting' with many exciting activities that enrich their lives in school. Pupils are well aware of the importance of healthy eating and staying safe. They participate fully in games, physical education lessons and the good range of sporting activities. Members of the school council take their responsibilities very seriously and are very aware of the balance between personal rights and responsibilities. Pupils' good levels of basic skills and

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Grade: 1

their very well developed team working and enterprise skills prepare them very well for the next stage of their education. Attendance is satisfactory and the school is doing everything it can to improve this. 3 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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Grade: 2

Teaching is good for all groups of pupils because teachers have high expectations. They know the pupils well and plan work that matches their individual needs and capabilities. Pupils achieve well because they are given challenging and exciting tasks which motivate them to reach their challenging targets. Teachers make good use of a variety of teaching styles and methods that embrace the new technologies well to make learning immediate and exciting. Teachers use assessment information well to identify and support pupils' learning needs. They also use this information to set targets for improvement. This is particularly well developed in English and this enables pupils to fully understand how well they are working and what they must do to improve. This is a good model for other subjects where it is less well developed

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good. Pupils say that the school provides an enjoyable and varied curriculum, and inspectors agree. Teachers are good at making links between subjects so that learning is purposeful and captures pupils' interest and enthusiasm. The quality and range of the activities in the Foundation Stage are good, with an effective balance between work chosen by the teacher and activities selected by the children. Resources are plentiful and well used in lessons to assist pupils with visual impairment. However, the older pupils need more time to work in small groups to improve their literacy and number skills in a manner that best meets their needs. Pupils benefit from a good personal, social and health education programme. They develop a strong sense of social responsibility. For example, they are encouraged to take an active part in the democratic process during 'democracy week'. A good range of lunchtime and after

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Grade: 2

school clubs, including sporting, artistic and cultural experiences enhance pupils' learning and add much to their enjoyment of school.

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Grade: 2

Inspectors agree with parents who believe that the school is good at looking after their children. The very good relationships foster pupils' confidence and builds trust. As a result, they say that any problems are dealt with promptly and effectively. Procedures for child protection and ensuring pupils' welfare are securely in place, and there are good systems to identify vulnerable children. Pupils with learning difficulties are given good support and guidance in achieving the challenging targets in their individual education plans. Target setting is used very well to help pupils understand exactly what they need to do to improve their work in English. However, this is not as effective in other subjects. 4 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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Grade: 2

The headteacher is an inspirational leader who parents describe as having 'boundless energy and enthusiasm'. His clear vision for the school is shared by adults at all levels. The evaluations made by the headteacher and his senior management team are thorough and accurate. Teachers and governors have a clear understanding of what the school does well. They have maintained the many strong features identified at the time of the last inspection and continued to seek improvement. Subject coordinators monitor their areas of responsibility well and use the information which they gather to make useful contributions to the school's improvement. The school is developing the skills of less experienced coordinators so they are able to have a clearer view of standards across the school and a greater influence over the quality of teaching and learning in their areas of responsibility. Governors carefully monitor the work of the

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Grade: 2

school and are very good at holding it to account. The many improvements since the last inspection provide ample evidence that the school has a good capacity to improve further. 5 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006 .

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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: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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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 3 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 3 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 2 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 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: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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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: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Following our visit to your school we would like to tell you what we think about how well you are getting on and how well your school is helping you to learn. We think that you go to a good school and there are lots of things that we like about it. Some of them are: • Your school is friendly and welcoming. You behave really well and get on very well with each other. • You listen carefully to what your teachers have to say and learn a lot in lessons. • The school council represents your views very well and you all help the school to run smoothly. • The school is good at organising lots of extra things for you to do. • All of the adults in your school make sure that you are well looked after. • Your headteacher, and all of the other people who help run your school, are good at making sure that you get the very best education. All of the adults in your school want it to be even better. To help them to do this we think that

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

the most important things to do next are: • To make sure that older pupils with visual impairment are given more time to work at their literacy and numeracy skills in small groups. • To ask teachers and adults to give you more help to understand how to improve your work, as they are already doing in English. Yours truly, John Earish Lead Inspector 9 Inspection Report: Great Binfields Primary School, 17 °18 October 2006

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