Wykebeck Primary School

Inspection Report Wykebeck Primary School

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107933 Unique Reference Number Leeds Local Authority 300617 Inspection number 17 °18 January 2007 Inspection dates Brenda McIntosh 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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The inspection of the day care was carried out under Children Act 1989: Part XA (as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000) and, where (funded) nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.

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Brander Street School address Primary Type of school Leeds Community School category West Yorkshire LS9 6QH 3 °11 Age range of pupils 0113 2491525 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0113 2484640 Fax number 243 Number on roll (school) 42 Number on roll (day care) Miss Jennifer Bush Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Lesley Jackson Headteacher 16 June 2003 Date of previous school inspection 1 January 1900 Date of previous day care inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 300617 17 °18 January 2007 3°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

Wykebeck Primary School is about average in size. It is situated in an area of marked and complex social disadvantage. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is much higher than average. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage and very few are at an early stage of acquiring English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities is well above average as is the number who have statements of additional needs. A significant proportion of pupils are looked after or are particularly vulnerable. Like other schools in the area, numbers on roll are falling. Children start school in Nursery with very low levels of attainment and often with other social and emotional difficulties. The Queen's Award for Volunteers was awarded to the school reading volunteers in September 2006 and presented in school by HRH The Princess Royal.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007

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Grade: 3

The school provides a satisfactory standard of education. Its strengths are in the way it cares for pupils and helps them to cope with the difficult circumstances in their lives. This enables them to grow in self-confidence and develop a positive attitude towards learning. As a result, pupils make good gains in the development of their personal and social skills. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school and see it as a caring place where staff are very approachable and receptive to their children's needs. They comment warmly about the headteacher and staff and the improved atmosphere in school. Indeed, the inclusive, caring ethos is central to pupils' good personal development and well-being. Pupils enjoy learning and take a keen interest in all the school offers them. They have a high level of trust in staff and say that problems are sorted quickly if they arise. In the Foundation Stage, children get off to a good start in their personal and social

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Grade: 3

development. In all other areas of learning they achieve satisfactorily, but all the same, standards remain low when they finish Reception; they are held back in some respects by the significant weaknesses in their speech and language development when they start Nursery. Although standards remain significantly below average in English, mathematics and science by the end of Year 6, overall pupils make satisfactory progress throughout school. The school has a good amount of information to monitor and track pupils' progress but it is not used well enough to set challenging targets or to give a boost to pupils' learning in lessons in order to raise standards and achievement. As a result, teaching, learning and pupils' achievement are satisfactory and no better. The school has taken good action to improve the curriculum; it provides a good range of enrichment activities to support pupils' personal development and makes good links

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Grade: 3

between the learning in different subjects. However, despite these strengths it is satisfactory overall, because pupils make only satisfactory progress in developing their basic literacy and numeracy skills. Some good aspects of leadership have created a positive learning environment. The school values its pupils greatly and helps them adopt healthy lifestyles. Pupils take good advantage of all the school offers and eagerly take part in the good range of enrichment activities and opportunities for exercise. They develop an understanding of how to stay safe and avoid dangers they may face in the wider world. However, the weaknesses in the monitoring and assessment systems mean that overall leadership and management are satisfactory. The monitoring of teaching is regular and detailed but does not focus enough on the progress pupils make. Although areas for development are identified, these are not always helpful in increasing the pace of

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Grade: 3

learning and raising achievement. The school has developed some good partnerships to support pupils' well-being and learning. For example, a good number of volunteers make a regular commitment to help pupils make progress in developing their reading skills. The success of their involvement is reflected in the Queen's Award for Volunteers. Improvement since the last inspection is satisfactory. Action to improve pupils' attendance and behaviour and the school's links with parents has been successful but standards have not risen fast enough. The school acknowledges that standards and 2 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007 achievement need to be improved and is working closely with the local authority to provide a more focused approach to raising achievement. The action taken so far indicates that the school has a satisfactory capacity to improve and currently provides satisfactory value for money.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Ensure that the monitoring of teaching focuses closely on pupils' progress in lessons and is fully effective in improving the pace of learning so pupils do as well as they can. • Make better use of assessment information to set challenging targets and also when planning lessons in order to raise standards and achievement throughout the school.

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Grade: 3

Achievement is satisfactory. On entry to the Foundation Stage, children's attainment is very low when compared to that typically expected for their age. Many start school with significant delays in their language development and extensive social difficulties. Here, children make good progress in their personal and social development and gain some valuable skills in learning how to share and cooperate with others. In all other areas of learning they achieve satisfactorily. Throughout the school pupils build satisfactorily on their previous skills but standards remain significantly below average by the end of Year 6. Assessment and tracking information is not yet used well enough to ensure that targets challenge pupils to make better progress. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, vulnerable pupils and the few learning English as an additional language also make satisfactory progress because of the effective guidance

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Grade: 2

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. The strong attention given to pupils' social and moral development has resulted in a calm and pleasant learning environment. The school is welcoming to parents and pupils and its inclusive nature is instantly noticeable to visitors. Pupils are friendly and behave well in lessons and around school. Relationships between adults and pupils are strong and this helps pupils gain in self-confidence. The school council is well regarded by other pupils; it gives a real voice to pupils' views and plays an important part in their decision making in school. For example, projects have included setting up a healthy tuck shop and improving the quality of playtimes. Pupils gain a good awareness of healthy lifestyles and participate in a range of physical activities; they particularly enjoy healthy meals at lunchtime, physical education lessons and the opportunity to go swimming.

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Grade: 2

Attendance although still below average has improved significantly since the last 3 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007 inspection because of the school's persistence and success in raising the awareness among pupils and their parents about the importance of regular attendance.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Teachers manage pupils' behaviour and cope with vulnerable pupils very effectively. As a result a positive atmosphere and good relationships are seen in all classes. These form a secure foundation for learning and give pupils the confidence to speak openly in class discussions knowing that their contributions will be valued and listened to. Interactive whiteboards are often used well to hold pupils' attention and engage them in their learning. At the start of lessons most teachers share with pupils what they need to learn. Teaching assistants work effectively alongside the teachers to ensure that pupils are fully involved in the lesson. In the Foundation Stage the quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory overall with strengths in developing children's personal and social skills. Activities in other areas of learning are not always planned with sufficient focus to ensure that children

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Grade: 3

make consistently good progress. In Year 1 activities are carefully planned to help pupils build steadily on their previous learning. The school has a good amount of assessment information but it is not used well enough to plan sufficiently challenging tasks for pupils of all abilities and improve the satisfactory pace of learning.

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Grade: 3

Effective action to improve the range and relevance of lessons is now giving good opportunities for pupils' social development and for them to see the connections between different aspects of their learning. For example, projects with African drummers and with a drama group has led to good quality, fresh and imaginative work in a variety of media. A wide range of out-of-school clubs, including sports and arts, enhance their learning. Pupils are keen and say these are some of their favourite school experiences. A well planned programme to develop pupils' personal and social skills is successfully helping pupils to think hard and to gain confidence in expressing their thoughts and feelings. A new language programme to improve pupils' reading and writing is having a positive impact, but pupils' overall achievement is satisfactory because work provided is not consistently challenging enough for all to achieve their

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Grade: 2

Care, guidance and support are good overall. The school goes to great lengths to help pupils overcome their social and emotional difficulties so that they can concentrate 4 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007 on their learning. Adults in school are fully committed to ensuring that pupils are safe and well cared for. Regular health and safety checks and appropriate procedures for child protection are in place. The required checks on all adults who work with pupils are made and recorded. Good action is improving attendance. The needs of vulnerable pupils and those with additional learning needs are carefully monitored and evaluated. Good links with outside agencies ensure that these pupils are supported to play a full part in school. Consistent but fair systems promote good behaviour and deal effectively with any instances of bullying. As a result, pupils are confident that teachers will help

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Grade: 2

them in any difficulties. A thorough system of assessments tracks pupils' academic progress and is used to identify pupils' targets, now increasingly shared with pupils and their parents. However, the targets are not always set at a sufficiently high level to ensure that pupils make consistently good progress.

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Grade: 3

The headteacher, with staff support, has ensured that the school successfully meets the personal and social needs of pupils. She has led an increasingly cohesive team approach to meeting pupils' needs and supporting their families. Particularly effective action has been taken since the last inspection to improve the curriculum, raise attendance and involve parents more closely in their children's education. All staff give a high priority to ensuring the full inclusion of all pupils, and this results in a pleasant working environment. Governors share the staff concern for pupils' welfare. They also recognise that standards are not as high as they should be and make good attempts to support the school. The school's self-evaluation is broadly accurate. Regular and detailed monitoring of teaching has been established to give a picture of strengths and weaknesses and to steer staff development. However, this does not always focus sufficiently on how well

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Grade: 3

pupils are learning. Points for development are noted and shared with teachers but they are not consistently helping teachers to accelerate progress in lessons. Assessment systems give a picture of attainment through the school but show variations in pupils' progress, and pupils' standards remain low. To meet these concerns, the school has now taken the positive step to work closely with the local authority to sharpen targets and raise the levels of pupils' progress.

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Grade: 2

The before and after school care is good with some outstanding features. Children who attend benefit both personally and socially and have outstanding opportunities to enjoy and achieve whether they choose to play on their own or with others. Relationships are excellent. The provision is exceptionally well set up with children's health, safety and well-being in mind. However, although there has only been one minor accident so far, staff should ensure that this is entered into the accident book 5 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007 and not just on the child's individual file. An outstanding feature is the wide range of interesting activities which are carefully planned to take individual preferences into account indoors, in the hall the ICT suite or outside. The needs of different aged children are very well catered for and everyone finds much to interest them. Staff work

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Grade: 2

well as a team to produce a calm, happy environment where adults and children feel comfortable and at ease with each other. They respond very well to the expectations of the staff and so behaviour is extremely good. Good hygiene, health and safety are promoted well and children have an excellent awareness of how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Mandatory policies and procedures are in place.

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Recommendations or actions to improve the registered day care

6 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007 .

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Recommendations or actions to improve the registered day care

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 7 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 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? 3 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 3 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 3 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

3 How well do learners achieve? 4 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 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

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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. 8 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 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?

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The effectiveness of the registered day care

2 The quality and standards of the registered day care 1 How effective is the day care in helping children to be healthy? 1 How effective is the day care in protecting children and helping them to stay safe? 1 How effective is the day care in helping children to achieve and enjoy their learning? 2 How effective is the day care in helping children to make a positive contribution? 2 How effectively is the day care organised? Yes Does the day care meet the needs of the range of children for whom it provides? No Has the day care improved since the last inspection? No Does the day care require enforcement action? Yes Does the day care require a notice to improve? 9 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for being so friendly and helpful when we inspected your school recently. We were very impressed with the warm welcome we received and it was a pleasure to talk to you and spend time in your school. We would like to share with you what we thought. We think your school gives you a satisfactory standard of education.We were very pleased with your behaviour and how you try your best to get on well with each other. This is a big help to you in lessons and making your school a happy, friendly place. The staff look after you very well and do their best to help you and your families. We can see that the school councillors take their job very seriously and that the school does listen to your views and acts upon your suggestions where possible. The school provides a good range of clubs for you to attend and indeed some of you told us that these are some of your favourite school experiences. You really did seem to have

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

fun at your lunchtime ICT club. There are some very important things that we think could be better to help you reach higher standards and make better progress in English, mathematics and science. We have asked your headteacher and all who work at the school to set you more challenging targets and work that really makes you think, and also to check on lessons more closely to make sure that all teaching is helping you to do your best. Of course, you have a big part to play in helping your school to improve. Keep trying your best and being positive about learning. We wish you and the school the very best for the future. 10 Inspection Report: Wykebeck Primary School, 17 °18 January 2007

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