Setting

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 08456 404045 F 020 7421 6855 www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Mrs Debby Rigby Headteacher Valewood Primary School Sherwood Avenue Liverpool Merseyside L23 7YG

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2006/07

Thank you for your hospitality and co-operation, and that of your staff, during my visit on 22 January to look at the impact of extended services on children and young people.

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2006/07

The visit provided valuable information which will contribute to our national evaluation and reporting. Published reports are likely to list the names of the contributing institutions, but individual institutions will not be identified in the main text. All feedback letters will be published on the Ofsted website at the end of each half-term.

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2006/07

The evidence used to inform the judgements made included: interviews with staff, parents, children and representatives of the governing body and the Local Authority Services and a representative of the local Education Action Zone. Relevant documentation was scrutinised and the lunchtime and after- school activities were observed. At the school’s request, the support for children with learning difficulties and disabilities (LDD) in parts of six lessons was observed.

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2006/07

The overall effectiveness of the extended provision was judged to be good. All elements of the core offer are in place. The integrated childcare and after school activities are well supported by children and families and make a positive contribution to children’s learning, personal development and well- being. Parenting support and access to family health services are valued and they meet parents’ needs and wants.

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Achievement and standards

The school’s extended services make a good contribution to children’s learning, personal development and well-being.

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Achievement and standards

 Test data indicate that achievement is well above average and improving. Girls achieved slightly better than boys in 2006 and the small numbers of children with learning difficulties and disabilities (LDD) made at least satisfactory progress.  Inspection evidence shows that some children receiving specialist support made good progress in response to well taught one-to-one and small group work.  Personal development and wellbeing are exceptionally good.  Children’s attitudes and behaviour in school and in the activities is good. They are enthusiastic about the clubs and activities and most participate in more than one.  Activities provide good opportunities to develop children’ interests, support them in readily acquiring new practical skills especially sporting and musical, and help to reinforce skills such as reading, drawing and making.  Children enjoy the activities and are well cared for. They know about

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Achievement and standards

healthy food choices and have opportunities for plenty of exercise. They say the activities are: “fun, exciting and memorable”. They find them welcoming and friendly.  Taking part in activities provides opportunities for children including those who are vulnerable and have LDD to make decisions and learn rules. Their teachers and parents report that they are becoming confident learners, and they appear quite self assured to adults and providers visiting the school.  Attendance improved in 2005/06 to 94% and is broadly in line with national averages.

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Quality of provision

The overall quality of provision is good. It is built upon a strong foundation of enrichment and a wide range of activities in school, good partnership with parents, the local network of schools and local authority services.

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Quality of provision

 Out of school provision is well co-ordinated by the school and shaped to appeal to the interests of children and their families generally. Take- up is high.  Procedures to monitor and evaluate the impact the provision has on children’s achievement and standards are not yet in place.  Parents are very positive about the quality of activities and the value for money, when charges are made. Family learning, parenting support courses and adult learning courses are on offer. Those who have participated find the courses extremely useful and say that they meet their needs.

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Leadership and management of extended services

 The headteacher’s vision for extended services is shared by governors, staff and parents and provides a clear sense of direction. A very positive ethos characterises the work and arrangements to gather parents’ and children’s views are firmly in place.  Plans for the further development originate from an audit of need and place high priority on every child matters (ECM) outcomes. Planning for integrated services is coherent and satisfactory.  Systems to monitor and evaluate the impact and quality of the extended services are at a very early stage.  Management of the extended schools programme is integrated within current practices in the school. However, opportunities for formalising the strategic management, monitoring and evaluation of the programme are under consideration.  Governors are well informed about the provision through regular reports and external reviews.

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Inclusion

 Extended services are aimed at overcoming the specific barriers to learning which a small number of children face.  Extra care is taken to engage vulnerable children and those with LDD and they are well represented in out of school provision.  Parents are confident and happy with the provision and see the benefits of inclusion; for example one child has made rapid progress with speech since his integration with other children.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

 systematic monitoring and evaluation of the out of school learning, after school activities and care provision and their impact on children’s academic achievement and personal development.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

I hope these observations are useful as you continue to develop extended services in the school. As I explained in my previous letter, a copy of this letter will be sent to your local authority and will be published on Ofsted’s website. It will also be available to the team for your next institutional inspection.

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