Setting

Miss D Cushing The Headteacher St Andrew’s C of E VA Primary School Ecton Brook Road Ecton Brook Northampton NN3 5EN

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

Thank you for the help which you and your staff gave when I inspected your school on 9 May 2007, for the time you gave to our phone discussions, and for the information which you provided before and during my visit. I am grateful for the contributions of your chair of the Task Group. Please also pass on my thanks to the staff and pupils who spoke to me and helped me with my work.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

This letter will be posted on the Ofsted website. Please inform the Regional Inspection Service Provider of any factual inaccuracies within 24 hours of the receipt of this letter.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

As a result of the inspection on 18 and 19 October 2006, the school was asked to: raise standards in science and ensure pupils make at least expected progress in English and mathematics in all classes; improve the quality and impact of subject leadership; ensure teachers provide more active and enjoyable learning experiences for the pupils and increase the pace of lessons.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

Having considered all the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time the school is making satisfactory progress in addressing the issues for improvement and in raising the pupils’ achievements. Under your leadership, senior leaders are working hard to ensure that accountability for pupils’ progress is embedded in every year group. Pupils’ progress in English and mathematics is now tracked more carefully through regular assessments and subject leaders are using this information well to analyse where pupils are not making sufficient progress. This is helping teachers to improve their planning of literacy and numeracy lessons. In most cases, work is planned to meet pupils’ different needs and abilities and teachers make it clear to pupils what is expected from them by the end of the lesson. Teachers mark pupils’ work regularly and use the ‘two stars and a wish’ scheme to help pupils understand what they have

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

done well and what they need to do to improve further. There is consistently strong practice in the Reception class and in Years 1 and 2 in this respect. Whilst generally improving in Years 3 to 6, there are still inconsistencies between classes in the quality of academic guidance through marking and the use of targets on classroom Tribal Group 1-4 Portland Square Bristol BS2 8RR T 0845 123 6001 F 0845 123 6002 T 08456 40 40 40 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk walls. This means that pupils do not all know what they are aiming for and are not all helped to do as well as they should.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

Analysis of the school’s records and scrutiny of pupils’ work in books and in the lessons I visited show that pupils are making at least satisfactory progress in Years 1 to 3. Whilst some pupils’ progress is speeding up through good quality support and ‘booster’ groups in Year 6, there are still some pupils in Years 4 to 6 who are not yet making the progress of which they are capable. This is particularly the case in mathematics, where fewer than expected pupils are likely to reach the targets set for them by the end of the year. The majority are capable of reaching higher standards but there is still work to do to help them gain confidence and overcome past underachievement. Opportunities for pupils to use writing in subjects such as history are developing well but there is scope for even greater linking between subjects to help pupils use their literacy and numeracy skills to full effect.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

The rate of pupils’ progress in science is not yet matching that of English and mathematics. Whilst consultant support is helping the science subject leader to develop her role, as yet there has been limited progress in raising standards in this subject. Subject leadership is improving well in English and mathematics. Subject leaders feel well supported by advisers and consultants and are more effectively involved than in the past in monitoring teaching and learning through lesson observations and scrutiny of pupils’ work. This is leading to improved sharing of information across the school. You and the two subject leaders clearly recognise the need to press ahead with your tracking and assessment procedures to ensure that swift action is taken in every year group to address any potential underachievement.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

The school has established a good climate for learning. Pupils like coming to school, are well behaved and say they really enjoy learning when they have to think hard. Pupils are ripe to carry on making progress from the good start made in Reception and Years 1 and 2, where lessons are exciting, well planned and proceed at a good pace. My observations confirm the school’s monitoring of teaching and learning that there is a greater proportion of lessons which are satisfactory and that about half of lessons are good. The challenge now is to ensure that that all lessons are of equally good quality so that pupils’ achievement continues to improve.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

The local authority is providing good support for the school. The work of the school improvement partner and local authority advisers and consultants is beginning to have a positive impact on improving the leadership and management skills of key staff and the quality of teaching and opportunities for learning.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

I hope that you have found the visit helpful in promoting improvement in your school.

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Ofsted Monitoring of Schools with Notice to Improve

Yours sincerely Helen Barter Additional Inspector

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