Old Oak Primary School

Old Oak Primary School Inspection report

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100335 Unique Reference Number Hammersmith and Fulham Local Authority 307362 Inspection number 27 °28 November 2007 Inspection dates Kathryn Taylor 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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Primary Type of school Community School category 3 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 307 School The governing body Appropriate authority Professor G Welch Chair Ms M Parker Headteacher 1 October 2001 Date of previous school inspection Mellitus Street School address East Acton London W12 0AS 020 8743 7629 Telephone number 020 8749 8360 Fax number

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3-11 Age group 27 °28 November 2007 Inspection dates 307362 Inspection number .

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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 is a large school whose pupils come from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. The proportion of pupils from homes where English is not the first language is high. The proportion of pupils that the school identifies as having learning difficulties and disabilities is very high. The school has gained the Healthy Schools Award and the Silver Arts Mark.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007

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Grade: 2

This is a good school, with a strong, caring ethos and family atmosphere. Parents think highly of the school and support it well. They rightly judge that the school provides a good standard of education. Children settle quickly into the Nursery and Reception classes and start to make good progress because of the good Foundation Stage provision. They continue to achieve well in Years 1 to 6, especially in English. Standards are rising and are broadly average by the time pupils leave. Although the school has begun to tackle them, weaknesses remain in pupils' understanding of mathematical and scientific vocabulary, and their skills in problem-solving and investigations. Good teaching and the staff's enthusiastic approach and sharing of skills enable them to provide work and activities that capture pupils' interests and engage them well. A particular strength is the outstanding curriculum, which is very broad, exciting and relevant. It reflects pupils'

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Grade: 2

interests, ages and backgrounds extremely well and includes very many visits, visitors and after-school activities that promote cultural development and enjoyment. Provision for pupils who have learning difficulties or need support learning English is good, and a number of 'catch-up programmes' are in place to accelerate pupils' progress and raise standards further. Racial harmony is very good. Pupils' behaviour, relationships, enjoyment of school and attitudes to learning, are all good, and on occasions exemplary. As a result, pupils are safe and happy at school. Good gains in pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development mean that pupils have a clear understanding of right and wrong, appreciate differences, celebrate their achievements, and show care and consideration for others. Pupils' enthusiasm for learning makes a very positive contribution to their progress. Pupils are increasingly well-informed about

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Grade: 2

how well they are doing and progressing. Good leadership and very effective teamwork ensure that pupils make good progress, and are very happy and well cared for in school. Leadership is innovative, and constantly looking for new ways to enrich provision and ensure it meets the needs of its diverse intake of pupils. For example, the setting up of curriculum groups has had a good impact on developing staff, sharing expertise and strengthening the overall quality of teaching, learning and the curriculum. The school also makes very good use of its links with the local community. They organise many cultural activities that involve parents and draw on their knowledge and expertise, as was clearly evident during International Week. Although the school is very creative and proactive in bringing about these change, its evaluations of the precise impact of initiatives is not fully evaluated. The school's data is also not analysed rigorously enough to explore trends in standards and the

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Grade: 2

Good provision and effective links with parents enable children to quickly settle into the daily routines of school and make good progress. The strong focus on communication, language and literacy supports all children well and develops the skills of a high proportion of children whose home language is not English. Children learn to cooperate. They gain confidence, develop independence and good attitudes to learning. Good teaching, planning and assessment ensures a broad curriculum and that the differing needs of the children are met. Despite these strengths, the outdoor areas in the Nursery are under-developed, which limits the range of outdoor 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007 learning opportunities for children. The good improvements to provision in recent years been well led, These have contributed to improving children's attainments, and ensured that the Nursery and Reception classes now work together as an established Foundation Stage unit.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Give pupils' more opportunities to develop their understanding of mathematical and scientific vocabulary, and develop their skills in problem solving and investigations. ■ Strengthen school self-evaluation processes, in particular the way the school analyses its data and evaluates the impact of developments on pupils' learning and performance.

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Grade: 2

When children start school, their attainment levels are below national expectations and their skills in communication, language and literacy are well below those expected. Children in Nursery and Reception make good progress across all areas of learning. Standards by the end of Reception are improving. Although they remain below average, they are close to those expected. In Years 1 to 6 pupils of all abilities, including those who have learning difficulties and disabilities, and pupils who still need some help in learning English, continue to make good progress. In the 2007 national assessments and tests, results show that English standards were average by the end of Years 2 and 6. Mathematics and science standards were below average in Year 2, and broadly average by the end of Year 6. Evidence from pupils' current work shows that the trend of improvement is being maintained. Weaknesses remain in pupils' understanding of

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Grade: 2

mathematical and scientific vocabulary and their skills in problem-solving and investigations. There are examples of pupils across the school producing good work and progressing well in other subjects, for example, in information and communication technology (ICT) and art.

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Grade: 2

Pupils are polite, friendly and very helpful. They develop maturity and willingly undertake responsibilities in class and around the school. They make a good contribution to decision-making and ensuring the school runs smoothly. Their enjoyment of school is evidenced in their good and often excellent behaviour, high concentration levels, and in the pride they take with their finished work, both in books and on display around the school. Pupils develop a good understanding of healthy lifestyles through the curriculum and because they enjoy regular opportunities to take part in physical activities during lessons, break-times and after-school. Pupils' good social skills and academic progress help prepare them well for their future education. Attendance rates, although improving, remain below average because of the extended absence of a small number of pupils.

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Grade: 2

Particular strengths lie in teachers' use of ICT, lesson preparation and organisation, and their relationships with pupils. Teachers prepare lessons well. They provide many interesting, practical tasks for pupils that are well linked to their everyday experiences. Consequently pupils learn well and have many opportunities to work independently, and collaborate in pairs and in groups. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007 Well-trained teaching assistants make a good contribution to pupils' learning. In a few lessons, there are missed opportunities to promote pupils' speaking skills and, occasionally, pupils are not given enough time to think and respond to teachers' questions. Teachers assess pupils' progress regularly. Teachers' marking is consistent and helpful, and they set realistic and achievable learning targets so that the pupils get good quality feedback on their performance

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Grade: 2

and progress. Consequently, they are helping pupils to become better learners and to understand what they need to do to improve their work.

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Grade: 1

The outstanding curriculum is very interesting and exciting. It has a very good focus on developing pupils' basic skills, but not at the expense of unduly narrowing the curriculum. This has been achieved because the school has painstakingly planned opportunities to link subjects together meaningfully, thereby using a themed approach to develop and apply a range of skills. The curriculum also reflects pupils' diverse backgrounds and promotes their health, safety and enjoyment exceptionally well. Other strengths lie in ICT provision, which is improving rapidly and challenging pupils to reach good standards. Excellent enrichment activities include many visits, visitors, workshops and after school activities. Very good provision in art and music supports pupils' cultural development particularly well, and French has recently been introduced. There is good provision for pupils who have learning difficulties and disabilities. Pupils who

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Grade: 1

are learning English are also well supported and therefore make good progress.

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Grade: 2

Parents say that the school takes good care of their children. As one parent said, 'Staff at Old Oak are very kind and supportive.' Good systems are in place to help pupils settle into school and to approach the transfer to secondary school confidently. The school provides very good support for vulnerable pupils, including those with personal difficulties. This is supported by good links with parents and external agencies. Child protection, checks on staff and health and safety procedures are securely in place. Pupils are well supervised outdoors and when moving around the school. They say they feel safe at school, are confident to approach adults if they have any concerns, and that any rare incidents of bullying or name-calling are dealt with promptly. Pupils receive good feedback through consistent and helpful marking. Their involvement in assessing their own learning is an area that the school is working to extend.

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Grade: 2

The school has put in place good measures to follow up persistent absences and has few some, but relatively few rewards for good attendance.

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Grade: 2

The headteacher's vision for the school and her strong commitment to the pupils is a shared one. With good support from the governors and other leaders, she has built a very caring school based on strong teamwork. She places a strong emphasis on staff development thereby ensuring that the staff seek to continually enrich pupils' experiences. Subjects are well led by the curriculum groups, which means all teachers are involved in school improvement. The school has an accurate understanding of its strengths and areas for development. Senior leaders recognise, however, that school self-evaluation processes have not focused enough on checking 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007 the precise impact of the various new initiatives and developments. Governors are well-informed of the school's strengths and weaknesses. They act as the school's critical friend, understand their roles and responsibilities in holding the school account for its performance.

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Grade: 2

7 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007 .

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Grade: 2

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 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? Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 2 The effectiveness of the Foundation Stage 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 3 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 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 extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 3 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 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 2 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

10 December 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Old Oak Primary School,London,W12 0AS Thank you very much for making us so welcome when we visited your school. Inspectors agree with your teachers and parents that Old Oak Primary School is a good school. These are the things that work well in your school:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you are friendly, well-behaved and polite. We noticed that in some lessons and in the class assembly your were very attentive and your behaviour was excellent. You work hard and get on very well together, which makes your school a very happy place to be. A few children, however, do not come to school regularly enough ■ your teachers and other staff help you to make good progress. They let you know how you are getting on and what you need to do to improve your work ■ standards are improving and you make really good progress in English. We also saw some good work that you had produced in ICT and art ■ the staff take good care of you, listen to your views and encourage you to do well

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ the curriculum in all year groups is excellent. This helps you to enjoy lessons and to take part in lots of interesting activities during and after school ■ the headteacher and senior leaders lead the school well. This ensures that staff teach you well and are always thinking of ways they can improve the school further. This is what I have asked the school to do next:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ we have asked the staff to help you to do even better in science and mathematics, by making sure you understand the vocabulary, learn to solve problems in mathematics and how to carry out investigations better in science ■ we have asked senior leaders to get even better at checking how well the changes they make help all of you to make better progress. I hope you continue to do well. You can help by ensuring you come to school regularly, continuing to work hard and by making suggestions about what would help to make your school even better. With very best wishes Kathryn Taylor Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Old Oak Primary School, 27 °28 November 2007

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