Manor Junior School

101192 Unique Reference Number Barking and Dagenham Local Authority 307608 Inspection number 13 °14 May 2008 Inspection dates Mary Summers 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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Junior Type of school Community School category 7 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 482 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Rita Fisher Chair Mr John Clark Headteacher 2 February 2004 Date of previous school inspection Sandringham Road School address Barking IG11 9AG 020 8270 4641 Telephone number 020 8270 4640 Fax number

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7-11 Age group 13 °14 May 2008 Inspection dates 307608 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 large school serves a socially diverse community. Almost a half of the pupils come from Asian backgrounds and just over a quarter come from White British families. Most other minority ethnic groups are represented in smaller numbers. The nature of the school's population is changing, with more minority ethnic pupils attending, many of whom speak English as an additional language. Few pupils however are at the early stages of learning English. Only a few pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The majority of these have moderate or specific learning difficulties. The school has won a number of awards, including Healthy Schools status and the ICT 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: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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Grade: 3

Manor Junior School provides a satisfactory education for its pupils. They start school in Year 3 at higher levels than those expected nationally. They make satisfactory progress throughout the school and by the end of Year 6, standards are above average. Pupils enjoy coming to school and this is borne out in the high rate of attendance. They take a full part in the broad curriculum, particularly in sport and music, in which the school offers good opportunities. They know how to keep safe and healthy and make a good contribution to their school and local community. This prepares them well to become responsible citizens of the future. Teaching is satisfactory overall, and there is some good and outstanding teaching across the school. Relationships between pupils and teachers are strong and contribute much to the pleasant atmosphere for learning. As one parent said, 'I have always found the school friendly,

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Grade: 3

the staff easy to talk to and the children well-behaved.' Lesson planning, though satisfactory, sometimes does not consider pupils' different needs with the result that some find the work too easy and some too difficult. Teachers do not always use the good range of assessment data to plan work for different abilities. This affects pupils' progress especially in mathematics. There are secure systems in place to keep pupils safe. Pupils are well cared for and know they have an adult to turn to if they have a concern. Academic guidance is satisfactory. Pupils have some idea of their targets for improvement but are not always aware of how to reach them. Teachers have begun to try out new assessment and marking strategies but pupils are not yet receiving consistently good advice about how they can improve their work. The school is led and managed satisfactorily, and it operates well on a day-to day- basis. Good

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Grade: 3

links with the infant and senior schools that share the site mean that pupils transfer confidently and smoothly. Subject coordinators are developing their roles and show a good commitment towards school improvement. They have begun to introduce new programmes such as 'Big Writing' to improve teaching and learning. The school has a reasonable view of its own performance although it is rather generous in some of its judgments. This is because there is no clear and rigorous programme to check how well things are working and to highlight areas for improvement. Nonetheless, the school shows a satisfactory capacity to improve in the future.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that teaching meets the needs of all pupils effectively.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Strengthen monitoring, evaluation and school improvement planning to ensure that there is a clear direction for the school's development. ■ Establish a consistent approach to marking and target setting so that pupils have clear information about what they have to do to improve. A small proportion of schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory but which have areas of underperformance will receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next Section 5 inspection. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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Grade: 3

Pupils begin in Year 3 with above average standards in reading, writing and mathematics. Many are at exceptionally high levels. The results of the 2005 and 2006 national tests for Year 6 pupils showed a dip in standards, especially in English, but standards in 2007 rose to their previously above average levels. Pupils of different ethnicities and those for whom English is an additional language reach similarly high levels. Pupils make satisfactory progress throughout the school. However, although standards are high, there are still too many pupils who do not reach nationally expected levels. A good proportion reaches the higher Level 5 in English and science but fewer pupils achieve this in mathematics. This is due to lessons not always meeting the full range of learners' needs.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' personal development and well-being including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are good. Pupils are well behaved. They feel safe and know they can go to a teacher if they need help with a problem. Pupils enjoy school and attendance is high. They have a satisfactory knowledge of healthy living. The school council is monitoring school dinners and some improvements have already occurred. However, there is more work to be done in encouraging pupils to bring healthy snacks and packed lunches to school. Pupils are polite, sociable and respectful of one another's opinions and backgrounds. They take their posts of responsibility very seriously, for example as monitors, prefects and librarians. They take an active role in the local community, raising funds for charities and performing concerts for parents and friends of the school. These qualities, along with their good standards in literacy,

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Grade: 2

numeracy and information and communication technology, prepare them well for their future education and beyond.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall. Teachers enjoy positive relationships with pupils and these contribute well to pupils' good behaviour and their positive attitudes to learning. Teachers encourage pupils and praise their efforts. This motivates the pupils to do their best. Teachers use computers well to present their lessons and this engages pupils' attention and interest. However, sometimes these introductory sessions go on too long and pupils' attention wanes. Teachers' planning does not consistently provide appropriately challenging tasks for different groups of pupils. In mathematics especially, pupils who are more able often find the work too easy and those who learn at a slower rate find it difficult. There are some examples of good practice. In a Year 3 music lesson for instance, the tasks set for pupils were pitched at exactly the right level for pupils' of different capabilities and so all made extremely good

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Grade: 3

progress. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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Grade: 3

The satisfactory curriculum provides a broad range of activities for pupils that engage them successfully in their learning. The computer suites and further equipment in classrooms provide good opportunities for pupils to develop their skills in using new technology. Visit, visitors and after-school activities such as football, cricket and recorder clubs provide stimulating first-hand experiences to make learning enjoyable and interesting. There is a suitable emphasis on the development of the core skills of literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology. However, there are not enough planned opportunities for pupils to develop and reinforce these skills further in other subjects. The school is presently reviewing its curriculum to improve these and to incorporate more links between subjects to make learning more relevant for pupils. Sport and music are particular strengths and pupils of all abilities are set appropriate

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Grade: 3

challenges and benefit from specialist teaching.

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Grade: 3

The school is a happy, friendly place where pupils feel safe and the pastoral care is good. Adults know pupils well and are quick to offer support if necessary. Effective partnerships with the education psychology service help to ensure that pupils with moderate learning difficulties make satisfactory progress. Safeguarding procedures meet requirements. Health and safety systems are thorough. Academic guidance is satisfactory. Progress is monitored carefully and pupils are usually aware of how well they are doing. However, pupils are not always aware of their targets for improvement and, although teachers mark pupils' work regularly, they do not always inform pupils of how they can get better. The support given to pupils with moderate and specific learning difficulties is satisfactory. However, teachers and support assistants do not always have a clear enough understanding of pupils' individual needs to be able to provide well-tailored

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Grade: 3

The school runs smoothly on a day-to-day basis. A pleasant informal atmosphere contributes well to pupils' feelings of safety and security. The headteacher and deputy are well known to pupils who are not afraid to voice concerns or opinions. The headteacher's sensitive management has resulted in staff feeling very positive about the school and committed to improving their practice. Recent initiatives in writing for example, have led to pupils making better progress. Subject coordinators are enthusiastic about increasing their impact on school provision although their monitoring roles are underdeveloped at present. However, they have begun to write action plans to guide the way forward. Overall, the school does not have secure monitoring and evaluation systems in place to gain a really detailed and accurate picture of its performance. Planning for school improvement therefore, is not as sharp as it might be and not linked closely enough to improving pupils'

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Grade: 3

achievement. 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008 Governance is satisfactory. New governors are currently developing their understanding of roles and responsibilities so they can play a full part in monitoring the school's work. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008 .

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Grade: 3

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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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? 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

3 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?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 3 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 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?

3 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: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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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 3 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 3 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: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

23 May 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Manor Junior School,Barking,IG11 9AG We enjoyed visiting your school last week. Thank you for being so polite and friendly and for answering our questions about what you do at school. Now it is my turn to tell you what we found out. Manor Juniors is a satisfactory school. It is clear that all the adults take good care of you so that you feel happy and secure. We were very pleased that nearly all of you attend regularly and punctually. This means that you do not miss any important parts of your education. We were pleased to see that you are growing into responsible, polite and confident young people. You know how to keep safe, including what to do if bullying occurs, although you said this was rare. We liked the way you carry out jobs in the school and present concerts for your parents, carers and friends in the community. We were especially pleased that you all get on

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

so well together and value each other's different backgrounds and cultures. We know that the school council is working hard to try to improve school dinners to make them healthier. However, some of you who bring snacks and packed lunches also need to bring healthier options rather than chocolate and crisps! We were pleased that you find your lessons interesting. Occasionally they are too easy for some of you and too difficult for others and we have asked the teachers to use the information about how well you are doing to make sure the work is just right for all of you. We have also asked them to make sure that you have clear targets for improvement and to give you some more advice about how to improve your work. We have asked the people in charge to check more carefully on what is happening in classrooms to make sure all of you are making enough progress. I know you will want to play your part in helping the school to improve by continuing to work

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

hard and behave well. I wish you every success in the future. It was a pleasure to meet you. Yours sincerely Mary Summers Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Manor Junior School, 13 °14 May 2008

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