West Lodge Primary School

West Lodge First School Inspection report

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102216 Unique Reference Number Harrow Local Authority 307936 Inspection number 30 April °1 May 2008 Inspection dates Norma Ball 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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First Type of school Community School category 4 °8 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 360 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Andy Lane Chair Mrs Kim James Headteacher 1 March 2004 Date of previous school inspection West End Lane School address Pinner HA5 1AF 020 8868 0087 Telephone number 020 8866 3228 Fax number

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4-8 Age group 30 April °1 May 2008 Inspection dates 307936 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

West Lodge First School is larger than similar schools. It serves an area of above average prosperity in Pinner, West London, and the proportion of pupils who are eligible for free school meals is lower than average. Over half the pupils in the school are from minority ethnic groups and this is much higher than average. One third of pupils speak English as an additional language. This figure exceeds the national average. In all 16 ethnic groups are represented in the school and 26 languages are spoken. The proportion of pupils who find learning difficult is broadly average. A few pupils have significant social, emotional and behavioural needs. The proportion of pupils who have a statement of special educational need is similar to the national average and includes children with autistic spectrum disorders. The school holds Basic Skills and Achievement Award, Harrow Healthy Schools, The Eco Award, Active School Award, Investors

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Description of the school

in People, Silver Artsmark and 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: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Grade: 2

West Lodge First is an inclusive and industrious school in which pupils are able to learn well and make good progress. The overwhelming majority of parents are pleased with the quality of education their children receive; one said, 'The school is a caring, creative and incredibly happy learning environment'. Under the inspiring leadership of the headteacher, staff work effectively together in a united and committed team. There is a clear vision of improvement for the school ensuring that all pupils enjoy their learning and achieve well. Each individual is important. Pupils are nurtured carefully and so their personal development is excellent. Pupils behave extremely well and show great enjoyment in learning because they are happy in school, have interesting work and feel valued. They are very clear on how to be safe and know that what they do may affect others. The pupils have an outstanding understanding of healthy living and they all speak enthusiastically about what they grow in

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Grade: 2

the school's allotment. Pupils undertake a range of important responsibilities such as school councillors, with great efficiency. The good social skills, love of learning and the progress the pupils make prepares them well for the future. Pupils' achievement is good. By the end of Year 2, they reach standards that are above average, having started in Reception with skills that are broadly in line with those expected for their age. Standards in Year 3 are higher than expected. Pupils who find learning difficult make excellent progress because their needs are accurately assessed and strong support, often on a one to one basis, is provided for them. This is particularly important for pupils who have very specific learning needs such as those on the autistic spectrum. A thorough approach to the teaching of letters and sounds ensures that pupils who have English as an additional language make good progress from the time they enter the school. For all pupils the enjoyment in lessons

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Grade: 2

and the enriching experiences of visits ensures learning remains fun and lively. The curriculum is outstanding as a result of these rich learning opportunities. Pupils participate well in an extensive range of clubs and enjoy the themed days that link subject areas in innovative projects. Teaching meets the needs of all pupils well. Lessons are well planned and activities organised to meet the needs of different ability groups in the class. Teaching has improved since the last inspection and is good overall. However, pockets of very good practice are not shared and so the quality of teaching and learning is still inconsistent across the school. Staff have worked hard to improve English standards, especially to encourage pupils to develop their writing skills, and are meeting with success. Information about progress is analysed with increasing skill and used to keep pupils informed about how well they are doing. However, guidance to help pupils

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Grade: 2

improve their work, although developing well, is still inconsistent. As a result, targets to identify the next steps in their learning and marking of work to highlight what can be done to improve a piece of work vary in quality and rigour. Leadership and management of the school are good and the contribution of governors is excellent. Governors have a very detailed understanding of the school, work with serious commitment and hold the school to account in their drive to improve all areas of provision. The headteacher works in a strong professional partnership with the governors and provides outstanding leadership to the staff. Rigorous monitoring systems involve the senior team, subject leaders and governors. The leadership team has implemented a range of strategies to move the school forward and some of these are still developing, for example, in improving 4 of 11 Inspection Report: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Grade: 2

pupils' enjoyment of writing. The school is now well placed to raise the pace of improvement and there is good capacity for the school to improve further.

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Grade: 2

Children enter the school with a range of abilities but most are at the expected levels for their age. They make good progress in all areas of learning, particularly in personal, social and emotional development. This is because staff assess children's needs carefully, provide good support and encourage children to be independent and to take responsibility from an early age. There is a rigorous approach to the teaching of letters, sounds and basic numeracy skills. Most children enter Year 1 having attained above the expected levels. Staff work as a strong team, are well led, and as a result the quality of teaching is good and activities are planned well to promote a range of skills. Although observations are used well to monitor how well children are progressing, the information is not consistently used to identify the next steps for development. Strong links with parents ensure that they are kept fully involved in their children's

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the quality of teaching and learning still further by identifying and sharing good practice. ■ Ensure that marking clearly identifies how work can be improved and targets are consistently set to help pupils identify the next steps in learning.

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Grade: 2

Pupils make good progress in their time in school including those at the early stages of learning English. Pupils who find learning difficult make excellent progress. The careful organisation of well trained learning support staff, often working with one pupil, ensures those in most need are helped to remain on task and gain fully from the learning experiences in lessons. Standards at the end of Year 2 are above average and they have remained so for the past four years with small fluctuations. Inspection evidence indicates that good progress is maintained in Year 3. The tracking of progress of pupils through efficient monitoring identifies underachievement quickly. The school is well placed to improve both achievement and standards further.

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Grade: 1

Pupils think their school is wonderful and enjoy all aspects of their learning. They are very attentive and join in lessons with great enthusiasm. Pupils work and play extremely well together, responding positively to the school's ethos of love and respect for all individuals. The school quickly deals with the rare incidents of bullying and name-calling. Families who take holidays in term adversely affect good attendance. The elected school council discusses important decisions and all pupils understand that their views are valued. Pupils of all ages accept a significant range of responsibilities and Year 3 pupils provide exemplary role models. They are especially proud of their supportive links with children in Reception and the way they help them settle into school. Lessons, and the many visits and visitors to the school, all contribute to the clear understanding and respect for the cultures and faiths within their school and the

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Grade: 1

wider community. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Grade: 2

There is a good learning atmosphere in all classes. Pupils enjoy discussions and participate confidently because they are well taught. They work hard and as a result, they make good progress. Good pace and tasks that capture pupils' interest and imagination make learning fun and good use of questions enables pupils to explore subjects well. In a Year 2 class, for example, the exciting use of a robot who responded to mathematical commands from pupils promoted a lively class session that delighted pupils. In order to promote learning even more effectively, it is this outstanding quality of teaching that needs to be more consistently shared throughout the school. Teachers plan well in year groups and carefully review lessons to revise planning to ensure pupils continue to make good progress. Teaching support staff work in close partnership with teachers and work well with pupils who need extra help with their learning,

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Grade: 2

in both lessons and small groups outside class.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum is rich in learning opportunities and meets the needs of pupils extremely well. Pupils speak highly of focus days such as the Mexican fiesta. These days are creative and bring learning alive as well as linking subjects such as literacy, music, art and geography. The new national strategies for literacy and numeracy have been integrated well into lessons through careful planning. Exciting new initiatives which make writing more exciting by talking about ideas, and sharing in imaginative projects which fire pupils' imagination help them to use interesting words and punctuation more accurately. Information and communication technology (ICT) is well developed and creative subjects, particularly art, are a growing strength of the school.

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Grade: 2

All staff assign a high priority to the care of pupils and the procedures for safeguarding are rigorous. Induction arrangements for new children are organised sensitively so they settle quickly. Sympathetic management of each stage of transition ensures that they remain confident and secure. The excellent use of an extensive range of outside agencies enhances the very good care provided for all pupils within school. Pastoral care is a strength of the school so pupils feel safe and confident that they can always share concerns with adults. Pupils' progress is regularly monitored and a range of targets is set, especially in literacy. However not all targets are sufficiently challenging or precise enough to be of maximum benefit. Pupils' work is marked regularly but it does not always identify clearly, how and where work can be improved, so that pupils make even better progress.

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Grade: 2

The headteacher provides excellent leadership and is very ably supported by a committed and energetic senior team in setting out a strong direction for improvement in all areas of the 6 of 11 Inspection Report: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008 school. She has been especially effective in uniting all staff in a strong sense of purpose to develop to their full potential the children in their care. There are good and improving systems for evaluating the school's effectiveness and these are beginning to have a positive impact on pupils' progress. There has been a careful focus on support for pupils who find learning difficult and also on providing more challenge for able pupils so that they make better progress. The school is now beginning to concentrate on promoting improvement for pupils of medium ability so they too achieve as well as they can. Subject co-ordinators embrace their responsibilities

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Grade: 2

with enthusiasm and show good leadership in developing their subject areas. Middle managers are still developing their skills to support senior colleagues and promote further improvement in teaching and learning. Governors know their school extremely well and so have the knowledge to challenge and support it rigorously. They ensure financial planning is very prudent and resources are well used. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008 .

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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: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 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? 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? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 1 The behaviour of learners 1 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: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 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 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: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

14 May 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of West Lodge First School,Pinner,HA5 1AF Thank you for giving us such a warm welcome when we came to your school. We really enjoyed our time with you. You and your parents told us your school was good and we agree with you. We liked the very happy and caring feel of your school and we saw that you all get on very well together and are polite and kind to one another. Everyone works very hard to make sure that you are safe, enjoy your time in school and do some very interesting work. We were especially impressed to learn how much you know about staying safe and healthy, especially the foods you need to eat to have a healthy diet. We found that your lessons are good, well planned and provide many interesting tasks for you. You certainly enjoy your learning and work very happily in pairs and groups. You have a wonderful range of opportunities to learn out of school with lots of trips as well as joining

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

activities organised in your local area. All of this is fun but it means you are extending your learning as well. Your school is good and we think the staff, your parents and you would like it to be even better. Your teachers and support staff work hard to help you do as well as you can. We have asked them to make sure they share their best ideas so that all your lessons are as exciting and interesting as the best ones are. You can help by continuing to listen carefully and take note of what they say. We have also asked that teachers make sure that their marking clearly shows how you can improve your work and your targets in literacy and numeracy identify sharply the next things you have to learn. Thank you again for making our time in your school so enjoyable. Yours sincerely, Norma Ball Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: West Lodge First School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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