Stoke Heath Primary School

Stoke Heath Primary School Inspection report

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103684 Unique Reference Number Coventry Local Authority 308386 Inspection number 15 °16 April 2008 Inspection dates Alison Grainger 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 304 School The governing body Appropriate authority David Owen Chair Julia Rapsomanikis Headteacher 21 June 2004 Date of previous school inspection Heath Crescent School address Coventry CV2 4PR 02476 454741 Telephone number 02476 454793 Fax number

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3-11 Age group 15 °16 April 2008 Inspection dates 308386 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

The school is increasing in size following redevelopment of the area in which it is situated. As a result, many pupils are joining the school other than at the usual time and the overall turnover of pupils is higher than in most schools. Just under half of the pupils are of a White British background. Other pupils are from a range of minority ethnic backgrounds. 15% of pupils are at an early stage of learning English as an additional language. More than a third of pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities, which is above average. A similar proportion of pupils are eligible for free school meals, and this is also above average. Taking the intake to the Nursery as a whole, children's attainment on entry is below the level expected. Many children have particularly low language and social skills when they start school. The current headteacher has been responsible for the school since September 2006 and there

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Description of the school

have been many changes in the teaching staff this school year.

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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: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school. It is improving and already has some good features. Parents are pleased with the changes that have been made recently and as one parent commented, the headteacher is making changes 'to keep her promise of teaching the whole child'. Another observed that, 'Even though education is the top priority, so is the happiness and confidence of pupils.' The school is taking a balanced approach to raising standards and promoting pupils' personal development and well-being. Children get off to a good start in the Nursery and this is built on securely in the Reception Year. As a result, by the time children transfer to Year 1, their attainment is close to the level expected except in early reading and writing. Across the school standards are below average. They are well below average in Year 6, where there is a legacy of past underachievement. Nevertheless, pupils' current rate of progress is satisfactory. There are examples of good progress

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Grade: 3

in some years, particularly in the Nursery and Years 1 and 2. The school is aware that pupils need to move on at a quicker than satisfactory rate, especially in Years 3 to 6, if standards are to rise and the impact of much slow progress in the past is to be eradicated. The main reason why pupils are now making adequate gains in their learning is that teaching and the curriculum are satisfactory. There are already examples of good teaching, with strong features evident in all years. The most effective teaching is closely matched to the needs of all the pupils in the class. However, it is because the match of teaching to needs is not consistently good that teaching is satisfactory rather than good overall. There are good aspects to the care, guidance and support that result in strengths in pupils' personal development and well-being. Almost all pupils enjoy school a lot, behave consistently well, and form positive relationships. All pupils benefit from the school's calm and supportive

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Grade: 3

environment. The school cares well for vulnerable pupils. It gives effective support to those entering other than at the usual time, some of whom have come from overseas. The involvement of parents is increasing. However, the school recognises that it needs to work harder with parents to improve the attendance rate, which is too low. Academic guidance is not as effective as the attention to pupils' personal welfare. Teachers mark pupils' work regularly and some marking is good. Teachers also tell pupils what they are aiming for them to achieve in each lesson. Not enough is done however, through individual targets and marking to ensure that all pupils have clear guidance on how to improve their performance. Leadership and management are satisfactory. There is a shared commitment to improving provision and raising standards. Self-evaluation is accurate. However, the analysis of how provision, particularly teaching, influences pupils' progress and standards is not always sharp

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Grade: 3

enough. As a result, there are missed opportunities to speed up the pace of improvement. Even so, the school is clearly moving in the right direction and demonstrating a secure capacity for improvement.

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Grade: 2

Children settle well in the Nursery because of the supportive relationships, opportunities for their parents to stay and play with them, and the welcoming and stimulating environment. Good teaching ensures that children make significant progress in language and communication 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008 skills. The strong focus on speaking and listening benefits all children and gives much-needed support to those at an early stage of learning English as an additional language. Learning the basics of sounds, letters and numbers is made enjoyable. One child described a session on letter sounds as 'fabaroony'! Personal and social skills are also developed effectively so that children work and play together well and gain independence. Accurate teaching, with a continued emphasis on social development, ensures that further steady gains are made in Reception. In

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Grade: 2

both the Nursery and Reception Year, there is a good balance of adult-directed activities and those that children select from a range provided. The school is rightly looking at ways of improving Reception children's access to activities outdoors.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Accelerate pupils' progress and raise the standards they attain, particularly in Years 3 to 6.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that teaching is always closely matched to all pupils' needs and that pupils are given clear guidance on how to improve their performance. ■ More sharply analyse how provision, particularly teaching, influences pupils' progress and the standards they attain. ■ Work closely with parents to improve attendance.

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What the school should do to improve further

A small proportion of the 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.

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Grade: 3

Although progress and achievement are now satisfactory, standards are still below average. Having made a good start in the Nursery and Reception Year, pupils presently in Years 1 and 2 are moving on steadily. Even though there is much good progress in these year groups currently, standards are below average in Year 2 and very few pupils are on course to reach the higher levels for their age. The standards in Year 2 are lowered by the movement of pupils in and out of the school and a lack of consistently steady progress over time. Pupils in Years 3 to 6 are making satisfactory progress this school year. There are some examples of good progress. The more able pupils in Years 3 and 4, for instance, are developing their writing skills well. However, standards are low among the older pupils because of past weaknesses in provision. Pupils' current rate of progress, although acceptable, is not enough to raise

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Grade: 3

standards. Across the school, pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities move on satisfactorily, although often in only small steps. Those at an early stage of learning English as an additional language progress at the same rate as others in their classes.

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Grade: 3

Strengths in moral and social development are reflected in most pupils' good behaviour and relationships. Spiritual and cultural development is satisfactory. The school is racially harmonious and pupils have a reasonable awareness of cultural diversity. Almost all pupils enjoy school a lot. One parent commented that her children 'always come home happy'. Pupils feel safe at school, and have a good understanding of the importance of safe practices in practical lessons. They also know how to keep fit and healthy through diet and exercise. Pupils' contribution to 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008 the school and wider community, for example, through the school council, has improved recently and is now good. Although pupils have many positive personal attributes, their below-average skills in literacy and numeracy mean that they are only satisfactorily prepared for the next stage of their

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Grade: 3

education. While many attend school regularly, the attendance rate is very low. Punctuality is satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

There are good features to the satisfactory teaching. Positive relationships and the use of praise create a supportive learning climate. Good encouragement is given to pupils who find learning difficult. Teaching of basic skills is focused and accurate. Sensitive support is provided for those at an early stage of learning English as an additional language. When teaching is good, teachers have high expectations of the standards pupils are capable of attaining and take full account of all the pupils' needs. In the Nursery, for example, assessment is used well to pitch activities and support at just the right level for children's wide range of needs. This strength is not consistently evident across the school and this is the main reason why teaching promotes learning that is only satisfactory overall. The evidence of pupils' recorded work shows that not all pupils are consistently well challenged or supported in lessons to make

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Grade: 3

All the recommended areas of learning are covered well in the Nursery and Reception Year. Effective links between the Reception and Year 1 curriculum have been established well this year. The curriculum in Years 1 to 6 promotes satisfactory progress. There are examples of skills in writing at length being promoted well in English lessons, but this is not consistent across the school. The school has rightly started to improve links between subjects to make learning more meaningful and to increase opportunities for creativity. There is a strong and effective focus on pupils' personal development and well-being. In science, for example, healthy lifestyles are promoted well. Recently, there has been good development of activities, such as clubs, that are available to pupils in addition to their daily lessons. One parent commented, for example, on the 'massive improvements in extra sports and after-school

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Grade: 3

Strong attention is given to pupils' personal welfare and their pastoral care. Good arrangements are in place for settling children into the Nursery and also for supporting those who enter at a later stage. The school works closely and effectively with a wide range of external agencies to help pupils who are vulnerable or who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The promotion of good behaviour is consistent and, as one parent said, 'the teachers are strict but fair'. While many potentially good strategies have been put in place to improve attendance, 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008 they have not yet had sufficient impact. The school recognises that attendance remains a cause for concern and significantly restricts some pupils' progress. Academic guidance is less effective than the other aspects of care. Although pupils are given help to improve their work, this is not sufficiently specific to pupils' individual needs to accelerate

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Grade: 3

progress beyond its presently satisfactory rate. Pupils are not, for example, given clear individual targets and guidance through marking is variable. Although there are class targets set at three levels, not all pupils know clearly enough how these targets apply to them.

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Grade: 3

The headteacher has made some significant and important changes, with a firm focus on raising standards and improving pupils' personal development and well-being. She has, for example, redeployed staff and reorganised the arrangements for grouping pupils into classes. She has gained the confidence of staff, governors and parents because she seeks to involve them fully and give them a real voice in the school. The pupils' voice is increasing too. As one parent said, 'The headteacher listens to parents and pupils equally.' The deputy head works well in partnership with the headteacher, giving strong support to the focus on school improvement. The senior leadership team and middle managers make a satisfactory contribution overall to raising standards. Some leadership roles are better developed than others in the impact they have on improving provision. The Nursery and Reception provision is well led. Governors are

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Grade: 3

enthusiastic and supportive and are starting to ask questions to help with improvement, although they are not yet challenging senior leaders over standards. Although there is a reasonable amount of monitoring of provision, there is not a sharp enough analysis of how provision, particularly teaching, influences pupils' progress and the standards they attain. This is a factor preventing improvement from being more rapid. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 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: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 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 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

3 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 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

3 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 4 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: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 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: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

17 April 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Stoke Heath Primary School, Coventry CV2 4PR Thank you for helping us when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking with you and visiting your lessons. We found that your school is giving you a satisfactory education and that it is improving. There are already some things in your school that are good. We know that you and your parents are pleased with the changes that your headteacher has put in place to make your school better. We saw that almost all of you behave well and enjoy school a lot. You are keen to learn and get on well with each other. You know a lot about how to keep fit and healthy. Your school council is making sure that you help the school to improve and that your views are heard. You told us that the adults look after you well and make you feel safe at school. Your progress is satisfactory. You get off to a good start in the Nursery and build on this in

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

the Reception classes. We saw that some of you are making good progress in Years 1 and 2 as well. Your headteacher and the other adults know that it is important that all of you always do as well as you can. You make satisfactory progress because teaching and the activities in lessons are satisfactory. Some of the teaching is good and your school is working to make sure that more of it is good. You have some really exciting clubs and activities in addition to your lessons and we know that you enjoy these. We have asked the school to work on some things in particular and these are:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ speed up your progress so that you reach higher standards in your work

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ make sure that teaching is always closely matched to your needs and that you are given clear guidance about how to make your work better ■ look really carefully at how the school helps you to learn so that exactly the right changes are made when necessary ■ work closely with your parents to improve your attendance.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

You and your parents can help by making sure that all of you attend school regularly. You can also help by always working hard and doing your best. Yours sincerely Alison Grainger Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Stoke Heath Primary School, 15 °16 April 2008

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Annex B

Inspection of Stoke Heath Primary School, Coventry CV2 4PR

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Annex B

Thank you for helping us when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking with you and visiting your lessons. We found that your school is giving you a satisfactory education and that it is improving. There are already some things in your school that are good. We know that you and your parents are pleased with the changes that your headteacher has put in place to make your school better.

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Annex B

We saw that almost all of you behave well and enjoy school a lot. You are keen to learn and get on well with each other. You know a lot about how to keep fit and healthy. Your school council is making sure that you help the school to improve and that your views are heard. You told us that the adults look after you well and make you feel safe at school.

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Annex B

Your progress is satisfactory. You get off to a good start in the Nursery and build on this in the Reception classes. We saw that some of you are making good progress in Years 1 and 2 as well. Your headteacher and the other adults know that it is important that all of you always do as well as you can.

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Annex B

You make satisfactory progress because teaching and the activities in lessons are satisfactory. Some of the teaching is good and your school is working to make sure that more of it is good. You have some really exciting clubs and activities in addition to your lessons and we know that you enjoy these.

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Annex B

We have asked the school to work on some things in particular and these are:

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Annex B

• speed up your progress so that you reach higher standards in your work • make sure that teaching is always closely matched to your needs and that you are given clear guidance about how to make your work better • look really carefully at how the school helps you to learn so that exactly the right changes are made when necessary • work closely with your parents to improve your attendance.

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Annex B

You and your parents can help by making sure that all of you attend school regularly. You can also help by always working hard and doing your best.

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