Glebefields Primary School

Glebefields Primary School Inspection report

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103925 Unique Reference Number Sandwell Local Authority 308457 Inspection number 18 June 2008 Inspection date Hazel Callaghan 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 370 School The governing body Appropriate authority Dave Faraday Chair Colin Dewis Headteacher 24 May 2004 Date of previous school inspection Sandgate Road School address Tipton DY4 0SX 01215 562651 Telephone number 01215 567172 Fax number

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3-11 Age group 18 June 2008 Inspection date 308457 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 one Additional Inspector. The inspector evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: The school's current rates of progress, and the extent to which teaching and the curriculum are meeting the learning needs of boys in Key Stage 1. The extent to which leadership and management at all levels is good and staff understand how to move their subjects/areas of responsibility forward. The school's monitoring and self-evaluation. Evidence was gathered from the school's assessments of standards and pupils' progress over the current academic year and an analysis of the most recent results from the Year 2 national tests. There were observations of teaching and discussions took place with senior leaders, staff, governors and pupils. Parents' responses to the Ofsted questionnaire were also analysed. Other aspects of the school's work were not investigated in detail, but the inspector found no evidence

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Introduction

to suggest that the school's own assessments, as given in its self-evaluation, were not justified, and these have been included where appropriate in this report.

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Description of the school

Glebefields Primary is a large school. The majority of its pupils are from families of White British heritage. There are no pupils learning English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is much higher than that found nationally and the proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is above average. Children start school in the Nursery with an extremely narrow range of skills and experiences compared to those expected for their age. The school competes successfully in many sporting championships and pupils take part each year in skipping championships, which has taken them to Europe, most recently to Spain and to Italy. They have been awarded the 'Education Extra' certificate of distinction for after-school clubs for the last ten years.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 2008

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Grade: 1

Glebefields Primary is an outstanding school. It enables pupils of all abilities to achieve extremely well both academically and in their personal development, and to find success in a wide range of other skills and accomplishments. Pupils and parents alike use words such as 'fantastic' and 'excellent' when describing the school. Pupils' outstanding achievement is due to securely good teaching throughout the school and to a very rich curriculum that provides exciting activities that promote their learning. The range of additional activities and after-school clubs is excellent. There is a strong tradition of sporting excellence across a wide range of sports that has helped pupils gain an extremely good understanding of how to become fit and healthy. Many opportunities to participate in the arts, such as singing, dance and drama and to share them with the wider community also extend pupils' experiences and give them a joy in learning new things. Pupils get a real 'buzz' from

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Grade: 1

their many visits and activities. As one governor put it, 'pupils gain a great sense of self-worth based on personal success' It is this self-confidence and the desire to do well that inspires pupils' excellent progress in learning. One pupil put it very succinctly when she said, 'Our school is unique: it helps you build up courage.' Pupils' attitudes to work are consequently excellent. Pupils' good learning begins in the Nursery and Reception classes. They start school with very limited language and mathematical skills and despite their good progress standards are still significantly below average by the time they move into Year 1. Standards remain below average in Years 1 and 2, mainly because boys find difficulty in acquiring the basic skills that will enable them to reach the standards expected. In Years 3 to 6, however, the progress of boys and girls accelerates and by the time pupils leave the school, they have made much better progress than

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Grade: 1

their peers nationally. There has been a rising trend in standards in Year 6 over the last four years and in 2007 standards were well above average. This year standards are not expected to be as high because of the significant number of pupils with learning difficulties in the group, but similar excellent progress is already evident. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities also make this excellent progress because of skilled support from teachers and learning support staff, and outside agencies when required, using flexible strategies that support their different needs. Pupils are active in raising money for charities and in contributing to the local community. They are very well prepared for their next stage of learning because of their positive attitudes to learning, their strong work ethic and their ability to work cooperatively with others. Relationships throughout the school are strong. Pupils feel safe and secure and reflect the

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Grade: 1

sensitive role models provided by staff. As a result, behaviour is extremely good and pupils say that all children in the school are caring and supportive of each other. Their social and moral development is really strong. They have a very definite view of what is right and wrong and this contributes to their spiritual awareness and positive response to cultural diversity. All staff provide outstanding personal and pastoral support for the pupils and respond very effectively to their individual difficulties. Pupils want to come to school but attendance remains broadly average because of spates of illness through the school. Academic support and guidance are very good and pupils have a good understanding of how well they are doing and how to improve. Leadership of the school is strong, especially that provided by the headteacher. He has built a committed staff team who work extremely well together to provide the best life chances for

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Grade: 1

their pupils. Although outstanding in much of its work, the school is not complacent. Some members of the senior leadership team are still fairly new to their posts and, although managing 4 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 2008 their different responsibilities well, feel the need for further professional development in terms of monitoring teaching. Nevertheless self-evaluation is good and the school has a good capacity to improve further. The slower progress of boys in Years 1 and 2 has been correctly identified and a new creative curriculum designed to further motivate and inspire all pupils, particularly the boys, has been introduced throughout the school. It is already having a positive impact in raising standards. The school is also considering how lesson activities may be enhanced to better support boys' progress. The need for an outside classroom area for children in the

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Grade: 1

Reception classes has been recognised as an important element that will promote the good learning of all children, especially the boys, but it has not yet been developed. The school has a very effective partnership with its parents. It is well supported by a well-informed governing body.

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Grade: 2

Children start school with a very limited range of language and mathematical skills and experience of the world. Many children have had very limited opportunities to develop the physical skills expected for their age and this also slows their development. They make good progress, however, in all areas of learning because of teachers' good understanding of their learning needs and good teaching that focuses very well on the basic skills to be learned. Children have good opportunities to experience new ideas through activities led by the staff and through their own self-chosen activities, and these ensure good learning. Children enjoy their tasks and develop increasing levels of confidence in their own abilities. Staff check on children's progress regularly and plan activities that build on previous learning. The leadership of the Foundation Stage is good. The new curriculum is already having a positive impact on

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Grade: 2

children's enjoyment and understanding. The classrooms provide a stimulating environment for learning. The Nursery has a well-developed outside area in which children's independent learning skills are further developed but the Reception children do not enjoy the same facilities.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure boys make the same good progress as the girls, especially in Years 1 and 2, by developing lesson activities that particularly support their learning. ■ Create an outside classroom area for children in Reception so that they are able to learn in a variety of settings and so further develop their independence. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 2008 .

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What the school should do to improve further

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 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

1 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 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 How well learners enjoy their education 3 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?

1 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. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 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 1 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? 8 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Dear Pupils Inspection of Glebefields Primary School, Tipton DV4 0SX Thank you for making me so welcome and answering my questions when I visited your school. You are rightly proud of your school and what it does for you. You and your parents are correct in thinking that you go to a very special school. Here are some of the things I found out.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You make extremely good progress not only in your work but in your personal development and confidence. ■ Your behaviour is excellent. You are polite, friendly and helpful to everyone. You try hard to keep yourself fit and healthy. You make a really strong contribution to the local community and are extremely well prepared for your next school. ■ You clearly enjoy coming to school. You think that your trips and additional activities are fantastic and you have lots of fun. You work hard and want to do well. ■ You are taught very well and your teachers work hard to make sure that your lessons are interesting and that you make very good progress. ■ The headteacher leads the school exceptionally well and the staff work as an effective team.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ All the staff look after you exceptionally well so you feel safe and happy.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ The range of extra activities you enjoy are outstanding.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Even though Glebefields is an outstanding school, there are some ways in which it can do better. I have particularly asked the headteacher and governors to do two things.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Ensure boys make the same good progress as the girls in Years 1 and 2.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Construct a safe area for children in the Reception classes to continue their learning outside the classroom. Best wishes Hazel Callaghan Lead inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: Glebefields Primary School, 18 June 2008

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