Aldwyn Primary School

106212 Unique Reference Number Tameside Local Authority 309054 Inspection number 28 °29 January 2008 Inspection dates Kathleen McArthur 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 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 317 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Graham Curtis Chair Ms Beryl Pickford Headteacher 28 February 2005 Date of previous school inspection Lumb Lane School address Audenshaw Manchester M34 5SF 0161 3703626 Telephone number 0161 3715714 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 28 °29 January 2008 Inspection dates 309054 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 school is larger than most and there are mixed-age groups in nearly all the classes. The great majority of the pupils are of White British heritage. A lower than average proportion of the pupils is entitled to a free school meal. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is well below the national average. The nursery was fully incorporated into the school in September 2007 and Aldwyn Primary is shortly to co-locate with a local special school in a new building, on the same site, which is nearing completion. The school has gained an Activemark, Investors in People, Work Life Balance accreditation, Healthy Eating and Healthy Schools Awards.

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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: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school. The inspection confirmed the school's judgement of how effective it is overall, although some other judgements were a little optimistic. Value for money is satisfactory. Pupils make satisfactory progress overall through the school. Progress is satisfactory in the Foundation Stage, good in Years 1 and 2 and satisfactory in Years 3 to 6. Most pupils reach the standards expected for their age in English, mathematics and science by the time they leave. However, standards could be even better. Not enough pupils make sufficient progress to reach an above average level. This is because the work given to higher attaining pupils is not always challenging enough. Personal development is good. Pupils think school is fun and are eagerly anticipating moving into the new building. Parents are supportive and several commented that their children are happy, saying, 'My child is eager to go in the mornings'. Pupils enjoy learning and say, 'The

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Grade: 3

teachers always help you if you are stuck' and think the library is one of the best features of the school. This degree of enjoyment accounts for the above average attendance. Behaviour is good and pupils feel safe, appreciated and well cared for. They have a good knowledge of what it means to lead a healthy lifestyle. The play leaders and 'Pupil Voice' representatives make useful contributions to the school community. Pupils are always keen to be involved in charity work for the local and the global community. Good personal and social skills together with appropriate academic skills prepare pupils suitably for their economic futures. Pupils are encouraged to reflect on values, for example what it means to make and keep a promise, helping them to develop a keen understanding of the difference between right and wrong. Teaching is satisfactory overall so pupils make steady progress. Good relationships at all levels

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Grade: 3

make a valuable contribution by ensuring that behaviour is good and learning takes place in a harmonious atmosphere. The curriculum is satisfactory and meets all statutory requirements. A good range of enrichment activities supports class work and successfully extends pupils' cultural experiences. These include French and specialist music and sports teaching, and visits to theatres and local museums. Care, guidance and support are satisfactory overall. Good pastoral arrangements ensure pupils feel safe, secure and cared for, and parents are pleased their children are 'in safe hands'. Systems that track and monitor academic progress are satisfactory, but are not used well enough to check that pupils make as much progress as they should over time. Older pupils have some opportunities to evaluate each others' work which is helping them know how to improve their own work. Leadership and management are satisfactory. The headteacher, deputy headteacher and

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Grade: 3

governors, supported by the three curriculum teams, are a dedicated leadership team with a shared vision for improvement that is fully supported by all staff. Their impact can be seen in pupils' good personal skills. The focus is now firmly fixed on accelerating academic progress for older pupils. Strategies and action plans with challenging targets are in place, designed to raise standards and accelerate achievement, particularly for more able pupils, but it is too early to measure their full impact. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008

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Grade: 3

The great majority of children start school with skills typical for their age. During their time in Nursery and Reception, children make steady progress, growing increasingly independent and confident. When they enter Year 1, most children are working at the levels typical for their age, although they are more advanced in their personal and social development. Those children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities also make satisfactory progress. Good leadership in the newly established Foundation Stage unit is correctly focusing on drawing the new team of staff together. The curriculum is appropriately matched to the needs of the children with a wide range of practical learning opportunities, making full use of the outdoor learning areas. However, they do not always provide the precise guidance for learning which would enable the children to make faster progress. This relative weakness is being tackled, but at the moment it makes

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Grade: 3

the provision satisfactory rather than good.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Raise standards and accelerate progress in Key Stage 2.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Increase the level of challenge offered to higher attaining pupils so they reach their full potential. ■ Improve the procedures for tracking pupils' progress over time.

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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

Achievement is satisfactory overall. Pupils enter Year 1 with broadly average skills. Teacher assessments in 2007 showed that by the age of seven standards in reading, writing and mathematics were above average, and this has been the case in recent years. This represents good overall progress over time and these pupils achieve well. Between the ages of seven to eleven, progress is satisfactory overall and most children gain the expected level in English, mathematics and science. However, too few pupils make enough progress to reach the higher level. In the 2007 tests, Year 6 pupils did not meet their targets at the higher level in English or mathematics and science results were significantly lower than expected at the higher level. School data and pupils' work shows that actions to remedy this are beginning to make an impact. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities also make satisfactory progress in

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Grade: 3

their learning and achieve as well as their peers.

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Grade: 2

Pupils make good progress in their personal development, in particular their social skills. Pupils enjoy their learning and appreciate the wide range of additional sporting activities available to them, both within and beyond the school day. Pupils clearly understand that to be healthy they must eat the right foods and take plenty of exercise, seen in their keen attendance at sports coaching and clubs and successes in local competitions. Pupils show respect and care for one another, saying they have lots of friends at school so they feel safe, and their attendance is above average. Behaviour is good in lessons and outside where pupils understand the necessary 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008 restrictions and limitations on their playing areas imposed by the construction work. They say that they are really looking forward to the new building and 'all the disruption will really be

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Grade: 2

worth it'. Pupils' social, moral, cultural and spiritual development is good overall, with cultural awareness developing through work on other faiths and cultures and visiting theatres and museums. Pupils are keen to take on tasks in school and organise the playtime healthy fruit stall efficiently. Suitable academic skills and willingness to take on responsibilities such 'pupil voice' representatives and play leaders provide the pupils with opportunities to develop responsible attitudes in preparation for adult life.

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Grade: 3

Most lessons are well organised using all available resources, including information and communication technology. For example, during a lesson linking literacy with mathematics, Year 5 and 6 pupils researched the Internet to compare food prices. At the beginning of each lesson teachers make sure pupils know what they are going to learn. Classrooms are bright with displays and useful advice to support reading, writing and mathematics, and to celebrate good work. Support is suitably deployed to help pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, but has not been used as effectively to extend the learning of the more able pupils. Good relationships ensure that pupils behave well, enjoy their lessons and stay on task. However, pupils are often given the same tasks, regardless of their abilities. This can mean that higher attaining pupils are not challenged enough and consequently do not always reach their full

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Grade: 3

potential. Other lessons are over directed by the teacher so pupils are not encouraged to use their initiative or take increasing responsibility for their own learning.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is broad and balanced and is enriched well by a good range of activities. A two-year cycle of study programmes ensures work is not repeated in the mixed-age classes. Well designed programmes of work ensure the pupils with learning difficulties and/or difficulties make satisfactory progress, but courses and materials to extend able pupils are not so readily available. A good programme for personal and emotional development results in well behaved pupils who feel safe and happy. They are particularly caring towards others, often stepping in to help adults or their peers without prompting. Enrichment activities include French, music and drama, and good partnerships with local schools provide wider experiences, for example the mathematics 'puzzle day'. Pupils enjoy working with specialist sports coaches and have had considerable success in local competitions. Visits and visitors support curriculum activities and

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Grade: 3

enhance pupils' social and cultural development, for example a visitor whose talk on the Second World War really brought history to life for pupils in Year 3 and 4. After-school clubs are varied and popular.

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Grade: 3

Provision for pupils' care and welfare is good, but procedures for monitoring their academic guidance are satisfactory. Arrangements to safeguard pupils' well-being and to promote their 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008 health and safety meet current government requirements and there are robust systems for the identification and support of vulnerable pupils. Good provision for pupils' personal, social and health education helps them mature into well behaved, caring and considerate young people. The record of pupils' attainment is accurate and up-to-date. However, it is used more to judge standards reached than how well pupils are progressing. Therefore, academic guidance is not always precise enough. There are examples of high quality marking of pupils' work which gives them a clear understanding of what to do next to improve. However, not all marking is of this

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Grade: 3

The headteacher, deputy headteacher and curriculum teams work well together, implementing their vision for improvement by targeting appropriate areas for development. Curriculum teams are taking a more active role in accounting for standards and progress and staff performance management procedures set targets appropriately linked to areas for improvement and professional development. The quality of teaching and learning is monitored regularly. The budget is carefully managed, particularly in anticipation of the impending move into the new building. Good working partnerships with the local schools learning network, particularly the special school due to co-locate in the new building, and with all external agencies effectively support pupils' learning and well-being. Governance is satisfactory, and links with subjects give governors the necessary knowledge and understanding to hold the school to account. Governors

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Grade: 3

have been very active in supporting the headteacher during the time-consuming process of the co-location building work. Improvement since the previous inspection is satisfactory and there is satisfactory capacity for improvement. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 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: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 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 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?

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 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: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 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: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

The three inspectors would like to thank you all for making us very welcome, for helping us and for telling us all about your school during our visit. We know you are really looking forward to moving into your splendid new building; it will be a really exciting experience! We were very impressed by the way you were being so sensible in the playgrounds, even though you had lost a lot of your playing space. Following our inspection, we thought we would tell you what we found. Your school is satisfactory. You make satisfactory progress through the Nursery and Reception classes and good progress through Year 1 and Year 2 where you reach standards that are above most schools. Your progress is satisfactory from Years 3 to Year 6 and you reach standards similar to most schools. We think you could make faster progress and more of you could reach the higher levels. So we have asked the teachers to make your work more challenging to help

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

you do this. We are sure you will show them that you can do it! They are also going to keep a closer check on how well you are progressing to make sure no-one falls behind. We could see you enjoy school and behave well. You told us you feel safe and well cared for and your parents agree with this. We were also pleased to see how well you care for each other. Your school is a healthy school so you know how to look after your health through exercise and healthy food. The play leaders and the 'pupil voice' representatives do a good job helping the school community and we know you are keen to raise money for charity. We know you enjoy using the library and all the extra activities such as visits and sports coaching that make learning more enjoyable. 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Aldwyn Primary School, 28 °29 January 2008

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