Eye CofE Primary School

Eye CofE Primary School Inspection report

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110825 Unique Reference Number CITY OF PETERBOROUGH LA Local Authority 310428 Inspection number 27 °28 February 2008 Inspection dates Linda Killman HMI 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 Voluntary controlled School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 311 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr David Richmond Chair Mrs Sandra Palmer Headteacher 2 February 2004 Date of previous school inspection Eyebury Road School address Eye Peterborough Cambridgeshire PE6 7TD 01733222314 Telephone number 01733222314 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 27 °28 February 2008 Inspection dates 310428 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 of Her Majesty's Inspectors and two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This is a larger than average primary school. While pupils come from a wide range of social and economic backgrounds, only a small minority has free school meals. Most pupils are White British and almost all pupils speak English as their first language. A few pupils come from Traveller communities. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is average; a higher than average percentage have a statement of special educational need. When children start in the Reception class, their attainment is generally in line with national expectations. Some pupils are taught in mixed-age classes.

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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: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008

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Grade: 3

This school provides a satisfactory education and care for its pupils. Most pupils develop positive relationships with adults and each other that promote their satisfactory personal development and well-being. A period of considerable turbulence in staffing between 2004 and 2006 resulted in a significant dip in the progress pupils made and their standards in Key Stages 1 and 2. The headteacher and governors managed this challenging period competently and have stabilised staffing over the last 12 months. As a result, the quality of teaching has improved and standards are beginning to recover. Pupils' achievement overall is satisfactory. Nonetheless, the school is aware that pupils are not making sufficient progress in writing and it is tackling this with determination. However, evaluation of the action taken to improve writing does not measure accurately and consistently enough the benefits for learners and, in some lessons seen, is not

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Grade: 3

leading to discernable impact. In reading, science and mathematics most pupils are progressing satisfactorily to reach above average levels by the time they leave the school. This prepares them adequately for the next step in their education and their future economic well-being. Pupils behave well and are well-rounded individuals; most know right from wrong and abide by the rules. The pupils show a willingness to engage with others from different cultural, religious and ethnic backgrounds. Their social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is all good. They show good knowledge of how to live a healthy lifestyle and have a satisfactory understanding of how to stay safe. Pupils are encouraged to be as independent as possible as soon as they start school, but as they mature, opportunities for them to demonstrate responsibility are too few. Most parents are content with all that the school provides and their

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Grade: 3

child's education. However, a small minority does not feel that the school listens well enough to their views or those of their children. Inspectors gathered a broad range of evidence to show that the pupils do have a voice and that the school responds to their requests and ideas. Leadership and management are satisfactory. Systems are properly in place to ensure that priorities are tackled. Staff carefully check and regularly review the levels pupils reach to maintain their progress. Some use is made of intervention programmes to accelerate learning, as needed. The pupils have targets to meet which they understand. Teaching and learning are satisfactory overall but are widely variable in quality so the progress that pupils make year on year is uneven. One of the reasons why teaching is satisfactory rather than good is that pupils' work is not finely tuned to meet their different needs and abilities.

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Grade: 3

As a result, the most able learners find the work too easy while others struggle to make progress. In some lessons, there is too much adult direction and not enough active pupil participation. Good teaching in some classes leads to pupils making much better progress. The curriculum is satisfactory. It is suitably enriched with clubs, visits and events and there is appropriate emphasis on literacy and numeracy. Provision for information and communication technology is satisfactory but there are missed opportunities for pupils to use technology to support their learning across subjects.

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Grade: 2

Children's attainment on entry is broadly average. They make good progress in Reception because they learn through play and participation in a good range of interesting activities covering all six areas of learning. Routines are well established. The adults encourage the pupils 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008 to do as much as possible for themselves, from ordering a school lunch to efficiently clearing away their toys at the end of a session. Pupils are happy, confident learners benefiting from well-planned adult-led activities as well as pursuing their own ideas through imaginative play, designing, exploring, experimenting, making and building. The balance is just right. Although outdoor play is accessible, the activities are not as innovative as they are in the classroom. Good assessment practice enables staff to check that children are learning all they should and to

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Increase the proportion of good teaching to ensure that pupils make good progress year on year. ■ Ensure that teachers precisely tailor activities in lessons to the needs and abilities of all learners. ■ Sharpen the school's self-evaluation, increasing the focus on pupils' learning

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What the school should do to improve further

A small proportion of schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory but which have areas of underperformance will receive a monitoring visit before their next section 5 inspection.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' overall achievement is satisfactory. A sharp dip in standards in both Key Stages 1 and 2, mid-way between the last and current inspections, in reading, mathematics and science has been successfully reversed. Standards are now just above average and improving. However, standards in writing constrain pupils' overall achievement in English. In 2007, Year 6 pupils met the challenging targets set for them in English and mathematics with the exception of the Level 5 target in English. Pupils' rates of progress fluctuate as they move through the school because of the variable quality in teaching. The most and least able learners do not make the progress of which they are capable because curricular planning does not take enough account of their particular needs and abilities. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and pupils from Traveller communities also do less well. The targets set for pupils with special learning needs are too

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Grade: 3

broad and not broken down into achievable small steps to secure sufficient progress.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' personal development and well-being are satisfactory. Attendance is similar to that seen nationally and most parents say that their children enjoy school. Pupils showed enjoyment in dynamic lessons, but lacked enthusiasm and productivity where teaching was not brisk enough, or sufficiently engaging. Pupils behave well, and although a small number of parents expressed concerns about behaviour, pupils reported no bullying. They make a satisfactory contribution to the community, deciding through the school council how the school might change. The school council successfully made a case to have break times staggered to provide more play space for all. The school responded by completely reorganising the timetable. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008

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Grade: 3

Taken overall, the quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. The best lessons are well planned, lively, interactive and enjoyable so that most pupils make good progress. This is particularly apparent towards the end of Key Stage 2 where most activities are engaging and pitched at just the right level to ensure that most pupils succeed. However, in some lessons, the pupils sit passively for too long; too much time is given to learning by listening and not enough to learning by doing. As a result, some pupils lose interest, are not productive and make insufficient progress. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities have additional support from teaching assistants but, too often, they are attempting to complete the same tasks as everyone else. Teachers are applying the new marking policy consistently and this is helpfully guiding improvement in learning.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory and fulfils all statutory requirements. The school has developed a thematic approach, linking some curricular areas, which gives greater opportunity for creativity. The curriculum is enriched by residential trips and visits to places of interest, such as the Globe Theatre. Pupils attend a range of clubs outside school hours. The work seen in pupils' books in Key Stage 1 indicates that systematic emphasis on letter sounds is beginning to improve the quality of writing and spelling. The provision for pupils with special gifts and talents is underdeveloped and the curriculum is not always adapted well enough for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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Grade: 3

The pupils are well cared for and enjoy a safe, clean and inviting environment for learning. Child protection procedures and arrangements for safeguarding pupils meet current requirements. Effective systems are in place to ensure pupils' safety in school and during off-site visits. Arrangements for Year 6 pupils transferring to secondary school are well established. The school has developed effective partnerships with agencies that support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Questionnaire responses, however, indicate that some parents feel their children do not have enough support, which may reflect the uneven progress of some.

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Grade: 3

The headteacher is appropriately focused on improvement. The deputy is newly appointed, as are some subject leaders. Their roles are clearly defined and they are working cohesively as a team. The leadership team has a reasonably accurate understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses and what must be done to improve. They use an appropriate range of systems for measuring and tracking pupils' progress and attainment. Senior managers and subject 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008 leaders regularly observe colleagues teaching and provide support to help those who need to improve. They have an accurate view of the overall effectiveness of teaching, but do not always focus sharply or rigorously enough on how effectively pupils are learning. Governance is satisfactory. Governors are supportive and know the school, however they do not always fulfil their role as a critical friend. The leadership and management provide the school with satisfactory

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Grade: 3

capacity to make further improvements. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 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: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 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?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 3 How well learners enjoy their education 3 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 3 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: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 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: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

29 February 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Eye C of E Primary School, Peterborough, PE 6 7TD Thank you for making us welcome when we visited your school to see how well you are learning. You willingly shared your views on school life at Eye Primary; this was a great help. We have thought carefully about all that you told us and I would like to highlight the school's good features as well as those that need improvement. Your teachers care about you, look after you and make sure that you learn all that you should so that you reach and sometimes go beyond the standards expected for your age by the end of Year 6. Your behaviour in lessons and at play is good and you all get on very well together. You all know how to stay healthy and many of you are choosing to eat food that is good for you. We think that the pupils in Reception are learning quickly and we were pleased to see that they do so much for themselves.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

To make the school even better we have asked the staff and governors to:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ make sure that more of you experience the best teaching that we saw

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ give you work that is not too easy or too difficult

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ check to see that new ways of working are helping you to learn as well as you can.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We know that many of you are already successful learners but we think that you are capable of more. Your teachers are working hard to help you to write to the same standard that you read and we hope that you will make every effort to rise to this challenge. We wish you all every success in the future. Yours sincerely Linda Killman Her Majesty's Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Eye CofE Primary School, 27 °28 February 2008

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