Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School

Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School Inspection report

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111084 Unique Reference Number Cheshire Local Authority 310496 Inspection number 1 July 2008 Inspection date Paul Bamber 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 220 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Ken Slater Chair Mrs G Lloyd Headteacher 7 June 2004 Date of previous school inspection Cambridge Road School address Ellesmere Port Cheshire CH65 4AQ 151 3551735 Telephone number 151 3571544 Fax number

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3-11 Age group 1 July 2008 Inspection date 310496 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 particularly investigated the following issues: pupils' overall achievement but particularly their standards and achievement in Key Stage 1; standards on entry to the Foundation Stage and on entry to Year 1; pupils' personal development and the quality of care, guidance and support. Evidence was gathered from: national published assessment data; the school's self-evaluation, assessment records, policies, minutes and other documentation; observation of the school at work; discussions with members of staff, pupils, the chair of governors and a group of parents and the questionnaires returned by parents. Other aspects of the school's work were not investigated in detail, but the inspector found no evidence 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

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Description of the school

The school is located in the town centre and in an area of social and economic disadvantage. It is in a relatively new building with a good size playground and a sports field. The proportions of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, English as an additional language, a statement of special educational need and those who claim a free school meal are all well above average. There is also a higher incidence than usual of pupils leaving or entering the school during term time. The school has a number of awards: These include the National Inclusion Quality Mark, Activemark Gold Award, a National Healthy Schools Award and the Family Learning Kitemark.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 2008

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Grade: 2

This is a good school that is well led and managed, enables pupils to achieve well and provides them with outstanding care, guidance and support. Pupils' behaviour and attitudes are good. They enjoy a rich curriculum and are well taught. Many children enter the Nursery with very weak skills, especially in their ability to communicate, to recognise number and in their personal, social and emotional development. They make good progress in the Nursery and Reception classes, but still enter Year 1 with well below expected skills in most areas of their learning. They consolidate their basic skills well in Years 1 and 2, making good overall progress. However, their standards in reading, writing and mathematics are still below average by the end of Year 2. The quality of boys' writing in Years 1 and 2 is still low despite improvements brought about by recently introduced initiatives to tackle this weakness. In Years 3 to 6 most pupils continue to make good progress. This means that by the

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Grade: 2

time they leave Year 6, pupils reach broadly average standards in English, mathematics and science. Although an average proportion attains the higher Level 5 in reading, the performance of these same pupils in writing, mathematics and science is not as good. Having successfully raised the percentage of Year 6 pupils attaining the expected Level 4 over the last two years, enabling more of them to attain Level 5 in writing, mathematics and science, is a key area for improvement. The school has also adapted the provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and after a period when these pupils did not always achieve as well as they might, their progress is now good. The quality of the care and support pupils receive is excellent. The school has a much higher than average proportion of vulnerable pupils, of those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those who have difficulty conforming or behaving consistently well. The outstanding

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Grade: 2

support they receive plays a major role in their good achievements, both academically and personally. The school's close partnerships with parents, the local authority and other support agencies contribute significantly to how happy most of these pupils are in school and how well they progress. The work of the learning mentors in providing support for families and pupils, for example, in providing a breakfast club, is most valuable. The school's comprehensive strategies to bring about improved attendance and punctuality of a small minority of pupils are being rewarded with their much better attendance. Pupils' academic progress is carefully tracked. The information gained is used effectively to trigger support for any pupil at risk of underachieving and to set challenging targets for most pupils. Targets for the more able pupils could be more challenging on occasions. Pupils behave very well in lessons because they are keen to learn and enjoy the tasks they are

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Grade: 2

set. They talk enthusiastically about the sensitive support and good teaching they receive and feel that they 'learn lots in lessons' as a result. Their attitudes to learning are positive and they happily discuss their work with each other, take due note of the advice they are given by their teachers on how to improve their work and are knowledgeable about their targets for learning. It is noticeable that pupils respond very well to teachers' modelling of good behaviour and of a positive work ethic. There are many examples of teachers setting practical tasks which pupils enjoy greatly and from which they learn well. Pupils take their responsibilities as members of the school community and as young citizens very seriously. They support each other in the playground, acting as playground buddies or as play leaders. Members of the school council are active in suggesting improvements to resources or in identifying imaginative fundraising

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Grade: 2

4 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 2008 events. Members of the eco council promote concern for the environment. The Healthy Schools and Activemark Gold Awards reflect pupils' understanding of how important it is to adopt a healthy lifestyle. The 'golden mile' marked out in the playground is used by many pupils and contributes well to their physical fitness. The school offers a rich curriculum that substantially meets the needs of pupils. They leave school having made good progress in the basic skills and as confident young people who relate well to, and respect, a wide range of people and cultures. The many diverse visits they make contribute very well to their learning and to their personal and social development. Strong partnerships with locally based, multinational companies also enhance pupils' experiences. For example, the grounds of one company are extensively used to increase pupils' understanding

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Grade: 2

of science and of environmental issues. The residential visits pupils make in Years 2 to 6 make an excellent contribution to those pupils' confidence and social and cultural development. Year 6 pupils spoke extremely enthusiastically about their very recent visit to London where their historical, geographical and musical knowledge and their personal development were enhanced very well The headteacher provides strong leadership and has focused unwaveringly on making this a highly inclusive school. Able and hard-working senior staff work closely with her to constantly seek improvement. Rigorous performance management, appropriate training and shrewd financial management mean that provision is regularly enhanced. Governors are vigilant in managing the budget and contribute well to school improvement and pupils' better achievement. For example, faced with a sudden influx of pupils from Eastern Europe who understood little

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Grade: 2

or no English, they provided extra funds to deploy a teaching assistant to work exclusively with these pupils. This has resulted in them making good progress. The school's good record of improvement since the last inspection and the quality of its current provision give it a good capacity to improve further.

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Grade: 2

Children make good progress in both the Nursery and Reception classes. There are sensitive arrangements to introduce families to the Nursery before children start to attend. This reassures parents and children and fosters good relationships that continue throughout children's time in the school. Initially, the school has to work particularly hard to improve the much lower than expected social and communication skills of a significant proportion of children. Effective teaching and support throughout the Foundation Stage enable most children to settle happily and to work and play productively. This area of the school's work is led and managed well with all staff clear about their role and well deployed. The children's progress in all areas of their learning is observed and recorded rigorously. Children enjoy visits to promote their knowledge and understanding of the world around them and they learn to eat a balanced diet in a social setting

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Grade: 2

during daily snack times. Staff make good use of the well equipped outside area to promote children's learning and independence. However, the layout of the Nursery places some limitations on children pursuing activities outdoors at will. In Reception, children develop their independence and enthusiastically follow adults' lead to express their ideas about characters they learn about in Big Books, through modelling, using glove puppets, painting and writing. Despite the good provision in the Foundation Stage children still enter Year 1 with skills that are well below expectation, especially in communication, language and literacy, in their mathematical development and in some aspects of their personal, social and emotional development. 5 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 2008

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve boys' writing in Years 1 and 2.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Enable more Year 6 pupils to gain Level 5 in writing, mathematics and science. 6 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 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. 7 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 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? 3 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 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 3 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?

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. 8 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 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? 9 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Inspection of Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, Ellesmere Port, CH65 4AQ Thank you very much for the warm welcome you gave me when I inspected your school recently. You were very friendly and polite and helped me to find out lots of things about your school by chatting to me so openly. You go to a good school. You are looked after and cared for extremely well. This is particularly helpful for those children who find their work quite hard and for those who find it difficult to settle down and behave well all the time. It is also helping those who may have just arrived in this country and who are just beginning to learn English. You are taught well. You told me that you particularly liked the visits children in Years 2 to 6 go on, especially those when you stay away overnight. Year 6 were very excited about their recent visit to London and it was clear from what they told me they learned a lot about history and geography, as well as loving seeing

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

the 'Lion King'. Your headteacher and the other adults who help to run the school do really well to make sure that all of you are included as much as you can be in everything the school offers. They are also good at making things better for you and they obviously take notice of what the school council suggests, such as improving the playground and raising money for charities. There are two things that I have asked the school to do to make it even better. The first one is, boys in Years 1 and 2 need to do much better with their writing. Secondly, I have asked your teachers to make sure that more of you in Year 6 reach higher standards in writing, mathematics and science. You can obviously help with this by trying your very best all the time and working even harder. Also those of you who have tried hard to come to school more regularly - keep it up in order to do even better with your work! Thank you for making my inspection so enjoyable.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

10 of 10 Inspection Report: Cambridge Road Community Primary and Nursery School, 1 July 2008

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