Wallisdean Infant School

Wallisdean Infant School Inspection report

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115893 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 312095 Inspection number 23 °24 June 2008 Inspection dates Mike Dukes 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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Infant Type of school Community School category 4 °7 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 151 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Evelyn Wrixon Chair Mrs Sandra Cammish Headteacher 15 March 2004 Date of previous school inspection Wallisdean Avenue School address Fareham PO14 1HT 01329 280827 Telephone number 01329 281681 Fax number

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4-7 Age group 23 °24 June 2008 Inspection dates 312095 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 two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Almost all of the pupils at this smaller than average school are of White British heritage with a small number from other, mostly Asian, backgrounds. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is below average. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD) is above that found nationally, many of whom have moderate learning difficulties. In addition, four pupils with hearing impairment attend the adjacent separately managed unit. The school has achieved a Healthy Schools Award, the Active Schools Mark and Investors in People status. A new deputy headteacher was appointed in January and a new headteacher at Easter.

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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: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008

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Grade: 3

Wallisdean Infant is a satisfactory school. Emerging from a period of disruption caused by high levels of staff turnover, it is now showing clear improvement. Over recent years, staffing problems have led to pupils underachieving and standards declining. This is beginning to be addressed by the school. While standards are significantly below average in reading, writing and mathematics, pupils make satisfactory progress and, taking account of the especially low starting points of this group of pupils, achievement is now satisfactory. In Years 1 and 2, progress has improved but is uneven, and the school has still further to go. Pupils' personal development and well-being are good; they behave well and are strong advocates of healthy lifestyles. The strong leadership of the new headteacher and her deputy is providing a clear vision and focus on improvement. Leaders have produced a brief, provisional improvement plan and rightly

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Grade: 3

intend to expand it to become more comprehensive. Their evaluations of the school are satisfactory but their systems of monitoring are not yet fully rigorous. Leaders' initial actions have had an immediate impact on accelerating the achievement and progress of pupils, including those with moderate learning difficulties and hearing impairment. Key actions have been in staff mentoring to improve the quality of teaching and in raising the levels of challenge in teaching. Consequently, teaching and learning are now satisfactory. Care, guidance and support are satisfactory. Teachers know pupils well. They provide a high standard of pastoral care and pupils appreciate this. As one said, 'We like school because teachers look after us well.' However, teachers do not give sufficient guidance to pupils on how they can improve their work. The school enjoys good links with partner schools, pre-schools and outside agencies to ensure pupils' well-being. In this caring climate pupils develop a strong

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Grade: 3

commitment to healthy lifestyles and they enjoy school a lot. However, attendance is only satisfactory because some families take holidays in term time. Pupils behave well and know how to keep safe. They make a good contribution to the school and wider community through charitable fund raising and helping around the school as buddies and school council members. They are developing their basic skills of literacy and numeracy satisfactorily. Subject leaders are not yet fully effective because new leadership teams are not yet monitoring and supporting their subjects sufficiently. Governors make a satisfactory contribution and they are well involved in the life of the school. Recent improvements show that leaders have developed the school's capacity for improvement, and this is now satisfactory. The curriculum caters for personal development well but is not yet leading to good progress in literacy and

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Grade: 3

numeracy. Assessment is inconsistent in its accuracy and use. This restricts the tracking of pupils' progress and the ability of teachers to set challenging targets. As a result, those pupils with less challenging targets do not achieve as well as they might. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school and virtually all feel it is well led and managed. As one parent said, 'Since the new headteacher has arrived, the school has been absolutely fantastic.'

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Grade: 3

Children settle happily into school. They feel secure and quickly gain in confidence. They cooperate well with others and their personal and social development is good. Most children start school with skills that are below those expected for their age but this fluctuates year on 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008 year. Their attainment is below average when they leave the Foundation Stage. They make satisfactory progress because teachers plan activities well to stimulate children's curiosity and promote their independence. The daily 'Letters and Sounds' programme is making a positive contribution to developing children's reading skills. The Foundation Stage has recently undergone changes to staffing and, while teaching and learning are satisfactory at present, there are strengths. Although there is generally a balance between adult led activities and opportunities for children to explore for themselves, this is inconsistent. Teachers do not always

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Grade: 3

use questioning sufficiently to extend children's thinking and, sometimes, they keep children sitting on the carpet too long. As a result, they lose concentration and interest. Positive relationships are established with parents and carers and there are good arrangements to ensure a smooth transition into Year 1.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that the teaching has a greater impact on accelerating the progress pupils make in reading, writing and mathematics in order to raise standards. ■ Improve the rigour and accuracy of self-evaluation so that the school has a clearer picture of its strengths and weaknesses and plans effectively to raise standards. ■ Develop the roles of subject leaders in improving teaching and learning and raising achievement. A small proportion of schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory but have areas of underperformance will receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before the next section 5 inspection.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' achievement, from their starting points is satisfactory. However, achievement has been inadequate in some classes in recent years linked to high levels of staff turnover. This has been a concern for some parents. Progress has improved in Years 1 and 2 over the past two terms because of successful strategies adopted and improvements to teaching. Although current standards in Year 2 are well below average, these pupils had particularly low starting points and they are making satisfactory progress. They are mostly on track to reach their challenging targets. Pupils with hearing impairment, those with moderate learning difficulties and others with LDD achieve as well as their peers because teachers plan adequately for their needs. In addition, learning assistants support these pupils well by giving extra encouragement and explanation.

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Grade: 2

Pupils are happy and clearly enjoy school a great deal. They and their parents believe that behaviour is good and there is little bullying and inspectors agree. They know they can go to teachers if there is a problem. Pupils understand how to keep safe. They practise healthy eating and are enthusiastic about physical activity. 'Play Buddies' ensure that no one is left alone or upset at playtime. For example, a Buddy was seen placing an arm around a tearful child and escorting him to a teacher. The school council helps pupils to learn to consult and take on responsibilities. They enjoy deciding how to spend the budget given to them and this gives them experience of financial planning. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008 is good. They are serious and thoughtful in assembly. Their knowledge of world faiths and

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning have improved but there remains too much variation in the quality of lessons. For example, alongside good lessons in the school there are others where teachers do not match their work well to the needs of pupils and their expectations are too low, resulting in slowed progress. Teachers use interactive white boards well to make learning exciting. Some teachers are not yet using the school's new assessment procedures effectively in their planning resulting in work which is not well matched to the pupils. Teachers' marking of pupils' work is variable but there are pockets of good practice in the use of 'Two stars and a wish' system. Teachers' procedures for marking are unwieldy and not easily used or understood by pupils. Teachers and learning support assistants work together effectively to ensure that pupils who need extra help quickly receive it. As one parent commented, 'The LSA has had a great impact

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Grade: 3

on the progress of my child'. Staff form very good relationships with pupils. This helps pupils to develop in self-confidence and motivates them to try their best.

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Grade: 3

The school's curriculum provides a wide range of interesting and enjoyable activities. Much of the curriculum is focused on imaginatively designed themes such as, 'Roving Reporters.' These encourage pupils' curiosity and help develop positive attitudes to learning. However, the curriculum for English and for mathematics, whilst satisfactory, is not yet helping pupils to progress well in those subjects. The school recognises there is more to do and some parents agree with this. The school provides a good programme to support pupils' personal development and social skills. Good features include a wide range of extra-curricular activities, which are well supported. Good use is made of visits to broaden pupils' experiences and visitors to school, such as theatre groups. The wide-ranging provision for pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities, including the hearing-impaired pupils is good, as they are well supported and work

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Grade: 3

The academic guidance pupils receive is satisfactory. It is helping them to achieve satisfactorily, but could be more effective. The school has not yet fully implemented their tracking system and pupils' targets often lack challenge. As a result, pupils do not yet have clear enough guidance about how their work could become better. Staff show high commitment to care. Consequently, they have effective strategies for promoting pupils' health and safety and their good behaviour. Relationships are good between staff and pupils, creating a climate in which pupils grow in confidence. Arrangements for safeguarding are similarly rigorous. Staff provide sensitive and well-focused support for vulnerable pupils, including those with a variety of learning difficulties and disabilities. There is a well-judged combination of withdrawal and in-class support provided by the learning support assistants. The school works effectively with a range of agencies,

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Grade: 3

including the neighbouring junior school, to meet their needs. 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008

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Grade: 3

The good leadership of the new headteacher and deputy headteacher is driving the school to focus on raising standards. Recent years have seen substantial changes in staffing where almost all senior leaders have changed, along with many teachers. This turbulence led to a decline in standards in recent times. New school leaders have acted with urgency to reverse this decline by supporting teachers to improve their practice and by introducing new teaching strategies. These actions have begun to have a clear and positive effect on improving pupils' progress, but there is much more still to do. The school's leadership team will not be fully in place until next term, when there will be a full complement of staff. School leaders have not had enough time to establish rigorous systems for monitoring the work of the school. As a result, they do not have a complete picture of the school's strengths and weaknesses. They are in the early

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Grade: 3

stages of writing improvement plans but these are not yet fully developed to address properly the school's key priorities. Subject leadership is inconsistent due to staffing difficulties and is now being revised. School leaders have maintained a caring climate for pupils. They provide well for pupils' personal development and give high priority to meeting the needs of vulnerable pupils. Governance is satisfactory. Governors meet their statutory duties and hold the school to account well but they do not have a clear picture of the school's strengths and weaknesses. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 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: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 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? 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? 4 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 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?

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: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 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 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: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

04 July 2008 Dear Children Inspection of Wallisdean Infant School,Fareham,PO14 1HT Thank you for being so friendly and helpful to the inspectors and for making us feel welcome. We found your school to be improving and providing you with a satisfactory education. What we like about your school is that:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you told us how well staff care for you.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We are really pleased that your school is improving. To help it become even better we have asked your teachers to:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ make sure their teaching is not too easy or too difficult for you, so that you make better progress in your learning ■ check more carefully how well the school is doing so they can find better ways of helping you learn more ■ make sure subject leaders help teachers so that their teaching in different subjects helps you learn more. You can help by remembering your targets and working hard to reach them. Thank you once again for an enjoyable visit to Wallisdean Infant. We wish you very good luck for the future. Yours sincerely Mike Dukes Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Wallisdean Infant School, 23 °24 June 2008

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