Kings Furlong Junior School

Kings Furlong Junior School Inspection report

p.1

116231 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 312224 Inspection number 10 °11 September 2007 Inspection dates Pritiben Patel Reporting inspector

p.1

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

p.1

Junior Type of school Community School category 7 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 262 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Stephen Cameron Chair Mr Peter Wellington Headteacher 22 September 2003 Date of previous school inspection Upper Chestnut Drive School address Basingstoke RG21 8YJ 012 5632 5324 Telephone number 012 5632 0806 Fax number

p.1

7-11 Age group 10 °11 September 2007 Inspection dates 312224 Inspection number .

p.1

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.

p.2

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.

p.2

Introduction

The inspection was carried out by three additional inspectors.

p.3

Description of the school

Kings Furlong Junior is a large school. The majority of pupils are of White British origin and others are from Asian, Black and other backgrounds. The percentage of pupils from minority ethnic groups is below average. The percentage of pupils eligible for free school meals is below average. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities including those with a statement of special educational need is above the national average. The school has been awarded the Eco School Silver Award and Football Charter Mark.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.3

Grade: 3

Kings Furlong is a satisfactory school with good features. One of its key strengths is pupils' personal development. Pupils are happy and enjoy coming to school. They have a good understanding of healthy lifestyles, behave well and conduct themselves in a confident manner. A parent commented how, 'the school has been fantastic and has brought my son on in leaps and bounds'. The vast majority of parents are very happy with the school. Leadership and management are satisfactory. Improvements have been initiated in school that are beginning to bear fruit. However, the rate of progress has been slow and the school recognises this. Changes of staff are one reason why the rate of progress has been slow. School initiatives that include more rigorous monitoring of teaching and learning, better systems for tracking the progress of pupils and timely intervention programmes are all beginning to have a positive impact on the progress that pupils make. This is especially so in English and

p.4

Grade: 3

mathematics in Years 3 and 4. However, the rate of progress for pupils in Years 5 and 6 is slower as they are still catching up from a long legacy of slow achievement. Pupils arrive in Year 3 with broadly average attainment. They make satisfactory progress as they move through school and attain broadly average results in national tests by the end of Year 6. Senior leaders acknowledge that whole school targets have not been challenging enough and are working hard to address this. Strengths of the satisfactory teaching include good use of the interactive whiteboards to engage pupils, positive relationships between teachers and pupils and good questioning. However, providing work for pupils of differing abilities is not always appropriate and as a result the individual needs of pupils are often not met, consequently pupils either find the work set too hard or too easy. The pace of lessons and timing of activities is sometimes slow, as a result

p.4

Grade: 3

pupils lose interest. The curriculum is satisfactory with good features. It is being adapted to ensure that pupils develop their independent learning skills. Good features of the curriculum include the wide range of extra curricular clubs and visits as well as a variety of visitors who come to school to share their experiences with the pupils. Pastoral support for pupils is a strong feature. Teaching assistants support pupils with specific needs and those who speak English as an additional language effectively and consequently they make satisfactory progress in line with their peers. The school has successfully developed tracking systems and is able to identify those pupils who require intervention early on, and this has resulted in pupils, particularly in Years 3 and 4 making better progress. The school has done some good work on setting improvement targets for pupils in areas such as writing; however

p.4

Grade: 3

not all pupils are aware of their targets and how to achieve them. 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.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

■ The quality of teaching and learning by providing work that meets the needs of all pupils.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

■ The rate of pupils' progress in English and mathematics particularly in Years 5 and 6.

p.4

What the school should do to improve further

■ Provide more challenging, whole school, targets in core subjects. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.4

Grade: 3

Standards in English and mathematics at the end of Year 6 have fluctuated over recent years. The unvalidated results for 2007 in mathematics show a drop in standards and although they remain broadly average, they were lower than those in English, which were average. Standards in science have remained more consistent over time. The school's effective focus on raising boys' standards in English means that the gap between their attainment and that of the girls has narrowed. By purchasing reading resources specifically for them and inviting male authors to school, the boys' latest results show a significant improvement. Achievement over time is satisfactory. The school has recognised the need to improve the rate at which pupils achieve and has introduced a system to offer support to pupils who are not reaching the expected levels. This system is already having an impact on raising pupils' progress. This is particularly true in Years 3 and 4 where there is less of a legacy of slow achievement to

p.5

Grade: 3

eliminate. Pupils with specific needs and those who speak English as an additional language make satisfactory progress.

p.5

Grade: 2

Pupils have affection for their school and say, 'Our teachers help us with our work'. Pupils work and play happily together and show enthusiasm for their lessons. They have a good understanding about how to keep themselves safe. Attendance is satisfactory. 'Respect, rights and responsibilities' are key to the school's work and pupils develop mature attitudes, gain confidence in expressing their views and make a good contribution to the school community. Pupils carry out a range of responsibilities with pride. This is especially noticeable amongst the school council and the team captains. Pupils make a valuable contribution to the wider community through various fund raising and charitable activities. They have a good awareness of the importance of a healthy lifestyle and are able to explain the reasons for healthy lunch boxes. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Through a range of

p.5

Grade: 2

experiences in assemblies, lessons and from the contribution of visitors, pupils' gain a good insight to other cultures and values. Pupils are prepared adequately for the next stage of their schooling as demonstrated by their sound basic skills.

p.5

Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory. The strengths in lessons are teachers' classroom management and organisation, their careful use of questioning, as well as the effective use of resources to engage pupils and further their understanding. For example, in a mathematics lesson pupils were using a whole range of resources to explore their understanding of measurement. However, lessons are sometimes too teacher directed and pupils' independence is not sufficiently developed. The pace of lessons is sometimes slow and pupils begin to lose concentration, which has a negative impact on their learning. Teachers plan different work for pupils but it is not always appropriate in meeting the needs of pupils across the ability range. In addition, they sometimes spend too long teaching the whole class the same work before 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007 differentiated work begins. Teaching assistants work well with teachers to provide effective

p.5

Grade: 3

support for those pupils with specific needs and those new to English, consequently these pupils make satisfactory progress.

p.6

Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory with some good features. The school's focus on reviewing their planning to provide better opportunities for pupils to take responsibility for their own learning is appropriate. Pupils with specific needs and those who speak English as an additional language are supported effectively, which enables them to achieve satisfactorily. The comprehensive programme of personal, social and health education provides useful life skills that help pupils to become responsible citizens. The school provides a wide range of activities such as visits, performances and clubs such as football, French and recorders to broaden pupils' personal experiences and learning. As one parent wrote, 'I feel the school devotes a lot of time to a good variety of after school clubs'. Special weeks devoted to themes such as science, the school grounds and art further enhance pupils' skills and their enjoyment of learning.

p.6

Grade: 3

Although care, guidance and support are satisfactory overall, pastoral support for pupils is good. This is reflected in pupils' good personal development. The school works hard to maintain good links with outside agencies in order to offer a range of support to meet pupils' needs. Teachers are vigilant about noting potential causes for concern. Pupils, including those with specific needs feel well cared for and safe in school. Satisfactory safeguarding procedures are in place. The quality of academic guidance is satisfactory. The tracking of pupils' progress is improving. Pupils now have targets for some areas of their work, but they are not fully in place. There is inconsistency in the impact they are having on pupils' progress because not all pupils are aware of their targets and fully understand them. Marking is regular and celebrates pupils' success, but comments place more emphasis on reinforcing what pupils have already learnt than on

p.6

Grade: 3

pointing out their next steps for improvement.

p.6

Grade: 3

The senior management team have a sound understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses. They have introduced strategies to improve pupils' progress such as termly assessment meetings where progress of individual pupils is discussed and interventions are put in place. Individual teachers are being held accountable for the progress made by pupils in their classes by the better use of tracking systems. This information is then used to set performance targets for teachers. The school acknowledges the need to set challenging targets and has started to review its target setting processes. 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007 Subject managers have a satisfactory impact on the areas they lead as demonstrated by pupils' satisfactory achievement. They monitor teaching and learning and scrutinise pupils work in order to check progress and are active in their subject areas.

p.6

Grade: 3

Governors' contribution to school improvement is satisfactory. They are well informed and support the school well but their monitoring role requires further development. The school's capacity to continue to improve is satisfactory as demonstrated by their success in raising the attainment of boys in English. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007 .

p.7

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: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.8

Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

p.9

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 capacity to make any necessary improvements

p.9

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

p.9

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

p.9

and interests of learners?

3 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

p.9

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: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.9

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: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

24 September 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Kings Furlong Junior School,Basingstoke,RG21 8YJ On behalf of the inspectors, I would like to thank you very much for being helpful when we came to visit your school. We really enjoyed meeting you, talking to you and looking at all your work. You go to a satisfactory school and your personal development is good. Here are the reasons why we think this is so:

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you make satisfactory progress and reach broadly average standards by the end of Year 6

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ the teaching you receive is satisfactory and the curriculum is satisfactory with some good features ■ you get on well with each other and your teachers and as a result, your behaviour is good

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you enjoy school because of the good range of activities and clubs your school offers

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ all of the adults in your school make sure that you are safe, happy and well looked after

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ those of you who find learning difficult or speak English as an additional language, make satisfactory progress because of the effective support you receive ■ the headteacher, governors and staff work hard on your behalf and provide satisfactory leadership. We believe that some things can be improved at your school. We think that teaching and learning should improve. Your teachers should give you work that is appropriate for your ability. You should all be making faster progress in English and mathematics, particularly those of you in Years 5 and 6. Finally, your headteacher, deputy and governors should set targets that are more challenging for all of you. I am sure that you will continue to work as hard as you are all doing! With best wishes for your future success, Pritiben Patel(Lead inspector) 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Kings Furlong Junior School, 10 °11 September 2007

p.11