St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School Inspection report

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116351 Unique Reference Number Hampshire Local Authority 312273 Inspection number 9 May 2008 Inspection date Elisabeth Linley 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 102 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs M Fordyce Chair Mr R Wood Headteacher 7 June 2004 Date of previous school inspection Church Street School address Bentworth Alton GU34 5RE 01420 562117 Telephone number 01420 563023 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 9 May 2008 Inspection date 312273 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. The inspector evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: pupils' personal development and well being; the effectiveness of guidance for pupils' academic development and the monitoring and evaluation of the school's work. Evidence for the inspection was gathered from observation of lessons, the pupils' work, discussion with pupils, members of staff and a governor, plus a scrutiny of school documents and parents' questionnaires. An aspect of the school's work that was not investigated in detail was the curriculum, but the inspector found no evidence to suggest that the school's own assessment, as provided in its self-evaluation form, was not justified.

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Description of the school

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School is much smaller than most primary schools. It is set in a small rural village and caters mainly for the immediate locality although many parents who live further away choose this school for their children. All pupils who attend are of White British heritage and very few pupils have learning difficulties/and or disabilities which are mainly associated with speech and language needs. There are no pupils who have a statement of special educational need.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 2008

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Grade: 2

Parents are unanimously supportive of this school. They value the level of pastoral care that is provided for their children, which is excellent. They are quite clear in their view that this is a good school with significant strengths and they are correct. The school's Christian ethos is central to the vision for the school. The headteacher works diligently to ensure that pupils' personal development is strong. He is supported very well by all staff who ensure that each pupil is conscientious, that they act responsibly, work hard and are tolerant of each others differences. Pupils respond well to the challenge. They show initiative and eagerly take on posts of responsibility such as peer mentors and councillors. They are thoughtful of others. They are confident and articulate and are proud of their achievements. Nowhere was this more evident during the inspection than at the weekly sharing assembly

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Grade: 2

enjoyed by staff, parents and pupils alike. Pupils' musical abilities were clearly evident and their enjoyment, behaviour and attitudes to learning were exemplary as was seen during the whole inspection. It is no surprise that pupils' attendance is very good. Although pupils start school with skills that are above average, they work hard to maintain good standards and so do the staff! Teaching and learning throughout school are good. Teachers have high expectations of their pupils and question them very well to ensure that they understand what is being taught and that they are confident to apply their skills to different tasks. Pupils say they really enjoy lessons because they are fun. They say that they are helped to improve their work through discussion with their teachers and that marking, particularly in English, is helpful. This contributes well to the good guidance that pupils' receive for their

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Grade: 2

academic development. The net result is that pupils attain high standards in the national tests and assessments at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. Looking back over the years, it is evident that this outcome has been maintained. However, given the very small number of pupils in any one year group, the results in different subjects are liable to change. For example, in 2007 when standards overall in English, mathematics and science were well above average, some pupils in Year 6 did not achieve as well as might have been expected in their writing and this was also the case for some pupils in Year 2. However, pupils' good achievement overall, no matter what their different needs and abilities, is clearly evident. A particular success in 2007 was the outcome of the science national tests for pupils in Year 6 when every pupil attained at the higher level. The deputy headteacher is responsible for the

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Grade: 2

teaching of science for all junior aged pupils. She has worked very hard in her leadership and management role to make sure that the tracking of pupils' progress in science is rigorous; as a result, intervention can be implemented when required. This level of rigour, to track pupils' progress in English and mathematics, is not yet developed. Similarly, although analysis has shown where improvements can be made, for example, in mathematics and in pupils' writing, school development planning has not been updated to reflect this. The strength of the good leadership and management of this school is in the staff team and how they work together. As a team, they have established good partnerships with outside agencies and others to enhance the curriculum and the support required for those with particular learning or medical needs. The headteacher holds the responsibility for monitoring and evaluating the school's work and in discussion with the staff and governors, has ensured that the school's

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Grade: 2

self evaluation is accurate. However, the staff have the capability and commitment to be more involved in monitoring and evaluating the school's performance and this is planned for the 4 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 2008 near future given the school's improved finances. In this small school, financial management has been finely balanced and the school has benefited from significant support from parents. As a result of good financial management, the headteacher and governors have ensured that St Mary's is a wonderful learning environment and provides good value for money; the school has good capacity to improve further.

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Grade: 2

Children in the Reception class are confident and independent. During shared assembly, children were very happy to stand up in front of a large audience to show the symmetrical caterpillars they had made. The very good partnerships established with parents are significant to the children's personal and emotional development, which is excellent. The quality of provision for the Foundation Stage is good overall and as a result, children achieve well. The curriculum is well balanced with opportunities for direct teaching and self initiated play. The access to a secure outdoor environment is well planned and children benefit from a range of exciting opportunities. During the inspection, children were painting a giant outside whilst others were writing him a letter reminding him that he had left his very large button in their classroom! Children's progress is monitored through observational assessments that contribute to formal

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Grade: 2

tracking. Children do well in Reception and start Year 1 with above average standards across the areas of learning.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the tracking of pupils' progress in English and mathematics.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that school development planning, informed by rigorous monitoring and evaluation, is tightly focussed on improving pupils' achievement, for example, in writing. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 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. 6 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 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? 1 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 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The attendance of learners 1 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?

2 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. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 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? 8 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

21 May 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School,Alton,GU34 5RE Thank you for making me so welcome when I visited your school recently. I very much enjoyed your sharing assembly and being able to hear the older pupils reading to the younger ones; it is good to know that you enjoy helping one another. I was also pleased to be able to talk to you and to find out why you enjoyed being at school so much. I soon discovered that your school is a good school and that:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you all try very hard in your work and you reach high standards, particularly in science - well done and keep it up! ■ you say that lessons are fun and teachers help you with your learning - you are right, the teaching at your school is good ■ your behaviour and attitudes to work are excellent

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you take your responsibilities very seriously, such as being a peer mentor or a school councillor

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ all the staff who work with you at school take very good care of you indeed and your parents are very pleased with the care you receive. There are a few things that I think could be better and so:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ your headteacher and teachers are going to make sure that they check how well you are doing in English and mathematics more thoroughly than they are doing at the moment. This is so that you can all be helped to do your best in all subjects ■ your headteacher is going to make sure that he plans carefully for any improvements that are needed and to make sure that this is making a difference so that you do really well, particularly in your writing. I wish you all the best for the future. Yours sincerely Elisabeth Linley Her Majesty's Inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School, 9 May 2008

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