Tardebigge CofE First School

Tardebigge CofE First School Inspection report

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116917 Unique Reference Number Worcestershire Local Authority 312443 Inspection number 15 November 2007 Inspection date Brian Holmes 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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First Type of school Voluntary aided School category 4 °9 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 141 School The governing body Appropriate authority Chris Houlcroft Chair Susan Helps Headteacher 19 January 2004 Date of previous school inspection Church Lane School address Tardebigge Bromsgrove B60 3AH 01527 872886 Telephone number 01527 578446 Fax number

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4-9 Age group 15 November 2007 Inspection date 312443 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

Tardebigge is a very popular, rural school which is smaller than average. It has close links with St. Bartholomew's church. Many pupils travel long distances to attend the school because of its distinctive Christian ethos and its good reputation. A below average number of pupils have learning difficulties or disabilities.

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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: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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Grade: 1

This is an outstanding school that has many strengths. It is exceptionally well led by a headteacher who has created a strong team of staff. Together they have a shared vision and ethos that result in all pupils achieving high standards in their academic work and their personal development and well-being. It has a very good capacity to improve further because the vision and hard work of the headteacher and her staff have led to an extremely strong partnership with parents and pupils. This works very well to produce a high standard of education for pupils. The rigorous self-evaluation systems the school has put in place to track and check pupils' progress are used well by teachers to inform pupils' learning. Governors are becoming involved in this process but are not yet as proactive in this process as the staff. Teachers inspire pupils to achieve highly through teaching and learning that engages and motivates them to do well.

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Grade: 1

A vibrant, lively and challenging curriculum gives pupils many opportunities to find things out for themselves. These factors help pupils to achieve high standards in their work. From attainment on entry, in line with what is expected nationally, children in the Foundation Stage make very good progress. This continues in Years 1 to 4. Pupils attain high standards at the end of Year 2, particularly in writing. In mathematics, pupils make very good progress but the standards they attain are not at the same level as in reading and writing because they need to continue to use and apply their skills and develop problem solving skills. When pupils leave at the end of Year 4, their standards of attainment are well above average, particularly in reading and writing. Parents have extremely positive views of the school. As one said, 'It is everything I hoped for in a school for my children …. a rare find!'. Parents' enthusiasm for the school is shared by the

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Grade: 1

pupils. When asked, they could not think of one thing that they would like to do to improve the school. Through an ethos of care that pervades everything that it does, the school enables the pupils to become responsible and mature young citizens. They have a high sense of awareness about how to stay safe in school and how to live active, healthy lives. They have excellent relationships with each other and the adults around them and take advantage of the many opportunities the school offers to participate in sport and outdoor activities. Their enjoyment of learning is clear in lessons and they talk enthusiastically about the pride they have for their school. The many opportunities they have to participate in the life of the school and their high standards of achievement mean that their preparation for the next stage of their education is excellent.

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Grade: 1

Children get off to a flying start to their education in the Reception class. They settle quickly and happily because of the caring ethos, excellent induction and exciting environment. The very strong focus on developing their self-confidence and independence, together with excellent relationships between adults and children, result in children feeling secure and eager to learn. The stimulating and well-planned curriculum meets children's needs very well. The purpose-built outdoor area and the 'Forest School', provide stimulating extensions to classroom learning. Teaching is consistently very good, with the teaching assistant working in partnership with the teacher extremely effectively. As a result, children make very good progress in early reading and writing skills. Standards are well above national expectations by the time they start Year 1. 4 of 10 Inspection Report: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the opportunities pupils have to develop and apply their problem-solving skills in mathematics in order to raise standards of attainment and achievement in mathematics in line with those in English. ■ Improve the involvement of governors in school self-evaluation procedures.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' achievement is outstanding. Pupils' outstanding progress across the school results from high quality teaching that engages pupils' interest and challenges them to do well, and a wide range of interesting activities in their lessons. In Year 2 and in Year 4, standards of attainment are well above the average expected, and particularly high in writing. High proportions of pupils attain higher than expected levels in their assessments. The school's assessment information indicates that, in mathematics, pupils make very good progress, but the standards they attain are not at the same level as the exceptionally high standards they achieve in reading and writing. Strategies to improve achievement in problem-solving are in place but they are too recent to have had an effect on further raising standards in mathematics. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make very good progress because of the outstanding support they receive

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Grade: 1

Pupils thoroughly enjoy school, as shown by their good attendance and exemplary behaviour. They talk with enthusiasm and great pride about their school and all the exciting activities on offer to them. They thrive in the school because of the Christian ethos, which underpins all the activities they undertake. They already show that, despite their young age, they have developed into responsible young citizens who play an active role in the life of the school. Year 4 pupils act as play leaders for young children. The school council and the ECO committee provide them with excellent opportunities to participate in school decisions. They have influenced improvements in facilities at midday breaks and in taking steps in school to preserve the environment and recycle waste for the good of the community. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding, with pupils showing remarkable respect for the views,

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Grade: 1

beliefs and values of others. They feel safe and secure whilst at school. Pupils readily offer opinions and views in the full understanding that staff will respect and respond to what they have to say.

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Grade: 1

Teachers plan their lessons extremely well to meet a wide range of abilities and their success is seen in the very good progress made by pupils of all abilities. More able pupils are extended and learners with difficulties and/or disabilities are extremely well supported. Teaching engages and motivates pupils through a stimulating learning environment and a wide range of learning approaches and input which enable pupils to learn independently. The marking of pupils' work is a strength. It makes clear to pupils when they have achieved their targets and what to do to 5 of 10 Inspection Report: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007 reach the next step in their learning. Homework is used well in all classes and extends pupils' learning, giving them very good opportunities to undertake research and learn independently.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum challenges all pupils to achieve highly and supports their needs extremely well. The very good links between subjects maximise learning and give pupils planned opportunities to learn independently. This includes very good use of information and communication technology (ICT) to extend teaching and learning across all subjects. The curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that pupils constantly make progress in their academic and social skills. Excellent use is made of the outside area around the school to make learning meaningful. This includes the 'Forest School', which offers pupils stimulating activities where they can take ownership of the environment and care for it. Visits, visitors, out of school clubs and additional activities, such as Challenge Days to help pupils develop their thinking skills, provide a wide range of interesting and exciting opportunities that help to improve pupils' learning and

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Grade: 1

The excellent quality of care, guidance and support is central to the vision, aims and ethos of the school. It underpins the calm and positive learning environment and creates a strong sense of safety and well-being in the pupils because their teachers know them well and help them when they have problems. Pupils know they are valued. They know that adults will listen to their concerns and act upon them as necessary. Procedures for safeguarding pupils meet all requirements. Those pupils who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities are very well supported. Pupils benefit from very good academic guidance and they receive constructive feedback through marking. They know what their targets are in English and mathematics and are very clear about what to do next to improve their work.

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Grade: 1

The ethos of high achievement is seen in all the work the school does to help its pupils, both in their academic achievement and in their personal development and well-being. Staff share the headteacher's vision for the school and the newly formed leadership team have responded extremely well to the clear roles and responsibilities given to them. The headteacher has established rigorous self-evaluation processes and set pupils challenging targets to raise their standards of attainment and achievement. There are very effective systems for checking the quality of teaching and tracking pupils' progress, with a clear focus on improving pupils' learning to raise their achievement. All pupils are equally valued and have full access to the opportunities that the school offers. The governors fulfil their duties well and are extremely supportive and involved in the life of the school. However, they are not fully involved in the self-evaluation procedures the school

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Grade: 1

has put in place. Parents have extremely positive views of the school and express high levels of confidence in its work. 6 of 10 Inspection Report: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007 .

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Grade: 1

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 7 of 10 Inspection Report: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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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? 1 The effectiveness of the Foundation Stage 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

1 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 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 1 The behaviour of learners 1 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: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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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 1 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 1 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: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

16 November 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH Thank you for being so welcoming and helpful when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and listening to what you had to say. We know that you are proud of your school and enjoy going there. We think that Tardebigge is an outstanding school with many strengths. We really liked the Forest School. These are the main things that we found out about your school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You make excellent progress in your work, although you do better in your reading and writing than in your maths. ■ You behave extremely well, like coming to school and really enjoy your learning.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You have an excellent understanding of how to keep healthy and safe.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You make a very good contribution to running the school and to activities in the local community. ■ You are provided with a lot of exciting and interesting activities and clubs.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You are looked after extremely well by the adults in school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ The headteacher leads the school extremely well and all the adults are working hard to help her. ■ The school governors have got to do more to check on what the school is doing to improve your education. In order to make the school even better we have asked the school to do the following.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Help you to improve your maths skills so that you can do as well in your maths work as you do in your reading and writing. ■ Make sure that governors do more to check on what the school is doing to improve your education. You can help your teachers by continuing to work hard and doing your best to do as well as you can. Best Wishes Brian Holmes Lead inspector 10 of 10 Inspection Report: Tardebigge CofE First School, 15 November 2007

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Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH

Thank you for being so welcoming and helpful when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and listening to what you had to say. We know that you are proud of your school and enjoy going there. We think that Tardebigge is an outstanding school with many strengths. We really liked the Forest School. These are the main things that we found out about your school.

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Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH

• You make excellent progress in your work, although you do better in your reading and writing than in your maths. • You behave extremely well, like coming to school and really enjoy your learning. • You have an excellent understanding of how to keep healthy and safe. • You make a very good contribution to running the school and to activities in the local community. • You are provided with a lot of exciting and interesting activities and clubs. • You are looked after extremely well by the adults in school. • The headteacher leads the school extremely well and all the adults are working hard to help her. • The school governors have got to do more to check on what the school is doing to improve your education.

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Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH

In order to make the school even better we have asked the school to do the following.

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Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH

• Help you to improve your maths skills so that you can do as well in your maths work as you do in your reading and writing. • Make sure that governors do more to check on what the school is doing to improve your education.

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Inspection of Tardebigge CofE First School, Bromsgrove, B60 3AH

You can help your teachers by continuing to work hard and doing your best to do as well as you can.

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