Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Inspection report

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117402 Unique Reference Number Hertfordshire Local Authority 312602 Inspection number 30 April °1 May 2008 Inspection dates Marianne Harris 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 89 School The governing body Appropriate authority Dr S Taylor Chair Mrs L Feakes Headteacher 30 June 2003 Date of previous school inspection Church Lane School address Dane End Ware Hertfordshire SG12 0NR 01920 438271 Telephone number 01920 438055 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 30 April °1 May 2008 Inspection dates 312602 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. 30 April °1 May 2008

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

This school is smaller than the average sized primary school. It serves the surrounding rural area of The Mundens and consists of four mixed age classes. The majority of pupils come from a White British background. A very small proportion of the pupils have specific learning difficulties. When they join the school children have skills and knowledge that are expected for their age. The school has been successful in being awarded Healthy Schools' status and in gaining Activemark for two years in 2006 and 2007.

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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: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Grade: 3

The school provides a satisfactory standard of education for its pupils. Pupils' personal development is good. Pupils are mature, keen to learn and behave well. They have a good understanding of how to keep healthy and safe and they make a good contribution to the local community, raising money for various charities. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 take on much responsibility within the school, although this has not yet been extended to include younger pupils. They are satisfactorily prepared for the next stage of their education. Standards are average in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 2, and they are average in English, mathematics and science by the end of Year 6. Pupils achieve satisfactorily, whatever their ability. Those who find learning more difficult receive appropriate support so they too make satisfactory progress. Staff are particularly successful in providing many opportunities for pupils to have a wide range

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Grade: 3

of experiences outside of lessons. Pupils really look forward to visits and visitors into school, and their parents particularly appreciate all the extra activities that are offered to their children. These opportunities result in a good, rich curriculum that makes learning interesting. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Pupils comment that learning is fun, particularly when activities are practical and they can work together. However, tasks are not always well matched to the various ages and abilities within each class and in some lessons, pupils carry out the same work. This results in some work being too easy for the more able, or too challenging for younger or less able pupils. Pupils are well cared for. The school is welcoming and pupils know that there is someone they can go to if they have a problem. Work is marked effectively so that pupils know how to improve, but there is no set procedure for setting individual targets to help pupils know how to reach

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Grade: 3

higher levels. Leadership, management and governance are satisfactory. Governors are very supportive of the school and carry out their responsibilities satisfactorily. Overall, there has been satisfactory improvement since the time of the last inspection. Standards have risen over the last few years, particularly in mathematics, because the role of subject leaders has been developed. They have a good understanding of standards in the school and support less experienced staff. The school acknowledges that there is still work to carry out on target setting and giving pupils lower down the school more responsibility. There is satisfactory capacity to improve.

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Grade: 3

Pupils in the Foundation Stage make satisfactory progress from their starting points. By the time they join Year 1, their skills and knowledge are similar to those expected, although most pupils make good progress in early reading skills because this is taught effectively. Tasks and activities are planned to cover all areas of learning and there is a good balance of those that adults' lead and those that pupils choose for themselves. Staff assess pupils' progress effectively and much emphasis is put on developing their social skills. However, there are times when the pupils sit for too long on the carpet and they become fidgety and lose concentration. The Foundation Stage is managed satisfactorily. 4 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that all work is planned carefully so that it matches the needs and abilities of all pupils in each class. ■ Establish a consistent approach to target setting so pupils know what they need to do in order to reach higher standards. ■ Enable pupils, other than those in Years 5 and 6, to take responsibility within the school.

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What the school should do to improve further

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.

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Grade: 3

The number of pupils in each year group is small and consequently standards fluctuate from year to year. However, overall they are average at the end of Year 2 and Year 6, both in national tests and currently in the school. This represents satisfactory achievement for pupils of all abilities. Recent national test results have shown a rising trend for pupils in Year 6, especially in mathematics, an issue at the time of the last inspection. Pupils who find learning more difficult make satisfactory progress because the school has put in place many strategies to support learning. These include various intervention classes for English and mathematics, and pupils comment that these are really helpful and they look forward to them. The school's tracking system shows that pupils who receive extra support make at least satisfactory progress and catch up on skills that they have previously missed.

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Grade: 2

All aspects of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are good and they have a good understanding about other cultures, as well as the rights and responsibilities of being good citizens. Pupils explain clearly about keeping healthy and safe and in Years 5 and 6, they are particularly proud of initiating the cycling proficiency process in school so that they learn 'to be safe on the road'. Pupils from these year groups also take on the role of school councillors, 'buddies' in the playground and peer mediators. They report that there are very few occasions when the latter are needed, but they are confident that they can sort out any problems should they occur. Younger pupils comment that they have few opportunities for them to take an active role in the life of the school, although many believe that they will 'get their chance'. Attendance is above average because pupils enjoy coming to school. They are particularly proud

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Grade: 2

of the money they have raised for local and national charities. Most notable among these is the large amount raised for 'Dogs for the Disabled'.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Lessons usually move at a brisk pace and pupils concentrate well and work effectively together. There are good relationships throughout the school and this has a significant effect on the calm learning atmosphere. Teachers and pupils use the interactive whiteboards effectively and this promotes pupils' information and 5 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 May 2008 communication technology (ICT) skills well. Strategies such as using 'talk partners' are effective in keeping pupils involved in their learning because they can discuss their ideas with another before sharing them with the whole class. However, there are times when work is not accurately matched to the age and abilities within each class. Sometimes pupils carry out the same tasks, whatever their age, and they report that work, at times, is too challenging or too easy. This

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Grade: 3

affects the progress pupils make as they move through the school.

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Grade: 2

The staff provide a rich curriculum that has many extra activities to make learning interesting. Pupils and parents comment on the wide variety of clubs, trips and visitors that enhance learning, and pupils especially enjoy themed weeks where they experience extra art and music, as well as science and mathematics. Pupils enthusiastically attend the good number of after school clubs. In Years 4 to 6, pupils participate in a residential trip, and in Year 6 they eagerly anticipate their day trip to Paris. All pupils have the opportunity to learn French and pupils in Years 3 and 4 learn to play the violin. Younger pupils make trips into the local rural area and learn much about their environment. The new strategies for literacy and numeracy have been implemented effectively and as a result, standards are rising in the school. The provision for ICT is good and pupils are very confident when using the resources in the school.

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Grade: 2

Staff take good care of all pupils. Child protection procedures are well established and legal requirements are fully met. Pastoral care is particularly strong and this has a significant effect on pupils' personal development and well-being as they learn to become responsible citizens. Teachers' marking helps them to improve their work, but pupils are less sure about what they are aiming for overall. They say that teachers tell them what to do, but comments are not written down so that they can remember what they need to aim for in order to reach higher standards. Pupils who find learning difficult have their needs identified and appropriate support is given so that they can participate in all lessons.

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Grade: 3

The headteacher has led the drive to raise standards and there is now a system in place that tracks the progress pupils make and accurately assesses what standards they have reached. The leadership and management of the school have been particularly successful in promoting pupils' personal development and in addressing the issues from the last inspection. Consequently the role of subject leaders has improved with the senior leadership team having a good understanding of standards and how much progress pupils are making. However, this information is not being used effectively to set individual targets for pupils. Standards are rising at the end of Year 6 and the staff team work well together. Governance is satisfactory. The governors are very supportive of the school and hold the school to account for the standards pupils reach. 6 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School,

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Grade: 3

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 7 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 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? 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? 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

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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 2 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?

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. 8 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 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 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? 9 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

2 May 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Ware, SG12 0NR Thank you for welcoming me into your school a few days ago. I really enjoyed talking to many of you and finding out about your work. I am now writing to tell you what I found out. Yours is a satisfactory school. You make reasonable progress in English and mathematics and I have asked your teachers to help you make better progress by setting work that is not too challenging or too easy for you. When I was in some classes, I noticed that sometimes work was the same for everyone and that is why I have asked your teachers to think carefully about the tasks they set you. I have also asked them to set targets for you so that you know what you are aiming for to reach higher standards. Many of you told me about the many activities that go on after school. There are certainly many to choose from. I know how much some of you are looking forward to your residential

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

trips, and how much Year 6 are anticipating their trip to Paris - even if they do have to get up in the middle of the night to catch the plane! I was very impressed by how well you behaved. This was very noticeable in the exciting assembly when your vicar did all kinds of clever things with paper and postcards. You were all very sensible and listened carefully to what he said. I was also very pleased to hear about the money you have raised for various charities and I really liked looking at the pictures of the 'Dogs for the Disabled'. Those of you in Years 5 and 6 certainly take on a lot of responsibility in the school. You do a very good job and are rightly proud of the improvements you have made to the toilets, and in starting the school's cycling proficiency scheme. I have asked your headteacher to let the pupils in the younger classes help you so that they can have some responsibility too. You

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

can all help by continuing to work hard. Thank you once again. I wish you all the best in the future. Marianne Harris Lead inspector 10 of 10 Inspection Report: Little Munden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, 30 April °1 May 2008

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