Stallingborough CofE Primary School

Stallingborough C of E Primary School Inspection report

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118017 Unique Reference Number North East Lincolnshire Local Authority 312783 Inspection number 20 °21 November 2007 Inspection dates Tony Anderson 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 80 School The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Anthony Wood Chair Mrs Katie McGuire Headteacher 1 April 2005 Date of previous school inspection Stallingborough School address Grimsby DN41 8AP 01472 882438 Telephone number 01472 882438 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 20 °21 November 2007 Inspection dates 312783 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 Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

Stallingborough C of E Primary School is smaller than average. It is in a semi-rural setting a few miles to the west of Grimsby. Almost all pupils are from a White British background. Fewer pupils than average are eligible for free school meals. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is around the national average. The proportion of pupils joining the school at times other than the usual start in the Reception class is relatively high. The current headteacher, who took up the post at Easter 2007, has just returned after a long period of absence during which time the school was managed by an acting headteacher, supported by the governing body, the local authority and the diocese.

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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: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007

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Grade: 3

Stallingborough C of E Primary School is a satisfactory school. Standards are broadly average by the end of both Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 and pupils’ achievement is satisfactory. An effective and caring family ethos contributes well to the pupils’ good personal development and well °being. Pupils’ attendance is good and they have positive attitudes to their work and to each other. Pupils’ understanding of the multicultural world is underdeveloped, but their spiritual development is good. This was demonstrated by their singing and quiet observance of reflection time during an assembly which had ‘being safe’ as its central theme. This helped pupils to know how to keep themselves safe and they feel secure in school. Pupils have a good understanding of how to keep themselves healthy. They make a good contribution to their own community, particularly through the work of the school council. Pupils take on

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Grade: 3

responsibilities sensibly. They gain adequate basic skills, and are satisfactorily prepared for the next stage of their education. The quality of teaching is satisfactory. However, some teaching lacks challenge so that more able pupils do not reach the higher levels of which they are capable, particularly in mathematics and science at Key Stage 2. The curriculum provides a satisfactory level of support to pupils’ learning and is enhanced by a good range of extra-curricular clubs and activities in addition to regular visits. The school meets the social and emotional needs of the few vulnerable pupils who are well supported by the teaching and support staff. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress. Teachers’ marking is not yet ensuring that all pupils consistently know what to do to improve. Leadership and management are satisfactory. During the recent long-term absence of the

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Grade: 3

headteacher the school was well supported by the governing body, the diocese and the local authority. Effective action was taken to maintain the day-to-day management of the school, but the pace of change and improvement was temporarily affected. The recent return of the headteacher has brought stability back to the leadership. Priorities for the school are clear and actions are being taken, for example, to bring about improvements to the monitoring of the care and support of pupils, and improve the effectiveness of subject leadership. Until recently the school’s systems for self-evaluation did not provide an accurate picture of strengths and weaknesses. The whole staff has yet to be involved in analysing and identifying future priorities. Improvement since the last inspection is satisfactory. The school’s capacity to improve further is satisfactory and it provides satisfactory value for money.

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Grade: 2

Provision in the Foundation Stage is good. On entry to the Nursery, children have skills that are broadly in line with those expected for their age. However, many children have weaker skills in personal, social and emotional development and communication, language and literacy. Staff provide a very caring environment for children so that they quickly begin to feel happy and secure. Parents say they notice their children developing greater independence soon after starting in the Nursery or Reception class. Good use is made of the outdoor areas to help children develop new skills. Teaching and learning are good, as observed in the school hall when children clearly enjoyed developing their physical activities in addition to learning how 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007 to listen and follow a range of different instructions. Well established daily routines enable

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Grade: 2

young children to make a positive start to their learning. They enjoy the range of activities and work enthusiastically at their tasks with high levels of enjoyment. Close attention is given to developing children’s social skills, and routines are well organised so that children quickly acquire a range of learning habits. As a result, most children make good progress in the Foundation Stage and reach the national expectations by the time they enter Year 1.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the achievement of more able pupils in mathematics and science in Key Stage 2 by ensuring that teaching provides greater challenge. ■ Improve the use made of systems of self-evaluation to ensure that all areas of the school’s work are leading to improvement. ■ Improve the quality of marking so that pupils know what to do to improve.

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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

Pupils’ achievement is satisfactory and standards are broadly in line with the national average at the end of both key stages. Children enter the Foundation Stage with standards that are broadly in line with what is expected for their ages, but with weaknesses in personal development and communication and language skills. By the time they enter Year 1, most pupils have reached national expectations for their age and made good progress in developing their personal development and language skills in particular. Progress is satisfactory in Key Stage 1 and by the time pupils enter Year 3, their standards are broadly in line with the national average in reading, writing and mathematics. This is an improvement on the picture in 2004 and 2005 when standards were below average. Standards by the end of Year 6 have been broadly in line with the national average for the past few years, with mathematics and science being a little

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Grade: 3

weaker than English. More able pupils do not always achieve as well as expected and the school is working on the developments required to improve the standards reached by the more able pupils in mathematics and science by the end of Key Stage 2. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress.

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Grade: 2

Pupil’s personal development and well-being are good. Pupils say that they like school and enjoy their education. Pupils’ enjoyment is reflected in their high rates of attendance and good punctuality. They relish the many opportunities provided to enhance their personal development by, for example, acting as monitors in the classroom and setting up equipment in the hall. Members of the school council meet on a regular basis and are very proud of their recent work towards making the playground a safe place for all pupils and in assisting in the appointment of the new headteacher. Pupils’ behaviour in the classroom and around the school is never less than satisfactory and sometimes good. They feel safe and secure in school. Pupils say that they like sport and that 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007 they are encouraged to take part in regular exercise and to have a growing understanding of

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Grade: 2

healthy lifestyles. Pupils have an increasing involvement in their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development although their understanding and concept of the multicultural world is not yet sufficiently developed. Spirituality through music and the arts is much in evidence in the school and a high proportion of pupils are learning how to play a musical instrument. A wide range of school trips and visits also helps to support and promote pupils’ personal development. The school’s focus on basic skills provides a satisfactory contribution to their future learning as young adults.

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Grade: 3

The quality of teaching and learning are satisfactory. Although there are instances of good teaching and learning, particularly in the Foundation Stage, the quality across the school is variable and this has an impact on pupils’ progress. Strengths within lessons include good relationships, the use of questioning, and the occasional use of talking and working partners. In the Foundation Stage, significant attention is focused on the continuing assessment of children’s progress and excellent use is made of teaching assistants to support this process. Where teaching is less effective, the use of different levels of work to match pupils’ different abilities and ensure challenge for all pupils, especially the more able, was inconsistent across the school. In a few cases, the learning intentions were not made clear to pupils and their learning was not checked at the end of the lessons; missing the opportunities to use this

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Grade: 3

assessment to inform future planning. The skills of teaching assistants are used well to support pupils who are experiencing difficulties. The quality of marking is inconsistent; some is detailed and helpful, but this is not always the case and there are too few examples of clear guidance on how to improve.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory overall. Provision in the Foundation Stage is good and enables staff to develop pupils' skills through a variety of stimulating 'hands-on' activities. In the rest of the school the curriculum is satisfactory but does not completely address the needs of different groups of pupils such as those with gifts and talents. The strong partnership with other local schools and Hull University enhances the provision of pupils’ personal development in addition to supporting their future economic well-being. The school further enriches the curriculum through educational visits and a wide variety of extra-curricular clubs and activities.

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Grade: 3

The quality of care, support and guidance to pupils at the school is satisfactory. Good use is made of a range of external service providers who add significant support for pupils with specific learning difficulties. Child protection procedures are understood and staff work to agreed policies. These procedures meet statutory requirements. Appropriate action is taken to ensure pupils’ safety and security. Vetting procedures for staff and visitors meet with the latest national guidelines. Good use is made of personal, health and social education and circle time, to support pupils and encourage them to have a growing understanding of their individual roles and 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007 responsibilities. Teachers’ marking is not consistently helpful to pupils. It does not always make it clear to pupils what they need to do to improve.

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Grade: 3

Leadership and management of the school are satisfactory. During the absence of the headteacher, the school was well supported by the governing body, the diocese and the local authority. Effective day-to-day management of the school was maintained. The recent turbulence in leadership temporarily affected the pace of development. The return of the headteacher has brought stability back to leadership and there is a determination to increase the pace of change. The attainment and progress of pupils has been closely monitored and action taken to support them. New literacy and numeracy initiatives are being introduced and staff have attended training courses. A new tracking system related to pupils’ progress against national expectations has also been introduced and is already being used to identify and improve the support given for different groups. Some areas of the school’s work, particularly systems to support the

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Grade: 3

school’s self-evaluation, such as the monitoring of teaching and learning and the sharing of best practice, are not as advanced as would be desired due to the recent difficulties. These are now being addressed as a matter of urgency. All staff have yet to become fully involved in analysing performance information and identifying priorities. The school is well aware of the recent concerns of a number of parents and is actively working to address them. Governors fulfil their statutory obligations and have demonstrated a positive level of commitment to the school’s work, particularly over the past few months. In their capacity as critical partners, they provide significant support towards pupils’ personal development, but do not yet offer sufficient challenge in holding the school to account for the progress of all groups of pupils. The school provides satisfactory value for money and has a satisfactory capacity to improve.

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Grade: 3

7 of 11 Inspection Report: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007 .

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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: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 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? 2 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 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 3 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: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 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 3 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 4 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: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

22 November 2007 Dear Children Inspection of Stallingborough C of E Primary School, Grimsby, DN41 8AP Thank you for talking to me and for being so honest and friendly during the recent inspection of your school. I really enjoyed my two day visit and it was pleasing to see how polite and helpful you were both to your teachers and to other children and adults in the school. Your school provides you with a satisfactory quality of education. You enjoy learning and coming to school. Most of you work hard and achieve the standards expected of you. The youngest children do especially well when they start school. You take on responsibilities sensibly and you are right to be proud of the achievements of your school council. There are some things your school is going to work on:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ helping older pupils who are capable of reaching the higher levels to achieve well in mathematics and science by making sure that the work they get in lessons is challenging ■ improving the written guidance teachers give you so that you know how well you are doing and what you need to do to improve ■ involving all staff in identifying what the school does well and where there need to be improvements. You can help your teachers by listening very carefully to what they tell you and then trying as hard as you can to do even better in your lessons. Best wishes Tony Anderson Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Stallingborough C of E Primary School, 20 °21 November 2007

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