St John's Church of England Primary School

St John's Church of England Primary School Inspection report

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118611 Unique Reference Number Kent Local Authority 313015 Inspection number 15 November 2007 Inspection date Terry Elston 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 658 School The governing body Appropriate authority Paul Sharland Chair Andrew Blundell Headteacher 14 July 2003 Date of previous school inspection Cunningham Road School address Tunbridge Wells TN4 9EW 01892 678980 Telephone number 01892 678989 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 15 November 2007 Inspection date 313015 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, who evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: • the opportunities provided for pupils in Key Stage 1 to develop their writing skills • provision for children in the Foundation Stage • pupils’ enjoyment of school and their awareness of how to stay safe and live healthy lives • the contribution to leadership and management made by a range of staff in the school. The inspector gathered evidence from observations of lessons; discussions with pupils, governors and staff; tracking pupils’ progress; analysis of attendance; and gaining the views of parents. Other aspects of the school’s work were not investigated in detail, but the inspector found no evidence to suggest that the school’s own assessments, as given in its self-evaluation, were not justified, and these have been included where appropriate in this report.

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Description of the school

This is a large school that admits pupils from a wide range of pre-school playgroups in the area. Attainment on entry to Reception is broadly as expected of pupils of this age. Around 20% of pupils have learning difficulties and/or disabilities, which is similar to most schools. Just over 11% of pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds, but few are at an early stage of learning English as an additional language.

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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 John's Church of England Primary School, 15 November 2007

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Grade: 2

This is a good school that justifies its high reputation in the local community. An important reason for the school's success lies in the strong leadership and management, not least by the headteacher, whose influence can be felt in all aspects of the school's work. The headteacher is supported well by other senior leaders and the knowledgeable governors, who share his vision and high expectations for the school. The rigorous tracking of pupils' progress towards challenging targets and regular evaluations of the quality of teaching and learning enable the leaders to evaluate the school's effectiveness exceptionally well and rectify any weaknesses. The provision is enhanced by good partnerships with other schools that enable the leaders to share expertise and make the best of each other's strengths. This, together with the consistently good teaching, explains why pupils progress quickly to attain above- average standards in

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Grade: 2

English, mathematics, science, and information and communication technology (ICT) by the time they leave. Children make a good start in the Reception classes and attainment is above average in all areas by the end of the year. This good progress continues in Years 1 and 2, although the school recognises that more-able pupils could do better in writing. Last year, fewer pupils reached the highest levels than was the case nationally. Pupils think the world of the school and say the best thing about it is the teachers. They appreciate the way that teachers make learning fun and always have time to help them when they are struggling. As one pupil put it, 'They soon see when you are stuck and come quickly to give you one-to-one help until you understand what to do.' Teachers are very good at using computers in their lessons and pupils enjoy moving letters around the large whiteboards in literacy or counting the faces of shapes in numeracy. Teachers have very high expectations of

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Grade: 2

pupils' behaviour, which is outstanding. Pupils speak highly of the interesting curriculum and the wide range of clubs after school that over half of them attend regularly. The curriculum is enriched by many opportunities for pupils to visit places of interest and take part in residential trips. These help bring the curriculum to life and do much to develop pupils' personal and social skills. The curriculum provides extensive guidance on healthy living and pupils develop an excellent understanding of how to eat the right foods and take good care of their bodies. The school's very strong focus on pupils' spiritual development means that they learn to think very deeply about issues such as poverty and the wonders of nature. This shows in their vivid and often poignant writing. For example, one Year 6 pupil wrote, 'I could see cracked and fragile leaves dancing in the topaz moon wind.' However, the school is justified in seeing the need to

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Grade: 2

provide younger, more able pupils with more opportunities to develop their writing skills to the full. Pupils have many opportunities to contribute to their community and they relish their responsibilities as members of the school council or as 'Buddies' when they support younger or troubled pupils. By helping to make the school rules, pupils develop an exceptional awareness of right and wrong. This is one reason why bullying is rare and pupils feel so safe at school. Pupils from all ethnic backgrounds work and play well together and there is a strong sense of community. These opportunities, together with pupils' good progress in literacy, numeracy and ICT, make them very well prepared for the future. The school provides very effective support for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and they make good progress as a result. Teaching assistants are skilled and are particularly 4 of 9 Inspection Report: St John's Church of England Primary School, 15 November 2007

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Grade: 2

good at helping pupils with reading difficulties. Pupils with particular talents benefit from many opportunities to develop their skills in areas such as chess, music, drama and sport. Parents value highly the way the school cares for their children. They rightly feel that the staff have got the balance just right with, as one parent wrote, 'a healthy commitment to work, play and pastoral care'. Health and safety and child protection systems are robust and monitored closely by the staff and the well-informed governing body. The detailed assessment systems provide a clear picture of pupils' progress and show where the school needs to provide extra support. The school has done well since the last inspection and has rectified the few weaknesses identified. With such strong leadership and good teachers, it is well set to improve further.

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Grade: 2

The provision in the Reception classes is good. The comprehensive home-school links ensure that children make a smooth transition to school. The detailed assessments provide accurate measures of children's strengths and weaknesses and teachers use them effectively to plan activities at the right level. Teachers and teaching assistants make learning fun and children love coming to school. They make good progress in developing their academic and personal skills so that nearly all are working securely within or beyond the expected goals by the end of the year. The curriculum is planned very carefully to ensure children have the right balance of academic work to improve their reading, writing and number skills and time to develop their independence and social skills through play.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Provide more opportunities in Key Stage 1 to develop the writing skills of more-able pupils. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: St John's Church of England Primary School, 15 November 2007 .

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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 John's Church of England Primary 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? 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? 2 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?

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. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: St John's Church of England Primary 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 2 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? 8 of 9 Inspection Report: St John's Church of England Primary 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 St John's C of E Primary School, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN4 9EW Thank you for making me so welcome when I visited your school. I really enjoyed seeing you work so hard in lessons and play so happily in the playground. Those of you who were kind enough to speak to me showed how proud you are of your school. You are right to be, because it is a good school. What I liked most about your school:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You are very friendly and kind to each other.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You work very hard and make good progress. The standard of your work is better than in most schools. ■ Your behaviour is excellent, both in class and out in the playground.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You know a lot about how to stay safe and live healthy lives.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You do a lot to help people who are not so lucky as you.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ The leaders are good at improving the school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You love the many clubs at lunchtime and after school that teach you important skills in things like ICT, music and sport. ■ Your teachers are doing a good job. They work very hard to plan interesting work and make your lessons fun. ■ All staff at the school take excellent care of you and keep you safe.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

What we would like the school to do now:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Make sure the writing of the younger pupils is as good as it could be.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Good luck for the future! Yours sincerely Terry Elston Lead inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: St John's Church of England Primary School, 15 November 2007

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