Howick Church Endowed Primary School

Howick Church Endowed Primary School Inspection report

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119364 Unique Reference Number Lancashire Local Authority 313268 Inspection number 9 June 2008 Inspection date Gillian Salter-Smith 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 Mr David Thornton Chair Miss Maggie Beck Headteacher 1 July 2005 Date of previous school inspection Liverpool Road School address Penwortham Preston Lancashire PR1 0NB 01772 612487 Telephone number 01772 614891 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 9 June 2008 Inspection date 313268 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 an Additional Inspector. The inspector evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues:

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Introduction

■ how good is pupils’ progress in Key Stage 2, especially in English and mathematics?

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Introduction

■ are pupils’ personal development and care, guidance & support outstanding?

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Introduction

■ how well have teaching, the curriculum, leadership and management contributed to progress and achievement in Key Stage 2? ■ are arrangements to safeguard pupils in place?

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Introduction

Evidence was gathered from observing the work of the school in lessons, the dining area and the playground. Formal discussions were held with the headteacher, senior leaders and subject leaders, the Chair of Governors and members of the school council. Parents’ responses to the questionnaire were analysed and other school documents, including the school’s self evaluation form, were scrutinised. Other aspects of the school’s work were not investigated in detail, but there was 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 small school. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is below the national average. An average proportion of pupils are identified as having learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Most pupils are from White British backgrounds. Of the small number from other minority ethnic groups, a few are in the early stages of learning English as an additional language The proportion of pupils moving into and out of the school during the year is higher than in most schools. The school is made up of four classes. Three of the classes comprise of pupils from two year groups. These are Years 1 and 2, Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6.

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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: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 2008

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Grade: 2

Howick Church Endowed Primary is a good school. Pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. The care, support and guidance the school provides are also outstanding. Parents are highly supportive of the school. Comments typical of many parents include: ‘Howick is more than a school, it is like a family’; ‘The school provides a nurturing Christian environment in which children feel secure and flourish; and ‘We are very pleased with our daughter’s progress and feel the school is excellent.’ Pupils thoroughly enjoy school and attendance is well above average. Supportive relationships with adults help pupils to feel very happy, safe and secure in school. Pupils say that it is a friendly school where children help and support each other and that adults are always there to help. Pupils develop a very strong spiritual awareness. School assemblies help pupils to develop

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Grade: 2

clear values. Lessons and discussion time designed to develop pupils’ social and emotional development help pupils become highly aware of each other’s feelings. Pupils’ very good awareness of how to stay healthy is evident in the high number of pupils enjoying extra sporting activities. The school council is encouraging more pupils to come to school by bicycle and has improved the range of activities at playtimes. Pupils make a very strong contribution to their school and the local community. The school council are very well organised and are keen to ensure that everybody has a say in making improvements. In preparation for the future, pupils develop very secure basic skills of literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology (ICT). They grow into extremely confident learners who cooperate very well in groups and are more than happy to work independently. Many children start school with skills and abilities that are better than those typical for their

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Grade: 2

age. They make good progress overall and by Year 6 they meet challenging targets in English and mathematics. The work of pupils currently in Year 6 and Year 5 is especially good in literacy. The school’s approach to the curriculum, where basic skills are improved through in-depth work in topics, is having a very positive impact on pupils’ motivation and quality of writing. As a result of a topic on Preston’s docklands Year 5 and 6 pupils produced very good quality writing and poetry. The school is poised to develop this creative approach to the curriculum in more year groups. Results in national tests for Year 6 pupils have fluctuated over the past few years because the number taking the tests is very small thus making comparisons difficult. Also, a high proportion of the pupils taking the tests joined the school during Key Stage 2 and was unable to benefit fully from the school’s good provision in Key Stage 1 and the Foundation

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Grade: 2

Stage. Results of teachers’ assessments for Year 2 pupils are consistently above average and show a rising trend. Standards, though fluctuating from year to year, are above average overall and represent good achievement in relation to pupils’ starting points. Good teaching helps pupils to make good progress and there are examples of outstanding teaching. Tasks are varied and interesting so pupils enjoy learning at a good pace. Tasks are usually challenging and often encourage pupils to think things out for themselves. Pupils find the targets they are given to guide their learning helpful and they receive very useful guidance on how to improve when teachers mark their work. Regular homework contributes to pupils’ good progress. Pupils’ progress is assessed and tracked closely and senior staff and class teachers identify where pupils need more support or challenge. Occasionally, information is not used

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Grade: 2

well enough in lessons to ensure that tasks are adapted to meet pupils’ different needs. 4 of 9 Inspection Report: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 2008 Levels of care and support provided within the school’s family atmosphere are highly effective. Staff know individual pupils and their families very well and they are readily on hand to provide support. The school’s strong links with local agencies ensure that pupils’ specific needs are met. Consequently, pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those learning English as an additional language are very well supported and make good progress. Arrangements for safeguarding pupils meet government requirements. The headteacher’s strong leadership and good management at all levels, ensures that staff work effectively as a team to fulfil the school’s mission statement, that ‘Howick is one Christian family which cares for its individual children, giving them knowledge and education for life.’

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Grade: 2

The school’s priorities for improvement are accurate and based on rigorous monitoring and self-evaluation carried out by senior leaders. Subject leaders have not fully developed the skills they need to analyse pupils’ progress and identify gaps in learning. Governors provide considerable expertise and experience. They provide challenge and practical support and a number visit the school regularly helping pupils with their reading. Although the school went through the correct procedures, a few parents did not feel they were fully consulted when the times of the school day were re-organised. The improved standards in writing and ICT and the maintenance of good achievement and standards since the previous inspection demonstrate good capacity to improve further.

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Grade: 2

Children make good progress in relation to their starting points because they are well taught. By the time they leave the Reception class almost all children reach, and a high proportion exceed the early learning goals expected for their age. They do well in personal development, mathematical development and communication, language and literacy and less well in physical development. The school has recognised this and has adapted the curriculum and resources to give more opportunity for physical learning. Parents appreciate the positive and supportive relationships with staff and the effective arrangements that help their children to settle into the Reception class quickly. Children very much enjoy the varied and challenging learning activities that are well matched to their individual needs because assessment and planning are rigorous. Children benefit from a good balance of activities that are directed by adults and those where they can choose what they do for

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Grade: 2

themselves. Children enjoy learning outdoors. Activities are well planned and the best use is made of the limited outdoor area to support learning in all areas of the curriculum. The Reception class is well led and managed. The teacher and support assistant work together very effectively to provide high quality care, support and guidance.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the skills of subject leaders to enable them to analyse pupils’ progress more frequently and identify gaps in learning more readily. ■ Ensure that all learning tasks match pupils’ different needs. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 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: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 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? 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 1 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: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 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: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Age group 4 °11 Inspection date(s) 9 June 2008 Inspection number

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

10 June 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of Howick Church Endowed Primary School, Lancashire, PR1 0NB Thank you for your warm welcome when I inspected your school. I enjoyed meeting and talking to so many of you. Please thank your parents or guardians for all their very helpful comments in the questionnaires. You need to know what I found out about your school. Howick is a good school. The staff know you and your families very well and they take very good care of you. You are a real credit to your school and your personal development is outstanding. I was impressed by how much you take care of each other and are sensitive to each other’s feelings. The school council are certainly a leading force in bringing about improvements to your school and they are keen to make sure that everyone is involved. I was delighted to hear and see how much you enjoy your lessons. You work very hard and are keen to do well. You achieve well and reach good standards because you are well taught. I could see

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

how the exciting work some of you have been doing about Preston Dock is really helping you to improve, especially your writing. Your headteacher, governors and all the staff work very well as a team to make sure that you feel happy and secure in school and achieve well in your work. They make sure that they know what needs to be done to make things better. They have agreed that there are a few things that could be even better about your school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ To look even more carefully and more often at how much progress you make. This will help guide the teachers on what more needs to be done to fill up any gaps in what you have learned. ■ To make sure that the tasks you do in lessons always help you to make good progress and are neither too easy nor too hard for you. You can help by keeping up your high standards of trying your best, attending regularly and doing your homework. I wish you good luck for the future and I hope you enjoy the rest of your time at Howick Church Endowed School. Yours sincerely Gillian Salter-Smith Lead inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: Howick Church Endowed Primary School, 9 June 2008

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