Congerstone Primary School

Congerstone Primary School Inspection report

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119949 Unique Reference Number Leicestershire Local Authority 313457 Inspection number 28 April 2008 Inspection date Mike Capper 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 Community School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 135 School The governing body Appropriate authority David Lock Chair Amanda Watson Headteacher 26 April 2004 Date of previous school inspection Shackerstone Road School address Congerstone Nuneaton CV13 6NH 01827 880243 Telephone number 01827 880915 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 28 April 2008 Inspection date 313457 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

About fifty percent of pupils in this small rural primary school come from the school's catchment area of six local villages. The rest come from further afield through parental choice. The proportion of pupils identified with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average.

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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: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008

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Grade: 1

Parents and pupils are justifiably proud of this outstanding school. Pupils are very well supported, enabling them to flourish both socially and academically. As a parent rightly noted, 'The school provides a high quality of education which is rich in content, challenges and opportunities.' Pupils typically commented that, 'School is great.' Pupils' achievement is outstanding. They make good progress in the Foundation Stage and in Years 1 and 2, and then excellent progress in Years 3 to 6. Consequently, standards improve quickly as pupils move through the school and they are exceptionally high by the end of Year 6. Pupils achieve so well because teaching is good and because they are given excellent support by their parents at home and also benefit enormously from a very rich and interesting curriculum that makes learning exciting. Teachers are generally very successful at meeting pupils' differing

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Grade: 1

needs, although in lessons for younger pupils opportunities to pitch work at the right level for every pupil are sometimes missed. This is most noticeable when pupils are working together at the start of lessons. In Years 3 to 6, teachers' subject specialisms are used especially well to support learning in English and mathematics and this helps pupils to make particularly fast progress in these year groups. Pupils' personal development and well-being are excellent. Members of staff give pupils excellent personal and academic support and, from an early age, teach them good values. Pupils quickly learn to respect each other and adults. They are very polite and courteous to visitors and develop extremely positive attitudes towards their learning. Pupils' exemplary behaviour is a major factor in their successful learning and creates a very positive atmosphere in lessons and around school. Pupils are very keen to carry out tasks to help and take these responsibilities very

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Grade: 1

seriously. School councillors are very conscientious and they help pupils to make an excellent contribution to the local community. The school has recently been awarded lifelong 'Eco School' status, reflecting the thoughtful way that pupils care for the local environment. The school is so successful because it is led and managed exceptionally well. The headteacher and other members of staff are passionate about 'their school' and they do all they can to ensure that every pupil fulfils his or her potential. There is a very good understanding of the few weaknesses in the school, although self-evaluation tends to be a little cautious in its judgements, reflecting the very high expectations of the headteacher. Subject leaders are enthusiastic and they support their colleagues well. They are rightly strengthening further their role in school self-evaluation so that any minor inconsistencies in their subjects, such as

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Grade: 1

occasional variations in the quality of marking, are picked up even more quickly. There are ambitious plans for further school development and to manage a rising roll, and the headteacher and governors are exceptionally well placed to realise their aspirations. The school has established outstanding links with parents, who make a very strong contribution to their children's learning by helping in school, raising funds and working with them at home. One parent summed up the almost unanimous views of all by writing, 'Congerstone is a wonderful place for my children to start their education and I consider myself very lucky that they come here.' 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008

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Grade: 2

Children in the Reception Year make good progress, especially in their personal development. When children transfer to Year 1, their standards are well above average. Good teaching and close teamwork between all adults ensure that children settle well and gain confidence quickly. The good curriculum provides a wealth of interesting activities, especially indoors. For example, children enjoy counting the spots on ladybirds and writing labels for their plants. The recently improved outdoor area is being developed well to provide good opportunities in a range of areas of learning. There are some missed opportunities to provide boy-friendly writing activities and this means that boys are less likely to choose to write than the girls. During whole-class discussions, challenging questions help most children to learn quickly, although there are occasions when the needs of all children are not being fully met, slowing the pace of learning.

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Grade: 2

Good leadership and management ensure that provision is reviewed regularly and action taken as needed. For example, members of staff have worked well to improve children's comparative weakness in calculations. As a result, children are now good at adding two small numbers together.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that work is always pitched at the right level when younger pupils are working as a class at the start of lessons. ■ Strengthen the role of subject leaders in checking on provision so that any minor inconsistencies are identified even more quickly.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' achievement is excellent. The level of children's skills when they start school is higher than those normally found. From this good starting point, pupils reach exceptionally high standards by the end of Year 6. Pupils make very fast progress in Years 3 to 6, where they benefit from specialist teaching which meets differing needs particularly well. Pupils consistently meet or exceed their very challenging targets in national tests at the end of Year 6. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities are supported very well, with most reaching nationally expected levels by the time they leave school. More able pupils are successfully challenged, and the percentage reaching the higher Level 5 by the end of Year 6 is very high, especially in reading. Pupils do especially well in reading because of the many good opportunities that they get to read in school and the excellent support they receive from

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Grade: 1

Pupils thoroughly enjoy attending school and their exceptionally good behaviour enables them to take maximum benefit from all the school has to offer. Good links with a partner school in France and visits to places of worship ensure that pupils have a very strong awareness of cultures other than their own. Pupils become confident and articulate individuals who are sociable and support each other well. As one pupil said, 'It's really nice here because children play together well.' Pupils are extremely polite and helpful. There is a calm and purposeful working atmosphere in lessons. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008 Pupils have an excellent understanding about the dangers they face in their everyday lives and how to avoid them. For example, they know about road safety from the quizzes set by their 'road safety officers'. Pupils are very happy to adopt healthy lifestyles. They take frequent

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Grade: 1

exercise and make healthy choices of food and drink. For example, one pupil said, 'Broccoli is yummy.' Children learn to work together sensibly from the time they start school in the Reception Year and enjoy sharing in each other's successes. They make a great contribution to the community by raising funds for charity and by looking after the environment. School councillors are particularly proud of the way they helped the school to raise money for endangered amphibians through their 'frog frolics' fair. These activities, and pupils' excellent basic skills, prepare them exceptionally well for the next stage of their education and later life.

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Grade: 2

Teaching is good across the school and is most effective in Years 3 to 6, where the teacher's particular subject expertise is used very effectively to teach literacy and numeracy. In the Reception Year, adults support small groups of children well. Throughout the school, relationships are very good and teachers make good use of a varied range of activities to make work interesting. For example, pupils in Years 3 and 4 enjoyed writing questions to their favourite authors. Skilful teaching assistants have a good impact on learning, especially when supporting small groups of pupils. Throughout the school, teachers plan well for the wide range of needs in each class, especially when pupils are working in small groups. However, when teachers are working with the whole class, there are occasions in younger classes when pupils are expected to sit and listen for too long and not all pupils are challenged fully.

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Grade: 1

The curriculum has an outstanding impact on pupils' progress. All subjects are covered thoroughly and the emphasis on interesting, purposeful and practical tasks contributes significantly to the pupils' immense enjoyment of learning. Very good use is made of specialist teachers from within and outside the school to provide accurate knowledge and specific skills in subjects such as French, music, information and communication technology and physical education. Throughout the school, there is good promotion of the creative and performing arts. The curriculum supports very good progress in pupils' basic skills, although there are a few missed opportunities for pupils to extend their writing, in science and history, for example. The curriculum provides pupils with excellent experiences in addition to their daily lessons. They are encouraged to maintain their very good health and fitness through a very wide range

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Grade: 1

of sporting activities and they appreciate the way learning is enriched by visitors.

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Grade: 1

Parents and pupils are right to be very pleased with the excellent pastoral support provided by all members of staff. Adults know all pupils well and ensure that they feel safe and secure. 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008 Pupils report that there is no bullying at the school and that minor disagreements are sorted out well by other pupils or members of staff. When necessary, the school works exceptionally well with parents and outside agencies to safeguard pupils. There are very thorough procedures for assessing pupils' attainment. This information is used very well by teachers to check progress and to guide learning. Teachers use marking and written goals very well to help pupils understand how to improve, although there is some inconsistency in the quality of this across the school. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities have their needs identified and supported swiftly.

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Grade: 1

This is a school that is never standing still and is constantly striving to improve. The headteacher is receptive to new ideas and has a thorough understanding of what is going well and where improvement is needed. A detailed analysis of data helps the school to identify any pupils who are in danger of falling behind, and they are quickly given additional support. Subject leadership is most effective in English and mathematics. In other subjects, procedures for checking the quality of provision are less well established. Until recently, the teaching commitment of the headteacher made it difficult to give subject leaders enough time to check things out for themselves and this hampered the full involvement of all staff in the process of self-evaluation. Governance is good. Governors are kept well informed by the headteacher. They provide a good level of challenge to the school and continue to make good use of training opportunities to

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Grade: 1

strengthen further their involvement in strategic planning. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008 .

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Grade: 1

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 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 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 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 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 1 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Dear Children Inspection of Congerstone Primary School, Nuneaton CV13 6NH Thank you for welcoming us to your school and for showing us your work. You are very polite and friendly and extremely well behaved. We enjoyed talking to the school council and other pupils. We agree with you that your school is excellent and that it does a lot to help you. These are some of the things we found out about your school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Your excellent attitudes towards your work and good teaching help you to learn well and to make very fast progress so that you reach very high standards by the end of Year 6. ■ You are very happy at school and thoroughly enjoy it because adults make learning fun. They plan many interesting activities and let you take part in a great number of clubs and visits. Well done on gaining the lifetime Eco School award! ■ You have an outstanding understanding of how to stay safe and healthy and do especially well in sporting competitions. ■ All adults in school are very kind and caring and they give you very good help with your work.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Your headteacher, other members of staff and governors are leading the school very well and are working hard to make it even better. ■ Your parents and carers are very pleased that you come to this school.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

We have asked your school to work on these things:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Make sure that the teachers give you work at the right level for all of you at the start of lessons when you are all sitting together. ■ Give teachers who are in charge of different subjects more time to check on written work so that they can make sure that everything is going well. We thoroughly enjoyed talking with you about your work and watching you learn. We wish you all the best for the future and hope that you continue to help your teachers with your excellent effort in lessons. Yours sincerely Mr M Capper Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Congerstone Primary School, 28 April 2008

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