Tibberton Church of England Primary School

Tibberton Church of England Primary School Inspection report

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123505 Unique Reference Number Telford and Wrekin Local Authority 314617 Inspection number 17 October 2007 Inspection date David Cox 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 118 School The governing body Appropriate authority Alison Birkinshaw Chair Helen Osterfield Headteacher 4 July 2005 Date of previous school inspection off Maslan Crescent School address Tibberton Newport TF10 8NN 01952 387790 Telephone number 01905 387794 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 17 October 2007 Inspection date 314617 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. The inspection evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and the following issues were investigated. •The effectiveness of the school’s strategies for improving pupils’ writing skills in Years 3 °6 and mathematical skills in Years 1 and 2. •The effectiveness of assessment systems in bringing about improvement in achievement for all pupils. •How effectively leaders at all levels are involved in monitoring and evaluating the work of the school. Evidence was gathered from the school’s assessments of pupils’ standards and achievements. Results of the 2007 tests were analysed, and curriculum planning documents and the school improvements plan evaluated. Discussions took place with senior leaders, staff, pupils and the chair of governors. Parents’ responses to the Ofsted questionnaire were analysed. The inspection considered the quality of the school self-evaluation

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Introduction

and the impact of recent initiatives. Other aspects of the school’s work were not investigated in detail, but the inspection 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

Tibberton is a smaller than average primary school. Almost all of the pupils are from White British backgrounds. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is well below the national average. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is average. When pupils arrive at the school in Reception, their skills and knowledge vary significantly from year to year, from broadly in line with the national expectation to above the national expectation. Many more boys attend the school than girls. There has been a significant turnover of staff in the last two years including the appointment of the headteacher, the deputy headteacher and the Foundation Stage leader.

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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: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 2007

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Grade: 2

Tibberton is a good school with several outstanding features. Pupils enjoy learning in the positive atmosphere at the school and this is reflected in their good achievements and outstanding personal development. Pupils are very aware of the high quality care and support they receive. As one pupil commented, 'The best thing about the school is all the lovely people who help us.' The vast majority of parents are very positive about the school. Pupils are knowledgeable about how to stay healthy and make healthy eating choices, which are monitored and promoted at break and lunchtimes. Many pupils enjoy the sports clubs and other special events. Pupils realise the importance of taking regular exercise through initiatives such as 'Smart Catz' and 'Walk to School Week'. Due to the excellent relationships within the school, pupils talk regularly to staff about their concerns and these are acted on immediately. Pupils know how to keep themselves safe and understand

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Grade: 2

the danger of using the internet. Displayed by workstations is a set of rules shared with pupils to which they must adhere. Pupils volunteer to contribute to Christmas and summer fairs and confidently give presentations to large audiences in assembly, at church and at sporting events. Pupils' behaviour is outstanding. The school has successfully implemented a number of strategies to improve the behaviour of the boys, an issue noted by the previous inspection report. Pupils take pride in being school councillors. They have worked with the grounds maintenance staff to redevelop an area of the playgound, which is used extensively by both pupils and their families. Pupils are fully aware of the contribution they are able to make in the wider community and support a range of activities. Class 1 have adopted a whale and Class 5 a tiger. They have a very good understanding of different cultures from around the world but are less familiar

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Grade: 2

with the cultural diversity of Britain. Pupils are very well prepared for the next stage of their education. Pupils in Year 6 attend the Children's University and Easter School at Harper Adams University College to find out about life as a student and to explore the workings of the agricultural industry. Members of the 'Business Club' designed and made cereal bars for sale at breaktimes. They learn how to work as a team, design systems and make a healthy profit. The academic achievements of pupils are good and continue to improve. Pupils make good progress from their starting points because of good teaching. By the time pupils leave the school at the end of Year 6, standards are much higher than those expected nationally. During their time in Reception, children make good progress, with nearly all achieving beyond the national expectation and they are well prepared for the work in Year 1. For the vast majority

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Grade: 2

of pupils this good progress continues throughout Years 1 to 6. However, for a small minority of more able pupils, progress is not quite as good. This is because teachers do not consistently demand enough of these pupils. Because teachers are very positive, pupils are very keen to have a go and do their best. Teachers are particularly good at asking questions that develop pupils' thinking. Pupils are encouraged to explain how they worked out an answer or developed their ideas. The quality of guidance pupils receive on what they need to do to improve is very good. Pupils are clear about their targets and the staff ensure that they have very good opportunities to assess how well they are doing for themselves. The curriculum is very rich, exciting and highly motivating. Strategies to improve pupils' writing and mathematical skills have been successful. The good range of school clubs and activities is 4 of 9 Inspection Report: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 2007

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Grade: 2

much enjoyed and interesting visits to Blists Hill Open Air Museum make a positive contribution to the pupils' social development. Some members of the leadership team are new to the role and are relatively inexperienced. However, through careful nurturing by the outstanding efforts of the headteacher they are developing into a very effective team. There is an extremely clear sense of direction and purpose. The school's vision statement puts the pupils at the heart of everything. The school has made good progress since the last inspection. There is a very rigorous approach to monitoring and reviewing the outcomes of different areas of work and a clear understanding of where improvements are needed. Staff benefit from careful and supportive induction and good professional development opportunities, and they enjoy learning from one another. The achievement of pupils continues to improve and the school has demonstrated that it has good

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Grade: 2

capacity to improve further. Governors have an excellent understanding of the school's strengths and needs. They challenge and evaluate initiatives effectively and are closely involved in monitoring the work of the school through the 'evaluation committee'.

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Grade: 2

Provision in the Foundation Stage is good and children achieve well because staff understand the needs of these young pupils. Staff plan activities that motivate children's curiosity and enable them to develop new skills and explore the world around them. They have access to the same high quality support packages available in the rest of the school. These enable children to settle into Reception quickly and start to enjoy the wide range of activities available. The large outside learning environment allows children to have first hand practical experiences through play-gardening, creating a sensory garden and using large toys. Children's writing skills are improved through the effective use of 'Home-link' writing books. A high quality personal and social education programme provides for those children who start school with low social and emotional skills. This ensures that they develop a strong understanding of what

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Grade: 2

is right and wrong. Like the other children, these pupils enter Year 1 with skills above the national expectation. A small minority of the most able children are not always challenged because tasks are not demanding enough.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Provide the most able pupils with more challenging work in order to improve their progress.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Extend pupils' knowledge and understanding of the cultural diversity of Britain. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 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: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 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? 1 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?

2 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: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 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 1 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: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

18 October 2007 Dear Pupils Inspection of Tibberton Church of England Primary School, Tibberton, Newport TF10 8NN Thank you all very much for making me feel so welcome in your school when I visited recently. You and your parents are rightly proud of Tibberton. Like you, I think your school is good and has several outstanding features. Here are some of the many good things to report about your school. Your very able headteacher and staff want the best for you and are determined that you make as much progress as you can in lessons. Because you enjoy school, attend well and work hard, you reach high standards. You have lots of other exciting opportunities through visits and projects such as the 'famous scientist day'. It is very clear that you go to an extremely caring school. The school helps you to gain confidence in yourselves and you all have excellent attitudes to learning. Your behaviour is excellent and you are polite to visitors. You show an exceedingly

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

good awareness of how to stay healthy and enjoy the many sporting activities that are available to you. I liked the way the school council works to improve your school. You have a very good knowledge and understanding of cultures from around the world, but are less familiar with the different cultures represented in Britain. Almost all of you make good progress with your work. Younger children get off to a flying start in Reception and this good progress continues throughout your time at Tibberton. Those of you who need extra help make the same good progress because the staff give you lots of attention to help you learn. There are lots of good things happening in your classrooms. You have lovely relationships with all the staff. Teachers know you well and generally ask you to do quite demanding work. Occasionally, however, they do not set demanding enough work for some of you. To make your school even better I have asked your teachers to set work that is even more

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

demanding for the most able amongst you so that you can really do your best and to give you more opportunities to find out about the different cultures that exist in Britain. Thank you again for making me feel so welcome. David Cox Lead inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: Tibberton Church of England Primary School, 17 October 2007

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Annex B

Inspection of Tibberton Church of England Primary School, Tibberton, Newport TF10 8NN

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Annex B

Thank you all very much for making me feel so welcome in your school when I visited recently. You and your parents are rightly proud of Tibberton. Like you, I think your school is good and has several outstanding features. Here are some of the many good things to report about your school.

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Annex B

Your very able headteacher and staff want the best for you and are determined that you make as much progress as you can in lessons. Because you enjoy school, attend well and work hard, you reach high standards. You have lots of other exciting opportunities through visits and projects such as the ‘famous scientist day’. It is very clear that you go to an extremely caring school. The school helps you to gain confidence in yourselves and you all have excellent attitudes to learning. Your behaviour is excellent and you are polite to visitors. You show an exceedingly good awareness of how to stay healthy and enjoy the many sporting activities that are available to you. I liked the way the school council works to improve your school. You have a very good knowledge and understanding of cultures from around the world, but are less familiar with the different cultures represented in Britain.

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Annex B

Almost all of you make good progress with your work. Younger children get off to a flying start in Reception and this good progress continues throughout your time at Tibberton. Those of you who need extra help make the same good progress because the staff give you lots of attention to help you learn. There are lots of good things happening in your classrooms. You have lovely relationships with all the staff. Teachers know you well and generally ask you to do quite demanding work. Occasionally, however, they do not set demanding enough work for some of you.

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Annex B

To make your school even better I have asked your teachers to set work that is even more demanding for the most able amongst you so that you can really do your best and to give you more opportunities to find out about the different cultures that exist in Britain.

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Annex B

Thank you again for making me feel so welcome.

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