Berrow Church of England Primary School

Berrow Church of England Primary School Inspection report

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123807 Unique Reference Number Somerset Local Authority 314725 Inspection number 4 °5 December 2007 Inspection dates Geoff Burgess 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 aided School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 254 School The governing body Appropriate authority Andrea Johnstone Chair Peter Yardley Headteacher 22 March 2004 Date of previous school inspection Rugosa Drive School address Berrow Burnham-on-Sea TA8 2LJ 01278 783614 Telephone number 01278 783134 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 4 °5 December 2007 Inspection dates 314725 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 three Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This medium-sized school is situated in the Somerset coastal village of Berrow. The number on roll has decreased significantly in recent years. Very few pupils are entitled to free school meals and the proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is lower than usual. In most years, children start school with average standards in most areas of learning.

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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: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007

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Grade: 3

This is a satisfactory school. It ensures that its pupils are happy, healthy, fit and safe, and that they achieve above average standards in English, mathematics and science. Its overall provision is sound and pupils make satisfactory progress through the school. However, a significant number of parents are concerned about a deterioration in the fortunes of the school in recent years. This is shown by the rise in the numbers of pupils moving to other schools and the dramatic fall in numbers joining in the Reception class. Typically, parents felt that the school has 'lost its sparkle' and 'needs a shot in the arm'. Another said that, 'Something needs to dramatically change at this school to ensure a future for the better'. Inspectors found that elements of leadership and management are weak, notably a lack of clear direction and of follow-through on initiatives by the headteacher, and poor communications.

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Grade: 3

However, through the efforts of the whole school community, the school provides an adequate education so that overall leadership and management are satisfactory. One consequence of a lack of clear direction has been the fact that most curriculum and other leaders have not had the opportunity, resources or time to make a difference in their subjects. However, recent initiatives instigated by the local authority and run by senior managers have shown that, given the chance, staff are more than capable of moving the school forward. The school's capacity to improve is satisfactory. The relatively small group of children in the Foundation Stage are enjoying being in school and are well on the way to achieving their early learning goals. Frequent changes in staffing have disrupted the development of teaching and learning in recent years, but teaching among the current staff team is never less than satisfactory and in some classes good. Thanks to this,

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Grade: 3

pupils' recent achievement throughout the school is satisfactory. Provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD) is well organised and, with the help of capable teaching assistants, these pupils do equally as well as their classmates. Key features in pupils' learning are their good behaviour and attitudes to work which mean that lessons are calm and busy. Staff know all pupils very well and take good care of them while they are in their charge. Appropriate procedures are in place to ensure their safety but a lack of clarity, together with sometimes poor communications, means that parents are not always happy with the way situations are dealt with. Recent arrangements for improving academic guidance have not yet had time to show how effective they will be in improving achievement. The past few years have seen substantial improvements in the school's facilities and accommodation but this is not yet fully reflected in the quality of the working and learning

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Grade: 3

environment. Several areas are humdrum and not very interesting for children, others underused and a little untidy. Few reflect a curriculum that is in any way out of the ordinary or celebrate pupils' enthusiasm for the things they are doing. Efforts made to enrich the curriculum in recent years have had some success, but inspectors agree that the school does indeed need 'a shot in the arm' in this area.

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Grade: 3

The relatively small number of Foundation Stage children have the use of inside and outside areas, well equipped for two classes. The extra space, good levels of adult help and a good 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007 variety of experiences covering each of the areas of learning mean that children's introduction to school life is happy and positive. Excited boys and girls were very keen to share their delicious baked potatoes with inspectors and showed how good their language skills and personal development are in the process. Parents of children in the Reception class are happy with their progress and the care given.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ promote high quality of care and education by setting clear direction and empowering all staff to carry out their responsibilities to the best of their abilities ■ improve achievement by ensuring all teaching is consistently good throughout the school

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What the school should do to improve further

■ develop and enrich the learning environment by providing activities that energise and challenge pupils, by celebrating pupils' work, and by making the best use of the school's facilities. A small proportion of 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

Overall standards, as shown by national test results in Year 6, have been above average for the past six years. The school achieved its best ever results in 2007, mainly because of a big improvement in mathematics. Over the years, national test results in Year 2 have been above average, and usually well above, and in 2006, they were exceptionally high in all subjects. However, a year group with higher levels of LDD saw standards fall below average in mathematics in 2007. Overall standards remained above average. The school's records and pupils' current work show that above average standards have been sustained. The school's targets for this year also reflect the above picture. Achievement, as shown by the value added by the school between Years 2 and 6, was close to the national mean from 2004 to 2007, with differing strengths and weaknesses in each year. The school's records show that, with satisfactory teaching, pupils are currently making

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Grade: 3

satisfactory progress throughout the school.

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Grade: 2

Pupils' good personal development is a strength of the school and a key reason why the school remains a harmonious community. Parents recognise the hard work done by teachers to help their children to enjoy school. Attendance has improved slightly since last year but it remains a little below average. Behaviour is good, with some being exemplary. Pupils move about the school sensibly, showing consideration for others. Older pupils enjoy arranging activities such as parachute games for younger ones, participating in local music festivals, and carol singing for elderly residents. School councillors are beginning to develop leadership skills as they seek the views of other pupils on how to improve the school. Pupils are willing to explore their own values and beliefs and enjoy the challenge of thinking about wider issues such as climate change. Multicultural development is good, as shown by children and their families hosting a choir from

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Grade: 2

Africa which strengthened links with the children the school sponsors. . Even the youngest pupils know how important it is to eat a healthy diet and keep themselves fit and active. By 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007 Year 6, most pupils have a satisfactory grasp of the basic skills of literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology that will help them to benefit from the next stage in their education.

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Grade: 3

The school's solid track record in ensuring that pupils make satisfactory progress in their learning is a good indicator that teaching is satisfactory. This was backed up by lessons observed during the inspection that were characterised by calm, purposeful teaching making good use of available resources such as the interactive whiteboards. No time is lost in managing behaviour or keeping pupils on task, and pupils' good attitudes and willingness to contribute and to try make a strong contribution to their learning. Teaching assistants play an important role in working with groups. Teachers are making increasing use of assessment information to set targets and match and modify work but the quality of marking is variable.

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Grade: 3

Teachers work hard to ensure that pupils acquire skills in literacy and numeracy. Pupils say that they particularly enjoy their work in science. All other subjects are covered appropriately and the school has begun to work on modifying the curriculum to make activities more relevant and exciting for Berrow pupils. The school's partnership with the local sports specialist school has contributed well to developments, as has the teaching of French and German. A good range of enrichment activities, including clubs, visits and residential trips, contribute well to raising pupils' social skills and self-esteem. However, insufficient use is made of cross-curricular links, including the use of basic skills in other subjects so that pupils can develop these skills in different contexts.

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Grade: 3

Pupils' personal welfare needs are well known by all adults in the school and appropriate safeguarding procedures are in place. Effectively written individual education plans are used well to support pupils with LDD. Guidance for pupils' academic progress is improving. Assessment data had been collected for some time but was insufficiently analysed. It is now being evaluated effectively, with the deputy headteacher in the lead. Staff are increasingly adept at evaluation, its use in target setting and in pupils' evaluation of their own progress, but the process is at an early stage of development. Pupils benefit from good liaison with the secondary school and the 'official friend' scheme for newly arrived pupils.

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Grade: 3

Over the years, the school has made it possible for generations of pupils to move on to secondary school well prepared with good personal, literacy and numeracy skills. This continues, which indicates that essentially, leadership and management are satisfactory. This judgement, and 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007 other judgements about the quality of provision, tallies with the school's view which would appear to show the accuracy of the school's view of itself as satisfactory. However, the acceptance of this also indicates low expectations and a lack of ambition in the top leadership. Despite the efforts of senior staff, an ethos of accepting mediocrity and avoiding issues and challenges has developed. This forms the core of the concerns of many in the school community about the decline in the school's reputation in the local community. The local authority has ensured that a programme of monitoring of teaching and pupils' progress

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Grade: 3

is in place, and senior teachers are now using this information to identify successes and areas for improvement. However, staff have not been encouraged to take responsibility for their own development and several have had little opportunity to work on and improve provision in their areas of responsibility. The governing body has seen many changes of personnel but, under the guidance of the long serving chair, it has done much to try to move the school forward recently. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 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: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 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? 3 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? 2 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?

3 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 3 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 3 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: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 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 3 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: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Dear Pupils Inspection of Berrow CE Primary School, Burnham-on-Sea, TA8 2LJ Mrs Case, Mr Bate and I would like to thank you for making us feel so welcome during our short stay at your school. We particularly enjoyed sharing baked potatoes with the children in the Reception class. They were delicious. We think your school is satisfactory, but we also think that if everyone works very hard, it could be much better in a short time. We found these good things:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you behave well, enjoy learning, work hard and do your best

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you are good at reading, writing, mathematics and science

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ your teachers and helpers work hard to help you learn

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ they arrange a good range of extra activities for you to enjoy

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ you know you are safe and that there is always someone to turn to

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ we know you appreciate all the grown-ups do to make sure your time in school is as happy as possible. To make things better, this is what we have asked your school to do now:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ make sure all staff know what needs to be done to make things better and make it possible for everyone to do their best ■ help you to achieve as well as you can by ensuring all teaching is as good as the best

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ make the school a great place to learn in by giving you even more exciting things to do, displaying a lot more of the lovely work you do, and making the most of all the school's facilities. You can help, too, by continuing to work hard and do your best. Again, thank you for all you do to make your school as good as it is. It was a pleasure for us to share it with you for a short time. Yours sincerely Geoff Burgess Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Berrow Church of England Primary School, 4 °5 December 2007

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Annex B

Inspection of Berrow CE Primary School, Burnham-on-Sea, TA8 2LJ

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Annex B

Mrs Case, Mr Bate and I would like to thank you for making us feel so welcome during our short stay at your school. We particularly enjoyed sharing baked potatoes with the children in the Reception class. They were delicious. We think your school is satisfactory, but we also think that if everyone works very hard, it could be much better in a short time.

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Annex B

• you behave well, enjoy learning, work hard and do your best • you are good at reading, writing, mathematics and science • your teachers and helpers work hard to help you learn • they arrange a good range of extra activities for you to enjoy • you know you are safe and that there is always someone to turn to • we know you appreciate all the grown-ups do to make sure your time in school is as happy as possible.

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Annex B

To make things better, this is what we have asked your school to do now:

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Annex B

• make sure all staff know what needs to be done to make things better and make it possible for everyone to do their best • help you to achieve as well as you can by ensuring all teaching is as good as the best • make the school a great place to learn in by giving you even more exciting things to do, displaying a lot more of the lovely work you do, and making the most of all the school’s facilities.

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Annex B

You can help, too, by continuing to work hard and do your best.

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Annex B

Again, thank you for all you do to make your school as good as it is. It was a pleasure for us to share it with you for a short time.

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