St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School

St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School Inspection report

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125190 Unique Reference Number Surrey Local Authority 315184 Inspection number 14 May 2008 Inspection date Ian Wilson 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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Infant Type of school Voluntary aided School category 4 °7 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 118 School The governing body Appropriate authority Dr A Anderson Chair Miss V Aitchison Headteacher 26 April 2004 Date of previous school inspection Dene Road School address Ashtead KT21 1EA 01372 272017 Telephone number 01372 270639 Fax number

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4-7 Age group 14 May 2008 Inspection date 315184 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

■ the achievement of children in the Foundation Stage

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Introduction

■ what the school does that enables pupils to attain as well as they do

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Introduction

■ how effectively the school monitors and evaluates its work and the role of subject leaders in this. 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. These have been included where appropriate in this report. Evidence was gained from lessons and the school's own evaluations of its work. Discussions were held with governors, staff and pupils and a range of documentation was evaluated. Pupils' work was scrutinised in English, mathematics and science. The views of parents were gathered from questionnaires.

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Description of the school

St Giles is a small infant school. The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds are below average and very few pupils have a home language other than English. Pupils' social and economic circumstances are better than those usually found. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is average. The school has the national Activemark award for its provision in physical education and the Basic Skills Quality Mark.

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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 Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 2008

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Grade: 1

St Giles is an outstanding school. It is a lively, happy community that enables pupils to flourish. At its core lies its strong Christian ethos in which individuals are exceptionally well looked after, achieve very high standards and develop very well socially, morally, spiritually and culturally. Parents are overwhelmingly pleased with the school, as one wrote, 'St Giles is a fantastic school and we cannot sing its praises high enough. My son is extremely happy at school and is making excellent progress.' This is typical of the large number of comments by parents. Pupils enjoy learning and love coming to school and this is reflected in their excellent attendance. They form very good relationships, look after each other and behave exceptionally well. The consistent, positive approach of all staff and focus on respect and tolerance helps pupils to develop very well socially and morally. The rich curriculum provides very well for their cultural

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Grade: 1

development and opportunities to think, reflect and explore feelings together with a daily collective act of worship, ensures excellent spiritual development. Pupils develop responsibility and self-confidence and they are very well informed about staying healthy and keeping safe. Overall, they are very well prepared for the next stage in their education. Pupils achieve outstandingly well in the school. They enter the Reception class with levels of skills, knowledge and understanding that are above average. By the time they leave school at the end of Year 2 overall standards in reading, writing and mathematics are exceptionally high. All pupils make equally good progress including higher attaining pupils and those with learning difficulties. There are several features which contribute to this outstanding achievement. These include the pupils' strong personal development and positive attitudes towards learning, an

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Grade: 1

outstanding curriculum, excellent tracking of the progress of each pupil and very well focussed support. These factors are underpinned by consistently good, and occasionally outstanding teaching throughout the school. Teachers have high expectations, and plan lessons which are enjoyable and generally have good pace. They provide good encouragement to pupils and clear guidance on how to improve. Good use is made of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to add interest to lessons. There is not a consistent approach to teaching and learning across the Foundation Stage, however. This does not adversely affect achievement but does mean that the learning experiences of reception-aged children vary between classes. The curriculum provides pupils with a very interesting and balanced range of learning experiences. The provision for developing reading, writing and numerical skills is excellent with

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Grade: 1

very good use being made of small groups to ensure that provision is 'fine-tuned' to individual need. Links between subjects are very well planned and give pupils very good opportunities to apply their learning. For example, a science investigation carried out by Year 2 pupils involved them measuring lengths of jumps and using ICT to investigate the relation between a pupil's height and how far they could jump. The curriculum is enriched by the many visitors to the school, visits undertaken by pupils and termly focussed days, such as a recent 'Victorian Day'. The use of parent and governor helpers extends the curriculum by providing very good opportunities for cooking, music making and other creative activities. There is a good range of after school clubs in which there is good participation by pupils. The school's strengths rest on a foundation of excellent leadership and management by the headteacher, shared vision and values and excellent teamwork by all staff. She is well supported

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Grade: 1

by a newly established leadership team and by the governors who have a good knowledge of the school and provide good support and challenge. The school evaluates its effectiveness very 4 of 9 Inspection Report: St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 2008 well and plans developments carefully. The few minor issues raised at the last inspection have been dealt with but there is no sense of complacency in the school. All work hard to maintain the high standards, reach challenging targets and continue to improve. The school uses its resources carefully. A high priority is given to staffing levels and this enables pupils' learning needs to be met very well. For example, the Year 1 pupils in the mixed Reception/Year 1 class are taught on their own for some lessons, and pupils falling behind or needing extra help or challenge are taught in small groups for some of their work. The very careful monitoring of

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Grade: 1

pupils' progress ensures that this extra help is very well targeted. All statutory requirements relating to the care and guidance of pupils are met fully. Links with parents and outside agencies are strong and contribute substantially to the work of the school.

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Grade: 1

The excellent start that children make in the Foundation Stage gives them a very firm basis for their future education. The provision shares the strengths of the rest of the school. Children are very well looked after and enabled to settle quickly into school. They are taught in two classes, one of which is a mixed age class, which also has Year 1 pupils. Expectations are high in both classes and teachers build on the good knowledge and skills that children already have to enable them to make very good progress in their personal development and in the different areas of learning. However, there are some variations in children's learning experiences between the classes, for example in terms of the opportunities for self-directed work. Children's progress across the Foundation Stage is carefully monitored and the information used well to ensure that individual needs are fully catered for.

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What the school should do to improve further

The school has no major weaknesses and has clear plans for a number of things it wishes to improve. The inspector agrees that these form a very good basis for future development. In addition:

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What the school should do to improve further

■ the school should ensure a consistent approach to teaching across the Foundation Stage so that children's learning experiences do not vary between classes. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 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: St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 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? 1 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. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 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 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 Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

23 May 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School,Ashtead,KT21 1EA You may remember that I recently came to visit your school. Thank you for making me feel so welcome. You were all very polite, confident and told me what you thought very clearly. I really enjoyed meeting you, your teachers and other people who work in the school, and am writing to let you know what I found out. I think that you go to an excellent school, which is led very well by your headteacher. Both she and all staff are very committed to helping you achieve well. I think that you have good teachers and that the school organises lessons and all the other learning activities very effectively so that they are interesting and meet your needs very well. The school frequently checks on how well you are doing and provides very good additional help when you need it. As a result, you all make excellent progress throughout school. Both you and your parents said how much you

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

enjoyed school and get along with each other. You feel safe, cared for and work hard. I was particularly impressed with the way your school helps you to develop good personal skills, such as self-confidence, being responsible and knowing how to stay safe and healthy. I have made just one suggestion for improvement and that is for the school to make sure that children in the two reception classes get the same sort of work to do. I am sure that your school will carry on getting better and better and that you will help by keeping up the excellent behaviour and continuing to work hard. Yours sincerely Ian Wilson Lead Inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: St Giles' CofE (Aided) Infant School, 14 May 2008

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