All Saints' CofE Junior School

All Saints' CofE Junior School Inspection report

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125666 Unique Reference Number Warwickshire Local Authority 315281 Inspection number 25 June 2008 Inspection date Doris Bell 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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Junior Type of school Voluntary controlled School category 7 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 201 School The governing body Appropriate authority John Fitzmaurice Chair Richard Machin Headteacher 8 November 2004 Date of previous school inspection Nelson Avenue School address Warwick CV34 5LY 01926 492991 Telephone number 01926 496478 Fax number

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7-11 Age group 25 June 2008 Inspection date 315281 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, who evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: •current achievement and standards, especially in writing and mathematics •the consistency of teachers’ assessment, how it is used to track pupils’ progress and to plan the next stages of learning so pupils understand how to improve •how well leaders and managers, including governors, understand and fulfil their roles in helping the school to improve. Evidence was gathered from lesson observations, scrutiny of nationally published assessment data, analysis of the school’s tracking and assessment data and discussions with the headteacher, staff, the chair of governors and pupils. The views of parents were gathered from the returns of Ofsted questionnaires. Other aspects of the school’s work were not investigated in detail but the inspector found no evidence to suggest

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Introduction

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 two-form entry school, which had a new headteacher in January 2008, has an above average proportion of pupils with learning difficulties. It is a Children's University Partner and it has a Healthy Schools Award. It is also the Exemplar School for the local authority in the development of an electronic learning community and portal provision.

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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: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 June 2008

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Grade: 2

This is a good school. The senior leadership team and governors provide good support for the headteacher, whose exceptionally clear vision has given it a very strong sense of purpose and direction. This is leading to rapid improvement in several aspects of the school's work. The school has an accurate view of what it does well and what it needs to do to improve. The headteacher has involved staff and governors effectively in determining these things. He has also set them well on their way towards realising their corporate responsibility for how well pupils do by Year 6. Several well-considered initiatives are under way to accelerate pupils' progress in all year groups. The headteacher's rigorous monitoring of teaching and learning is keeping staff on track to make the necessary improvements. This has led to improved planning and assessment, and a more robust analysis of pupils' progress. It is also beginning to improve

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Grade: 2

the quality of teachers' marking. All of these improvements are the result of the staff's willingness to listen to and act on advice given, and their strong determination to help all pupils do as well as they possibly can. This gives the school good capacity for further improvement and takes it well on the way to being the outstanding school it is determined to become. Pupils' attainment on entry to Year 3 is below average. Good teaching ensures pupils achieve well to reach average standards by the end of Year 6. Effective strategies are used well to help those pupils who are likely to fall behind. Pupils with learning and/or behavioural difficulties make good progress towards their individual targets. Well-briefed teaching assistants support these pupils well, enabling a significant minority to catch up with their classmates by the time they reach Year 6. Pupils thoroughly enjoy school and attendance is above average. They have excellent attitudes

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Grade: 2

to their work and praise their teachers highly, saying 'They do good stuff, it's how they teach and how they help you learn in different ways.' Teachers plan pupils' work well to meet their different learning needs. Pupils described a good range of exciting practical activities, including role-play that provides a positive stimulus for their written work. This has led to examples of good quality writing in their English lessons in each year group. However, pupils rarely transfer the skills they learn in literacy sessions to their writing in other subjects. Although the curriculum is well planned overall, before Year 6 much of pupils' work in other subjects is too worksheet driven, leaving them little opportunity to write at length. The school has taken good advantage of the new strategies for literacy and numeracy and of its involvement in the electronic learning initiative, to overhaul the curriculum and tackle the issues mentioned previously..

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Grade: 2

Teachers' expectations for pupils' effort and attention are good but not all teachers insist strongly enough on good standards of presentation at all times. As a result, the work in pupils' books and folders, including the worksheets, is sometimes untidy. There is evidence of some improvement here recently, as teachers respond to the headteacher's regular monitoring of marking and presentation. Marking is exemplary in some classes but it varies considerably across the school. For example, it does not always give pupils guidance on how to improve, and it rarely refers to pupils' targets so that they can understand the next steps to take. There is very little evidence of good quality marking in subjects other than English and mathematics. The school provides a stimulating learning environment for the pupils. Staff care for, guide and support pupils well, including those who find learning difficult. Following the good role models

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Grade: 2

set by the adults, pupils form excellent relationships with staff and with each other. Displays in each classroom provide good opportunities for pupils and staff to celebrate examples of 4 of 9 Inspection Report: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 June 2008 good learning and personal development. Pupils appreciate this. They know their targets for the next stages of learning but are less clear about how to measure their progress towards them. They are not yet sufficiently involved in assessing their own or each other's learning, or in setting their own targets. Behaviour is good. Pupils understand that some pupils do not behave as well as most, but that they cannot always help this. They state confidently that they feel safe and that the school deals well with any unacceptable behaviour. Pupils have a good understanding of the need to respect different cultures and people's right to follow different

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Grade: 2

religious beliefs. Pupils very much appreciate the world around them. They talk animatedly about the 'Groundforce Project', which involved them and their parents in creating a reflective garden and setting up allotments for each class to grow vegetables. Pupils make a good contribution to the school community, for example as school councillors and peer mediators. They greatly benefit from excellent links with other schools and agencies, and the school's good links with parents. These and the superb range of well-attended extra-curricular activities greatly enhance pupils' learning and personal development. The school is rightly proud of its successes in sport, which have led to it becoming involved in prestigious events in and outside of school. These make a significant contribution to the pupils' good understanding of how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The vast majority of parents are very complimentary about the school. One comment in particular

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Grade: 2

summed up their views well as a parent wrote that it is 'a lovely school, safe, friendly, fun and caring too, excellent headteacher, the school's great at sports too, lots of clubs'. Pupils leave the school well prepared for their future.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Make sure all teachers mark and assess pupils' work equally well and enable pupils to evaluate their own and others' work so they gain a good understanding of how to improve. ■ Provide more opportunities for pupils to write at length in different subjects and teach them how to present their work well at all times. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 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: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 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 capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 3 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 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 2 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?

2 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: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 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: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

26 June 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of All Saints CE Junior School, Warwick CV34 5LY Thank you for welcoming me so warmly to your school on such a special day for you, as you met your new teachers and learned about what you will be doing next year. I agree with you and your parents that you go to a good school. I found that the headteacher, governors and staff are all working together really well to make it an excellent one. The headteacher in particular keeps a very close eye on how well you are doing. He gives your teachers lots of ideas to help you to do even better, like the work they now do to make sure each of you know what your targets are and what you are expected to learn in lessons. All of this assists in the good progress you make by Year 6 and prepares you well for life beyond this school. You told me that you really enjoy school. This came across very clearly in your enthusiasm to talk about all the exciting things you do, the different ways your teachers teach you, and the

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

opportunities you get to learn in different ways. You said your teachers are 'firm but fair', that they are always ready to help you, and that you feel very safe in school. You were very clear that staff would deal quickly with any unacceptable behaviour, and you clearly understand that some pupils behave differently because they cannot really help it. This shows your good ability to understand, help and care for others. The good example set for this comes from the staff, all of whom care for you deeply. You also understand what it means to lead a healthy lifestyle and you certainly take an active part in the school and wider community. You are clearly very proud of your 'Groundforce Project' and the improvement to the outdoor environment resulting from it. You and your parents clearly worked very hard on it.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ To help you make even faster progress, I have asked the school to do two things.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Make sure all teachers mark and assess your work equally well and help all of you to understand how you can improve your own learning. ■ Provide more opportunities for you to write at length in different subjects and help you to tidy up your work and present it well at all times. You can help in these things by continuing to work hard, and by keeping your writing neat and your books and folders much tidier than they are now. I hope you continue to enjoy learning as much as you do now for the rest of your lives. Yours sincerely Doris Bell Lead inspector 9 of 9 Inspection Report: All Saints' CofE Junior School, 25 June 2008

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