Setting

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 08456 404040 F 020 7421 6855 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Mrs Sue Winterton Headteacher Earlswood Infant and Nursery School St John’s Road Redhill RH1 6DZ

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developing the reformed workforce

Thank you for your hospitality and co-operation, and that of your staff and pupils, during my visit on 04 December 2007 to evaluate the impact of the deployment, training and development of the reformed workforce. For the purposes of this survey inspection, the term ‘reformed workforce’ will apply to any person employed by or working in partnership with the school who is not a qualified teacher.

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developing the reformed workforce

The visit provided valuable information which will contribute to our national evaluation and reporting. Published reports are likely to list the names of the contributing institutions but individual institutions will not be identified in the main text. All feedback letters will be published on the Ofsted website at the end of each half-term.

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developing the reformed workforce

The evidence used to inform the judgements made included discussions with staff and pupils, scrutiny of relevant documentation, observation of structured play and parts of lessons.

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developing the reformed workforce

The overall effectiveness of the reformed workforce in your school was judged to be outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

The impact of the reformed workforce on achievement and standards is outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

 Most pupils have the expected skills, knowledge and understanding when they join the school. Teachers, teaching assistants and the nursery nurse work in close-knit, highly effective teams to ensure pupils make at least good progress at all stages of learning to achieve high standards at the end of Key Stage 1.  Teaching assistants are paired with class teachers. They each take half of the class to develop pupils’ basic skills at scheduled times every day. Skilful, well planned collaboration that continuously clarifies pupils’ next learning steps underpins these arrangements. As a result, teaching assistants make a powerful contribution to pupils’ progress, personal development and well-being.

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developing the reformed workforce

The impact of the reformed workforce on the quality of teaching and learning is outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

 The school’s deployment of some teaching assistants to enable all pupils to be taught in small groups on a daily basis is improving learning. Arrangements are well designed to match learning activities to pupils’ needs precisely and allow pupils to move groups when they are ready for a higher level of challenge.  Questioning is a key teaching method, skilfully used by teaching assistants to develop pupils’ thinking skills and evaluate the effectiveness of learning.  The reformed workforce plays a major part in pupils’ enjoyment of learning either by personalising their experiences and/or improving the environment for learning. For example, midday supervisors are trained to model and tailor learning through play.

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developing the reformed workforce

The impact of the reformed workforce on the quality of the curriculum is outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

 The reformed workforce is focused effectively on the development and delivery of a high quality, child-centred curriculum. The central objective of promoting independent learning by offering choice and securing basic skills is achieved because the combined expertise of teachers and teaching assistants supports a highly flexible curriculum.  Superfluous content has been stripped out of the curriculum to make way for carefully planned opportunities for independent learning. Pupils benefit from a choice of well constructed learning topics with teachers and teaching assistants working alongside them to develop key skills and concepts. Teaching assistants are exceptionally skilled in making the right intervention at the right time to challenge pupils appropriately.

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developing the reformed workforce

The leadership and management of the reformed workforce are outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

 Highly effective deployment of the reformed workforce has been fundamental to ensuring learning builds on what pupils can do and eradicates gaps in skills and understanding.  Systems for monitoring teaching and learning make staff accountable for pupils’ achievement and well-being. In particular, teaching assistants have targets that are directly linked to pupils’ progress.  The roles and responsibilities of the reformed workforce are clear and linked to school improvement priorities. Good performance management procedures include full consideration of professional development needs. Consequently, the reformed workforce is very skilled and well qualified.  Career progression is encouraged. The reformed workforce welcomes opportunities to take responsibility. Many lead aspects of the school’s work well. In line with its policy of developing leadership at all levels, the school plans to enhance the capacity of the reformed workforce to develop and

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developing the reformed workforce

The impact of the reformed workforce on inclusion is outstanding.

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developing the reformed workforce

 The school is highly effective in aligning the deployment and training of the reformed workforce with the needs of pupils. As a result, nearly all pupils feel included, achieve well and thoroughly enjoy school.  The school’s supportive ethos is rooted in a strong, shared belief that all pupils can succeed. The reformed workforce promotes this belief with confidence that comes from being well trained and valued members of staff.  The reformed workforce is increasingly effective in working with parents and families to give pupils consistent messages about how they can be successful learners and make a positive contribution to school life.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

 developing the capacity of the reformed workforce to lead aspects of the school’s work.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

I hope these observations are useful as you continue to train and develop the reformed workforce.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

As I explained in my previous letter, a copy of this letter will be sent to your local authority and will be published on the Ofsted website. It will also be available to the team for your next institutional inspection.

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