Setting

Miss Alix Ascough The Headteacher All Souls C of E Primary School Foley Street London W1W 7JJ

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Ofsted monitoring of schools with a Notice to Improve

Thank you for the help which you and your staff gave when I inspected your school on 31 January 2008, for the time you gave to our phone discussions and for the information which you provided before and during my visit. Please pass on my thanks to members of your staff, the chair and other governors, pupils, and local authority representatives who spoke to me during the day.

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Ofsted monitoring of schools with a Notice to Improve

This letter will be posted on the Ofsted website. Please inform the Regional Inspection Service Provider of any factual inaccuracies within 24 hours of the receipt of this letter.

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Ofsted monitoring of schools with a Notice to Improve

As a result of the inspection in June 2007, the school was asked to:  raise standards in reading, writing and mathematics in Key Stages 1 and 2, particularly for more able pupils  improve middle leaders' use of data so that pupils' performance was accurately tracked and underachievement addressed  as a matter of urgency, eradicate remaining inadequate teaching and build on the existing examples of good practice  ensure the governors were rigorous in monitoring the work of the school and holding the school to account for its performance.

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Ofsted monitoring of schools with a Notice to Improve

Having considered all the evidence I am of the opinion that at this time the school is making good progress in addressing the issues for improvement and pupils’ achievement is now improving well.

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Context

There has been a significant staff turnover since the inspection. In particular, the school has a new senior leadership team. The deputy headteacher was appointed and took up his post in January 2008, and both Key Stage coordinators were new in post in September2007. Prospects Learning Services Ltd 132-138 High Street Bromley Kent BR1 1EZ T 08456 40 40 40 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 020 8313 7760 Direct F 020 8464 3393

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Achievement and standards

The school has made consistent progress in raising standards due largely to the introduction, and regular use, of assessment and tracking procedures to provide short and succinct lesson aims that are now clearly understood by all pupils. The fall in standards in 2007 at Key Stage 1 has been addressed with great rigour, and pupils are now achieving well. School data and pupils’ work show a high percentage of pupils making good progress. The carefully collated results of the school’s assessments show improvements in reading, writing and mathematics. In Key Stage 2, forecasts based on this information indicate that Year 6 pupils are on track to achieve the school’s own well-defined targets and should reach the expectations for their age in reading, writing, mathematics and science. The use of assessment across the school to set targets for each year group and for individual pupils is now enabling all staff, in particular subject leaders, to measure, analyse and

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Achievement and standards

monitor progress and standards. It is clear from the outcome of the well- differentiated tasks in lessons that this is now helping the more-able pupils to make good progress. This careful analysis of pupils’ work has also highlighted areas for action such as the intervention groups, which, in discussion, the pupils themselves enthusiastically endorsed. Information gained from the monitoring of these pupils’ achievements shows encouraging progress, an early indication of the success of this strategy.

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Quality of Provision

The quality of teaching during the inspection in June, although variable in quality, was judged inadequate overall. All staff have worked extremely hard and with a common purpose to improve this aspect of their work. There have been a number of staff changes and new teachers have been appointed with great care. This has had a significant impact on the quality of teaching. Pupils say they enjoy their lessons, which are often fun and say they know exactly what it is that they need to do next to improve. In particular, they know what level they are working at in writing and really want to get better. The quality of work in pupils’ books confirms this improved picture of teaching and learning. There are now systematic procedures for monitoring and evaluating the quality of teaching and learning, with very clear and effective mentoring and support provided for staff. Subject leaders now take an active part in monitoring the effectiveness of practice in their subjects. The new

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Quality of Provision

marking scheme is being used very well to give clear and immediate pointers about what pupils need to do reach higher standards. The peer mentoring and dialogue between pupils and teachers in Year 6 are particularly impressive, and a very good model for pupils as they move to their secondary schools.

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Leadership and management

The outstanding headteacher, who was relatively new to her post at the time of the inspection, has fulfilled the strong start noted at that time and made a very significant contribution to the progress the school has made in the last six months. She has galvanised the new leadership team, who now have a clear view of necessary improvements and have made a good start in implementing changes to address them. The impact of middle leaders has been greatly enhanced by the input from consultants, support from the local authority and the time now made available for them to work more closely with their colleagues. Through their well-written action plans they are clear about what is needed to raise standards. Governors now play an active part in the life of the school and monitor the implementation and impact of their policies with great care. They bring a wide range of skills to act as critical friends, and now challenge decisions and request explanations where they

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External support

The school has received good support from the local authority who have provided both expertise and support to enable the school to move forward. This has contributed to the school’s significant improvement whilst at the same time providing robust challenge.

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External support

I hope that you have found the visit helpful in promoting improvement in your school.

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