Wanstead Church School

Wanstead Church School Inspection report

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102841 Unique Reference Number Redbridge Local Authority 323700 Inspection number 27 January 2009 Inspection date Robert Lovett HMI Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The registered childcare, managed by the governing body, was inspected under section 49 of the Childcare Act 2006.

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Primary Type of school Voluntary aided School category 3–11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 253 School (total) 0 Government funded early education provision for children aged 3 to the end of the EYFS 0 Childcare provision for children aged 0 to 3 years The governing body Appropriate authority Reverend Canon Robert Springett Chair Mr Peter Lewis Headteacher 11 January 2006 Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous funded early education inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous childcare inspection Church Path School address Wanstead London E11 2SS 020 8989 6001 Telephone number 020 8532 9316 Fax number

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3–11 Age group 27 January 2009 Inspection date 323700 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. 2 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by one of Her Majesty's Inspectors and an Additional Inspector. Inspectors evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues.

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Introduction

■ How effective is the tracking of pupils' progress and how is this used to raise standards?

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Introduction

■ How effective are partnerships with home, church and the wider community?

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Introduction

■ How well are pupils prepared for the next stage of their education and how effectively are workplace skills promoted? ■ How is the creative curriculum used to promote high standards and enjoyment of learning?

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Introduction

They gathered evidence by analysing assessment data, scrutinising documentation, looking at pupils' work, observing lessons, through discussions with pupils and staff and analysing the responses to the parents' questionnaires. Other aspects of the school's work were not investigated in detail, but inspectors found no evidence to suggest that the school's own assessments, as given in its self-evaluation form, were not justified, and these have been included where appropriate in this report.

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Description of the school

The school is similar in size to the national average and has one class in each year group. While an above-average proportion of pupils are from minority ethnic groups and cultures, most speak English as their first language. It is a popular school and most pupils stay from when they join Reception to the end of Year 6. Staffing is also very stable. Currently there are no teaching vacancies. The Early Years Foundation Stage provision includes a Nursery where children attend on a part-time basis. About half of the children transfer from the Nursery to Reception. The school holds a number of externally validated awards including Investors in People and British Council International Schools status.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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Grade: 3

The school has many strengths, particularly pupils' good achievement and outstanding personal development. However, it is satisfactory overall because it does not meet all government rules for safeguarding learners. Staff and pupils ensure that visitors to the school receive a warm and friendly welcome. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly supportive of the school and comment positively on the care their children receive and the high standards achieved by the school. The response rate to the parent questionnaire was high and of those who responded, almost all are very positive in their praise for the work of the school. Comments such as, 'I have found the communication between teacher and parent has been exceptional' and 'Our children are very happy and any problems we've ever had have been taken on board and dealt with very well', accurately represent the feelings of many. The personal development and well-being of pupils are particular strengths and are outstanding.

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Grade: 3

Pupils thoroughly enjoy coming to school and as one said, 'My teacher makes sure lessons are fun!' This enjoyment of learning is reflected in high levels of attendance. The school actively celebrates its Christian heritage and enjoys close links with the parish church and the diocese. Pupils regularly attend services at the church and the vicar is a frequent and welcome visitor to the school. There is a strong partnership with parents. Meetings to discuss teaching and the curriculum are well attended and the school is receptive to suggestions from parents. For example, it recently organised a meeting to inform parents about 'chunking' in mathematics and how this makes an impact on teaching and learning. Attendance at meetings to discuss the progress pupils are making is high and parents welcome the weekly newsletter, which keeps them well informed about what is happening in the school and contributes to the good

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Grade: 3

communication and sense of partnership. The school enjoys close links with a primary school in Uganda, which helps foster pupils' excellent understanding of different lifestyles and cultures. Pupils know what it means to lead a healthy life. They are enthusiastic in describing their involvement in improving the menu in the school canteen. They speak highly of the ready availability of 'healthy options' while welcoming the retention of more traditional dishes such as roast dinners! Pupils' behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. Most pupils treat all members of the school community with care and respect. Those spoken to were clear that bullying is rare and, when it does occur, it is promptly addressed by the school. They also said they felt very safe and would not hesitate to go to a member of staff if they felt insecure or uncertain. The elected school council makes a good contribution to the school community and

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Grade: 3

members are eager to become even more proactive. They were particularly proud of their impact on improving hygiene arrangements in the pupils' toilets. High standards and good collaborative and communication skills make a very positive contribution to ensuring that pupils are very well prepared for the next stage in their education. Academic guidance and support have improved significantly since the last inspection. They now provide the school with a regular and accurate picture of how well pupils are doing. This information is used effectively to set challenging targets and to provide additional support to those pupils who need it. While the day-to-day pastoral care of pupils is good, refresher training for staff and for the designated lead person for child protection issues is overdue. Many children join the school with levels of knowledge and skills that are above those expected for their age. Children make good progress in the Nursery and Reception classes. Pupils continue

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Grade: 3

to make good progress in Key Stage 1 and standards reached by the end of Year 2 are significantly above average. In Key Stage 2 pupils achieve well, so that by the end of Year 6 4 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009 standards in English, mathematics and science are exceptionally and consistently high. In 2008 pupils in Year 6 made particularly good progress. The reasons for this include teaching that is generally good and sometimes outstanding. The school's monitoring of teaching indicates an improving picture. In an outstanding English lesson, pupils worked together very effectively, shared information on endangered animals and took careful note of the views and information provided by their classmates. The lesson was very well planned and organised so that pupils moved quickly and quietly between groups and activities. The teacher provided clear explanations and directions so that all pupils knew what they were expected to do. As a result, the pace of

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Grade: 3

learning was rapid and the available time was exceptionally well used. The school provides a rich and varied curriculum. While there is an appropriate focus on basic skills, pupils' learning is enriched by a good creative curriculum with particular strengths in sport and music. The curriculum is further enhanced by the wide range of clubs and activities covering music, sport, chess, art and many other areas. Pupils say they value these very much and, as a result, they are well attended. Pupils also enjoy the themed learning events using visiting providers, such as the Puzzle Day on the day of the inspection. The wide and exciting curriculum makes a significant contribution to the excellent standards achieved and to pupils' high level of enjoyment. The headteacher provides very committed leadership with a clear focus on raising standards. Effective steps have been taken to ensure progress in a number of areas since the last inspection.

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Grade: 3

For example, the tracking of pupils' progress and boys' writing have improved significantly, and physical education is now a strength, in spite of the limited space available. The school is eager to improve further and has a number of improvement plans in place. While these are generally good, they are not always clear enough about how the impact of the school's work is to be measured, nor are they explicit enough about raising standards. This makes it difficult for the school to monitor its progress and evaluate which actions are most effective. It also makes it difficult for the school to be held to account. Governors know the school well and take an active part in its life and work. However, they have not ensured that all requirements of their statutory responsibilities in respect of safeguarding children are fully in place and the chair recognises the urgent need to ensure all requirements are met. Because the school knows

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Grade: 3

itself well and its self-evaluation is accurate and perceptive, the school is well placed to improve further.

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Grade: 3

Attainment when children start in the school is better than usually found. Children make good progress in their learning due, in part, to being well supported in their personal development and well-being. Children settle into the Nursery very well and enjoy their time in the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are well motivated to learn and bubble with excitement, particularly when given the opportunity to make decisions about their learning and to be independent. Children's behaviour is good, they have well-developed social skills and they are able to share and to play together without fuss. Communication with parents is effective and is another reason that children settle in well. The adults know and understand the needs of children in their care, which is reflected in the good relationships between adults and children. Children are helped in their learning by the provision of a variety of activities appropriate to their age

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Grade: 3

and development. However, at present there is too much direct teaching of key skills so that children have insufficient opportunities to explore, investigate and find things out for themselves. 5 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009 The Early Years Foundation Stage coordinator is relatively new to post and has had insufficient time to make an impact on the learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage, where there are some inconsistencies in practice. Outside provision in the Nursery is good and is used well. This is not the case in the rest of the Early Years Foundation Stage due, in part, to the cramped conditions and lack of space.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure all staff training in respect of safeguarding is up to date and that all requirements are met. ■ Sharpen the success criteria in some improvement plans so that the impact of actions on standards is clearer and the school can more effectively be held to account. A small proportion of the 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. 6 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009 .

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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. 7 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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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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needs of learners?

No 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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EYFS?

2 How well do children in the EYFS achieve? How good are the overall personal development and well-being of the children in the EYFS? 2 How effectively are children in the EYFS helped to learn and develop? 3 How effectively is the welfare of children in the EYFS promoted? 3 How effectively is provision in the EYFS led and managed?

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Achievement and standards

2 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 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make progress

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Achievement and standards

1 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. 8 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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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 The extent to which learners enjoy their education 1 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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learners' needs?

How well do the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of learners? 3 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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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 2 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination eliminated 2 How well does the school contribute to community cohesion? 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 No 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? 9 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

10 February 2009 Dear Pupils Inspection of Wanstead Church School,London,E11 2SS Thank you for making me and the other inspectors feel so welcome when we visited your school. I was lucky enough to meet with some of your representatives and managed to talk to others of you in the dining hall and in the playground. The things you told me were very helpful in reaching our judgement on how well the school is doing. While your school is satisfactory overall, it is good in a number of respects, and in some it is outstanding. You told us you enjoy learning and that lessons are often fun. This is because teaching and the curriculum are good. You also told us how much you value the wide range of clubs and other activities the school offers and we agree that this is a real strength of the school. Another is the strong commitment to sports, particularly competitive sport, and to music. The high quality of the school orchestra

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

and choir coupled with the excellent participation rates in the Redbridge Mini Games and success in the Redbridge Sailing Regatta are testament to this. You behave well in lessons and around the school and you have an excellent understanding of how to lead healthy lives, keep safe and live together as a caring community. Standards are exceptionally high in English, mathematics and science. These high standards and your very good ability to work together sensibly mean that you are well prepared for the next step in your learning. To help the school improve further, we are making a few suggestions.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ We have asked the school to be clearer about how it will measure the effect of some of the different things it plans to do, particularly on the standards you achieve. ■ We have also asked the governors to ensure that all staff have recent training on how to make sure you are kept safe. I hope you enjoy the rest of the school year and that the excellent rates of attendance continue! Yours faithfully Robert Lovett Her Majesty's Inspector 10 of 10 Inspection Report: Wanstead Church School, 27 January 2009

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