Walmsley CofE Primary School

Walmsley CofE Primary School Inspection report

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105232 Unique Reference Number Bolton Local Authority 324186 Inspection number 6 November 2008 Inspection date Geoffrey Yates 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 4–11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 315 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 Mrs Pauline Lewis Chair Mrs Debra Carr Headteacher 13 September 2005 Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous funded early education inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous childcare inspection Blackburn Road School address Egerton Bolton Lancashire BL7 9SA 01204 332650 Telephone number 01204 332651 Fax number

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4–11 Age group 6 November 2008 Inspection date 324186 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 9 Inspection Report: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two Additional Inspectors. The Inspectors evaluated the overall effectiveness of the school and investigated the following issues: whether pupils achieve as well as they can; whether pupils use their skills well in other subjects and how strong pupils' personal development is. Other aspects of the school's work were not inspected in detail, but the inspectors found no evidence to suggest 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. However, the school's judgement that leadership and management are good is too modest.

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Description of the school

The school is an above average size for primary schools nationally. It serves a semi-rural area. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average. A well below average proportion of pupils receive free school meals. The school has won many awards including the Healthy Schools Award. The school has Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) 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: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008

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Grade: 1

Inspection findings confirm the school's judgement that this is an outstanding school which provides excellent value for money. The school's very caring ethos shines through pupils' very high levels of concern for the needs of others in school and in the wider community. The school establishes very challenging targets to maintain and raise further the high standards and excellent achievements attained consistently by pupils over the past five years. Pupils' personal development, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is outstanding. This is because of the outstanding quality of pastoral care provided for pupils, the highly effective use made of assessment information and the way in which the curriculum promotes pupils' personal development. Outstanding leadership and management ensure that there is an environment for learning where staff and pupils are determined to do as well as they can. Pupils

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Grade: 1

cooperate very effectively as one happy family, helping each other extremely well and valuing their friends' successes, as well as their own. Parents express their high levels of satisfaction with the school and typical parent comments include: 'My child has made tremendous progress and enjoys all aspects of school life.' Pupils' skills and knowledge when they enter Year 1 are above what is typically expected. By the end of Year 6, sustained high achievement ensures that standards of attainment in English, mathematics and science have been well above the expected levels over a number of years, with a significantly large proportion of pupils reaching higher than expected levels. Inspection evidence shows that current standards in both key stages remain well above the nationally expected levels. Pupils are very polite, well mannered and get on exceedingly well together. Behaviour in lessons and in the playground is impeccable. Pupils are very aware of the need to adopt a healthy

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Grade: 1

lifestyle through healthy eating and regular exercise. The school council has a high level of involvement in the running of the school; as one pupil put it, 'We make our own decisions.' Spiritual development is very strong and even young pupils demonstrate their ability to reflect. Pupils show a strong sense of responsibility for their environment, for example through the work done by the eco group. High academic standards, excellent social skills and the respect for others ensure that pupils are very well prepared for their future. The quality of teaching and learning is outstanding. As a result, pupils are made to feel proud of their work and achievements. For example, they are keen to talk about how they have made good use of alliteration in the poems they write about Bonfire Night. Excellent relationships exist between staff and pupils and this means that pupils confidently ask questions and make

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Grade: 1

points in lessons. For example, in a highly successful mathematics lesson a pupil explained confidently and accurately to the rest of the class why a triangle drawn on the whiteboard was a scalene right angled triangle. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities benefit from very good support in lessons and achieve exceedingly well. Staff have high expectations of pupils and this is shown most clearly in their marking, especially where teachers' comments give clear indications about the quality of work and what pupils need to do next. The good curriculum provision promotes academic development very well and pupils benefit from an outstanding variety of enrichment activities, with music, French, and information and communication technology being strong components. However, opportunities are missed for pupils to use and develop their very good writing skills in other subjects. Links with the local

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Grade: 1

4 of 9 Inspection Report: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008 community and beyond are very strong. For example, the school's orchestra and choir perform with other groups in public venues. The headteacher provides excellent leadership and management. The recent appointment of two assistant headteachers is proving to be successful in providing the headteacher with support in maintaining continuous improvement. The leadership team makes very good use of tracking information to ensure that pupils receive the right level of support. Governance is very strong. The chair of governors provides highly knowledgeable and organised leadership to the governing body. The school's record of sustained improvements indicates that there is an outstanding capacity to improve further.

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Grade: 1

Children are very happy, settled and really enjoy coming to school and their parents are overwhelmingly supportive. They enter the EYFS from a variety of settings with skills and knowledge which are typical for the age group with some children having skills above those typical. All children make very good progress and as a result they exceed the expected levels in all areas of learning by the time they are ready to join Year 1. Teaching and learning are outstanding. Highly effective systems are in place to track and record children's progress. There is a very good balance between child- and teacher-initiated activities. Children enjoy activities such as working in the role play hairdressers' area and even the inspector could not escape being given a quotation for a hair cut! A major strength of the teaching can be seen in the very good progress that children make in their personal, social and emotional development, where

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Grade: 1

their behaviour and attitudes to learning are good. Children are involved in a variety of excellent indoor and outdoor activities and confidently work and play together. The designated outside area is restricted in size but very well used. An excellent initiative involving the use of a woodland area near to the school provides children with highly stimulating learning experiences and is 'the icing on the cake' in ensuring that they experience an exciting and vibrant curriculum. The leadership and management of EYFS are excellent. The teachers and teaching assistants work very closely together to ensure that children get off to an excellent start.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that regular and challenging opportunities are provided for pupils to use their very good writing skills in other subjects. 5 of 9 Inspection Report: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 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: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 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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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 capacity to make any necessary improvements

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EYFS?

1 How well do children in the EYFS achieve? How good are the overall personal development and well-being of the children in the EYFS? 1 How effectively are children in the EYFS helped to learn and develop? 1 How effectively is the welfare of children in the EYFS promoted? 1 How effectively is provision in the EYFS led and managed?

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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/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. 7 of 9 Inspection Report: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008

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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 2 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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learners' needs?

How well do the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of learners? 1 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 1 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 1 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination eliminated 1 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 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: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Inspection of Walmsley C of E Primary School, Bolton, BL7 9SA I am writing to you to thank you for your help during my visit to your school and to share with you my opinions about it. I agree with you that your school is outstanding. It was lovely to see so many happy smiling faces. You behave very well and you work hard and try your best in lessons because you receive outstanding teaching. Consequently, you make excellent progress and reach well above average standards. I enjoyed seeing the Woodland area and watching a pupil playing the piano Ä he did it far better than I can! I was impressed with the older pupils' skills in using computers. It was a pleasure to experience the school's Eucharist act of worship. The pupils my colleague spoke to at lunchtime were good ambassadors for your school. I agree with you that your headteacher and teachers are very caring and give you really good help if you have a problem. All the jobs you do in school and the many activities pupils are

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

involved in are certainly helping you to become good citizens of the future. It is very good to see that you know what you need to do to be safe and keep healthy and fit. I have asked your school to make sure you are given more opportunities to use your very good writing skills not just in literacy lessons but also in other lessons. Please will you make a big effort to write as well as you can? Your school provides all of you with a very caring place to learn. You are given lots of help by teachers and teaching assistants and you told us that you feel safe and secure at all times. I hope you continue to enjoy school and wish you the very best for your future. 9 of 9 Inspection Report: Walmsley CofE Primary School, 6 November 2008

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