Inglehurst Infant School

Inglehurst Infant School Inspection report

p.1

120015 Unique Reference Number Leicester City Local Authority 327173 Inspection number 21–22 January 2009 Inspection dates Frances Gillam Reporting inspector

p.1

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.

p.1

Infant Type of school Community School category 3–7 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 263 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 Sharon Tolton Chair Kath Parsons Headteacher 24 November 2005 Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous funded early education inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous childcare inspection Ingle Street School address Leicester LE3 9FS 01162 622479 Telephone number 0116 2625191 Fax number

p.1

3–7 Age group 21–22 January 2009 Inspection dates 327173 Inspection number .

p.1

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.

p.2

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 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.2

Introduction

The inspection was carried out by three Additional Inspectors.

p.3

Description of the school

Just over a quarter of pupils in this larger than average infant school are from minority ethnic groups, the largest groups being of Black British, Black African and Black Caribbean backgrounds. A few pupils who speak Turkish, Polish or Shona are at the early stages of acquiring English. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is well above the national average. The percentage of pupils who need extra support with their learning or who have physical difficulties is above the national average, as is the percentage of pupils with statements of special educational needs. Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) are taught in four classes within the EYFS Unit.

p.3

Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.3

Grade: 2

Inglehurst Infant School is a good school. The outstanding level of care, guidance and support the pupils receive soon helps them to grow in confidence. They behave extremely well, enjoy their lessons and make good progress in their personal development and well-being. Pupils make very sensible choices about what they eat and keep themselves extremely active. They know how important diet and exercise are in order to grow up fit and healthy. Pupils are very happy. They thrive and achieve well in the school's caring and friendly environment. Standards are below average at the end of Year 2. Nevertheless, these standards represent good achievement from the pupils' very low starting points. Pupils from all backgrounds do well as a result of the outstanding provision in the EYFS, and good teaching in the rest of the school. Together with the pupils' good attitudes and growing confidence in literacy and

p.4

Grade: 2

numeracy, effective teaching helps to prepare pupils well for the future. The teachers' strong promotion of a love of writing has lifted the quality of the vocabulary pupils use and how they structure their writing. Pupils put a great deal of effort into what they write. The impact of this positive work, however, is sometimes restricted by weaknesses in the pupils' ability to spell. Pupils put the same amount of energy and enthusiaism into all their work as they do into their writing. Most teachers are expert at tapping into this. They provide ample time for pupils to think and talk about their work, and features such as these benefit the pupils' learning. Such positive approaches, however, are not securely embedded in all lessons, particularly in Year 1. Parents are right to have confidence that the school will care very well for their children. Pupils who need extra help with their work or who have physical difficulties do extremely well because

p.4

Grade: 2

the staff are quick to respond to their needs. The sensitive and timely interventions of staff ensure that none of these pupils struggles or loses heart. As a result, they develop growing confidence to 'have a go' and they take a full part in lessons. Safeguarding procedures are robust and staff routinely remind pupils about how to keep safe. Consequently, pupils play and work together constructively and look out for their own and others' safety. Pupils say their teachers are kind and helpful. This is a strong reason why they very much like coming to school. In spite of the school's hard work, it is disappointing that a small number of pupils have poor attendance. These pupils do not make the same good rate of progress as other pupils do and the school recognises the need to continue to work relentlessly to address this. Pupils enjoy raising funds for charity because they understand there are people less fortunate

p.4

Grade: 2

than they are. They are keen to do their bit for the community. The wide range of clubs and visits are greatly enjoyed by the pupils and enrich the good curriculum. These activities help to promote aspects of pupils' personal development very well and to support their learning successfully. The inspirational leadership of the headteacher is at the heart of the school's success. Good self-evaluation processes provide governors and staff with a clear idea of how well the school is doing. Senior leaders use this information well to identify the correct priorities to drive improvements and to set challenging targets. The action the school takes is usually successful. Its results in the 2008 statutory assessments for seven-year-olds were the highest the school has achieved. These features show that leadership and management are good and that the school has a good capacity to improve further. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.4

Grade: 1

Children's attainment on entry to Foundation 1 (F1) is much lower than that expected for three-year-olds. At the end of Foundation 2 (F2), few children reach the expected goals for their age. Yet this represents excellent achievement from the children's very low entry points. In both F1 and F2, adults pay close attention to the needs of children. They engage children in a high level of talk and this helps to develop children's use of words and to strengthen their understanding of the world in which they live. Strong and warm relationships soon develop. Children feel very safe and secure. This shows in the way they get on so well together and in their confidence in asking adults for help. Staff use the indoor and outdoor environment very well to provide activities that spark the children's interest. Children at the early stages of learning English are supported extremely well. Like the other children, they are happy and

p.5

Grade: 1

settled. The EYFS team works together very well because excellent leadership sets out clearly the goals for all to achieve. The strong understanding of how young children learn and develop shows in the way adults observe and assess children's achievements. They then use this information very well to plan the next steps in the children's learning.

p.5

What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that teachers help pupils to eradicate common spelling mistakes in their work.

p.5

What the school should do to improve further

■ Ensure that all teachers provide time for pupils to think about their answers and to talk together about their work, particularly in Year 1. ■ Work more effectively with the parents of pupils whose attendance is persistently poor.

p.5

Grade: 2

Pupils' achievement is good. Children do extremely well in the EYFS because of the attention staff devote to meeting children's individual needs. By the time children enter Year 1, few reach the goals expected for their age but their progress is excellent given their starting point. Teachers in Years 1 and 2 build successfully on this positive start. Although standards are below average by the end of Year 2, they are rising and the gap between the national and school's results is narrowing. On the whole, activities in Years 1 and 2 continue to challenge and engage pupils, although weaknesses in spelling sometimes hinder pupils' progress in writing. The school's rigorous analysis of data identifies weaknesses in attainment and progress quickly and its response is effective. Intervention is very well focused and this has a particularly good impact on the achievement of pupils with physical difficulties or those who need additional support

p.5

Grade: 2

with their work. These pupils make outstanding progress in meeting their learning and personal goals.

p.5

Grade: 2

Pupils are very safety conscious. They show high concern for the well-being of others and have good community awareness. They are keen fundraisers for charity because they want to help people less fortunate than they are. To stay fit and healthy, pupils take part enthusiastically in a good range of physical activities and make very good choices about what they eat. Good development of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding helps them to respect the views and feelings of others. This helps the school to be a happy and harmonious place. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009 Pupils' constructive relationships and their good academic progress help to prepare them well for the future. Pupils say they feel valued and they are keen to learn. They enjoy school and behave exceptionally well. It is surprising in the circumstances that despite considerable efforts

p.5

Grade: 2

on the part of the school, the pupils' attendance rate is below average. A small number of parents regularly fail to ensure that their children attend school and some choose to take their children on holiday during term time.

p.6

Grade: 2

Teachers' firm yet friendly manner sets out clearly their expectations for behaviour and hard work and the pupils respond positively. Pupils feel valued and part of the school community because teachers draw well on the richness of the pupils' diverse backgrounds to help develop understanding and respect for different peoples, faiths and places. Learning support assistants play an important part in helping all pupils to do well. The 'Magic Writing' groups help pupils to overcome difficulties, for example in punctuation. The very effective support for pupils promotes a strong culture of 'I can'. Teachers respond very well to whole-school initiatives and use the 'Big Write' approach effectively to help pupils to use a wider range of exciting words to enliven their writing. This is helping to raise standards, although teachers acknowledge the need to improve further pupils' spelling skills. Most lessons have a good balance between pupils listening, sharing their ideas and finding

p.6

Grade: 2

things out for themselves. This enables pupils to think about what they are learning, to talk with others to clarify their ideas and, when required, to work independently. In some lessons, the time for pupils to think and talk about what they are learning is sometimes too short. This means that pupils are not always prepared well enough to answer questions or to put down their ideas on paper. This was a feature seen more often in Year 1 than in other year groups.

p.6

Grade: 2

The curriculum places a strong emphasis on promoting pupils' literacy and numeracy skills across subjects. This helps the pupils to make good progress. Pupils' achievement in writing, however, is sometimes hindered because the systematic development of pupils' spelling skills is not yet fully secure throughout the school. The promotion of pupils' personal skills and well-being is a key strength of the curriculum and shows in their positive attitudes to learning. Pupils thoroughly enjoy the wide range of activities outside normal lessons. They find them exciting and great fun. For example, Year 2 pupils were so fired up by what they saw at a local museum, they said they could hardly wait to get back to school to write about the huge dinosaur skeleton they had seen.

p.6

Grade: 1

Parents are right to feel that their children are very well looked after. Child protection procedures are robust and regular health and safety checks ensure that the school is a safe place to be. Very effective arrangements help children to settle quickly into the EYFS and to transfer confidently to their next school at the end of Year 2. Guidance for academic progress is strong. It includes discussions with pupils about how well they are doing and what they need to do to 6 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009 improve. Teachers set well-judged goals for the pupils to achieve. The pupils really like the challenge this provides and they get a great sense of success when they accomplish the goals.

p.6

Grade: 2

Parental confidence in the school is high. The school's good evaluation of its work takes into account the views of pupils and their parents. This develops a firm bond of trust between pupils, their parents and the school and contributes well to developing community cohesion. Senior leaders, however, recognise the need to be more successful in making sure that a small number of parents send their children to school more regularly. Close links with outside agencies also support the school's work and contribute well to the outstanding progress that pupils with learning and physical difficulties make. Challenging targets are securing good improvement in the national assessments for seven-year-olds and the school does much better than other schools with a similar intake of pupils. This shows the governors' and senior leaders' strong emphasis on giving all pupils equal chances to do well. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.7

Grade: 2

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.8

Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

p.9

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

p.9

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?

p.9

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

p.9

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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.9

learners?

2 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 2 The extent to which learners enjoy their education 3 The attendance of learners 1 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

p.10

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?

p.10

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 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.10

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

23 January 2009 Dear Pupils Inspection of Inglehurst Infant School, Leicester LE3 9FS Thank you so much for your warm welcome when we visited your school. We really enjoyed visiting some of your lessons and talking with you about all the exciting things you do. You have a good school. The people in charge and your teachers do a good job in helping you to learn. You make good progress in your work. Here are some of the things we found were especially good about your school.

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Children in Foundation 1 and 2 get off to an excellent start to school.

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You make sure you keep fit and healthy. You eat the things you know are good for you and you take plenty of exercise. ■ You are very good at taking care of each other and you like to help others less fortunate than you are. ■ You know how important it is to listen to and have respect for other people's views and beliefs. You show this in the way you treat each other and your kind and friendly ways. ■ Your behaviour is excellent; this helps to make your school a really happy place to be.

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ You are very well cared for by all the grown-ups in your school. This is why you say you feel safe and why you enjoy school. We have asked the people in charge and your teachers to work together on three things.

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Make sure you have enough time in lessons to think and talk about your learning.

p.11

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

■ Make sure that all of you come to school regularly and that none of you misses school unless there are very good reasons to do so. Keep up the good work! Yours faithfully Fran Gillam Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: Inglehurst Infant School, 21–22 January 2009

p.11