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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Ms K Williams Headteacher Servite RC Primary School 252 Fulham Road London SW10 9NA

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developing the reformed workforce

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of your staff and pupils, during our visit on 05 June 2008 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 and observation of a lesson.

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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

 The outstanding academic achievement by pupils identified at the last inspection has been maintained. Standards remain very high.  The school has clear evidence of the marked contribution made by members of the reformed workforce to this. The professional portfolios maintained by each Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA) and teaching assistant, for example, show clearly that their work and training have a significant impact on the progress made by pupils. You also have robust evidence of excellent progress made by pupils as a result of intervention activities such as Springboard, which are led by teaching assistants.  The fact that HLTAs and teaching assistants each have specific targets related to pupil progress is very helpful. However, these targets are not always specific to particular groups of pupils or sharp in identifying exactly how much progress is expected.  Pupils’ attitudes, attendance, behaviour and enjoyment of school are excellent.

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developing the reformed workforce

These successes are contributed to well by the role modelling provided by members of the reformed workforce, as well as specific work, such as the very effective and imaginative provision for games and activities at lunchtimes, managed by support staff.

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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

 Members of the reformed workforce and the teaching staff have developed a coherent, shared understanding of pupils’ needs which lead to very effective support and intervention and a high standard of collaborative team work.  Excellent practice was observed in the nursery and Year 2 where HLTAs and teaching assistants modelled behaviour reinforcement and used a common vocabulary effectively to support learning.  The comprehensive systems used to monitor and track progress and the evaluations of their input allow HLTAs and teaching assistants to contribute fully to assessment and marking. This results in meaningful feedback to pupils and teachers which is then used to plan the next stages of support and intervention.

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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

 You are developing a ‘creative curriculum’, underpinned by a clear educational rationale. This is carefully linked to school improvement planning and well understood by members of the reformed workforce who contribute much to planning the curriculum, and lessons, in partnership with teachers. Pupils notice how ‘joined up’ the curriculum is, with all staff members understanding it.  Members of the reformed workforce led by the access and inclusion manager, operate the successful ‘extended school’, including the breakfast club, after school club and many extra-curricular activities. Some teaching assistants teach particular subjects or aspects of the curriculum during teachers’ professional planning and assessment (PPA) time.  In the nursery class, the match of the curriculum to the needs of the pupils is very well supported by excellent observational assessments of pupils made by support staff as well as the class teacher. The language support provided by a

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developing the reformed workforce

teaching assistant to very young pupils at an early stage of learning in English, is very good.

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developing the reformed workforce

The leadership and management of the reformed workforce are outstanding.  You and your senior leaders have a strong vision and commitment to maximise the contribution that each member of staff can make to pupils’ learning. Members of the reformed workforce are fully integrated into the life of the school at every level and the supportive, professional environment encourages them to hold high expectations of the quality of their work.  The development of the reformed workforce is excellent and supported by a coherent cycle of induction, training, performance management, and professional and career development linked to school improvement planning, personalised to meet the needs of individuals.  Members of the reformed workforce are provided with outstanding opportunities for leadership and management within their own areas of responsibility. The creation of senior leadership posts for managers from the

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developing the reformed workforce

reformed workforce has been carefully planned and evaluated and contributes to the effectiveness and accountability of all members of staff.  You are innovative in your approach to performance management and moving forward to establish a rigorous and worthwhile process. The excellent coaching and training received by senior managers, including those from the reformed workforce, to develop their line management skills underpins strong working relationships. The national occupational standards for teaching and learning are used well to provide a framework for career development.  The introduction of supportive monitoring of the teaching and learning of teaching assistants by their mangers is providing useful developmental feedback on practice. However, the purpose of these observations and how they relate to performance management and professional development has not yet been fully explored.

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developing the reformed workforce

The impact of the reformed workforce on inclusion is outstanding.

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 Servite is a very inclusive and cohesive school. Members of the reformed workforce do much to ensure that all pupils are included and their needs well met.  Support staff, often led by the access and inclusion manager, also make sure that parents feel welcome in the school, providing much reassurance and practical support. They contribute very well to the school’s strong sense of community.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

 ensure that the very useful targets set for teaching assistants related to pupil progress are more specific involve pupils and are more precise about how much progress is expected  consider the purpose of the observations for supportive monitoring of teaching and learning for teaching assistants and the links to performance management and professional development.

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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. As I explained in the 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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