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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Mr R Dedicoat Headteacher Orford CE VA Primary School Orford Woodbridge Suffolk IP12 2LU

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Physical Education

Thank you for your hospitality and co-operation, and that of your staff, during my visit on 30 September 2008 to look at work in physical education (PE).

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Physical Education

As outlined in my initial letter, as well as looking at key areas of the subject, the visit had a particular focus on assessing the PE contribution to the outcomes of Every Child Matters particularly ‘being healthy’.

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Physical Education

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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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Physical Education

The evidence used to inform the judgements made included interviews with staff and pupils, scrutiny of relevant documentation, analysis of pupils’ reports, observation of two lessons and a discussion with a representative from the Eastfeast project.

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Ofsted survey inspection programme – Physical Education

The overall effectiveness of physical education was judged to be good.

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Achievement and standards

 Pupils make good progress overall in PE. The latest Foundation Stage records for 2008 show that children started school with physical skills which were below expected levels. Most made good progress with a majority reaching the expected level by the time they entered Year 1. The school assesses progress in Key Stage 1 to be satisfactory with most pupils reaching average standards. Good progress in Key Stage 2 enables some pupils to reach above average standards in Year 6. Almost all pupils in Year 6 achieve the national standard in swimming by the time they leave.  Pupils’ involvement in sports club activities in and out of school is helping them to achieve higher standards. Your assessment is that boys achieve well in games and athletics and girls do better in gymnastics and dance. Observations in Reception and the Year 5/6 class indicate that the school’s evaluation is broadly accurate.

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Quality of teaching and learning of PE

The quality of teaching and learning is good.

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Quality of teaching and learning of PE

 Two lessons were observed during the inspection. One was good and the other satisfactory. Your specialist subject knowledge has been used well in teaching all Key Stage 1 and 2 classes, and has had a positive influence on pupils’ progress. This strong subject knowledge helped keep pupils focussed on aiming for high quality outcomes in a Year 5/6 gymnastics lesson. All four strands of the National Curriculum programme of study were included in this lesson and pupils had the chance to discuss the outcomes of their learning and evaluate their successes. In the satisfactory lesson, the teacher used information communication technology (ICT) well to support the warm up but not enough emphasis was placed on assessing learning and challenging children to improve their responses.  Lesson planning is detailed and stems from a core scheme of work. Assessments are made in lessons through teachers observing and

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Quality of teaching and learning of PE

questioning pupils. Some core assessment tasks are also used. There are good plans to involve pupils more in completing written evaluations of their progress. Reports are written for parents; these give a brief summary of what pupils cover and achieve in PE. Pupils’ progress and attainment in PE is currently not recorded or monitored.

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Quality of the curriculum

 Pupils engage in two hours of timetabled physical activity each week; this includes two lessons and a daily ‘activate session’. The school’s curriculum map shows all areas of learning are included. Very good links are made across subjects particularly through arts festivals and the Eastfeast project, which has a strong focus on developing pupils’ knowledge of healthy lifestyles. A core scheme of work is a useful resource for lesson planning and pupils enjoy and benefit from weekly activity afternoons which include PE sessions for everyone.  Involvement in the sports partnership has been used successfully to enhance provision and involve pupils in sports clubs at school and in the community. Many pupils take part in a good range of after school sports activities, tournaments and competitions. These are organised for traditional team games but also for individual players in sports such as judo and fencing. Outdoor and adventurous activities are provided during

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Quality of the curriculum

a residential visit for older pupils. The first phase of an exciting project to transform the outdoor learning and play environment has been completed. Further work is underway, including improving outdoor play facilities for Foundation Stage children.

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Leadership and management of PE

The quality of leadership and management is good.

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Leadership and management of PE

 Making the best use of subject expertise and the school’s involvement in the local sports partnership are two important contributors to the school’s good provision. You, as the subject leader, have a secure understanding of the strengths and developments required in PE. Good use had been made of the ‘ten high quality outcomes’ to evaluate pupils’ progress towards meeting these. The action plan for PE forms part of the overall school development plan but requires a sharper focus on key improvement priorities.  There are suitable plans to provide more professional development opportunities for staff. The school acknowledges that improvements are required in assessing pupils’ attainment and progress and in using ICT to support teaching and learning. Pupils are involved well in planning and designing improvements to the outdoor play environment. You recognise that the questionnaires used very successfully to collect parents’ views on

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Leadership and management of PE

the school’s effectiveness could be extended to focus more exclusively on provision in PE.

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Matters particularly being healthy

 Pupils’ involvement in PE and sport is making a very positive contribution to their personal development. Pupils enjoy PE immensely, participate enthusiastically in lessons and take part in sports clubs and tournaments. Older pupils are proud to represent the school in competitions. Pupils in Year 6 are encouraged to take responsibility and lead play activities at lunchtimes.  Pupils know why it is important to take exercise to keep fit. They understand that other factors, such as eating healthily and drinking plenty of water also contribute to leading healthy lives. They appreciate the importance of cooperation and teamwork. Older pupils can talk about the effects of exercise on their bodies and why it is important to warm up in lessons. Pupils’ involvement in the excellent Eastfeast initiative and ‘luscious leaves’ enterprise project successfully develops their contribution in the community and economic awareness.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

 keeping a closer check on pupils’ standards and achievement in PE  supporting teachers’ subject knowledge by providing professional development in aspects of PE in which they feel less secure  making use of ICT to support teaching and learning, including assessment. I hope these observations are useful as you continue to develop physical education in the school.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, included:

As I explained in my 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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