Setting

Aviation House 125 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 08456 404040 F 020 7421 6855 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Mr G Adams Headteacher Stanley Park Junior School Stanley Park Road Carshalton Surrey SM5 3JL

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development

Thank you for your hospitality and cooperation, and that of your staff, pupils and parents, during my visit on 1 December 2009.

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development

As outlined in my initial letter, the visit had a particular focus on how the school’s work with parents and carers affects a range of outcomes for pupils.

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development

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.

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development

The evidence used to inform the judgements included interviews with parents, staff, parent-governors and pupils, scrutiny of relevant documentation and observation of the school at work.

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development

The overall effectiveness of the school’s engagement with parents and carers is outstanding.

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The impact of parental involvement on outcomes

The impact of parental involvement on outcomes is outstanding.

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The impact of parental involvement on outcomes

 The success of the school’s work with parents has established a school community where pupils, parents, extended family members and all staff feel part of the school motto, ‘A Sense of Pride’. Very high levels of attendance, at school performances, parents’ evenings, summer fairs, curriculum evenings and other fundraising events, is testament to the school going that extra mile to carefully shape a warm, welcoming and successful school.  Parents are fully involved in their child’s learning and personal development. The induction package and welcome evening set out clear expectations of pupils and parents and establish a good working relationship from the start.  Well-structured target-setting and review meetings, and a report style that was redesigned following governor and parental feedback, help parents understand how to facilitate good progress for their children.  Regular and timely communication from class teachers and senior leaders

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The impact of parental involvement on outcomes

helps parents quickly access information they need. Parents and pupils are extremely positive about the Home-School Book as a helpful mechanism for weekly contact with teachers. Senior leaders’ termly audit of how well these books are used gives a good overview of class teachers’ work with parents.  Excellent dialogue between staff and parents helps parents feel confident that their voice is heard in deciding how best to help their children at school and at home.  Parents who find it difficult to come into school receive targeted support on a case-by-case basis. Many case files show how well the school gently manages and accommodates any anxieties of parents.

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The impact of the involvement of parents on the quality of provision

The impact of the involvement of parents on the quality of provision is outstanding.

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The impact of the involvement of parents on the quality of provision

 As result of a clearly communicated philosophy about its work with parents and your regular letters to draw in the expertise of parents, the school attracts a high level of commitment from parents who participate in teaching opportunities. Pupils speak eloquently about their history work being greatly enhanced by grandparents who share memories of the Second World War and artefacts from that time. ‘It brings things to life,’ one pupil said.  The inclusion of many parents in guided reading and projects, such as the allotment work, gardening club, and cooking workshops, are just some examples of how parents work alongside pupils.  Parental concerns about the homework system were handled quickly by leaders who consulted with parents to devise a more manageable policy.  Parents who want additional guidance about how to help their child learn now have curriculum pamphlets such as ‘Mathematical Teaching Methods’

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The impact of the involvement of parents on the quality of provision

and ‘Supporting Reading at Home’, enabling them to be regularly engaged and focused in guiding their children’s homework.  The parent-teacher association has judiciously decided to involve parents on a project basis rather than asking parents to commit to a whole year’s work. A great majority of parents and family members support the school’s efforts.  Cohesive systems are the foundation of good care, guidance and support for all pupils, fostering high levels of trust between staff and parents. Excellent relationships with external agencies help parents to access additional monetary, health or specialist counselling support.  Extended school provision such as brain gym, breakfast club and mathematics work, provides good connections with teaching assistants and parents. Joined-up working leads to effective knowledge of issues raised by parents at different times of the day. Parents appreciate how knowledgeable the teaching assistants are about the progress of their

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The impact of the involvement of parents on inclusion

The impact of the involvement of parents on inclusion is outstanding.

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The impact of the involvement of parents on inclusion

 In this exceptionally positive school, the whole community comes together at social and fundraising events to fulfil the ethos of the school and make sure that every child really does matter.  Pupils and families who do not speak English as their first language receive good support. They do not miss out on sources of information and are fully included in decision-making about school policy.  Staff strive to promote opportunities to bring people together informally to nurture parents’, as well as pupils’, friendships.

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parents

The impact of leadership and management on the involvement of parents is outstanding.

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parents

 You rightly see parents’ ideas as a critical feature in determining how the school moves forward. The high number of returns from an array of surveys, questionnaires and informal feedback from parents are readily used by leaders to review the curriculum provision, parents’ evenings, and priorities for school improvement. The school development plan has a sharp focus on annual targets which continually examine how best to work with parents.  Many parents appreciate hard-copy newsletters and some communication through email. The school acknowledges that it could further exploit managed learning environments to attract quicker parental engagement and promote the work of parent-governors to capture parents’ views more systematically.  Canvassing parental opinion, such as ideas for activity weeks and residential trips, policy development, seeking views about enrichment provision and how best to communicate curriculum plans, leads to

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parents

changes in the annual calendar and informs the annual year-group curriculum meetings to guide parents about curricula for the year ahead.  The high regard for the school from the local community comes from knowledge that the school listens and values its parent community. Parental complaints are dealt with effectively, although these are rare because very good communication and relationships with parents prevent issues escalating.  Your vision to embrace fully family involvement lies at the heart of the community cohesion policy. This is shared by parents who want to sustain the success of the school.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

 considering how to develop a greater range of electronic communication systems and managed learning environments as a source of information for parents, and also to profile the work of parent-governors and the parent-teacher association.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

I hope these observations are useful as you continue to develop the impact of the work of parents and carers in the school.

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Areas for improvement, which we discussed, include:

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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