Newbold CofE Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by ensuring that:
  • pupils have increased opportunities to practise spelling, punctuation and grammar skills by writing at length in subjects across the curriculum
  • teachers have high expectations of pupils and challenge them to present their work to the best of their ability in all subjects
  • teachers give pupils more opportunities to develop problem-solving and reasoning skills in mathematics.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Since her appointment, the headteacher has implemented robust and rigorous systems to monitor and evaluate key aspects of the school. As a result, the quality of teaching and assessment is much improved, and pupils now make much better progress in their learning than under the predecessor school.
• Leaders and governors have ensured that the ethos of ‘Nurture, Cherish, Succeed’ is a golden thread that runs clearly throughout the school. Classrooms and corridors are bright and stimulating places that celebrate pupils’ work and achievements.
• English and mathematics subject leaders, including those responsible for early years and special educational needs, are clear about the strengths and development points in their particular areas of responsibility. They are knowledgeable and enthusiastic, thereby ensuring that these areas continue to develop and thrive.
• Leaders have a robust system in place for the allocation and monitoring of pupil premium and physical education (PE) and sports funding. Action plans are clear and the suggested actions are having a positive impact on pupils’ educational and physical progress.
• Leaders have ensured that pupils are prepared well for life in modern Britain. For example, at the time of the inspection, pupils in Year 3 were developing their understanding of democracy by electing a class president. Pupils have had their understanding of faiths and cultures different from their own enhanced by visiting a range of places of worship in Derby.
• Pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is strong. Anti-bullying messages are clear throughout the school, and school ‘ambassadors’ help to resolve any minor disputes quickly and fairly. The pupil ‘school management team’ is evident through the team’s grey jumpers. They help to support younger children, for example, by serving them lunch. Pupils are given opportunities to leave prayers on the prayer tree or become play leaders at lunchtime. Some pupils are eager members of the ‘spiritual development and worship team’ that helps leaders and visitors prepare for weekly acts of collective worship.
• Leaders have ensured that pupils experience a broad and balanced curriculum. There are opportunities for pupils to develop knowledge and skills in art, computing, design and technology and music. Pupils enjoy a wide range of extra-curricular activities, including football, rounders, multi-skills, choir, dance and drama. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 talked enthusiastically regarding their residential visits to Lea Green and Whitehall respectively.
• Performance management procedures are effective. Teachers, including the headteacher, receive appropriate targets relating to specific areas in the school development plan.
• Leaders and governors are overwhelmingly positive regarding the level of support and challenge received from the Derby Diocesan Academy Trust. Appropriate training has been delivered to staff and governors. School leaders have had their judgements on the quality of teaching and pupil progress validated during frequent visits made by trust members.
• Staff members have confidence in the leadership team and said that they are fully supported and cared for well. Training is well received by staff and keeps them up to date with key educational issues and examples of best classroom practice.
• The vast majority of parents are supportive of the school. They said that children are safe, happy and making good progress. One parent commented, ‘I sent my daughter to this school because I had heard wonderful reviews from other parents. All of these reviews are true.’

Governance of the school

• The skilled, knowledgeable and dedicated governing body has strong systems in place to hold senior leaders rigorously to account for their actions. Governors make frequent visits to the school and undertake monitoring activities to ensure that necessary improvements are being made. Once these activities have taken place, reports are fed back during governing body meetings, ensuring that other governors are made aware of any noted strengths and development areas.
• Governors have an accurate and comprehensive view of the school. They receive high-quality reports from the headteacher on key aspects of the school’s work. They ask relevant and perceptive questions during meetings and now provide effective support and challenge to leaders.
• Governors understand the importance of developing positive relationships with parents and are keen to develop these further. A governor is available for parents during parents’ evenings, and recent governor involvement in traffic management outside the school has helped to improve pupil safety at the beginning and end of the school day.
• Governors effectively track the impact of the additional funding that the school receives. This includes the pupil premium, primary sports funding and funding to support pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Governors have received appropriate training in, for example, safer recruitment and the analysis of pupils’ attainment and progress information. This training helps them to discharge their statutory duties effectively.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• A strong safeguarding culture exists within the school. Rigorous checks are made on staff and volunteers before they are allowed to work alongside pupils. The single central record meets statutory requirements.
• There is a comprehensive system in place for staff to record concerns that they have regarding pupils’ safety and welfare. The designated safeguarding leaders are trained well and ensure that any families or pupils who require support from outside agencies receive this promptly. Records relating to safeguarding are kept in a well-organised fashion.
• Staff and governors have undergone appropriate safeguarding training in anti-terrorism, social media and the ‘Prevent’ duty. Consequently, they are alert to the dangers that pupils face in relation to potential radicalisation and extremism.
• Leaders give safeguarding a high priority. Staff create a secure and safe environment where pupils’ welfare is important. Consequently, parents know that their children are kept safe and pupils overwhelmingly reported that they feel safe and secure in school.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment has improved rapidly since the predecessor school was inspected, and is now good across the school.
• There is a robust assessment and tracking system in place and teachers make regular assessments of pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics. As a result, any pupil who is not making enough progress is identified quickly and given the support they need in order to catch up. Groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those pupils who have special educational needs, are tracked and monitored particularly carefully.
• Pupils work hard in a range of subjects and are keen to learn. This is because teachers plan lessons carefully to interest and challenge pupils in a wide range of subjects. For example, in a Year 2 mathematics lesson, pupils were enthusiastically working together to find fractions of numbers.
• Phonics is taught well. Teachers and teaching assistants deliver lively and interactive sessions that motivate pupils to learn. Adults are quick to correct any misconceptions and have high expectations of what pupils can achieve.
• Pupils across the school enjoy reading and carry out the activity keenly both at school and at home. Younger pupils use phonics skills to decode unknown words and older pupils talk enthusiastically about their favourite authors, including David Baddiel and J.K. Rowling.
• Teachers ensure that the most able pupils are suitably challenged. For example, in a Year 4 English lesson, pupils were asked to use time connectives and conjunctions when writing a letter to Emperor Nero regarding whether Queen Boudicca should be saved.
• Teaching assistants have a positive impact on learning. They work with a variety of pupils across all classes. They use questions effectively to help deepen pupils’ knowledge across the curriculum. Teaching assistants are effective in offering support to pupils and encourage their independence by allowing some tasks to be completed independently.
• Homework activities are set regularly and cover a range of subjects. Pupils typically enjoy these activities and they are seen as valuable experiences, which the vast majority of pupils complete.
• End-of-year reports are detailed. They contain relevant comments regarding pupils’ attendance, progress, achievements and next steps in learning. Comments made by the headteacher are encouraging and personal. Informative termly report cards are issued to parents, giving an overview of pupil progress and attainment in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ written work are inconsistent in subjects other than English. There are not enough opportunities for pupils to practise their spelling, punctuation and grammar across a range of subjects, and teachers do not insist on pupils’ best presentation at all times. As a result, pupils’ learning is not as well developed in all subjects as it could be.
• Teachers do not give pupils frequent enough opportunities to develop their problem-solving and reasoning skills in mathematics. Pupils are not regularly encouraged to explain what they have done, and why. Consequently, pupils are not able to strengthen their knowledge and understanding of mathematics in different situations and contexts. Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils are confident and self-assured. They are enthusiastic about learning and keen to share their work with adults and visitors. Pupils understand how to be successful learners and welcome daily ‘Secure Our Success’ and ‘Step Up’ sessions. These allow pupils extra time with adults in order to address successfully any misconceptions in learning that may have occurred that day. One pupil told an inspector, ‘You learn from mistakes, not successes.’
• Pupils’ social and emotional needs are catered for well. There are ‘worry boxes’ around school for pupils to use and a positive play room where trained staff can support pupils who may be experiencing short- or long-term emotional issues. There are also frequent pet therapy sessions that are having a positive on pupils’ achievement.
• The majority of pupils, staff and parents stated that pupils are safe. Pupils spoke knowledgeably about keeping themselves safe when on bicycles, when crossing roads and when online, and about the potential dangers of social media. Pupils have a good understanding of the different types of bullying and told inspectors that instances of bullying are extremely rare.
• The well-resourced daily breakfast club is enjoyed by many pupils and has a wide range of engaging activities available. This enables pupils to have a safe and healthy start to the day.
• Pupils raise money for a wide range of charities and good causes, the most recent being the ‘Wear it Pink’ cancer charity.
• Pupils look smart in the school uniform and attend school punctually.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Parents, staff and pupils are adamant that behaviour is good in classrooms and outside when pupils are playing. Incidents of low-level disruption are extremely rare. Relationships between adults and pupils are positive, and pupils respond to instructions quickly. Consequently, lessons run smoothly, allowing pupils to learn effectively.
• The headteacher keeps detailed records of any incidents of poor behaviour. These records are analysed regularly to see whether any patterns emerge. However, incidents of poor behaviour are rare and have declined even further over recent months.
• Procedures for monitoring the attendance of pupils are robust. Rigorous checks are made when pupils are absent, and attendance panels are organised with parents, should a pupil’s attendance become a cause for concern. Rewards are also given to those pupils with good attendance, in the form of letters home and prizes.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Evidence seen in pupils’ books, in lessons and information provided by the school indicates that the vast majority of current pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, and those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points in reading and mathematics. Progress is less rapid in writing in some classes because pupils do not have frequent enough opportunities to practise spelling, punctuation and grammar skills in extended pieces of writing in subjects other than English.
• Inspection evidence and current assessment information provided by the school indicate that large proportions of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, are currently working to age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics.
• In 2016, pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, made significantly better progress than other pupils nationally in reading, writing and mathematics, by the end of key stage 2. In 2016, the proportions of pupils who achieved at the expected level in writing and mathematics were larger than the national average. The proportion of pupils who achieved the expected standard in reading was just below the national average. Pupils are prepared well for the next stage of their education.
• Over recent years, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics check has been rising and is now just below the national average.
• Pupils’ attainment in the 2016 key stage 1 tests was below national averages. However, their progress from low starting points was good.
• The most able pupils, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, make good progress and more pupils are now beginning to attain above average standards as the quality of teaching continues to improve.
• Leaders and governors understand the importance of ensuring that pupils’ work is moderated frequently with other schools. This helps to ensure that the assessments that teachers are making are accurate and the next steps in pupils’ learning can therefore be planned carefully.

Early years provision Good

• Most children enter the Reception Class with knowledge, skills and understanding below those that are typical for their age. There are good links with local nurseries that ensure that staff have up-to-date knowledge about each child. Consequently, children settle into routines quickly and make good progress.
• The proportion of pupils achieving a good level of development has risen over the last two years and in 2016 was just below the national average. This shows good rates of progress from their low starting points. Current information provided by the early years leader indicates that this trend is set to continue in 2017.
• Children eligible for pupil premium funding achieved a good level of development that was higher than other that of pupils nationally in 2016. The funding is used to provide children with support in phonics and speech and language development. The use of the pupil premium funding in the early years is therefore effective.
• The quality of teaching provided by adults is consistently good and prepares children well for Year 1. Transition into Year 1 is good. Children make frequent visits to the next class to help them to prepare for the start of the new school year.
• The early years environment is exciting, bright, stimulating and appropriate both inside and out. It contains all relevant areas of learning and allows children the opportunity to work closely with adults and have the freedom to explore activities in groups, in pairs or on their own.
• Phonics is taught well. The sessions are well planned and contain purposeful resources that engage and enthuse the children. Misconceptions are addressed quickly. For example, when writing names on the playground using water, children were shown how to write a capital ‘A’. The most able children were successfully applying their phonics knowledge in the same session by writing simple sentences.
• Adults ensure that children’s progress is monitored accurately and frequently. Learning journeys contain a wide range of assessments that enable staff to plan carefully for the next steps in learning. Moderation opportunities with other settings help to confirm that the assessment judgements made by adults are accurate.
• Children’s behaviour is good. This is because the learning opportunities and activities are interesting and appropriate. Children concentrate well on different activities and adults skilfully intervene in order to deepen children’s knowledge and understanding.
• Safeguarding is effective. Staff have had appropriate training and are aware of the procedures that are in place to report any safeguarding concerns that they might have about a child.
• Parental engagement is a strength. There are frequent opportunities to share children’s achievements with parents, and curriculum information is available through the school’s website. A successful parental partnership project is under way. Parents are equally positive about the early years as they are the rest of the school.
• The early years leader has correctly identified that teaching assistants require further training in order to aid the development of children’s language and vocabulary.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 140843 Derbyshire 10031131 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Academy sponsor-led 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 189 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Pam Lister Kerry Marsh 01246232370 www.newboldchurchschool.co.uk/ info@newbold-pri.derbyshire.sch.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• The school meets the requirements on the publication of specified information on its website and complies with DfE guidance on what academies should publish.
• The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and those pupils who speak English as an additional language, are much lower than average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is slightly above average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported by the pupil premium is above average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.
• This is the school’s first inspection since converting to an academy in July 2014, as part of the Derby Diocesan Academy Trust.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed teaching and learning in all classes. Some lessons were observed jointly with senior leaders. In addition, a number of shorter visits to see particular aspects of the school’s work, such as the teaching of phonics, were carried out.
• A range of other school activities, including playtimes and lunchtimes were observed.
• Inspectors scrutinised the current work of pupils in a wide range of subjects, from all classes, and heard some pupils read.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, members of the senior leadership team, two newly qualified teachers, five governors including the chair, two representatives from the academy trust and a group of pupils. Inspectors took into account 55 responses to the online parent survey and nine responses to the staff questionnaire. There were no responses to the pupil questionnaire.
• Inspectors analysed a wide range of documents, including plans for school improvement, reports showing the school’s view of its own performance, attendance records and minutes from governing body meetings. The school’s website was evaluated.
• Inspectors analysed information on the performance of the school in comparison with other schools nationally and the school’s own records of pupils’ progress.

Inspection team

Peter Stonier, lead inspector Joanna Hall

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector