Barnabas Oley CofE Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Increase the proportions of pupils who attain greater depth in writing and the higher standard in mathematics by the end of key stage 2 so that they match pupils’ attainment in reading.
• Ensure that published information on the use of pupil premium funding fully demonstrates its impact upon the achievement of the pupils that it supports.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

• Leaders and governors have established a culture of the highest aspirations and expectations for all. Both pupils and teachers rise to the challenge and strive to fulfil the school’s motto of ‘be the best that you can be’ in all that they do. However, this is not at the expense of the happiness and well-being of either pupils or teachers.
• The newly appointed headteacher has quickly gained the support of staff and parents. Working closely with the deputy headteacher and governors, she has ensured that self-evaluation is accurate and precisely focused. Leaders’ improvement plans astutely identify the right priorities and are underpinned by well-considered actions. These plans ensure that the school provides a high-quality education for its pupils.
• Leaders and governors have addressed the areas for improvement identified at the previous full inspection. As a result, the quality of teaching has improved significantly and it enables all pupils to achieve extremely well, with outcomes in writing showing notable improvement over time.
• Subject leaders are highly effective and know their areas of responsibility particularly well. They contribute to checks on the quality of teaching, learning and assessment and make sure that teaching meets the needs of pupils. They use their excellent subject knowledge to ensure that the curriculum plans for each subject strongly support pupils in developing their knowledge, skills and understanding. Subject leaders play an ever-increasing role in contributing to whole-school improvement. They share and understand senior leaders’ vision for the school.
• Leaders have made good use of the opportunities provided through being part of the CB23 network of schools. Staff are appreciative of the opportunities for professional development and to share ideas that contribute to improving the quality of provision. Examples of this are evident in the development of subject leaders’ knowledge through their network meetings and their checks on the accuracy of teachers’ assessments. In addition, links with secondary schools in the network support high-quality foreign languages teaching and provide enrichment activities for the most able pupils.
• The curriculum provides a wide range of experiences that sustain and build successfully on pupils’ positive attitudes to learning. Themes are chosen that grasp pupils’ interest, so that they work enthusiastically across all subjects. They make strong gains in their knowledge, skills and understanding as a result. When pupils leave at the end of Year 6, they are very well prepared for secondary school.
• Leaders ensure that the curriculum supports pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development extremely well. A wide range of extra-curricular activities and trips add to pupils’ experience in the classroom. As a result, pupils have many opportunities to pursue their interests in sport, drama, music, and art and design. Pupils learn about the cultures, beliefs and views of others in religious education (RE) and understand why they should do so. For example, Year 6 pupils can discuss and reflect on moral and philosophical issues through their participation in high-quality project work.
• Leaders and governors have ensured that provision for pupils with SEND is highly effective. Adults understand individual pupils’ needs very well and ensure that they get the help that they need to develop independence in their learning and make strong progress. Consequently, pupils with SEND achieve well.
• The primary sport premium is used well to provide pupils with a wide variety of opportunities to be physically active. For example, pupils are appreciative of the outdoor gym equipment that has been purchased using this funding and were seen using this frequently during the inspection. Funding has also supported training and development for teachers. This means that they are confident in teaching pupils a range of skills, including gymnastics. Pupils also have opportunities to participate in competitive sports, for example in football and netball.
• Leaders use the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils to ensure that they have access to all activities offered and have any help that they need. This includes support from the pupil premium champion, who provides help in the classroom and leads small-group and individual sessions. Although this funding supports disadvantaged pupils to achieve and attend well, the information published by leaders on the school’s website does not clearly show this to parents and carers.
• Leaders’ actions to improve outcomes since the previous full inspection have been successful, and the standards attained by pupils are high. However, leaders are not complacent and want to raise achievement even further. They recognise that to do so more pupils will have to attain greater depth in writing and the higher standard in mathematics by the end of key stage 2, so that pupils’ attainment at this standard in these subjects matches that in reading.

Governance of the school

• Governors are highly knowledgeable about the school. They ensure that any new governors have skills that will complement those of existing governors. All governors complete regular, relevant training to make sure that they are effective in their roles. As a result, governors provide a balance of support and challenge to school leaders.
• Governors check regularly on the work of leaders, and their progress towards achieving improvement priorities, through a series of purposeful visits, meetings of the full governing body and the work of the governing body’s committees. These arrangements allow them to play an active role in self-evaluation and set new priorities to enhance further the quality of pupils’ education and experiences.
• Governors have made sure that changes in leadership and leaders’ responsibilities have not resulted in a loss of focus on their ambition and vision for pupils in the school. They wisely used support from the local authority to assist with the appointment of the new headteacher. The headteacher is benefiting from involvement in the local authority’s induction programme for those who are new to headship.
• Governors ensure that additional funding is used very effectively to support pupils’ achievement and enjoyment of school. However, they have not ensured that the information published on the school website clearly demonstrates the impact of the pupil premium grant on pupils’ outcomes, attendance and behaviour.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders ensure that all the checks required to make sure that adults employed are suitable to work with children take place. The record of these checks is accurately maintained. Governors carry out checks regularly to ensure that this is the case.
• Policies relating to child protection and safeguarding are up to date and reflect the latest published guidance. Staff receive regular training and updates to ensure that they are aware of the risks and signs of harm and are confident to refer any concerns swiftly. This includes training in the risks of extremism and radicalisation.
• The designated safeguarding leaders know when to refer concerns to external agencies so that pupils and their families can receive any help that they need.
• Pupils learn how to keep safe from a variety of risks, including those posed by working online, through personal, social, health and emotional (PSHE) education, information and communication technology lessons, and the assembly programme. There are also specific activities, such as anti-bullying week, ‘Bikeability’ and ‘Scootsmart’. As a result, pupils have a strong awareness of how to stay safe in a variety of situations. They speak confidently about how to stay safe when using the internet and modern technology.
• Pupils, staff and parents who responded to Ofsted’s online surveys unanimously agreed that pupils are kept safe from harm.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

• Highly effective teaching motivates pupils to achieve very well. As a result, pupils make substantial and sustained progress across a broad range of subjects, including English and mathematics.
• Teachers have excellent subject knowledge, which they use to plan learning that enthuses and interests pupils. As a result, pupils have very positive attitudes to learning and persevere when learning is challenging.
• Teachers use their ongoing assessment of learning to ensure that activities are very well matched to pupils’ abilities and understanding. Consequently, pupils feel that work is neither too easy nor too hard. As a result, lessons flow smoothly and time is used effectively to support pupils’ learning.
• The teaching of writing is highly effective. There is a clear focus on supporting pupils to develop their ability to write for a variety of audiences and purposes. Pupils’ writing is of equally high quality in subjects other than English.
• Teachers promote reading extremely well throughout the school. Pupils enjoy reading and do so regularly, both in school and at home. Teachers support pupils very well in developing the skills that they need to read and understand texts. Consequently, pupils make very strong progress and attain high standards in reading, which also enable them to access the wider curriculum and achieve very well.
• Mathematics teaching is very strong. Teachers ensure that pupils have many opportunities to learn and practise different calculation methods in a variety of contexts. Pupils also gain a very good understanding of shape, space and measure. Teachers support pupils very well in developing their ability to reason and solve problems. As a result, pupils make very strong progress in mathematics. They can confidently apply their understanding and skills in other subjects, such as science and geography, to analyse and present data.
• Teachers have equally high aspirations and expectations of all pupils, including those with SEND or who are disadvantaged. There are no notable differences in progress between any groups of pupils currently in the school. Teachers know individual pupils’ barriers to learning and make sure that they provide resources and help to overcome them. Teaching assistants and other adults who support pupils are very effective in helping them to become confident, independent learners.
• Teachers support pupils’ personal development very well through high expectations and well-established routines. Pupils are equally comfortable working by themselves or with others. They can discuss one another’s work sensibly and sensitively and identify areas that they can improve. The school’s homework policy allows pupils to choose from a variety of tasks, so that they can pursue their own interests.
• Highly effective teaching in subjects other than English and mathematics enables pupils to make strong gains in their knowledge, skills and understanding. Physical education teaching develops a range of skills and opportunities for pupils to experience a variety of sports. Pupils learn Spanish and enthusiastically practise what they have learned in speaking, listening and writing activities. Interesting themes provide the context for pupils to develop their understanding and skills in history, geography and art.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• Pupils’ well-being and welfare are given as high a priority as their academic achievement. The school has a particularly caring and nurturing ethos, which helps pupils to grow in confidence and flourish. The comment of one parent that, for their child, ‘the balance between providing a caring and nurturing environment, whilst encouraging her to work hard and strive for academic success has been struck exceptionally well’ reflected many other parents’ comments.
• Pupils have many opportunities to take on responsibilities, such as house captains, junior travel ambassadors, membership of the student council, peer mediators and library monitors. They relish these opportunities and speak proudly about them. Pupils also pride themselves on supporting one another. There are genuinely positive, supportive relationships between pupils across the school.
• Links with other schools in Britain and abroad, trips, visits from outside speakers, the PSHE curriculum and RE promote strongly pupils’ understanding of tolerance, respect for the rule of law, democracy and individual liberty. Pupils are particularly tolerant of the different beliefs, views and opinions of others and know why this is an important part of being prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Pupils report that instances of bullying are extremely rare and those that do occur are resolved. This was confirmed by the school’s records of bullying and racist or derogatory language. Pupils are confident that there are systems in place that deal quickly with any concerns that they have.
• Pupils who are new to the school are made welcome and, as a result, quickly become part of the harmonious school community. Pupils become confident, eager learners who want to achieve the best that they possibly can. They leave Barnabas Oley feeling very well prepared for secondary school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.
• Pupils are polite, caring and considerate of one another, adults and visitors. Their behaviour, both in lessons and around the school, is exemplary. Parents and staff report that pupils behave very well.
• Incidents of poor behaviour are extremely rare because pupils know, and respond well to, the high expectations that teachers and other adults have of them. Pupils’ learning is very rarely disturbed by the behaviour of others. Only very occasionally do teachers need to refocus pupils’ attention on learning. This is because learning activities are interesting, provide the right level of challenge and make the most of pupils’ positive attitudes to learning.
• Pupils enjoy school and rarely miss a day. No groups of pupils are disadvantaged by high rates of absence. Very few pupils are frequently absent from school. Teachers monitor pupils’ attendance closely and are alert to any changes in attendance or behaviour.

Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

• Pupils’ attainment in teachers’ assessments and national tests at the end of key stage 1 and key stage 2 is consistently above that of pupils nationally.
• Key stage 2 pupils’ attainment in writing and mathematics, at the expected standard, and at greater depth in writing and the higher standard in mathematics, has increased in the last two years, as has pupils’ progress in these subjects. However, more pupils reach the higher standard in reading than reach greater depth in writing or the higher standard in mathematics.
• Pupils currently in the school make strong and substantial progress in a range of subjects, including English and mathematics. This is true for all pupil groups, including the most able. This is because learning is well matched to pupils’ individual abilities and provides the right level of challenge.
• Pupils with SEND typically make equally as strong progress as their classmates who have similar starting points. This is because teachers and other adults know individuals well and provide the help that they need to overcome their particular barriers to learning. They are particularly effective at helping pupils to develop the confidence and independence they need to persevere and make progress.
• Teachers have the same high expectations of the small number of disadvantaged pupils in the school as they do for all other pupils. They ensure that they have equal access to learning opportunities such as trips and that they receive any help that they need to overcome barriers to learning. As a result, disadvantaged pupils make progress similar to that of others with similar starting points. In end-of-key-stage tests and assessments, disadvantaged pupils’ achievement is typically in line with that of other pupils nationally.

Early years provision Outstanding

• School leaders’ high aspirations and expectations apply as strongly to the early years as they do to the rest of the school. They are shared by all those who work in Reception and are evident in the quality of education that is provided for children.
• The early years leader is an experienced practitioner who has an accurate view of the strengths of the provision and what can be improved further. She works closely with colleagues to ensure that all those who work with children know them well.
• Safeguarding in the early years is effective. All statutory requirements are met.
• Children join the school with skills that are broadly typical of those expected for their age. As a result of highly effective teaching, learning and assessment in the combined Reception and Year 1 class, they make outstanding progress. The proportion of children who attain a good level of development is typically above the national average. Children develop the skills and attributes that support their learning when they move from Reception into Year 1.
• Children experience a range of purposeful learning activities that support all aspects of their development equally well. The whole-school focus on developing pupils’ writing is evident in the ample, high-quality opportunities provided for children to develop and practise their early writing skills. Children’s reading is also encouraged and ably supported through dedicated phonics sessions and the reading diaries that are used in school and at home.
• Children’s understanding of number and shape is supported through focused sessions. Adults make the most of opportunities to develop this through, for example, artistic and creative activities that build upon children’s own interests.
• Adults model communication and expectations of behaviour very well, as do the Year 1 pupils. As a result, children quickly settle and form strong relationships with one another and with adults, which support their learning and personal development. Children very quickly behave in the same, exemplary, manner as older pupils.
• The outdoor area has recently been improved and is used very well to support children’s learning. For example, children made use of leaves and other material in the school grounds to create artwork linked to their work on shape and autumn. They imaginatively created pictures of butterflies, flowers and animals using what they had found. Others used the number square in the outdoor area to carry out simple addition and subtraction by moving around the square.
• Parents welcome very effective arrangements for transition that ensure that children settle quickly and make an excellent start when they join Reception. There are strong links with pre-school providers and children receive visits at their pre-school and at home from school staff prior to joining the school.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 110814 Cambridgeshire 10054367 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 Voluntary controlled 5 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 134 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address John Petre Michelle Downes 01767 677294 www.barnabasoley.cambs.sch.uk head@barnabasoley.cambs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 20 March 2018

Information about this school

• Barnabas Oley Church of England Primary School is a smaller-than-average-sized primary school in the Diocese of Ely.
• Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is higher than the national average. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is much lower than that found in most primary schools.
• There are five classes in the school, all of which have mixed year groups, including a mixed Reception/Year 1 class.
• The current headteacher took on the role in September 2018, having previously been a member of the senior leadership team.
• The school is part of the CB23 network, which is a collaborative partnership of 15 schools in the local area. The network provides a range of professional development opportunities for staff and a range of activities for pupils of member schools.
• The local authority has provided light-touch support to this school. It has carried out an audit of provision for pupils with SEND and a safeguarding audit and supported the governing body with the recruitment and appointment of the current headteacher.
• The most recent full inspection of the school was in November 2013. A short inspection of the school took place in March 2018. This inspection judged that the school remained good and that there was evidence of significant improvement.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector made visits to classes to observe learning in all year groups. Most of these visits were made with the headteacher. The inspector also scrutinised pupils’ work, listened to a group of pupils read and reviewed the school’s assessment information. The inspector also observed an assembly.
• A range of school documentation and policies, including behaviour and attendance information, minutes of governing body meetings and documentation relating to the safeguarding of pupils, were reviewed.
• The inspector spoke to pupils in lessons, met with a group of pupils from each year group and spoke to pupils when observing them at informal times, such as breaktime and lunchtime, to gather their views on the school.
• Meetings were held with senior leaders, subject leaders, members of the governing body and the school improvement partner. Telephone conversations were held with the education lead from the Diocese of Ely and a representative of the local authority. The 20 responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire were considered.
• The inspector considered the 52 responses to Ofsted’s online parent survey, Parent View, and the 50 free-text comments submitted by parents. The inspector also spoke to parents before and after school.

Inspection team

Paul Wilson, lead inspector

Her Majesty’s Inspector