Peareswood Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment so that pupils make consistently good progress by:
  • ensuring that teachers possess the necessary skills and knowledge to use resources and teaching materials effectively, particularly in mathematics
  • providing work for the most able pupils which is sufficiently challenging to enable
  • them to achieve as well as they should improving the skills of those teachers who need further support to promptly identify when pupils need more help or harder work during lessons.
• Ensure that leaders use information effectively to eradicate remaining weaknesses in teaching and sustain rapid improvements in outcomes for pupils.
• An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership may be improved.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management

Requires improvement

• School leaders and governors have not sustained the good quality of education since the last inspection. The quality of teaching has become inconsistent over time. It is not improving rapidly enough to ensure that pupils make good progress across the whole range of subjects in the current school year.
• The headteacher has strengthened senior and middle leadership since her appointment in September 2015. She has set out precise plans for improvement. Leaders and governors now possess better information about the short-term progress of pupils since a more effective tracking system was introduced at the beginning of the school year. As a result, leaders are now making more rapid improvements to the school. For example, the leader for mathematics introduced more effective learning materials and resources towards the end of the term which preceded this inspection. However, some of these improvement strategies are too recent to have had the necessary impact on improving pupils’ outcomes.
• Arrangements for managing the performance of teachers are thorough and effective. Senior and middle leaders make systematic and regular checks on the quality of teaching. These checks have become more effective since information about pupils’ progress has sharpened. However, leaders and governors recognise that the large number of staff changes which have occurred since the last inspection have made it more difficult to secure and build on improvements to teaching over time. Leaders have acted to identify and attempt to improve the weakest teaching. However, this has been only partially successful.
• The funding for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is managed well. A new leader was appointed for this aspect of the school in September 2016. She has wasted no time in ensuring that identification of pupils is accurate and that their progress is rigorously tracked. She also makes sure that additional support for these pupils is evaluated regularly and thoroughly. As a result, provision for pupils who have special educational needs and disabilities is good.
• School leaders and governors monitor and evaluate the impact of additional funding for disadvantaged pupils thoroughly and effectively. The decision to provide a wide range of additional support to help these pupils catch up has had some success in diminishing differences. However, this strategy has been necessary in part because leaders and governors have realised that some teachers were having insufficient impact on improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils.
• Teachers who are new to the profession say that they feel well supported by leaders in the early stages of their career. They quickly pick up on and follow agreed policies on teaching.
• The interesting and broadly based curriculum promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. Leaders have ensured that there are rich opportunities for pupils to broaden their experiences, gain confidence and understand their responsibilities. This prepares pupils well for their future lives and promotes British values effectively. For example, pupils benefit from several opportunities to attend an outdoor residential visit in a contrasting locality to their own.
• The sport premium is used to ensure that pupils become more active and involved in a wider range of sports. The leader responsible for monitoring the impact of this funding ensures that governors receive accurate information and that the outcomes of pupils are improving.

Governance of the school

• Governors have not held senior leaders to account effectively for ensuring that the good quality of teaching and learning has been sustained. They have waited too long to insist that leaders introduce necessary improvements to the quality of leadership and systems for monitoring and checking the progress of pupils.
• Governors have recently been able to hold school leaders more closely to account as a result of receiving sharper and more extensive information about the progress of different groups of pupils. They monitor the expenditure of additional funding closely and ask challenging questions to ensure that leaders are held to account for its impact on pupils’ outcomes.
• Members of the board of the multi-academy trust of which the school is a part understand the strengths and weaknesses of the school well. Recent decisions about how to improve the quality of teaching are beginning to improve outcomes for pupils.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders and governors ensure that the checks on the suitability of staff are robust and meet requirements.
• Leaders react promptly and rigorously at the first sign of any concerns about the well-being of pupils. The procedures for safeguarding are well understood by members of staff.
• Parents and pupils nearly all express confidence in the work of the school to keep children safe and well cared for.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment has been too variable and inconsistent through a period of significant staff change since the last inspection.
• Teaching remains of inconsistent quality, particularly in mathematics, despite recent improvements brought about by new leaders. As a result, pupils in the current school year are making inconsistent progress in some subjects.
• The most able pupils, and those who need to catch up, do not receive effective support, challenge and guidance from some teachers. This is particularly evident in some key stage 2 classes.
• Teachers have introduced the new scheme of work and materials for mathematics enthusiastically. Some teachers are using this well to help pupils deepen their understanding and solve problems more confidently. However, many teachers lack the necessary subject knowledge and skills to make the most of the new resources, particularly to challenge the most able pupils. In some classes, teachers do not adapt lessons quickly or effectively enough when pupils need more support or show that they are finding work too easy.
• Teachers provide interesting and varied starting points to help pupils enjoy writing. Pupils benefit from clear guidance which they can understand and are able to apply to improving their writing. As a result, the progress of current pupils is good across the whole school.
• Teachers place strong emphasis on providing high-quality reading materials and displaying books attractively. The teaching of phonics is skilful and ensures that pupils get off to a good start in learning to read. However, some teachers do not use assessment effectively enough to plan reading lessons which meet the needs of the whole range of abilities in their classes. For example, the progress of the most able pupils is held up in some classes when teachers ask them to answer the same questions about books as pupils of much lower ability.
• Pupils and parents indicated to inspectors that the quality of homework and teachers’ expectations for its completion remain inconsistent. Leaders have very recently introduced steps, such as the new mathematics game lending library, which are improving opportunities for pupils to learn at home.
• Teachers and additional support staff use good skills to help pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities gain confidence and understand the next steps in their learning. They ensure that pupils have the time and guidance to succeed in their work. They check pupils’ understanding with skilful questioning before they allow pupils to move on.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils develop a strong sense of belonging and a pride in their environment as a result of high expectations and consistent application of agreed values. Pupils and parents appreciate the recognition given for positive contributions to the school community. Pupils with responsibilities understand their roles and take them seriously.
• Leaders act effectively to ensure that pupils from all backgrounds, including disadvantaged pupils, are able to participate fully in the wide range of opportunities for their personal development.
• Pupils benefit from a range of imaginative opportunities to gain self-confidence and broaden their experiences. For example, a climbing wall is provided for pupils on the school site. Pupils take part in musical and other cultural events in the local community.
• Pupils feel safe and understand how to get help if they need it. They are taught to recognise different forms of bullying and how to respond if they feel affected by discriminatory behaviour. The curriculum ensures that pupils understand the risks posed when using the internet and social media.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ conduct is courteous and respectful both in and out of lessons. Lessons are rarely interrupted by any disruptive behaviour. Teachers do need to work hard to provide incentives so that some pupils choose to read or extend their learning beyond the school day, however.
• A small minority of pupils require skilful support and guidance to manage their own behaviour. Leaders ensure that outcomes for these pupils rapidly improve and that minimal time is lost from learning.
• Pupils’ attendance has improved rapidly in the current year as a result of systematic and rigorous tracking and intervention. Attendance is now above the national average. The attendance of disadvantaged pupils has risen more rapidly still so that differences between their attendance and that of other pupils have diminished. Rates of persistent absence have significantly reduced in the current school year and are now below the national average.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• The progress of pupils from different starting points is too variable and requires improvement. This is particularly the case in mathematics and for the most able readers at key stage 2. Work seen in books shows that current pupils’ rates of progress vary between classes. This inconsistent picture is a result of remaining weaknesses in the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.
• Outcomes for disadvantaged pupils are improving, though differences remain between rates of progress and levels of attainment for those entitled to pupil premium and other pupils nationally. The 2016 provisional information indicates that the most able disadvantaged pupils made much weaker progress through key stage 2 than other pupils nationally in reading. In contrast, the same pupils made good progress in writing. Leaders are ensuring that effective additional support is improving the progress of disadvantaged pupils in the current year so that it is more consistent across all subjects.
• Leaders have ensured that the good teaching of phonics results in good outcomes for pupils in the Year 1 phonics check. The proportion attaining the expected standard has increased over the past three years and is above the national average. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils who achieve the expected standard is also above the national average for all pupils. Pupils who read to inspectors were able to use effective phonics skills to decode unfamiliar words, though some struggled when they were provided with less suitable texts. The most able readers develop strong preferences for the types of books they enjoy reading. Their progress during reading lessons slows, however, when they are asked to do work which is insufficiently challenging.
• The proportion of pupils reaching the expected level in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 1 was above the national average in 2016. Disadvantaged pupils attained the expected levels in greater proportions compared with other pupils nationally.
• The progress of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities follows similar trends to that for other pupils currently in the school. For example, they typically make less progress in mathematics than in reading or writing. However, their progress is better in classes where teaching is stronger.

Early years provision Good

• The early years leader is effective in ensuring that consistently good teaching is maintained and strong communications with parents have been established. Weaknesses in teaching are identified and acted on promptly and effectively. As a result, the proportion of children achieving a good level of development is consistently above the national average. This represents good progress for children, many of whom arrive with low starting points.
• The progress of disadvantaged children, including the most able, is similar to that of others. The proportion of children exceeding a good level of development is also rising. Children are well prepared for the next stage of their education in Year 1.
• Members of staff ensure that children make the most of the wide range of opportunities for them to develop early reading and writing skills. They teach phonics accurately, providing games and activities which children enjoy and remember. They place a strong emphasis on children’s physical development. Similar opportunities are available for children to develop their mathematical skills. However, during the inspection it was noticed the children were more reluctant to choose to use these.
• Children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are accurately and promptly identified. Close partnerships with other professionals, such as the speech and language therapist, ensure that the school provides the right support for these children at an early stage.
• Children behave with the same qualities of respect and cooperation evident across the rest of the school. They understand the guidance adults give to help them develop socially.
• Supervision and safety are uppermost in the minds of members of staff both inside and outside. Risks related to different activities are thoroughly assessed. The arrangements for safeguarding in the early years are effective.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 137417 Bexley 10023779 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Academy 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 390 Appropriate authority Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Academy trust Neil Riddington Kerry Smith 01322 332 379 www.woodlandacademytrust.co.uk office@pwp.bexley.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 11−12 December 2012

Information about this school

• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• Peareswood Primary School is part of the Woodland Academy Trust, which is a multi-academy trust including three other schools.
• The school is larger than the average primary school.
• The school meets the government’s floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of key stage 2.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils, entitled to the pupil premium, is about double the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities or an education, health and care (EHC) plan is much higher than average.
• The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is a little higher than average.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors made observations in short and longer visits to classrooms across the whole school. Many of these observations were completed jointly with senior leaders. Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during playtime and the lunch break.
• Meetings were held with governors, senior and middle leaders. Inspectors scrutinised a range of documents including the school’s improvement plan, information about pupils’ achievements and records of the checks carried out by leaders on the quality of teaching. Inspectors looked at behaviour records, attendance information and documents related to safeguarding.
• Inspectors met with parents informally at the beginning of the school day and considered 15 responses to the online Parent View questionnaire.
• A wide range of pupils’ work was scrutinised with school leaders. Inspectors met with a group of pupils and heard some of them read.

Inspection team

Andrew Wright, lead inspector Milan Stevanovic Jo Jones Jonathan Newby

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector