Greatham CofE Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Enhance the quality of teaching to further improve pupils’ progress by:
  • implementing new approaches to further accelerate pupils’ progress in writing
  • providing further opportunities for pupils to deepen their knowledge and apply their understanding and skills in the wider curriculum, including in history and geography.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

• Senior leaders have built a strong and aspirational culture where children develop extremely positive attitudes to learning and a consistent desire to achieve the highest possible standards.
• Since their arrival, senior leaders have established a culture of consistent improvement. They are quick to identify areas for improvement and highly effective in implementing strategies that have led to better teaching and improving outcomes.
• Senior leaders have established reliable tracking systems to monitor pupils’ progress. The deputy headteacher was closely involved in the creation of a common system across the local authority. They use this to monitor pupils’ progress closely and review any areas of underachievement thoroughly with all staff. As a result of this tracking, teachers are able to respond promptly in order to modify teaching or plan interventions to support pupils to make better progress.
• Leaders and teachers have responded highly effectively to the heightened demands and more rigorous assessment of the new national curriculum. In 2017, outcomes at key stage 2 were outstanding. Every pupil achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics while the proportions achieving greater depth were well above those seen nationally.
• Leaders and teachers use the school’s Christian values to engender a culture of respect and kindness that is evident across all year groups. Behaviour in lessons is consistently positive and pupils show courtesy and consideration towards one another and adults.
• Leaders maintain a continual focus on the progress of disadvantaged pupils. Governors work with senior leaders to evaluate the impact of additional funding on teaching, interventions and pupils’ progress. As a result of their actions, disadvantaged pupils have frequently made outstanding progress, often exceeding that of other children nationally.
• Leaders continually check the impact of improvement strategies. The school improvement plan is checked throughout the year to evaluate the progress that is being made towards improvement targets. Work in pupils’ books is reviewed every two weeks to ensure that the high standards leaders expect are being maintained.
• Teachers value their professional development and opportunities to work with their colleagues and external partners to review standards and improve teaching. Teachers and teaching assistants are actively encouraged to develop their expertise and share good practice. This has contributed to a picture of continual improvement since the previous inspection.
• Performance management arrangements are highly effective. The headteacher reviews all aspects of teachers’ performance regularly against their targets, their teaching and the progress that pupils make. Governors review performance management recommendations closely and work with school improvement partners to objectively evaluate performance, including that of the headteacher.
• The leadership of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is highly effective. Leaders have developed their own ‘pupil portraits’ that show a close understanding of pupils’ needs. These are shared with all staff and used effectively to inform teaching and interventions. Leaders maintain strong links with external specialist to provide further diagnosis of need and support and ensure that funding is effectively used. As a result of these actions, pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make extremely good progress.
• Leaders provide a curriculum that is broad and balanced and supports pupils’ academic, social and personal development. The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is strong. Pupils actively participate and reflect upon acts of worships and explore a variety of faiths. A range of extra-curricular experiences, including a wide variety of after-school clubs, trips and residential opportunities, enhance pupils’ experiences and self-confidence. Pupils demonstrate a commitment to their local community, visiting local care homes in cross-generational work at Christmas and through their charity work.
• Funding from the government to promote sport and increase physical activity is being used highly successfully. The new house system has brought a renewed energy to sporting competition. Pupils participate in a wide range of sports and competitions, including gymnastics, netball, tag rugby, tennis, cricket, football and zumba.
• Leaders are outward-looking and invite challenge. They have recently commissioned a new school improvement partner to bring renewed scrutiny while governors consult other governing bodies to strengthen their practice. This reflects their commitment to continually improve and avoid of any form of complacency.

Governance of the school

• Governance is effective. The governing body audits the skills of its members to ensure that it has an effective combination of specialist insight and close community awareness. Governors diligently embrace training opportunities to strengthen their awareness of school performance information. Governors work with the school improvement partner to provide additional objective checks. As a result, they provide effective support and challenge.
• The chair of the governing body examines the impact of pupil premium spending and its impact upon progress. Governors closely monitor wider aspects of funding to ensure that this is used effectively to improve provision, outcomes and the quality of the learning environment for pupils.
• Governor committees provide a regular focus on pupils’ progress and curriculum provision. Governors visit the school regularly and complete reports on their areas of focus. In addition to challenge, they also support the school through regular attendance at key events, including acts of worship, performance and school fairs.
• Governors are proud of the school and passionate in their commitment to pupils and the wider community. They actively promote the school ethos.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. All staff take their responsibilities for pupils’ welfare extremely seriously and standards of care are high. Safeguarding training for all staff and governors is extensive and up to date.
• Leaders carry out extremely rigorous checks to ensure the suitability of adults working on site and have thorough training in safer recruitment. Concerns over pupils’ welfare are pursued swiftly and documented thoroughly.
• As a result of a curriculum matched to their wider needs, pupils talk confidently about how to stay safe online and how to react and report in situations where their welfare may be threatened.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Leaders have developed consistently high standards of teaching and learning. Teachers provide stimulating activities that encourage high levels of engagement. They use questioning to check understanding and probe deeper exploration. They have developed excellent learning behaviours in pupils, who are curious, attentive and keen to respond.
• Learning is effectively managed as pupils are quick to settle and eager to learn as a result of excellent relationships and clear classroom routines. Teachers and teaching assistants manage time effectively and generally move pupils on to new tasks when they are ready for further challenge.
• Teachers and teaching assistants work extremely well with one another to plan teaching and support. They assiduously circulate the classroom to maintain pace and purpose in their mixed-year group classes. Teaching assistants know pupils well and intervene effectively to provide support.
• Teachers use their strong subject expertise to support pupils in achieving strong rates of progress. In English, pupils develop excellent understanding of English grammar, punctuation and spelling. Recent strategies to deepen pupils’ reading skills, including the provision of a stimulating new range of books, have proven extremely successful, with the majority of pupils achieving outstanding outcomes across key stages. Pupils demonstrate a perceptive understanding of language and structure, as was apparent in their analysis of persuasive features in an advertising text.
• Teachers are developing new approaches to accelerate pupils’ progress in writing. While standards are good, progress in writing is not as strong as in reading and mathematics. Pupils do not consistently apply their strong knowledge of English grammar, punctuation and spelling into their extended writing.
• Pupils described much learning as fun and exciting. They value opportunities to physically explore mathematical ideas through mime and practical tasks in context. This creative work is supported by opportunities to explore deeper concepts and regular opportunities to practise problem-solving skills, such as word number problems. High-quality teaching has contributed to pupils achieving outstanding outcomes in mathematics.
• Teachers and teaching assistants develop pupils’ reading skills effectively. There is a clear focus on phonics, which is contributing to outstanding outcomes. In 2016, every child achieved the expected standard in the phonics screening check and in 2017, 91% achieved this standard. In lessons, pupils read with clarity and in discussion showed an enthusiasm for reading.
• Teachers set homework in line with the school’s policy. Pupils find this valuable and there is much evidence that it supports pupils in making strong progress and in deepening their understanding.
• Teachers assess pupils’ work in line with the school’s policy and there is much evidence that this supports extremely good progress in the majority of areas. Class folders show that teachers regularly capture and record key learning experiences. Teachers and teaching assistants know their pupils extremely well and are able to modify teaching effectively to meet their needs.
• Teachers effectively address the requirements of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities through strong classroom provision and additional support and intervention. Parents are encouraged to review their children’s learning through regular and formalised review meetings to review the impact of support. This strong school-based provision, enhanced by external partnerships and the involvement of parents, enables these pupils to make extremely good progress.
• The most able pupils, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, are regularly challenged in mathematics to explore more challenging problems and work at greater depth. This challenge is less consistent in their writing.
• Teaching in the early years is imaginative and engaging, providing appropriate teacher input but continually responsive to the needs and interests of children. The outdoor space has recently been enhanced to provide an exciting and well-resourced base for learning. Children are extremely happy, engaged and curious through the many stimulating opportunities to learn and the excellent relationships that are nurtured.
• Teaching promotes good and often outstanding rates of progress. However, teachers do not consistently develop pupils’ skills and understanding in the wider curriculum, including in geography and history, in as much depth as in reading and mathematics. Opportunities for pupils to enhance their writing skills in these subjects are not always taken.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding. Leaders and teachers maintain a consistent focus on pupils’ welfare. The school’s core values and key aims inform classroom relationships and wider behaviour around the site. Pupils are confident and keen learners who are willing to share their thoughts and opinions, as they know they are valued.
• The wider curriculum and daily practice ensures a constant focus on pupils’ welfare. Pupils could talk in detail about the actions the school has taken to help them to stay safe online and how to act if their welfare was threatened.
• Pupils value the friendliness and support of their teachers. They have a good understanding of bullying, which they believe is rare. Pupils are confident that adults would address any unacceptable behaviour.
• The vast majority of pupils feel safe in the school and the vast majority of their parents agree. One parent praised the ’happy and secure environment’ while another wrote that staff ‘develop each child appropriately and treat them as individuals’.
• Pupils develop physical well-being through imaginative engagement with the outdoor environment and regular opportunities to participate in sport through house activities and regular physical education lessons. Fresh fruit is provided for pupils and they have regular opportunities to explore healthy eating.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding. Teachers set a calm and orderly atmosphere that is consistently evident across all year groups. Older pupils provide support at break and lunchtimes for younger pupils. Pupils are kind and considerate to one another and work effectively together in lessons to support their learning.
• Teachers develop strong learning behaviours in pupils. They are encouraged to embrace more challenging tasks and not to be afraid to take risks to explore problems and achieve deeper learning.
• Pupils show a visible pride in their school and their community. This is reflected in their appearance and the quality of work in the majority of books. All of the pupils talked to would recommend the school to others.
• Pupils are frequently enthused in their learning and work extremely conscientiously. Incidents of low-level disruption are extremely rare. Behaviour systems encourage positive attitudes to learning and the rare instances of misbehaviour are deftly addressed.
• Pupils generally attend well as they enjoy their learning and the wider experiences offered by the school. Leaders work well with parents to secure good attendance. This work has led to consistent improvements over a three-year period to levels of attendance that are better than that seen nationally, despite a slight dip in 2017.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Teaching has enabled pupils to achieve extremely strong outcomes in the new national curriculum assessments at key stage 2. In 2017, pupils made outstanding progress in reading and mathematics. Every child achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined and the proportions reaching greater depth were well above those seen nationally.
• Current progress at key stage 2 remains strong. The quality of pupils’ work in reading and mathematics remains extremely high. Pupils achieved outstanding outcomes in English grammar, punctuation and spelling in 2017, although these strengths are not always carried through to their extended writing.
• Pupils make good progress in their writing, although standards are not as high as those seen in mathematics and reading. Pupils are not consistently able to use their strong knowledge of grammar, punctuation and spelling to telling effect.
• Pupils’ overall progress at key stage 1 is extremely good and often outstanding. The proportions of pupils working at greater depth is above that seen nationally and all pupils make good progress that is above that seen nationally from their early years starting points. However, their progress in writing is not as consistently strong.
• Pupils across the school read with clarity and understanding. They demonstrate confidence when reading aloud in lessons. Current progress continues to be strong. Phonics teaching is extremely effective and contributed to every child reaching the required standard in the phonics screening check in 2016 and 91% achieving the standard in 2017.
• Pupils’ progress in science, religious studies and history is good and pupils acquire extensive and age-appropriate knowledge of scientific processes. Pupils do not consistently develop geographical and historical knowledge and skills in the same depth or demonstrate key skills in these subjects in their learning.
• As a result of improving teaching and well-resourced learning, children have made consistently improving progress in the early years over a three-year period and achieve levels of development above those seen nationally.
• The majority of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities often make extremely good progress as a result of effective diagnosis of their needs, close monitoring and effective teaching and support.
• In 2017 at key stage 2, disadvantaged pupils made outstanding progress in reading and mathematics. They achieved levels of attainment that were well above those seen nationally. In many year groups, disadvantaged pupils make better progress than their peers. However, their progress in writing is not as strong. Leaders track their progress assiduously and this has contributed to strong rates of progress that are frequently above other pupils nationally.
• The most able pupils, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, make very good progress in mathematics, although their progress in reading, writing and across the wider curriculum is not as strong.

Early years provision Good

• The early years provides an extremely welcoming and exciting learning environment where children are happy and make good progress in their learning. Routines are positive and clear and children are encouraged to learn from the moment they arrive.
• Leaders have worked with external partners to improve practice and check the accuracy of standards. This work has supported consistent improvement since the previous inspection, with the early years now representing a clear strength of the school.
• Teachers and teaching assistants provide exceptional care and establish positive relationships from the moment children arrive. Every nursery child receives a home visit and they swiftly develop confidence. After only four weeks at school, Nursery children were happy and confident in school life, eagerly showing the inspector their writing and model-making.
• As result of effective leadership and better planning and teaching, complemented by improvements to the outdoor environment, outcomes in the early years have shown consistent improvement over a three-year period that are now consistently above that seen nationally.
• Inspectors observed much productive learning. In Reception class, children designed and built models of castles or completed early writing. In Nursery class, children developed their awareness of number by counting and writing letters outdoors.
• Parents are involved in their children’s learning. Children’s learning journals show that parents complement learning in school with records of cooking, reading and holiday experiences that inform learning at school.
• Teachers and teaching assistants monitor children’s progress closely and record this regularly. Teachers assess children in the context of the tasks they are completing and use this to plan next steps in learning. They provide timely and effective support and intervention to address any gaps in learning. The early years leaders has a good understanding of strengths and areas for improvement and works well with teaching assistants to improve the provision.
• Records of children’s learning across the early years show that children make good progress from their starting points. In some cases, girls made better progress than boys in their emerging writing. Teachers have an accurate picture of children’s abilities and learning needs.
• Safeguarding practices in the early years are extremely effective. There are no breaches of statutory welfare requirements and children are safe and well supported.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 111673 Hartlepool 10032143 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 Voluntary controlled 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 90 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Philip Bentham Nicola Dunn 01429 870254 www.greathamschool.org.uk admin.greatham@school.hartlepool.gov.uk Date of previous inspection 20 March 2013

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• Greatham is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is average.
• The vast majority of pupils currently on roll are from White British backgrounds.
• More pupils join or leave the school at mid-points in their primary years than is usually the case.
• The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.
• The school offers a breakfast club and after-school club, and provides wrap-around care for nursery-aged children.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector observed a wide range of lessons, covering all classes in the school. The acting headteacher accompanied the inspector on a number of observations.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, acting headteacher, middle leaders and teaching assistants. The inspector also met five members of the governing body, including the chair and vice-chair. The inspector met a group of pupils at lunchtime on day 1 of the inspection. The lead inspector met the local authority senior adviser and talked on the telephone to the director of education for the diocese.
• The inspectors talked to parents as they dropped their children off at school.
• Pupils’ behaviour was observed during lessons, lunchtimes and playtimes.
• The inspector extensively examined the quality of work in a wide range of books. He discussed pupils’ work and their learning with them in lessons.
• The inspectors looked at the school’s work and considered documents including the school’s self-evaluation, the school improvement plan, curriculum plans and information relating to pupils’ achievement and safeguarding.
• The inspectors took into account the 10 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, and five free-text responses. He also took into account 22 responses to Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire and 13 responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire.

Inspection team

Malcolm Kirtley, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector