Greenhead Church of England Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Leaders and managers should:
  • improve the curriculum and teaching of science so that pupils can achieve as highly in science as they do in other subjects
  • ensure that pupils in key stage 1 have many, varied opportunities to experience and observe scientific phenomena in the world around them
  • ensure that attention is given in key stage 2 to the development of pupils’ understanding of scientific concepts and their skills in working scientifically.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The new executive headteacher is resolute in her determination to raise standards. She has worked successfully with governors, staff and the diocese to improve all aspects of the school’s work. She has a clear vision for the future and is acutely aware of the challenges that lie ahead.
• The new governing body is passionate about the school and excited about its future. Governors are delighted by the rapid improvements now taking place following a substantial period of turbulence and restructure within the West Tyne Federation of Schools.
• Leaders have an accurate and deep understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. Their development plan is designed to tackle weakness and build on strengths. Everyone knows exactly what actions must be taken and by when.
• The school receives strong and effective support from both the diocese and the local authority. Both have provided training for staff and strong, effective support for leaders and governors. Together they have contributed significantly to the school’s rapid improvement.
• The executive headteacher has developed a very positive and collaborative team of teachers. Their tangible care and concern for the well-being of each pupil underpin this nurturing, inclusive learning community. Relationships are based on mutual respect. High standards of courtesy are the norm.
• Everyone is treated equally and there is no discrimination. Opportunities are used throughout the day to develop pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding. Consequently, pupils have a strong foundation on which they have developed a sound understanding of British values.
• Leaders have ensured that performance management targets for staff are tightly aligned to the school’s improvement priorities. They are used well to raise aspiration and achievement.
• Arrangements for checking on the quality of teaching, learning and assessment are robust, accurate and effective. The executive headteacher regularly visits lessons, examines pupils’ work and analyses progress data. She knows the strengths and weaknesses of teaching and has a firm grasp of what is needed to bring about further improvement.
• Funding for disadvantaged pupils is used effectively. Each pupil has an individual learning plan which is carefully designed to support their needs. Consequently, disadvantaged pupils make good progress. They reach the same or higher standards as their peers who share the same starting points.
• There are many opportunities for learning beyond the classroom, through a range of after-school activities, including learning in a forest setting. Pupils learn different sports ranging from dance and football to cricket, rugby and netball. Sport is an important part of school life and many children participate in games at lunchtime as well as in lessons and after school. Additional primary sports funding is spent well.
• Most areas of the curriculum are carefully planned and responsive to the learning needs of pupils. Across most subjects, pupils’ knowledge and skills are well developed. English, mathematics, religious education and music are notable strengths. However, pupils’ learning in science is less well developed and there are not enough opportunities for pupils to develop practical skills in this subject.

Governance of the school

• The recently formed governing body fully supports the new executive headteacher. Governors are determined to build on the good improvements that have been made this year, following the restructure of both the school and the federation. They are ambitious for the pupils and have high aspirations for their achievements.
• Governors have worked hard to get to know the school. They are able to check for themselves the impact of teaching on pupils’ learning and development. Governors undertake regular visits to the school and have used these well to provide necessary support and also effective challenge.
• Governors have ensured that there is a clear and strategic direction for the future. They are acutely aware of their statutory duties, which they undertake with care. They monitor the impact of pupil premium funding and ensure that various different sources of funding are used to good effect and for the benefit of pupils.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Care and attention are given to keeping pupils safe in all areas of the school. Even the youngest children know and follow the rules in order to keep themselves safe.
• Leaders ensure that all staff have received recent updates and training. Clear policies and procedures ensure that when concerns arise they are quickly and appropriately managed.
• Leaders are vigilant in their care of any vulnerable pupils who may be at risk of harm.
• Clear and robust systems are in place to check the suitability of prospective employees.
• The school works well with a range of outside agencies, including the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and the police, in order to ensure that pupils know how to keep themselves safe.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Good-quality teaching is bringing about improvements in learning. High expectations of all pupils raise their aspirations. Teachers use their good subject knowledge to plan lessons carefully. Most lessons proceed at a good pace and pupils waste little time. Pupils enjoy challenging tasks where they learn to apply their knowledge and deepen their thinking, especially in English and mathematics.
• Teachers monitor learning carefully and know the strengths and weaknesses of their pupils. They use their assessments of pupils’ learning to ensure that each lesson builds effectively on what has gone before. Teachers are reflective and consider the impact of their teaching on learning. They are able to adapt their teaching as needed to ensure that learning is secure. As a result, pupils make good progress over time.
• The most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, are stretched and challenged in English and mathematics. Work in books show that pupils have developed a good deal of resilience and independence. They are able to concentrate for substantial periods of time and use appropriate resources to find and work things out for themselves.
• In mathematics, teachers focus carefully on developing understanding. They make use of practical equipment wherever possible so that mathematical concepts are deeply embedded and understood. For example, in Year 2 books pupils recorded the dimensions of a real snake skin. It is clear from their photographs that they were enthralled by this measuring activity.
• Teachers are proactive in developing pupils’ independence, providing each with a pack of useful resources to help them develop their writing, reading and mathematics.
• Highly skilled teaching assistants are well deployed and contribute strongly to pupils’ effective learning. They often work with individual pupils and take care to develop their confidence and independence.
• Teachers and teaching assistants are effective in developing pupils’ phonics skills. All pupils read regularly in school to teachers and at home. Pupils quickly become competent and skilled early readers.
• Teachers’ questioning is a strength and is used well to identify and resolve misconceptions in learning. Probing questions cause pupils to think deeply. Teachers are not afraid to wait and allow pupils to really consider a problem before stepping in.
• Teachers ensure that pupils know how to improve their work and have time to think about, consider and act on guidance. As a result, pupils are developing the capacity to improve their work.
• On occasions, because of the wide age range within each class, some learning time is lost as the needs of one year group are attended to.
• The level of challenge in the teaching of science is too low. Not enough attention is given to developing pupils’ understanding of scientific concepts or to working scientifically. There are too few opportunities for pupils to experience and observe phenomena in the world around them.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils thrive in the caring, positive environment of the school.
• Pupils are both kind and courteous. They are polite and respectful when in the company of both adults and their peers.
• Pupils are sensitive to the needs of others and try to help as best they can. They explain that the school is a caring family that is tightly knitted together. They show great spiritual awareness for their age and can readily explain the symbolism behind a tree they have made which represents each child and is formed from their interlinking hands.
• Pupils display compassion for others less fortunate than themselves. This is a testament to the depth of their social, spiritual and moral learning and the caring ethos of the school.
• Pupils are developing an understanding of their wider community and their cultural heritage. For example, pupils in Year 1 have explored key elements of their village through models of the buildings. All pupils have opportunities to take part in local events.
• During an indoor playtime because of wet weather, all pupils were happily playing games with others and nobody was left out. When outside, everyone again was included in the games.
• Pupils are proud of their school. They are adamant that there is no bullying, although, from time to time, they fall out with their friends for a while. They have confidence in their teachers to help them resolve any difficulties. They say there is no use of derogatory or unkind language.
• Most pupils are interested in learning and this underpins their good progress in lessons. There is a real joy and excitement in learning. This was seen as pupils had great fun singing both in assemblies and at after-school music lessons. There was tangible excitement as they learned how to care for a pony in the after-school club.
• Pupils settle quickly in lessons and listen carefully to teachers’ explanations and instructions. They make sure, most of the time, that their written work is to the best of their ability and show pride in their written work.
• Pupils say they feel safe and explained that they have had visits from the police to help them understand how to keep themselves safe. As appropriate to their age, they have some understanding of how to stay safe when using the internet and mobile technology.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils follow instructions quickly and there are few interruptions to learning during lessons. A sense of calm permeates the school, including in the playground. Routines are well established and pupils know what is expected of them.
• Learning environments are well ordered and tidy. Displays throughout the school celebrate learning and add to the very positive, constructive ethos of the school. All pupils’ efforts are valued.
• Attendance has improved significantly this year and for most pupils it is at least good. The school is careful to follow up any issues relating to attendance so that it continues to improve.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Every pupil in the school has made good progress in both English and mathematics this year. The vast majority of pupils are working securely within the programmes of study for their age and have largely overcome a legacy of underachievement from previous years. This is notable for older pupils. Their work shows that their progress has accelerated during the year.
• All pupils who are disadvantaged make good progress. Additional funding to support their learning is used well. They benefit from thoughtful and appropriate additional learning resources and also planned enrichment activities. As a result, most reach at least the same standards as their peers who share the same starting points.
• School data shows that all low-attaining pupils make good progress. The vast majority are currently working within age-related expectations. Careful consideration of tasks ensures that they are able to make progress and move onto more challenging work as soon as they are confident and able.
• The progress made by the most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, is also good. Work seen in their English books shows that they have many and varied opportunities for extended writing and are expected to demonstrate increasing sophistication in their use of language. In pupils’ mathematics books, it is clear to see that pupils regularly enjoy challenging mathematical problems that demand reasoning and deductive skills.
• The school uses assessment data well to identify any pupil who is failing to progress at a good pace. Actions are taken swiftly through one-to-one tutoring in order to overcome any weaknesses and build confidence. As a result, most difficulties are resolved in good time.
• Pupils say they enjoy reading. Since the school completely overhauled its reading strategy, pupils’ confidence in reading has improved significantly. Every pupil reads regularly to a teacher and is encouraged to read at home. Last year, all Year 1 pupils achieved the expected standards in the national phonics screening check.

Early years provision Good

• Provision in the early years is good and rapidly improving as a result of the decisive and effective actions taken by leaders. They have invested time in both staff training and the complete restructure of the learning environment. All children now make at least good progress from starting points that are typical for their age.
• Careful attention is given to the individual needs of the children. Learning activities are planned carefully to capture their interest and arouse curiosity. This was seen during the inspection in ‘the airport’. Children loved taking their luggage to the check-in desk. Immersed in role play, they developed their language and communication skills, checked tickets, wrote boarding passes and considered the difficult problem of how to get to the plane. This rich, creative activity led to valuable learning. Skilful and timely questioning by the teacher caused the children to think critically and carefully about the next steps of their role play.
• Children enjoyed playing and making spiral patterns with tiny coloured beads, developing the fine motor skills needed for writing. They happily explored words to help them describe the journey of the snail in the story ‘The snail and the whale’ by Julia Donaldson. They loved writing imaginative stories about the travelling snail, demonstrating their strong writing and literacy skills.
• Each child’s ‘learning journal’ carefully charts their progress. Parents are closely involved in supporting the learning taking place in school. They take an active part in recording their children’s learning at home through an online platform. Assessments of progress are used well in the effective planning for children’s next steps in learning.
• Children’s behaviour and personal development are good. They are thoughtful and caring towards their peers. There is a lovely spirit of generosity and kindness among the children. They readily and easily share toys and equipment. Children show concern if another is struggling with an activity and are quick to offer a helping hand. They are very polite and respectful to adults and their peers.
• During a phonics lesson, the children were thrilled and excited in the outdoor area as they searched for objects beginning with ‘st’ and ‘gr’. They had great fun and happily shared what they found with each other. Their teacher expertly checked and probed their understanding and spurred them on to greater challenges.
• Safeguarding in the early years is effective. Care is taken to ensure that the physical environment is safe. Children follow simple rules that keep them safe. For example, when jumping in and out of tyres in the playground, they carefully check to make sure the path is clear before they jump.
• Children showed great interest and creativity as they developed the mathematical concept of addition through play. They created and told stories to explain the addition generated by the roll of a dice and then added to a fixed number. Their development of mathematical understanding is firmly based in practical activity. Children demonstrated their additions using models made with leaves, cones, spheres, cylinders and printed butterflies. The models became a part of their imaginary stories.
• Children thrive in this setting. The approach to learning harnesses both their creativity and their inquisitive nature. Children love to learn and are able to concentrate on one activity for substantial periods of time. They work well both independently and with their peers and are very well prepared for learning in Year 1.

School details

Unique reference number 122284 Local authority Northumberland Inspection number 10031950 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 4 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 35 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Pippa Milburn Headteacher Sarah Hutchinson Telephone number 01697 747347 Website www.greenhead.northumberland.sch.uk Email address admin@greenhead.northumberland.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 22–23 April 2015

Information about this school

• Greenhead Church of England Primary School and Henshaw Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School together form the West Tyne Federation of Schools. The schools and the federation have undergone significant restructure since the last inspection. They share the same governing body and the same executive headteacher.
• The school is a very small rural school.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and or/disabilities that require school support or who have an education, health and care plan is extremely low and so this aspect of the school’s work cannot form part of this report.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils known to be eligible for support through the pupil premium is well below average.
• All pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their first language.
• The school provides a breakfast club each morning and an after-school club. 

• There are three classes: one for Reception; one for Years 1 and 2; and one for Years 3 and 4. There are currently no pupils in Years 5 or 6.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector observed teaching and learning across a wide range of lessons. The executive headteacher accompanied the inspector on a number of these observations.
• The inspector listened to pupils read and talked to pupils in lessons and during lunchtime and playtimes.
• Meetings were held with the executive headteacher and the chair of the governing body together with two other governors. Meetings were also held with the director of education for the Diocese of Newcastle and Durham and with a school improvement adviser appointed by the local authority.
• A wide range of documentation was scrutinised including the school’s own evaluation of how well it is doing, plans for development, performance management documents, information about the work of the governing body, records of the monitoring of teaching and data relating to pupils’ achievement. Safeguarding and child protection documentation, attendance data and records relating to behaviour were also examined.
• The inspector examined the quality of work in a wide range of pupils’ books.
• Account was taken of the views of parents through the 13 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.

Inspection team

Janice Gorlach, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector