Anderton Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of leadership and management by:
  • making sure that all leaders include in their improvement plans precise criteria for evaluating the success of their actions on pupils’ achievement
  • putting in place an efficient system for assessing and tracking pupils’ progress in subjects other than English and mathematics, so that leaders of these subjects have a clear view of standards.
• Secure consistently strong progress across year groups and a wide range of subjects by:
  • building on the effective teaching in key stage 2 to ensure that teaching in key stage 1 is more consistently effective in English and mathematics
  • ensuring that pupils acquire the relevant knowledge, understanding and skills more securely in subjects other than English and mathematics
  • regularly providing work that challenges the most able pupils.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• There has been a decline in pupils’ achievement in recent times, but the headteacher is determined to put this situation right. She has managed effectively some staffing issues that have contributed to the weaknesses identified in recent published assessment information, including tackling some underperformance. She also has appropriate systems in place for checking the quality of teaching, but these are not currently having a strong enough effect on improving provision across the school.
• Senior leaders have understandably focused on improving standards in English and mathematics. There is evidence of good progress in these subjects in key stage 2, but pupils’ progress in English and mathematics in key stage 1 remains variable. Furthermore, the progress of pupils in subjects other than English and mathematics is not consistently strong.
• Leaders check the performance of teachers regularly. They give them targets based on pupils’ achievement. Leaders plan appropriate training for staff to enhance their teaching skills. These processes have been at their most effective in securing improvements in the teaching of English and mathematics in key stage 2.
• Senior leaders have devised plans that contain appropriate actions for bringing about improvements in the school. However, leaders acknowledge that they are not precise enough about how they will measure whether their actions are working.
• Leaders of subjects other than English and mathematics do not have a systematic approach to assessing and tracking pupils’ progress. Consequently, they do not have a clear picture of standards in these subjects.
• The curriculum is broad and balanced, and contributes well to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It also promotes fundamental British values well. As well as national curriculum subjects, there are lessons in religious education and personal, social and health education. These contribute well to pupils’ understanding of, for example, other faiths. A programme of visits from, for instance, a local magistrate effectively promotes pupils’ understanding of the rule of law.
• There is a wide range of extra-curricular clubs that enhance pupils’ social and spiritual development well. These include football, netball, chess and recorder clubs.
• School leaders make effective use of the funding for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. They provide extra help through, for example, one-to-one support or extra work in small groups. The headteacher is also the special educational needs coordinator. She manages the provision of support well. These pupils make good progress from their starting points, as a result.
• Leaders make effective use of the pupil premium funding. They help pupils to overcome barriers to their learning in various ways. For instance, leaders provide individual tuition to help pupils with their learning in English and mathematics. They also provide support for pupils who have social and emotional needs. The current pupils in this group make good progress.
• Leaders use the primary school physical education and sports funding effectively. They have provided an increasing number of opportunities for pupils to take part in sports competitions, such as rugby and tennis. Leaders have also improved teachers’ skills by providing specialist coaches to work alongside them. As a result of the activities provided by the school, some pupils have been inspired to join sports clubs outside school, such as gymnastics.
• The local authority provides effective support to the school. The adviser has a good understanding of the school’s context and knows its strengths and areas for development.
• The large majority of parents have a very positive view about the school. In conversation with the lead inspector or in response to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View, they typically commented that the school has a ‘family feel’, the headteacher has ‘energy and enthusiasm’ and their children are ‘well looked after’.

Governance of the school

• The governance of the school is effective.
• Governors are supportive and are actively involved in the work of the school. They have a clear awareness of its strengths and weaknesses. However, the governors’ view of the quality of teaching is slightly more optimistic than pupils’ achievement would suggest.
• The governing body has received appropriate training, including regular safeguarding training. At least three governors are trained in safer recruitment.
• Governors say that they challenge leaders strongly. While the minutes of governing body meetings do record governors’ questions, they currently lack incisiveness in their level of challenge.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The school’s systems for checking on the suitability of staff whom leaders employ are appropriate and thorough.
• The school has a strong culture of safeguarding. Staff have a very good knowledge of what to do if they have a concern about a pupil. Pupils all say that they feel safe in school. They talk confidently about how to stay safe, such as when they are on the internet, because staff give them the relevant information. Parents say that staff communicate with them well. The school premises are secure and staff check visitors’ credentials thoroughly before they enter the building.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teaching, learning and assessment are inconsistent in quality.
• Although teaching in key stage 2 produces mainly good progress among pupils in English and mathematics, in key stage 1 progress is more varied. Overall, in key stage 1, teachers do not use learning time productively enough because they do not consistently plan work that provides the right degree of demand for different ability groups.
• Some teachers do not consistently provide work that develops, consolidates and deepens pupils’ knowledge, understanding and skills. This was not only evident in English and mathematics in key stage 1, but it was also clear from work across subjects other than these. For example, in key stage 1 geography, Year 1 and Year 2 books showed pupils in both year groups doing the same work on oceans and continents. Added to this, there was scant evidence of pupils making good progress in history or geography in Year 3.
• Teachers sometimes provide work that challenges the most able pupils in English and mathematics, but this is less evident in key stage 1. In English in Year 2, for example, the level of demand of the work varies, with the most able pupils sometimes doing the same work as middle-ability pupils. In subjects other than English and mathematics, most-able pupils typically have the same work as other pupils, although the quality and quantity of their work are noticeably better.
• Some teachers apply the school’s marking and assessment policy inconsistently. However, this is not so much the case in English and mathematics. Where there is inconsistency, it means that there are times when pupils do not learn from their mistakes or know what the next steps in their learning are.
• Teachers provide most pupils with opportunities to use their writing skills in other subjects. For example, pupils write about aspects of Islam in religious education and they write reports in science. There are also some opportunities for pupils to use their mathematical knowledge, such as counting and recording heartbeats per minute, in a science investigation. In key stage 1, however, there are times when most-able pupils do not produce writing in, say, science that is as good as their writing in English.
• Most pupils show good attitudes to their learning. Teachers establish good relationships with them and expect good behaviour. This has resulted in pupils making good progress in English and mathematics in key stage 2 and some groups of pupils, such as disadvantaged pupils, in key stage 1.
• Where teachers plan well, they use their good subject knowledge to produce lessons that sustain pupils’ interest and make them think hard. In mathematics in Year 4, for example, pupils enjoyed solving problems in which they had to answer different calculations that provided the key to unlocking a code. In Year 6 English, pupils watched a stimulating video that led to challenging work that required them to make predictions and justify their opinions.
• Teachers set appropriate homework that supports the work that pupils do in school. According to the parents who spoke with the lead inspector, there is a variety of interesting tasks and most pupils respond well to these tasks.
• Teachers keep parents well informed about their children’s progress. They provide formal parents evenings and end-of-year reports for each pupil. Teachers also communicate frequently with parents through pupils’ homework record books. Parents who spoke with the lead inspector said that the school ‘sees parents as partners’.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• Leaders work to promote pupils’ personal development, and welfare is good.
• Pupils receive helpful information from staff that gives them the understanding about how to stay safe. For example, staff teach them how to stay safe on the internet and how to avoid harm when playing near water.
• Pupils understand the different forms of bullying that exist, including cyber and homophobic bullying. They say that there are very few examples in school. Pupils know that teachers will address any bullying issues promptly and effectively.
• Most pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning. They appreciate the clubs and educational visits that leaders provide to make their learning more exciting.
• Pupils have opportunities to develop a sense of responsibility through membership of the school council. Pupils also participate in the school’s ‘buddies’ system, where older pupils look after their assigned younger pupils at various points in the day.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ conduct around school is good. They show good manners to adults and to each other.
• Pupils are confident enough to approach trusted adults and speak to them appropriately. They felt secure enough to greet inspectors politely and pleasantly, and were happy to discuss their work when asked.
• Pupils’ behaviour in class is mostly good. Sometimes pupils misbehave; however, adults have effective strategies for managing behaviour. Consequently, pupils lose very little learning time.
• Pupils play well together on the playground, showing consideration for each other. They enjoy playing with the equipment provided, such as skipping ropes and balls. Adults on duty supervise them well and make sure that pupils are safe.
• Attendance is good. The large majority of groups of pupils have attendance rates above the national average.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Current pupils do not make consistently strong progress in key stage 1 in English and mathematics. In a wide range of other subjects, pupils across the school make variable progress.
• There is evidence of good progress in English and mathematics for most pupils in key stage 2 and particular groups of pupils in key stage 1, such as disadvantaged pupils. However, there is a wider lack of consistency in subjects other than English and mathematics. For example, pupils do not gain enough knowledge, skills and understanding in science in key stage 1. However, pupils in all year groups make good progress in developing their art skills.
• The most able pupils do not consistently do work that is challenging. There was evidence of work that stretched pupils in mathematics in key stage 2. However, in other subjects such as science in key stage 1, the most able did not have to attempt work that was any more demanding than that of other pupils.
• Most pupils read well and do so for pleasure. The most able pupils read fluently and show good comprehension skills. The least able pupils can mostly use their knowledge of phonics to tackle unfamiliar words, but sometimes they can be unsure of how to approach such words.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress from their starting points. This is because of the effective support that leaders have put in place. For example, pupils in Year 3 progress from producing writing that is poorly spelled and hard to read, to clearly written sentences with reasonable attempts at spelling, such as ‘The boys had to colect (collect) fire wud (wood)’.
• Disadvantaged pupils make good progress. This is because leaders have provided effective support, such as one-to-one tuition. This has helped this group to improve their skills in English and mathematics.
• The most recent published assessment information showed that the proportion of Year 1 pupils reaching the expected standard in the phonics check was above the national average. Leaders anticipate that the proportion this year will be smaller. However, a higher proportion of pupils in the cohort than last year have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Nevertheless, leaders still expect about three quarters of pupils to reach the expected standard.
• Achievement in mathematics by the end of Year 6 in 2016 was close to or above the national average. From all starting points, progress was in line with the national average and the attainment of some groups was significantly above.

Early years provision Good

• Children enter the Reception Year with knowledge and skills that are broadly typical for their age and stage of development. Typically, a large majority have the skills that they need for Year 1 by the time they leave the early years. Current children are making good progress from their starting points.
• The early years leader is effective and has identified the strengths and areas for development in the Reception class. She has brought in more systematic observation and assessment of children’s progress, and she has improved the teaching of phonics. The effectiveness of these improvements is evident in the good progress that current children make.
• Staff plan interesting and engaging activities for children. The quality of teaching is good. For example, children show good reading skills when they are working with the class teacher. They use their phonics skills well to read challenging sentences, such as ‘I will turn off the tap when I brush my teeth’. They show good coordination and creativity as they enthusiastically paint pictures of planets and space rockets. Staff make effective use of the limited outdoor space to provide a range of activities that enable children to develop, for example, physical skills.
• Disadvantaged children make good progress, because leaders use the pupil premium funding effectively. They provide children with effective support for their learning of basic English and mathematical skills, as well as for their social and emotional needs.
• Children in the early years show that they are safe by their good behaviour and their attitudes to their learning. They are cooperative with other each other. They show confidence in their relationships with adults. They were even confident enough to greet the lead inspector and ask why he was in their class.
• Early years staff have a good partnership with parents. They involve them in their child’s progress and development throughout their time in the Reception class. Staff invite parents to events, such as ‘stay and play’, before their child starts and they keep them up to date as their child progresses through ‘home/school’ books. There are formal parents’ evenings every term and staff keep informal communication channels open throughout the year.
• Staff ensure that children’s transition into the Reception Year is smooth. They are equally careful to provide a smooth transition into Year 1. Staff ensure that Reception-age children have experience of Year 1 activities at the end of their Reception Year. The early years lead makes sure that the Year 1 teacher has a clear understanding of the needs of the children.
• Safeguarding in the early years is effective, as it is part of the whole-school safeguarding procedures. There are no breaches of the welfare requirements.
• While teaching in the early years is good, sometimes the quality of questioning from teaching assistants can be undemanding. This means that there are occasional opportunities missed to deepen children’s understanding.
• There are some links with local private pre-school providers that involve sharing relevant information, but leaders do not systematically look at assessment processes across the settings. Leaders recognise this and plan to develop appropriate processes in the next school year.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 119202 Lancashire 10032274 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 Community 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 200 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Elaine Bilsborough Louise Minton 01257 480551 www.andertonprimaryschool.co.uk head@anderton.lancs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 12–13 March 2013

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school is smaller than an average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of pupils who receive support in school for their special educational needs and/or disabilities is below the national average. The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan or a statement of special educational needs is slightly above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who are supported through pupil premium funding is roughly half the national average.
• The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups is well below the national average, as is the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils who leave or join the school at times other than the start of the Reception Year is below the national average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors carried out observations of learning in all year groups. Some of these were joint observations with the headteacher and members of the inspection team. The headteacher was also present at inspection team meetings.
• A range of documentation was scrutinised, including the school’s self-evaluation summary, action plans for school improvement, records of the monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning, minutes of meetings of the governing body and records connected with safeguarding children.
• Inspectors held discussions with various stakeholders, including the headteacher and other senior leaders, subject leaders, other members of staff, governors, a representative from the local authority, parents and pupils.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read and analysed pupils’ work in writing and mathematics, as well as their work in other subjects. They also looked at the work of children in the early years.
• Inspectors evaluated 52 responses received through Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey. There were no other survey responses.

Inspection team

Mark Quinn, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Linda Griffiths Ofsted Inspector Neil Dixon, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector