Freckleton Strike Lane Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of leadership and management by:
  • building on the actions already taken to secure consistently good teaching across the school
  • developing systems to check pupils’ progress in mathematics and English, so that leaders have a precise view of the effectiveness of teaching
  • reviewing the spending of funding for disadvantaged pupils, so that the provision planned is more effective in improving pupils’ progress
  • ensuring that the provision planned for pupils with SEND matches their needs and improves their progress.
• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by:
  • using assessment information effectively to plan lessons and activities that match pupils’ abilities and learning needs, particularly in reading and mathematics
  • embedding recent improvements to mathematics teaching in key stage 2, so that pupils continue to develop their reasoning and problem-solving skills
  • developing pupils’ reading comprehension skills in key stage 2, so that they make good progress in their learning.
• Improve the effectiveness of the early years by:
  • ensuring that the activities planned are matched to children’s needs and interests and help them to achieve the early learning goals
  • ensuring that the opportunities for children to learn and practise their skills are frequent and of high quality, in both the indoor and outdoor learning environments. An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• The newly established senior leadership have been resolute in their determination to improve teaching, learning and assessment. The recent changes that they have made are beginning to have an impact.
• Leaders have successfully shared their vision with staff and governors. Everyone is focusing sharply on improving outcomes for pupils, particularly in reading and mathematics in key stage 2. Morale in the school has improved rapidly. Staff have adopted the changes that leaders have made, including teaching reasoning skills in mathematics more frequently.
• A newly introduced system to check how well pupils are achieving is used by leaders to identify priorities for improving teaching and learning. Leaders are using the information that they have to help them to plan the right training for staff. However, this system is still developing, as some of the checks that teachers make on pupils’ achievements are not accurate enough.
• The local authority is providing training for staff. This is beginning to have an impact, particularly in mathematics teaching and learning.
• Middle leaders are enthusiastic and know their subjects well. For example, in science, the leader keeps a careful check on pupils’ learning to ensure that their skills and knowledge are developed. Middle leaders check class timetables to make sure that the curriculum is broad and balanced and that each subject is taught regularly.
• In recent years, the impact of spending for disadvantaged pupils has not been analysed. This means that leaders and governors have not had an accurate view of whether any additional support is having the impact that it should. Some disadvantaged pupils have not made good progress, particularly in reading and mathematics in key stage 2. Leaders are developing the effectiveness of the checks that they make, but these changes are at an early stage.
• Leaders are taking steps to improve provision for pupils with SEND. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) is beginning to evaluate the impact of additional funding in improving outcomes for this group of pupils. However, the provision planned does not always match pupils’ needs. When needed, the school seeks useful external support from other professionals, including the school nurse and speech therapists.
• Leaders use the sport premium to build pupils’ confidence and skills, and to widen their experiences. Pupils develop their skills in a wide range of sports and activities, including athletics and gymnastics. Leaders ensure that pupils are given the opportunity to visit other schools to take part in competitions and events. Improvements to playground facilities mean that pupils are active in their breaktimes. Inspirational speakers, including a visit from an Olympian, are used to raise pupils’ aspirations. Leaders check on pupils’ skills development to ensure that the premium is having the impact that it should.
• Leaders promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development very well through a wide range of lessons, assemblies and events. Pupils help to plan and organise charity fundraising events. The minister from the local church is a regular visitor and leads assemblies to develop pupils’ spiritual understanding. Pupils learn about other cultures, including Inuit and Sioux. The very active eco council lead a variety of activities which raise pupils’ awareness of environmental issues, including a weekly ‘walk to school’ day. Pupils learn to be caring, responsible and to celebrate differences. They are keen to make a positive contribution to society.
• Leaders have planned an engaging and broad curriculum. Staff provide a range of interesting and exciting trips which develop pupils’ confidence and self-esteem. Through residential trips to France and to London, staff give Year 6 pupils opportunities to broaden their horizons. Other year groups enjoy a wide range of outdoor activities, including camping, canoeing, orienteering and making dens. Pupils spoke with excitement about how much they enjoy these experiences.

Governance of the school

• New governors have strengthened the skills of the governing body. They have received effective training from the local authority. This has improved governors’ understanding of data about pupils’ achievements. The governing body has a good understanding of what the school needs to do to improve.
• Governors use their skills to check on the effectiveness of teaching and provide effective challenge to leaders. They share the headteacher’s determination and ambition to improve teaching and learning, so that pupils achieve well across the curriculum, including in mathematics and reading.
• Governors keep a careful check on safeguarding procedures.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• All statutory checks are in place to ensure the suitability of adults working in school. Appropriate checks are made on visitors when they arrive at the school.
• Leaders ensure that staff receive regular and appropriate training to identify any signs of possible danger or potential abuse. Staff are vigilant. Pupils feel confident that they have someone to talk with if they are worried. Pupils spoken with during the inspection said that they feel safe in school.
• Pupils value assemblies and lessons about how to keep themselves safe, including online.
• The family support worker works closely with pupils, parents and carers, and with other agencies, to make sure that pupils are safe. She provides a wide range of support for pupils’ well-being and safety.
• The procedures for reporting any incidents or concerns are very clear and understood by staff. Staff take timely action when pupils miss education due to being frequently absent.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching and learning is variable across the school, but is improving. This is most evident in key stage 2. Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, do not make consistently good progress in mathematics and reading by the time they leave the school.
• Some teachers do not use their checks on pupils’ learning well enough to plan activities that enable pupils to make good progress over time. Work is sometimes too easy or too difficult and teaching does not always build on pupils’ prior learning.
• Pupils in key stage 1 develop their phonics skills and read with confidence and fluency. They are able to use their knowledge to sound out unknown words. Teachers and teaching assistants check pupils’ learning regularly to ensure that phonics teaching is matched to pupils’ needs. Pupils start key stage 2 as confident readers.
• Pupils have not made the progress that they should in reading in key stage 2. This is because teachers have not planned enough opportunities to develop their reading comprehension skills. Recent changes to the school timetable mean that teachers plan lessons to develop these skills more frequently. However, in some classes, the activities that teachers plan do not match pupils’ abilities and learning needs. This slows the progress that pupils make.
• Teachers use interesting and engaging texts and novels to inspire pupils’ writing. Pupils enjoy writing and write for a range of different purposes, applying the skills that they have developed in grammar and punctuation. They use varied and ambitious vocabulary to make their writing more interesting to read. Most pupils have neat, well-formed handwriting and take pride in their work.
• Leaders have taken steps to improve pupils’ learning in mathematics. Teachers are planning more frequent activities to help pupils to develop their reasoning and problem-solving skills and to do tricky work. These changes are at an early stage, but pupils’ workbooks show that their mathematics skills are improving.
• The achievements of disadvantaged pupils are below that of other pupils in the school and also below that of other pupils nationally. Staff provide additional support for this group of pupils, including for their emotional well-being. However, teachers have not used checks on pupils’ learning to make sure that these pupils are making the progress that they should. The additional support provided has not had enough impact in improving the progress of disadvantaged pupils, particularly in reading and mathematics at key stage 2.
• Across the school, teachers and teaching assistants provide support for pupils with SEND. Staff know these pupils well and support individuals and small groups with their learning. Teachers encourage pupils to develop their independence in learning as they move through the school. However, in some lessons, the work that teachers plan does not match pupils’ needs. As a result, some pupils do not make the progress that they should from their starting points. The SENCo has started to use the school’s recently introduced tracking system to keep a check on this group of pupils’ progress. The SENCo also monitors the impact of the provision that teachers plan.
• Across the curriculum, teachers plan a range of interesting trips and activities to develop pupils’ knowledge and understanding. For example, in science, pupils visited a local nature reserve and took part in a variety of activities to develop their knowledge of wildlife.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils enjoy many leadership roles. The members of the active school council take part in decision making, such as improvements to the infant and junior playgrounds. Year 6 pupils help younger pupils play well at breaktimes. In assemblies, pupils support teachers with using the computing equipment. Pupils develop as caring and responsible individuals.
• Staff teach pupils to stay safe both online and in the wider community. Pupils value assemblies about online safety and can describe with confidence how to keep their details secure. In key stage 1, pupils learn about road safety. Older pupils take part in workshops which improve their cycling skills and safety. The pupils spoken with during the inspection are confident that staff listen to any concerns that they have and take action to help them.
• Pupils learn to value differences and to welcome all. Staff teach pupils about other religions, for example, they learn about Hinduism. Visitors to school, including a Paralympian, enhance pupils’ understanding of diversity, including disability. New pupils are looked after by other pupils and quickly develop new friendships. As one pupil said, ‘Everyone is an individual and gets treated the same.’
• The very active school’s eco council develops pupils’ understanding of how to care for the environment. Pupils carry out a weekly audit of classrooms and encourage staff and pupils to reduce waste and to recycle. Pupils take part in a weekly ‘walk to school day’ to help the environment.
• Through the curriculum, pupils develop a clear understanding of how to choose a healthy lifestyle, including diet, exercise and well-being. Pupils enjoy taking part in local and regional events, including a cheerleading activity in Manchester. A very wide range of clubs keep pupils active.
• Staff teach pupils to be thoughtful and considerate. Pupils take part in local and national charitable fundraising events. The school choir sings for the community, including in the local church and for the elderly. Pupils enjoy caring for the school’s giant snails, ‘Jelly’ and ‘Bob’.
• Staff give pupils a wide variety of opportunities to develop their independence and resilience. Year 3 and Year 5 pupils enjoy overnight camping in the school grounds. Year 4 outdoor and adventurous trips enable pupils to take part in team-building activities and to enjoy new experiences, such as canoeing. Year 6 pupils enjoy residential trips and visits to cities, including London and Paris. These experiences help to develop pupils’ confidence and prepare them well for their next stage of education.
• Leaders have taken steps to improve pupils’ learning behaviour. For example, staff tell pupils how to be resourceful and resilient. In some lessons, teachers provide a culture of enquiry, where pupils are keen to learn, share their ideas and work out tricky challenges. However, this is variable across the school. In other lessons, pupils sometimes lose concentration because the work that teachers provide lacks challenge.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils are polite and very welcoming to visitors. They are proud of their school.
• Leaders have created a calm and friendly atmosphere. Pupils move around the school with consideration for others. At playtimes, pupils play well together.
• Pupils are keen to do their best. They listen respectfully to adults and their peers and answer questions well. Pupils quickly follow instructions from teachers. Incidents of low level misbehaviour is a result of work being too easy for pupils or pupils having too little work to do. Pupils take pride in their work and their books are mostly neat and well presented.
• Pupils are confident that bullying does not happen in school, and that staff deal with any misbehaviour. Leaders have ensured that pupils and staff understand the school’s behaviour policy. Staff, pupils and parents agree that pupils’ behaviour is good.
• Leaders and the family learning mentor work with any pupils who find it difficult to follow the school’s behaviour policy. Leaders seek appropriate guidance and support from other professionals when needed. As a result, pupils’ behaviour has improved.
• Pupils enjoy coming to school and attend very regularly. The attendance of pupils is above the national average. Leaders work with families and other professionals to improve the attendance of the small number of pupils with persistent absence.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• In recent years, pupils in key stage 2 have not made good progress in reading and mathematics, including disadvantaged pupils.
• The changes that leaders have made to teaching in mathematics are beginning to have an impact. In key stage 2, teachers provide pupils with more opportunities for problem- solving and reasoning. Pupils’ workbooks show that this is improving the progress that pupils make.
• Leaders are taking steps to raise the profile of reading across the school. Most pupils read with accuracy and fluency. However, pupils’ progress in reading remains lower than in writing for some key stage 2 pupils. This is because some pupils’ reading comprehension skills are not as well developed. This means that they have difficulty in understanding some of what they are reading, particularly when reading challenging texts.
• By the end of Year 1, pupils’ attainment in phonics is in line with the national average. In key stage 1, pupils develop a love of reading and use their phonics knowledge when reading unfamiliar words.
• In key stage 1, pupils make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. The proportion of pupils achieving expected standards and greater depth at the end of key stage 1 in these subjects was above the national average in 2018. Pupils learn to work independently and apply their skills. They are well prepared for the challenges of key stage 2.
• The progress of disadvantaged pupils is lower than that of other pupils in school and other pupils nationally, particularly in reading and mathematics in key stage 2. In reading, some disadvantaged pupils make slower progress, as they do not have regular opportunities to practise with an adult. Additional funding has not helped this group of pupils to catch up.
• Some pupils with SEND make slow progress in their learning. This is because in some classes, the learning activities that teachers plan do not precisely match the needs of some of these pupils.
• Leaders have placed a strong emphasis on developing pupils’ skills in physical education (PE) and to instil in pupils a love of sport and exercise. Pupils take part in a wide range of sports and activities, including football, yoga and archery. They enjoy these opportunities and achieve well.
• Pupils develop their knowledge and skills across the wider curriculum. Pupils’ learning is brought to life by the wide range of trips and visits planned by leaders. For example, Year 6 pupils develop their knowledge of French by taking part in a cultural visit to Paris. In science, younger pupils visited a local nature reserve and took part in an insect hunt. During the inspection, Year 5 pupils were keen to show their Anglo-Saxon model houses that they made as part of their history topic.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• The activities that staff plan to develop children’s learning do not always match children’s interests or stages of development. This slows the progress that some children make.
• Children start the early years with knowledge and skills which are broadly typical for their age. The proportion of children achieving a good level of development at the end of Reception is line with the national average.
• Leaders are developing their systems to check how well children learn, including disadvantaged children and children with SEND. Observations and checks are made when children start school. These are not always accurate enough to give adults a good understanding of children’s levels of knowledge and skill. With training and support from external professionals, the checks that staff make on children’s learning are becoming more precise.
• Most children in Reception settle quickly into routines and enjoy being in school. Some children are still developing their social skills and are learning to follow instructions and to play cooperatively. At breaktimes, older pupils play with younger children, modelling good behaviour and helping them to develop their social skills.
• Staff do not plan enough interesting and engaging opportunities for children to play and learn in the indoor and outdoor classrooms. For example, there are limited opportunities for children to develop their number skills through play and exploration.
• Through daily phonics lessons, children develop their early reading skills. They hold pencils correctly and are beginning to apply their phonics knowledge in their independent writing. The phonics lessons that staff plan are sometimes too difficult for children and this slows the progress that they make.
• Leaders have an accurate and honest view of the improvements needed in the early years. They have arranged additional training for staff. Leaders are also taking steps to improve the classroom environment and to improve the accuracy of staff checks on learning.
• Children develop their physical skills through a range of activities, including using balance bikes and taking part in weekly yoga sessions.
• The environment is safe and secure and welfare requirements are met. Adults have a good understanding of the school’s safeguarding procedures. The school’s medicine policy is followed consistently. Staff have appropriate training, including paediatric first aid.
• Leaders and staff communicate regularly with parents. For example, staff send parents regular electronic updates of children’s learning. Parents share information about what their children have been learning at home. They have regular opportunities to visit the school, including parents’ evenings, assemblies, ‘stay and play’ sessions and phonics workshops.
• There is an appropriate system in place to make sure that children make a smooth and successful start to school. Children visit the setting several times before starting Reception. They become familiar with staff. Leaders identify children with SEND and ensure that these children receive additional support, including working with other professionals.

School details

Unique reference number 119288 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 10053069 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 Community Age range of pupils 4 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 198 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Pauline Mitchell Headteacher Katherine Shuttleworth Telephone number 01772 632724 Website www.strikelaneprimary.co.uk Email address bursar@strikelane.lancs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 12–13 March 2013

Information about this school

• This is a smaller than average-sized primary school.
• The vast majority of pupils are White British.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is in line with the national average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is in line with the national average.
• The headteacher was appointed in September 2018.
• The local authority is providing support to improve teaching, learning and assessment.

Information about this inspection

• The inspectors observed teaching and learning in all classes. Some sessions were observed jointly with the headteacher.
• An inspector met with representatives of the governing body, including the chair of the governing body and with representatives of the local authority.
• The inspectors met with the school council and talked with pupils in classes and around the school.
• An inspector listened to a small number of pupils read from Year 2 and Year 6.
• A range of pupils’ books and tracking records were scrutinised with the headteacher.
• Inspectors spoke with a number of parents to seek their views and took into account 37 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire.
• The inspectors scrutinised a variety of documentation, including the school’s own self-evaluation and development plan, minutes of governing body meetings and records relating to pupils’ behaviour and attendance. A range of documentation regarding safeguarding was also scrutinised.

Inspection team

Elizabeth Stevens, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Claire Cropper Ofsted Inspector Chris Metcalfe Ofsted Inspector