St Anne's (Stanley) Junior Mixed and Infant School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by making sure that subject leaders evaluate the actions they take in terms of the difference these actions make to pupils’ achievement.
• Secure consistently good progress for pupils with lower ability by making sure that teachers:
  • accurately assess what these pupils already know
  • set work, providing support where necessary, that builds on these pupils’ knowledge, skills and understanding.
• Provide opportunities for children in the early years, especially the most able, to think more deeply by making sure that staff systematically ask questions that encourage them to develop their language and reasoning skills.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Senior leaders know their school well. They have worked tirelessly since the last inspection to secure the improvements needed. As a result, pupils are now making strong progress across a range of subjects.
• The headteacher and her deputy are capable and dynamic. Their clear vision has produced a staff team whose members are all firmly focused on providing the best for their pupils. Relationships between staff at all levels are warm and supportive and this creates an atmosphere in which pupils thrive, both academically and socially.
• Leaders follow robust systems to check on the performance of teachers. They set them targets linked to pupils’ achievement and the teachers’ standards. They evaluate how well teachers are performing by monitoring their work and recommending next steps, including training as required. The systems are effective and this fact is borne out by the good quality of teaching in the school. Staff report that they feel well supported in the continuing professional development that is part of this process.
• The school has an excellent curriculum. It is suitably broad and balanced and caters well for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils also have a good understanding of fundamental British values. A carefully planned programme of lessons and assemblies, as well as presentations by visiting speakers, such as police officers, enables pupils to understand, for example, other faiths and beliefs and the importance of the rule of law.
• Leaders provide an exciting selection of after-school and lunchtime clubs for pupils. These include interests such as drama and film clubs. All of these contribute positively to the good overall development that pupils experience in their time in the school.
• Senior leaders make effective use of the pupil premium funding and are removing barriers to achievement for eligible pupils. They provide support for their learning by employing extra staff and have worked successfully at improving their attendance. As a result, this group of pupils is making good progress.
• School leaders use funding from the physical education and sports premium well. A specialist sports coach models the teaching of physical education, which is developing teachers’ confidence and skills effectively. Pupils increasingly take part in a range of sports, including dodgeball and football, and have opportunities to compete against other schools.
• The special educational needs coordinator leads and manages her area of responsibility effectively. She identifies pupils’ needs promptly and oversees the provision of a wide range of support and interventions, which includes the deployment of teaching assistants and the distribution of equipment as required. She uses the available funding well to secure good progress for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• The vast majority of parents hold the school in high regard. They appreciate the good communication that the school has with them. Some parents told inspectors that they had chosen to move their children to the school from other local schools because of its good reputation. Parents made many positive comments about the school, describing it as, for instance, ‘a wonderful school with a caring, inclusive ethos’.
• The local authority has provided effective support to help the school to achieve improvements since the last inspection. The link adviser has an accurate view of the current strengths of the school and of which areas leaders need to work on next. As a result, she is now in a position to return to a more ‘light touch’ level of continuing support and challenge.
• Since the last inspection, senior leaders have provided training for subject leaders to improve their performance. As a result, they now know their subjects well and carry out a programme of regular monitoring activities to keep a check on quality. However, the evaluations of their action plans lack detail about the impact that the actions are having on pupils’ achievement.

Governance of the school

• Governors have benefited from the external review of governance that took place after the previous inspection. As a result, they have sharpened their knowledge and practice and have a much more accurate view of the school than before.
• Governors have received a variety of training to hone their skills, including all essential safeguarding training and courses on how to analyse and challenge the school’s assessment information.
• Governors have a useful range of skills following their reconstitution since the last inspection, including finance and business skills, education and experience in the police and the clergy.
• Governors now challenge leaders effectively and strongly, asking questions ranging from pupils’ performance to the efficient use of the budget.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The systems and procedures for reporting concerns are thorough. Records are detailed and leaders take prompt action, including referring to social services where necessary. Cases with social services are followed up as required.
• Staff are well trained and vigilant. They know the signs of abuse and what to do if they have concerns. There is a very tangible sense of a strong safeguarding culture, which is evidenced by the level or care that staff demonstrate towards pupils and the clear trust that pupils have in the adults who look after them.
• Parents are confident in the safety of their children at school and value the effective channels of communication that the school provides.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ work and behaviour. Consequently, pupils concentrate well and there is little loss of learning time. This represents good improvement since the last inspection, which has come about because leaders monitor teaching well and have been clear in informing teachers about how they can develop.
• There are excellent relationships between teachers and pupils. Behaviour is very good and attitudes to learning are positive. Teachers manage pupils’ behaviour well, using whole-school systems such as the ‘ladder of success’, where pupils can move their names up the ladder when they demonstrate good behaviour and attitudes to learning. There are a few occasions when a small number of pupils in some classes lose their concentration, but teachers are quick to intervene and bring them back on task.
• Teachers have good subject knowledge and plan lessons that ensure that a large majority of children are constantly interested and on task. They regularly show that they can use questioning to deepen pupils’ thinking, often asking them successfully for justification for responses they have given. A large majority of pupils show enjoyment and a high level of interest in their work.
• Leaders have taken steps that are enabling most-able pupils to make good progress. These include creating high-ability sets in English and mathematics from Year 4 to Year 6. In these sets, pupils receive work that stretches them and provides appropriate challenge. For example, in a Year 6 English lesson for a higher-ability set, pupils learned about more complex punctuation, such as semi-colons and colons. The most able were asked to give alternatives to those suggested and to explain why, thus deepening their understanding well.
• The most able pupils read fluently and with good comprehension. They are able to predict and infer and they read widely. Less-able pupils read with fluency that is appropriate to their development. Pupils enjoy reading, and leaders have developed pupils’ enjoyment and skills by providing a range of new and inviting reading books and organising more effective use of the school’s library.
• In other classes, teachers have higher expectations of the most able than the rest and, in most cases, provide work that challenges them. In Year 3, for instance, most-able pupils are capable of constructing sentences that are designed to engage the reader, such as ‘…but who says something small can’t be cool?’ in reference to an artefact seen on a visit to a museum.
• Teachers make effective use of their teaching assistants, deploying them mostly, though not exclusively, to support pupils who need to catch up or who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. As a result, these pupils make good progress.
• Teachers use the school’s marking and feedback policy well. Consequently, most pupils are clear about how to improve their work, which contributes to the good progress that is evident among the current cohorts.
• Although teachers mainly give the most able pupils in key stage 1 writing tasks that challenge them, sometimes they limit their opportunities to make their own decisions about their work, because they are constrained by the writing spaces provided on the resource sheets. On these occasions, most-able pupils do not make the progress of which they are capable.
• There are some occasions in mathematics work, mainly with lower-ability pupils in key stage 2, when, in their keenness to provide challenging work, teachers provide work that is too hard. This therefore limits the progress these pupils make.
• Pupils make good use of their writing skills across the curriculum, using them to create reports about people in the Stone Age in history or investigations in science. Pupils use their mathematical skills less frequently, but they use them for science investigations, when they measure timings or forces in Newtons, for example.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils feel safe in school and know that there is always an adult to turn to if they have any concerns. Thanks to the constant reminders and learning opportunities that staff provide, pupils are well aware of the risks presented by the internet and they know how to stay safe.
• Pupils talk knowledgeably about aspects of fundamental British values. They can, for instance, compare and contrast rules of games with laws of the land. They learn to respect differences in people’s backgrounds and faiths through a carefully planned programme of lessons, visits to school by speakers and assemblies.
• Apart from rare lapses in attention in class, pupils demonstrate very good attitudes to learning, which show that they value their education, and they enjoy coming to school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Conduct around the school is very good. Pupils move about in an orderly way and they respond well to instructions by adults. They move in and out of class without disruption and very little learning time is lost as a result. In assembly, they listen attentively and participate well in singing hymns without the need for prompting by adults. Pupils are polite and well mannered.
• The ‘ladder of success’ is one of a number of effective tools that teachers use to ensure good behaviour in classrooms. Disruptive behaviour is very rare.
• Pupils understand what racist or homophobic bullying is but say that incidents are rare. They say that adults manage any kind of conflict swiftly and effectively.
• Overall absence and persistent absence percentages are lower than average. While absence figures for pupils eligible for pupil premium funding and for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are above average, they have been falling over the last three years. School leaders are working hard to continue this trend.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Outcomes for pupils have been improving well since the previous inspection. The current year groups are making strong progress from their various starting points in English and mathematics. For example, in Year 3 mathematics, pupils begin the year by consolidating their knowledge of rounding and move quickly to solving multi-step word problems. In Year 1 writing, pupils quickly learn to link sentences with ‘and’, with most-able pupils writing extended pieces and beginning their sentences with adverbial phrases. This good progress is because teaching has improved, owing to the effectiveness of leaders’ actions.
• Pupils also make good progress across a range of other subjects. In Year 5 science, for example, they can write explanations for why various forces act in the way they do. In Year 3 history, they show increasing understanding about the historical features of the Stone Age.
• The published assessment information for English and mathematics for 2016 indicates that the proportions of pupils in key stage 1 and key stage 2 whose overall attainment was at the expected standard were at or above national averages. This shows that the majority of pupils have the necessary skills to move on to the next stage of their education.
• School leaders have recognised the need to improve the percentages of pupils who achieve greater depth in key stage 1 and the high standard in key stage 2. They anticipate improvements in these figures, based on the current progress of most-able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged. This has come about because of the strategies they have put in place to ensure that they receive a good level of challenge in their work.
• School leaders have made effective use of pupil premium funding. Recently published assessment information for English and mathematics showed that progress for pupils who are disadvantaged was comparable to others nationally by the time they reach Year 6. The current pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding are making good progress across the school.
• Recent published assessment information shows that the overall attainment of disadvantaged pupils in English and mathematics across both key stages was broadly in line with national averages for those reaching the expected standard.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are making good progress. Leaders organise provision for these pupils well, identify needs promptly and provide effective support.
• The proportion of pupils in Year 1 who achieve the expected standard in the phonics screening check has increased over time. Recent published figures show that a greater percentage than seen nationally achieved the standard in 2016. The teaching of phonics in the current Year 1 is strong and pupils are making rapid progress.

Early years provision Good

• The leadership and management of the early years have improved since the last inspection. The early years leader now analyses the achievement of different groups of children more accurately in order to plan for improvement. As a result, the current children, including those who are disadvantaged, are making good progress from their various starting points.
• Children start their time in the early years with knowledge and skills that are broadly below typical for their age and stage of development. Most children make good progress from their starting points and, by the end of Reception, about three quarters have usually achieved a good level of development and are ready for Year 1.
• In 2016, provisional results indicate that the proportion of children achieving a good level of development dropped. However, this still represents good progress from their lower than usual starting points.
• The local authority provided effective support to secure the recommended improvements after the previous inspection. As a result, staff have improved the provision to support children’s independent learning.
• Teachers plan children’s learning activities well. The best activities encourage children to think hard. For example, in a Reception class, all the children drew a snowman each and measured his height in buttons. The teacher then used the drawings to give the children the opportunity to reason about comparative heights and to estimate how tall different snowmen were. Staff assess and record what children can say or do, though more effectively in Reception than in Nursery. As a consequence, teachers are able to plan further activities that meet the children’s needs well.
• There are times when staff miss opportunities to develop children’s thinking more deeply, especially with the most able children. This is because they do not give enough time for children to respond to questions, or do not ask probing questions in response to children’s comments or actions that allow children to develop reasoning skills. For example, when some Reception children were playing in the outdoor mud kitchen, the questions asked merely required a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer, rather than developing, for instance, mathematical or language skills.
• Staff teach the children phonics every day. It is evident that children are now using the knowledge they are gaining to good effect in writing, which indicates good progress.
• The environment, both inside and outside, presents opportunities for children to develop language and mathematical skills. There are labels and signs to reinforce reading and there are materials for children to write and experiment with number.
• There are warm and caring relationships in the early years setting. Children show, through their behaviour, that they feel happy and safe. Staff have established clear routines that are easy for children to follow. Sometimes, however, adults can be too quick to help children, for instance with some creative activities, rather than letting them try to develop their independence.
• Safeguarding is effective and all staff are well trained and knowledgeable about how to keep children safe. There are no breaches of statutory welfare requirements.
• There are good relationships with parents. Those who spoke to inspectors expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the level of communication between early years staff and parents regarding their children’s progress.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 104622 Liverpool 10019784 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Voluntary aided 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 397 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Emma Williams Julie Simons 0151 228 1506 www.st-anne-stanley-school.co.uk Stanley-ao@st-annesstanley.liverpool.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 19–20 November 2014

Information about this school

• The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information about the school’s curriculum and some details about the use of pupil premium funding on its website. Senior leaders are aware of these issues and have taken action to address them.
• The school is larger than most primary schools.
• 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 below the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who are supported through pupil premium funding is above the national average.
• The percentage of pupils from minority ethnic groups is below the national average. The percentage of pupils who speak English as an additional language is also below the national average.
• Early years provision is part time for Nursery children and full time for Reception children.
• 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 most classes, covering all year groups. One of these was a joint observation between the headteacher and the lead inspector. The headteacher was also present at inspector 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, behaviour logs and records connected with the safeguarding of children.
• Inspectors had discussions with various stakeholders, including the headteacher and deputy headteacher, other members of staff, governors, a representative from the local authority, parents and pupils.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read and analysed pupils’ writing and mathematics, as well as their work in other subjects. They also looked at the work of children in the early years.
• The lead inspector evaluated 18 responses received through ‘Parent View’ (the online survey) and 100 responses to the online pupil questionnaire. There were no other survey responses.
• The school operates a daily breakfast club. This provision was included in the inspection.

Inspection team

Mark Quinn, lead inspector Liz Kelly Mavis Smith

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector