Hook Junior School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Boost the achievement of the few pupils who have fallen behind in writing so that they catch up rapidly.
• Further improve disadvantaged pupils’ attendance so that it is as high as that of other pupils.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

• The headteacher’s inspirational leadership has instilled in staff high expectations for all aspects of school life. She has developed a highly inclusive culture where everyone wants to do their best for all pupils. Relationships are at the core of the success of the school, with staff working exceptionally well together. As a result, all leaders, including governors, share a clear vision for a continually improving school with high aspirations for all pupils.
• Leaders know their school extremely well. They have accurate and detailed self-evaluation processes and precisely target areas to develop. They measure success accurately and try different strategies if improvement is not rapid enough. Leaders have successfully addressed areas identified as needing to improve at the last inspection. For example, the most able pupils are now routinely challenged to reach higher standards.
• Management of staff performance is highly effective and teachers are held securely to account for the progress of pupils. Staff are very reflective and benefit from strong support from their line managers. Staff set themselves high standards and are unfailing in their commitment to improve pupils’ progress, especially of disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. High-quality and extensive training has led to improved teaching and, consequently, better outcomes for pupils. Newly qualified teachers are particularly well supported.
• The pupil premium grant for improving the progress of disadvantaged pupils is used extremely well. Leaders and governors regularly and effectively review the impact of spending. Leaders understand pupils’ needs and have identified many uses for the funding, for example providing specialised speech and language support to successfully improve pupils’ communication skills. Disadvantaged pupils currently in the school make rapid progress, in some cases at a greater rate than their peers.
• Middle leaders’ skills have been developed exceptionally well. All leaders thoroughly evaluate the areas they lead and ensure that any aspects which need further development are improved swiftly. Other staff have a high degree of trust and respect for the leaders of the school, as do parents.
• Leaders ensure that the extra funding for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities provides what is needed for these pupils to achieve very well. For example, specialised resources to support pupils’ emotional literacy have an exceptionally positive effect.
• Leaders have developed a highly engaging curriculum that is broad and balanced. The wider curriculum builds progressively on pupils’ well-developed literacy and numeracy skills. The school’s website and workshops for parents enable them to be fully involved in understanding the curriculum and how they can support their child’s learning at home. Pupils value their curriculum and explained their enjoyment in, for example, topic work on volcanoes and Pompeii. Pupils’ interest is developed fully through trips and visits. For example, Year 3 pupils’ understanding of the prehistoric period was deepened through a visit to the Stonehenge heritage site.
• Pupils are prepared very well for life in modern Britain. Fundamental British values of democracy, tolerance and respect are woven through the curriculum extremely effectively. For example, in singing practice, pupils learned about the message in a Jewish song, and then all performed it with confidence.
• Extra-curricular opportunities are extensive and inspire pupils, adding to their spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding still further. These include a variety of sports, language, arts and music clubs. The ‘culture club’ provides pupils with opportunities to explore different nationalities, including similarities and differences in diets and lifestyles. Leaders extensively analyse attendance at extra-curricular opportunities. They successfully encourage disadvantaged pupils to enrich their learning by attending clubs.
• Leaders ensure that the sports premium is spent well. Specialist coaches in a variety of sports develop pupils’ skills very effectively. Pupils’ participation in inter-school sporting competitions has led to many developing higher ambitions for their individual achievement in particular sports.
• The local authority has identified accurately considerable strengths in leadership at all levels in the school. School leaders provide leadership support for other schools within the authority.

Governance of the school

• Governors are highly skilled and knowledgeable. They have a comprehensive training programme to gain knowledge and skills to support and challenge the school effectively.
• Governors know the school well. They understand the strengths and areas for further development in the school and monitor improvements closely. They rigorously challenge leaders by asking searching questions.
• They visit the school regularly to understand school processes and check what leaders are telling them for themselves. For example, recent visits helped governors, working in partnership with school leaders, understand how leaders check the validity of teachers’ assessments of pupils.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders have ensured that all safeguarding processes are fit for purpose. Safeguarding records are meticulously monitored and meet statutory requirements. For example, checks on adults new to the school are comprehensive and thorough. The culture of safeguarding permeates the school. Staff are well trained and know how to keep their pupils safe, for example from the risks of extremism and radicalisation.
• Pupils know how to keep themselves safe, such as when using computers and the internet. Parents say that their children are safe and well cared for at school.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is very effective. Teachers have high expectations of each pupil, whatever their ability. They organise their lessons so that they focus on accelerating pupils’ learning so they make sustained and rapid progress.
• Teachers know their pupils exceptionally well. Teachers’ excellent questions help them to probe deeply and find out what pupils know and can do. Teachers expect pupils to explain and think further. They skilfully guide pupils to work things out for themselves. As a result of this highly effective questioning, pupils are extremely articulate and make rapid progress.
• When writing, pupils eagerly set out to find errors and correct them using resources available or through peer discussion. After editing work, they redraft their response so that it is of a higher quality. As a result, all pupils, including those who need to catch up, make rapid progress.
• Teachers have developed a learning environment that supports pupils to explore their understanding and misconceptions. Pupils readily attempt challenging work and are not afraid to be wrong. Pupils remarked, ‘We learn more when we get things wrong as we have to then work out how to get it right.’
• The teaching of mathematics is highly effective. Pupils explore mathematical ideas and deepen their understanding. Teachers encourage pupils to talk through problems so that they can explain how to solve them. As a result, pupils’ written mathematical solutions to problems show excellent applications of their skills.
• Reading is taught very well. Pupils develop their comprehension skills highly effectively. They are able to talk about the purpose of texts with insight. Reward schemes effectively encourage frequent reading at school and home. Consequently, pupils are making excellent progress in reading.
• Teachers have developed pupils’ writing skills well. The most able pupils write with maturity, fully engaging the reader. Typically, pupils use a wide range of sentence structures and ambitious vocabulary. Consequently, the vast majority of pupils make excellent progress in writing. However, a small number of pupils in Year 5 are writing less well than others in the school.
• The school makes effective use of homework to support pupils’ learning well. Pupils report positively about homework activities and eagerly engage with checking and feedback sessions. Parents agreed overall that homework has a positive effect on pupils’ progress.
• Leaders and teachers make sure that disadvantaged pupils receive appropriate extra support. Clear monitoring in lessons quickly identifies any pupil’s misconceptions. Additional support helps pupils catch up rapidly. As a result, disadvantaged pupils do as well as their peers.
• Leaders have ensured that there is effective, individualised support for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Accurate analysis of their progress enables teachers to provide exactly the right experiences to help pupils to learn very well. As a result, pupils make strong progress.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• Pupils develop exceptionally positive attitudes to learning. They are keen to do well and want to make a positive contribution to the life of the school and to the wider community. For example, during assembly, pupils readily made pledges to save the earth’s resources.
• Pupils relish the opportunity to lead others. Leaders ensure that all groups of pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, develop very strong leadership skills by taking on roles of responsibility. School councillors are actively involved in improving their school, for example by suggesting ways to make school lunches healthier. One Year 4 pupil explained that her confidence had grown as a result of supporting a younger pupil to use a computer.
• Pupils report zero tolerance towards bullying. Pupils are confident that any concern will be resolved quickly by an adult in the school. They feel very well looked after.
• Pastoral care is exceptional. Pupils’ individual needs are very well catered for. Support for vulnerable pupils is particularly strong. Specific programmes, including yoga and play therapies, help build the self-esteem of these pupils especially well.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.
• Pupils are courteous and unfailingly polite. Their conduct around the school and in lessons is exemplary. Pupils are respectful of each other’s views and opinions. Low-level disruption in class is extremely rare.
• Teachers have high expectations of behaviour and consistently reward pupils. Consequently, pupils are self-disciplined and behave well. Parents and teachers, responding to the online questionnaire, all agree that pupils are well behaved.
• The attendance of pupils overall is consistently above the national average, and has improved still further this year. Similarly, very few pupils are persistently absent. The attendance of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities has improved rapidly as a result of leaders’ excellent work with these pupils and their families. Disadvantaged pupils’ attendance, while improving, has not yet reached the level of their peers.

Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

• Pupils learn exceptionally well. They have exceedingly high expectations of themselves and, consequently, are eager to make as much progress as possible. Pupils are rightly proud of their achievements and keen to demonstrate their learning in their work. Consequently, in this highly ambitious learning environment, current pupils make excellent progress in all subject areas and achieve highly.
• Evidence in books and observations show that disadvantaged pupils make as much, and sometimes better, progress as their peers. The school’s own performance information also shows this.
• The most able pupils make especially strong progress from their starting points. They produce work of a very high standard in Year 6 in particular. This is because teachers have high expectations of them. Pupils benefit from rich and interesting experiences in the curriculum so they draw on expressive words to make their writing exceptionally lively and interesting.
• Last year, a small number of pupils, some who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, did not make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. However, current pupils, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, are making accelerated progress. This is because teachers have identified and met their needs precisely.
• Pupils make rapid progress in mathematics and achieve highly. Leaders have effectively researched and implemented best practice from other schools, both locally and in other countries. Pupils have excellent numeracy skills and excitedly tackle challenging problems with confidence, often in real-life contexts. Pupils develop highly effective reading skills, including fluency and comprehension. Pupils read a variety of books, many accessing difficult texts for their age. Pupils read fluently, self-correcting using phonics skills.
• Pupils write with precision and meaning because they use a wide range of vocabulary and grammatical techniques. Pupils’ speaking skills are flourishing and they are highly articulate. They use rich discussion to explore their thinking excitedly, prior to writing down their responses. The few pupils who write less well than others in Year 5 are catching up.
• Pupils make excellent progress across the whole curriculum. Leaders track this progress very effectively. Pupils have high standards of engagement and skills in, for example, science, music and art. They are particularly proud when their artwork is put on display around the school.
• Pupils are prepared for their transition to secondary school exceptionally well. Pupils have learned self-correcting editing skills, enabling them to independently evaluate their work. Pupils’ high levels of communication and writing skills, together with the ability to apply their knowledge to solve problems, make them capable and confident learners who are prepared well for their next stages in education.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 116045 Hampshire 10033070 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 Junior School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Community 7 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 388 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Darren Myles Lynn Martin 01256 762 468 www.hook-jun.hants.sch.uk/ adminoffice@hook-jun.hants.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 10 January 2013

Information about this school

• Hook Junior School is larger than the average-sized school.
• Most pupils are of White British heritage.
• The number of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is below average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is well below the national average.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainments and progress.

Information about this inspection

• Year 3 pupils were on a trip to Stonehenge on the second day of this inspection.
• Inspectors observed teaching and learning in over 30 lessons and an assembly. Many observations were undertaken jointly with the headteacher or the senior leadership team.
• Inspectors carried out a scrutiny of disadvantaged and other pupils’ work across year groups and subjects.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy and assistant headteacher, special educational needs and/or disabilities coordinator, middle leaders and newly qualified teachers. Inspectors also considered responses from 22 members of staff.
• The lead inspector met with the chair and vice-chair of governors and held a telephone conversation with a local authority representative.
• Inspectors considered 69 responses from the online parent questionnaire and spoke with a number of parents at the school gate.
• Inspectors met with four groups of pupils from across the age range and talked to pupils in lessons. Inspectors observed pupils at break and lunchtime.
• Inspectors looked at a number of documents including the school’s self-evaluation, the school’s plans for improvement, analysis of the school’s performance data, information on the progress of particular pupil groups, information relating to the attendance of pupils, safeguarding records, the single central record and minutes from governors’ meetings.

Inspection team

Susan Child, lead inspector Steph Fawdry Leah Goulding Emma Palastanga Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector