Nine Acres Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve teaching and learning by ensuring that:
  • teachers plan learning that challenges all pupils at an appropriate level, so that their outcomes improve to become outstanding
  • staff use questioning more consistently to develop pupils’ understanding and further extend learning
  • pupils are given more opportunities to write at greater length, so that they can use and apply the writing skills they are learning.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Senior leaders have created a strong and ambitious learning culture in the school. They set high expectations of themselves, staff and pupils alike. Pupils respond well to these expectations and approach their learning with enthusiasm and enjoyment. The progress they make throughout the school in reading, writing and mathematics is at least good.
• Leaders and governors have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. They have developed a detailed plan which provides an effective schedule for monitoring and evaluating all aspects of the school’s work. Improvement planning is broken down systematically into ‘30 day’ stages. This ensures that improvements are checked carefully and focus on those actions which are most effective in improving the school.
• Middle leaders are supported well by the senior leaders. They have a clear sense of direction and understand their roles well. This is having a positive impact on the quality of teaching and learning.
• Leaders have put in place comprehensive and rigorous systems to check the quality of teachers’ practice. This means that staff have access to high-quality and timely training and development if and when it is required.
• Staff are also given opportunities to develop their own work through the training opportunities leaders organise. This includes visits to other schools and opportunities for staff at all levels to share their good practice with each other. As a result of the open culture of support that leaders have generated, teachers are committed to improving their practice.
• The curriculum is broad and balanced and fit for purpose. Pupils enjoy a wide range of activities linked to subjects, as well as an interesting selection of after-school clubs, including, for example, skateboarding. The strong focus on using and applying skills is having a positive impact on pupils’ reading, writing and mathematics, as well as boosting their enjoyment of learning.
• The local authority works effectively with leaders to support school improvement. Their representatives have a clear understanding of the school’s strengths and what needs to be done to further improve the school.
• Leaders ensure that pupil premium funding is used effectively. This includes additional training for teaching assistants so that they have the skills required to meet the needs of the pupils that they work with. Programmes of support are put in place quickly for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds if required.
• The school uses its primary school physical education and sports funding well. Leaders use the funding to enable more pupils to take part in competitive activities. The school successfully delivers a wide range of sport and other activities, including ‘Global Rock’. This provided a positive experience for pupils to perform in front of a large audience in a Portsmouth theatre, building their confidence further and showing them how much they can achieve.
• Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted through an awareness of other religions and staff encouraging them to show respect for the views of others. Pupils showed this in lessons when discussing each other’s work.
• Pupils understand the principles of democracy and the rule of law. This contributes to a strong awareness of fundamental British values, which are also promoted through topic work and frequent assemblies.
• The school ensures that pupils are prepared well for life in modern Britain. Pupils have a clear understanding of the different religions, customs and traditions within the United Kingdom.

Governance of the school

• Governors have a clear vision for the school. They ensure that the management of the headteacher’s performance is incisive, by making the best use of external support and setting ambitious targets for improvement.
• The governing body is skilled, committed and experienced. Governors meet their statutory obligations well. Governors have assessed their own skills and developmental needs to ensure that they are able to play a full part in improving the school further.
• Governors are highly ambitious for the school and its pupils. They challenge school leaders rigorously about pupils’ progress and outcomes.
• Governors visit the school regularly to find out how well pupils are learning. Governors meet with leaders, teachers and other staff on these visits to find out for themselves the impact of leaders’ actions. They pay particular attention to disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils’ progress and hold leaders to account for the outcomes of these pupils.
• Governors are trained well in all aspects of safeguarding. They make sure that they keep up to date with current guidance and regularly monitor this key aspect of the school’s work, so that pupils are safe.
• Governors receive information from school leaders about the performance of teachers. They use this to help them understand leaders’ decisions about teachers’ salary progression.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• There is a strong safeguarding culture in the school. The openness of staff ensures that pupils feel they can approach any member of staff to share their concerns. This ethos feeds into the way in which leaders tackle issues.
• Up-to-date training and detailed school policies that are regularly reviewed and discussed mean that staff and governors know that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Staff have a clear understanding of what to do if they are concerned about a pupil.
• The school works well with outside agencies and with parents to support pupils and their families. Leaders and staff plan together in significant detail to secure safe outcomes for children. Staff know pupils and their families very well. Most parents value the effective support they receive from the school’s leaders.
• Governors ensure that the checks made on staff to ensure their suitability are completed accurately and meet statutory requirements.
• Leaders and governors work together well to complete regular audits and health and safety checks, so that any issues are quickly addressed. When governors visit the school they check that pupils are kept safe by talking to pupils, parents and staff, and following up any concerns which might arise.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection and is consistently good. As a result, the work of current pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, shows that they are making good progress in English and mathematics and across the wider curriculum.
• Displays in classrooms provide pupils with helpful explanations, models and examples of the high expectations staff demand. This ensures that pupils have a good understanding of the calibre of work expected.
• Pupils learn to reflect on their work and identify where they need to improve. Teachers give pupils clear feedback about their work, in line with the school’s policy. Hence, pupils know how to make their work better. Pupils, particularly in key stage 2, can talk in detail about how to improve the quality of their work.
• Learning is well planned and organised, with a good range of resources which pupils can choose from to support them when working on their own. Teachers provide clear explanations and a step-by-step approach for learning. For example, pupils use sound recording devices to help them remember their ideas and write them with greater accuracy.
• The teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they represent) is very effective and supports pupils to become successful readers. Younger pupils decode words with ease, which leads to them becoming increasingly proficient readers as they progress throughout the school. Older pupils read with a good level of fluency and expression.
• Teachers provide a good balance of work in mathematics, which includes calculations and a strong emphasis on reasoning and problem-solving. This allows pupils to consolidate and deepen their understanding. There is a wide range of opportunities for pupils to use their mathematical knowledge and skills in other subjects. For example, pupils ‘excavated’ ammonites and sharks’ teeth and then created a database of their ‘finds’.
• Teachers have improved the way that they guide pupils’ reading in small and large groups. Staff monitor pupils’ progress in reading closely. Any pupils who are at risk of falling behind are given additional support. High-quality class texts are available and are linked to topics. These actions have accelerated the progress made in reading across the school.
• Writing is taught well. Teachers enable pupils to tackle a suitable range of writing styles and to write for a variety of purposes and contexts. Teaching encourages pupils to review and edit their own writing so that they become increasingly confident in this as they get older. However, some pupils do not have enough opportunities to write at length. When this is the case, their progress in writing is not a strong as it could be.
• Teachers know their pupils well and assess their work accurately. In lessons, pupils are given work that usually extends their learning. Although teachers have improved levels of challenge for pupils, there are still occasions when the expectation of what pupils can achieve is too low. This means that the pace of learning slows, because pupils are completing tasks that are too easy.
• The most able pupils are taught well. Teachers present them with tasks which usually make them think hard. As a result, these pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and make strong progress.
• Classrooms are purposeful and calm places for pupils to learn in. Throughout the school, there is a clear focus on learning, because staff have high expectations.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils have a lively, enquiring and purposeful approach to school. They are full of pride when they speak about the role they play themselves in the life of the school.
• Leaders have created a culture where pupils’ welfare is given high priority. Pupils speak positively about how all adults in the school care for them. Consequently, the school’s ethos is friendly and welcoming.
• Pupils are confident and self-assured learners. Their attitudes to learning are positive. Their own resilience and perseverance have a strong impact on the good progress they make.
• Pupils say that they feel safe in school and that bullying is rare. They understand what bullying means and the effect that it can have on others. Pupils are confident that staff can deal with any issues quickly so that they are resolved. They also feel that if they would like to talk about anything, a member of staff will always listen carefully.
• The school offers a range of support from outside agencies. This includes counselling and access to mental health professionals to ensure that vulnerable pupils are well supported and barriers to their learning are reduced.
• Pupils know the benefits of physical activity and participate in a wide variety of sports and clubs in addition to their physical education lessons. Leaders keep under constant review who attends different activities and ensure that pupils have equal access to these opportunities.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Staff manage behaviour well and provide close and effective support to a small number of pupils who sometimes show challenging behaviour. One pupil said, ‘Teachers don’t want to change our personalities, just the way we sometimes behave.’
• Pupils collaborate well in lessons and enjoy their learning. They want to do well and are keen to impress their teachers. Pupils say that behaviour is usually good and most parents agree.
• Pupils are polite and confident when talking about their school. Relationships between pupils and staff are well developed and positive. There are very few distractions during lessons due to poor behaviour.
• The school is an orderly environment. Pupils show respect and respond quickly to instructions from adults. Pupils’ conduct around the school and at breaktimes is good. Pupils play happily together and share equipment and resources well.
• Attendance has improved and is now broadly average. This is due to rigorous systems to monitor absence which are always followed. There are effective links with parents and other agencies to raise awareness of the importance of good attendance when absence becomes a problem.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils’ progress has improved rapidly and is now good. Across the school, current pupils are making stronger progress in reading, mathematics and writing than seen previously. However, progress for pupils is more rapid in reading and mathematics than in writing.
• Disadvantaged pupils make rapid progress across all phases of the school. This is confirmed by the school’s current assessment information and work in pupils’ books. Consequently, there has been an improvement in the proportions of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standards for their age in all year groups.
• Leaders have ensured that pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress. Sometimes these pupils make exceptional progress as a consequence of the well-targeted support they are receiving.
• Pupils enjoy reading and read well for their age. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics check is above the national figure and has been for the last two years.
• The most able pupils make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics, as well as in other subjects. Teachers know pupils well. They plan work that takes into account pupils’ different abilities. This enables most-able pupils to make good progress and achieve well.
• The standard of pupils’ writing has improved noticeably since the last inspection. However, pupils have too few opportunities to write extended pieces of work that challenge them to write using complex sentences in a sustained and coherent manner. .

Early years provision Outstanding

• The early years provision is exceptionally well led and managed. Leaders of the early years are determinedly focused on improving outcomes for all children. Staff know the children very well. Information shared and gathered from home visits before children start school is used exceptionally well, so that their progress is outstanding from the moment they join the school.
• The majority of children start in Reception with levels of knowledge and skills well below those typical for their age. Adults keep careful records of what children can do through their ‘learning journeys’. They use this information to plan activities that promote excellent progress.
• Tasks are very well planned across all areas of learning within the early years. There is a highly effective balance between work that is led by adults and opportunities for children to explore ideas for themselves.
• Additional funding is used very well to provide additional support for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. In particular, teaching assistants are highly effective in ensuring very rapid progress.
• The behaviour of children is outstanding. Children live up to the very high expectations placed on them by staff. They behave extremely well in lessons and in the outside area. They are highly adept at sharing and taking turns and this leads to a learning environment that children thoroughly enjoy.
• Children play and cooperate together well. They are very thoughtful of each other in the outside space. For example, inspectors observed children helping each other continuously and without prompting to reposition cones in a number activity that involved knocking down cones.
• Parents contribute to the initial assessments of children’s capabilities and are actively involved with their child’s education from this point forwards. Staff encourage parents to be involved with their children’s education at home by providing workshops where they inform parents of good practice. Parents are very positive about their children’s start to school. One parent commented, ‘The early years is great.’
• Children are kept safe and are cared for very well in the early years. They say that they feel safe. They have a good understanding of what it means to be kind to others. Staff work very well with a range of other providers and agencies to promote the welfare of children. For example, staff work very closely with the National Health Service to ensure that pupils who need additional support with their speech and language are given specialist-led sessions.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 118164 Isle of Wight 10032843 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 Maintained 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 359 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Chris Douglass Elizabeth Dyer 01983522984

www.nineacrespri.iow.sch.uk Office@nineacrespri.iow.sch.uk

Date of previous inspection 10–11 June 2015

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• Nine Acres Primary School is larger than the average-sized primary school.
• A number of leaders and other staff have joined the school recently and since the last inspection.
• The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is significantly higher than average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is average, although the proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan is higher than average.
• The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ achievement in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• The inspectors observed pupils’ learning in all classrooms, including some joint observations with the headteacher and deputy headteacher. In addition, inspectors made short visits to observe learning at other times, to review the teaching of phonics and the wider curriculum.
• Inspectors looked at pupils’ work from all year groups and in different subjects, both during lessons and through a separate work scrutiny.
• Meetings were held with pupils to discuss their learning and gather their views about the school, the curriculum, behaviour and safety. Inspectors listened to pupils read.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and other members of staff with leadership responsibility. Discussions were held with three members of the governing body, as well as a representative of the local authority.
• Inspectors looked at a wide range of documents. These included the school’s self-evaluation, school improvement planning, information about pupils’ learning and progress, and the school’s own checks on the quality of teaching.
• Inspectors reviewed safeguarding policies and procedures, including records of checks on the suitability of staff. Behaviour and attendance records were also reviewed.
• Inspectors took account of 40 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, as well as 35 free-text replies. The school’s own surveys of the views of parents and carers was also considered. Inspectors considered an email and other communications received from parents. Inspectors also spoke with parents and carers at the end of the school day.

Inspection team

Richard Blackmore, lead inspector Penny Orme Krista Dawkins

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector