Burford Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by:
  • continuing to support subject leaders to implement their recent training
  • offering further training to the local governing body
  • refining school improvement planning to enable governors to measure the effectiveness of leaders and hold them to account for continued improvements.
• Boost pupil outcomes by:
  • building on the success of interventions to adapt teaching in order to improve progress in English and mathematics for disadvantaged pupils and those who have SEN and/or disabilities
  • raising the level of challenge so that more pupils achieve the higher standard by the end of Year 6 than in the past, particularly in mathematics
  • ensuring that teaching improves pupils’ depth of knowledge and skills development in science and the wider curriculum.
• Enhance and refine communication with parents and carers to equip them with a greater understanding of the support on offer underpinning the progress their children make.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Leaders have improved standards since the school joined the multi-academy trust. Pupils have made rapid improvements to the quality of their extended writing. As a result, provisional outcomes in the 2018 key stage 2 national tests indicate that pupils’ attainment in writing is above the national average. Similarly, outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 1 are very strong. However, by the end of key stage 2, fewer pupils achieve the higher standard in reading and mathematics.
• The multi-academy trust has been very effective in supporting school improvement over the past three years. Consultants from ODST have worked with the headteacher to address areas of underperformance and raise standards. They have successfully helped the headteacher to recruit new staff, improve teaching in English and mathematics and to enrich provision in early years.
• Staff are overwhelmingly supportive of the headteacher and they value the training the multi-academy trust offers. Leaders engage well with a local partnership of schools to support the verification of standards and further staff training. Nearly all staff who responded to the Ofsted survey think that the school is well led and managed. They believe that leaders and governors take staff’s well-being into account and they feel well supported by the school.
• Staff monitor pupils’ progress effectively and use regular assessment information to ensure that appropriate extra support is directed to the right place. As a result, pupils’ outcomes have improved.
• Leaders have ensured that pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted very well. The school’s values underpin learning, and assemblies are used well to promote teamwork and reflection, and to celebrate success.
• Leaders have made sure that a wide range of subjects are taught throughout the school and that the curriculum enthuses and motivates pupils. However, standards in science and the wider curriculum are not yet as consistently high as they are in English and mathematics.
• Leaders ensure that teaching assistants are well deployed and work as a team to provide appropriate support to pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities. A range of individually targeted interventions have enabled these pupils to make gains in their reading and mathematics skills. However, better planning is needed to embed these improvements over time and accelerate the progress made by these pupils so that they can catch up with their peers.
• Appropriate plans are in place to ensure that good use is made of the additional funding that the school receives to support disadvantaged pupils. Leaders review this funding regularly to ensure that it helps pupils to achieve their full potential.
• Leaders and governors have a variety of ways to share information with parents. Most parents reported being happy with the school and would recommend it. However, a significant minority who spoke with the inspector, or who responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, were frustrated with what they felt to be a lack of communication with them regarding their child’s progress and the day-to-day running of the school.

Governance of the school

• The chair of governors and some members of the local governing body have been in post for some time, know the school well and fulfil their responsibilities effectively. However, there has been some recent turbulence to the local governing body and several governors are relatively new to their roles. While they bring a wide range of valuable skills to the school, further training is required to support them in their roles. ODST is committed to delivering this training and has plans in place.
• The format of the school’s improvement planning is under review. Leaders intend to provide more detail and specific, measurable short- and long-term targets in these plans. This will enable governors to challenge more effectively, support school improvement and aid better communication with parents.
• Governors acknowledge that, currently, the school’s website does not include all of the required information about the curriculum and most up-to-date policies and are taking steps to address this.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Well-managed systems and an effective team approach involving leaders, teachers and office staff ensure that all pupils are kept safe.
• There is a robust system in place to check adults’ suitability to work with children and staff qualifications. Regular, high-quality training for all staff is provided by the school on safeguarding matters, and staff know how to react if they have any concerns about a child’s welfare.
• Clear and comprehensive record-keeping supports work with external agencies, where appropriate, to help vulnerable pupils and their families.
• Leaders carry out detailed risk assessments and checks on all aspects of health and safety. Staff are appropriately qualified in first aid.
• The school’s curriculum includes suitable opportunities for pupils to learn about different aspects of safety, including when online.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Recent improvements in teaching and learning have led to better outcomes. In English and mathematics lessons, teachers typically use questioning effectively to motivate pupils and carefully check their understanding. School records and pupils’ books demonstrate how pupils are building on their previous learning to improve their knowledge and skills over time.
• Leaders have used effective strategies to improve teaching in mathematics. Staff now have strong subject knowledge. Most pupils can apply their skills confidently when reasoning and solving problems. This is having a positive impact on pupils’ progress across the school.
• Improved teaching in English and mathematics enables most pupils to make strong progress in these subjects. However, assessment is not always used effectively enough to refine teaching so that the most able pupils are stretched sufficiently to achieve at the higher standard.
• Teachers and teaching assistants typically work well together. Additional adults are deployed wisely to help disadvantaged pupils and those who have SEN and/or disabilities to play an active role in lessons. However, teachers need to be more consistent in making effective use of assessment information, and the gains these pupils have made in reading and mathematics interventions, to set higher expectations.
• Bespoke training has supported improvements in teachers’ subject knowledge and use of assessment in English and mathematics. Teachers have outline curriculum planning for science, the arts and humanities in place. However, staff are not always sufficiently well equipped to teach pupils the knowledge and skills that they need to understand these subjects in depth. As a result, pupils’ achievement in science and the wider curriculum is inconsistent across the school.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils say that they feel safe and secure in school, and they are. They can confidently recall how to keep themselves safe, including when accessing the internet.
• Pupils show respect for one another and for adults in the school. They are aware of the need for rules and consequences. Pupils say that there is very little bullying of any kind, and they are confident that adults will always listen and intervene to put a stop to any unkind behaviour.
• Pupils speak with confidence about different faiths and cultures; they have a keen sense of equalities and their work demonstrates a deep understanding of British values. Consequently, pupils develop self-confidence, a sense of community and are well prepared for life in diverse modern Britain.
• The sports premium funding is used effectively so that pupils have increased access to a range of sporting activities and events, such as swimming and fitness equipment in the playground and on the school field. This is particularly valued by both parents and pupils and supports pupils well in learning how to keep themselves fit and healthy. However, some parents expressed a desire for a wider range of sporting opportunities to be available.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. They conduct themselves well around school, respond well to instructions and are friendly, polite and courteous.
• There is a strong sense of community in Burford Primary School. Older pupils enthusiastically support younger ones to play with the sports and climbing equipment during break and lunchtimes. Pupils are proud to support the school community by participating in the school council.
• Pupils are very clear on what is expected of them and the associated rewards for achievement and the sanctions for any inappropriate behaviour. Disruptions to lessons are rare, and when they do occur, staff are quick to resolve any issues. The consequences of any poor behaviour are well known and fairly applied.
• Overall attendance improved last year and is now in line with national figures. Leaders took positive steps to tackle absence and promote the value of good attendance. By working closely with parents and external agencies, the school has secured improvement.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Across the school, the rate of pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics has improved over the last three years and is now good. The small number of pupils in each year group means that each pupil’s performance has a marked impact on the school’s overall figures.
• A high proportion of pupils achieve and exceed age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 1. By the end of key stage 2, pupils attain in line with the national average in reading and mathematics, and standards in writing are high. However, fewer achieve the higher standard in mathematics.
• Pupils’ books demonstrate that they are confident writers who can use creative vocabulary well and write appropriately for an audience. Pupils are supported to develop grammatical skills and use them appropriately for the genre that they are adopting. Spelling is usually accurate and, where it is not, pupils apply their phonics skills.
• Progress in mathematics has not been strong in the past. Leaders have made good use of training to support improvements to teaching. Teachers provide regular opportunities for pupils to develop problem-solving and verbal-reasoning skills, sometimes effectively in subjects other than mathematics. However, some pupils’ progress is not as strong as it could be because they are unsure about strategies they could use to solve a problem or demonstrate their reasoning.
• The teaching of phonics in the early years and Year 1 has improved and is good. The proportion of pupils who achieved the expected standard in the phonics screening check at the end of Year 1 over the last two years has been in line with the national average. In lessons, older pupils are supported to read with confidence and they analyse texts well. An example of this was seen during a Year 5/6 lesson when pupils enthusiastically discussed their opinions of a script to a play, inferring characters’ motives and feelings from their actions.
• Disadvantaged pupils and those who have SEN and/or disabilities typically make strong progress. Pupils are supported appropriately, and leaders carefully track how well they are doing. Refinements to planning are needed to build on the gains made during interventions, to enable these groups to make the accelerated progress needed to catch up with their peers.

Early years provision Good

• Most children who join Nursery or Reception do so with knowledge and skills typical for their age. On entry, the early years leader promptly assesses children’s skills across a range of areas. Staff use this information well to plan activities suitably matched to children’s needs. Consequently, children make good progress. By the time they leave the Reception Year, the proportion of children reaching a good level of development is in line with national figures, and they are well prepared for key stage 1.
• Parents particularly value the nurturing ethos at Burford Primary School and are very complimentary about the transition arrangements for starting early years. One parent spoke for many by summarising, ‘Our experience in our son starting the school has been amazing, the information and support given has been fantastic, and he is very very happy here.’
• Leaders and governors are very aware of the strengths and weaknesses within early years provision. Training for staff, including support from ODST and visits to other local providers, has been used to good effect to improve provision over the last year.
• The indoor and outdoor areas are now better resourced and more stimulating. Children keenly engage with the variety of equipment and resources available to learn to do things independently and cooperatively. Staff are on hand if a more directed approach is necessary when children are playing.
• Adults skilfully deploy a blend of simple instructions, targeted praise and demonstrations to encourage children to enjoy learning and develop resilience. Recent training has supported staff to improve their recording of children’s achievements, to assess progression and plan the next steps in learning.
• Children are quickly gaining the skills of listening attentively to adults and to each other. Their behaviour is good, both in the classroom and in the outside area. Children collaborate well with their peers and make choices about the activities that they want to do.
• Effective measures are in place to make sure that children are safe in the early years and that their personal development and welfare needs are met.

School details

Unique reference number 142341 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 10059283 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Academy converter Age range of pupils 3 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 108 Appropriate authority Board of trustees Chair Zoey Khan Headteacher Jenny Dyer Telephone number 01993 822159 Website www.burford-pri.oxon.sch.uk Email address head.2251@burford-pri.oxon.sch.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• Burford Primary is a small community primary school with pupils organised into four mixed-age classes.
• The school converted to become an academy within the Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust, a multi-academy trust, in October 2015. The directors of the trust are responsible for and oversee the management and administration of its 32 primary academies. The trust delegates aspects of governance to the local governing body. This local governing body is responsible for taking a strategic overview of the school and monitoring its policies, targets and priorities.
• Most pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their first language.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is slightly above the national average. The proportion of pupils who are eligible for the pupil premium is in line with the national average.
• Over the past two years there has been a period of staffing changes at the school. In addition, several members of the local governing body are new to their roles.
• The school runs a breakfast and an after-school club.
• The school has received formal support from ODST to support teaching, learning and assessment, early years, and leadership and management.

Information about this inspection

• Her Majesty’s Inspector visited eight lessons and an assembly to gather evidence to contribute to the evaluation of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. Many of these observations were conducted jointly with the headteacher.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, subject leaders, members of the local governing body and representatives from the Oxford Diocese Schools Trust.
• The inspector talked to pupils about their learning and looked at their work across a range of subjects. He spoke to pupils on the playground and during lessons, and met with a group of pupils to gather their views.
• The inspector talked to pupils about reading and heard some of them read.
• Conversations were held with some parents at the beginning of each day of the inspection and a telephone conversation was held with a parent at their request. The inspector also considered the views expressed in 35 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View. He also analysed 10 responses to the staff questionnaire provided by Ofsted.
• A wide range of school documentation was scrutinised, including that relating to policies, self-evaluation, improvement planning, safeguarding, pupils’ achievement, behaviour and attendance.
• The inspector reviewed the record of leaders’ vetting and checks on the suitability of adults to work with pupils.

Inspection team

Matthew Newberry, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector