Lyne and Longcross CofE Aided Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

Leaders and governors should ensure that:

• boys throughout the school are consistently provided with opportunities to enable them to make better progress and achieve higher standards in writing and mathematics.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The strong leadership of the headteacher and other senior leaders is ensuring the smooth and successful expansion of the school to include key stage 2 and Nursery. Leaders and governors recognise that this is an exciting time for the school and have a strong vision and ambition for all pupils to thrive.
• Senior leaders monitor the quality of teaching through a range of activities, such as visits to classrooms and scrutiny of pupils’ work. Staff share high expectations and work together closely to share good practice. Leaders organise quality training as required. As a result, the standard of teaching and learning is improving constantly.
• Leaders have implemented new procedures for assessing and tracking pupils’ progress, and these are being kept under review. The tracking ensures that teachers have an accurate view of how well pupils are achieving. Consequently, pupils who are at risk of falling behind are identified and extra help is provided.
• The curriculum is broad with an exciting range of first-hand experiences, so that pupils enjoy learning a range of subjects and make good progress. Links are made to children’s literature and through topics such as ‘fiesta’, which links a historic study of the Mayans with an exploration of the art of David Lozeau. A rich programme of visits and visitors brings learning to life. Pupils enjoy reading to the ‘visiting dog’, participating in drama workshops and taking part in a community choir. Pupils and parents appreciate the wide range of extra-curricular clubs, which are attended well by pupils and contribute successfully to learning.
• The school’s values are shared widely with governors, staff, parents and pupils. These key values include respect, courage, faith, fairness and belonging, which thread through the culture of the school and reflect British values. Pupils learn about democracy in school council and through elections for head boy and head girl. Pupils learn about different faiths, for example the importance of Diwali in Hinduism and religions in India. Assemblies provide good opportunities for pupils to reflect, listen to the views of others and share their differences. Consequently, the school prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain, and spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is very effective.
• Leaders make sure that pupils have equal opportunity to do well. For example, emotional literacy support helps pupils cope with challenges. Pupils who have difficulty reading or completing work at home are given support in school.
• Leaders at all levels have the determination to ensure continued improvement in their areas of responsibility. New leaders are supported well in school and have additional training. There is a strong sense of purpose that permeates the school.
• Much good work has been done since the previous inspection to provide opportunities for investigation and problem-solving in mathematics. Pupils enjoy these challenges and cooperate successfully to solve problems. Pupils also work independently and know what to do if they are ‘stuck’. Staff know pupils well and give them feedback routinely on how to improve their work. As a result of these developments, teaching is improving constantly and standards are rising.

Governance of the school

• Governance is effective. Leaders and governors share high aspirations for the school and pupils. Governors have maintained a strategic overview of the recent school expansion successfully. Together with leaders, they have the respect and trust of the community to lead the school forward.
• Governors are reflective and seeking constantly to improve. They have a strong commitment to training; they attend regularly and understand how this helps them fulfil their roles. Governors have completed an audit recently to ensure that, as a team, they have all the skills required. New governors are being supported effectively.
• Governors maintain an effective overview of staff training. Staff morale is high and training opportunities are appreciated by staff to help accelerate pupils’ progress.
• Governors monitor the school development plan closely. They are aware of their responsibility to hold leaders to account for pupils’ outcomes and visit the school regularly. They hear pupils read, meet with staff and visit classrooms. Governors know the school well. However, there is currently no systematic approach to monitoring activities. This means there are potentially gaps in their knowledge which might impair their work.
• Governors monitor school expenditure carefully, including additional funding for disadvantaged pupils and physical education, to ensure it has a good impact on pupils’ outcomes. As a result, most disadvantaged pupils make strong progress, and a wide range of exciting sporting opportunities is provided.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders have established a very safe culture in the school. They make sure that training for staff and governors is up to date. Staff know what to do if they have any safeguarding concerns and take action swiftly. Leaders maintain detailed records that are reviewed regularly by a designated governor. Robust systems are in place when staff are recruited. As a result, pupils feel safe and the vast majority of parents are confident their children are safe.
• Pupils are cared for very well. They are confident there is someone to talk to about their problems. They know that any concerns raised will be taken seriously by staff and dealt with promptly and effectively. Leaders work very closely with parents and external agencies to help support pupils and families as needed.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teachers have high expectations. Together with strong subject knowledge, these ambitions are used to plan lessons, create positive environments and lead discussions with pupils. Teachers ensure that lessons are focused and time is used well. Pupils enjoy being challenged, and the majority of pupils are highly engaged and keen to learn.
• Pupils’ learning is stimulated by activities linked to a range of carefully chosen topics and first-hand experiences; for example, ‘pirates’, with a pirate activity day, and ‘extreme earth’, with a chance to build volcanoes. This gives pupils the opportunity to apply and practise literacy and numeracy skills in a wide range of contexts, and the opportunity to learn new vocabulary. Adults question pupils carefully to extend previous learning. Questions are made more challenging when the activity is found to be too easy and broken down into smaller steps when pupils are struggling. As a result, the majority of pupils make increasingly strong progress in these key areas of learning.
• Teachers know the pupils very well and ensure that lessons meet their differing needs effectively. The careful use of equipment, a variety of tasks and adult support help disadvantaged pupils, and those who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities, to succeed in lessons.
• Additional adults have an important role in the classroom. They are enthusiastic and support the pupils’ learning with careful questioning to move learning forward. These extra adults target pupils for extra support and also additional challenge, individually and in small groups. Teachers brief the additional adults about planned activities and, as a result, pupils are engaged and learn successfully.
• Teachers set home learning challenges in line with new school policy. This was redesigned carefully following consultation with families. Pupils enjoy these challenges and the chance to use this work in class. For example, pupils used a diary written in the holiday to write an account in class with time connectives. Parents are kept informed regularly about their children’s progress and have chance to attend parent workshops, for example about science and phonics. Parents are able to support their children with school activities at home. As a result, pupils’ home learning contributes successfully to learning in school.
• There are numerous strengths to teaching, learning and assessment. However, leaders recognise that, in the past, boys have not achieved as well as girls. Activities and resources have not been matched sufficiently well to their interests, especially in writing and mathematics. The curriculum has now been redesigned and new resources have been purchased. As a result, standards are rising, but too few boys have achieved their full potential in writing and mathematics, and there is still lost ground to make up.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils are known as individuals and this is appreciated by parents. The staff work very closely with families to provide individual support, when required. Plans for pupils with specific individual needs are reviewed regularly. Consequently, these pupils play an active part in the life of the school.
• Pupils feel safe and are taught how to keep themselves safe. For example, they know how to use computers safely and they behave sensibly around the fire at forest school. The vast majority of parents who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, are satisfied that their children are safe and that any concerns that they or their children have are taken seriously.
• Pupils are happy to talk to staff about their concerns. They are confident that any incidents of unkindness are dealt with swiftly.
• Pupils speak confidently and articulately about the wide range of activities provided. They enjoy learning Spanish, playing the ukulele, training for cross-country events and playing rugby. Leaders also provide an impressive range of opportunities for pupils to develop their leadership skills, including working with others and using initiative. Pupils enjoyed preparing election campaigns for the roles of head boy and girl; others lead assemblies and organise sporting activities for younger pupils. These activities contribute very effectively to pupils’ personal development.
• Staff know pupils very well and relationships are very good. Outdoor learning is well- established in the school, and the school has been awarded a gold standard. These activities give pupils time to work together and share ideas, for example when making an obstacle course or hunting for bugs. Pupils learn about different cultures, for example during an Indian arts afternoon, and speak confidently in assembly about their individual differences. Consequently, pupils are tolerant, respectful of each other and work well together.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils behave very well around the school and in lessons. They cooperate in the playground and move around the school calmly and sensibly. Pupils benefit from a wide range of outdoor activities and well-organised lunchtimes. They enjoy practising their football skills with a specialist coach or scrambling over a challenging climbing frame.
• The vast majority of pupils are keen to attend school regularly. Pupils enjoy coming to school and arrive punctually. Leaders follow up absence swiftly and work very closely with families to provide a range of support as necessary. Parents appreciate the breakfast and after-school clubs, which provide flexible childcare. As a result, pupils’ attendance is now close to the national average.
• Pupils have very positive attitudes to learning. They work together well and persevere when faced with a problem. Pupils take pride in their work and enjoy being challenged.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils make strong progress in reading. Girls make good progress in writing and mathematics, and outcomes are improving for boys. As a result, the majority of pupils are now achieving broadly in line with those in other similar schools. Most pupils are prepared well for Year 6, and the subsequent transfer to secondary school.
• The progress of disadvantaged pupils is tracked closely and a range of additional activities are provided to help them catch up where necessary. As a result, disadvantaged pupils make similar progress to all pupils.
• Pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities make good progress. Leaders create individual programmes of learning, which are reviewed regularly. Staff work with external agencies as necessary. Pupils, and their families, are supported very effectively.
• Most Traveller pupils make similar progress to all pupils. Their progress is tracked closely and additional activities are provided to help them catch up where necessary.
• Pupils enjoy reading a variety of exciting texts, and read regularly, both in and out of school. They make good progress in phonics and use these skills independently when reading and writing. Pupils talk about their books confidently and articulately. They are able to explain the author’s intentions and summarise the text.
• Current pupils’ work across the school shows good progress in a range of subjects including science, art, design technology, geography, history, and the arts. Pupils have exciting opportunities to apply literacy and numeracy skills in these areas. Leaders have created a very rich curriculum, linked to texts, with a wide range of first-hand experiences. For example, pupils built an iron man when studying ‘The iron man’ by Ted Hughes and visited a museum when studying rocks and fossils. These activities are motivational and contribute well to pupils’ outcomes. As one parent commented, ‘[the school] inspires a love of learning’.
• Although progress is now good overall, in the past not all boys have been given opportunities to reach their potential in writing and mathematics. This was reflected, for example, in the results of national assessments at the end of key stage 1 in 2017. Boys are now given activities which interest them and meet their needs better, and progress is accelerating. However, boys still lag behind girls in writing and mathematics, because a legacy of weaker progress in the past has not yet been eliminated.

Early years provision Good

• Teaching is good in early years, so children make good progress.
• The Nursery became part of the school in 2017. Leadership of both Reception and Nursery is very strong. Leaders are working together to ensure that procedures are increasingly consistent, and that children transfer smoothly.
• Most children start early years with skills and abilities that are broadly in line with those that are typical for their age. However, this varies from year to year. Children’s achievements are tracked closely, and this progress information is now used to plan activities matched to their interests and needs. Adults’ skilful questioning and high expectations help to ensure most children learn well.
• Phonics is taught successfully and children make good progress. They enjoy making big marks in shaving-foam, for example, to practise their letters and sounds. As a result, during ‘free choice’, the majority of children use their phonics skills independently in both reading and early writing.
• The transfer to Year 1 is supported effectively by a Year 1 role play area and visits to the classroom. Children at the end of Reception attain in line with children nationally and, as a result, they are prepared well for key stage 1. Boys’ progress in writing and mathematics is speeding up, but their progress is not yet consistently good. The learning of children who have SEN and/or disabilities is supported well. Extra funding for the small number of disadvantaged children is spent effectively and tracked closely. Staff know the children well. Consequently, children who have SEN and/or disabilities and disadvantaged children make similar progress to their classmates.
• The early years environment is very attractive, stimulating and organised well. Children enjoy pretending to be builders, hand printing pictures of superheroes, dressing up and sharing books, which supports their learning well. There are a range of indoor and outdoor activities. This year, leaders have increased the opportunities for writing and mathematics as part of outdoor play. Children now write labels and compare the size of building blocks, to help accelerate progress in writing and mathematics, especially for boys.
• Parents are kept very well informed. There is a close partnership, valued by parents, which supports the children’s learning effectively. Parents speak very positively about procedures to help their children when they start school; welcoming high-quality parent workshops, opportunities for family learning and providing information for their children’s online learning diaries. As a result, children settle into the early years quickly.
• Staff know the children very well and relationships are very strong. Staff know how to keep the children safe and have attended safeguarding training. Children are taught how to be safe. As one child explained in forest school, a bucket of water had been placed by her pretend fire, just in case it spread. Safe procedures are implemented routinely and consequently the vast majority of parents are confident that their children are safe.
• Children are keen to learn and behaviour is very good. They are taught how to be successful learners. They are encouraged not to give up too easily, and to be independent. For example, two children cooperated independently to weigh out ingredients and make small cakes.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 125137 Surrey 10046533 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary with Nursery School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Voluntary aided 2 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 175 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Mr Myles Willingale Mrs Rachel Bradley Telephone number 01932 872327 Website Email address www.lyneschool.com head@lyne.surrey.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 10–11 July 2013

Information about this school

• Since the previous inspection, the school has expanded gradually to include key stage 2 and now has pupils up to Year 5. The on-site Nursery with two-year-olds, also became part of the school in 2017.
• The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• Pupils are taught in single-aged classes.
• Most pupils are of White British heritage, with a higher proportion of Gypsy, Roma, Traveller children than the national average.
• A much smaller proportion of pupils than the national average is eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or in local authority care.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is slightly below the national average.
• The school has a breakfast club and afterschool club.

Information about this inspection

• During the inspection I met with the headteacher and senior leaders and the chair of the governing body, accompanied by four other governors.
• I spoke on the telephone to a representative of the local authority.
• I also met a group of pupils from Years 1, 4 and 5.
• The headteacher or the assistant headteacher accompanied me on observations in all classrooms where I observed learning, spoke to pupils and looked at their work.
• A range of mathematics, writing, science and topic books from Years 1, 3 and 5 were reviewed with the headteacher and the deputy headteacher.
• I reviewed a selection of online early years profiles with the headteacher and a senior leader.
• I attended a whole-school assembly and observed a number of extra-curricular activities.
• I observed pupils’ behaviour in classrooms, around the school, in the playground and in the dining room.
• I took account of 44 parental responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, and reviewed 30 written comments, along with one letter from a parent.
• I spoke with parents at the start and end of the school day.
• I also considered 23 responses to the staff questionnaires.
• I scrutinised a range of documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plan, information on the school’s website, safety records, minutes of meetings, pupil-voice surveys, various policies and information about pupils’ progress.

Inspection team

Rosemary Addison, lead inspector

Ofsted Inspector