North Heath Community Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Make sure teaching extends and deepens learning sufficiently for the most able pupils, so that they achieve as well as they can in writing specifically, and also across the wider range of subjects.
• Use the school’s detailed records more precisely to identify patterns in pupils’ behaviour over time and to check the success of specific support provided for individual pupils.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher and deputy headteacher lead the school with honesty and integrity. They and their leadership team have a clear understanding of the school’s strengths and development needs. Leaders and staff are ambitious for the school and for its pupils.
• Leaders and governors were understandably disappointed in pupils’ outcomes in 2016. Since then, they have taken effective action to improve teaching. For example, they have provided training for staff which has strengthened teachers’ subject knowledge and increased the accuracy of teachers’ assessments of pupils’ progress.
• Teachers’ determination and commitment to developing their practice has been a key factor in securing improvements in teaching and in pupils’ progress during the past year. Teachers make good use of training to keep up to date with national changes to the curriculum, and work constructively with colleagues in local schools to share ideas.
• Teachers share senior leaders’ determination to secure ongoing improvements in teaching, learning and assessment. Leaders and teachers are now equally determined to ensure that the most able pupils make even better progress.
• The school’s curriculum makes a strong contribution to pupils’ learning and to their interest in the world. The school regularly promotes British values, as well as its own school values, throughout the curriculum and in its daily work. For example, during the inspection pupils made thoughtful comments on the theme of ‘resilience’ and listened respectfully to the teacher leading the assembly.
• Leaders’ use of additional funds to support pupils’ learning has improved. The pupil premium is used well to ensure that disadvantaged pupils make the same strong progress as their classmates.
• The recently appointed inclusion leader has made a significant difference to the quality of support for pupils who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities. She provides high-quality advice for teachers about pupils’ individual needs so that teachers can help pupils more effectively in their learning. The inclusion leader has improved links with parents so that they are more involved in their children’s learning. She works constructively with parents and agencies, such as children’s services, to support pupils’ achievement. Leaders have suitable plans in place to sustain these notable improvements and to secure further developments.
• Leaders use the physical education and sports premium effectively. The school’s sports leader is clear about how the use of funds has improved pupils’ fitness and enjoyment of sport. There are more opportunities for pupils to participate in competitions, and pupils of all ages participate. Teachers work alongside specialist sports coaches and gain more confidence in teaching specific sports, such as orienteering.

Governance of the school

• Governors know the school well. They are clear about strengths in the school’s work and about the priorities for future development.
• Governors hold school leaders to account robustly for pupils’ learning and well-being. They make good use of a wide range of activities, such as discussions with leaders, visits to the school, and policy reviews, to gauge the quality and effectiveness of the school’s work. As a result, they speak knowledgeably about the school’s performance.
• Governors appreciate the headteacher’s open approach to school leadership, which enables them to support and challenge the school effectively. One governor commented, ‘There’s an honesty about where we are and a commitment to securing further improvements’.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders and governors take their responsibilities for ensuring pupils’ safety very seriously. They follow well-established safeguarding procedures and work well with parents and agencies to ensure that pupils are safe.
• Leaders provide regular training for staff and governors so that all members of the school community are knowledgeable about safeguarding procedures. Leaders make sure that recruitment checks are completed fully when new members of staff are appointed so that the workforce is secure. Leaders make sure that the school building is well maintained and provides a secure and attractive workplace for pupils and staff.
• Senior leaders keep extremely detailed records of behaviour incidents over time, including the small number relating to incidents of bullying. These comprehensive records indicate that leaders take appropriate action wherever there are concerns about safeguarding. However, leaders do not use these carefully maintained records as sharply enough as they could to identify patterns in behaviour for individuals or groups over time or to check the success of actions taken.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ learning. They assess pupils’ progress accurately and plan activities which build securely on pupils’ learning. Teachers are increasingly knowledgeable about pupils’ individual needs and about how to ensure that pupils of all abilities achieve well.
• Teachers are confident about teaching reading skills and do so very well. For example, they make good use of high-quality texts and books to inspire pupils to read widely and to tackle more challenging texts.
• The teaching of phonics has improved during the past few years. As a result, increasing numbers of pupils are able to use fundamental reading and writing skills successfully by the end of Year 1.
• The teaching of writing has improved substantially during the past year. Well-focused training has strengthened teachers’ understanding of recent changes in the English national curriculum. Teachers accurately assess pupils’ progress in writing and use this information increasingly well to plan learning.
• Teachers provide many opportunities for pupils to write for different purposes and audiences so that pupils can put into practice what they have learned during English lessons. This enables pupils to practise and refine their writing skills. A more consistent whole-school approach to the teaching of handwriting has improved the fluency of pupils’ written work. However, teaching does not equip the most able pupils with the writing skills needed to achieve greater depth of learning in writing or to produce written work of the highest quality.
• Effective mathematics in all classes across the school ensures that teaching builds pupils’ knowledge and understanding securely as they progress through the year groups. Pupils learn how to use different strategies successfully to solve mathematical problems. Teachers and teaching assistants use practical apparatus, such as cubes and place-value cards, well to strengthen pupils’ understanding of mathematical concepts.
• Teachers have an increasingly clear understanding of pupils’ needs and about how to move pupils’ learning to the next stage, including for disadvantaged pupils and for those who have SEN and/or disabilities. However, teaching does not deepen and extend the most able pupils’ learning sufficiently in a range of subjects.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils work hard and are keen to do their best. All parents who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaire feel that pupils are safe and happy in school.
• Pupils enjoy working together during lessons and do so sensibly. They talk about their learning maturely and make insightful comments about their progress. Consistently high attendance rates reflect pupils’ enjoyment of school and their commitment to learning.
• Pupils feel safe in school. They understand how school routines, such as emergency drills and the school rules, help to keep them safe. Pupils have a sensible view of what they can do to limit the risks involved in everyday activities such as walking to school and using the internet.
• A few parents expressed concern about how well leaders deal with bullying. School records indicate that bullying is rarely a problem and that leaders follow up any incidents thoroughly. Leaders take prompt and appropriate action wherever there are any worries about pupils’ well-being.
• Pupils say that they feel comfortable talking to all members of staff and say that adults sort out any problems quickly. However, pupils were not always clear about how to distinguish between bullying and the occasional minor disagreements between them which occur. Leaders have suitable plans in place to strengthen this aspect of pupils’ understanding.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Most pupils behave well throughout the school. They behave sensibly during playtimes and settle quickly when they return to the classrooms at the end of break. All staff and most parents who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaire felt that pupils are well behaved.
• While most pupils concentrate during lessons and work carefully, a few become fidgety and lose focus. This makes it more difficult for their classmates to get as much work done as they would like.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils make strong progress in reading, writing and mathematics. The work in pupils’ books, together with teachers’ assessments, indicates improving standards across the school.
• Pupils’ outcomes at the end of key stage 1 improved substantially in 2017, reversing a dip in standards in 2016. As a result, pupils were well prepared for the next stage in their learning. The work in pupils’ books indicates that teaching in key stage 2 is now building successfully on this good start, so that pupils continue to make rapid progress.
• Pupils achieve consistently well in reading. Standards in reading at the end of key stage 2 were above the national average in 2016 with a similarly positive picture in 2017. Pupils read enthusiastically and with expression. They talk with interest about their favourite books and authors.
• Improvements in phonics teaching during the early years and Year 1 during the past year led to a substantial increase in the results of the Year 1 phonics screening check in 2017.
• Pupils’ progress in writing has improved during the past year as developments in teaching have taken effect. The good-quality written work in pupils’ books illustrates the care pupils of all abilities take in completing writing tasks.
• Pupils’ outcomes in mathematics were above the national average in 2016, with a further increase in outcomes in 2017. Pupils speak confidently about mathematics. For example, during the inspection some of the older pupils explained clearly and maturely why they had selected a particular method to solve a mathematical problem. Their explanation illustrated a very secure understanding of number.
• The small and varying numbers of disadvantaged pupils in each year group mean that nationally published outcomes do not always reliably reflect pupils’ progress. The work in pupils’ books indicates that disadvantaged pupils make similar progress to their classmates and to other pupils nationally.
• In the past, pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities have not always made sufficient progress. However, improvements in the use of special educational needs funding during the past year have strengthened progress for those pupils.
• While all groups of pupils make strong progress, the most able pupils do not achieve as well as they could, in writing particularly and in a range of other subjects. Some of the most able pupils told inspectors that they feel they are making good progress but would welcome more challenge in their work.

Early years provision Good

• Children make strong progress during the early years. The proportions of children achieving a good level of development have steadily increased during the past three years and consistently match national averages.
• Children are happy, confident learners. They enjoy playing and learning together and behave very well. Skilful teaching, clear routines and warm relationships ensure that children feel secure and valued.
• Children’s progress in writing is particularly impressive. Teachers give children lots of opportunities to practise and improve key writing skills while playing. Effective phonics teaching gives children fundamental skills and strategies to write successfully. For example, during the inspection an excited group of children confidently used phonics skills to write on paper hats for a classroom party.
• Improvements in the teaching of handwriting ensure that children learn how to form letters correctly from an early stage in their learning. As a result, children develop good handwriting habits which help them to develop an even and fluent handwriting style.
• Children develop a secure knowledge of number. Teachers make sure children know how to use physical equipment to help them to tackle activities. For example, during the inspection children who were clearly used to using practical apparatus concentrated for many minutes to create patterns and to practise counting.
• The early years leader provides clear, knowledgeable and effective leadership for her team. She works well with parents to support children’s learning and is determined to use recent changes in assessment and record-keeping to strengthen links further. Parents are pleased with the progress their children have made since the start of Reception Year.
• Teaching ensures that children of all abilities achieve well during the early years. However, as with other year groups, some of the most able children could achieve more.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 125949 West Sussex 10037826 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 Community 4–11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 406 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Richard Illingworth Michael Gildea 01403 254790 www.northheathprimary.co.uk office@northheathprimary.co.uk Date of previous inspection 6–7 March 2013

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.
• The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium is much lower than that found in most primary schools.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is below the national average.
• Most pupils are White British. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below the national average.

Information about this inspection

• The inspection team observed pupils learning in 18 lessons, including 11 sessions observed jointly with the headteacher or deputy headteacher.
• Inspectors held discussions with the headteacher, senior leaders, subject leaders and a local authority representative. Inspectors also met with four governors, including the chair of the governing body.
• The inspection team took account of 97 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, as well as considering the views expressed by parents informally during the school day. Inspectors also considered six responses to the staff questionnaire.
• Inspectors observed the school’s work and considered a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation documents, safeguarding policies, the school’s improvement plan and information about pupils’ progress and attendance.
• The inspection team looked at a sample of pupils’ work provided by the school, as well as looking at pupils’ work in lessons. Inspectors listened to pupils in Years 2 and 6 reading.

Inspection team

Julie Sackett, lead inspector Timothy Rome Stephanie Scutter Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector