St Andrew's CofE Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Extend improvements made in English and mathematics teaching to the wider curriculum, so that pupils make substantial and sustained progress across a range of subjects, by ensuring that:
  • teachers have the same high expectations of pupils’ work across the curriculum as they do in English and mathematics
  • subject leaders play a more active role in securing improvements in teaching in the foundation subjects.
• Ensure that teachers use questioning consistently well to explore and extend pupils’ understanding during lessons.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• A sense of confidence, optimism and ambition permeates the school. The school’s successes in the past two years have lifted staff morale. Strong staff teamwork has been influential in securing improvements in the school’s work.
• Senior leaders have focused on the right priorities to ensure swift improvements in the school’s performance since the previous inspection. They have increased staff expectations of pupils’ learning and behaviour, established accurate and reliable assessment procedures, appointed key members of staff and eradicated an element of weak teaching. As result, pupils’ outcomes have improved dramatically and pupils behave exceptionally well throughout the school.
• The headteacher leads his team with honesty, integrity and commitment. His single-minded determination to ensure that the school provides high-quality education for its pupils has been key to substantial improvements in the school’s work.
• During the inspection, many parents referred to the headteacher’s significant role in moving the school forward in the past two years. For example, one said: ‘The headteacher has thrown his heart and soul into the school and has not been afraid to tackle some difficult issues,’ while another commented: ‘The headteacher deserves massive credit for the way he’s led his team to create a wonderful school.’
• The assistant headteachers are highly effective leaders. They provide strong support for the headteacher and for their colleagues. The assistant headteachers have secured notable improvements in English and mathematics teaching since the previous inspection.
• Senior leaders provide clear direction and effective training for teachers and teaching assistants. As a result, the quality of teaching and learning has improved considerably in the past two years.
• The recently appointed special educational needs coordinator has secured dramatic improvements in the quality of provision for pupils who have additional needs. She works closely with senior leaders and governors to make sure that special needs funding is used efficiently to support pupils’ learning and well-being.
• The special educational needs coordinator has improved communication with parents considerably since her appointment. For example, she makes sure that they have regular opportunities to discuss their children’s progress and to talk about ways to support their children’s learning at home.
• Parents are very pleased with improvements in the school since the previous inspection and appreciate the warm welcome they receive when visiting. One parent commented that ‘staff are open and friendly’, a view shared by many.
• Leaders have revised the curriculum since the previous inspection so that learning is more purposeful and more interesting than previously. This has had a marked effect on pupils’ engagement during lessons, ensuring that they are extremely well behaved and keen to learn.
• The school’s broad and interesting curriculum prepares pupils well for the next stage of their education and for life in modern Britain. Pupils learn about a number of world religions, in addition to Christianity, so that they develop a good understanding and respect for different beliefs.
• Leaders and governors are justly proud of the progress made in developing pupils’ awareness of British values since the previous inspection. Pupils demonstrate a perceptive understanding of what it means to be British. For example, during the inspection, pupils in key stage 2 explained democracy as ‘having your say when decisions are made’, individual liberty as ‘having your own opinions and not being forced to believe something’ and British values as ‘having just the right amount of freedom’.
• Leaders use physical education funding efficiently. They provide pupils with a broad experience of sport and have increased teachers’ expertise and confidence in teaching sports skills. Pupils regularly participate in a wide range of clubs, sporting events and competitions which contribute to their enjoyment of school.
• Leaders make good use of pupil premium funding to ensure that the small number of disadvantaged pupils in the school learn well.
• Several staff changes since the previous inspection have made it difficult for leaders to extend leadership beyond the senior leadership team. Middle leadership in the foundation subjects is at an early stage of development. Leaders rightly recognise that the development of middle leaders’ roles is now a priority to ensure that the school maintains and builds on improvements in its work.

Governance of the school

• The chair of the governing body provides strong leadership for governors. He has worked with colleagues tirelessly and successfully to address weaknesses in governance identified at the time of the previous inspection.
• Governors have reviewed and overhauled governance since the previous inspection. They have worked positively and successfully with school leaders, the local authority and the diocese, taking account of good-quality advice. As a result, governors play a much more effective role in supporting and challenging leaders than was the case at the previous inspection.
• Improvements have ensured that governors have a much clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities and an accurate view of the school’s performance. They hold school leaders to account rigorously for pupils’ learning and well-being.
• Recent appointments to the governing body, including a new clerk, have brought fresh ideas and further expertise to its work.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders and governors ensure that recruitment and suitability checks are completed fully. They provide regular safeguarding training for staff and governors so that they are knowledgeable about safety procedures.
• Adults know pupils very well. Strong communication and effective teamwork ensures that all members of staff are aware of pupils’ needs. Adults take good care of pupils and make sure that they are secure.
• The school’s happy, family atmosphere ensures that pupils feel extremely safe. Parents are happy to speak with teachers and leaders about any queries or concerns which may arise and feel that their views are valued.
• Leaders respond promptly and appropriately to any concerns. They work productively with agencies, such as the local authority early help team and the police, to ensure pupils’ safety.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Notable improvements in the quality of teaching since the previous inspection have ensured that pupils make strong progress and achieve well. Teaching builds more securely in every year group than at the time of the previous inspection.
• Teachers regularly plan interesting lessons which engage and enthuse pupils. For example, during the inspection, pupils in Year 3 and 4 watched a film clip and listened to their teacher with intent interest as she described the impact of personification in Wordsworth’s ‘Daffodils’.
• Developments in mathematics teaching ensure that pupils learn an appropriately broad range of numeracy topics and skills. Effective teaching ensures that pupils are able to use their knowledge of number efficiently to tackle mathematics problems.
• The teaching of phonics skills has developed considerably since the previous inspection. A systematic approach to the teaching of phonics throughout the school equips pupils with reliable reading and writing skills.
• Teaching assistants understand pupils’ needs well. They provide skilful and sensitive support during lessons, ensuring that pupils of all abilities are able to participate and learn successfully, including those pupils who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities.
• Rising standards mean that teachers no longer have to spend the same amount of time plugging gaps in pupils’ knowledge at the beginning of each year. As a result, pupils get off to a much better start in each year group.
• Parents are very pleased with improvements in teaching since the previous inspection. For example, one parent commented, ‘Teaching and learning is now the focus, and my child is making more progress as a result,’ while another said, ‘Lively and varied teaching sparks a love of learning.’
• Pupils benefit from effective teaching throughout the school. As a result, pupils of all abilities make much better progress than at the time of the previous inspection, including the most able. However, there are a few variations in the quality of teaching, which leaders are now actively addressing. For example, some teachers are more skilled than others in the use of questioning to check and extend pupils’ thinking during lessons.
• Teachers have much higher expectations of pupils’ learning than at the time of the previous inspection and set work which requires pupils to think hard more often. However, sometimes their expectations of pupils’ work in foundation subjects are not as high as in English and mathematics.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• Pupils are polite and considerate. They enjoy school, work hard and get on exceptionally well together. One pupil said, ‘We are all very friendly and help each other in lessons and during playtimes.’
• Pupils feel extremely safe in school. They know who to speak to if they are worried and say that adults sort out any concerns quickly.
• Pupils say that occasionally they worry about events in the news. However, they are aware of steps taken in school to keep them safe and say that their teachers are always reassuring.
• Pupils are confident about how to minimise the risks of using the internet. They say that teachers regularly remind them about internet safety during computing lessons and that posters reinforce the advice.
• Pupils know what bullying is and understand the harm it can cause. However, they say that bullying is not an issue in the school. One pupil said, ‘There’s no bullying here because we know each other so well.’
• Pupils develop a strong sense of justice and fair play. They express their ideas confidently and articulately during lessons and discussions, while respecting the views of others.
• Pupils carry out responsibilities sensibly and maturely. For example, during the inspection, the Year 6 dining hall helpers chatted with some of the younger pupils, offering help wherever needed and giving out stickers to reward good table manners.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.
• Pupils behave exceptionally well throughout the school. They move around the school quickly and calmly.
• Pupils’ attendance has increased dramatically since the previous inspection. Attendance rates were above the national average in 2017 and continue to rise.
• Pupils chat companionably in the dining hall as they eat their lunch. They enjoy catching up with friends during playtime or joining in with a wide range of activities during the lunch break. Pupils of different ages enjoy each other’s company.
• Pupils speak thoughtfully and perceptively about behaviour in school. One told the inspector, ‘No one’s perfect and there are tiny blips [in behaviour] but any incidents are sorted out very quickly,’ while another commented, ‘We all make mistakes sometimes, but we learn from these and don’t do it again.’
• Skilful support for pupils who have specific behavioural difficulties ensures that they make significant progress, both personally and academically.
• Most parents who completed Parent View feel that pupils are happy, safe and well behaved.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils’ progress has improved substantially during the past two years. Standards in all year groups are much higher than at the time of the previous inspection and continue to rise. The school is on track to secure further improvements in outcomes at the end of both key stages in 2018.
• Substantial improvements in the quality of teaching have benefited all groups of pupils, including those who have SEN and/or disabilities. Pupils of all abilities learn well in a range of subjects and develop secure mathematics and English skills. As a result, they are well prepared for the next stage of their education.
• The most able pupils learn well and make increasingly rapid progress, as teachers’ expectations rise and the quality of teaching improves. The proportions of pupils achieving the higher standards in English and mathematics increased dramatically in 2017 at the end of both key stages.
• Pupils talk enthusiastically about their reading. They learn how to use strategies such as phonics efficiently to help them to read unfamiliar words and become confident readers by the end of Year 6.
• The proportions of pupils achieving the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check increased in 2017 and were higher than the national average. The latest results indicate that this positive picture is likely to be repeated in 2018.
• Pupils make strong progress in mathematics. They learn how to tackle number problems and mathematical investigations confidently and successfully.
• In the past, pupils in key stage 2 have had gaps in their learning, caused by historical weaknesses in teaching, which hindered their progress. As a result, standards at the end of Year 6 were below the national average in 2017, despite marked improvements. However, in the past year, effective teaching and some carefully focused extra help have made up for lost time, ensuring that pupils catch up quickly with other pupils nationally.
• The standard of pupils’ work in reading, writing and mathematics is undoubtedly better than at the time of the previous inspection. However, pupils do not make the same strong progress in the national curriculum foundation subjects as they do in English and mathematics. The quality of their work in the wider curriculum does not always match the high standard evident in pupils’ English and mathematics work.
• Variations in the effectiveness of teachers’ questioning between classes mean that teaching does not always probe and extend pupils’ learning sufficiently during lessons.

Early years provision Good

• The early years leader is highly knowledgeable about teaching the early years curriculum and has high expectations of all children. She evaluates their learning accurately and plans activities which build strongly on children’s starting points. She is well supported by a team of caring and proficient teaching assistants who share her high expectations of children’s learning and behaviour.
• The early years leader has transformed the quality of teaching and learning in early years since her appointment in September 2017, updating the curriculum, clearing the classrooms of poor-quality equipment and reorganising the outdoor area. As a result, children are able to access activities more easily, are keen to learn and make much better progress than in previous years.
• The proportion of children achieving a good level of development has steadily increased over the past three years and was in line with the national average in 2017.
• Children’s work fills the early years classroom walls, vividly illustrating the impact of effective teaching and a stimulating early years curriculum on children’s learning and progress. For example, children’s recent work on ‘The Bad-Tempered Ladybird’, included challenging mathematics activities, lively paintings and high-quality writing about ladybirds.
• The outdoor area is well organised, inviting and safe. Children enjoy using a wide range of good-quality equipment and participate enthusiastically in activities. For example, during the inspection children used magnifiers to search for mini-beasts with great excitement, happily sharing their discoveries with an adult and with each other.
• The early years leader has improved links with parents considerably in the past year. A range of events, such as the regular ‘family phonics’ sessions, provide parents with enjoyable opportunities to work alongside their children in school. Events such as these support parents well in helping their children at home and make a strong contribution to the school’s friendly, welcoming atmosphere.
• The teaching of mathematics focuses appropriately on developing secure language and number skills in meaningful situations. For example, children learned how to use vocabulary such as ‘tall’, ‘taller’ and ‘tallest’ to compare heights during a recent topic on ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’.
• Adults give children’s safety the highest priority. They are sensitive to children’s needs and make sure that children are happy and secure. Effective safeguarding procedures, such as daily risk assessments of the outdoor equipment, ensure that children can play and learn safely. Children behave extremely well.
• The early years leader is ambitious for the future of early years. During the inspection, she commented, ‘We’re a work in progress. We’ve achieved much during the past year, but I would have liked to have achieved more.’ She is clear about the next priority for development, rightly focusing on making sure that all adults use questioning equally well to extend children’s learning.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 126030 West Sussex 10046540 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 Voluntary aided 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 126 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address David Christian Nathan Golbey 01403 891286 www.st-andrews-horsham.w-sussex.sch.uk office@st-andrews-horsham.w-sussex.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 10–11 March 2016

Information about this school

• The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• 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 in line with the national average.
• Most pupils are White British. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below the national average.
• Pupils are taught in mixed-age classes, with the exception of Year 6.
• A statutory inspection of Anglican and Methodist schools (SIAMS) was carried out on 20 September 2016, when the distinctiveness and effectiveness of the school as a Church of England School was judged ‘satisfactory’.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards for 2017, which set the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector observed pupils’ learning in seven lessons. All seven observations were completed with the headteacher or with one of the senior leaders.
• The inspector held discussions with the headteacher and other school leaders, the school’s bursar and a representative of the local authority. She also met with four governors, including the chair of the governing body.
• The inspector took account of 33 responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire, Parent View, and considered the views expressed by parents informally during the school day.
• The inspector observed the school’s work and considered a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation documents, safeguarding policies, the school improvement plan and information about pupils’ progress and attendance.
• The inspector reviewed a sample of pupils’ work provided by the school, and looked at pupils’ work in lessons. She listened to pupils in Year 2 and Year 6 reading.

Inspection team

Julie Sackett, lead inspector

Ofsted Inspector