All Saints CofE VC Infants School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching in order to further accelerate the rates of progress pupils make in their learning so that they reach even higher standards of attainment, by:
  • giving pupils more opportunities to use their skills and ideas in other areas of the curriculum
  • providing more opportunities for the most able pupils to deepen their knowledge, understanding and skills further so that a greater proportion can achieve the higher standards.
• Improve the quality of leadership and management, by:
  • strengthening the work of middle leaders (those responsible for particular age groups or subjects) to further develop their skills in monitoring and curriculum development
  • ensuring that leaders focus in-depth on how successfully pupils are learning when judging the quality of teaching; particularly in the case of the most able pupils and those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher provides very visible, strong and determined leadership. This has invigorated staff and governors to take action to tackle the areas requiring improvement at the last inspection and to drive the school forward. Consequently, all areas of the school have improved since the last inspection.
• Staff now have much higher expectations, both of their own teaching and of what pupils can achieve. Leaders have tightened the arrangements for managing the performance of staff. Staff are held to account for the progress of their pupils. Targets for all staff are linked clearly to actions in the school development plan and are reviewed regularly. Staff are working well as a team and morale is high.
• Senior leaders and governors have a good understanding of the strengths of the school and the key priorities for further development, which inform the school development plan.
• Senior and middle leaders have improved the way that they check the quality of teaching and its impact on pupils’ learning and progress. A systematic approach to evaluate the quality of teaching is in place. External support, from a local leader of education, is used to confirm the school’s own judgements. Leaders have eradicated weaker teaching and ensured that teaching is now good. They know that teaching needs to be outstanding so that all pupils can achieve their very best. There is scope to ensure that the very best teaching practice is being more widely shared with other staff within the federation.
• Well-targeted training is appreciated by staff. A wide range of professional development has helped to raise the knowledge and understanding of middle and senior leaders. An example of this is the way in which professional development is helping to develop curriculum teams across the federation. Staff, especially the teachers who are new to teaching, praise the support that they receive from leaders and the professional development to improve their skills.
• The early years provision is a strength of the school. Teaching is highly effective, enabling pupils to make good progress from their starting points.
• The senior and middle leaders look at the progress that pupils make in books and discuss this during pupils’ progress meetings regularly. However, the middle leaders’ roles are developing as a result of staff changes and re-designation of the school since the last inspection. They have yet to ensure that the information about pupils’ learning is used carefully enough to ensure that teachers’ planning challenges pupils to make accelerated progress and enables the most able pupils to reach the higher standards.
• The school offers a broad and balanced curriculum that engages pupils and contributes to their enjoyment of learning. Leaders and staff are currently working as part of the federation to develop and embed the curriculum further. The curriculum already offers opportunities to apply pupils’ writing and mathematical skills across a range of subjects. The school has reshaped the curriculum so that it increases the opportunities for creativity and captures pupils’ imagination. As part of this, middle leaders are aware that they need to improve the way they assess subjects other than reading, writing and mathematics.
• The culture of care, nurture and inclusion contributes powerfully to pupils’ strong spiritual, moral, social and cultural and personal development. This awareness is enhanced by the personal, social, health and economic curriculum, assemblies, and links with the local church. Qualities, such as trust, respect and valuing people other than themselves, contribute to pupils’ good understanding of life as citizens beyond school and the values in Britain today.
• The school’s assessment system is linked effectively to the curriculum. It has enabled teachers to gain a good understanding of the age-related expectations in the national curriculum. Senior leaders make effective use of this information to regularly check pupils’ progress. Appropriate interventions are put in place where pupils are working below the standards expected for their age.
• The sport premium is used effectively to reinforce the skills of teachers and pupils and, therefore, improve outcomes for pupils. Funding includes the provision of specialist sports coaches and a range of clubs, including a gymnastics club.
• Pupil premium funding has been used very effectively to ensure that pupils supported by this additional government funding make progress that is at least in line with other pupils nationally and within the school.
• The leadership of provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is strong. Well-planned provision in classrooms and additional interventions enable these pupils to make good progress. Effective links are made with specialist agencies to ensure that these pupils’ needs are accurately identified and the appropriate support is provided.
• The school engages well with parents. Parents who spoke to inspectors, or who responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, were positive about all areas of the school’s work, especially when discussing the new reading approach. The vast majority would recommend this school to others.
• The local authority has worked productively with the school since its previous inspection and supports it effectively through the local leader of education.

Governance of the school

• Governors now provide very effective support and challenge to the school and are much more involved in monitoring its work. The governing body responded decisively to address the issues found at the previous inspection. It has embraced the recommendations from the external review. By their own admission, the governors have ‘come a long way’. They have made significant changes to their organisation and the way that they operate.
• Governors evaluate accurately the strengths of the school and the areas where it can improve. They have a clear understanding of the assessment information that is available to the school and use it to check how well all groups of pupils are achieving. They carry out a wide range of monitoring visits including looking at the quality of pupils’ work. Each governor’s visit has a clear focus linked to the school improvement plan’s priorities. Link governors meet regularly with subject leaders in order to monitor specific aspects of the school’s work and report back in detail to the full governing body.
• Governors expect to see evidence of targets being met to agree with any recommendations for pay rises or promotion to sustain the improved picture of teaching and learning. Governors manage the school’s finances and resources effectively and measure the impact of spending, including the pupil premium and sports funding, on pupils’ outcomes.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Safeguarding leaders and governors ensure that safeguarding is regarded as a high priority within the school. All staff receive regular training and know how to identify if pupils are potentially at risk. Policies are regularly updated and paperwork is detailed and robust. Child protection procedures are robust, and pupils’ well-being is a major school priority. The school has a proactive approach to the ‘Prevent’ duty and staff are receiving training. The safeguarding policy includes dealing with extremism and terrorism. Effective relationships with other agencies ensure that pupils are kept safe and their welfare needs well met.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teaching is good and much improved since the last inspection, when it was found to require improvement. Senior leaders have taken effective action to address any weak teaching and, consequently, teaching is now much more consistent. The work in pupils’ books and the school’s own information confirm that teaching is now good over time.
• Teachers usually have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour and what pupils should achieve. They have secure subject knowledge which enables them to plan exciting lessons to engage pupils enthusiastically in their learning. Teachers address pupils’ misconceptions quickly and use them as a teaching point to support the learning of others.
• The teaching of mathematics has improved and pupils’ achievement is good across the school. Pupils are provided with opportunities to apply their mathematical skills across other subjects. For example, Year 2 pupils worked collaboratively to work out the most accurate and efficient way to solve problems involving money totals and giving change.
• The teaching of phonics is very effective across the school. Leaders and teachers have focused effectively on improving phonics and pupils are much better equipped this year. The teachers’ assessments point to a marked increase in the results for pupils currently in Year 1, including those pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Pupils’ reading skills and understanding of books have improved. Pupils use their knowledge of sounds to work out unfamiliar words and they enjoy reading books.
• The improvement in phonics is also having a knock-on effect on writing, which is showing clear improvement from last year, and pupils have various opportunities to apply their reading and writing to support their learning. For example, pupils used their skills in researching the locality of their partner school in London, and wrote to the partner school describing this locality and how it differed from their own.
• Teachers’ feedback, whether written or oral, is helpful to pupils. It assists pupils to understand and improve their work. Pupils are given time in ‘challenge time’ when they respond to the marking and the challenge that the teacher sets to help embed their knowledge.
• Relationships between pupils and staff are trusting and positive so that pupils are keen to respond to questions and ‘have a go’. Pupils are keen to learn new things and to succeed. Pupils are given good opportunities to work in many different ways.
• Teaching assistants make a valuable contribution to the pupils’ learning for all ability groups. They provide effective support for individuals or small groups that need extra help.
• Teachers use their knowledge of pupils to plan exciting lessons which enable pupils to make good progress. However, they do not always use this accurate assessment carefully enough to enable pupils to accelerate their learning to make even better progress. In some lessons the most able pupils are not provided with opportunities to develop their understanding and thinking skills more deeply. This results in a smaller proportion reaching the higher standards.

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 very positive about school life. They enjoy coming to school and try their best to work hard. Pupils speak freely about the school’s values, talking about ‘respect, friendship, trust’ and what these mean to them in their daily lives.
• Pupils are appreciative of all that the staff do for them. They feel well looked after but also recognise that they are getting better at learning, mentioning their handwriting and mathematics work, for example, where they know they are improving.
• Pupils feel safe in school. Through the school’s curriculum, they are taught various ways of keeping themselves safe and avoiding situations that may pose risks to their welfare, for example when using the internet or the road, or when near water.
• Staff provide sensitive support and care when pupils become troubled or upset. They administer first aid if pupils tumble in the playground and make sure that pupils are comforted and enabled to return to learning, or play, at the appropriate time.
• Pupils who may be facing difficult times at home are given particularly good care. Staff work closely with parents, who stated to the inspection team that they appreciate the good communication.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils are well behaved in lessons. They organise themselves quickly, without fuss in most cases, so that time is not lost when they have to change activity.
• Pupils behave well in assembly. Any minor unsettled behaviour in class or elsewhere is dealt with sensitively and quickly to prevent other pupils becoming distracted.
• Pupils behave well in the playground and enjoy the opportunity to play and socialise. Relationships are good, as pupils take part in various games and explore the spaces available to them.
• Any incidents of bullying are extremely rare. Records show that any occurrences are dealt with quickly and effectively and followed up. The logs for behaviour show that incidents are minimal.
• Pupils’ attendance has been around the national average but has improved this year. Leaders make every effort to encourage good attendance when any pupil’s attendance falls below acceptable levels.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils’ attainment is showing improvement this year and pupils are achieving more successfully than in the past. Evidence in pupils’ books, observations of pupils’ learning and the school’s latest progress information indicate that pupils’ outcomes are now good across all year groups and in all subjects. This is due to improvements in teaching, learning and assessment.
• Published data shows that by the end of key stage 1, pupils’ standards have been broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics in each year since the last inspection.
• In 2016, the vast majority of pupils who moved to the junior school left with attainment at age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics. While a few pupils achieved above age-related expectations in reading, this was not the case in mathematics.
• Currently, school information shows that pupils are achieving better outcomes throughout the school and the results at the end of Year 2 are expected to be higher than last year.
• The proportions of children who achieve a good level of development at the end of Reception was below the national figure for 2015 but in 2016 has risen to be broadly average. Current school information shows that there continues to be an improvement in standards and the vast majority of the children in the Reception Year are on track to reach a good level of development, improving on 2016 outcomes.
• The proportions of children who reach the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check have been in line with national figures since the last inspection and are set to rise this year. This is due to effective teaching in the early years and Year 1, especially in the teaching of phonics.
• Progress is good within each year group and generally for all groups of pupils. The school’s assessments show that pupils are making good progress in reading, writing and, more especially, mathematics. A scrutiny of pupils’ books confirms that pupils also make good progress in other subjects.
• The school had very few disadvantaged pupils in 2016. However, they performed as well as others nationally in achieving age-related expectations, because leaders and governors now carefully check how well they are learning. Currently, there are no disadvantaged pupils in the school.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are given support in lessons and in small groups to enable them to make good progress from their various starting points.
• Pupils are well prepared to move on to junior school. A smooth transition occurs because effective links are formed between the schools that are part of the federation.
• The most able pupils make good progress but some of them have too few opportunities to deepen their knowledge and understanding to enable them to reach the higher standards of which they are capable.

Early years provision Good

• Many children previously started school with skills and knowledge below what would be typical for their age. The close links with pre-school providers ensure that pupils are now better prepared to join the school. Weaknesses in communication, speech and language are common. Last year, children left the Reception Year with broadly average attainment as they moved to Year 1.
• Adults promote children’s talk effectively when children are learning and exploring, particularly in the outside area. All teaching assistants capture opportunities to do this when the children are gathered together in larger groups or as a class.
• In the past, leaders have focused sharply on improving the achievement of the very few children from disadvantaged backgrounds. At the time of the inspection, there were no pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds in the Reception Year.
• The teachers’ work to improve phonics has improved reading for all children, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, and they are attaining well from their starting points. This is also the case in mathematics. However, it is in writing where the difference is widest.
• Writing and reading have been areas for improvement for the school as a whole since the last inspection. Teachers in the Reception Year have done a lot to encourage children’s early writing skills from the beginning, when children start school, to lay good foundations for Year 1 and beyond. Children are experiencing writing regularly where writing support is on display, and readily available, through words or labels, for example, to support children’s literacy. This has given a clear message that writing is important and valued.
• The outdoor area is used well and inspectors observed numerous activities organised to encourage children’s learning and exploration. Children move around with a good awareness of others. They use the resources that have been set out for them confidently and take turns, when helping each other to balance along some small steps, or in the house making ‘tea and jam tarts’ for each other, for example.
• Children behave well, especially when they are choosing things for themselves or are engaged in activities outside. Children making repeated patterns from shapes and colours are challenged by adults who ask questions such as ‘why is that a pattern?’ or ‘How can you make it different?’
• Adults are attentive to children’s welfare and safety, both indoors and outdoors. Children are well cared for and supported sensitively and promptly when they feel upset or unwell. Adults keep in close touch with parents and use an online program that informs parents of their child’s successes in school and through which parents can add and celebrate what their child does out of school. The team in Reception work successfully with the special educational needs coordinator and other agencies, for example to support children’s speech and language development.

School details

Unique reference number 123754 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 10017408 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Infant School category Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4 to 7 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 46 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Alan Jones Headteacher Carly Hatch Telephone number 01398 323 231 Website www.allsaintsdulverton.co.uk/ Email address chatch@educ.somerset.gov.uk Date of previous inspection 12 September 2014

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• All Saints CofE VC Infants school was previously a first school and was re-designated to start as an infant school in September 2016.
• All Saints CofE VC Infants school is smaller than the average primary school.
• The majority of pupils come from a White British background. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage. There are very few pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and an even smaller number of pupils who speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is above average.
• The proportion of pupils supported with a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is below the national average.
• The pupils are taught in two classes, a mixed-age Year 1 and 2 class and a Reception class in the early years foundation stage.
• The school has had a turnover of over half of its teaching staff since the last inspection.
• All Saints CofE VC Infant School is a member of the Exmoor Federation. The Exmoor Federation of schools comprises a Church of England infant school, a Church of England first school and a community junior school. The federation has one governing body and each school has a headteacher. The federation uses its expertise to support staff training and leadership and management.
• The school has received support from a local leader of education through the local authority.

Information about this inspection

• The inspectors observed six complete lessons. These included two lessons jointly observed with the headteacher.
• The inspectors also made a number of short visits to lessons to check the quality of provision and its impact.
• The inspectors heard individual pupils read and discussed their individual reading preferences with them.
• They carried out a detailed scrutiny of the work in pupils’ books across a range of subjects and both classes.
• Pupils’ behaviour both inside and outside the classroom was observed.
• The inspectors held meetings with the vice-chair of the governing body and three members of the governing body, school leaders, staff and groups of pupils, including members of the school council.
• The lead inspector spoke with a representative of the local authority and the local leader of education.
• The inspectors also talked with a number of parents and carers as they brought children into school.
• The inspectors viewed a range of documents, including information on pupils’ achievement, the school’s data on current and recent progress and attainment, and the school’s self-evaluation report. They also looked at the school’s improvement plan, documents relating to safeguarding, and records of behaviour and attendance.
• The inspectors took account of the seven responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and six responses to the inspection questionnaire for staff. The school’s website was also scrutinised.

Inspection team

Terry Mortimer, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Fran Harding Ofsted Inspector