Oake, Bradford and Nynehead VC Primary Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve further the effectiveness of leadership and management by embedding the role of middle leaders so that they offer the headteacher effective support and play a greater part in improving teachers’ subject knowledge.
• Improve the progress pupils make by:
  • helping pupils to apply their spelling, grammar and punctuation skills accurately to produce more sophisticated pieces of writing
  • ensuring that the most able pupils are challenged to reach their full potential in writing and in mathematical problem-solving.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

Governance of the school

• The governing body is committed to the improvement of the school. Governors have secured the appointment of a permanent headteacher who has a clear brief to build upon the positive work of the interim leader.
• Governors have a good grasp of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. They visit the school regularly to maintain this.
• Governors are well informed and receive accurate information about the life and work of the school from the headteacher’s termly report. They use this to frame questions and challenges and to hold leaders to account for the outcomes achieved.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• School leaders keep pupils safe and ensure that they are well cared for. Parents say that pupils are kept safe at the school. The interim headteacher has tightened up on security and safeguarding procedures, including securing the school site.
• Leaders and governors have ensured that the policies are up to date and procedures are fully understood by all staff. Staff are supported by knowledgeable designated safeguarding leads. There is a clear process for reporting concerns and the involvement of external agencies is carefully managed and monitored by school leaders. The school’s recruitment and vetting processes are robust and follow statutory expectations.
• Leaders ensure that staff receive training on the dangers of extremism and radicalisation. Staff are vigilant and report any concerns to school leaders.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils’ relationships with each other and staff are positive. Pupils say that any issues, including the rare cases of bullying, are promptly dealt with and resolved.
• Pupils enjoy coming to school and are fully engaged in their learning. Attendance has improved. However, pupils’ concentration wavers on occasions. When it does, their progress falters.
• All the parents who responded to Parent View say that their children are kept safe at the school and pupils questioned by the inspector agree with this. Pupils are taught about online safety and can talk about this with confidence.
• Teachers’ high expectations of pupils ensure that they take increasing pride in their workbooks, especially in the early years and key stage 2.
• All pupils are involved in the life of the school. This includes leading assemblies or raising funds for local charities, such as one for blind people.
• The school prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. In addition, the broad-ranging personal, social, health and emotional curriculum enables pupils to learn about people who are less fortunate than themselves.
• Pupils say that staff help them to manage their emotions and show respect and empathy for others. In Year 2, the story of the ‘Good Samaritan’ is used to aid the pupils’ understanding of the importance of faith and kindness.
• Older pupils thrive on the wide range of responsibilities they are given, including being school councillors, acting as playground buddies and leading activities on the playground. Behaviour

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Leaders and teachers have focused successfully on improving pupils’ achievements following a period of decline in attainment and progress, particularly in writing and for the most able pupils. Current pupils make good progress in reading and mathematics. Some pupils’ progress in writing is hindered by weak grammar and spelling, particularly in Years 5 and 6.
• Teachers make effective use of what they know pupils can do and understand to plan how to help pupils catch up. Consequently, pupils are now making better progress over time. Pupils usually enter key stage 1 with strong foundations laid in the early years. Pupils make better progress in Years 1 and 2 since expectations have been raised.
• Pupils’ progress in writing has improved this year. Pupils demonstrate growing confidence and understanding of the effective use of grammar, especially in Years 3 and 4. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 can explain the clauses in a sentence, the use of metaphors and commas.
• A good standard of handwriting can be seen in most year groups. Most pupils reach the school’s expectations for handwriting by the end of Year 4.
• Pupils master the mechanics of reading well and this is supported by the strong teaching of phonics. Pupils achieve well in the Year 1 phonics screening check with results broadly in line with the national average. Pupils are developing a love of reading and books and read frequently in school and at home.
• Pupils make good progress in mathematics with a high level of confidence in manipulating numbers through the four operations and forms of calculation. Attainment and progress in recent end-of-key stage assessments were broadly in line with the national average. Pupils’ mental calculation skills are strong. Most pupils in key stage 2 are increasingly able to demonstrate a good level of understanding and ability to reason and solve problems. Pupils in key stage 1 lack the ability to apply their knowledge of number facts to reasoning and problem-solving activities.
• The progress made by the most able pupils across the school varies. In the early years and Years 3 and 4, these pupils are making strong progress, especially in writing, number and calculation. However, in other year groups, the most able pupils do not get the challenge they need in order to achieve the highest standard of which they are capable.
• Disadvantaged pupils are making good progress. This group of pupils is very small, making national comparisons difficult. Nonetheless, work in books shows that this group is doing as well as other pupils. The pupil premium is used well to support this.
• Pupils with SEND make good progress, especially in reading and writing. They are supported well in class.
• Pupils speak and listen with increasing confidence. A strong start is made in the early years. Pupils’ vocabulary is rich and wide due to the variety of stories that teachers share with them. This understanding of language supports them well as they enter key stage 1. Pupils respond well in lessons when asked questions or given chances for discussion.
• Work in topic and science books and on display shows that pupils are making good progress in other subjects, especially religious education in Years 1 and 2 and science and history in key stage 2.

Early years provision Good

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 135832 Somerset 10086883 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 Maintained 2 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 112 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher David McCann Judith Barrett (interim) Telephone number 01823 461 533 Website Email address www.obnschool.wixsite.com sch.264@educ.somerset.gov.uk Date of previous inspection 16 and 17 June 2015

Information about this school

• Oake, Bradford and Nynehead VC Primary School is smaller than the average primary school. There are four classes and a pre-school.
• The school is a Church of England Voluntary Controlled school and the last section 48 inspection took place in December 2016. The outcome of this inspection was satisfactory.
• The governing body has established a pre-school, which offers places for two- to four-year-olds.
• The school provides before- and after-school childcare for families and this is well supported.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is below the national average.
• The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium funding is lower than the national average.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector visited lessons jointly with the interim headteacher. A wide sample of pupils’ work from all year groups and a range of subjects was scrutinised.
• The inspector met and talked to groups of pupils from Year 2 and key stage 2, as well as with pupils informally across the site.
• The inspector listened to a selection of pupils read and discussed the books they were reading.
• Meetings were held with the interim headteacher, middle leaders and members of the governing body. A telephone conversation took place with a local authority officer.
• Information and other documentary evidence were evaluated including that relating to safeguarding, the school’s self-evaluation of recent outcomes, school improvement planning and external reviews.
• The inspector took account of 34 responses to the online Parent View and the responses to the staff online survey. The inspector also spoke to parents at the beginning of both days of the inspection.

Inspection team

Mark Lees, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector