Lyneham Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by ensuring that: leaders act swiftly to improve teaching and learning so that they are consistently strong across the school middle leaders use assessment information more precisely to support teachers to enable pupils to make at least good progress parents receive timely information about the achievements of their children.
• Improve the quality of teaching and learning across the school by: ensuring that teachers use assessment information effectively to plan activities that match closely pupils’ learning needs, particularly for the most able pupils and for boys ensuring that mathematics teaching develops pupils’ calculation skills further developing pupils’ ability to use spelling rules and patterns accurately when writing further developing pupils’ writing skills across the curriculum.
• Improve outcomes for pupils by ensuring that boys and the most able pupils reach higher standards, particularly in writing.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management

Requires improvement

• Senior leaders are ambitious for the school. They are determined to improve the school, particularly pupils’ outcomes. Effective actions have brought about improvements to pupils’ behaviour, personal development and well-being, the quality of provision and children’s outcomes in the early years since the last inspection.
• Senior leaders are aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. However, new systems to improve the quality of teaching and learning are not fully established. For example, they have recently revitalised the teaching of mathematics. However, this has not yet had time to have a full impact across the school and secure consistently good outcomes for pupils.
• Middle leaders are aware of the school’s priorities for improvement and the need to raise standards. However, many of these leaders are new to their roles and they are still developing the leadership skills they need to be effective. Their use of assessment information is not yet strong enough to allow them to plan the precise support that some teachers require.
• School leaders have improved the way they use additional funding for service pupils. Leaders’ actions to meet the social and emotional needs of these pupils are effective. A designated ‘transition leader’ ensures that newly arrived service pupils settle into school well. However, leaders do not focus sufficiently on tracking these pupils’ academic progress.
• Leaders’ support for disadvantaged pupils is largely effective. In some year groups, these pupils make good progress. However, this is not consistent for all pupils. The new pupil premium leader has a secure understanding of the actions that have been successful. She is aware of the changes necessary to ensure that disadvantaged pupils’ progress is consistently good.
• The leader responsible for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is highly effective. She uses her good understanding of the needs of individual pupils to ensure that teachers support pupils well. As a result, these pupils are making good progress from their starting points.
• Leaders evaluate the impact of the sport premium to ensure that it is used effectively to engage pupils in physical activities. Sports coaching has a positive impact on pupils’ attitudes to physical education (PE) and provides high-quality professional development for teachers.
• Teachers receive good support for their professional development. They are appreciative of the training they receive and most are starting to use this to positive effect in their teaching.
• Leaders use performance management systems well to hold teachers to account for pupils’ outcomes.
• Leaders have made reading a priority for improvement. Current pupils, especially those in Years 5 and 6, read regularly and widely. Pupils have engaged in ‘tweeting’ with prominent authors and enjoy these interactions.
• Leaders have improved the content of the curriculum. Pupils are enthusiastic about their practical lessons in science. They enjoy history and geography, in particular when studying the Romans and the Egyptians. Learning in the wider curriculum is celebrated through displays which include high-quality artwork and examples of good-quality personal, social, health and economic work.
• The curriculum for spiritual, moral, social and cultural education is effective in promoting pupils’ understanding of the need for tolerance, respect and caring for others. Assemblies on themes such as ‘the kindness boomerang’ encourage pupils to demonstrate the school’s values, both in and outside of school.
• Leaders engage with the wider community and the Ministry of Defence well. For example, Year 5 pupils lead the annual Remembrance Service.
• Some parents believe that they do not receive timely information from the school about their children’s academic progress. This is particularly relevant for parents of service children who have recently joined the school.

Governance of the school

• The chair of governors, supported well by a small, dedicated group of governors, ably leads the governing body. Governors have good levels of expertise and bring a high level of challenge and effective support to leaders. They share leaders’ understanding of the strategic priorities of the school. They know that there is still work to do to achieve the best for all pupils.
• Governors make regular visits to review the impact of leaders’ actions to improve the school. These include looking at pupils’ books, meeting with school leaders, talking to children and checking standards of learning. This ensures that they have a good understanding of how to question leaders further.
• Governors challenge leaders confidently. They link their questions productively to pupils’ progress and the impact of teaching on learning. However, the answers they receive from school leaders are not always precise enough for them to make accurate judgements about progress on implementing the school’s improvement plans.
• Governors monitor effectively the impact of additional funding for disadvantaged pupils, for service pupils and for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders and governors have further developed the already strong culture of safeguarding within the school. Leaders are vigilant in ensuring pupils’ safety. Leaders quickly identify and respond to concerns that pupils may be at risk from harm. Leaders track effectively the support pupils receive from outside agencies.
• Leaders are diligent in ensuring that staff training in safeguarding is up to date. Staff are secure in their knowledge of the procedures in school and familiar with guidance in areas such as child protection, radicalisation and extremism.
• Parents and pupils say that the school is a safe and happy place. Pupils know how to stay safe, both in and out of school and online. They know who they can report any concerns to should they arise.
• Governors check the school procedures and systems well. They are knowledgeable and support leaders to ensure that all pupils remain safe.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teachers do not use assessment information well enough to plan activities that build on pupils’ prior knowledge and understanding. This is particularly the case in the teaching of writing and mathematics. As a result, not enough pupils reach the standards of which they are capable.
• Leaders comment that the school has ‘been on a long journey’ with regard to improving the quality of teaching in the school. The impact of recent school improvement initiatives is not yet evident in pupils’ outcomes.
• English teaching is not encouraging pupils to make corrections of commonly misspelt words quickly enough. As a result, the progress in their writing is being limited, particularly for the most able pupils.
• Pupils’ application of their writing skills in subjects other than English is weak. Teachers are not insisting that pupils apply their knowledge and understanding of aspects such as sentence construction. Pupils are not showing the same pride in their work and presentation. Therefore, they are not as good as those in their English books.
• In mathematics, teachers’ subject knowledge is not consistently secure enough to enable effective planning. Where knowledge is stronger, particularly in Years 5 and 6, lessons are more accurately pitched to the needs of pupils.
• The teaching of mathematics provides pupils with a range of problem-solving and reasoning activities. However, pupils do not always have a good understanding of the methods taught or of number facts and times tables to successfully complete the tasks set.
• The school now provides supportive and timely ‘catch-up’ sessions for those pupils who are falling behind. This contributes to the improved progress these pupils are now making, especially in Year 6.
• Teachers do not consistently follow the school’s assessment policy when giving pupils feedback about their work. As a result, not enough pupils know how to improve their work.
• Pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities receive good teaching. The school has a strong ethos of nurture and support. Leaders ensure that these pupils are given appropriate challenge and guidance in their learning. Pupils are ably supported by teaching assistants. Parents report that the school responds well if their child needs additional support.
• Phonics teaching is effective. The majority of pupils are now meeting the standards expected at the end of Year 1. Pupils’ ability to recognise and make appropriate links between groups of letters and sounds is in line with the expectation for pupils of their age nationally.

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 proud of their school. They speak highly of the care, guidance and support they receive from members of staff. A variety of different programmes provide valuable additional support, such as play therapy. Such approaches have been successful in improving pupils’ emotional and social understanding, as well as raising their self-esteem.
• Service pupils receive effective social and emotional guidance to settle into school. Pupils are listened to and have the right support to feel part of the school quickly. Pupils recognise the uniqueness of their ‘army school’.
• Pupils demonstrate respect for each other in the playground and in lessons. Positive relationships between pupils and adults are a strong feature of the school. Pupils speak to each other using polite language and respond appropriately when this is not used.
• Leaders expect pupils to demonstrate the school values of respect, kindness and cooperation. Pupils were keen to share how they demonstrate these values in the wider community, for example by raising money for Water Aid.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. The school is calm and orderly. Pupils move around sensibly, following the guidance of their teachers. The vast majority of parents and pupils understand, and believe in, the school’s values and ethos.
• General behaviour and attitudes to learning are good and improving. Where teaching is stronger, pupils are attentive and work hard. They do not disturb others and settle well to their learning for the majority of the time. However, where teaching is weaker, a small minority of pupils do not concentrate well enough.
• Pupils play energetically and harmoniously in the playground. They feel safe and say that other pupils are kind. School leaders have worked with pupils on their understanding of bullying. However, some parents are concerned about bullying, despite the school’s efforts and the fact that pupils say that bullying is not an issue.
• Leaders track any incidents of poor behaviour well and take swift action to involve parents if necessary. Incidents of poor behaviour have reduced in the past year. Pupils are very aware of leaders’ higher expectations. They say that teachers apply rewards and consequences fairly.
• The school’s strategies to improve the engagement of pupils with more challenging behaviour have been successful over the past year. This has reduced pupil exclusions this year. These pupils have benefited from teachers’ consistent implementation of behaviour expectations.
• Pupils’ attendance has improved this year, particularly that of disadvantaged pupils. The school’s actions to reduce the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent have been effective. The level of attendance is broadly in line with the national average.

Outcomes for pupils

Requires improvement

• Pupils achieve less well when compared to other schools nationally. In key stage 1, the proportion of pupils working at the levels expected for their age is broadly in line with national averages in reading and writing, but is lower in mathematics.
• Boys’ achievements are lower than those of boys nationally in all subjects. Their current progress is too slow.
• Key stage 2 pupils’ progress has improved. However, the attainment of the majority of pupils is still below national averages. This is particularly the case for those who are disadvantaged, and for boys in reading and mathematics.
• Disadvantaged pupils make slower progress than other pupils and do not achieve as well as other pupils nationally.
• Standards in writing, particularly for the most able pupils, are too low. Teaching does not enable them to write at greater depth. The school does not track the most able pupils effectively enough to ensure that teaching enables them to achieve their full potential.
• Pupils’ progress in most year groups is improving, and so pupils are beginning to catch up on their previous weak attainment. However, this is not yet consistent across all year groups.
• Pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities make strong progress over time. Teachers plan effectively to meet their needs. As a result, many of these pupils achieve as well as other pupils.
• Pupils make strong progress from an early stage in developing their reading skills. The proportion of pupils who reach the required standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check has risen consistently over the past three years. Pupils become keen readers. Initiatives such as providing pupils with copies of the class texts encourage pupils to read more widely.
• Across the wider curriculum, pupils acquire knowledge quickly in history and geography and develop the specific vocabulary to talk about their learning. In PE, pupils have access to a wide range of activities and participate well.

Early years provision Good

• Over time, children make good progress in the Reception classes. In recent years, the proportion of children reaching a good level of development has been above the national average.
• The current and previous early years leaders have high expectations. They have transformed the setting. Leaders’ self-evaluation is accurate. They are determined to ensure that children are resilient, successful learners. Adults work in the same way to ensure that there is consistently high-quality teaching and learning.
• Leaders have created a positive learning environment. Consequently, children have positive attitudes towards their learning. Children are eager to develop their understanding of words, number and the world, and their communication and listening skills. They learn and play well. Collaboration is a common feature, with children working together to solve problems successfully. The children are highly motivated. They apply what they already know about numbers to count well and begin to add and subtract.
• Teachers have high expectations of children. They are quick to identify where different groups of children are not making as much progress as they should be. This includes those who have SEN and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language. Teachers provide additional support and interventions which enable these children to make rapid progress.
• Children behave well and keep themselves safe by following the routines and expectations of staff who work with them. They sustain their involvement in activities and talk together about their interests and the tasks in hand.
• Relationships between children and adults are warm and encouraging. Adults provide good care, support and guidance for all children, especially for newly arrived service children.
• Leaders have changed the learning environment a great deal since the previous inspection, increasing the quality of resources available to help children to become successful learners. Leaders provide children with a rich variety of activities. Leaders are developing activities in the outdoor area. However, new resources are not always made available for children to use.
• Leaders are providing appropriate training for teaching assistants in phonics learning and teaching.
• Leaders are aware of the next steps for improvement. This includes the need to track children’s progress more effectively in areas such as understanding the world around them and using media and technology.
• Parents are very positive about the Reception classes. They particularly value the detailed knowledge teachers have about their children and the rapid progress their children make. They appreciate the opportunities to contribute to their children’s learning. They recognise that the school gives their children’s welfare and safety a high priority.
• Children are well prepared for their transition to Year 1. They develop the skills and attributes they need for the next stage of their education.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 135177 Wiltshire 10048255 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 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 321 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Antony Jones John Read 01249 890 413 www.lynehamprimary.co.uk admin@lynehamprimary.wilts.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 24–25 February 2016

Information about this school

• Lyneham Primary School is an average-sized primary school.
• The current headteacher took up his post in September 2015.
• The majority of pupils are from a White British background.
• The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities who receive support is broadly average. The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan is above average.
• Service children make up a large proportion of the pupils who attend the school.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed learning in a number of lessons. Many of these observations were made jointly with leaders.
• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and other senior leaders, middle leaders, groups of pupils, representatives of the local authority and members of the governing body.
• Inspectors scrutinised a wide range of documentation, including information on pupils’ outcomes, the school’s improvement plan, minutes of governing body meetings, local authority reviews and records relating to the monitoring of teaching and performance management, behaviour, attendance and the safeguarding of pupils.
• Inspectors scrutinised pupils’ work and observed their conduct at break and lunchtimes.
• Inspectors took account of 68 responses to the online Parent View survey.

Inspection team

Paul Smith, lead inspector Faye Bertham Malcolm Willis

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector