Oasis Academy Foundry Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Further improve the quality of teaching and outcomes for pupils by ensuring that:
  • teachers provide pupils with more opportunities to apply their reading skills to gain a greater depth of understanding of what they have read
  • teachers set clear and explicit expectations of what pupils should achieve in lessons, especially for the most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged.
• Further improve leadership and management by developing the monitoring and evaluation skills of those middle leaders who are not yet in a strong enough position to have an impact on improving teaching and learning within their areas of responsibility.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The principal has been unswerving in her drive to ensure that all pupils at Oasis Academy Foundry feel valued and cared for and have high aspirations for what they can achieve in their lives. She has a deep understanding of the many challenges that the pupils and their families face and has worked tirelessly and successfully to improve teaching and outcomes at the school. As a result of her leadership, teaching is now consistently good and pupils behave well. This was not the case when the school opened as an academy in January 2014.
• The principal is very well supported in her leadership by the deputy principal. Together, they have built a strong team of staff that is committed to providing a positive and nurturing learning environment for all the pupils. They have gone the extra mile to establish a curriculum that is extremely well matched to the specific needs of the pupils and that provides a wide range of exciting and imaginative learning activities across subjects. The range of topics that are now in place, including ‘Dinosaur Planet’ and ‘Time Traveller’, provide pupils with good opportunities to apply their reading, writing and mathematics skills and knowledge across other subjects, such as science, history and geography.
• The curriculum also supports pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development extremely well. For example, pupils in Year 4, as part of their ‘Road Trip USA’ topic, are taught to reflect upon the reasons for, and advantages of, living together in harmony despite differing customs and values. This is rightly seen as essential in a school where pupils have a wide range of cultural and religious beliefs and have often recently arrived from countries where conflict is rife.
• Leaders ensure that pupils’ learning is enriched through regular trips and visits, including to London and to a museum in Oxford. These additional activities motivate pupils in their learning and widen their experiences. The good range of extra-curricular activities, including a choir, a film club and an animal care club, are well attended and help to provide pupils with stimulating opportunities to pursue interests and develop skills.
• The ‘Oasis Nine Habits’, which are the values that the multi-academy trust have established, are fundamental to the work that the principal, other leaders and all staff do at the school. These values, which include ‘being honest and having integrity’ and ‘being patient and persevering’, are understood by the pupils and are reflected in the positive relationships that exist within school. As a result of the highly effective work that leaders undertake, pupils are very well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Leaders have established thorough and robust systems for monitoring all areas of the school’s work. The outcomes from the various monitoring activities, including scrutiny of pupils’ work, analysis of assessment information and observations of teaching, are accurately evaluated and used to identify areas where the school can improve further.
• School leaders of English and mathematics are regularly involved in monitoring and evaluating their areas of responsibility and have subsequently brought about improvements in teaching and learning. However, systems for other school leaders to evaluate provision and to be held accountable for leading improvements in their areas of responsibility are not yet as well established. This means that the impact of actions taken is not always sharply analysed to determine how it is affecting pupils’ learning.
• Good systems are in place to manage teachers’ performance and to hold them to account for pupils’ outcomes. Teachers and other staff are appreciative of the opportunities that leaders create for them to undertake training and to observe effective teaching, both within the school and across other schools in the academy trust.
• The very high proportion of disadvantaged pupils in school are well supported as leaders use the premium funding imaginatively and appropriately. As well as additional teachers and teaching assistants who provide one-to-one and small group support for pupils, the funding has also been used to purchase tablet computers and minibuses. These are used to broaden learning opportunities and to enable pupils to find out about, and experience, society beyond their immediate locality.
• The school makes good use of the sports premium. Additional specialist sports coaches are employed directly by the school. They provide high-quality teaching of games and physical activities to all pupils each week. In addition, the range of sports activities available to pupils has been significantly increased to include before- and after-school clubs, such as football, multisports and tag rugby. Pupils also benefit from the opportunity to learn dance from a trained ballet professional.
• Parents are highly supportive of the work of the school. All the parents spoken to during the inspection were positive about the improvements that they have seen during the time that the school has been open. They recognise and greatly appreciate the work of the principal and commented upon how approachable she is and how she knows the pupils as individuals.

Governance of the school

• The multi-academy trust and the local academy council provide strong and effective governance. The regional director of the academy trust works closely with school leaders and has an accurate and informed view of the school. He, together with colleagues from the trust, carries out regular reviews of all aspects of the school’s work and provides support and advice when required. For example, when it became apparent that there was a need to improve aspects of the teaching of reading, the trust quickly organised opportunities for school leaders to visit other schools where there was effective practice in place.
• Members of the local academy council, including the chair of the council, are regular visitors to school. They have a deep understanding of the particular needs of the local community and use this knowledge well to provide support to pupils and their families.
• Members of the trust ensure that additional funding that is available to the school, including the pupil premium grant and special educational needs funding, is used appropriately and effectively to bring about improvements for pupils in school. The trust has been highly supportive of school leaders in their drive to make the school an attractive and well-resourced place for pupils to learn in.
• Governors fulfil all their statutory requirements well. They use their expertise, including from members of the academy council with particular knowledge and skills in safeguarding and child protection, to make sure that pupils are safe, secure and protected in school.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• There is an extremely strong culture of collective responsibility for safeguarding in school. School leaders have deep understanding of the specific needs of the pupils and recognise that a significant number are in vulnerable positions due to social, economic and cultural circumstances. The systems that the school has put in place to identify if pupils are at risk are thorough and are understood by all members of staff. All members of the school’s senior leadership team are trained to a level that ensures that there is always someone on the school site who can take appropriate action if any safeguarding issue arises.
• Teachers and all other staff are well trained and understand their responsibilities to keep pupils safe. The school has appointed a family liaison worker who very effectively works alongside and supports school leaders in their work in protecting pupils. Staff have received specific training on the ‘Prevent’ duty and as a result are well informed to ensure that pupils are not at risk of radicalisation or extremism. The recently established community hub provides support and advice to parents on a range of issues and has strong and robust links with outside agencies.
• Record-keeping is detailed and leaders follow through all concerns diligently and relentlessly. As a result, pupils are well cared for and protected.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• There have been significant and effective improvements in the quality of teaching since the school opened as an academy. Teachers have received training that is accurately matched to their individual needs. There are clear policies in place that are followed by all staff about how pupils are taught and these help to ensure that there is a common approach to areas such as spelling and mathematical calculations.
• The arrangements that the school has put in place to support the large number of pupils who arrive at the school speaking little, or often no, English are effective and help these pupils to settle quickly into their learning. In each class, teachers or teaching assistants provide these pupils with initial ‘emergency’ vocabulary that enables them to gain an understanding of what is happening in the lesson. Members of staff work with small groups of pupils and model spoken English which is then used to allow the pupils to form sentences. This knowledge is then applied in reading and writing and, as a result, pupils make rapid progress from their starting points.
• Mathematics is taught well, with pupils encouraged by teachers to use a range of apparatus in their learning to help them develop secure understanding of new concepts. Teachers provide pupils with good opportunities to apply their mathematical knowledge in problem-solving using reasoning.
• There is a strong focus in writing on ensuring that pupils are taught core skills in punctuation, spelling and grammar and are then required to apply them in independent pieces of extended writing. Teachers ensure that pupils correct errors in their spelling and write in a well-formed and joined-up style of handwriting.
• Pupils say that teachers make learning interesting and fun. Pupils are encouraged to extend their learning through research and are effectively taught how to use tablet computers to gain additional information. For example, during the inspection, pupils in a key stage 2 class were observed using hand-held computers as part of a history lesson to discover additional information about fossils and how they had been formed. They discussed in pairs and small groups the information that they had gathered and were then able to write well-constructed pieces of work that showed a good depth of understanding.
• Teachers usually set different tasks for the most able pupils. However, these activities are sometimes not sufficiently demanding and, as a result, the most able pupils do not consistently achieve the higher outcomes of which they are capable.
• There is a whole-school systematic approach to the teaching of reading through phonics, with teachers and teaching assistants accurately demonstrating the sounds that letters make in words and pupils applying this knowledge to their reading. While pupils make good progress in this aspect of reading, they are less confident in fully understanding the deeper meaning of what they have read. This is because, until recently, teachers did not focus on providing enough opportunities for pupils to develop their reading comprehension skills. While this is now improving, there are still occasions when teachers do not set sufficiently demanding reading tasks.
• Teachers use questioning well to assess pupils’ understanding and to develop spoken language. However, the questions are not always sufficiently challenging for the most able pupils and they are not required to think deeply enough. There are also occasions when the work that is set for these pupils is not demanding enough. As a result, too few pupils currently reach the higher standards or work at greater depth as they move through the school.
• Very good use is made of subject-specialist teachers. All pupils in Year 3 are taught the violin by a teacher from the local authority’s music service. The school’s own sports coaches lead weekly physical education lessons for all pupils and this helps to ensure that they develop good skills in this area of the curriculum.
• Assessment is used well to track the progress of individual pupils. Teachers measure pupils’ progress against the expectations of the national curriculum and meet regularly with colleagues to ensure that their assessment judgements are accurate. If any pupils are identified as falling behind in their learning, additional support is provided in class, often by well-trained teaching assistants who match activities very well to the specific needs of the pupils.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• The extremely high emphasis that school leaders place on pupils feeling valued and secure has created a climate where pupils thrive and are supported exceptionally well in their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
• Pupils are caring and considerate individuals who show pride in their school. A striking feature of the school is the way that the many new pupils who arrive at the school at differing points in the school year rapidly form positive friendships and relationships. This is a result of the highly effective systems that the school has in place for making pupils feel settled and welcomed.
• Pupils’ mental and emotional health is seen of paramount importance. A daily animal care club that operates at lunchtime is an example of how pupils are taught about the need to show compassion for other living creatures. Pupils work with trained adults to look after the range of animals, such as an albino hedgehog, a bearded lizard and the school’s small flock of alpacas.
• Pupils say that bullying is extremely rare and that they are confident that if it did occur, it would be quickly and effectively dealt with by any of the members of staff. They have a good understanding of the potential dangers that the internet can pose and know how to keep themselves safe when online.
• Pupils in this multicultural and multifaith school understand and demonstrate the need to show respect for people with different faiths or from different countries. In a Year 3 lesson, pupils perceptively discussed features of the different buildings that people of different faiths worship in. This showed their depth of understanding and their abilities to understand the beliefs of others.
• The very well-run before-school club is well attended and much appreciated by the many pupils who take up the option of a free breakfast. This is a further example of the school’s work to promote pupils’ health and well-being.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• The school has developed strong systems to ensure that pupils behave well and understand that each individual’s behaviour can have an effect on others. School records show that there has been an ongoing improvement in pupils’ behaviour since the school opened as an academy.
• Pupils behave well in lessons and on the playground at breaktime and lunchtime. They listen to staff and respond quickly to instructions and requests.
• Pupils know that there are consequences and sanctions that will be applied if their behaviour is not acceptable. They also know and appreciate that positive behaviour is recognised and rewarded. The very large majority of pupils show positive attitudes to learning and take pride in their work. On the infrequent occasions when a pupil does not behave appropriately, teachers and other staff follow the school’s behaviour policy and quickly address the issue so that learning is not disrupted for other pupils.
• Systems for promoting good attendance are robust and effective. As a result, attendance is now broadly in line with the national average and no pupil’s learning is hindered by low levels of attendance. In an assembly seen during the inspection, pupils listened attentively to the updates on the levels of attendance for all classes and identified the positive impact that regular attendance could have on their learning.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Outcomes for pupils have improved significantly over the past three years. Pupils now leave the school at the end of Year 6 with outcomes that are similar to the national average. This indicates good progress for these pupils from their starting points in school. Many pupils start at the school speaking no English and make rapid progress due to the good teaching that now exists in school.
• Provisional results for 2016 indicate that Year 6 pupils achieved outcomes in mathematics and writing that were in line with the national average. Outcomes for these pupils were lower in reading, and school leaders have rightly identified that developing pupils’ comprehension skills needs to improve further.
• There has been an ongoing improvement in the proportion of Year 1 pupils attaining the expected standard in the national phonics screening check. This is a result of the systematic and whole-school approach that is in place for ensuring that pupils develop a secure understanding of sounds within words.
• In 2015, pupils in Year 2 achieved outcomes that were below the national average in reading, writing and mathematics. Provisional results for 2016 indicate that attainment for pupils in Year 2 was broadly in line with the national average for all three subjects.
• Evidence gathered during the inspection from scrutiny of pupils’ work in books, observations in lessons and the school’s own assessment information indicates that pupils currently in school are making good progress across all subjects. The well-planned curriculum enables pupils to apply their reading, writing and mathematics skills in others subjects and to reach standards that are expected for their age. However, the most able pupils are not consistently provided with enough opportunities to take subjects to a greater depth.
• The very high number of disadvantaged pupils make the same good progress as other pupils in school and their outcomes compare favourably with those of other pupils nationally. This is a result of well-planned interventions that are matched to pupils’ individual needs and close tracking of progress to ensure that any differences in outcomes are diminishing.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress. Teachers plan activities that are appropriate to these pupils’ abilities and break learning down into small and manageable steps. Teaching assistants are used effectively to work alongside these pupils and adapt tasks as appropriate to make learning both interesting and accessible.
• The most able pupils in school, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, do not yet achieve consistently high outcomes. In 2016, information from provisional national assessment data indicates that by the end of Year 2 the proportion of pupils working at greater depth in reading, writing and mathematics was lower than the national average. The proportion of pupils working at the higher levels in Year 6 was lower than the national average in reading and writing. While evidence gathered during the inspection indicates that teachers do set tasks of varying levels of difficulty for pupils, some of these tasks are still not sufficiently demanding for the most able pupils.

Early years provision Good

• Children enter Nursery with skills and knowledge that are below, and often well below, those that are typical for their age. Children’s spoken language is often not well developed and many do not speak any English when they start at the school. As a result of good teaching, children make strong progress in all areas of learning. The proportion achieving a good level of development by the end of the Reception Year has risen significantly over the past two years. The proportion achieving a good level of development is still below the national average but indicates good progress from their starting point for most children. As a result, the majority of children are well prepared for when they start in Year 1.
• Activities are well planned to engage children’s interest and to support their learning. Both the indoor and outdoor classrooms are stimulating and attractive places that support children’s learning across all the areas of learning. Teachers and teaching assistants lead learning well and ask well-chosen questions that encourage children to develop their spoken language in increasingly secure sentences. Children enjoy using the class computers to learn. For instance, during the inspection, children in the Reception class worked hard to match the right number of objects with numbers on the computer screen.
• Children also have good opportunities to work independently and to follow their own interests. They show resilience and sustained concentration. They know how to cooperate and to take turns, and become increasingly confident in making decisions about both their learning and their own well-being. Their behaviour is good.
• Arrangements for children’s welfare and safeguarding are robust and effective. All staff are appropriately trained, including in first aid, and fully understand their responsibilities and the processes that they must follow.
• Teachers and other staff use assessment well and monitor children’s progress closely. They use this information to plan activities that are appealing to the children and increase the levels of challenge to match the needs of the children as they progress. Occasionally, staff do not quickly enough spot when children lose interest in an activity and this slows learning, particularly for the most able children.
• The teaching of early reading through phonics is good. Teachers and teaching assistants lead daily reading sessions that systematically introduce children to sounds. They then provide good opportunities for children to use their phonic knowledge in writing tasks linked to the topics. As a result, children make strong progress in these areas.
• Leadership of the early years provision is good. The leader has been involved in monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of teaching and learning across both Nursery and Reception and has used the outcomes to make improvements, such as in the outdoor classrooms, where appropriate.
• Additional funding is used well in the early years to support the needs of disadvantaged children. Links with outside agencies are good, with specialist staff used where appropriate to help children with particular needs.
• Parents are highly positive about the start that their children make in school. They feel well informed about the progress that the children make and say that teachers and other staff are always willing to listen to any concerns they may have.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 140161 Birmingham 10019979 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 Academy sponsor-led 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 232 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Principal Telephone number Website Email address Katherine Simmonds Emma Johnson 0121 250 8850 www.oasisacademyfoundry.org enquiry@oasisfoundry.org Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.
• Oasis Academy Foundry is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils, those who are supported by the pupil premium funding, is well above average.
• Almost all pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds. Nearly three quarters of pupils speak English as an additional language. A large proportion of pupils arrive at the school speaking little or no English. Over 40 different languages are spoken in school.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is below the national average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.
• The school runs a breakfast club and an after-school club for its pupils.
• The school is part of the Oasis Community Learning multi-academy trust, which is the main governing body with legal and strategic responsibilities for all Oasis academy schools. The local academy council monitors the school’s work and provides a link with the local community. The school opened as an academy on 1 January 2014. When its predecessor school, Foundry Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted in July 2012, it was judged to be inadequate.
• The principal took up her post when the school opened in January 2014.

Information about this inspection

• The inspectors observed pupils’ learning in 14 lessons or parts of lessons. A number of these observations were undertaken with the principal and the deputy headteacher.
• The inspectors looked at work in pupils’ books and listened to pupils read. They met with a group of pupils to gain their views of the school. The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktime, lunchtime and at the end of the school day, as well as in lessons.
• Meetings were held with the principal, the deputy principal and three middle leaders. The lead inspector met with two members of the academy council, including the chair of the academy council. The lead inspector met with a representative from the Oasis multi-academy trust.
• The inspectors looked at a range of documentation, including assessments and records of pupils’ progress; the school’s checks and records relating to safeguarding, child protection and attendance; records of how teaching is managed and the school improvement plans.
• There were insufficient responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, for the results to register. Inspectors considered the five free text responses from parents. They also talked to parents at the start and end of the school day. Inspectors looked at the responses to the school’s most recent parental questionnaire. They also considered the nine responses to the staff questionnaire.

Inspection team

Adam Hewett, lead inspector Deborah Allen Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector