Welford Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the leadership and management of the school by ensuring that:
  • middle leaders continue to receive the training and support required to help them effectively monitor and evaluate their areas of responsibility
  • leaders and governors work together to develop assessment systems further so that trends in achievement for different groups are fully understood and acted upon
  • the school fully complies with the Department for Education’s guidance on what schools must publish online.
• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment and thereby outcomes for pupils by making sure that:
  • the best teaching in the school is shared more widely so that there is greater consistency of practice
  • teachers intervene quickly in lessons so that pupils are challenged and supported to make more rapid rates of progress
  • assessment information is used more effectively to identify and respond to the needs of different groups of pupils
  • planning focuses carefully on the skills that pupils will learn so that progress can be judged accurately.
• Improve the early years foundation stage, by:
  • further developing the planning of activities so that children receive a higher level of challenge and a greater proportion achieve the early learning goals
  • making further changes to the outdoor environment so that it supports the development of all aspects of the curriculum
  • ensuring that senior leaders carefully monitor the ongoing implementation of the provision’s action plan.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Leaders and governors have managed a period of considerable change in recent years that contributed to a decline in outcomes for pupils. The headteacher and deputy headteacher took up their current roles in 2016. Leaders and governors have focused on appropriate areas to develop and there are clear signs of improvement. However, any improvement is not yet sustained or embedded. Rates of progress are uneven across the school. As a result, outcomes are inconsistent and some are not yet in line with those found nationally.
• Leaders have rightly focused on a programme of training for staff that supports the teaching of English and mathematics. Leaders recognise that training must now be embedded and teachers need time to fully implement changes.
• Leaders and governors have appointed several middle leaders to drive forward the changes to the curriculum and assessment. Much of the middle leaders’ work is new. Though plans are in place, teachers require further opportunities to share what they do and learn from one another. The best practice in the school is currently not shared widely enough to ensure that any inconsistencies in the overall quality of teaching are fully addressed.
• Leaders and governors have not yet sufficiently refined assessment systems to ensure that the performance of all groups is fully understood and acted upon. The changes that have been made to assessment now more accurately meet the needs of the school but are at an early stage of implementation.
• The culture and ethos of the school are impressive. The senior leaders and governors have focused carefully on staff well-being and supporting their team through a period of change. Staff that inspectors met with are highly appreciative of this support. They are also fully aware of leaders’ expectations. Teachers and other staff recognise that several important changes have been necessary and feel part of the process. Staff report that they feel valued and that they are listened to. The work of leaders and governors to develop staff skills and manage change has helped galvanise the whole workforce.
• The curriculum has been developed so that pupils experience learning through topics. For example, in Year 6 pupils are learning about ‘frozen kingdoms’, where they have opportunities to study the physical and human features of the polar regions. This frozen theme is also successfully interwoven into their mathematical work. As a result of this effective planning, pupils in Year 6 are making better rates of progress.
• The curriculum has a very positive impact on pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Assemblies and the curriculum have been carefully designed to promote opportunities for pupils to learn about their rights and reflect on the importance of diversity and celebrating difference. Pupils also have a wide range of opportunities to visit places of worship and learn about different faiths. Pupils talk with confidence about these opportunities and can recall visits to a range of places of worship, including cathedrals, mosques, churches and temples. Pupils also told inspectors what they have learned about British laws, including the importance of tolerance. Staff actively promote fundamental British values. As a result, the school has a very harmonious and inclusive culture.
• Governors hold leaders to account for the use of additional funding. Leaders provide detailed overviews of expenditure for pupil premium funding. A range of additional support and work by the school is resulting in improved rates of progress for disadvantaged pupils. However, progress is not yet sustained and the school is aware of some inconsistencies. For example, disadvantaged pupils are making better rates of progress in mathematics compared to English. Leaders are acting upon these differences but any improvements are not yet fully embedded.
• Special educational needs funding is now being used more effectively to meet the needs of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Leaders recognise that in the past support has not always fully met the needs of pupils. The introduction of individual support plans is helping staff track the progress of pupils and respond better to their needs. Welford Primary is a designated ‘Fully Accessible Mainstream School’ (FAMS). Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities spoke to inspectors about how much they enjoy attending school and how well they feel they are supported. Similarly, parents of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities that inspectors spoke to are equally pleased with what the school offers their children and the strong sense of inclusion.
• Additional physical education and sports funding is used effectively to provide training and increase participation in extra-curricular clubs. The school is a member of a partnership which gives pupils access to a range of sporting competitions and provides staff with training to improve aspects of their teaching in areas of sport, including handball and basketball.
• The school has received support from a range of providers and partners. This support has been effective in correctly identifying the improvements required within the early years provision. The school improvement partner, who works within a local trust, knows the school well. She has supported the school to self-evaluate its effectiveness and devise improvement plans.

Governance of the school

• The governing body has reconstituted and has devised a series of actions to develop the extent to which they challenge and support leaders.
• Governors:
  • are committed and passionate about the school
  • have a broad range of skills
  • are focused on succession planning and understand the importance of sustaining and building further upon their skill set
  • are unwavering in their expectations but are not able to fully hold leaders to account with the assessment information that is currently available to them
  • have not ensured that the school’s website fully complies with the Department for Education’s guidance on what should be published online.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Record-keeping is detailed and any concerns, however small, are acted upon by staff quickly.
• Safeguarding training, including guidance and support relating to the ‘Prevent’ duty, is comprehensive. Staff that met with inspectors are clear about what they should do if they have a concern and recognise that pupils’ safety is an absolute priority. Training has included support and advice from the local police.
• The school has devised a ‘Prevent’ duty action plan to ensure that all stakeholders are aware of their duties in relation to tacking radicalisation and extremism. The plan is regularly reviewed by leaders and staff.
• Leaders engage well with parents and invite them into school to discuss their children’s welfare. Leaders have devised additional meetings to tackle any poor attendance and report very positive rates of engagement from families.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment varies across the school. There are pockets of strong practice but equally some teaching is not yet good.
• Where teaching is not yet consistently good, teachers are not adapting learning quickly enough in light of what pupils can do. In pupils’ work, some common errors are not picked up quickly enough. As a result, gaps can emerge in learning and the rates of progress are variable. This is particularly the case for lower-ability pupils.
• Teachers’ planning does not always focus closely on the skills that they want pupils to learn or improve in a lesson and as a result, pupils’ progress cannot always be judged accurately by either teachers or by the pupils themselves.
• Work in books and observations of teaching show that there is scope for all pupils to receive a higher level of challenge. Not all teachers pay sufficient attention to the extent to which pupils may require further support within a lesson, or additional challenge.
• The use of assessment information to plan learning and track pupils’ progress has developed considerably. Meetings about the progress that pupils make show that leaders hold teachers to account and devise actions to address any underachievement. However, these systems are relatively new and do not yet fully take account of the performance of different groups of pupils. It is therefore not always possible to pick out potential strengths or areas for development in teaching, learning and assessment.
• The school has appointed leaders with considerable expertise in teaching to work alongside teachers in class. This work has begun to make a difference but has not yet eradicated the inconsistencies which exist across different phases.
• Leaders have provided rigorous training to develop the teaching of mathematics and, more recently, guided reading. Training has been received very positively by staff and is being enthusiastically put into practice. As a result of effective training, pupils’ progress is showing clear signs of improvement.
• Teachers work alongside one another effectively. They are open to support and collaborate well to plan activities across different year groups.
• Teachers pay particular attention to developing pupils’ language skills within lessons. This feature of stronger practice is particularly effective in supporting the learning of pupils who speak English as an additional language.

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 happy and safe at this school. The school staff put pupils’ welfare and development at the heart of their practice and as a result pupils’ needs are well-met. The school promotes a strong, inclusive ethos and this is reflected in the way in which pupils care for each other.
• Pupils who are peer mediators take their roles seriously; they understand what they have to do and are able to talk about the way they solve any problems on the playground.
• The school has a strong sense of community and this is reflected in the way staff, pupils and parents talk positively about Welford Primary School.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are fully included in all lessons. A dedicated team of staff work hard to ensure that any barriers to learning are removed so that lessons are fully accessible. Pupils are able to look beyond individual differences and disabilities and talk warmly about friendships they have made.
• The school actively promotes experiences which enable pupils to understand about disability. For example, all the pupils took part in a range of sports linked to the Paralympics and learned new skills and games such as boccia (a target-ball sport similar to bowls).
• Pupils are encouraged to develop a healthy lifestyle. The school recently launched a ‘run a mile a day’ activity and pupils happily take part in this. The school kitchen supplies a range of healthy snacks for the pupils to choose from.
• Pupils say that they do not have any problems regarding bullying, but they know that if they do, they can speak to a ‘trusted adult’. Pupils are able to talk about different types of bullying, including online bullying. The curriculum includes learning activities which promote the understanding of how to stay safe online.
• Parents feel that their children are in safe hands. Parents that inspectors spoke to at the school gate were very positive about the culture of the school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• The behaviour of pupils around the school is excellent. Pupils are polite and show respect for one another as they move around the school building. Pupils are able to articulate clearly their understanding of the school’s new ‘blueprint for behaviour’ strategy and incidents are rare. Pupil exclusions have reduced considerably over the last year.
• Relationships between staff and pupils are a strength of the school and this is demonstrated in the way pupils and staff talk to each other.
• In a few lessons where pupils are not challenged sufficiently, they lose focus and this can result in some low-level disruption.
• Regular attendance at school is promoted and celebrated with the pupils on a weekly basis. Pupils who achieve their attendance target are proud to have their names displayed on the ‘tree of celebration’. While attendance is still below the national average, the pastoral manager and school leaders take rigorous steps to bring about improvements for the small number of persistently absent pupils. Parents whose children do not attend school regularly are expected to attend a ‘barriers to learning’ meeting with a senior leader where they are able to look at their child’s work and see the impact of poor attendance on their progress.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• In recent years, pupils have not made similar rates of progress from their starting points as other pupils nationally. Progress has been variable. In 2016, progress was particularly low in reading and mathematics for pupils at the end of key stage 2.
• The proportion of children achieving the early learning goal by the end of the Reception Year is rising. In 2014, 37% of pupils achieved the early learning goal and by 2016 this figure had risen to 58%. The school has identified, however, that outcomes in the early years are not yet in line with some of their local partner schools and have devised an action plan to address this disparity.
• The proportion of pupils who pass the national phonics screening check in Year 1 has been variable in recent years but shows an improvement over time. Inspectors heard pupils read in Year 2 and found that they were successfully building on the phonics skills that they had learned in Year 1. Pupils read with confidence and have a good understanding of different punctuation and the effect that this can have on reading a sentence.
• In key stage 1, some pupils in Year 1 start the academic year without some of the skills required to settle quickly and make rapid progress. By the end of key stage 1, however, outcomes are improving over time given pupils’ different starting points. This progress was particularly noticeable in reading and mathematics in 2016.
• In key stage 2, progress is not yet rapid enough to ensure that the majority of pupils leave school meeting age-related expectations. However, the school’s new assessment system is beginning to provide leaders and staff with better information to help track progress more effectively. Work in pupils’ books in the current Year 6 demonstrates clear rates of progress and high expectations from teachers.
• In 2016, the progress of pupils who speak English as an additional language in key stage 2 was lower than that seen nationally but higher than that for other groups within school. In key stage 1, outcomes were broadly the same in 2016 for this group of pupils compared to others within school. Work in books and lesson observations show that teachers’ focus on developing language and improvements in phonics are supporting pupils to make better rates of progress.
• The most able pupils, including the most able disadvantaged, make variable rates of progress across the school. In 2016, the progress of the most able pupils in key stage 1 was strong from their starting points but this was not replicated as well in every subject in key stage 2. Leaders have responded to these differences by making changes to the staffing structure and providing additional training. Work in current books indicates that these actions are having a positive impact on standards but this is not yet sustained.
• Disadvantaged pupils make inconsistent rates of progress in some phases. Though pupil premium expenditure is tracked carefully and reports are detailed, leaders have not fully addressed some of the gaps in achievement in different subjects. For example, in the last academic year disadvantaged pupils made better rates of progress in mathematics as opposed to English. This was a result of intensive staff training which has now been enhanced by additional support for reading.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are now making better rates of progress than they have in recent years. This is a result of an overhaul of resources, assessment procedures and planning tools for special educational needs. Much of this work is new, however, and assessment systems require further development.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• Teachers’ planning and the learning environment do not yet fully respond to the needs of the children. Outcomes are improving, but are not yet good, and vary for different groups of learners. Some children leave Reception without the skills required to be fully ready for the transition into Year 1.
• The pupil premium plan sets out how additional funding is used in the early years. Funding has been used, in part, to support the commission of an external review which is effectively helping leaders establish improvements in the setting.
• While leaders have a clear plan of how to bring about improvements, actions are still being put in place and changes to some aspects of provision, including the outdoor environment, are not rapid enough.
• Activities in the outdoor environment, particularly in Nursery, are not sufficiently focused. As a result, opportunities to develop aspects of learning across different areas of the curriculum are not promoted well enough.
• Teachers’ planning of activities is not always focused accurately on children’s needs. As a result, children are not challenged enough and do not make sufficient progress towards their early learning goals.
• Staff provide good levels of care for the children and keep them safe. There is sometimes an insufficient focus on improving learning and staff do not always intervene quickly to help children learn and make progress. During the inspection, this was particularly noticeable in children’s exploration and understanding of numbers. Inspectors observed staff not intervening quickly enough to address any misconceptions that children may have.
• Some staff require additional support and training to enable them to support the children’s learning more effectively and have a positive impact on their progress.
• Behaviour, safety and personal welfare are strengths of the early years and children are well cared for. They enjoy taking part in learning and cooperate well with one another.
• Partnership with parents is a growing strength of the early years. This was reflected in the good attendance of parents at a workshop organised by the school. Parents talk positively about the provision made for their children.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 103328 Birmingham 10025370 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Maintained 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 471 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Deborah Bonnique Carol Foster 0121 4649228 www.welford.bham.sch.uk enquiry@welford.bham.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 12 May 2014

Information about this school

• The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information about ‘exam and assessment results’, or ‘the name of any phonics or reading scheme’ on its website.
• Welford Primary is a larger than average-sized primary school.
• Since the last inspection a new headteacher was appointed in April 2016 and a new deputy headteacher in October 2016.
• Most pupils come from minority ethnic backgrounds.
• Almost two thirds of pupils speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils eligible for pupil premium is well above national levels.
• The school is a designated ‘Fully Accessible Mainstream School’ for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities without a statement of support is average. The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan or statement of special educational needs is twice the national average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors made a total of 16 observations, some of which were together with senior leaders.
• Inspectors scrutinised books across the school and also reviewed a sample of books from the previous academic year.
• The lead inspector met with staff, including the designated safeguarding lead, to review the following documents: the single central record, risk assessments, child protection plans, policies, the ‘Prevent’ duty action plan, training records, personnel files and a range of other policies relating to safeguarding.
• The lead inspector met with senior leaders to discuss the school’s self-evaluation and school development plan.
• The lead inspector met with four members of the governing body and held a separate meeting with the school improvement partner.
• Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school during breaktimes.
• Inspectors met with pupils to discuss their learning and aspects of safety. Inspectors also heard pupils read in Year 2.
• Inspectors held meetings with: the special educational needs leader, the assessment leader, middle leaders, the pastoral manager and the early years foundation stage leader.
• Inspectors took account of two responses to Ofsted’s free text service, 119 responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey and the 12 responses to Ofsted’s staff survey. There were insufficient responses on Parent View to generate a report.

Inspection team

Jonathan Keay, lead inspector Andrew Orgill Travis Latham Marie Conway Deb Jenkins Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector