Peters Hill Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Continue to improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by:
  • ensuring that the most effective practice is replicated across all year groups
  • developing further the provision of support for pupils who need additional help to fulfil their potential.
• Further strengthen leadership by:
  • continuing to develop the roles of the new senior leaders, year-group leaders and subject leaders, so that they have a sustained positive impact on outcomes for pupils
  • consolidating systems to analyse information on pupils’ progress and the way analysis of progress is used to inform teaching.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• When he was appointed in September 2015, the headteacher had to manage a difficult situation. Neither the curriculum nor the assessment system met the new requirements that were being introduced nationally. A large turnover of staff meant that he had to replace almost half of the teachers. Outcomes for pupils were declining.
• To meet these challenges, the headteacher demonstrated his ability to think strategically and to act decisively. Within two years, he stabilised the staffing situation, introduced a new curriculum and a new assessment system and created a new leadership structure.
• The school is fully staffed with well-qualified teachers. All teachers have access to effective professional development opportunities within the school or through the network of local schools to which the school belongs. Teachers are positive about their accountability within the year-team structure. They are clear about their responsibilities and welcome the support that working with large teams of colleagues provides.
• The headteacher, the acting deputy headteachers and year-group leaders are making sure that the information they get on pupils’ attainment and progress is accurate. They all check work in pupils’ books and observe teaching on a regular basis. Assessments are moderated internally within year teams and externally by colleagues from other schools in the local network. However, while the headteacher analyses the progress pupils make, these analyses are not currently used systematically by year-group leaders and teachers to identify priorities for long-term planning.
• The curriculum is built around the school’s values: ambition, belief, compassion, pride and respect. It has a thematic approach that allows for creativity while supporting the development of pupils’ literacy and numeracy across subjects. The content of the curriculum is entirely designed by subject leaders and teachers, and regularly updated. Each of the themes that pupils study every half term, whether it is Africa, Anglo-Saxons or ancient Rome, includes personalised learning objectives in all the subjects. Pupils are assessed against these learning objectives, which match the national curriculum criteria. As a result, pupils have a coherent learning experience across the curriculum.
• Learning is enriched with a wide range of activities, including trips and visits. The curriculum has a strong emphasis on providing pupils with memorable experiences and encouraging them to develop their curiosity. In addition, there is a wealth of extra-curricular activities on offer in after-school clubs. Pupils enjoy these experiences, which have a positive impact on the way they view school.
• The school uses the pupil premium funding effectively. For each year group, there is a teacher who has the role of ‘pupil premium champion’. These teachers ensure that the pupils they support are on track with their progress. They know their pupils well and intervene when issues arise. Leaders analyse closely the impact their actions have in terms of outcomes. They keep detailed records of this impact and share them with governors.
• The school is using the primary physical education (PE) and sport premium very effectively to ensure that PE is taught well and that as many pupils as possible take part in extra-curricular sports. The vast majority of pupils compete in the school’s sports days. The school is currently working towards a ‘gold mark’ sports award. Professional coaches provide before- and after-school clubs in a range of sports. They also train teachers to plan and deliver gymnastic lessons. More than a third of pupils are involved in extra-curricular sports. An increasing number of pupils take part in inter-school competitions.
• The school supports pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities well with the additional funding it receives. The special educational needs coordinator ensures that pupils are appropriately supported to access the curriculum and make progress. The school works well with families and external agencies when required. Support staff provide effective help to pupils in lessons, but there have been changes in the teaching assistants’ team and the school is in the process of trying to recruit new teaching assistants. As a result, there are lessons where support cannot be currently provided to pupils who need it.
• The headteacher has developed the leadership capacity in the school by creating two new deputy headteacher roles and team leader roles for each year group. These new senior and middle leaders work well together and are starting to have a positive impact on standards and the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. The new leadership structure, however, has not been in place long enough to demonstrate its ability to deliver sustained outcomes for pupils.

Governance of the school

• The governing body, well led by an experienced and energetic chair of governors, provides effective strategic support to the school.
• The work of the governing body is well structured. The four governors’ committees cover all aspects of the management of the school, including curriculum, staffing, finance, buildings, behaviour and community. There are link governors for curriculum areas and for safeguarding. Three governors are trained for safe recruitment and governors are routinely involved in the recruitment of new staff.
• Governors support the headteacher and hold him to account. They have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement. They closely follow the implementation of the improvement plans they agree with leaders. They keep informed on the latest developments in education.
• Governors gain first-hand experience of the quality of education through visits to the school. They question leaders during meetings to gain a clear picture of the progress pupils make. They seek information on the impact that additional funding, especially the pupil premium grant and the funding for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, is having.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The policies and processes to ensure the safety and well-being of pupils are effective. Leaders identify key training areas for staff and make sure that all members of staff are up to date with the latest policies and practices. Pupils are taught how to keep safe through the curriculum and are made aware of risks, and how to avoid them, in assemblies and presentations by external speakers.
• Learning mentors provide early support to vulnerable pupils. The school works well with parents and external agencies when required. External referrals are followed up rigorously to ensure that pupils who may be at risk are appropriately supported.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good because teachers are well qualified, committed and well led by team leaders. A key feature of teaching at Peters Hill is that teachers in each year group work very closely together as a team. As a result, although this is a very large primary school, there is a great deal of consistency in the content of lessons across each year group.
• Teachers plan their lessons well and make good use of their subject knowledge to make learning engaging for pupils. As a result, the vast majority of pupils are keen to do the activities they are asked to do and enjoy learning.
• Work in exercise books provides evidence that pupils of different abilities have opportunities to develop their learning with activities that match their level of understanding.
• Pupils are encouraged to collaborate with each other in lessons and willingly do so. Interactions between pupils and teachers are also positive and contribute to the smooth running of lessons.
• The thematic approach of the curriculum allows pupils to study a wide range of subjects and to make connections between each of the areas they explore. Pupils develop their literacy and numeracy skills while studying geography, history, science, computing or design and technology. The range of subjects studied at key stage 2 provides pupils with appropriate preparation for secondary education.
• Pupils are encouraged to read widely and frequently. The school has a well-resourced library and pupils who meet their reading targets receive rewards.
• Teachers regularly assess what pupils have learned against the age-related expectations established by the national curriculum. To ensure that these assessments are accurate, teachers moderate them with colleagues in school and with teachers from other schools within the local primary school network.
• Because of its size and the large turnover of staff that took place over the last three years, the school has a strong emphasis on teamwork and teachers’ professional development. This approach contributes to teaching being increasingly highly effective. However, there are still variations in practice within and across year groups.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• The school’s ethos and values are clearly on display around the site and pupils relate to them. Pupils are proud of their school. They value the support teachers give them and the vast majority enjoy coming to school.
• Pupils have a lot of opportunities to contribute to school life. They can be members of the school council, the ‘eco council’ or the ‘junior leadership team’. These schemes, together with links with Gambia, the ‘globe trophy’ or the UNICEF chart, encourage pupils to become responsible and caring members of the community.
• The school also teaches pupils how to become responsible citizens through the promotion of British values. Democracy, the rule of law and tolerance are included in the content of the curriculum and are recurrent themes in assemblies.
• The school provides a safe environment for pupils. They know who to talk to if they are distressed or need help. Bullying is rare and dealt with swiftly by staff. The ‘bully busters’ scheme, that involves Year 5 and 6 pupils preventing bullying from happening, is popular and effective in stopping bullying and raising awareness about its consequences.
• Pupils are taught how to keep safe in and out of school. They learn how they should use social media and the internet safely and how to avoid being the victims of exploitation and abuse.
• The vast majority of parents and carers consulted as part of the inspection think that their children are happy and safe at school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ conduct in lessons and when they are in the playground at breaktime and lunchtime is good. They respond positively to adults’ instructions and are clear about how they should behave.
• Pupils respect adults and each other. As a result, they do not disrupt other pupils’ learning and lesson time is used productively.
• The school is a cohesive community where rules are well understood and mostly adhered to. As a result, it provides pupils with a pleasant environment in which they can learn and socialise.
• Attendance overall is broadly in line with the national average. In order to increase the punctuality of pupils who have issues with getting to school on time, the school provides before-school clubs, including a breakfast club, which are very popular. For pupils who are persistently absent, the school has a clear system to identify issues and provide appropriate support. As a result, the number of persistent absences is decreasing.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• As the quality of teaching, learning and assessment improves so do outcomes for pupils. At both key stage 1 and key stage 2, pupils’ attainment is in line with what can be expected.
• Attainment in phonics at the end of Year 1 improved in 2017 and was above the national average. This improvement has been sustained and pupils currently in Year 1 achieve well in phonics.
• Attainment and progress in reading and mathematics at the end of key stage 2 in 2017 showed some improvement on 2016 but were still below national averages. The school’s current information on pupils’ attainment at key stages 1 and 2 shows that the vast majority of pupils are at least where they should be at this time of year, with a substantial number being above. This information, based on reliable assessments, indicates that pupils are making good or better progress from their respective starting points. There is further evidence in their books that, overall, pupils are making good progress across the curriculum.
• Strategies to improve attainment and progress in reading, which was the subject in which pupils were the least successful over the last three years, are having a positive impact. Pupils are more confident with reading comprehension. Assessment information shows that they are achieving better than in previous years at both key stage 1 and key stage 2.
• Disadvantaged pupils are well supported. Leaders are checking rigorously that barriers to their progress are removed and that they achieve well. As a result, differences between disadvantaged pupils and others are diminishing.
• Pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities make progress which is broadly in line with that of others. Their individual progress is rigorously tracked and interventions to ensure that they do not fall behind are effective.
• The school’s current teaching practices have a clear focus on ensuring that pupils are provided with a level of challenge that matches their abilities. As a result, the most able pupils are making good progress.

Early years provision Good

• Leaders know the provision well and plan effectively to sustain the quality of education it provides. As a result, children are well looked after and make good or better progress through the Nursery and Reception classes.
• A significant proportion of children who start in the Nursery have lower communication and language skills than is typical for their age. Information on their progress shows that the vast majority have caught up by the time they start in the Reception Year.
• Children’s starting points in the Nursery and Reception Years are assessed rigorously and their progress is followed up with accuracy. Staff record progress and moderate their evaluation both internally and with colleagues from other schools. Disadvantaged children are well supported and their progress is a priority for staff. The impact of this focus is evidenced in the current assessment information that shows that differences are diminishing.
• The education of children in the early years is a team effort. All adults involved are well qualified and work closely together. As a result, there is a high level of consistency across the groups.
• Safeguarding is effective. The early years provide a caring and safe environment for children. All members of staff involved in the Nursery and Reception Years are up to date with policies and processes and highly vigilant.
• The learning environment, both indoors and outdoors, is pleasant and well organised. The curriculum is rich and provides a well-balanced diet of adult-led and independent activities to support children’s personal and academic development.
• A key feature of the early years at Peters Hill is the way in which parents are part of their children’s education. Every morning, in both Nursery and Reception classes, parents can spend the first half hour of school sharing activities with their children. These sessions are popular and very well attended. The induction of new children and their parents includes home visits and a comprehensive preparation for the first few weeks of schooling. The class blogs, which also run in the main school, are an effective way to keep parents informed about what is happening in school.

School details

Unique reference number 103791 Local authority Dudley Inspection number 10042891 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Community Age range of pupils 3 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 890 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Imelda Gilhooley Headteacher Simon Duncan Telephone number 01384 816740 Website www.petershillprimary.org/ Email address enquiries@petershillprimary.org Date of previous inspection 23–24 January 2014

Information about this school

• The school is much larger than the average-sized primary school.
• The early years comprises Nursery classes for children who attend either morning or afternoon and Reception classes for children who attend full time.
• The majority of pupils are of White British heritage.
• The headteacher was appointed in September 2015.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are supported by the pupil premium is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities receiving school support is below average. The proportion of pupils with a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is below average.
• The school meets the government’s floor standards, which are the minimum standards expected nationally for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed pupils’ learning in 38 lessons, including some jointly with the headteacher and the deputy headteachers.
• Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktime and lunchtime.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read and looked at their work in books.
• Inspectors took account of the 49 responses and free-text comments on Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, and talked to parents at the start and end of the school day.
• Inspectors considered the views of 55 staff who completed the staff questionnaire.
• Meetings were held with two groups of pupils, the chair and another member of the governing body, the school’s senior and middle leaders, the special educational needs coordinator, and the school’s improvement partner.
• Inspectors looked at school documents, including: the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plan; minutes of the governing body meetings; the school’s information on pupils’ progress; planning of work in different subjects; leaders’ monitoring of the quality of teaching and learning; and records relating to behaviour, attendance and the safeguarding of pupils.

Inspection team

Patrick Amieli, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Janet Tibbits Ofsted Inspector Kerri James Ofsted Inspector Michael Appleby Ofsted Inspector