All Saints CofE (A) Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of leadership and management by:
  • making sure systems for recording and monitoring safeguarding concerns enable staff to share information about pupils in a consistent and timely manner
  • ensuring that robust systems are in place to inform leaders’ evaluation of the school’s performance
  • rigorously evaluating the quality of teaching and learning to check that it meets the needs and abilities of all pupils
  • regularly checking the progress pupils are making from their starting points
  • using the newly introduced assessment system to identify where pupils are not doing as well as they should and developing provision to help them to catch up quickly
  • providing a curriculum that enables pupils to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding across a range of subjects
  • governors holding leaders rigorously to account for pupils’ progress and the quality of education
  • governors seeking ways to provide the headteacher with additional leadership capacity to help her to secure improvements.
• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, and ensure that all pupils make good progress by:
  • ensuring that teachers receive accurate feedback on their practice in order to improve their teaching
  • raising teachers’ expectations of the progress pupils can make and the standards they should achieve
  • making sure teachers plan learning activities that meet the needs of pupils with different abilities and aptitudes in mixed-age classes
  • equipping teachers with the skills necessary to assess pupils’ learning accurately
  • assessing pupils’ learning in lessons in order to modify teaching to meet pupils’ needs, to improve their work and so that errors are not repeated
  • questioning pupils to deepen their understanding of what they are learning
  • developing pupils’ reading, writing and mathematics skills across a range of subjects
  • ensuring that lower-ability pupils are given sufficient opportunities to work on their own and develop their independence
  • ensuring that the most able pupils are sufficiently challenged and achieve the high standards of which they are capable. An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. Newly qualified teachers may not be appointed.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

• The quality of education has declined since the previous inspection. The progress of current pupils in the school is inadequate. Leaders and governors have been too slow to respond to this decline.
• Leaders’ evaluation of the school’s effectiveness is overgenerous. Leaders are aware of the school’s weaknesses and identify the right priorities for improvement. However, they do not evaluate the school’s performance rigorously enough. Leaders do not check the impact of their actions on pupils’ progress. As a result, they have an inaccurate view of how well the school is doing.
• Leaders do not have an accurate understanding of the quality of teaching. This has led to an overly positive view of provision during a time when the progress and attainment of pupils in key stage 2 has declined. Leaders’ judgements about teaching do not focus on the quality of pupils’ learning and their progress over time. They have not checked pupils’ work thoroughly enough to gain an accurate view of the quality of teaching and pupils’ outcomes.
• The assessment system has not enabled leaders to check accurately how well pupils are doing. Leaders acknowledge that this system is ineffective because it monitors attainment rather than progress. Leaders have not checked pupils’ progress from their starting points. As a result, they have not been able to identify pupils’ underachievement quickly and intervene to help pupils to catch up. Leaders recognise this and have recently introduced a new approach to check on pupils’ progress. However, this has not been in place long enough to provide leaders with all the information they need.
• The curriculum is weak. For example, work in pupils’ books in key stage 2 shows that teachers have not taught history, geography and science regularly throughout the year. This means that pupils do not develop adequate knowledge, skills and understanding in these key subjects.
• Changes in teaching staff have hindered leaders in making improvements to the quality of teaching across the school. A small number of parents are concerned that the high turnover of teaching staff and the headteacher’s leadership role across two schools has had a negative impact on the quality of their children’s education. However, most parents and carers say that their children are happy at school.
• Leaders make appropriate use of additional funding to support the needs of disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities. As a result, pupils make adequate progress towards their individual targets.
• The primary physical education (PE) and sport funding is used effectively to ensure that all pupils can take part in a range of physical activities in PE lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. However, there are too few opportunities for pupils to take part in extra-curricular and competitive sports. In response to this, leaders have recently increased opportunities for pupils to take part in team sports by linking with the other schools in the federation.
• Staff promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. Pupils are able to talk in detail about the school’s values, such as friendship, tolerance and respect. They learn about other religions and cultures in lessons and daily assemblies. The school council provides regular opportunities for pupils to experience democracy. As a result, pupils are developing a good understanding of life in modern Britain.

Governance of the school

• Governors acknowledge that the federation is still in the early stages of development. Since forming as a federation, governors have not secured continuity in staffing and sufficient leadership capacity, which has contributed to the decline in the school’s performance.
• The governing body has been too slow to respond to the decline in the school’s performance. Although they recognise that pupils’ outcomes have been deteriorating, governors’ challenge to leaders has not been effective. Governors have not taken effective action to secure improved outcomes for pupils.
• Governors do not receive sufficient information about pupils’ progress to be able to challenge leaders well enough. In order to improve the quality of information governors receive, leaders have responded to governors’ requests and have recently put a new assessment system in place. However, it is too soon for this to have had the impact required.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Staff know pupils well as individuals. As a result, adults are able to meet pupils’ social, emotional and mental health needs effectively.
• Leaders carry out the required checks to ensure that staff, governors and volunteers are suitable people to work with children.
• Leaders manage the challenges of not having a playground and a hall on the school site carefully and successfully. Thorough risk assessments are in place to ensure that pupils are safe while moving from one location to another.
• All staff are up to date with safeguarding procedures, including those who have recently joined the school. Staff know the procedures to follow should they have a concern about the safety or welfare of pupils. However, systems for recording and monitoring safeguarding concerns need tightening to ensure that staff share information about pupils in a consistent and timely manner.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

• Teaching does not meet the needs and abilities of pupils. As a result, too few pupils make the progress they should by the end of Year 6, particularly in English and mathematics.
• Teachers’ use of assessment information to plan learning is ineffective. Teachers do not plan work that matches the range of needs and abilities of pupils in mixed-age classes. Consequently, work is too easy for some pupils and too difficult for others. This slows the progress pupils make.
• Teachers’ assessments of pupils’ abilities do not accurately reflect the work in pupils’ books. Some pupils are doing better than teachers think they are and some are not doing as well. Because teachers do not assess pupils’ abilities accurately, they do not plan work that matches pupils’ needs.
• Assessment procedures have changed recently and are at an early stage of implementation. Teachers have worked with colleagues from other schools to support them in making accurate judgements. However, changes in staff mean that not all teachers have had this opportunity and the accuracy of teachers’ assessments is still inconsistent across the school.
• Teachers do not check pupils’ learning in lessons carefully enough. This means that work does not build on what pupils already know, can do and understand. For example, lower-ability pupils move on in their learning before they have a secure understanding of new concepts. Teachers do not provide pupils with sufficient feedback to help them to improve their work. As a result, pupils make repeated errors, which slows their progress.
• Teachers’ expectations of the progress pupils should make or the standards they should achieve are not high enough. Adults provide too much support to help lower-attaining pupils complete their work. This hinders these pupils in improving their skills and developing a secure understanding of what they are learning.
• Teachers focus too much on the activities that pupils will do rather than on the knowledge, skills and understanding they need to develop. This results in pupils not making rapid enough progress in the development of basic skills.
• Teachers do not use questions well enough to check pupils’ understanding or to deepen their thinking. Often questions do not require pupils to think hard or explain their understanding. Teachers do not vary their questioning to challenge pupils of different ages and abilities suitably.
• The teaching of mathematics has been weak over time. Leaders have recognised this and have introduced a new approach to the planning and teaching of this subject. However, there are still too few opportunities for pupils to apply their mathematical skills to reason and problem solve. This limits pupils’ progress, particularly the most able.
• Work planned for the most able pupils is not sufficiently challenging. As a result, very few of these pupils achieve the high standards of which they are capable.
• Training for staff has begun to improve the teaching of writing. Pupils now have more opportunities to write at length. The impact of this training is particularly evident in the quality of writing of the most able pupils in lower key stage 2.
• Relationships between staff and pupils are positive. Pupils listen carefully to teachers’ explanations and are keen to respond to questions.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Relationships between adults and pupils are positive and caring. The school’s values are strongly embedded in the life of the school. As a result, pupils develop into confident learners who show respect for the views and opinions of others.
• Pupils are proud to hold positions of responsibility, for example as ‘pupil patrols’ and ‘junior governors’. Pupils take the work of the school council very seriously and talk enthusiastically about their involvement in making decisions about the playground and courtyard. As a result, they have a good understanding of the workings of democracy, as one pupil said: ‘This school is centred around democracy.’
• Pupils value being part of a small school where everyone knows each other. They make strong friendships across the age ranges and ensure that everyone has someone to play with at breaktimes and lunchtimes. One pupil explained: ‘There is no one that doesn’t have a friend in this school.’
• Pupils say that they feel safe at school. They learn how to keep themselves safe both at school and in the local area. Pupils know how to keep themselves safe online.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. This is because all staff consistently reinforce high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. As a result, pupils of all ages know and understand what is expected of them.
• Pupils are happy, friendly and caring. They are polite and conduct themselves well throughout the school day, for example when moving from the school building to the playground. At breaktimes and lunchtimes, pupils behave well and play together sensibly and cooperatively.
• In lessons, pupils listen attentively and work hard. They enjoy learning and work well in pairs or groups, sharing ideas and listening to each other’s views. Pupils apply themselves productively to their work, even when learning is not well matched to their needs. They respond quickly to adults’ instructions.
• Leaders’ records show that there are very few incidents of poor behaviour and pupils agree. Pupils understand the difference between bullying and ‘falling out’. They say that bullying sometimes happens but that adults are good at resolving it.
• Attendance is just below the national average and improving. Almost all pupils arrive punctually and ready to learn each day.

Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

• Outcomes are inadequate because pupils do not make enough progress from their starting points, particularly in key stage 2. Pupils’ progress in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 6 has been in the lowest 20% of schools for the past two years.
• In 2017, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 6 was well below the national average. As a result, pupils were poorly prepared for the next stage in their education.
• Scrutiny of current pupils’ writing shows that middle- and lower-attaining pupils are not making sufficient progress in key stage 2. Teachers do not match work closely to the abilities of pupils, which results in pupils making slow progress. There are too few opportunities for lower-ability pupils to write independently.
• Teachers have not challenged the most able pupils well enough in writing. As a result, no pupils have achieved highly in writing at the end of key stages 1 and 2 for the past two years. Work in pupils’ books demonstrates that the most able pupils are currently making adequate progress in the development of their writing skills in the majority of classes. Consequently, some pupils are now writing at a higher level. However, there is still variability in the attainment and progress of the most able pupils across different year groups.
• Too much of the work pupils complete in mathematics is the same, regardless of pupils’ individual needs and abilities. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to use mathematical reasoning to solve problems. Pupils’ books show that work is often too difficult for lower-attaining pupils, which results in them making frequent errors. Work lacks challenge for the most able pupils. As a result, these pupils do not achieve as well as they should.
• Pupils leaving Year 6 have not made enough progress in reading over the last two years. Current pupils enjoy reading and are able to read with appropriate levels of fluency and understanding. However, there are too few opportunities to develop reading skills across a wide range of subjects. Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ reading ability in key stage 2 are too low.
• The proportion of pupils achieving the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 1 in 2017 was above national averages. However, the school’s own assessment information indicates that these pupils are not currently making enough progress in reading and mathematics.

Early years provision Good

• The quality of leadership and teaching in the early years is good. The early years leader and teacher is highly skilled and knows the small number of children in her care well. As a result, children make good progress and flourish.
• Children are well supported when they start school. The early years leader visits pre-school settings to gather information about children’s needs and interests. Children and their parents spend time together in the classroom to get used to the new environment. These effective induction arrangements mean that children settle quickly.
• Most children enter Reception with knowledge, skills and abilities that are typical for their age. Adults provide high-quality support to children who have gaps in their learning or development, which helps them to catch up with their peers. As a result, outcomes at the end of the early years are consistently above the national average.
• Adults in Reception provide a warm and welcoming environment. Strong relationships and clear routines support children in behaving well. As a result, children work and play happily together.
• The early years leader checks children’s learning regularly. She uses what she knows about each child’s ability to inform her planning and tailor her teaching to meet children’s individual needs. As a result, children make good progress in their learning and development.
• Interesting and stimulating activities match the needs and interests of children well. These activities enthuse children and promote their learning across a range of areas. For example, while children enthusiastically named objects and identified spelling patterns, they developed their fine motor skills by using tweezers to collect the objects.
• Children settle quickly to activities and sustain good concentration. This is because adults provide them with opportunities to make choices and follow their interests. For example, one child used his computing skills to create a poster for a circus. Later in the day, other children chose to work cooperatively to make the circus for people to visit.
• Approaches for parents to become involved in their children’s learning are effective. Parents are able to share the progress and success of their children through the popular ‘proud clouds’. Termly workshops provide parents with information about how they can support their children’s learning at home.
• The early years leader has an accurate understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in Reception. She takes effective action to improve provision. For example, over the past year there has been a focus on developing children’s fine motor skills and phonics skills. As a result, in 2017 a higher proportion of children achieved and exceeded the expected standard in writing.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 124329 Staffordshire 10042905 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 Voluntary aided 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 84 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Esther Burd Glynis Yates 01785 334977 www.allsaints-bednall.staffs.sch.uk office@allsaints-bednall.staffs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 3–4 October 2013

Information about this school

• The school is considerably smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The school does not have a hall on site. There is no direct access to the school playground.
• The school became part of the Trinity Federation in November 2016. A single governing body serves the three schools in the federation.
• Since January 2017, the school’s headteacher has undertaken the role of executive headteacher across two of the three schools in the federation.
• There are four classes. One is for Reception children. The other three are mixed-age classes for Years 1 and 2, Years 3 and 4 and Years 5 and 6.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is well below the national average. There are not enough of these pupils to comment on their attainment without identifying them.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is below the national average. However, the number of pupils with statements of special educational needs, or education, health and care plans, is above the national average.
• The school does not meet the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector observed pupils’ learning in parts of six lessons. Four of these observations were undertaken jointly with the headteacher.
• The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. She spoke formally with the school council as well as talking to pupils in lessons and around school. The inspector also took account of views expressed in the 29 responses to Ofsted’s online pupil questionnaire.
• The inspector listened to pupils read and talked to them about their reading.
• The inspector and senior leaders jointly examined the quality of work in pupils’ English, mathematics and topic books. The inspector also looked at work in pupils’ science books.
• Discussions were held with the headteacher, assistant headteacher and members of staff. The inspector met with the chair of governors, vice-chair of governors and the chair of the teaching and learning committee. A telephone conversation was also held with a representative of the local authority.
• The inspector reviewed a wide range of documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation and improvement plans, information about pupils’ achievement, records relating to safeguarding, behaviour and attendance, minutes of meetings of the governing body and the school’s website.
• The inspector took into consideration the 63 parents’ responses to Parent View. The inspector also spoke to parents at the beginning of the school day.
• The inspector spoke to staff and took account of views expressed in the eight responses to Ofsted’s online staff questionnaire.

Inspection team

Claire Jones, lead inspector

Her Majesty’s Inspector