Oldbury Park Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Ensure that leaders make the best use of the information gathered about pupils, so as to be more precise in measuring the impact of actions taken.
• Ensure that the redoubling of efforts to improve attendance is successful in further reducing absence rates of pupils whose families allow their children to stay off school without appropriate reason.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher and her senior team lead the school with a quiet determination to provide the best for each and every pupil. After taking up her post, the headteacher identified ways in which the quality of teaching could be improved further. She has overseen the systematic implementation of these developments. As a result, the quality of teaching has, indeed, improved and dips in pupils’ outcomes have been remedied.
• Senior leaders carry out their roles well. Their work has led to clear improvements in many aspects of the school, such as in the positive impact the curriculum now has on pupils’ enjoyment of reading. Senior leaders are realistic about where further improvement is needed and have set out effective plans to achieve this.
• Leaders have designed a curriculum that makes learning enjoyable and meaningful. It is centred on a core of quality texts, which provide the starting points for a wide variety of experiences across a broad range of subjects. Pupils apply themselves enthusiastically to the topics built around these stories. Learning in the classroom is effectively supplemented by a good range of visits and activities. All of this helps bring learning to life and promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.
• Leaders at all levels collect a great deal of useful information about pupils. For example, they track closely how well pupils are progressing in reading, writing and mathematics. Similarly, leaders check information about how frequently each pupil attends school. On the whole, the information gathered gives leaders a clear view of what is working well in the school and helps them to spot things that need to be better. However, senior leaders do not routinely use this information as well as they might. They focus intently on what the collected data is telling them about each pupil, but do not always take a broader view of what this is saying about the work of the school as a whole. Consequently, some patterns within the data have been missed. This has not been detrimental to pupils. Nevertheless, it means that leaders cannot always be sure that their actions have been as effective as they had hoped.
• Leaders have used external validation for their view of the quality of teaching. However, the school has not been subject to rigorous external challenge about outcomes for pupils. This is one reason why leaders have not had cause to use their data more efficiently to demonstrate the impact of their actions.
• Leaders’ use of the physical education (PE) and sport premium has improved the quality of PE instruction. It has also enabled pupils who do not enjoy traditional team sports to take part in active pursuits which they find more appealing. This benefits their health and well-being.
• Similarly, money received for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is used well. Leaders ensure that these pupils receive exactly the help and support they need. As a result, these pupils play a full part in school life and make good progress in their personal development and learning.
• Leaders spend the pupil premium effectively to boost the progress of disadvantaged pupils. Attainment for these pupils has lagged behind that of other pupils nationally in the past. Disadvantaged pupils at Oldbury Park are now catching up.

Governance of the school

• Governors have ensured the school continues to be good and has improved further since the last inspection by:
  • seeking to keep themselves well informed about national developments in education
  • being willing to invest resources, where available, to improve provision for pupils
  • frequently asking challenging questions of leaders about the quality of education
  • checking meticulously that the school’s policies around safeguarding are implemented correctly.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The culture of the school is one in which pupils’ welfare and well-being are uppermost. The ethos of caring is demonstrated through all interactions between adults and pupils, along with the numerous actions taken by leaders to provide resources and support for meeting pupils’ emotional as well as their physical needs.
• The designated senior staff responsible for safeguarding ensure that all adults working in the school are thoroughly versed in child-protection matters. Frequent training and the detailed information provided ensure that all staff know what to look out for and what to do if they have a concern.
• When concerns are noted, the designated staff act swiftly. They handle the information sensitively and efficiently. Records of communications and meetings are detailed and stored carefully. This means that cases are managed effectively, should the information need to be passed on to other agencies.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The good quality of teaching is underpinned by strong, trusting relationships between adults and pupils. Teachers and teaching assistants ensure that pupils are confident learners and help them to learn from their mistakes.
• Pupils, too, support one another’s learning. Pupils told inspectors that they often work collaboratively to find things out and to solve problems jointly. They enjoy this and say they find it helpful. In addition to effective learning in a range of subjects, this helps pupils to build strong social skills.
• Teachers further support pupils’ learning by providing useful prompts and resources for pupils to use if they get stuck. This keeps pupils focused on their learning and helps prevent them from becoming demotivated. During the inspection, the impact of this was particularly impressive in the case of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Teachers and teaching assistants challenge pupils to think deeply and work things out for themselves. This happens often in lessons by the skilful use of questions. In addition, teachers often write a question in pupils’ books about a completed piece of work. These questions help pupils to check their understanding or to take their thinking beyond what was learned in the lesson.
• It is the school’s policy that teachers should give pupils feedback on their work during the course of lessons as well as afterwards. These hints and tips nudge pupils in the right direction or challenge them to think critically. This policy contributes substantially to pupils’ progress and is one reason why outcomes have recovered after a dip in recent years.
• Teachers understand the importance of using correct subject-specific terminology, for example in mathematics lessons. All adults are careful to use the correct vocabulary in lessons and insist that pupils do the same. This supports pupils’ acquisition of the more complex subject knowledge they need.
• Teachers of younger pupils are skilled in teaching phonics. They help pupils to recognise letters and the sounds they make confidently. Phonics lessons are lively and fun. This motivates pupils to try hard and to enjoy reading and spelling new words.

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 commitment to pupils’ welfare is demonstrated by the effort taken to provide whatever additional help is needed to ensure pupils’ mental health and personal well-being. This is exemplified by the effective nurture provision pupils receive in the ‘Rainbow Room’. Similarly, the school employs the services of an educational psychologist. This supports teachers in knowing how to help pupils in class more effectively.
• Staff work hard to build pupils’ self-confidence and help them overcome difficulties. This work is supported by the promotion of the school’s values: ‘Respect, Collaboration, Communication, Concentration, Perseverance and Independence’. As a result, pupils become emotionally resilient and socially aware.
• This emphasis complements the school’s work to promote British values and pupils’ moral development. Pupils speak convincingly about their understanding of tolerance, respect, individual liberty and democracy. They genuinely believe that everyone is equal and that differences are to be celebrated. For example, pupils understand some of the similarities and differences between the beliefs and practices of different religions.
• Pupils feel safe and well cared for. They know that staff will help if they have problems or worries. They know about the dangers of using the internet and can explain steps they would take to protect themselves online.
• Pupils know the difference between falling out and the deliberate act of bullying. They told inspectors this is a ‘no-bullying’ school. No pupil spoken to was aware of it happening. Most parents agree completely with this view. A very few feel that bullying issues are not dealt with to their satisfaction. Evidence examined in the inspection shows that, where leaders are aware of an issue, it is followed up thoroughly.
• Pupils appreciate the wide range of experiences provided through the trips and extra-curricular activities on offer. For example, many pupils learn how to play golf. Opportunities such as this contribute substantially to pupils’ cultural development and sense of achievement.
• The specialist unit for pupils with autism is a calm, nurturing environment. Pupils thrive in this provision. Staff support them exceptionally skilfully to learn how to manage their own feelings and to appreciate the needs of others. These pupils grow in confidence and play a full part in the wider life of the school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ good behaviour contributes to the progress they make in lessons. They follow the well-established routines so lessons start promptly and proceed efficiently. They respond to teachers’ instructions immediately. This means little, if any, learning time is lost through indiscipline.
• Pupils show respect and support for one another. They listen with interest when their classmates are speaking in lessons. They cooperate with ease when asked to work with a partner or group.
• Pupils move safely and sensibly around the school. For example, they enter and exit assembly in silence and line up quietly while waiting for their lunch.
• Pupils are confident and articulate when talking to adults. They speak politely and act courteously to one another in lessons and at playtime.
• Most pupils attend school regularly. Leaders monitor each pupil’s attendance carefully and take action if it needs to improve. As a result, absence rates overall are similar to those in other schools. However, some pupils still do not attend regularly enough. School staff work very hard to improve the attendance of these pupils. There have been notable successes. Some pupils’ absence rates have dropped considerably. Nevertheless, some families do not bring their children to school as often as they should. Leaders are, appropriately, seeking to use more stringent approaches for holding these parents to account for their children’s attendance. Although leaders meticulously track the attendance of individuals, they have not looked as closely at the picture of attendance for different groups. As a result, the low attendance of some, including pupils who speak English as an additional language, has been overlooked.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• After a dip in recent years, pupils now make consistently good progress across most classes and in a wide range of subjects. The school’s decisive response to the disappointing results in the 2016 national tests for Year 2 and Year 6 pupils has led to much better outcomes this year. Pupils have achieved scores that are in line with those achieved in most other schools.
• In last year’s tests, disadvantaged pupils did not achieve well enough. Their results showed that they had made slower progress across Years 3 to 6 than other pupils nationally. This is why leaders have focused so heavily on improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils this year. This has been successful and indicates that the pupil premium funding has been used effectively. The school’s records of pupils’ achievement and the scores achieved in the national tests indicate that disadvantaged pupils’ progress has sped up. They are catching up on lost ground.
• The most able pupils in the school are challenged appropriately in most lessons. As a result, they achieve high standards in mathematics and write effectively for a variety of purposes.
• Individual education plans are in place for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. These plans set out specific targets for the pupils to achieve in short periods of time. Pupils generally achieve these targets well. This continuous achievement of small steps is the reason why these pupils make good progress from their starting points in a range of subjects, including reading, writing and mathematics.
• Pupils in the autism unit achieve well. They make good progress from their individual starting points. Those who find academic work challenging are effectively supported and master secure reading, writing and mathematics skills. The most able pupils in the unit are well challenged and achieve high standards in their work.

Early years provision Good

• When children start school in the Reception Year, most have the skills that are typical for their age. Some, however, do not. A notable minority have weak communication skills or find it difficult to manage their feelings. Teachers in the Reception classes use all the information they can gather to assess what each child can and cannot do.
• Teachers’ assessments of pupils’ growing skills are used to design activities that quickly move children’s learning on. As a result, children make good progress and acquire secure early reading, writing and number skills.
• Children are safe, happy, confident and well behaved in the Reception classes. They listen well to the teacher and learn to share and take turns. The activities on offer are interesting and capture children’s imagination. As a result, children learn to concentrate and apply themselves to their work.
• By the time they finish the Reception Year, most children have reached the standard needed to be ready to start Year 1. Those who do not often have additional needs. These children are well supported to make the transition to more formal schooling. For example, the school provides specialist help for children who have speech and language problems. This enables them to overcome their difficulties with communication and understanding.
• Leadership of the early years is effective. Leaders ensure that the statutory requirements of the early years foundation stage are met, that safeguarding is effective and that children achieve well. The additional funding received to support disadvantaged children is used effectively. As a result, disadvantaged children begin to catch up during the Reception Year.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 116770 Worcestershire 10032731 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 5 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 406 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Paul Johnson Sarah Boyce 01905 424878 www.oldburypark.worcs.sch.uk office@oldburypark.worcs.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 7–8 November 2012

Information about this school

• The school is larger than most primary schools.
• Most pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their first language. The remaining pupils come from a range of ethnic origins.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is below average.
• A specially resourced unit caters for eight pupils in Years 3 to 6 who have autistic spectrum disorders.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school meets the current government floor standards.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited all classes to observe lessons, look at the work in pupils’ books and talk to them about their learning. Some of these visits were conducted with the headteacher and deputy headteacher.
• Meetings were held with: the headteacher and senior leaders; other school staff; the chair and three other members of the governing body; and a group of pupils. Inspectors also spoke informally to pupils at lunchtime and as they moved around the school. Telephone conversations were held with a representative of the local authority, an independent school improvement adviser who works with the school and staff from the off-site organisations that provide therapeutic support.
• Inspectors scrutinised the exercise books of several pupils in each class and examined the school’s records of pupils’ progress and attainment.
• Other documents were considered, including: the school’s checks on how well it is doing; its plans for improvement; information about how teachers’ performance is managed; evidence about the effectiveness of the governing body; information about pupils’ attendance and behaviour; and documents relating to safeguarding and child protection.
• Inspectors spoke to parents as they brought the children to school and considered 102 responses to the online survey, Parent View.
• The results of 36 staff questionnaires were taken into account.

Inspection team

Sandy Hayes, lead inspector Rowena Green Mary Maybank Michael Onyon Linda McGill Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector