Carrwood Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve teaching so that it is consistently good across the school by: raising the expectations of all adults and providing work that is sufficiently challenging for all pupils, especially the most able ensuring that all adults check carefully pupils’ learning in lessons, revising work and the timing of activities to meet pupils’ different needs, particularly disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities ensuring that teaching assistants consistently meet pupils’ needs.
• Raise outcomes at the end of key stage 2 for all groups of pupils, especially the most able, in reading and mathematics, by: honing their abilities to read fluently and with meaning

improving pupils’ mental agility in calculating orally, and providing them with more regular opportunities to use their mathematical skills to solve relevant problems planning for the development and mastery of skills across subjects other than English and mathematics, especially in science and geography.

• Improve pupils’ overall personal development, behaviour and welfare, by: reducing the absence rates of disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities so that these are more in line with those of all pupils nationally

improving pupils’ spiritual and moral development.

• Develop the quality of leadership at all levels, including governance, by: ensuring a more rigorous approach to checking the impact that teaching has on different groups of pupils’ learning and progress, including disadvantaged pupils and those in the school’s two designated provision centres developing governors’ expertise in understanding the school’s outcomes, and confidence in asking challenging questions about the quality of teaching and how well all pupils are learning. An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Significant changes in leaders, governors and teachers have hindered progress since the last inspection. As a consequence, the quality of teaching has not improved sufficiently, and pupils’ outcomes are not high enough across the school.
• Not all senior and middle leaders have yet developed sufficient confidence and expertise in checking accurately the quality of teaching, and its impact on pupils’ learning and progress.
• Over time, senior leaders’ sampling of pupils’ work and analysis of progress information have not resulted in an accurate picture of the rates of progress of different key groups of pupils. As a consequence, staff have not been held sufficiently to account for the impact of their work on pupils’ outcomes.
• The work of staff in the school’s two designated provision centres is not consistently monitored and evaluated, as part of a whole-school approach. This means that senior leaders and governors do not know how effective the centres are.
• Pupil premium funding has not resulted in sufficiently diminished differences in reading, writing and mathematics outcomes by the end of key stage 2, or significantly reduced absence rates of disadvantaged pupils. Differences in outcomes and absence are still not diminishing rapidly enough in some classes.
• School leaders and governors have not evaluated whether physical education and sport funding for primary schools has made enough difference in increasing the numbers of pupils participating in sporting activities on a regular basis, or in improving the expertise of both staff and pupils.
• There are shortcomings in the provision made for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. The teaching and learning of these pupils are not checked with enough rigour, nor the rates of progress that such pupils make.
• School leaders have been slow to promote the importance of good attendance, to offer appropriate rewards, discourage parents from taking their children away on holiday in term time or to engage more rigorously with families who do not encourage their children to attend school regularly. This work is now being pursued more rigorously, but with limited impact to date.
• The new headteacher and new senior and middle leaders have brought about positive changes in staff expectations and shared priorities for improvement, and provided a sense of direction for the school’s work.
• Arrangements for checking the performance of teachers have been reviewed, and are now aligned with improving pupils’ outcomes.
• Professional development and training, sourced from the local authority and other local schools, are increasingly linked to the needs of individual teachers, as well as the school’s priorities. Much of this work is only recently in place and has not yet had enough time to make a difference.
• Staff are keen to reflect on, and share, effective practice. Outcomes of the Ofsted questionnaire indicate good staff morale and confidence in the school’s new leadership.
• The new headteacher exudes high aspirations for all pupils and staff. He has strengthened processes for checking the impact that teaching has on pupils’ learning, and introduced more rigorous processes for pinpointing and addressing shortfalls in pupils’ progress.
• Much of this work is too recent to show enough impact. Nonetheless, the school’s self-evaluation, and development planning for 2016/17, indicate that leaders have an accurate view of the school’s performance, and have identified appropriate priorities and actions to move the school forward.
• The curriculum is broad and balanced. Pupils appreciate the number of visits and visitors, which add interest to their learning. They told inspectors that they particularly enjoy working on the school’s allotments, making contributions to local community projects such as the Knowles Park fence project, and fund-raising for local and national charities. Equally, pupils appreciate opportunities to sing in the school choir, play in the samba band and take part in cheerleading.
• The curriculum is effective in promoting some key values, such as respect and tolerance, and in contributing to pupils’ good behaviour around the school. However, the curriculum does not promote sufficiently pupils’ understanding of other British values, such as freedom and democracy, or their appreciation of other cultures.
• The curriculum promotes well pupils’ moral and social development, although aspects of their spiritual and cultural development are not so strong. The curriculum is not yet effective in helping pupils to acquire specific knowledge, skills and understanding beyond reading, writing and mathematics, in particular in science, geography, art and design, and technology.

Governance of the school

• Governors are not yet confident in their understanding of the information that they receive about the quality of teaching and learning, and pupils’ rates of progress across the school. As a consequence, they accept too readily the information presented to them by senior leaders. They do not question whether the school’s work is improving quickly enough.
• Governors have little awareness of the quality and impact of the work in the school’s two designated provision centres.
• Governors do not challenge school leaders on the effectiveness of the spending of the pupil premium funding, and the impact that it has on pupils’ outcomes.
• Governors have undertaken appropriate training to hone their skills, of late, but there has not been sufficient time for this to take full effect.
• Governors understand the link between performance and pay progression. Present arrangements for the annual review of the headteacher’s performance are appropriate.
• Governors place a high priority on keeping pupils safe, but do not yet challenge leaders about safeguarding arrangements.
• Governors are committed to improving the school’s performance, and to undergo further training to improve their skills and expertise.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Staff training is up to date, including training in the ‘Prevent’ duty.
• Leaders follow the school’s safeguarding procedures, including when concerns are raised, liaising closely with the relevant external organisations.
• Relationships with parents and carers are strong. Staff provide good support for families facing particularly challenging circumstances.
• Leaders ensure a safe environment for pupils through regular risk assessments. The school site is secure.
• Staff are vigilant in keeping pupils safe. They are familiar with the latest version of ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education.’

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching across Years 1 to 6 is inconsistent and has not improved sufficiently since the last inspection.
• In some classes, teachers provide work which is too easy for the most able, or too hard for pupils from low starting points, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Teachers do not check pupils’ learning with sufficient rigour in some classes and therefore miss opportunities to adjust activities to meet pupils’ changing needs. Pupils’ learning slows in these classes.
• Although writing outcomes are rising by the end of Year 6, the teaching of writing across the school is too variable. Some teachers do not afford pupils enough time to write in detail for different purposes and audiences. Opportunities are missed to extend pupils’ range of vocabulary, and to heighten their accurate use of basic punctuation, and develop more advanced punctuation for effect. Some teachers have not been sufficiently effective in helping pupils to improve the ways in which they structure sentences and sequence ideas.
• The teaching of mathematics also varies. Some teachers do not provide enough opportunities for pupils, especially the least able and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, to rehearse orally simple calculations to improve their mathematical agility. Often the most able are not asked to consider different approaches they might take when completing written calculations. Opportunities are sometimes missed for some pupils to apply sooner, when they are ready, their mathematical skills to solving problems.
• The teaching of reading requires improvement. There are inconsistencies in pupils’ abilities across classes to scan texts to locate efficiently key information, and answer questions accurately and succinctly. Pupils’ confidence in making inferences and predictions about plot and characters is underdeveloped.
• Some of the most- and least able pupils did not read fluently and with meaning to inspectors. These pupils were unable to use their knowledge of phonics to decode unfamiliar words correctly. While overall phonics outcomes are rising, the teaching of phonics remains inconsistent, especially across the early years and in key stage 1.
• The teaching of other subjects, such as science and geography, is inconsistent. It does not develop sufficiently pupils’ specific skills. Visits to lessons and sampling of pupils’ books showed much information gathering, but limited examples of pupils explaining concepts, drawing conclusions and making recommendations.
• The impact of teaching assistants is variable, especially in lessons. This is because at times they are not deployed carefully, and their work is not rigorously checked by some class teachers.
• Teaching in the school’s designated provision centres is inconsistent. It is good in the Phoenix Centre due to well-targeted professional development, and effective management by the centre’s leader. The teaching of pupils who have autism spectrum disorder requires improvement. Teaching is not checked rigorously enough for quality or impact, and the needs of individual pupils are not sufficiently catered for.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement.
• Teachers do not provide sufficient opportunities in lessons for pupils to reflect deeply on their own beliefs and those of their peers, and consider the different feelings and opinions of people from different countries and backgrounds. Lessons do not promote enough experiences that intrigue pupils about the world around them.
• Pupils’ appreciation of different cultures, as an essential part of their preparation for life in modern Britain, is not fully developed.
• Pupils’ knowledge of the concepts of freedom and democracy, and of Britain’s parliamentary system, is limited.
• The school has a calm and inclusive atmosphere where pupils mix happily with each other. Pupils are well mannered, holding doors open for adults and generally showing consideration for one another in the dining room and playground.
• Pupils feel safe in school and know that staff will sort out any problems that may arise. Pupils know that they can openly share their problems with staff. Relationships between staff and pupils are caring.
• Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe and are clear about the importance of keeping safe online, or when using a mobile phone.
• Pupils understand about different types of bullying, and know that bullying is something that is repeated regularly, and is to be prevented. Pupils say that incidents of bullying do occur, but that they are quickly, and successfully, dealt with.
• Opportunities are increasing for pupils to take on responsibilities in school. The work of the school council is successful in making changes in school life, and in raising money for local and national charities, for example BBC Children in Need. Pupils enjoy their roles as assistant librarians, and help keep all the books in order.
• The daily breakfast club provides a welcoming early-morning experience for pupils who arrive before the formal start of school. This experience reinforces the school’s aim to help to develop caring and valuing young people.
• Pupils learn how to eat healthily, and enjoy growing their own vegetables for the school’s kitchen. They develop a good appreciation of the importance of hygiene, diet and exercise.
• Staff in the Phoenix Centre promote well pupils’ emotional well-being and levels of self-control. Pupils who have autism spectrum disorder are appropriately cared for.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.
• Despite a range of initiatives and rewards, pupils’ attendance is not improving strongly enough, and remains below average. In particular, the attendance of disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is well below the attendance of all pupils nationally, and below that of other pupils in school.
• The behaviour of pupils around school is good. Pupils of all ages and abilities enjoy school life, relate well to all of the adults, and are welcoming to visitors.
• Most pupils are respectful of one another. Behaviour at lunchtimes and playtimes is good. Pupils are keen to sing the school’s ‘behaviour song’ in assembly, and understand the consequences of poor behaviour.
• In lessons, pupils are generally calm and attentive. The majority respond quickly to their teachers’ instructions, and many show an ability to sustain levels of concentration when working independently.
• In some classes, where teaching is insufficiently motivating, or where activities are not challenging enough, a minority of pupils become restless and lose concentration. The presentation of some pupils’ work in books, in these classes, lacks care and attention.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• In 2016, the proportion of Year 6 pupils reaching the expected or higher national standards was well below national figures in reading and mathematics. Visits to lessons and pupils’ current books and records show that outcomes in reading and mathematics still require improvement.
• While Year 6 writing outcomes in 2016 were above average at the expected standard, no pupil attained the higher standard. Work in pupils’ books and in lessons indicates that the quality of pupils’ writing varies from class to class.
• 2016 outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics were well below average by the end of key stage 1. While present rates of progress are improving, especially in Year 1, outcomes are still variable across the key stage. They do not yet represent good progress, given the overall well below-average levels of development of children at the end of the Reception Year.
• 2016 Year 1 pupils’ outcomes in phonics increased, although still remaining well below average. In 2016, Year 2 outcomes fell and were well below average. Teaching of phonics across key stage 1 remains inconsistent.
• Disadvantaged pupils make inconsistent progress over time. During the inspection, inspectors found that the overall progress rates of disadvantaged pupils were no better than those of their peers.
• Pupils from low starting points, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, do not make enough progress. Senior leaders have not rigorously identified the small steps made by pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities in their learning. In some classes, teachers do not check carefully enough the progress that pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make in their work.
• The most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, are not challenged sufficiently to reach the higher standards. Work is often too easy, and does not require them to think and find out things for themselves.
• Pupils who speak English as an additional language make generally good progress in their language acquisition and learn to speak English fluently. This is because they receive timely and good-quality support from specialist practitioners. However, the overall progress made by pupils who speak English as an additional language in reading, writing and mathematics is similar to that of their peers, and no better than expected.
• Pupils in the school’s designated provision centres make variable rates of progress. Effective teaching and support by staff in the Phoenix Centre help to improve pupils’ social and emotional skills, and their general behaviour and levels of self-control. Support for pupils who have autism spectrum disorder is less well organised, monitored and evaluated. Activities are not sufficiently well planned to meet consistently these pupils’ needs.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• Children enter Nursery with skills and understanding that are below those typical for their age, with many children with poor language and communication skills.
• Children are quickly helped to settle and develop positive relationships.
• By the time children leave the Reception Year, however, not enough pupils have made good progress, especially boys and disadvantaged children. As a result, they enter Year 1 with overall skills and knowledge still well below those expected for their age.
• Not all adults check the progress of children carefully enough and adjust the planned activities to match their changing needs. This is particularly the case for some of the most able children. As a result, they do not make as much progress as they should.
• Not all staff consistently ask questions that deepen children’s thinking as they play. Some adults do not evaluate accurately children’s developing understanding. For example, children were curious to learn about why toys used to be made out of wood, but their interest in different materials and their availability over the years, was not fully exploited.
• General provision both outdoors and inside is motivating. Significant improvements have been made in the range and quality of outdoor activities since the last inspection. Some adults are quick to use children’s interests to help them learn well. For example, some children were encouraged to program an electronic toy, and others were supported effectively in their observational drawings of an owl.
• The vast majority of children are happy in the early years. ‘Petals’, the provision for two-year-olds, is appropriate. Staff are generally knowledgeable about the typical development and characteristics of learning for two-year-olds. However, some staff are inconsistent in promoting children’s use of spoken language as part of their cooperative play.
• Early years staff forge positive partnerships with parents. Parents expressed satisfaction with their child’s early experiences at school. However, not all parents regularly contribute to their children’s learning journeys. These records vary in quality, particularly in capturing visual evidence of children’s achievements, and in setting next steps in their learning.
• Staff are vigilant about the safety of children in the early years and hold appropriate safeguarding certificates. They conduct regular checks on outdoor equipment, and all aspects of the setting have been assessed for potential risks to children.
• The recently appointed early years leader is committed to improving further the quality of teaching, learning and assessment within the early years, and knows what to do next.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 107240 Bradford 10019713 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 Community 2 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 400 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Amy Newton Andrew Wilcock 01274 664864 www.carrwood.bradford.sch.uk office@carrwood.bradford.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 5–6 November 2014

Information about this school

• The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information about the impact of pupil premium and sport funding on its website.
• The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of pupils who are eligible for support through the pupil premium is well above average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is above average.
• One quarter of pupils are from minority ethnic groups, and one in 10 pupils speak English as an additional language. Both proportions are below national averages.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.
• Children in Reception Year attend full time. Children in Nursery attend part time. The school also provides for two-year-olds.
• The school has two designated special provision centres. One provision is for 10 pupils who have autistic spectrum disorder. The other, the Phoenix Centre, is for 12 pupils who have additional behavioural needs who are on roll in local Bradford primary schools. These special provision centres were inspected as part of the inspection.
• The governing body makes provision for a daily breakfast club.
• The school works informally with other primary schools within local authority partnerships.
• Since the last inspection, there have been significant changes in staffing, including the appointment of a new headteacher, and new senior and middle leaders. The governing body has also been reconstituted, and a new chair of the governing body is in place.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited a range of lessons across the school, looking at pupils’ work in all lessons. Two visits were made with senior leaders. In addition, two inspectors also visited two whole-school assemblies.
• Alongside senior leaders, inspectors reviewed pupils’ progress data, information about the performance of teachers, documents pertaining to safety and behaviour, and information pertaining to safeguarding.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read and observed pupils’ learning in small groups. They spoke with pupils in lessons, at lunchtime and at playtimes, and met with groups of pupils separately.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher and deputy headteacher, senior and middle leaders, and the chair of the governing body. A conversation was also held with a representative from the local authority.
• Too few parents responded to Parent View (Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents) for inspectors to access their views. No pupil responded to the Ofsted online questionnaire. However, inspectors did take account of 39 online responses returned by staff, and recent school questionnaires completed by parents and pupils.

Inspection team

Andy Swallow, lead inspector Karen Heath Peter Heaton Joanna Sharpe

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector