Farfield Primary and Nursery School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment by:
  • all staff having high expectations about how well pupils present their written work
  • providing pupils with clearer guidance on ways to improve their work so that errors are not repeated
  • using assessment information to plan learning tasks that are at the right level for all groups of pupils, including the most able pupils
  • making sure that the least able pupils are well supported to complete their work confidently.
• Improve the impact of leadership and management on the quality of teaching and pupils’ outcomes across the school by: − ensuring that teaching is consistently good across all year groups and classes, extending the existing strong practice in the school as a model − setting out clear, measurable targets for subject and school improvement planning so that leaders and governors can judge more accurately how well the school is doing − developing the use of assessment information to check that all groups of pupils make good progress in skills as they move through the school.
• Raise standards in reading and writing by:
  • clarifying to pupils the need to spell common words accurately in all their written work
  • enabling pupils to write and punctuate meaningful sentences correctly
  • implementing a cohesive approach to the teaching of handwriting right from the early years
  • creating frequent opportunities for pupils to produce longer pieces of writing across a range of subjects
  • increasing the opportunities for pupils to read independently.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Since the previous inspection, significant changes in staffing have slowed down the pace of school improvement. Some of the recommendations identified in the last inspection report remain as issues. Leaders have found it difficult to ensure consistent approaches to teaching because staffing has lacked continuity.
• The headteacher is ambitious for the school and has an honest and open view about where the school needs to be better. She and senior leaders know that teaching varies too much from class to class and that, over time, pupils have not achieved as well as they could.
• More recently, the development of a new leadership team together with more stable staffing arrangements have provided a stronger platform on which to build a more effective school. However, development is at an early stage and the full impact of leaders’ actions is yet to be seen.
• Leaders have identified the right priorities in their improvement plans but planned actions and strategies lack sharp, measurable reference points for evaluation. Neither are there clear timescales or methods for monitoring progress and reporting degrees of success. Consequently, it is hard for leaders and governors to know how well the school is doing.
• There is a systematic approach in place for improving the quality of teaching. Leaders frequently observe lessons, sample pupils’ books and check on how effectively pupils’ work is celebrated through displays around school. However, leaders need to do more to communicate higher expectations to staff and pupils, and to resolve inconsistencies promptly.
• Systems to assess pupils’ attainment and progress are developing. Leaders have a sound grasp of attainment at each key stage. As yet, leaders do not fully track the progress of different groups as they move through school, in order to ensure that this is good for all pupils.
• Work in topic books is rather limited and there are not enough opportunities for pupils to extend their reading and writing in a range of subjects. In some year groups, only one or two pieces of work are completed.
• Leaders prioritised behaviour in the last year as a key area for improvement and their actions have been successful. Pupils, parents and staff say that behaviour has significantly improved and inspectors share this view.
• The headteacher has identified where the quality of teaching has fallen short. Over the last year, she has provided support but also strong challenge where this has been needed. As a result of her actions, teaching is improving and the school is in a better position to move forward.
• Middle and subject leaders are increasingly involved in holding staff to account for their performance. Mathematics has been a key focus for the school, and teaching and outcomes in this subject have improved as a result of concerted training and support. Leaders fully acknowledge the pressing need to now improve reading and writing.
• Leaders have used a significant amount of pupil premium funding to support pupils who have additional needs, challenges around behaviour or problems with early speech. While a smaller proportion of funding has been spent on academic support, leaders consider that the spending decisions have been effective in improving attitudes to learning and promoting a calm learning environment. Inspectors agree.
• Funding to support pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is well managed. Effective work with individuals or small groups means that these pupils generally achieve well. The special educational needs leader keeps a watchful eye on how well pupils are taught and on their welfare, liaising closely with teachers to check on progress.
• The funding for primary school physical education and sport is used well. The provision of suitable sports kit for every pupil ensures that all pupils fully participate in physical education lessons. Leaders have also introduced the Skillforce Award to promote better teamwork and resilience among pupils.
• Pupils experience a wide range of learning experiences, including lessons in Spanish and opportunities to learn about other beliefs and cultures. While leaders are teaching pupils about fundamental British values, pupils are not yet confident enough in their understanding of these to explain what they mean.
• There are several free to join after-school clubs available to pupils. These include drumming, football, chess, guitar and cookery. Attendance levels are high.
• Good links are being forged with parents who are extremely supportive towards the school. An active parent association, working closely with the school’s parent involvement worker, has raised significant funds to help the school purchase new reading books.
• Leaders make use of a number of partnership organisations to compare standards and develop good practice. The school also receives effective support from the local authority. Leaders acknowledge that continuing to develop an outward-looking school is an important factor in raising standards.

Governance of the school

• Governors acknowledge the challenges that the school has faced in recruiting staff over the last year. They know that the school has experienced considerable staffing changes and that pupils’ outcomes have suffered. However, governors have confidence in recent appointments and in the capacity of the leadership to bring about improvement.
• Several governors make frequent visits to the school to talk to leaders, staff, pupils and parents, and to observe lessons, assemblies and events. They report their findings to the full governing body. Minutes of these meetings show a good level of challenge, although governors’ questions tend to relate mainly to site and personnel matters.
• The chair of the governing body explained that new committees have now been created to ensure that all responsibilities are met and there is more effective support for leaders. These arrangements are at an early stage.
• Governors feel that the training they have received has been very valuable, especially around reviewing information from assessing pupils’ attainment and progress. They have a much clearer understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses, and are in a better position to ask searching questions about outcomes.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Recruitment procedures are thorough and meet statutory requirements. A named governor visits to review safeguarding training and practice, although these discussions are not formally recorded.
• The site is maintained in a safe, clean and tidy condition. The caretaker conducts daily checks on site safety, and a governor visits periodically to meet with the caretaker and school business manager to assess where any problems may lie.
• Induction arrangements are well planned so that all new staff know how to raise concerns about pupils who may be at risk of harm. Inspectors spoke with several members of different staff groups and all were very clear about procedures. Leaders ensure that they update staff on policy and practice through weekly briefings, annual training and at senior leadership meetings.
• Leaders are alert to potential safeguarding issues raised by the use of electronic communication and social media. Pupils learn about keeping safe online and the local police community support officer visits classes to add emphasis to these safety messages.
• Pupils have responded well to the effective promotion of caring and responsible behaviour. There is a calm atmosphere around the school and in lessons. High staff-to-pupil ratios and additional support for the minority of pupils who have social and emotional difficulties contribute to positive and enjoyable breaktimes.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching is variable across key stages 1 and 2 and therefore requires improvement. Pupils make inconsistent progress as a result.
• Sometimes teachers do not pitch learning tasks at the right level for different groups of learners. Some activities are too hard for the least able while work for most-able pupils lacks challenge. A group of most-able pupils said that work was often ‘quite easy’. Sometimes, teachers miss opportunities to extend the learning of the most able pupils. The least able pupils are sometimes uncertain about how to do the task or lack example words to help them write their sentences.
• Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ written presentation and spelling are not high enough. Too many errors go unchecked and pupils do not focus enough on making sure that key words and titles are spelled correctly first time. Handwriting is weak because many pupils have poor pencil grips and adopt casual postures when writing. Teachers do not provide consistent guidance and support to establish and maintain good writing habits.
• While teachers are trying to improve the range of punctuation that pupils apply in their writing, they do not focus enough on what makes up a meaningful sentence. This means that by the time pupils reach Year 6, some are still not able to write sentences clearly with correct capital letters and full stops.
• Teachers provide encouraging feedback in books to acknowledge good efforts but guidance on how to improve work is variable across classes. Pupils do not always respond to teachers’ comments and occasionally teachers do not identify incorrect responses. In a minority of instances, teachers’ own spelling is incorrect.
• Teachers are working hard to improve pupils’ understanding of what they read through better planning of reading sessions to meet the needs of different groups. Leaders are keen to encourage pupils to read more widely and for a variety of purposes. There is more work to do in this respect because a culture of reading regularly for pleasure does not yet exist for many pupils. Some pupils who read to inspectors had read only a few pages of their books since the start of term.
• The teaching of phonics is increasingly effective. Adults sound letters and words clearly and pupils respond enthusiastically to their questions. Activities engage pupils, as seen in Year 1 where the teacher encouraged pupils to use robot arms to help them to identify sounds.
• Teachers set homework to support key skills on a weekly basis and pupils complete this conscientiously. Tasks tend to be routine but within pupils’ different capabilities.
• The work of teaching assistants in providing additional support to pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is good across the school. They work quietly with groups of pupils and know the pupils well.
• In mathematics, following substantial training over the last year, teachers are becoming more confident in their own subject knowledge to help pupils build up secure understanding through step-by-step approaches. A strong focus on mental arithmetic skills is starting to pay dividends.
• Teachers encourage pupils to think hard about what they need to do to solve word problems. In Year 6, pupils were skilfully guided into identifying the key stages to follow when deciding on the choice of calculations. Pupils made good progress because the explanation was easy to follow and the subsequent task was pitched well.
• Some teachers and teaching assistants use questioning well and provide constructive feedback to help pupils reflect on and reshape their work. In these classes and groups, there are high expectations as to the quality and quantity of written work expected.
• Good learning attitudes are evident across the school and this means that learning time is generally used well. Pupils enjoy lessons and respond well to their teachers. Relationships are very positive. As a result, there is a good platform for future successful learning.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Parents overwhelmingly appreciate the care that adults provide for their children and several parents went out of their way to make this point to inspectors. ‘I cannot fault the school – they are spot on when looking after my child’, one parent said.
• Breakfast club starts the day off well. Pupils have access to construction kits, art activities and games. They explain that ‘breakfast is the healthiest meal of the day’, and that ‘calcium in milk makes you strong’. Older pupils gently shepherd the younger ones into class ready for school to begin. Many parents choose to stay during this time and thus parental links are strengthened.
• Pupils take on a variety of responsibilities, such as register and class monitors, digital leaders and play buddies. Pupils explained that being a house captain was ‘a really important job’. They carry out these duties conscientiously. Senior leaders plan to extend roles further, for example through a school council.
• Pupils know about the nature of bullying. All the groups of pupils who spoke with inspectors are clear that bullying is rare and that staff promptly help to resolve any fall-outs. They have full trust in adults to look after them well and keep them safe.
• Although pupils who spoke with inspectors were a little unclear about fundamental British values, they were able to talk about what they had learned about other faiths and cultures. One pupil proudly said that she had helped a new girl to learn English, and all were adamant that no one should be teased because they may be different or have unusual family backgrounds. These positive attitudes prepare pupils well to play their part in modern Britain.
• Older pupils gave an inspector some important advice about how to stay safe online. A Year 5 pupil said, ‘Never share your personal details and be very careful when playing games and exchanging messages with others.’
• Pupils also know that diet and exercise are important to health. They recalled health and safety messages from the healthy caravan visit and warned the inspector, ‘Watch out for too much sugar unless you want bad teeth or diabetes!’
• The nurture group provides specialised teaching and support in the mornings for a small number of pupils who have significant challenges around behaviour, learning and relationships. Teaching is lively and pupils are engaged. Staff try to feed pupils back into mainstream lessons as soon as they are able to join in positively or if they show confidence in a subject.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Leaders have made this a major area for improvement and it is a growing strength of the school. Pupils behave well in lessons and move calmly round the school. They are sensible in the dining area and enjoy playing safely and supportively on the playground and field.
• Pupils understand the behaviour policy well and all agree that adults operate this fairly. They know that getting to ‘double red’ spells big trouble and that leaders will need to speak to parents. Some exclusions have taken place over the last year but these are reducing. Timely support, use of reflection time and additional supervision over playtimes all help to keep the minority of pupils who have social difficulties on track.
• Pupils display consistently responsible attitudes and are friendly and courteous to each other and to visitors, although sometimes a few are a little too forward or can get easily distracted from their work. They remember to hold doors open for each other and for adults, and take turns in speaking during discussions.
• Good behaviour in lessons means that teaching can proceed without interruption. Pupils know that good listening is the key to success. One pupil said, ‘If you listen, you’ll often get it right.’ In a small number of lessons where there was some fidgeting or silliness, this was linked to lacklustre teaching that lacked challenge and did not engage pupils fully.
• Attendance has improved over time and is currently in line with national averages. This is a credit to the efforts of the pastoral team and parent involvement worker who work closely with parents to keep a tight rein on attendance and punctuality.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Pupils have not made good progress from Years 1 to 6 over recent years. This is because there has been too much inconsistency in the quality of teaching over time across the school. Outcomes, therefore, require improvement.
• Children’s learning gets off to a good start in the early years. Children make good progress and so start to make up for their often low starting points. Even so, by the start of Year 1, standards in reading, writing and mathematics are below average. Between Years 1 and 6, pupils do not make good progress. In recent years, a below-average proportion of pupils have reached the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 2 and Year 6. There has been too much inconsistency in the quality of teaching over recent years brought about by staffing changes.
• Results in 2017 and recent school assessment information for current pupils show that more pupils are now starting to move towards achieving age-related expectations. However, because previous learning has been variable, some pupils still have a lot of ground to catch up.
• At Year 1, results in the phonics screening check have risen steadily over time and in 2017 were close to the national average. Leaders know that this improving picture needs to continue for these pupils at the end of key stage 1 and beyond. This has not always been the case because results have been up and down for some groups as they move from the early years through school.
• At the end of key stage 1 in 2017, teachers’ assessments showed that more pupils reached the expected standard in reading than over previous years, but in writing and mathematics proportions remained below national averages. Low numbers of pupils, including the most able pupils, reached greater depth compared with the proportion who did so nationally.
• Provisional results in 2017 for pupils at the end of key stage 2 show that higher proportions of pupils reached the expected standard in all subjects. More pupils also attained the higher standards, especially in mathematics where the school was above the national average. This is a good step forward.
• Work in mathematics across the school is generally of a higher standard than in other subjects and shows the benefit of the school’s staff training work with an external consultant. Analysis of pupils’ work in books shows that written presentation is very variable. Basic errors in spelling and handwriting for all groups, including the most able pupils, slow down progress.
• Disadvantaged pupils are starting to make better progress but are still well adrift when their attainment is compared with that of other pupils nationally, especially in reading and writing for the least able pupils. However, more consistent teaching by a stable staff, coupled with closer checks on insecure understanding, is beginning to move these pupils on at a better pace.
• More pupils at key stage 2 are now working at higher standards. In 2017, proportions reaching expected and higher standards in mathematics were above the national averages. They were close to the national averages in reading but remained below in writing.
• Targeted small-group work and one-to-one activities ensure that pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities achieve in line with their peers. Staffing changes and the influx of several new pupils meant that outcomes for these pupils were not as strong in 2017 as in the previous year.
• Older pupils display very positive learning attitudes and are keen to improve their work. They respond well to their teachers and take a real pride in their work. They also enjoy contributing to school life. These positive attitudes are likely to serve them well when they move on to high school.

Early years provision Good

• The early years provision is good because teaching is good and children thrive in their development, settling down into well-established routines and enjoying their learning in a secure, stimulating and nurturing environment.
• The early years leader has a keen focus on improving outcomes for children and knows that standards in basic skills of reading, number work and writing, in particular, need to rise quickly to help the children catch up with other children nationally. She provides direction to colleagues, relates well to parents and has a good knowledge of the children. The early years team is gaining in strength and expertise.
• Children start in the Nursery straight after their third birthday and staff work closely with parents to ease transition into the setting. They try to identify any additional needs at an early stage, liaising closely with the special educational needs leader and external agencies. Parents have confidence in the early years leadership.
• Children arrive with abilities that are well below those seen typically. A significant minority still require toilet care and many have delays in speech and communication that hold back their learning. Leaders have sensibly targeted additional funding to provide speech therapy to address this issue. By the time they leave Reception, children have made good progress, although the proportion of children reaching a good level of development is still below average.
• Children generally work and play harmoniously in a kind and caring manner. They mix well, share toys and take turns on the scooters or bikes amiably. They know to keep the classroom tidy. One child took great pains to tidy away all the building bricks without reminders from the teacher.
• Children busied themselves in the creative activities on offer in the Nursery, such as the collage table where children loved to stick autumn leaves and twigs to create hedgehogs like the ones that had visited their class. Another boy took delight in trying on the wizard’s hat he had made.
• Staff teach early reading skills effectively and have analysed any weak areas for every child. Writing and counting skills are at an early stage of development at this time of the school year but there are plenty of activities to promote these, such as the dough disco song and actions, or the building of a shape house.
• Staff plan and adjust learning skilfully in response to children’s reactions and developing interests. Adults use questioning well to extend understanding, deepen thinking and widen vocabulary. They respond to children’s ideas and steer the learning accordingly. In Reception, the teacher encouraged children to make a dough cake and count the candles on a child’s birthday cake.
• Assessment is thorough and accurate and has been recently checked by the local authority. Staff are starting to make more detailed use of assessment and keep a careful check on the progress of different groups.
• The learning environment is bright, attractive and stimulating, particularly in the Nursery. Areas of learning are better supported indoors than outside, where more consideration about how to spark curiosity and collaborative work between children would enhance learning further.
• Welfare requirements and safeguarding arrangements are clear. Procedures for first aid and medicine administration are in place and the setting is secure and tidy.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 107238 Bradford 10031103

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 Community 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 452 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Emily Harris Susan Convery 01274 678 545 www.farfieldprimary.com office@farfield.bradford.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 27–28 November 2012

Information about this school

• This school is larger than the average-sized primary school. There are 15 single-age classes.
• Most of the pupils are of White British heritage. There are a small number of pupils from Pakistani backgrounds. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is below the national average.
• The proportion of current pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is well above average.
• There are roughly the same number of girls and boys in the school.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is much higher than the national average. The number of pupils with statements of special educational needs, or education, health and care plans, is lower than average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.
• There have been significant changes in staffing and leadership since the time of the previous inspection. The headteacher and several senior leaders and teachers have moved on, and there has been a high turnover of staff, especially in the last 12 months.
• The new headteacher joined the school in 2014 and, since then, a new deputy headteacher and a new assistant headteacher have been appointed. The deputy headteacher at the time of the last inspection continues in that role.
• Over the last year, the headteacher and governing body have struggled to recruit suitably skilled staff and, as a result, have had to make some short-term arrangements. At the start of September, leaders secured more stable staffing, with several recent appointments of teachers and teaching assistants.
• The school runs a breakfast club that typically supports around 50 pupils daily.
• There is a morning nurture group that provides learning and social support for a small number of pupils who have additional needs. An experienced teacher leads this.
• The school is working with a number of external consultants on developing leadership and is sharing early years good practice.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited 37 lessons or part-lessons across all classes to assess teaching and learning. The headteacher viewed some lessons jointly.
• The inspectors listened to a selection of pupils reading from Years 2, 3, 5 and 6.
• Inspectors sampled work from all year groups in English, mathematics and a range of subjects.
• Inspectors conducted meetings with the local authority school improvement officer, middle leaders, subject leaders and members of the governing body.
• Inspectors analysed information from a scrutiny of school documentation. This included published data about pupils’ progress and attainment, previous inspection reports and the school’s latest assessment information.
• The inspectors viewed school monitoring information about the performance management of teachers. They also looked extensively at safeguarding documentation.
• Inspectors took the views of parents into account through informal discussions with parents before school and at the end of the school day, and by analysing responses from the 126 parents who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.
• The inspectors took the views of pupils into account through planned meetings with groups of pupils from Years 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. Inspectors met groups of pupils informally at playtime and lunchtime.
• The inspectors took the views of staff into account by analysing responses from the online survey. The school had obtained responses from 32 staff.

Inspection team

James Reid, lead inspector Alison Ashworth Ian Clennan Richard Knowles Catherine Precious

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector