Harden Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching so that it is consistently good or better, particularly in mathematics and writing, to ensure good progress for all groups of pupils by ensuring that:
  • work set for pupils is appropriately challenging for all abilities, particularly the most able
  • assessment is used skilfully to plan challenging work, address pupils’ misconceptions and strengthen their understanding
  • pupils’ spelling is accurate and contributes to improving the quality of writing
  • a wide range of subjects contribute to the development of pupils’ writing skills and the application of their mathematical skills to deepen learning
  • skilful questioning is used consistently well to strengthen pupils’ progress and their understanding of what is being learned
  • the work of teaching assistants is managed well by teachers.
• Increase the impact of leaders and governors by ensuring that:
  • teachers have high expectations of what pupils can achieve to accelerate progress
  • teachers are sufficiently skilled to ensure that all groups of pupils achieve well
  • senior leaders and subject leaders address inconsistencies in the quality of teaching across the school swiftly
  • all the identified areas for improvement are tackled successfully and lead to consistently good teaching and good progress for all groups of pupils
  • all school policies are compliant and up to date at all times.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management

Requires improvement

• Over time, leaders, managers and governors have not ensured that all areas of improvement from the previous inspection have been successfully addressed. They have not ensured that the quality of teaching is consistently good and that outcomes for all groups of pupils are good.
• Leaders are focusing strongly on improving the quality of teaching and there are signs of improvement. Senior and subject leaders collect a wide range of information to identify what needs to be improved. They have provided support and challenge to improve the quality of teaching with some success. However, the quality of teaching remains variable across subjects and the school because leaders’ actions have not been swift enough and successful enough to ensure that teaching is consistently good.
• Performance management for teachers identifies appropriate professional development to strengthen teaching. However, teaching remains inconsistent as leaders have not increased teachers’ expectations well enough and ensured that all groups of pupils are making good progress.
• Curriculum topics start with pupils contributing questions about what they would like to find out, and this captures their interest. The curriculum makes a very positive contribution to pupils’ good reading skills. However, further development of the quality of writing and mathematics is required to strengthen and deepen pupils’ learning across a wide range of subjects.
• Staff morale is high. They believe that leaders are supporting their work and they are well led and managed. Staff have adopted new approaches to teach writing and mathematics. Staff have created a vibrant environment for pupils’ learning and are clear that leaders and managers are helping them to strengthen their teaching. Staff, including those other than teachers, indicated that they are proud to work in the school.
• The new curriculum interests pupils and contributes particularly well to pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. It contributes well to pupils’ understanding of life in modern Britain and what is required to be a good citizen. There is a good range of activities and residential visits that contribute to pupils’ learning. Visitors contribute well to the curriculum. For example, pupils have developed their own school song, guided by a professional songwriter. A variety of clubs, such as art club and a construction club, are available.
• The primary school physical education and sports funding is used well. Pupils are very active at play and successful in cross country competitions and football. The school provides a range of sporting activities such as gymnastics and martial arts.
• Additional funding for disadvantaged pupils is used effectively to support learning. It is used to subsidise trips and visits, which is a good contribution to the school’s commitment to equality of opportunity for all. Overall, the funding for those who have special educational needs is used effectively, although outcomes for these pupils vary.
• Most parents responding to the Ofsted questionnaire would recommend the school to others and many told inspectors about their positive views of the school. However, there is a small minority of parents who believe that, over time, the school has not responded well to their concerns. Governors and leaders have upgraded school systems and processes to improve the school’s response to concerns and complaints. Overall, the large majority of parents responding to the Ofsted questionnaire indicated that the school is well led and managed.
• The external support and challenge provided by the local authority and others has supported the school well. It has developed aspects of leadership and is helping to strengthen the quality of teaching. Although not good, the school is improving.

Governance of the school

• Over time, there have been significant changes to governance. New governors with a wide range of skills, including finance, education and the organisation of governance, have been recruited. They have a clear understanding of the school and how pupil performance information compares with schools nationally.
• Governors check allocation of the pupil premium finance, special educational needs spending and the school sports grant and the overall impact of the funding. Governors are clear about the link between teachers’ pay and performance.
• Governors review the school’s policies and procedures and seek the views of parents. They are aware that a small minority of parents would like the school to respond better to concerns that are raised, and are in the process of strengthening communication.
• Governors support leadership effectively and have arranged support from the local authority and others to assist the development of leadership and systems for teaching. They are clear that systems are more consistent across the school. Governors are supporting and challenging the school effectively to strengthen its work.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The school has an effective system to ensure that staff and other adults are suitable for working with children and young people.
• External agencies are used to make sure that the most vulnerable pupils are kept safe and parents are engaged with the school.
• Since the previous inspection, there has been a period of time when the safeguarding policy did not meet requirements, but this has been updated recently. Staff are clear about safeguarding matters and how to report issues should they arise.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• While the quality of teaching is improving, it is still variable across the school and is not consistently good.
• Leaders have been providing professional development to strengthen the quality of teaching and there have been improvements. They have provided guidance to strengthen writing skills and mathematical reasoning skills. When the guidance is used skilfully, inspectors noted pupils making good progress. However, inspectors’ analysis of pupils’ work showed inconsistencies in the quality of teaching, and further work has to be done to make sure that it is good and leads to good progress for pupils.
• Assessment is not used consistently well enough to plan learning that meets pupils’ needs and abilities. Work set is not consistently well planned and structured to challenge pupils effectively and support good learning. Work can be too easy in mathematics, particularly for the most able pupils, and not ‘pitched’ at the right level of challenge for pupils to make good progress. Pupils’ writing skills are not developed well enough to make good progress and produce work of the highest quality. However, this is not always the case, and there is some good use of assessment in the school, leading to some good progress in writing and mathematics.
• There are times when teachers use skilful questioning and swiftly check the quality of pupils’ work in class. However, inconsistencies in questioning and checking the quality of pupils’ work lead to repeated mistakes in mathematics and many spelling mistakes. Easy or difficult work is not being adjusted quickly to ensure that pupils make good progress.
• When teaching assistants are well managed, there is good support for pupils’ learning. However, there are times when teachers are not engaging their assistants fully in supporting learning. Very occasionally, teaching assistants are not skilful enough to support pupils well and their work is not checked quickly by teachers to increase the impact of support for pupils.
• An analysis of pupils’ work showed good opportunities for pupils to develop effective scientific skills through completing experiments, and effective work in history, geography and religious education. It showed that the application of mathematical skills and writing at length were not used well enough to strengthen and deepen learning in a range of subjects and to strengthen mathematics and writing skills.
• There are good opportunities for pupils to read every day and to be supported well if they have any difficulties. Teachers make sure that there are good reading opportunities across a wide range of subjects. As a result, pupils read well and make good progress in reading.
• Interesting activities are planned for pupils, with good use of computer presentations to capture pupils’ interest. Inspectors saw good relationships between pupils and staff, contributing to good attitudes to learning.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils are confident and proud of their school. They are polite, listen to each other’s points of view and treat each other and adults with respect. They support each other well when learning.
• Pupils told inspectors that they enjoy school and feel safe. They say that there is little bullying and are confident that adults resolve matters quickly. They understand how to use the internet safely and know what they should do if they are contacted by unknown adults or inappropriate information is sent to them. Visitors, including the police service, give pupils a good understanding of how to stay safe.
• There are good opportunities for pupils to take part in activities that keep them fit and healthy. Many pupils were seen enjoying their fruit and other healthy food, and all children in Reception are encouraged to develop habits of healthy eating. Pupils are very active at breaktime and lunchtime, using the high-quality climbing frames and other high-quality equipment.
• Pupils support a number of charities to help those less fortunate than themselves. There are good opportunities for pupils to take on posts of responsibility. For example, older pupils enjoy being ‘playtime buddies’ for the younger pupils and are proud to be members of the school council. Pupils vote for their school council members and have had visits from their local Member of Parliament to contribute to their understanding of democracy.
• Pupils are generally proud of the work they do and are making greater efforts than in the past to present their work neatly. However, they are not careful enough to check that their spelling is accurate when writing at length.
• Systems to keep children safe have been upgraded and are effective. Most parents are confident that pupils are safe and well looked after in school. All staff believe that children are safe at school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils manage their behaviour well both inside and outside the classroom. Pupils in each class have opportunities to develop their own classroom rules, focusing on the school’s values and expected behaviour. They keep these rules well and behaviour is good. Pupils have good attitudes to learning.
• Pupils get on well together. They conduct themselves well because of the high expectations of adults and the good relationships that exist between pupils and adults. Pupils are well mannered when speaking to each other and to adults.
• Attendance is above average, with very few pupils regularly absent from school. Pupils are very punctual to school because they enjoy learning and their parents help them to arrive on time.
• The school environment is well cared for. There is high-quality art work on display and many other displays of pupils’ work that are well cared for. The school is free from litter, as pupils take care of their school environment.
• The school is a calm and purposeful place, with pupils concentrating well on their work.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Over time, inconsistencies in the quality of teaching have not led to good progress for pupils. Currently, teaching is variable and pupils are not making consistently good progress, particularly in writing and mathematics. Pupils’ reading skills have developed well since the last inspection and are now good. Overall, outcomes for pupils require improvement.
• Inspectors analysed current pupils’ work across the school and found inconsistent progress in writing and mathematics both within subjects and across the curriculum. Pupils are not making consistently good progress in mathematics and writing and deepening their understanding in other subjects well enough. Inspectors found that pupils’ progress is not consistently strong enough to be good and requires improvement.
• The most able pupils are not challenged well enough by the work set for them, and expectations are not high enough across the school.
• There are too few pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities to make comparisons between their progress and that of all pupils nationally. An inspector sampled the work of some of these pupils and found variations in their progress.
• Over time, there have been very few disadvantaged pupils and too few to make reasonable comparisons with the progress of other pupils nationally. They are making similar progress to others in school and at times a touch better, because of the support they receive.
• Inspectors found that, across the school, current pupils have good reading skills. Extra daily reading sessions have contributed well to pupils’ reading skills. Pupils are keen to read, enjoy reading and read regularly at home. For the past two years, the proportion of pupils attaining the expected standard in the screening check for phonics at the end of Year 1 has been above average.
• There are examples of high-quality writing for some pupils, with good development of mathematical skills. Actions taken by leaders are beginning to show improvement, but are not impacting fast enough to have secured consistently good teaching and consistently good progress for all.
• Published information for those pupils leaving Year 6 in 2016 shows attainment and progress being average in reading and mathematics from broadly average starting points. The progress of the most able pupils required strengthening to attain the high scores. A higher-than-average proportion of pupils achieved the expected score when scores for reading, mathematics and writing were combined. From above-average starting points at the beginning of key stage 1, outcomes at the end of key stage 1 remained above average in reading, mathematics and writing.
• School information indicates that current Year 6 pupils are set to attain much higher standards than in 2016 in reading, writing and mathematics. It indicates that the proportion of pupils set to attain expected standards and high scores is above average, with some well above average. These predicted outcomes have yet to come to fruition.

Early years provision Good

• Children are safe and happy because of the secure procedures that exist in early years and the good links with parents. Children settle well into the provision and cooperate well together in a calm and purposeful environment.
• Children enter the early years with skills that are at least typical for their age. Almost a third of children enter with skills that are above those typical for their age. Overall, children arriving in the provision demonstrate strong skills in listening and attention and personal, social and emotional development.
• Children make good progress because leaders and teachers assess pupils’ skills accurately and plan a wide range of interesting activities to help children learn well. By the end of Reception, the proportion of children attaining a good level of development is well above average, with a good proportion exceeding the early learning goals. This leaves children well prepared to enter Year 1.
• The leader and other adults have high expectations and quickly build good relationships with children. The teaching of early reading is strong. Children enjoy listening to stories such as ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’, making food in the ‘Beanstalk Cafe’ and being immersed in learning.
• Children are encouraged to talk about stories to collect their thoughts before writing. This supports children’s good progress in writing. There are good opportunities to develop mathematical skills, with many opportunities for pupils to develop their counting skills and number skills. The leader of early years is clear that indoor provision for reading, writing and mathematics is stronger than the outdoor provision and has plans to strengthen this.
• Early years staff meet at the end of each day to assess pupils’ learning and what needs to be done to develop each child’s learning in the days to come. All staff are clear about how each child is to be supported and work well to ensure that good learning occurs.
• The curriculum contributes well to children’s good learning and their good personal development, behaviour and welfare. Children are gaining confidence, follow routines well and play safely. Visitors contribute well to pupils’ understanding of safety, and the many visits enjoyed by children contribute well to enriching children’s learning. For example, visits to the seaside and the local garden centre are used to start off children’s topics.
• Children’s behaviour is very good indeed. They are highly motivated by the activities that are planned for them. They work well together and are keen to share their learning to support good progress. Children play safely with each other and organise their time well.
• Parents are kept well informed about their children’s learning. There are well-kept assessments of children’s learning that inform parents about their child’s experiences and progress. The school also has online information available for each child and readily accessible to parents. Almost half the parents contribute to the online learning journal.
• All the appropriate welfare and safeguarding requirements are met in the early years.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 140076 Bradford 10031022 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 Academy converter 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 204 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Sue Bottomley Kirsty Hutchinson 01535 273847 www.harden.bradford.sch.uk/ office@harden.bradford.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 15 April 2015

Information about this school

• The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported through the pupil premium is well below average.
• Almost all pupils are White British. Almost all pupils speak English as their first language.
• The proportion of pupils who have support for special educational needs and/or disabilities is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who have a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is above average but small in number.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.
• There have been significant changes in staffing and leadership since the previous inspection.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed a range of teaching and learning in parts of lessons, one observed together with the headteacher.
• Throughout the two days of the inspection, inspectors spoke with pupils, both individually and in groups, about learning and safety.
• Inspectors reviewed pupils’ work in lessons and analysed samples of work in pupils’ books.
• An inspector held a meeting with the chair of the governing body and five other governors.
• Inspectors also held meetings with senior leaders and other staff.
• Inspectors looked at the school’s review of its own performance, its development and improvement plan, a number of key school policies and the minutes of governing body meetings. They considered a range of documentation in relation to child protection, safeguarding, behaviour and attendance.
• Inspectors analysed 69 responses to the online questionnaire for parents (Parent View), 19 responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire and 58 responses to Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire. Inspectors spoke with parents at the start and end of the school day.
• The lead inspector received two letters from parents and noted the contents.

Inspection team

Jim McGrath, lead inspector Mujahid Ali

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector