Shelf Junior and Infant School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve outcomes in all subjects and the quality of teaching by:
  • increasing the expectations of what pupils can do and achieve, particularly for the most able
  • improving pupils’ reading and comprehension skills in key stage 2
  • ensuring that the most able pupils are given more difficult problems to solve in mathematics
  • giving pupils more opportunities to write extensively across the curriculum.
• Improve leadership and management by ensuring that:
  • leaders’ roles and responsibilities are clear, including leadership of the early years
  • governors are provided with timely, clear, accurate information with which to challenge leaders
  • more opportunities are provided for pupils to do challenging work in humanities subjects and science, especially in key stage 2.
• Improve the effectiveness of the early years by:
  • increasing the opportunities for children to develop their literacy and mathematics skills through the provision offered both indoors and outdoors
  • improving the outdoor area so that it offers a rich, stimulating environment for learning
  • raising expectations of what children can do, particularly the most able. 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

• There have been several changes to the senior leadership team of the school since the last inspection. In order to manage this situation, the headteacher retained many key areas of responsibility. This led to some confusion among leaders about their roles and responsibilities and it has slowed the pace of improvement.
• The quality of the curriculum is variable. Leaders have made improvements to the science curriculum. It is now taught weekly throughout the school and this has led to rising standards in this subject at key stage 1. However, in key stage 2, the work is at times too easy for pupils and, consequently, the provisional outcomes in the national tests taken at the end of Year 6 in 2017 were below the national average.
• Pupils do not do enough work in history and geography across the school to ensure that they make good progress in these subjects.
• As a result of a detailed analysis of pupils’ performance in the 2017 tests, school leaders have an accurate view of what needs improving. Development plans address the key priorities of raising standards and improving teaching effectively.
• Improvements in the use of the additional pupil premium funding are leading to improving outcomes for disadvantaged pupils. This is resulting in a greater proportion of pupils being on track to meet their targets than in previous years.
• Similarly, the additional funding for SEN, along with good-quality support for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities, is making a positive difference to the progress these pupils make across the school.
• Additional funding for physical education and sport is used effectively to support teachers who may not have confidence in teaching sports to improve their skills. More pupils are now involved in physical activity than before. Activities such as ‘dancercise’ engage and interest pupils and help them to be more active.
• Local authority consultants have recently stepped up their support to the school’s leaders and have an accurate view of their overall effectiveness.

Governance of the school

• Governors are given information with which to challenge school leaders. However, this information lacks some sharpness and clarity. For example, during the inspection, governors had not received the written analysis of the progress of different groups that had been available for some time.
• The governing body has identified that further capacity is needed in leadership and so has taken appropriate action to recruit new leaders. Governors have an accurate oversight of the school’s arrangements to manage the performance of staff. They have taken decisive action where necessary to improve the quality of teaching. Governors have improved procedures for evaluating the use of the additional pupil premium funding. This is now having a positive impact on the progress made by disadvantaged pupils across the school.
• Checks on documentation relating to safeguarding are made regularly by governors, who ensure that statutory requirements are met.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Appropriate checks are made on staff who join the school.
• Staff training is regular and comprehensive and staff have a good understanding of how to report any safeguarding or child protection concerns. Staff are provided with the latest information relating to child sexual exploitation and identifying signs of radicalisation and extremism.
• The records that are kept of vulnerable pupils are clear and detailed. This ensures that good evidence is available should records be required in courts of law.
• While the site is safe and secure, a confusion of roles among leaders means that checks on the safety of equipment are not as robust as they might be.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teaching across the school is variable and pupils make better progress in some classes than others. This is because assessment information about pupils’ current skills and understanding is not always used with sufficient precision to ensure that the work planned is neither too easy nor too difficult. Teachers do not always spot when pupils, particularly the most able and the disadvantaged most able, are capable of moving on in their learning and are ready to tackle activities that are more demanding.
• The teaching of mathematics is strengthening. Pupils are becoming increasingly secure in their use of formal methods and are receiving more opportunities to develop and apply their problem-solving skills. Occasionally, the activities planned lack challenge and pupils, especially the most able and the disadvantaged most able, lose concentration and their progress slows. This is particularly the case in key stage 2.
• The teaching of writing is effective in giving pupils a secure understanding of spelling, grammar and punctuation rules, which they can apply in their writing successfully. However, teachers do not apply the same expectations for pupils’ writing in subjects other than English. This was evident from work seen in a range of pupils’ books, which show a marked decline in the quality of pupils’ written work in history and science. There are also too few opportunities for pupils, particularly the most able and the disadvantaged most able, to write extensively in these subjects.
• The teaching of phonics is effective. It is organised so that pupils receive teaching that is appropriate for their stage of development. Teachers reinforce pupils’ phonics skills effectively and encourage them to apply their existing knowledge of sounds to spell and read unfamiliar words. As a result, pupils’ outcomes in the Year 1 phonics screening check are above the national average.
• The teaching of reading beyond phonics is improving. This is because teachers are beginning to ask questions which move pupils on in their learning from what they already know and understand effectively. Teachers probe for better answers from pupils, so that they fully justify their responses when analysing characters in a book. This means that, across the school, pupils’ progress is strengthening. However, there remain some pockets of historical underachievement that require further improvement, particularly for pupils in key stage 2.
• Some teaching assistants are well deployed by teachers. They offer good-quality support to pupils who struggle with writing and mathematics, skilfully breaking down problems so that pupils understand them. They have high expectations of pupils’ work and behaviour.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Leaders ensure that pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted well. In assembly, all pupils engage with and reflect upon the school prayer. Topics such as Nelson Mandela are discussed thoughtfully by pupils. Pupils learn about cultures other than their own, which helps to prepare them well for life in multicultural Britain.
• Pupils have a good understanding of risks to their safety. They spoke to an inspector knowledgeably about the dangers of alcohol and even talked about how prescription drugs and ‘legal highs’ can cause harm.
• Pupils say that bullying is rare and this is supported by school documentation. Pupils say that there is always a caring adult to whom they could report concerns.
• Pupils have a good understanding of how to stay safe when using the internet. They spoke convincingly about potential risks associated with online gaming and social networking.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Parents who responded to the questionnaire commented on the good behaviour of pupils. In class, pupils behave well. They respond to teachers’ requests. However, when the work does not fully challenge them, they do not always participate fully in lessons.
• At lunchtimes and breaktimes, pupils behave well and play sensibly with each other and with play equipment that is provided for them. Poor behaviour is rare and this is supported by the school’s documentation that records incidents of poor behaviour.
• Pupils enjoy school. Their attendance rates are above average and the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent is low.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• In 2017, pupils’ progress from their starting points in Year 3 to the end of Year 6 was not good enough. Too few pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics or in science. Disadvantaged pupils and the most able pupils did not make sufficient progress.
• Pupils currently in the school are making greater progress, but there are still gaps in their reading, writing and mathematics skills. For example, in mathematics, most-able pupils are now more competent with their arithmetic skills, but still lack skills in solving complex problems.
• The school’s pupil-tracking and assessment information show that, along with others, disadvantaged pupils are now making greater gains in their learning. The previous differences between their progress and that of others nationally are diminishing effectively.
• Tracking information also shows that pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities are making stronger progress than they did in 2017. This is the result of teachers and teaching assistants pinpointing pupils’ needs with more accuracy than before and then providing individual support to help them succeed in their learning.
• Leaders’ focus on writing in key stage 1 is paying dividends. Pupils’ handwriting is improving rapidly, as is their use of punctuation and their sentence writing. The 2017 teacher assessments at the end of key stage 1 showed that standards had risen from the previous year, particularly in the proportion of pupils who achieved a greater depth of learning. However, inspection evidence also shows that pupils’ progress in key stage 1 is inconsistent between classes.
• Outcomes in the Year 1 phonics screening check are improving and, in 2017, were above average, reflecting improvements in how phonics is taught in key stage 1.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• Children enter the Reception with skills and abilities that are appropriate for their age. Their progress varies, with too few entering Year 1 with the skills they need to succeed in the next stage of their education. Most-able children in particular do not make strong enough progress in the Reception Year.
• The quality of teaching varies. There are insufficient opportunities for children to improve their literacy skills across the curriculum.
• The shabby, unattractive outdoor area is not stimulating or inviting. Consequently, it adds little to children’s learning.
• Children learn phonics fairly well through regular sessions held through the day. However, the most able children are not challenged sufficiently and little development of literacy goes on outside of phonics lessons.
• Assessments of children’s learning are carried out frequently. Some, but not all, of this information is used to suitably identify the next steps in learning. Consequently, children make steady rather than good progress in their learning over time. Additional funding is used reasonably well to ensure that disadvantaged children make similar progress to their peers.
• Children behave well when playing. Routines are in place so that children are clear about what they should be doing during the day. Most contribute to clearing up at the end of sessions. Children are generally polite and learn the importance of good manners and of taking turns when playing.
• Arrangements for safeguarding meet requirements and risk assessments are in place. However, roles and responsibilities of staff are unclear in checking the safety of the early years areas.
• Improved partnerships with parents are enabling them to be more successfully involved in their children’s learning. Parents take part in assessments of children’s achievement and are helped to understand how to support their children at home.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 107513 Calderdale 10031044 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 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 313 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Sue Jones Siân Fenton Telephone number 01274 676 782 Website Email address www.shelfjandi.com/ head@shelf.calderdale.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 5 – 6 March 2013

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The proportion of pupils supported through the pupil premium is below average. The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is below average.
• Most pupils are of White British heritage and so the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language or who are from minority ethnic groups is below the national average.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited lessons, listened to some pupils reading and looked at the work in pupils’ books to evaluate their progress over time. They spoke to pupils, staff, parents, governors and a representative from the local authority.
• Inspectors scrutinised various documents, including the summary of self-evaluation, governance documents, safeguarding information and the tracking of pupils’ progress.
• The 75 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, were considered by inspectors, as well as the school’s own survey that had been completed by parents.

Inspection team

Robert Jones, lead inspector Linda Clay Jaimie Holbrook Christine Turner

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector