Stainforth Kirton Lane Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve teaching and raise achievement further in the early years, by:
  • increasing the proportion of children that exceed the early learning goals, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics
  • ensuring that adults do not over support children.
• Improve outcomes and teaching further so that:
  • pupils’ handwriting improves across all classes
  • in mathematics, there are sufficient opportunities for pupils to be challenged through solving problems.
• Raise attendance and reduce persistent absence so that the percentage of pupils attending school exceeds the national average and the percentage of pupils who are frequently absent reduces to be below the national average.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• High-quality planning by senior and middle leaders has underpinned the rapid improvements in the curriculum and teaching. Leaders use the latest research, along with a detailed analysis of assessment information, to decide on priorities. Any changes that are made by leaders are then regularly checked to make sure they are having a positive impact on pupils’ outcomes.
• The improvements leaders have made to reading, across the curriculum, have been particularly impressive. There is a palpable culture of reading across the school. Displays celebrate the vocabulary pupils have used. Reward badges encourage pupils to be experts in different types of literature. Pupils read widely at recreational times. This culture has been instrumental in raising attainment in reading.
• Middle leaders check the quality of teaching rigorously to see what is working well and what needs further work. This leads to high-quality training for teachers to improve their skills.
• Staff morale is high. Comments that staff had entered into the staff questionnaire included praise for leaders’ consideration of their work/life balance. Moreover, staff commented on how well they were supported when they returned to work after a period of maternity leave.
• The pupil premium has had a good impact on raising attainment of disadvantaged pupils. However, it has not made a significant difference to improving attendance.
• Additional funding for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is used well. This has resulted in pupils with SEND making far better progress than previously.
• Additional funding for sport and PE is used effectively. All pupils in Year 5 have swimming lessons. Pupils have the opportunity to take part in many diverse and sometimes unusual sports, such as wheelchair basketball. Professional sports coaches work alongside school staff to improve their skills. Healthy lifestyles are taught in class, which has led to the school winning the ‘Doncaster’s fittest school’ award.
• The local authority has supported the school well on its journey of improvement. This included support for teaching phonics and the teaching of reading comprehension in key stage 2.

Governance of the school

• Governors know the school’s strengths and areas for development well. They are well informed about the progress pupils currently in the school make through the high- quality information provided by school leaders.
• Governors provide a good mix of challenge and support to school leaders and they adapt the way they work in committees to the changing needs of the school. For example, they formed a temporary working party to look into the curriculum. This looked into each subject in detail to see how the depth and breadth of the curriculum could be improved.
• Governors have good complementary skills and are well trained in how to meet their statutory obligations and in safeguarding.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders have established a strong culture of safeguarding, where it is the responsibility of all staff to be vigilant and on the lookout for issues which need addressing.
• Leaders and staff know pupils and their parents well. Any minor issues are often resolved first thing in the morning, when parents are able to talk to staff or one of the school leaders. Any more serious issues are dealt with promptly and with appropriate involvement of outside agencies.
• Training for staff is up to date and thorough. All latest government guidance is used to ensure that staff are kept abreast of new requirements for safeguarding.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• In all lessons, teachers work to improve pupils’ vocabulary. For example, pupils find synonyms for common words. They look at the Greek, Latin or Germanic origins of words so that they can take a good guess at the meaning of new words.
• The teaching of reading now focuses on more difficult aspects of reading comprehension. Exposure to a broad range of literature with motivating, child-friendly texts, helps pupils to express themselves. They also help pupils to read with confidence and write with fluency. In one lesson on ‘The taming of the shrew’ pupils considered the similarities and differences of the characters in the Shakespeare play. As a result of such experiences, pupils are now more adequately prepared for the key stage 2 reading test and also enjoy reading much more than before.
• When teaching mathematics, teachers ensure that pupils develop good skills in fluency, such as knowing their times tables. They move pupils on quickly so that they are able to show each other and the teacher how they add, subtract, multiply and divide. However, the opportunities for pupils to use their mathematical skills to solve problems are inconsistent across classes.
• Teachers provide many opportunities for pupils to write at length so that they are able to use and apply the grammar and punctuation they have learned. Teachers correct spellings so that pupils’ accuracy continues to improve. The curriculum gives pupils interesting things to write about. For example, pupils wrote about life as a soldier in the war, using new vocabulary such as ‘conscription’ and ‘propaganda’. However, teachers have been less successful in ensuring that pupils write neatly and present their work well.
• Teachers use their assessment information well to identify what pupils need to do to improve their work. They then set work based on ‘chilli challenges’ to ensure the work is sufficiently demanding for pupils. This ranges from ‘mild’ to ‘blow your top’. This ensures that the work is neither too difficult nor too easy for pupils.
• Teachers question pupils well, ensuring that they use full sentences when answering. This develops pupils’ speaking skills, well, in addition to extending and checking their understanding.
• The teaching of phonics is effective. Pupils are taught in small groups according to ability. Teachers have good subject knowledge and make sure that pupils apply their new knowledge of phonics to their writing.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils say that bullying is rare. They told inspectors that when it does occasionally happen, there is a caring adult to turn to or one of the peer mentors who will mediate in minor disagreements. They are well aware of how to keep safe when using the internet, when crossing the road and when near water.
• In class, pupils are resilient and confident learners. Teachers promote pupils’ independence by supporting them in finding out information for themselves, helping each other and finding new words to expand their vocabulary.
• Many pupils take on additional responsibilities such as helping at parents’ evenings. There are also ample opportunities for pupils to raise money for different charities, such as the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. Pupils learn about religions and cultures, other than their own, through school visits and the religious education curriculum. This helps to develop their spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness, well.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Behaviour around the school and in the playground is good. Pupils play sensibly in groups. If any pupils are on their own and want company, there is a ‘friendship stop’ where they are quickly picked up and included in games.
• School records confirm that there is little bad behaviour and instances of bullying.
• In class, pupils behave impeccably. This is because teachers make learning fun and engaging. The pace in lessons is swift, so there is little opportunity for pupils to drift off task.
• Despite their good behaviour, attendance remains stubbornly low and persistent attendance is above the national average.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils’ outcomes in key stage 1 and key stage 2 have been improving steadily over time. In 2018, pupils made better progress than they had in previous years and outcomes in the Year 1 phonics screening check were broadly average. While pupils’ attainment in 2018 was below average, their progress accelerated rapidly in key stage 2.
• Substantial changes to the reading and mathematics curriculum have now had time to make a significant impact on pupils’ outcomes. Pupils currently in the school are making rapid and sustained progress in a range of subjects from low starting points in Nursery and Reception. Attainment in Year 2 and in Year 6 are well on track to be, at least, broadly average by the end of the year.
• Disadvantaged pupils’ progress in 2017 and 2018 lagged behind that of their classmates. Those currently in the school are catching up quickly. This is because the improved focus on developing pupils’ vocabulary, reading skills and mathematical fluency is having a strong impact on their progress.
• The provision for pupils with SEND is well organised. High-quality tracking of pupils’ progress and well-focussed support means that they are not left behind and receive prompt attention to their needs. Consequently, pupils with SEND make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.
• A broad curriculum means that outcomes across different subjects are good. A range of trips and visits brings learning alive for pupils. All pupils sing, play instruments or take part in the impressive samba band. These activities help to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness.
• Pupils write with flair, using varied vocabulary and increasingly complex sentence structures. However, their weak handwriting sometimes overshadows these very positive aspects of their work.

Early years provision Good

• Children enter the Nursery with skills and abilities that vary from year to year but are generally appropriate for their age.
• By the time they leave Reception they behave well and have grasped the basics of reading, writing and mathematics. This means children are well prepared for the demands of Year 1.
• Over time, the proportion of children reaching the early learning goals in reading, writing and mathematics has been rising rapidly and in 2018 was broadly average. However, the proportion of children exceeding the early learning goals remains below average.
• The curriculum is well organised, with reading being high profile in most of the activities children do. For example, children listened to the story ‘Stick man’. Following this, children really engaged in science, writing, drawing and mathematics tasks related to the story. This resulted in children being focused on one activity, concentrating hard and talking about the characters in the book.
• The outdoor areas are well equipped and offer stimulating environments for learning. Children take part in challenging literacy and numeracy activities along with more physical play such as climbing, running and using tricycles. During the inspection children were learning about the properties of ice by trying to ‘free’ toy animals that had been frozen in ice.
• Adults model good language and ask children open questions so they answer in full sentences. This develops their speaking and listening skills well. However, some adults give children too much support or answer questions for them before they have a chance to answer for themselves.
• Phonics is taught well from Nursery, where children learn to recognise and write letters. Most are able to read and write their names by the time they start in Reception. They progress to writing words then simple sentences, supported well by adults.
• In Nursery, children learn how to work with each other, to cooperate, take turns and be polite to others. Children who continue to struggle with their behaviour are supported well by adults.
• Throughout Nursery and Reception, adults have high expectations of both behaviour and work. Children must wear aprons if working with water and must wear appropriate outdoor wear when going outside.
• Both the Nursery and Reception areas are safe and secure. Safeguarding is afforded the highest importance, with robust arrangements for dismissing children at the end of the day. Equipment is checked for safety on a daily basis.
• Good links are made with parents, such as involving them in ‘stay and play’ sessions. Advice is given to parents on how to read with children at home or sounds to practise that children have learned in phonics lessons. Parents contribute well to children’s assessments, such as recording when they are able to dress themselves and wash their hands.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 106718 Doncaster 10082023 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 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 218 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher John Scorer Audrey Wall Telephone number 01302 842092 Website Email address www.kirtonlane.doncaster.sch.uk admin@kirtonlane.doncaster.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 11–12 March 2015

Information about this school

• This school is smaller than the average-sized primary school. The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is above the national average.
• The majority of pupils are of White British heritage. A growing proportion of pupils are from Roma/Traveller heritage.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is above the national average.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited lessons, some alongside school leaders. They listened to some pupils reading and looked at the work in pupils’ books to evaluate their progress over time. They spoke to pupils, staff, 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.
• There were insufficient responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View. The inspection team looked at responses from parents from a school questionnaire recently distributed to parents. Additionally, an inspector spoke to parents at the school gates.
• Inspectors considered the 18 responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire.

Inspection team

Robert Jones, lead inspector Cathy Morgan Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector