Co-op Academy Nightingale Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching and raise achievement by: challenging the most able pupils in all classes through offering them more opportunities to work at greater depth deepening pupils’ thinking and developing their skills in foundation subjects, especially humanities and art improving the quality of pupils’ work in topic books increasing the proportion of Reception class children who reach a good level of development setting more specific, incisive and challenging targets for all staff in performance management.
• Improve the leadership and management of pupils’ behaviour by: strengthening the school’s records of behaviour so that they are consistent, detailed and robust in every class analysing behaviour records effectively to identify trends and target support accurately and promptly increasing pupils’ attendance and reducing persistent absence.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Senior leaders have quickly established a strong team in this new, rapidly growing school. They have managed the unexpected increase in numbers particularly effectively in the past 18 months. Senior staff lead by example to ensure that new pupils are supported swiftly to make friends, settle in and feel at home. Those pupils who have been in school since it opened welcome their new classmates and the overall atmosphere is remarkably positive and friendly. As pupils explained, ‘I love it here. I never want to leave.’
• Senior leaders have built a community where staff and pupils respect each other, commend different opinions and celebrate one another’s success. High expectations underpin all of the school’s work alongside its truly co-operative values. These values include openness, optimism and perseverance. Even the very youngest children are able to talk about these values and understand what they mean. They comment and applaud when they notice them in others.
• Staff morale is high. Middle leaders have already proven their ability by helping to improve teaching, learning and assessment across the school. Newly qualified and recently qualified teachers are proud to be part of the school. They are very well supported by senior and middle leaders. All staff share a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, and are committed to continuous improvement. They reflect thoughtfully on the impact of their work and change their methods accordingly to increase pupils’ success.
• Leaders and governors make regular checks to find out how well pupils are doing. They monitor the progress made by individuals and groups of pupils. For example, they track pupils who have been in the school since it opened and those who have joined the school this academic year. They ensure that pupils who are eligible for support through the pupil premium are successful and that those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities receive good support. Staff and leaders ensure that funding for special educational needs and pupil premium groups improves outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Senior leaders make sure that staff have a good knowledge of the subjects taught, especially within English and mathematics. As the school has grown, senior staff have trained new subject leaders thoroughly to take over and lead different areas of the curriculum. This high level of planning and foresight demonstrates insightful leadership from governors and senior staff.
• The curriculum meets pupils’ needs carefully and ensures that they improve basic skills, particularly speaking, listening, reading and mathematics. Staff provide many enrichment activities including visits to local museums and farms. However, leaders do not check that staff deepen pupils’ thinking in some of the foundation subjects. Senior leaders recognise that there is more to achieve in the wider curriculum.
• Governors ensure that additional government funding produces the expected outcomes for pupils. As a result, more pupils take part in sporting activities and the progress of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds is excellent. Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is central to the school’s ethos of positive, co-operative learning. Staff make sure that lessons help pupils learn about diversity, citizenship and democracy. All staff teach pupils to be kind and considerate towards others, regardless of any differences between them. Pupils learn how to show tolerance and respect for everyone, and so they are well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Leaders are highly effective in supporting vulnerable pupils and their families. Staff who share responsibilities for pupils’ personal development and welfare are vigilant and committed. They are determined to improve pupils’ lives as well as their academic success. Pastoral leadership provides outstanding support for pupils’ welfare and personal development, and all pupils thrive within the nurturing environment created.
• The Co-operative Trust provides excellent support to senior leaders, offering a wide range of high-quality training for all staff. Staff appreciate the celebration event that is held each year by the trust to recognise and celebrate their skills and achievements. Staff also comment on the many opportunities provided for them to visit schools across the trust and learn from the practice of others.
• Leaders manage the performance of staff effectively with good systems to make sure that outcomes for pupils improve. At times, the targets set for teachers to improve their work are not sharp enough and so do not lead to the very rapid progress that pupils need to make in order to excel. There is scope for the most able pupils in some classes to make more progress and for more of the Reception children to reach a good level of development.

Governance

• Governors understand the school’s strengths and have a clear picture of what needs to improve further. They have worked with senior leaders to produce a highly structured and robust plan for the school’s development that includes specific measures to check on success. Senior leaders use this plan effectively to lead change across the school.
• Governors have an excellent knowledge of their roles and responsibilities. The governing body recruits new governors to widen the skill set available. For example, more parent governors now attend governors’ meetings to share their views and experiences with others on the board.
• Although governors have an extremely robust process for managing performance-related pay, performance management targets do not include enough challenge to bring about swifter progress for some groups of pupils.
• Governors support senior leaders to recruit new staff, and keenly nurture the existing talents of staff in school. Governors have successfully created a culture of respect, high expectations and co-operation between all stakeholders.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The school’s procedures for recruiting new staff are robust. Suitable references support new appointments and governors have attended safer recruitment training. The trust ensures that administrative staff are well trained to manage safeguarding matters securely.
• Senior leaders follow strict procedures before allowing pupils to attend educational visits off-site, including carrying out detailed risk assessments of the potential hazards that may arise. Recording and documentation are thorough.
• There is a strong culture of safeguarding across the school. Pupils feel safe and say they know whom to speak to if they should ever have any troubles or concerns. Vigilant staff are quick to provide first aid when required, and follow agreed procedures carefully.
• Pastoral staff and senior leaders work closely with parents and other agencies to support vulnerable pupils. They are confident enough to challenge any external agencies if they are unhappy with the levels of support offered. In this way, staff champion the safety and well-being of pupils in their care.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teachers plan carefully to meet the wide range of needs that pupils have across the school. Staff build progressively on pupils’ skills and use assessment adeptly to help pupils make rapid progress from their different starting points.
• Teachers and support staff know their pupils particularly well, recognising their individual skills and knowledge. They ask probing questions to test pupils’ understanding and intervene sensitively to correct errors. Teachers use these strategies frequently to improve pupils’ grammar and increase vocabulary.
• Current pupils make strong progress in English from a range of very different starting points. Pupils enjoy their learning, love to read and are extremely enthusiastic about writing. Staff teach pupils to learn from their mistakes so pupils correct and improve their work, keenly reading it through to help them spot any errors. For example, pupils in Year 1 were proud to read their stories aloud and actively looked for any missed punctuation to correct.
• Pupils enjoy mathematics and exciting lessons help capture their attention. They persist with challenging problems and use many different methods of calculation to reach solutions. Staff use mathematical apparatus skilfully to help pupils to understand new concepts, and all pupils are determined to make good progress. Staff match tasks closely to each group’s needs. For example, least able pupils in Year 3 worked enthusiastically to add multiples of 10 while the most able pupils completed addition with higher numbers beyond a thousand. Pupils use technical vocabulary effectively to explain their mathematical ideas and methods to their peers.
• Teachers provide many opportunities to extend pupils’ learning in the foundation subjects. Pupils talk excitedly about previous educational visits to museums and farms. First-hand experiences like these help all pupils to understand the context of their learning in different subjects, especially for pupils who are new to the country. In some classes, teachers miss opportunities to deepen pupils’ thinking and widen their skills in the foundation subjects. As a result, topic books do not show as much progress as seen in English and mathematics.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make super progress. They receive careful support from teachers and assistants who set high expectations for achievement. Staff constantly remind pupils of their specific skills and do not allow any barriers to prevent success for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. This was particularly evident within one class that provides tailored support for pupils with higher levels of special educational needs. In this class, pupils were proud of each other’s achievements and applauded happily when their friends achieved success, without needing any prompts from staff.
• Teachers understand what each pupil and group needs to move on to the next steps in learning, and use assessment information precisely to plan the next stages of learning. In this way, disadvantaged pupils who receive help through additional funding to accelerate their progress are making some of the strongest improvements over time.
• Staff never miss an opportunity to promote pupils’ basic skills. In science, for example, teachers show pupils how to apply their measuring skills to help record experiments. They measure and record capacity and lengths, and use measurements of time to assist their investigations. Pupils enjoy using computers and tablets to research topics from their learning.
• Pupils enjoy reading. Staff teach phonics (letters and the sounds they represent) effectively so that pupils can tackle new words confidently. Support staff deepen pupils’ thinking sensitively by asking probing questions about each text and the characters involved. In a Year 3 class, pupils discussed in depth the behaviour of an unkind character in a Roald Dahl text. They used their reading skills to deduce and infer knowledge about the character, and could read for non-literal meaning as well as noticing the obvious features of the character.
• In some classes, teachers challenge the most able pupils effectively. For example, the most able pupils in Year 1 use imaginative vocabulary in their writing. This group are skilled writers and choose words thoughtfully to create specific responses from their readers. However, teachers in some classes do not challenge the most able pupils as readily.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• Teachers care for and nurture pupils, helping them to feel safe and secure within school. Staff are vigilant and show concern for pupils’ health and emotional well-being. In physical education, pupils learn the importance of warming up their muscles before exercise and are taught to cool down gradually afterwards. In Year 2, staff are particularly keen to help pupils who are tired, hungry or too hot during lessons, especially if these elements became a barrier to progress.
• All staff take on a protective role with pupils, and those particularly responsible for pastoral care make sure that vulnerable pupils are thoroughly supported. They keep in close contact with families and agencies to ensure that pupils are not missing from education, and make home visits to check that absent pupils are safe.
• In the playground, staff lead by example to demonstrate how to have fun while keeping fit. Teachers demonstrate hula-hoop and skipping skills to show pupils how to use equipment in different ways. Pupils follow their lead and quickly join in with new exercises.
• Pupils know how to keep safe while using computers and understand some of the risks involved in using social media. They help one another to keep safe and care for the well-being of others in the playground.
• The atmosphere around school is one of nurturing encouragement. Pupils feel valued and respected. They are polite and caring towards others and benefit from the praise provided frequently by staff.
• Teachers plan religious education lessons carefully to develop understanding. They give pupils many opportunities to talk about their emotions. In Year 2, pupils explained how candles that shone in the dark made them feel. They listened silently as their friends and peers shared their feelings aloud. Many of them were only just using full sentences for the first time. Applause and cheers erupted instantaneously when pupils felt moved by comments made by their peers.
• Pupils say that bullying is very rare but they know what to do if it should happen. Pupils are very confident that racist bullying does not happen at the school. They explain, ‘It doesn’t matter about your skin colour. We are all family.’

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils are proud of their school and have excellent attitudes to learning. They enjoy discussing and debating ideas and do this in a considered way, co-operating with their peers to rehearse and share their views. Most pupils are confident when speaking aloud in front of others, knowing that staff and peers value their contributions and listen attentively.
• Pupils move around school sensibly and their behaviour towards staff is impeccable. Most pupils respond enthusiastically to instructions and requests from staff, so lessons flow smoothly with little disruption. Staff intervene quickly to praise pupils and follow the school’s behaviour policy if they see any behaviour that falls below expectations. All class teachers keep records of behaviour incidents, but some are not detailed enough to help them analyse and then prevent misbehaviour from happening again.
• Pupils appreciate the many opportunities provided in school. They delight in learning and value their education. Pastoral staff work closely with parents and carers to help them understand the importance of regular attendance at school. As a result, although below average, attendance is beginning to improve and concerted efforts by staff are helping to reduce persistent absences. Leaders acknowledge that there is scope for further improvement here if pupils are to make the most of what school has to offer.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• The school has only been open a short time and mobility is particularly high. Many pupils join the school during the academic year, rather than at the beginning of September as is usual. More than half of the current pupils have been in the school for 18 months or fewer. Consequently, published results provide only limited information and do not reflect an accurate picture of the strong progress made by the majority of pupils in key stage 1.
• As the school is building up its numbers one year at a time, with an additional year group added each year, the oldest pupils are currently in Year 3. Teachers and assistants make sure that any pupils who did not reach expected standards at the end of Year 2 begin to catch up more quickly when they are in Year 3.
• A significant proportion of the current pupils in each class are new to the country and many did not access formal education before arriving in England, so going to school is a very new experience. Despite all these barriers, staff ensure that most pupils make rapid progress from their different starting points, especially in English and mathematics.
• Pupils love to read and learn quickly how to use phonics to decode texts. Staff teach phonics effectively and make learning to read a fun activity. Published results for the 2016 phonics screening check reflect the high levels of mobility. A lower proportion of pupils in Year 1 met the expected standards for their age, compared with pupils nationally.
• Recent improvements to the teaching of mathematics have helped current pupils to achieve better outcomes in this subject. Pupils’ work in their mathematics books demonstrates their problem-solving skills and shows how well pupils learn from correcting their own mistakes. Progress is accelerating in mathematics so many pupils are catching up to where they need to be.
• Disadvantaged pupils who receive additional support through the pupil premium funding are often the highest-achieving group in school. In the early years, more of these pupils reach a good level of development than seen nationally. Disadvantaged pupils in Years 1 and 2 also achieve some of the best results in English and mathematics. Leaders track pupil premium spending effectively and check that it improves outcomes for those targeted.
• Staff support pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities well, including those who sometimes demonstrate challenging behaviour. Teachers and assistants step in sensitively to correct errors and rephrase questions if pupils do not understand. Over time, good teaching and timely support help pupils who have very specific needs to progress swiftly. Dedicated funding is used efficiently to improve outcomes for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• When compared with national data, few of the most able pupils work at greater depth. For some of the most able pupils, progress is not as strong as it could be. At times, staff do not deepen pupils’ thinking in subjects across the curriculum and so achievement is slower in the foundation subjects.
• Pupils are proud of their writing skills. English books show that pupils of all different abilities have made good progress in writing over the year. Teachers’ assessment and tracking records match the good achievement seen in pupils’ books. In writing, the most able pupils who have attended the school since it opened excel. For example, this group produce beautiful examples of writing that include excellent use of vocabulary and precise use of grammar.

Early years provision Good

• A significant number of children who attend the Reception class join the school at times other than the start of the academic year. Many of these do not have any previous experience of formal education or childcare and are new to the country. In addition, a significant number of the Reception class children who do start school in September have not attended any pre-school setting. The proportion of children who achieve a good level of development remains below that found nationally. However, from their different starting points, all children make good progress in Reception.
• Staff have improved provision so that it better meets the needs of individual children. This has helped to increase the number of children who are now working at a good level of development this year. During the inspection, children were challenged effectively by staff and several showed that they are achieving standards above those typical for their age.
• Staff have been trained to teach phonics well. They challenge children consistently and children frequently use their skills to read and write for a purpose. Teachers make phonics lessons fun and exciting. For example, children were writing a list for items to buy on a shopping trip to the garden centre. They all made plausible attempts to spell some complex words such as ‘compost’ and ‘watering can’. Staff teach thoughtful strategies to help pupils work out spellings and children are not discouraged by a difficult challenge. The children have learned to persevere and not be afraid of making mistakes in their writing.
• Children make good progress with their mathematics. They use number accurately for various purposes indoors and outside, such as when they count and match bulbs to the number of plant pots they need for a growing activity. Children access a range of apparatus freely to help them explore shape and number activities in their play. Staff use vocabulary carefully to help pupils learn and use the language of mathematics, and this prepares them securely for moving into Year 1.
• Staff use many real-life objects to support children’s learning, especially when this involves developing knowledge and understanding about the wider world. Children are fascinated as they touch and explore a stuffed hawk that a teacher has brought in to show them. The real object encourages discussion about wings, feathers and parts of the bird’s anatomy. Children learn to use their new vocabulary quickly as a result.
• Staff set high expectations for children’s behaviour. Good routines are well established. They support the smooth running of the early years environment. Staff teach children how to negotiate, share and take turns, helping children to verbalise their needs and wants as often as possible. Behaviour is good within the setting.
• Staff support children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities extremely well in the early years unit. A specialist team of staff provide intensive support for those children who have particularly complex needs. Children with very specific needs thrive in the specialist early years provision where staff are skilled at recognising their many strengths. Staff ensure that children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make excellent progress during their time in the early years. The leader in the specialist provision has a strong vision for the education of pupils in her care and she communicates this successfully to other staff. All practitioners observe children carefully and intervene to extend children’s learning at just the right moment.
• Children learn how to keep themselves safe when using new equipment and they understand the important rules established to keep them safe, such as not running inside the classrooms. Staff are vigilant and provide high levels of care and welfare. Safeguarding is effective and statutory requirements are all met.
• Children enjoy their physical play in the school hall and outdoors. In physical education lessons, children develop throwing, catching and balancing skills. Staff promote perseverance and determination, praising children who show resilience and do not give up easily.
• Parents are very happy with the progress made by their children in the early years. Many parents praise the school’s online systems that provide regular information about each child’s learning. Staff work closely with parents to help them assess children accurately. Staff also use good relationships with outside agencies to support vulnerable children and their families.
• Leadership has improved in the early years and is now good. Leaders recognise that some areas need further improvement. They have identified that more children need to achieve a good level of development before moving into Year 1, and plans are in place to support staff with this target for the future.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 139701 Leeds 10031010 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 free school 4 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 229 Appropriate authority The Co-operative Academies Trust Chair Headteacher Frank Norris Jack Sowter Telephone number 0113 235 9164 Website Email address www.nightingale.coop headteacher@nightingale.coop Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• This school is similar in size to the average primary school. It does not yet have any pupils in Year 4 to Year 6. Current pupils will move up one year group at a time, with a new year group cohort added each year until the school has the full primary age range.
• A new headteacher was recently appointed in June 2017.
• A high proportion of pupils are from minority ethnic groups. The proportion of White British pupils is smaller than that seen nationally.
• A higher than average proportion of pupils speak English as an additional language.
• Mobility is higher than typical in primary schools nationally. Nearly half the pupils who attend the school joined in the past year. Most of these are new arrivals to England and are at the very earliest stages of learning English. They joined the school at times other than the beginning of the academic year and moved into various classes, from Reception to Year 3. Many of the school’s new pupils have no previous experience of formal education in any country.
• A small minority of children started in the school’s Reception class. Few of these pupils have stayed to move all the way through to Year 3.
• A larger than average proportion of pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities and consequently receive extra support within the school. However, few of the pupils have an education, health and care plan.
• A higher than average proportion of pupils are disadvantaged and eligible for support through pupil premium funding.
• There are two Reception classes in the early years both offering full-time provision.
• The school runs its own specialist class for children who have specific special educational needs and the trust provides additional funding for this provision.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish. The trust displays its articles and memorandum on the school’s website more clearly now.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors undertook a series of short focused visits to classrooms and longer lesson observations in each year group. Senior leaders observed a number of these lessons with inspectors.
• Inspectors held discussions with senior leaders, the executive headteacher, the newly appointed headteacher, phase leaders and those who are responsible for aspects of middle leadership across school, such as pastoral care and managing co-operative values.
• Inspectors met with governors and the chief executive officer of the Co-operative Trust.
• Inspectors spoke to parents and pupils at various points during the inspection and visited the school’s breakfast club.
• Documentation relating to the school’s website and safeguarding were scrutinised, including the single central record and recruitment checks. The school’s self-evaluation and plans for future improvements were analysed, together with records of pupils’ progress and attainment.
• Pupils’ work in different subjects was scrutinised by inspectors who looked at books, children’s learning journals and examples of work displayed around school.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read and talked to them about reading in school and at home.
• There were insufficient responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, for inspectors to take into account. However, inspectors considered the free-text comments made by a small number of parents within this survey. There were no results available from pupil or staff surveys for the inspectors to consider.

Inspection team

Anne Humble, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Ella Besharati

Ofsted Inspector