Scholes (Elmet) Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality and consistency of teaching so that pupils make consistently good progress by making sure that:
  • teachers build on pupils’ prior learning to ensure that learning is sufficiently challenging all groups of pupils more effectively, including middle-ability pupils, pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and the most able pupils
  • teachers further develop their questioning skills and subject knowledge in grammar and punctuation to better meet pupils’ needs
  • all teachers have consistently high expectations of pupils
  • teachers provide more opportunities for pupils to develop and improve their extended writing across the wider curriculum.
• Improve the effectiveness of leadership and management, including governance, by making sure that:
  • through high-quality coaching, mentoring and support, the temporary head of
  • school and subject leaders play a full and active role in improving pupils’ progress improvement plans clearly show the intended impact that actions are to have on improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress
  • subject leaders improve the ways the curriculum is delivered and assessed
  • parents receive higher-quality reports on the progress pupils are making, especially in relation to the wider curriculum
  • the curriculum provides pupils with more opportunities to develop their understanding of democracy in Britain and how decisions are made
  • self-evaluation gives greater weight to the progress pupils are making
  • accidents logs are carefully analysed to spot any potential ways of reducing incidents in school
  • the school’s policies are reviewed in a timely manner by governors and the school website complies fully with the government’s statutory requirements. An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. 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

Governance of the school

• Over time, governors have not done enough to challenge senior leaders on the impact they were having. Governors are not involved enough in discussing and questioning leaders about the school’s self-evaluation, particularly in relation to pupils’ achievement.
• Governors do not always ensure that key policies and procedures are reviewed, amended and ratified in a timely manner. Although the majority of policies are up to date, some are not. As a result, some key policies both in school and on the school website are out of date.
• Following a recent re-organisation, governance has started to improve. Governors have a clear sense of what the school priorities are and why. An effective start has been made by some governors in evaluating the impact that leaders are having, particularly in relation to the use of some additional funding.
• However, governors are not clear enough as to how funding for disadvantaged children in the early years or for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is being used or the impact it is having.
• Governors recognise that they need to improve their levels of understanding in relation to pupil progress and assessment measures, as well as how financial resources are spent. They are keen to receive training that will help them improve these areas of their work.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The designated safeguarding lead has taken effective steps to make sure that all staff are vigilant when it comes to matters of safety. As a result, staff have read and understood key messages in the Department for Education’s ‘Keeping children safe in education’ guidance and the role they play within school to achieve this.
• Following the local authority safeguarding audit, the single central record has been improved and all key information is now stored centrally. Effective checks are made on newly appointed staff members, including supply staff and volunteers, before they can start working in the school.
• Staff have valued and benefited from a range of safeguarding training and updates. Staff have improved their levels of understanding around extremism and female genital mutilation. Leaders have been effective in creating a culture in which safeguarding is seen as everyone’s responsibility and not just that of the designated safeguarding leader.
• Staff are clear who to report their concerns to. As a result, pupils feel and are safe in school. Parents have confidence that staff will keep their children safe. Leaders ensure that bullying and incident logs are kept up to date and deal effectively with rare instances of bullying, including homophobic and racial bullying. Accidents are accurately recorded. However, leaders do not analyse this information and so are not able to spot any potential issues that they could tackle to reduce the number of accidents.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Over time, the quality of teaching requires improvement because not enough pupils, including the most able, make good enough progress from their starting points. The quality and consistency of teaching both within classes and across the school is mixed. The most able pupils are not challenged well enough to ensure they make good progress.
• Teachers do not always do enough to check whether pupils are being sufficiently challenged. As a result, in some lessons, pupils rarely get anything wrong and so miss the opportunity to learn from their mistakes. One pupil summed it up well when he said ‘I get all the work done but it’s not particularly challenging.’
• Teachers’ questioning is not consistently good enough to help pupils deepen and develop their thinking. Questioning is not used well enough to help some pupils develop their mathematical reasoning skills. This means that teachers sometimes miss opportunities to see whether pupils have really grasped what they are being taught.
• Teachers’ subject knowledge has not been good enough to ensure that pupils make good progress, especially in reading and writing. The executive headteacher quickly identified this. He has introduced a programme of professional development to help teachers get up to speed with the demands of the new national curriculum, particularly in relation to grammar and punctuation. Teachers are currently benefiting from working with other teachers from across the federation in moderating and checking that teacher assessments are accurate.
• Some teachers do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can do. In some pupils’ books, work is not neat enough and there is sometimes a lack of care and pride in exercise books. Some teachers have not tackled this well enough. Topic books show an inconsistent approach to how well writing and the wider curriculum is being taught and assessed.
• Parents, rightly, comment that the communication between home and school could be improved, particularly in relation to how well pupils are achieving. Reports home do not tell parents enough about the progress pupils are making. It is not always clear what the targets and next steps should be in relation to improving pupils’ progress. Reports home do not pay enough attention to how well pupils are achieving across the wider curriculum.
• Elsewhere, the quality of teaching and learning over time is stronger. For example in the early years and in key stage 1, the quality of teaching is stronger. The teaching of phonics is particularly strong. This is because teachers and other adults use their detailed subject knowledge to meet the needs of pupils and check carefully whether pupils understand and are making progress. As a result, outcomes at the end of the early years and in the Year 1 phonics screening checks remain above national averages.
• Younger pupils usually read with good levels of fluency and expression and show an interest in a range of different authors and genres. Pupils use their phonic skills to sound out unfamiliar words and have generally good levels of understanding. Even those pupils who have yet to pass the Year 1 phonics screening check are making good progress as they continue to develop their fluency and aspects of punctuation.
• Other teachers are more skilled in questioning pupils and checking their levels of understanding. These teachers use questioning to engage pupils in discussions as to whether answers are correct, and provide pupils with numerous opportunities to reason and discuss their thinking. This provides teachers with valuable insights into the progress pupils are making and helps inform teachers on a pupil’s next steps.

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 respectful of both their teachers and other pupils. Pupils are well presented and consistently follow school uniform expectations.
• Pupils usually work well with each other in lessons. They are friendly and curious. They can sometimes be found holding the door open to visitors and greeting them with a smile.
• The curriculum is more successful in developing pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding than in other aspects, including the basics of English and mathematics. A range of trips, visits and school clubs are used well to complement and enhance the school curriculum. For example, pupils visited a local chocolate factory to develop their enjoyment and understanding of Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’, which they were reading back in school. Pupils are also developing their understanding of how to be a modern citizen through a range of topics, including the European Union and mock courtroom trials looking at ethical issues. They are developing a good understanding of the range of different faiths and beliefs in modern Britain.
• Pupils recognise the importance of democracy and the need to vote through electing their school council representatives. They get the chance to regularly watch the news in school. However, pupils have a less secure grasp of how decisions are made in Britain and get confused as to what liberty means and whether it is the Queen or the Prime Minister that takes the key decisions for the country.
• Pupils have a good awareness of how to keep themselves safe and healthy. Pupils enjoy their ‘wake up, shake up’ active sessions each day which promote the benefits of exercise. ‘Wise up Wednesdays’ provide an effective way of teaching pupils about how to keep themselves safe online.
• Parents’ views are mixed as to how well the school is doing. A growing number of parents recognise the improvements that have been made since the appointment of the new executive headteacher. He, along with the newly appointed temporary head of school, is regularly out on the playground at the beginning and end of the school day. This provides parents with greater opportunities to share their views about how well the school is doing.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils’ attitudes to learning have significantly improved over the last year. Pupils are able to focus and pay attention to what the teacher is saying. Low-level disruptions have significantly reduced and they rarely get in the way of pupils’ learning.
• The executive headteacher has introduced an effective relationships management policy, which sets clear boundaries and expectations for pupils’ behaviour. Pupils and teachers report that the ‘321 Stop’ approach has had a significantly positive impact on improving pupils’ behaviour. ‘Choice chips’ are proving to be a very effective way of rewarding pupils for good behaviour.
• Leaders have ensured that attendance levels remain above national averages and persistent absence rates are low. This is because leaders work well with other professionals and outside agencies to make sure that pupils and parents recognise the importance of regular attendance. A range of rewards, including ‘Golden Assemblies’, and first-day phone calls home, help ensure that pupils attend.
• Leaders have been particularly successful in managing and improving the behaviour of pupils with significant anger issues. Pupils told inspectors that teachers had taught them helpful coping strategies to deal with their feelings and, as a result, they felt much happier and calmer in school. Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Outcomes require improvement because despite standards comparing well with national averages over time, not enough pupils are making consistently good progress, especially in reading, writing and mathematics.
• The progress of the most able pupils and middle-ability pupils is not good enough. At both key stages, these groups of pupils do not achieve highly enough in writing or mathematics. This is because leaders and teachers have not focused enough on making sure these pupils are making fast enough progress in relation to their starting points. Teachers have not used pupils’ assessment information well enough to provide pupils with high enough levels of challenge to ensure that they make good progress.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make broadly average progress over time. Despite the strong work of the special educational needs coordinator in supporting this group of pupils, this has not had enough of a positive impact on the progress they make.
• Disadvantaged pupils also make broadly average progress across the school. Teachers do not always ensure that this group of pupils make enough progress over time and additional funding plans do not clearly show the barriers that these pupils need to overcome. However, due to the low numbers of pupils involved it is not statistically possible to say whether differences are diminishing from year to year.
• In 2016, pupils’ progress by the end of Year 6 was broadly average in reading, writing and mathematics. The proportion of pupils who reached standards of greater depth was also broadly average in reading and writing but below average in mathematics. At both key stages 1 and 2, the progress of disadvantaged pupils is broadly average. Teachers do not consistently use pupil information well enough to plan for pupils to make good progress.
• In 2016, pupils’ progress by the end of Year 2 was also a mixed bag. Pupils did better in reading and mathematics than they did in writing. The proportion of pupils who reached a greater depth in reading, writing and mathematics was broadly average.
• Outcomes in other parts of the school are stronger. For example, the numbers of children achieving a good level of development at the end of Reception remains above the national average. In the Year 1 phonics screening check, pupils consistently achieve above national averages. This is because of strong, systematic and secure teaching.
• Current in-school assessment information suggests that progress is improving. However, it is too soon to say whether this will have sufficient impact on outcomes for pupils by the end of the year.

Early years provision Good

• Children start in the early years with skills that are broadly typical for their age. Leaders use assessment information well and have a clear understanding of the curriculum to make sure children make good progress. The proportion of children reaching a good level of development remains above the national average and the majority of children are ready for the demands of Year 1.
• The teaching of early reading and phonics is consistently strong and teachers and other adults regularly reinforce this. Personal and social development is well supported through a real emphasis on establishing quality relationships in which children are taught how to develop good social skills. Staff know the children very well and meet their needs effectively.
• Teachers and other adults have established a purposeful and well-organised learning environment. There is a good range of learning areas both in classrooms and outside that help to support learning across the curriculum. Staff work well together to support children in making good progress. Staff are keen to tap into the interests of children and, as a result, the curriculum is flexible and adapts well to meet children’s interests.
• Leaders have made good use of additional funding. This has enabled them to target specific interventions for disadvantaged children. This is having a positive impact on addressing gaps in children’s learning.
• Parents are, rightly, very positive about the provision in early years. Leaders have established good links with parents and other professionals. This helps children make a smooth transition into school life. Some children enjoy coming to school so much that they cry when they are ill and cannot attend. The ‘stay and play’ sessions are a helpful way of letting parents see the kinds of skills being developed in school and help children start their school day smoothly.
• Leaders have rightly identified where further improvements are needed. They are not complacent and recognise that more children could be exceeding the good level of development. They have also identified the need to improve the progress boys make in writing.
• Safeguarding checks are effective and detailed and ensure that children not only feel safe but also are safe.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 107813 Leeds 10003186 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 Maintained 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 357 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Nigel Gray David Roundtree (executive headteacher) Telephone number 01132 649 149 Website Email address www.scholeselmet.leeds.sch.uk suecraggs@spherefederation.org Date of previous inspection 30 May 2012

Information about this school

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors gathered a wide range of evidence during the inspection, including through observations of teaching, many of which were undertaken jointly with senior leaders.
• Inspectors looked at pupils’ work during lessons, listened to pupils read and sampled a wide range of pupils’ written work.
• Inspectors held meetings with school staff, including the executive headteacher, the temporary head of school and other senior leaders and staff in charge of aspects of the school’s work. Inspectors met with a group of newly and recently qualified teachers. They also met with members of the governing body and held a telephone conversation with a local authority officer.
• Inspectors spoke with pupils in formal interviews, during lessons and informally at lunch and breaktimes.
• Inspectors considered a large range of documentation related to the school’s work, gaining the school’s views of its performance and information concerning pupils’ attainment, progress and attendance.
• Inspectors scrutinised records concerning safeguarding, pupils’ behaviour and the quality of teaching.
• Inspectors analysed 66 responses to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View. Inspectors also took into account 25 written responses from staff and eight written responses from pupils.

Inspection team

Phil Smith, lead inspector Ian Clennan Beverly Clubley Melissa Milner Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector