Summerbridge Community Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by:
  • ensuring that pupils’ cultural understanding and development are promoted effectively
  • ensuring that the review of the curriculum includes developing the assessment and tracking of subject-specific skills.
• Improve the quality of teaching and learning by:
  • ensuring that work is consistently well matched to pupils’ abilities, especially for the most able pupils
  • ensuring that the quality and presentation of work in topic books matches work in mathematics and English books
  • ensuring that all teachers have equally high expectations of pupils’ attitudes to learning and the quality and quantity of work they produce.
• Improve outcomes for pupils by:
  • ensuring that teaching continues to improve pupils’ progress and the standards they attain
  • ensuring that a greater proportion work at a greater depth in learning and reach higher standards in all subjects
  • enabling pupils to make consistently strong progress in all subjects, as well as in English and mathematics.
• Improve the quality of provision in early years by:
  • ensuring that the early years leader develops a robust and thorough approach to self-evaluation so that detailed and rigorous improvement planning drives actions to improve teaching and learning
  • ensuring that planned independent activities for children are matched to children’s interests and needs, and always provide appropriate challenge in order to deepen their learning
  • ensuring that children make the maximum possible progress in their learning, especially the most able children
  • developing the quality of the indoor and outdoor learning environments in order to capture children’s imagination, stimulate their curiosity and reflect their needs and interests.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Since his appointment, the experienced, skilled and determined executive headteacher has been unwavering in his mission to secure an excellent standard of education for pupils in this school. He has worked with spirit and vigour. He has been extremely well supported by the key stage 2 leader, a significantly strengthened governing body following federation, and officers from the local authority.
• Swift and decisive action to address weaknesses in the quality of provision has been made. This has included the introduction of many new initiatives and effective partnership work with colleagues from a local primary school. However, not all of these initiatives are yet consistently effective across the school, and some are in need of further refinement. Work to secure consistently good-quality teaching is ongoing.
• Until the appointment of the executive headteacher following federation, the school’s leadership and management had not adequately addressed entrenched weaknesses in the quality of teaching. This resulted in the standards reached by pupils in their work, and the rates of progress made in learning, falling below that found nationally, especially in key stage 2. Many pupils were not fulfilling their potential.
• As a result of ongoing improvements to the quality of teaching, current pupils are now making improved rates of progress in their learning. There has been too little time to see improved outcomes for key stage 2 pupils or to fully plug gaps in some pupils’ knowledge and skills that have resulted from historical weaker teaching.
• Procedures to monitor and evaluate the quality of the school’s performance through checking the quality of teaching are incisive and forensic in detail. Leaders’ self-evaluation is frank and honest. They know exactly what the current weaknesses are and this allows them to plan improvements to tackle and eliminate them.
• The school development plan is detailed and carefully monitors the impact of planned actions on outcomes for pupils in their learning. Regular evaluation and the tracking of actions ensure that no time is wasted to drive further improvements. Leaders are demonstrating a clear capacity to drive forward current improvements and secure higher levels of attainment for pupils.
• Although the school’s curriculum is broad and balanced and all areas are covered, it does not yet ensure that subject-specific skills are planned and assessed effectively and progressively across year groups. In addition, the monitoring and evaluation of the quality of provision in creative and foundation subjects lack the rigour seen in mathematics and English. Leaders acknowledge that the curriculum does not provide regular or meaningful opportunities for pupils to deepen their awareness of other cultures and faiths around the world or to explore a multicultural Britain.
• Over the year, the school provides a range of after-school clubs that further enhance pupils’ access to the wider curriculum. These include art, Easter and Christmas crafts, computing and gardening, in addition to sports clubs such as running and lacrosse.
• Leaders have worked hard to devise and implement a new system for the assessment and tracking of pupils’ attainment and progress. Following careful analysis of this assessment information, leaders are managing pupil premium spending effectively to provide targeted support for disadvantaged pupils. Disadvantaged pupils’ progress and attainment overall now match that of their classmates in most year groups and other pupils nationally, as any differences are mostly eliminated.
• The work of the special educational needs (SEN) coordinator has resulted in good provision for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities. They are supported well. Their needs are identified early and their progress, which is mainly good, is tracked accurately by the executive headteacher and key stage 2 leader. Consequently, the SEN funding is used increasingly effectively by leaders.
• The physical education (PE) and sport funding for schools is being used well. Pupils in key stage 2 benefit from the expertise of a specialist coach. There has been a marked increase in pupils’ participation in sports’ activities and competitive sport between local schools. The school’s ‘sports crew’ enthusiastically organises a range of games during break- and lunchtime. The school’s active promotion of sport has been recognised by various awards.
• The school has benefited from good-quality support offered by the local authority, triggered by rigorous reviews of the school’s performance. There are strong and purposeful links to nearby primary schools in the Nidderdale area.

Governance of the school

• Following the establishment of a new federated governing body, and its desire to improve its own effectiveness, a wide-ranging review has been undertaken. This review has addressed issues around membership and changes in the way in which the governing body operates. Following new appointments, governors bring a range of appropriate professional skills and experience to the school. The federated governing body has benefited greatly from the appointment of two co-chairs. Scrutiny of minutes of recent meetings shows that governors now rigorously challenge and investigate the actions of leaders, while also offering good support.
• Governors are playing a significant role in driving forward school improvements and eradicating weaknesses. Leaders are held to account for the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, as well as for the quality of outcomes for pupils seen in statutory tests and school data. Governors are passionate to see all pupils fulfil their true potential. Following an audit of their skills, a detailed plan has been put into place to further develop their own effectiveness. Regular visits to school result in detailed and incisive reports. Governors also produce half-termly reports on the extent to which their development plan has been acted upon.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff and governor safeguarding training is up to date and recorded diligently by the school administrator. The curriculum supports pupils well in maintaining their own safety. Year 6 pupils spoke enthusiastically about their attendance at a safety event run by the police, which was held during the inspection.
• The school has a tangible ethos that is positive and caring, putting the welfare and well-being of each pupil at the heart of all that it does. The well-established culture of keeping pupils safe remains very evident. Leaders leave no stone unturned in their duty to keep pupils safe, which is appreciated by parents. Policies, procedures and records are of good quality and up to date. Summary records of incidents of concern are kept in the newly introduced online system. All staff have a secure understanding of their individual responsibilities for safeguarding, as a result of regular updates and training and access to well-written policies and guidance.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching over time has been weak. It has resulted in pupils not reaching the standards of which they are capable or fulfilling their true potential. There are still variations in the quality of teaching across the school, with examples of both strong and effective teaching, but some teaching still not up to scratch.
• Teaching requires improvement because, in some lessons, expectations of pupils’ attitudes to learning and behaviour are not high enough. On some occasions in key stage 1, a minority of pupils lose concentration and distract other pupils’ learning. Teachers can be too slow to notice and address low-level disruption. There is a marked difference between the poor quality and quantity of work in pupils’ topic books compared to that in most English and mathematics books.
• Work is now usually pitched well, according to pupils’ abilities, allowing pupils to be engaged in lessons and productive. On some occasions, this is not the case. Over time, teaching has lacked sufficient challenge, especially for most-able pupils. This has prevented them from developing their ability to work at a greater depth in their skills and knowledge in all subjects and reach higher standards of attainment. The key stage 2 teacher has worked hard to plug gaps in pupils’ understanding, skills and knowledge.
• As a result of the rigorous and systematic teaching of phonics, children get off to a fast start in their reading skills. Two children in Reception chose to sit and read quietly and told the inspector how much they enjoyed taking books home to read. Reading now has a significant profile in school. The library has been reorganised and new books purchased. Teachers use a variety of reading material to teach inference and comprehension skills. This includes short extracts from books, newspapers, magazines and internet articles.
• Pupils are now given regular opportunities to write at length and use a number of different genres of writing. In the key stage 2 class, pupils clearly enjoyed finding key pieces of information to compile an exciting and well-structured newspaper report on England’s victory over Panama in the World Cup. Good subject knowledge allowed the teacher to explain how words such as ‘snatched’, ‘threatened’ and ‘clawed’ would hook the reader’s interest.
• In mathematics, basic skills of number and calculation are taught well and consolidated regularly. Teachers make good use of resources to develop pupils’ basic skills in calculations, counting forwards and backwards, and knowing tables. In Years 4 and 5, pupils were able to present line and bar graphs to represent specific statistical information about the Belgian football team. They were also able to find the average, range and mean for certain data sets.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils’ attitudes to learning are usually good, especially in key stage 2. Most are very keen to succeed and to produce their very best work. Pupils grow in confidence during their time in school, acquiring an assured and resilient approach to learning. Pupils say they love school and thrive in the well-ordered and positive school environment. Displays are of good quality. They are bright and attractive and support learning well. The school works effectively to ensure that pupils’ physical and emotional well-being are valued and developed.
• Pupils said that they feel safe in school, a view echoed by virtually all parents through Ofsted’s Parent View questionnaire. Pupils talked confidently about work they had completed on e-safety and could talk about road safety. Pupils show high levels of respect and care for each other, valuing their classmates’ opinions and working cooperatively in lessons. They value the opportunity to take on roles in school, such as a playtime buddy, lunchtime monitor, a school councillor, or as part of the sports crew.
• Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness and development are excellent. Teachers seize every opportunity and work hard to deliver the school’s approach to pupils’ personal, social and emotional development. Pupils clearly know the importance of being cooperative, ‘having a go’, being attentive, making the most of any mistakes and being persistent. They listened carefully to the executive headteacher in assembly as he recounted his own recent experience of having to improve a piece of coursework three times. The school is aware that further work is needed to improve pupils’ understanding of multiculturalism and other faiths and cultures in the wider world.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils enjoy coming to school, as can be seen in their improving attendance. Attendance is now broadly average, with very few pupils persistently absent. Pupils and parents understand the effect of missing time in school to learn.
• Pupils enjoy their learning and mostly work conscientiously. Behaviour systems encourage positive attitudes to learning and the few incidents of misbehaviour are usually swiftly and deftly addressed. Pupils were crystal clear that behaviour is good in school, and that there is no bullying at all. Most are mortified if their name is written on the board for any misdemeanour in lessons. All parents agreed that behaviour was good in school, in their response to Ofsted’s online questionnaire.
• The good relationships that are nurtured ensure that pupils usually conduct themselves well in lessons and around school. Occasionally, a small minority of pupils lose concentration and become disengaged from learning. Most pupils are polite and have good manners, holding doors open for adults and visitors. Playtimes are harmonious occasions, when pupils play happily together in the well-equipped grounds. No one is left out.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• In the last two years, Year 6 pupils’ progress from their previous starting points in reading, writing and mathematics has been much too slow. It has been well below other pupils’ progress nationally with similar starting points. Standards of attainment by the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics have fallen. Although they rose in 2017 in reading and writing, to match those found nationally, they remained low in mathematics. As a result of historically weak teaching, there currently remains a legacy of inconsistent achievement in some year groups.
• Leaders and staff are working hard to reverse this decline and eradicate remaining gaps in pupils’ knowledge and skills. Work in pupils’ books and the school’s own tracking data show, clearly, that in all key stages current pupils are making much stronger progress in reading, writing and mathematics this academic year. New approaches to teaching are taking hold. Pupils who had fallen behind are catching up quickly. As a result, a much larger proportion are now working at standards expected for their age in most year groups.
• The school has worked hard to introduce a robust and informative system to track pupils’ progress and attainment in English and mathematics, which has been operative since the autumn term. It is not currently possible to assess or track pupils’ progress in other subjects across the curriculum.
• In some years, the achievement of disadvantaged pupils has lagged some way behind that of other pupils in the school and other pupils nationally. However, information in published data can be unreliable given the very small numbers of pupils. Evidence from the inspection shows that current disadvantaged pupils’ attainment and progress across the school are strong. For many, their achievement now outstrips their classmates in most year groups and matches that of other pupils nationally.
• In the past, too few pupils have reached higher standards in their learning at the end of key stage 2. Over time, teaching has lacked the necessary challenge and this has restricted pupils from deepening their skills and knowledge. In 2017, no Year 6 pupils attained the higher standard in reading, writing or mathematics. The most able pupils have not achieved well enough. Inspection evidence shows that there is an improvement this year in most year groups, including Year 6. The achievement of the most able pupils is accelerating as expectations of these pupils rise.
• Effective leadership and good-quality provision for pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities ensures that these pupils make good progress, even if in small steps, from their individual starting points. Activities are carefully matched to their individual needs and abilities and skilfully delivered by teaching assistants and teachers.
• Over the last few years, the proportion of pupils meeting the expected standard in the Year 1 national phonics screening check has been above that found nationally. The introduction of a rigorous and systematic approach to the teaching of phonics has paid dividends. Children make a strong start to learning to read.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• The early years leader has not undertaken a rigorous or thorough evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the Reception class. She does not have an accurate understanding of the quality of provision or how the setting could be improved. Currently, there is no robust, meaningful or incisive action planning. As a result, ongoing minor changes are not leading to any significant improvement to teaching and learning.
• Many activities around the setting, accessed independently by children, can lack challenge and do not move children’s learning forward quickly enough or deepen their understanding. There are, sometimes, limited opportunities for the most able children to access activities that enhance their knowledge and skills, challenge their thinking and make rapid progress in their learning. Planned activities have no clear link to accurate assessments of children’s learning or reflect their interests.
• Although small, the indoor and outdoor learning environments are areas which are perfectly suitable to support children’s learning. Currently, however, significant development is needed to ensure that these environments capture children’s imagination and reflect their needs and interests. Spaces can be cluttered, untidy and uninspiring.
• Most children start Reception with the skills and knowledge that are typical for their age. Children make the steady progress which could be expected from their individual starting points. The proportion of children that reach a good level of development by the end of Reception is above that found nationally.
• Children’s behaviour is good. They respect each other, are able to take turns and have great fun in their learning. Relationships are good and children work well together. They are obviously happy at school. A group thoroughly enjoyed an impromptu puppet show performed by another group of children. The Reception teacher is skilled at supporting children’s creative and investigative play. She uses questions, prompts and suggestions very well to develop their thinking and understanding.
• Relationships with parents are very good. They value the new online learning journals. Some parents add information about activities done at home with their children. Information sessions for parents are well attended, and most appreciate the weekly newsletter sent home by the early years leader.
• Safeguarding practices in the early years are highly effective. Children are taught how to manage risks from an early age, and the very effective safeguarding culture that permeates the school is equally apparent in the early years. The Reception teacher was insistent that all children wore a hat and applied sun cream during the very hot two days of inspection. There are no material breaches of legal welfare requirements; children are safe and well supported.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 121401 North Yorkshire 10047424 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 5 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 56 Appropriate authority The governing body Co-chairs Mr C Volker and Mr S Mallender Executive headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Mr N Coates 01423 780446 www.summerbridge.n-yorks.sch.uk/ admin@summerbridge.n-yorks.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 23–24 January 2014

Information about this school

• The school is much smaller than the average-sized primary school. The vast majority of pupils are of White British heritage and speak English as their first language. Reception children attend on a full-time basis.
• The proportion of pupils who are known to be eligible for support from the pupil premium and the proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities are in line with the national average.
• The government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress, do not apply to this school.
• The school is a member of the HARTS Teaching School Alliance.
• An executive headteacher was appointed in September 2016. Following a short collaboration, the school was federated with Darley Primary School. A new federated governing board was formed with two governors taking roles as co-chairs.

Information about this inspection

• The inspector observed learning in lessons, including three lessons observed jointly with the executive headteacher. In addition, the inspector reviewed a sample of pupils’ work alongside the executive headteacher.
• The inspector held meetings with governors and the executive headteacher. Meetings were also held with the early years leader, the English and mathematics leader, the SEN coordinator and the sports leader. He also met the school administrator, held a conversation with a representative of the local authority via telephone, and held a meeting with a group of pupils.
• The inspector viewed a range of documents, including information relating to pupils’ achievements over time, the school’s data on recent and current progress of pupils, and the school’s view on how well it is doing. He also reviewed the school improvement plan, records of the monitoring of teaching and learning, and documents relating to safeguarding, records of behaviour and attendance.
• The inspector took account of the 13 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents, Parent View, and to the four responses to the staff questionnaire. The school’s website was also scrutinised.

Inspection team

Phil Scott, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector