Sutton-in-Craven Community Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by ensuring that:
  • the impact of teaching is monitored regularly and leaders take action promptly and precisely to ensure that teaching is consistently good across the school
  • teachers are skilled in using assessment information effectively to set work which enables all pupils, and particularly the most able pupils, to make good progress
  • all feedback to teachers on lesson observations includes actions to be undertaken which will directly impact on the progress that pupils make.
• Improve teaching, especially in mathematics, so that it consistently enables pupils to make good progress from their starting points by ensuring that:
  • teachers and teaching assistants have a relentless focus on meeting the needs of the most able, disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities
  • pupils have more opportunities to develop their thinking, particularly in mathematics, by applying their secure knowledge to increasingly complex problems and in different contexts
  • all staff and pupils understand and consistently follow the school’s agreed marking policy. An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. 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.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Leadership and management require improvement because leaders have not ensured that teaching is consistently good. Leaders are aware of the inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and have developed plans to address them. However, they have not moved decisively enough to ensure sustained improvement.
• Leaders’ plans identify the areas that need improvement and set out actions to be taken. However, the time given to complete actions is too long and the ways the impact of these actions are to be measured lack detail. These shortcomings may account for the time it has taken to address the weaknesses in mathematics identified at the previous inspection.
• Leaders’ evaluation of the school is too generous. As a result, governors do not have an accurate enough picture of the school’s performance. For example, a recent report to governors about the outcomes of 2016 tests in key stage 2 did not highlight the shortcomings in mathematics results clearly enough. As a result, governors are not fully aware of what the school is doing to improve.
• Leaders regularly monitor the impact of the work of staff in classrooms. However, despite accurately identifying weaknesses in teaching and classroom practice and supporting staff in a range of ways, leaders are not regularly checking to make sure that their support is improving teaching.
• Leaders and governors have acted to strengthen leadership in mathematics. However, consequent actions to tackle weaknesses in mathematics have been too slow. They have not yet had a consistently positive impact on the quality of mathematics teaching or on pupils’ success in this key subject.
• Leaders have not placed sufficient emphasis on high expectations, particularly for the most able pupils. This is not helped by the progress-tracking system that the school has recently adopted. This system only helps identify those pupils who are making expected rather than more than expected progress. As a result, staff do not ensure that pupils are routinely tackling work that challenges them.
• Leaders’ and governors’ focus on the impact of the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils is not sharp enough. This funding is spent on a range of activities but it is not clear which of these activities is having the most positive impact. As a result the progress of disadvantaged pupils is too variable.
• The leadership of the provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is effective. The needs of these pupils are well understood because of the support that the leader gives staff. The progress of these pupils is monitored carefully. Engagement with outside support agencies is well and promptly coordinated. Parents are involved and complimentary about the support their children receive.
• The physical education and sports premium is spent effectively. Pupils’ rates of participation in sports are high. Staff expertise is improving so that sports and games contribute very fully to the extra-curricular life of the school.
• Leaders have recently introduced a whole-school approach to reading. This involves an extra focus on reading, with daily sessions. Pupils also read at home. Pupils say they welcome this and the daily opportunities it gives them to read and expand their experience of books. The library is attractive and well stocked.
• Leaders have established a ‘family’ atmosphere at the school. Pupils are confident, caring and aware of the needs of others. Leaders work effectively to give pupils many opportunities to explore their place in the local and global communities. Through an effective curriculum (both in and out of class), charity work and imaginative approaches to collective worship, pupils are very well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• The local authority has provided effective support for the school. A dedicated mathematics adviser is now in place and local authority advisers regularly visit the school to monitor its progress. It is too early to judge the impact of this support.

Governance of the school

• Over time, governors have not challenged leaders enough. They are aware of the historical shortcomings in mathematics and have acted to address them through new appointments and approaches to teaching. However, they have not been robust in driving more rapid improvement.
• Leaders provide detailed reports on the progress of the school and these are the focus of governors’ discussions and give them information with which to challenge the school. Governors now meet during the day. As a result, they are able to spend more time in the school talking to pupils and visiting classes. Governors report that this is giving them a more direct understanding of the school.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Safeguarding systems are fit for purpose, secure and well maintained. Checks on the identity and suitability of staff, including volunteers, are well managed, robust and carefully recorded. Staff and governors are fully aware of their safeguarding responsibilities and are well trained.
• Records show that the school acts promptly and well to support vulnerable pupils and their families. The school’s work with external agencies is effective in helping to ensure pupils’ well-being. The health and safety governor carries out regular health and safety checks and makes sure that any areas that need attention are promptly dealt with.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching requires improvement because it is too variable across the school.
• In the classes where teachers and teaching assistants have the highest expectations and take effective account of what pupils already know and can do, pupils, including the most able, make good and better progress. However, in too many classes this is not the case. In these classes, where expectations are not as high and teachers take insufficient account of what pupils can do, the work is often too easy and does not stretch pupils to do well.
• The teaching of mathematics is improving as a result of the recently introduced, whole-school approach. Assured progress, however, is hampered because there are gaps in pupils’ knowledge and confidence in basic mathematical operations such as times tables and adding two simple numbers together. The speed at which these gaps are being addressed by staff differs from class to class.
• The application of the agreed approach to marking is variable across the school. In a number of classes, Year 6 for example, marking is focused and in line with the school policy; it helps pupils to understand clearly what they need to do next to improve. In other classes, teachers’ comments are congratulatory and lack the detail pupils need to improve their work.
• The impact of the work of teaching assistants on pupils’ learning is inconsistent. There is evidence of high-quality support, where teaching assistants use their skills well and help pupils to make good progress. They use questioning effectively to challenge and extend pupils’ ideas. They are well and thoughtfully deployed by teachers to support pupils’ learning. In other classes, teaching assistants are less well deployed and it is unclear how they are encouraging pupils to learn and think for themselves.
• The quality of questioning is a strength of many of the lessons seen. Where the learning is secure and pupils challenged, staff are direct and focused in their questioning. They move beyond the merely ‘what’ to ‘why’ and ‘how’. Pupils reported that they welcomed this approach because it ‘makes us think’.
• The teaching of reading is a particular focus and is increasingly effective. This whole-school approach is raising the profile of reading for pleasure across the school. Pupils talked with enthusiasm about their reading. Inspectors listened to pupils read previously unseen books and, for the most part, pupils were able to use the skills developed through the teaching of phonics to read unknown words. They were also able to use their experience of reading to answer questions about that they had read.
• The school has a recent focus on teaching a cursive writing script to all pupils. This is having a positive impact on the presentation of pupils’ work in their books. However, pupils, including the most able, do not consistently write at sufficient length to develop their ideas and stamina in writing.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• The school provides a good level of care for its pupils. Staff know the pupils well. Pupils are given many opportunities to develop their own sense of self-worth and a growing awareness of their place in their local, national and international community.
• The school offers many opportunities for pupils to take on roles of responsibility. There is a school council which is drawn from members of the range of ‘families’ in the school. These family groups, overseen by teaching assistants, focus on various aspects of the life of the school including fundraising and green issues. There are also playground ‘buddies’ who are available to support pupils at breaks, should they feel anxious. The school also has a quiet area for pupils who want reflection time.
• The school supports a range of charities and sponsors children at schools in other countries. The school uses this charity work to broaden pupils’ understanding of the world. For example, the recent harvest festival appeal was for clothes and food for refugees in the ‘Jungle’ camp in Calais. Pupils spoke knowledgably and with passion about the need to work hard to reduce inequality.
• The school provides effective support for children and pupils when they join the school, whether in the Reception year or at other times. The careful links established with parents are a particular strength. Parents spoke positively about the way the school supports their children.
• Pupils know how to keep themselves safe, including when online. This is because the school gives them regular opportunities through assemblies, visiting speakers and in lessons to explore and discuss how to deal with risk.
• Pupils know about the various forms that bullying can take. They reported that bullying is rare and where it does occur they said they were confident that adults would deal with it promptly and well.
• Pupils have a generally good attitude to learning. They reported that they particularly liked lessons where the work was interesting and challenging. They said they enjoyed lessons that gave them opportunities to work independently and in teams.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ conduct around the school is good. They are polite and aware of the needs of others. They queue in an orderly manner for lunch and the atmosphere in the dining area is convivial. Pupils respond quickly to staff instructions at the end of playtimes and move quietly to their learning.
• Pupils play well together and there are few examples of boisterous behaviour. Staff supervise the playground well.
• In lessons, behaviour is generally good, especially when pupils are stimulated by their learning. Occasionally, there is some low-level disruption.
• Pupils enjoy coming to school. Attendance is consistently above the national average for all groups of pupils at the school.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• At the end of the early years foundation stage in 2016, a lower proportion of pupils than average achieved a good level of development. In 2016, the proportion of pupils reaching the phonics standard by the end of Year 1 was below average. By the end of Year 2, outcomes in reading and writing were well below average; for mathematics they were broadly average.
• The progress of current pupils is inconsistent because the quality of teaching is not yet good in all classes. Progress is stronger in English than in mathematics across the school, although standards in spelling are not as they should be. The school lacks a coherent approach to the marking and teaching of spelling. Staff do not make enough use of the skills pupils have learned in phonics when teaching spelling. This is having a negative impact on pupils’ writing and their progress in English.
• Progress in mathematics is stronger in key stage 1. In key stage 2, pupils’ grasp of basic mathematical processes is not consistently secure. As a result, outcomes are too variable. Pupils, including some of the most able pupils, are not confident enough in their use of basic skills in mathematics to explore more complex, open-ended problems. There are signs of improvement in this aspect of mathematics skills as a result of the recently introduced whole-school approach, particularly in key stage 1. However, despite these positive signs, it is too early to judge whether this scheme is having a sustained, positive impact on outcomes in mathematics.
• Work in pupils’ workbooks shows that most-able pupils make variable progress in subjects across the curriculum and between years. This is because insufficient account is taken of what these pupils already know and understand. Too often, they are not given opportunities to deepen and extend their learning.
• Progress for disadvantaged pupils is inconsistent across subjects. The additional support that disadvantaged pupils receive in key stage 2 has resulted in better progress in reading and writing than in mathematics.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are making good progress from their starting points.
• Unconfirmed information shows that the proportion of Year 6 pupils who reached the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined in 2016 was below that expected nationally. Results for mathematics were well below.

Early years provision Good

• Children settle quickly into the Reception class because the school’s links with both local nursery providers and with parents are strong. Staff carefully gather information about each child and fully involve parents as children start at the school. They make good progress from their starting points.
• Children are happy at school. They learn and explore confidently and safely both inside and outside. The environment is attractive and well resourced. Children learn well together and develop friendships. Staff manage children’s behaviour skilfully so that they are very well behaved.
• Parents have many opportunities to be involved in their children’s learning. They receive regular updates on their progress. Parents reported that they valued the work of the Reception staff and the very detailed information they received. They said that staff were always available to talk with them about their child.
• The Reception provision is well led. The leader and her staff know the children well and monitor their progress carefully. However, if staff had more detailed information about the differences in the progress of boys and girls they would be able to target learning activities even more carefully.
• Staff use questioning well to develop and deepen children’s understanding and listening skills. Examples were seen during the inspection of staff working with pupils to develop their skills in predicting what would happen next. For example, ‘What if we were to put this here? What would happen then?’ Children responded with enthusiasm and a range of interesting answers.
• All staff are effective in introducing children to phonics. They model letter sounds carefully, using their hands to underline and emphasise. Children have opportunities to begin to develop the school-wide cursive approach to handwriting in the Reception class.
• Children are well prepared for school and work in Year 1.

School details

Unique reference number 121420 Local authority North Yorkshire Inspection number 10003156 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 Community Age range of pupils 4 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 207 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Amanda Palfreman Headteacher Fiona Beetles Telephone number 01535 633064 Website www.wherelearnersgrow.co.uk Email address admin@sutton-in-craven.n-yorks.sch.uk Date of previous inspection November 2011

Information about this school

• The school does not meet requirements on the publication of information about the impact of pupil premium grant funding on its website.
• This is a smaller-than-average primary school.
• The majority of pupils are of White British heritage.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is below the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is below the national average.
• The school manages a breakfast and after-school club.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited lessons in all years; five of these were joint observations with the deputy headteacher.
• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and other members of the senior and middle leadership team. The lead inspector also met with an officer from the local authority.
• The inspectors scrutinised a number of documents, including governing body minutes, school improvement plans and records relating to attendance, behaviour and safeguarding.
• Inspectors scrutinised a range of pupils’ workbooks and folders in subjects across the curriculum. There was a particular focus on mathematics and English.
• Inspectors spoke with pupils informally around the school and in lessons. The lead inspector met more formally with two groups of pupils to seek their views about the school. He also took into account six online responses from pupils.
• The lead inspector listened to pupils read and spoke with them about their reading.
• The 51 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, were taken into account. Inspectors considered comments provided by text message and paper questionnaires, and spoke with parents informally at the start and end of the day. The online responses of 21 staff were also taken into account.

Inspection team

Mark Evans, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Mary Lanovy-Taylor Ofsted Inspector James Kilner Ofsted Inspector