Greengate Lane Academy Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Continue to improve the quality of teaching and learning by making sure that questioning and the work set by the teachers consistently challenge and stretch all groups of pupils, including the most able pupils.
• Continue to increase the proportions of pupils, including the most able pupils, who achieve the higher standards in mathematics and writing by the end of Year 6.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The principal and his senior leaders have successfully established a culture of high expectations across the whole school. They all strive to ensure that the school does the very best for each individual pupil. Leaders have successfully tackled the issues identified at the time of the last inspection. Consequently, teaching and outcomes continue to be good.
• Leaders have an accurate picture of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. They analysed in detail the reasons for the underperformance in 2017 and took appropriate actions to make improvements. Consequently, pupils’ outcomes rapidly improved in 2018 and are now good. Leaders’ plans for future improvements focus on the right priorities.
• Additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils is used effectively. Leaders regularly review the progress of all disadvantaged pupils to ensure that they make the progress of which they are capable. Consequently, from their starting points, these pupils make as good, and sometimes better, progress as their peers.
• Leaders recently reviewed the school’s curriculum. The revised ‘challenge-based’ curriculum is broad and balanced, with an appropriate emphasis on reading, writing and mathematics. This contributes to pupils’ good development and progress. Pupils are taught about significant world religions, and topics are used to teach a range of subjects such as history, geography and art. After-school clubs and educational visits enhance pupils’ learning in these subjects.
• There are regular meetings, involving leaders and staff, to check pupils’ progress. Pupils who are falling behind, including disadvantaged pupils and those who have SEN and/or disabilities, are provided with effective support to ensure that they catch up and make good progress. As a result, these pupils make strong progress from their starting points.
• Leaders use professional development well to improve teaching. Teachers new to the profession are positive about the support they receive from leaders. Leaders provide comprehensive training for staff, including coaching and mentoring, to ensure that staff continue to improve their practice. Consequently, teaching has improved and is of good quality.
• Staff and pupils are very supportive of the school’s leadership. Teachers value the chance to improve their day-to-day practice and willingly try out new ideas. The skills and expertise of senior and middle leaders have been acknowledged by the trust and good practice is regularly shared across other schools in the trust. Consequently, there is strong capacity to continue to improve the school.
• The trust has provided effective support to the school. Staff from the trust worked with the recently promoted principal to establish robust systems and procedures for sustained improvements. They also provide professional development for teachers, including middle and senior leaders. As a result, the leadership of the school has been strengthened further since the last inspection.

Governance of the school

• Governance is a strength of the school. Members of the transition management board have a wide range of skills and expertise. They are ably led by the experienced chair. Governors have a good understanding of the school’s many strengths and its areas for improvement. They share the leaders’ high expectations and are highly ambitious for pupils.
• Governors use clear information provided by leaders to ask challenging questions to bring about improvements. They meet frequently and work closely with trustees to monitor the performance of the school.
• Governors ensure that they attend regular training to carry out their roles effectively. The transition management board takes its safeguarding duties seriously. The safeguarding governor regularly meets with school leaders to ensure that systems and processes are up to date and are being followed closely.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• There is a strong culture of safeguarding in the school and pupils say that they feel safe. Teachers know each pupil well and are alert to any concerns or needs.
• Leaders, all staff and governors are vigilant in their work to ensure that pupils are safe. School leaders ensure that all staff have appropriate and up-to-date safeguarding training. As a result, staff are knowledgeable about child protection procedures, the signs to look for and how to report concerns. Leaders make timely referrals to the local authority social care services where necessary and monitor the impact of their actions closely.
• School leaders follow appropriate recruitment procedures. Leaders, including the business manager, keep accurate records and complete all the necessary checks to ensure that they only employ adults and use volunteers who are suitable to work with children.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teaching is good and teachers ensure that most pupils achieve well. Teachers have high expectations of their pupils, know them well and encourage them to work hard.
• Relationships between adults and pupils are positive. Teachers encourage pupils to try their best. Teachers explain clearly to pupils what they need to do and why they are doing it. As a result, most pupils’ attitudes to learning are good.
• Teachers are knowledgeable about the subjects they teach. In most lessons and in pupils’ books, teachers use questioning well to test pupils’ knowledge and understanding. As a result, most pupils know what they need to do to improve their work.
• The teaching of mathematics has improved since the last inspection. In lessons, pupils’ mathematical skills are developed well because teachers encourage pupils to practise mental calculations regularly. Pupils’ work in books shows that pupils move on to more complex problem-solving tasks as soon as they have mastered each mathematical skill. Pupils have an increasing number of opportunities to apply mathematical skills in other subjects, for example in science. As a result, most pupils make strong progress in mathematics in most classes.
• Leaders monitor the quality of teaching and learning frequently through a carefully planned cycle of activities. This includes observations of lessons and scrutiny of pupils’ books. Leaders have also linked the quality of teaching to pupils’ outcomes and hold frequent progress meetings with staff. As a result, leaders and staff can identify early any pupils who may need additional support in order to reach their potential.
• Staff ensure that pupils have effective skills in phonics to improve their reading. Pupils, including the lower-attaining pupils, use their phonics skills well to read unfamiliar or difficult words. This contributes well to pupils’ confidence in and enjoyment of reading. Inspectors were able to confirm this when they listened to some pupils read.
• Most teachers plan activities well that meet the needs of most pupils. However, there is some variation in the work set. As a result, not all pupils, including the most able pupils, are sufficiently stretched and challenged to enable them to deepen their knowledge and understanding.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Leaders have created a positive, inclusive environment in which pupils are able to enjoy their learning and achieve well. Recently refurbished classrooms include a range of displays to support pupils’ learning and celebrate partnerships with external agencies.
• The work of the school to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is beginning to become embedded across the revised curriculum. Weekly assemblies, usually led by the principal, are used well to acknowledge pupils’ academic achievement or to demonstrate school values.
• Pupils are respected as individuals within the school’s inclusive ethos and most display good attitudes to learning. Most pupils listen carefully to each other and to their teachers, which supports them to achieve well. Most pupils are proud of their school and the school environment.
• Pupils feel safe and can explain well how to keep themselves safe, including online. They value the support teachers give them if they have any concerns. Pupils report that, when bullying happens, staff deal with it swiftly. Inspection evidence supports this.
• Most pupils are confident that teachers will support them. The school’s pastoral learning mentors use the ‘well-being’ monitoring system effectively to identify issues which are preventing pupils from learning. Consequently, they can provide support which is closely tailored to individual needs.
• Pupils have many opportunities to make a contribution to school life and the wider community, such as raising money for local and national charities. They have the opportunity to take on school-wide responsibilities, such as school council representatives. These opportunities are helping to prepare pupils well for the next stage in their education.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Leaders set high standards and they recently reviewed the school’s behaviour policy. Staff, overall, are consistent in their approach to managing behaviour. As a result, pupils are polite, friendly and respectful.
• Pupils move sensibly around the building. Staff supervision of the playground is appropriate. Pupils respond quickly to instructions. They get on well with each other and play happily together.
• Leaders promote pupils’ regular attendance, which is currently above the national average. The breakfast club helps pupils start their school day well and supports the work staff do to maintain and further improve punctuality and attendance. Persistent absence is below the national average. For the few pupils who are persistently absent, the learning mentors are proactive in taking suitable actions to work with parents and carers to secure improvements to their children’s attendance.
• Increased expectations from leaders resulted in the number of fixed-term exclusions increasing in 2018 compared to 2017. The effective support provided by school leaders to pupils who struggled to meet the heightened expectations meant that there were no repeat fixed-term exclusions in 2018.
• Leaders maintain accurate records of behavioural incidents. They use this information to provide support for the pupils who need it, for example by providing music therapy and mentoring. However, school leaders are only just beginning to evaluate the impact of this support.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Following the last inspection, the school experienced a dip in performance in 2017. Provisional data shows that, in 2018, the attainment and progress of pupils in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 2 improved rapidly from the previous year. In 2018, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Year 6 was well above the national average.
• School assessment information, confirmed by evidence in pupils’ books, indicates that the majority of pupils across all year groups are currently making good progress and working at the standard expected for their age, particularly in reading and writing.
• Leaders liaise closely with classroom teachers on pupils’ progress, for instance through regular pupil progress meetings. Pupils who are underachieving are identified quickly and support is put in place to help them achieve their potential. As a result, most pupils make strong progress across most subjects.
• Although provisional data shows that, in 2018, the proportion of most-able pupils achieving the higher standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 2 improved, it remains below the national average.
• The proportion of pupils meeting the expected threshold in the phonics screening check at the end of Year 1 has been consistently above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils achieving the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 1 has been consistently above the national average. However, the proportion of pupils achieving the standards at greater depth in reading and mathematics at the end of Year 2 is below the national average.

Early years provision Outstanding

• The majority of children join the early years provision with knowledge and skills that are below typical for their age, with some well below. Leaders work with the local authority and the trust to ensure that their assessments are accurate. Over the last three years, the proportion of children achieving a good level of development by the end of Reception has been consistently above the national averages. Many children make excellent progress and demonstrate skills and understanding above those expected at the end of the Reception Year. The children are very well prepared for their transition into Year 1.
• Teaching is monitored frequently, is consistently of a high quality and is very responsive to children’s needs. All children are challenged because adults have very high expectations of what they can achieve.
• Children from disadvantaged backgrounds make progress which is at least as good as others, or better. Children who have SEN and/or disabilities are taught very effectively because their needs are understood and they, too, make excellent progress.
• Early years staff are welcoming and encourage parents to be involved in their children’s education, for example through contributing to ‘learning journals’.
• Children are well cared for and are confident and eager to join in activities. Children’s behaviour is very good. Children show respect for each other and they play cooperatively and share resources well. Children generally respond well to instructions from adults. The children know and follow clear classroom routines so that little learning time is wasted.
• The curriculum is exceptionally well organised and planned to address children’s needs through exciting topics and activities. As a result, children are engaged in activities and remain focused.
• The early years leader is highly effective and has the drive to review and refine practice continually. She provides effective coaching and mentoring to all staff in the early years to ensure that their practice is in line with her high expectations. As a result, the leader provides support and further professional development when needed.
• Safeguarding procedures are effective and welfare requirements are met fully.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 139297 Sheffield 10047620 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 converter 3 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 202 Appropriate authority Chair Principal Telephone number Website Email address Board of trustees Violet Chapman Paul Cross 01142 848 322 www.astreagreengatelane.org enquiries@astreagreengatelane.org Date of previous inspection 23–24 September 2014

Information about this school

• Greengate Lane Academy is part of Astrea Academy Trust.
• The school joined the trust in September 2016. The work of the trust is overseen by a board of trustees. Some responsibilities are delegated to the transition management board. The trust is responsible for 18 primary schools, six secondary schools and one special school.
• Since joining the trust, there have been changes to staffing and leadership. The previous headteacher left the school in 2016 and the governing body was replaced with a transition management board. The current principal was appointed in October 2017. Two new teachers joined the school in 2018, including one newly qualified teacher.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported by the pupil premium is well above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have SEN and/or disabilities is above the national average. The proportion of pupils in school who have an education, health and care plan is below the national average.
• Astrea Academy Trust provides a range of support to continuously develop school leadership and the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. For example, an executive principal worked with school leaders in 2017 to provide targeted support. School leaders, including the assistant principals and the leader for mathematics, provide support to other schools in the trust as part of the trust’s model of sharing good practice.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors visited lessons across a range of subjects in early years and key stages 1 and 2 and covering all teaching staff. Some of these visits took place with senior leaders accompanying inspectors. During visits to classrooms, inspectors looked in pupils’ books and questioned pupils about their learning.
• Discussions took place with the principal, members of the leadership team and members of the wider body of staff, including the newly qualified teacher.
• Inspectors met with representatives of Astrea Academy Trust, including the chief executive officer. Discussions also took place with a representative of the board of trustees and the chair of the transition management board.
• Inspectors held discussions with parents and groups of pupils from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 about what it is like to be a young person at the school. Inspectors also listened to some of these pupils read.
• Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour around the school, including between lessons, at breaktimes and at lunchtime.
• Inspectors took into account the eight responses from parents to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, including the six free-text responses. They also analysed the 11 responses to Ofsted’s pupil questionnaire.
• Inspectors examined records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding and, jointly with senior leaders, conducted a scrutiny of pupils’ work in a range of subjects.
• Inspectors also scrutinised documents, including school development plans, governing body minutes, leaders’ monitoring notes and information about pupils’ achievement.

Inspection team

Dimitris Spiliotis, lead inspector Alison Ashworth Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector