Wincobank Nursery and Infant School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching even further in order to raise pupils’ attainment by the end of Year 2, by making sure that:
  • staff new to the school’s approach to teaching phonics quickly receive training in order to more effectively support pupils’ learning
  • pupils, particularly the most able, are provided with more challenging activities so that the proportion reaching and exceeding age-related expectations at the end of each key stage increases.
• Further improve attendance by checking more thoroughly that the range of strategies used, particularly to reduce the proportion of pupils who are regularly absent, are being effective for individual pupils.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Since joining the multi-academy trust, the headteacher and senior leaders, supported well by the executive principal and academy directors, have raised expectations and brought about rapid improvement. The quality of teaching has improved and as a result pupils are making more effective progress.
• Leaders have instilled a collective responsibility for pupil outcomes among the staff. They all share the desire to provide every individual with the best possible education.
• The headteacher provides staff with regular support and development opportunities to continually improve their teaching. A nurturing approach coupled with accurate information about their performance has resulted in a settled and stable staff team who feel valued and are proud to work at the school.
• Individual support for teachers provided by the headteacher results in them gaining in confidence and securing further improvements to pupils’ outcomes as a consequence. However, leaders are aware that maintaining the consistency of the quality of teaching remains a priority for the school in order to continue to build on the success already achieved and to improve outcomes further, for example by making sure that new staff or those who have missed phonics training are quickly brought up to speed with the school’s approach.
• Leaders support teachers to accurately track the progress and development of every pupil through a newly introduced and coherent assessment system. Any pupils at risk of underachieving are quickly identified. In response to this information, teachers collectively plan how to target resources and deploy staff, making effective use of the pupil premium funding to make sure disadvantaged pupils receive the support they need. This allows a sharp focus on helping pupils to succeed in every lesson, at the point of learning, and means that teaching is very responsive to pupils’ specific needs. Consequently, withdrawal from class for pupils who need to catch up is rarely necessary.
• Middle leaders have been well supported and have developed a level of expertise which allows them to support staff within school and also to share their good practice within the Brigantia Learning Trust and other local schools facing similar circumstances.
• Leaders have an accurate and realistic evaluation of the school which draws from a wide range of evidence sources. This enables them to identify key areas for development and appropriately target the use of pupil premium and special educational needs funding, which has contributed to the improvements seen in pupil progress over the last three years.
• Robust checks on the quality of teaching and the work in pupils’ books has been instrumental in driving improvements. However, teaching is not yet providing enough challenge to enable the most able pupils to reach the higher standards they could be capable of by the end of each key stage.
• Leaders have developed a welcoming and inclusive culture. There is a commitment through the pupil premium funding to use high-quality staffing at increased levels in order to better support pupils’ diverse needs on arrival.
• Parents are very complimentary about the school and appreciate the support their children receive and the progress they make as a result. They comment on how they have seen the school improve rapidly over the last three years and say that `My child is happy and settled and is making good progress. We all appreciate the support from teachers.’
• The physical education (PE) and sport premium funding has been used effectively to increase participation and success in competitive sport and encourage pupils to live healthier lifestyles.
• The curriculum meets the headteacher’s aim for it to be ‘vibrant and exciting with many first-hand experiences that enrich pupils’ lives’. The curriculum was originally devised as a project with local schools. The headteacher is currently working with teachers to evaluate it to make sure it continues to provide pupils with rich opportunities to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills in a range of artistic, creative and sporting activities. Floor books and topic books demonstrate the wide range of themes being studied. Curriculum themes are enriched by theme days, visits, visitors and before- and after-school clubs. High expectations and the quality of feedback from staff are helping pupils to make links between subjects and move their learning on to good effect.
• The promotion of pupils’ social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is effective and staff use opportunities well to promote British values such as tolerance and respect. For example, in assemblies staff discuss the school values with pupils. Following an assembly on teamwork, pupils were keen to talk about how they were demonstrating that particular value as they carried out their learning back in class.

Governance of the school

• As a result of effective strategic direction and robust challenge from the directors, the school has been on a journey of rapid improvement and is now securing improved outcomes for pupils.
• Directors have ensured that a thorough process is in place for managing teacher performance. Targets are tightly focused on the school’s core priorities, and directors regularly check progress towards these priorities. Pay progression records reflect the school’s improving journey and show that underperformance was tackled when necessary in the past. Over the last three years, there has been strong accountability and increased performance across the school as a result.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders have created a positive culture and ethos where safeguarding is an important part of everyday life. There are secure systems in place for when a pupil is absent or is missing education for a longer period of time. The school has gone above and beyond what is usually expected by sending a member of staff to visit a village in Slovakia, where many of the school’s Roma population come from. This means staff have not only developed an understanding of the culture of these families but are able to make contact with someone in the village to check a pupil’s whereabouts when necessary.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teachers are uncompromising in their desire to support every pupil to succeed. They create a positive and productive learning atmosphere in each classroom and this is supporting pupils to become independent and resilient learners.
• Teaching has become much more effective and is resulting in rapid gains in pupils’ learning.
• Teaching of all subjects considers language and communication development, which is vital for the age and stage of development of pupils. Teachers take every opportunity to develop pupils’ vocabulary using topics and resources which interest and engage them.
• Teachers place an emphasis on grammar and give pupils lots of opportunities to talk, discuss and explain. This is well modelled by staff and supports pupils in producing work of a higher quality. As a result, the pupils are very cooperative with each other. The time spent rehearsing through speaking is used to good effect when putting their ideas into writing. This is supporting the progress of all pupils but in particular those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, are disadvantaged or speak English as an additional language.
• Teachers carefully plan the curriculum so that reading and writing skills are applied in a range of subjects in order to deepen pupils’ knowledge and understanding. For example, when learning about the history of aeroplanes, pupils worked cooperatively to share their ideas and to construct sentences verbally before writing them down. This resulted in greater accuracy in sentence structure and a more precise choice of vocabulary.
• A focus on developing basic skills is clear in the classroom environment, in pupils’ books and in the teaching approaches and activities planned. Teachers provide well-chosen resources such as ‘my word list’, which helps them remember what they have learned and encourages them to include these features in their independent writing.
• Assessment information provides teachers with an awareness of each pupil’s learning needs and this means they are able to tailor their teaching effectively to match the prior learning and next steps required for most groups of pupils. However, teaching is not always precisely targeted to sufficiently challenge the most able group of pupils.
• In response to assessment information, teachers identified handwriting as an area for development as it was previously a barrier to pupils reaching a greater depth by the end of key stage 1. Teaching has since been adjusted accordingly and there is now a greater emphasis placed on the teaching of handwriting.
• Skilled teachers and teaching assistants provide effective support to those who are new to school and at the beginning or early stage of learning English. This group of pupils receive a curriculum focused on developing their language skills so they can begin to access learning and participate with their peers.
• Pupils of lower ability or who are in the early stages of reading development tackle unfamiliar words confidently when reading and draw on a range of phonics strategies they have been taught. On occasion, a lack of subject knowledge regarding the teaching of phonics means that staff use the incorrect terms or approaches, which restricts pupils’ ability to move on quickly with their learning.
• Parents value the annual reports they receive which share the progress made, attitudes to learning, next step learning targets and how a pupil’s attainment compares to national expectations.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils’ learning behaviours are admirable and are enhanced by the high expectations of staff. Relationships are built on trust and mutual respect and this results in a highly productive learning environment where pupils feel valued and supported and become confident and self-assured learners.
• Well-established routines support pupils’ learning by maximising their learning time and helping them to develop very good attitudes to learning. Pupils demonstrate cooperation, involvement and good levels of concentration. They show great interest in their learning and take pride in work they produce.
• New arrivals are warmly welcomed to school by staff and pupils alike. They receive additional support in their first few weeks of school so that they are able to quickly become involved with their peers, having grasped some basic language skills where necessary.
• Systems and structures in place support high-quality relationships. For example, lunchtime staff have responsibility for a class throughout their time at school. This means that staff get to know the pupils really well. They have a good awareness of pupils’ individual needs, allowing them to successfully support pupil well-being through their role. This is particularly important given the vulnerabilities of some pupils.
• Teachers are very calm and nurturing, creating a positive learning climate where it is all right to make mistakes and where having a go is valued. As a result, pupils feel safe to develop their confidence through the activities planned.
• Pupils in school say that adults keep them safe at school and teach them how to be safe, for example on the internet; when crossing a road; or if a stranger approached them.
• Pupils say that they enjoy coming to school because they can play with friends, learn new things and get better with their learning. They are enthused by the curriculum and delight in outings such as the recent visit to the Pink Pig Farm. They say that unkindness happens rarely but adults will sort it out. Pupils were clear that bullying is unkindness that happens many times.
• Pupils understand and appreciate their differences. They are happy to live and work alongside each other. They talk about the need to stay fit and healthy and show how they make healthy food and exercise choices at lunchtime. Many pupils benefit from attending the extra-curricular sporting clubs at lunchtime, which are provided so that those pupils who are unable to stay after school are not disadvantaged.
• Breakfast club provides working families with a happy and safe environment before school where pupils from all year groups take part in a wide range of activities and have breakfast. Pupils cooperate well together and respect each other’s differences.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Movement around the building and in classrooms is calm and orderly. Pupils are polite and well mannered to staff, visitors and each other. They understand and reflect on the consequences of their behaviour and actions. This is reinforced by the school’s behaviour management system.
• Detailed behaviour logs are monitored and evaluated and leaders take action to minimise the number of incidents. This has dramatically improved over the last three years. Disruption to learning through poor behaviour is infrequent, resulting in highly productive classroom learning environments.
• At break and lunchtime, pupils respect each other and the environment. Staff encourage pupils to have conversations as they eat lunch together. Outside, pupils mix well and play together, appropriately facilitated by adults.
• Attendance is now closer to average and the proportion of pupils who are regularly absent is reducing over time. Case studies confirm that as a result of interventions attendance quickly improves, for example in one situation from 75% to 94%. However, the cases of pupils who are regularly absent change due to high pupil mobility. Leaders are not yet checking the impact of the strategies implemented in each case to be able to more accurately evaluate progress over time.
• Due to the significant efforts and expertise of leaders and staff, pupils with poorer attendance still make good progress by receiving highly focused and targeted support when they are at school. School leaders are working closely with families and pupils to promote regular attendance at school, for example by encouraging parents to enrol children for the school’s two-year-old provision so they can make even more progress over their time at Wincobank.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• A relentless drive to improve outcomes for pupils has been successful. Leaders have secured a rapid improvement over the last three years so that by 2016, at the end of key stage 1, outcomes from all starting points, and for disadvantaged pupils, were above the national average.
• Current pupils are also making strong progress from their starting points. School assessment information shows that a very high proportion of pupils receiving pupil premium funding are making rapid progress across the curriculum and this is helping to diminish the difference between them and other pupils nationally by the end of key stage 1. Where attainment for this group is not in line with the national average, progress is effective but pupils have not attended school for as long and have not yet had the time needed to catch up with their peers.
• Pupils who join school with little or no English and have often not had previous experience of education catch up quickly as a result of the skilled instruction they receive from teachers and staff. The high levels of staffing and expertise within the staff team are achieved through effective use of the pupil premium funding.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are also making effective progress from their starting points and evidence in their books from a range of subjects and individual plans shows how effectively the provision is meeting their needs. Teaching strategies have been carefully selected and account is taken of pupil and parent views; this is resulting in pupils meeting the targets they have been set. Parents feel well informed and are very positive about how the school caters for their children’s individual needs.
• Progress accelerates over time for pupils who are disadvantaged or have special educational needs and/or disabilities, but sometimes begins more slowly if they are also new to school or speak English as an additional language. The school rightly places an emphasis on developing pupils’ confidence and basic language awareness first to enable them to be ready to access learning alongside their peers. This means that some pupils, while having made accelerated progress during their time at school, may not have reached the expected standard by the end of key stage 1. Leaders are keen to improve this even further so that more pupils are ready for the next stage of their education.
• Evidence in pupils’ books and work in lessons show good standards of presentation and activities which are appropriate to pupils’ prior learning and current stage of development. They are being well supported to make the progress they need to in order to catch up quickly due to many of them starting school with much lower standards than is typical for their age.
• Leaders are aware that the next step in improving outcomes is for a greater proportion of pupils, particularly the most able, to achieve beyond the expected standard by the end of key stage 1.
• Pupils are developing the skills needed to become fluent readers. They are equipped with the phonic strategies needed to tackle unfamiliar words and read with confidence. Less able readers can choose to use an electronic personalised programme at lunchtimes. Wearing headphones, they quickly become immersed into the reading world and are making good progress as a result.

Early years provision Good

• Leaders and directors introduced provision for two-year-olds in September 2015. Children settle well and are supported by experienced staff who quickly develop their vocabulary and place a focus on language acquisition and their subsequent readiness to learn as they progress through school. Children in this provision are very happy and demonstrate this when singing with enthusiasm.
• Leaders and staff have worked hard to develop good relationships with parents and parents are keen to share how they value the support they receive.
• Credible in-school assessment information shows that the vast majority of children, including those who are disadvantaged, have special educational needs and/or disabilities or speak English as an additional language, are making fast progress during their time in the early years. Pupil premium funding is being used effectively to accelerate progress for these children so that by the end of the key stage their achievement is closer to that of other pupils.
• As a result of adult expectations, children share, cooperate, take turns and respect each other’s differences. They listen and behave well as they access their learning.
• The learning environment both outside and indoors is organised well with high-quality, age-appropriate resources which children are able to access independently. Early years welfare requirements are all met.
• Children have high levels of attention and concentration, focusing on an activity with strong engagement. Children are encouraged to be independent, for example by collecting their name cards as a prompt to write their name correctly.
• High-quality relationships enable children to feel safe and cared for. Staff instil children with the confidence needed to keep on trying when they face difficulties. For example, when a tower of wooden blocks fell over many times, children kept on trying to rebuild it until they were successful. They enjoyed achieving what they had set out to do.
• Skilful adult support brings learning to life and encourages further engagement. During an adult-led activity, children describing aliens were encouraged to use ambitious words and then put them together into a sentence with great effect.
• Staff use questioning effectively to develop children’s learning. For example, asking a child to consider if their picture of a monkey included all the features resulted in the child returning to add more features. By asking the same child to reflect on how they had formed the letters in their name additional tailored support could be provided to move the child’s learning on.
• Staff are aware of each child’s next learning steps and help them to make the progress needed through carefully targeted small-group and individual work. Sometimes, expectations are not high enough for the most able children to be challenged sufficiently.
• Most children enter Nursery and Reception with much lower starting points than is usual for their age but make strong progress through their time in the early years. Although progress is good, not enough children are achieving a good level of development to prepare them for key stage 1. Leaders are keen to increase the proportion of children who meet the early learning goals and increasingly exceed them.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 140610 Sheffield 10023802 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Nursery/Infant School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Academy sponsor-led 3 to 7 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 238 Appropriate authority Brigantia Learning Trust Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address David Drayson Linda Hoyle 0114 249 0590 www.wincobankschool.net jtaff@wincobankschool.net Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• Wincobank Nursery and Infant School became part of a multi-academy trust in March 2014. In September 2015, the trust renamed itself the Brigantia Learning Trust. When its predecessor school, also known as Wincobank Nursery and Infant School, was last inspected by Ofsted it was judged to require improvement.
• The school introduced provision for two-year-olds in September 2015.
• The proportion of pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium is above average.
• More pupils are from minority ethnic communities than the national average. The largest group are of Roma heritage and many of these pupils enter school in Year 2, at the age that children begin their education in Slovakia. Many do not live in the local area but travel to the school from other parts of Sheffield where the schools are full.
• Approximately 34% of pupils speak English as an additional language. Many of these pupils enter school with little or no English.
• A higher than average proportion of pupils have been identified as requiring additional support for their special educational needs and/or disabilities. An average proportion have an education, health and care plan.
• The school operates a breakfast club.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.

Information about this inspection

• The inspectors observed teaching in every class. Most observations were undertaken jointly with either the headteacher or executive principal. Inspectors observed the teaching of early reading skills and listened to pupils read. They observed an assembly, talked to pupils about their school and evaluated the quality of work in a sample of pupils’ books.
• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher and executive principal, a representative from the local authority and two representatives of the academy board of directors. Inspectors also discussed the school’s work with: the early years leader; the special educational needs coordinator; the leader for English as an additional language; and the designated safeguarding lead. Discussions took place with teachers and support staff about the support and development they receive.
• A range of documentation was considered including the school’s self-evaluation; records of the monitoring of teaching and learning; the school improvement plan; analysis of the school’s performance data; information on the progress of particular pupil groups; information relating to the attendance and behaviour of pupils; safeguarding and child protection records; and minutes from academy trust board and committee meetings. Documents outlining the arrangements for the use of pupil premium and the PE and sport premium funding were also considered.
• Inspectors spoke to parents informally at the start and end of the school day and met a group of parents with an interpreter in order to seek their views about the school. Inspectors took account of the 19 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View).
• Seven responses to the staff questionnaire were also taken into account.

Inspection team

Kirsty Godfrey, lead inspector Sue Birch

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector