Wakefield Snapethorpe Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Continue to strengthen pupils’ early reading skills by ensuring that they have access to a systematic and rigorous programme of phonics teaching.
• Continue to diminish any differences in the progress and attainment of disadvantaged pupils.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Outstanding

• School leaders, staff and governors, led exceptionally well by the headteacher, share an absolute conviction and passion for ensuring that all pupils achieve well, regardless of their background or ability. Working together collegiately, leaders and governors aspire to ensure that all staff and pupils succeed.
• Staff and leaders at all levels work tirelessly to solve problems and make continuous improvements, teamwork being the catalyst for change. When concerns or difficulties arise, they focus on implementing and sustaining improvements. This is seen, for example, in the whole-school approach to embedding a system that allows pupils to discuss and share ideas confidently, raising their self-esteem and engagement in the learning process.
• Leaders ensure that all pupils have equal opportunities to succeed, regardless of the challenges they may face to achieving well. They ensure that pupils’ progress is tracked systematically and accurately and that any emerging concerns are acted on quickly. The newly appointed assistant headteachers are playing a pivotal role in driving forward progress and achievement in mathematics and English. They are championing the needs of disadvantaged pupils in order to quickly diminish any differences between the achievement of this group of pupils and other pupils in the school.
• Systems to check the quality of teaching are incisive, highly detailed and carefully planned week by week. Leaders and teachers act quickly to address any emerging underperformance. For example, new systems to deliver a systematic and rigorous approach to the teaching of phonics are now being implemented to address pupils’ early reading skills. These new systems are having an immediate impact, as this year a significantly increased proportion of pupils are demonstrating achievement at the expected standard for pupils in Year 1.
• Leaders challenge and support staff to do their very best and help all staff to fulfil their potential. Teachers share responsibility for all pupils in school, sharing best practice and supporting each other. Staff have targets closely linked to the school’s improvement priorities and leaders hold them to account for the progress made by pupils in each class. Targets are rigorously checked to ensure that pupils make speedy progress from their various starting points.
• The school’s curriculum provides exciting, stimulating and relevant contexts through which pupils can develop their basic skills and become increasingly responsible citizens. It is tailored and adapted to meet the needs of pupils in this area of Wakefield, and is underpinned by such themes as resilience, aspiration, enterprise and mutual respect. These themes are woven through the curriculum. A large number of extra-curricular clubs, around 15 per week, are attended by nearly half of all pupils at school. Activities such as art, baking, modelling, computing and gardening support pupils’ learning very effectively.
• The curriculum is enriched and enlivened by a series of visitors to school, and visits to places of local interest that hook pupils’ imaginations and curiosity. These opportunities stimulate pupils’ thirst for knowledge. For example, pupils talked animatedly about visiting the seaside or the Jorvik Viking Centre in York.
• The curriculum promotes a ‘can do’ ethos, within which everyone is accepted and expected to thrive. Pupils show great respect and tolerance of individual differences and lifestyles, learning to work cooperatively with each other. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is excellent. The school has innovatively introduced six Cub Scout packs, officially commissioned, to enhance further this aspect of the school’s provision.
• Pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged pupils is effectively targeted and is supporting pupils, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, to fulfil their potential. The newly appointed ‘pupil premium champion’ has a crystal-clear understanding of any potential barriers to learning for disadvantaged pupils in school and outside school. Incisive actions are rapidly diminishing the difference between the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and that of other pupils.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported very well, including by the highly effective work undertaken by the school’s learning mentors. Leaders identify pupils’ needs early and track their progress accurately. Consequently, the special educational needs funding is used very effectively.
• Leaders make effective use of the physical education and sport funding for schools. An external sports coach has delivered lessons in school and enhanced teachers’ expertise and confidence. The number of pupils participating in inter-school competitive events has increased, and pupils are accessing locally based sports’ clubs.
• Parents are highly supportive, and the vast majority stated in the school questionnaire that they are very happy with the school. One parent told an inspector that the school is ‘absolutely brilliant, really supportive like one big family’.

Governance of the school

• Governors bring a range of appropriate professional skills and experience to the school that enhance their effectiveness and impact. They share the passion and commitment of the headteacher and senior leaders. Governors challenge and question school leaders well, holding them to account for the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, as well as for the outcomes for pupils, as seen in statutory tests and school assessment information.
• Governors make it their business to know about the work of the school and have an accurate and incisive view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They participate in monitoring activities, such as analysing work in pupils’ books and making short visits to classes, alongside senior leaders.
• The governing body ensures that school finances are secure and that spending decisions are based on ensuring the very best outcomes for pupils and the very best environment in which to learn. They fulfil their statutory duties well, taking them seriously.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are highly effective.
• 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. This is clearly seen in the friendly, happy and confident manner of the pupils in school.
• Policies, procedures and records are of exemplary quality and are up to date. All staff are appropriately trained, and registers of staff training are completed. Staff have access to well-written policies and guidance and, as a result, have a very secure understanding of their individual responsibilities for safeguarding.
• The long-established culture of keeping pupils safe remains very evident. Leaders ensure that a culture of safeguarding is embedded among all staff, and they leave no stone unturned in their duty to keep pupils safe.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Outstanding

• The school’s assessment information, teaching observed on this inspection and pupils’ work demonstrate that teaching over time is outstanding. Teachers have consistently high expectations of the work and behaviours expected of pupils. They believe that all pupils should aspire to achieve their best. Consequently, the vast majority of pupils currently in the school are achieving very well in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Teachers and teaching assistants have strong subject knowledge and structure learning effectively. This helps them to intervene and further challenge pupils in a consistent and imaginative manner, so that pupils develop a deeper understanding of the subject or topic. For example, in a Year 6 class, pupils were able to reflect on the use of informal or formal language when drafting a piece of writing, following an expert intervention from the class teacher.
• Assessment is used skilfully during lessons to ensure that there is continuous progression in learning for pupils. Misconceptions and gaps in learning are anticipated and addressed quickly, and sometimes used as teaching points for others.
• Work is pitched accurately according to pupils’ abilities, including for the most able pupils, enabling them to succeed in school. For example, in Year 5, most-able pupils were challenged in their work on the perimeter of shapes to find different solutions for the length of sides of a rectangle with a given perimeter. This allowed pupils to represent their ideas and demonstrate their reasoning for chosen solutions.
• Teachers know pupils well and are sensitive to their needs. When there are potential difficulties emerging, teachers and skilled teaching assistants help to make a substantial contribution to securing pupils’ learning. Consequently, disadvantaged pupils or those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make similarly strong progress to others in school.
• Pupils enjoy learning. They understand that their attitudes to learning have a positive impact on their own progress and that of others. Pupils are self-disciplined, and have a steely determination to succeed. Shared class ‘chants’ to celebrate success are acted and spoken aloud with fun and vigour, especially by younger pupils.
• Teachers are working hard to implement a rigorous and systematic programme of the teaching of phonics, in order to allow pupils to get off to a faster start in their early reading skills. This has been a comparatively weaker area of the school’s work until recently.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• The school works tirelessly to ensure that all pupils are safe and well cared for. Adults work closely with pupils and families in a supportive and sensitive manner. Pupils said that they feel extremely safe in school. Pupils show high levels of respect and care for each other. They value their classmates’ opinions and work happily and cooperatively in lessons.
• Pupils’ attitudes to learning are exemplary, and most are very keen to succeed and to always produce their very best work. They grow in confidence during their time in school, acquiring an assured and resilient approach to developing their own learning. They take their roles of responsibility in the school community very seriously.
• Bullying or racist incidents are extremely rare. If they do occur, they are promptly challenged, recorded and tracked to ensure that underlying causes are understood and resolved. Pupils know that offensive language is not acceptable and have full confidence in staff to resolve any issues of poor behaviour.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.
• The strong relationships in school and high levels of trust between adults and pupils ensure that pupils’ conduct in lessons and around school is exemplary. Pupils are polite, caring, considerate and friendly to each other and to visitors. Playtimes are harmonious occasions when pupils play happily together.
• Pupils enjoy their learning, and most work conscientiously. They have a clear understanding of which aspects of behaviour help them to learn and which behaviours get in the way. In classrooms, pupils listen to adults attentively, and respond immediately and without fuss to instructions. They collaborate with peers when asked and drive themselves to complete tasks and challenges on time. Lessons proceed in a calm and studious atmosphere, highly conducive to learning.
• Attendance rates have risen this year and are now just below average and improving for all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils. The school views attendance extremely seriously and the work of the parental support adviser with identified families is beginning to have a markedly positive effect. There are numerous incentives for pupils to attend regularly, and any absences are followed up immediately to ensure that pupils are safe and have an equality of opportunity to learn.

Outcomes for pupils Outstanding

• As a result of consistently high expectations, high-quality teaching, pupils’ positive learning behaviour and an unwavering determination to succeed, outcomes for pupils are outstanding.
• Evidence from the high-quality work in pupils’ books, matched by detailed information from the school’s current assessment system, shows unequivocally that pupils currently in the school are making very strong progress in reading, writing and mathematics and a wide range of other subjects from their individual starting points. The work in pupils’ workbooks shows that the quality and standard of work in subjects such as science is as strong as it is in English and in mathematics.
• Pupils’ attainment by the end of key stage 1 in reading, writing and mathematics has improved markedly this year. From below-average starting points, a large majority are working at the age-related standard and an increasing proportion is working at a higher standard. From this cohort’s attainment at the end of Reception, this demonstrates substantial progress.
• Based on accurate and reliable school assessment information, which matches closely the work found in current pupils’ books, key stage 2 pupils’ progress and attainment, particularly in reading and writing, have recovered from the disappointing dip in the 2016 statutory assessment tests. The inspection uncovered convincing evidence to account for the unexpected dip in the test and teacher assessment results in 2016.
• The most able pupils are given support which fully challenges them to achieve the levels of which they are capable and make sustained progress. This progress, including that of the most able disadvantaged pupils currently in the school, matches the progress of their classmates and is continuing to accelerate. The school supports the achievement of its most-able pupils very well.
• As a result of the effective and strategic use of the pupil premium funding, disadvantaged pupils in each year group are making extremely strong progress in English and mathematics and are achieving well, although there are small variations in each cohort across the school. The difference between the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and their classmates in school has diminished markedly over the year, so that in many year groups and subjects progress and attainment are identical.
• The school is quick to identify any pupils who may be at risk of falling behind. Teachers make effective provision for these pupils through activities that are well matched to their individual needs and abilities. This includes pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Where needed, individual support plans are in place, with challenging targets. As a result, the progress made by these pupils is as strong as that of their peers.
• New systems and procedures put in place for pupils to master early reading skills through the teaching of phonics are having a marked effect. As a result, the proportion of current Year 1 pupils demonstrating knowledge and skills at the expected standard has improved substantially.

Early years provision Outstanding

• The vast majority of children start the early years with skills and knowledge that are below those typical for their age. As a result of incisive leadership, outstanding teaching and provision, robust assessment, careful observation and good questioning, current children, including disadvantaged children, make extremely strong progress and are well prepared to start Year 1, both academically and socially. The proportion of children reaching a good level of development has risen every year since 2014, and this year has again improved so that it is broadly in line with the 2016 national average.
• Children are eager to explore and learn. They enjoy the opportunities provided to investigate and they learn happily together. Leaders are highly skilled in developing areas of provision to maximise learning opportunities for all children, based on accurate and ongoing assessments. For example, activities to stimulate the interest and engagement of boys through exciting role-play areas and investigative tasks with sand and water have been highly successful, inspiring boys to mark-make and choose to write indoors and outdoors.
• Children’s behaviour is consistently of a very high standard. Progress in personal, social and emotional development is excellent and results from the climate of high expectations promoted by all adults. This accounts for the strengths seen in children’s behaviour and in their relationships with adults and each other. They are encouraged to take turns and to consider others, which they do very successfully.
• Children make consistently high rates of progress from low starting points. Attainment differences from low starting points are continuing to diminish rapidly as a result of close monitoring and effective teaching. Pupils’ academic progress is complemented by rapid progress in their social and emotional development and their speech and language skills from low starting points.
• All adults are adept at talking with and questioning children, which develops children’s understanding and their confidence in speaking and listening. Adults observe children carefully and build on their interests. They carefully support children’s learning through prompts and they work alongside children during imaginative and creative play sessions. Teachers provide a highly stimulating and exceptionally well-resourced environment where children are inquisitive and curious and mainly show excellent levels of concentration.
• Children settle to learning swiftly and sustain excellent concentration in phonics and numeracy lessons from a very early age. Teachers have good subject knowledge that supports children in developing positive reading and arithmetic skills. Teachers promote children’s interest in writing from a very early stage, and children display a clear pride in the skills they develop. Every opportunity is taken to extend children’s thinking. When a ladybird emerged in the outside learning environment, a child was fascinated by it. An adult seized on this opportunity to engage the child in discussion and encouraged counting of the spots on its back.
• The experienced and highly skilled early years team understands the learning needs of young children and shares the same passion and drive to see children thrive. The team members have a clear understanding of the strengths in early years and collaboratively identify key areas for improvement.
• All teachers monitor children’s progress rigorously and record this accurately. Learning journals across Nursery and Reception show that children make excellent progress from their starting points. Teachers have an accurate picture of children’s abilities and learning needs and adapt teaching and learning opportunities skilfully to further their development.
• Safeguarding practices in the early years are highly effective. Children are taught how to manage risks from an early age and the robust safeguarding culture that permeates the school is equally apparent in the early years. There are no material breaches of statutory welfare requirements, as children are safe and well supported.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 133758 Wakefield 10008209 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 669 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Keith Earnshaw Nikki Summers 01924 367396 www.snapethorpeprimary.co.uk/ headteacher@snapethorpeprimary.co.uk Date of previous inspection 26─ 27 March 2013

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• Wakefield Snapethorpe is much larger than the average-sized primary school.
• The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for support through the pupil premium funding is well above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups and who speak English as an additional language is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is above average.
• Early years education is full time in the Reception year and part time in Nursery.
• The school meets the current floor standard, which is the government’s minimum expectation for attainment and progress in English and mathematics at the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed learning in lessons, including a number of visits to lessons observed jointly with the headteacher. In addition, inspectors listened to some pupils from Years 1, 2 and 3 read, and inspectors reviewed a sample of pupils’ work alongside the members of the senior leadership team.
• Inspectors held meetings with governors, the headteacher and deputy headteacher, the assistant headteachers and members of the teaching staff. Inspectors also met the parent support adviser and learning mentors, and spoke to some parents and the school’s improvement partner. They also held meetings with pupils from the school council.
• Inspectors 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. Inspectors also reviewed the school improvement plan, documents relating to safeguarding and records of behaviour and attendance.
• Inspectors took account of the parental responses to the school’s own questionnaire, as there were insufficient responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View. There were no responses to the online questionnaire for staff or pupils. The school’s website was also scrutinised.

Inspection team

Phil Scott, lead inspector Linda Clay Dave Brown Catherine Precious Hazel Henson Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector