Inspection Report South Darley Church of England
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INSPECTION REPORT SOUTH DARLEY CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL Matlock, Derbyshire LEA area: Derbyshire Unique reference number: 112842 Headteacher: Mr D Mayo-Braiden Reporting inspector: Mr Sean O’Toole 20891 Dates of inspection: 17th – 19th March 2003 Inspection number: 247279 Full inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 © Crown copyright 2003 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL Type of school: Infant and Junior School category: Voluntary Controlled Age range of pupils: 5 – 11 years Gender of pupils: Mixed School address: Cross Green Matlock Derbyshire Postcode: DE4 2JT Telephone number: 01629 732240 Fax number: 01629 732240 Appropriate authority: The Governing Body Name of chair of governors: Mr John Evans Date of previous inspection: October 1997 South Darley CofE Primary - 3 INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM Subject responsibilities Team members Aspect responsibilities 20891 Sean O'Toole Registered Equal opportunities; The school's results and inspector Special educational needs; pupils' achievements; English as an additional How well are pupils language; taught; Mathematics; How good are the Science; curricular and other Information and opportunities offered to communication technology pupils; (ICT); How well is the school Art and design; led and managed; Design and technology; What should the school Physical education. do to improve further. 13526 Richard Barnard Lay inspector Pupils' attitudes, values and personal development; How well does the school care for its pupils; How well does the school work in partnership with parents. 20911 Judith Dawson Team Foundation Stage; inspector English; Geography; History; Music; Religious education. The inspection contractor was: SES Ltd 132 Whitaker Road Derby DE23 6AP Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to: The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division The Office for Standards in Education Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE South Darley CofE Primary - 4 REPORT CONTENTS Page PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6 Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school PART B: COMMENTARY HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS 10 The school’s results and pupils’ achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development HOW WELL ARE PUPILS TAUGHT 13 HOW GOOD ARE THE CURRICULAR AND OTHER OPPORTUNITIES OFFERED TO PUPILS 15 HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS 16 HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS 17 HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED 18 WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER 19 PART C: SCHOOL DATA AND INDICATORS 21 PART D: THE STANDARDS AND QUALITY OF TEACHING IN AREAS OF THE CURRICULUM, SUBJECTS AND COURSES 26 South Darley CofE Primary - 5 PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL South Darley Church of England Primary is a much smaller than average sized school located close to Matlock. The pupils come from the surrounding area which is above average socio-economically. A total of 68 pupils aged between four and eleven attend the school with 28 boys and 40 girls. Almost all of the pupils are of white British heritage and none has English as an additional language. One in thirteen pupils are eligible for free school meals which is below average. There are four pupils with special educational needs (below average) and three have a statement of special educational need (above average). Almost all children starting in the reception class have benefited from some pre-school educational experience. Attainment on admission is generally above average. Since the previous inspection the governors have appointed a new headteacher and a part-time teacher. HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS This very good school provides an exciting and stimulating environment in which pupils thrive. The school is led and managed very well and the staff comprise a highly effective team. The quality of teaching and learning are very good and pupils are inspired to do their best. The needs of all are carefully considered and everyone is included and made to feel special. Standards are good and pupils make very good progress in most subjects. The school provides very good value for money. What the school does well · Attainment overall is above average and pupils achieve particularly well in English throughout the school and in mathematics, science and music at the end of Year 6 · The quality of teaching is very good and pupils learn very effectively · The school benefits from very good leadership and management · Pupils’ behaviour, attitudes and personal, social and emotional development are excellent · There is excellent provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development · Parents make an exceptional contribution to the life of the school What could be improved · Standards in science at the end of Year 2 The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan. HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION The school has made good improvement since it was inspected in October 1997. Issues raised in the last report have been dealt with successfully and the school now has a good system of assessment linked to effective planning. There is now a useful development plan which is being used well to improve standards. Since 1999 there has been a generally rising trend in pupils’ performance. The quality of teaching has improved and leadership and management are well focused and determined. The staff are an effective team and work well with governors; the school is in a good position to build upon its strengths. South Darley CofE Primary - 6 STANDARDS The table shows the standards achieved by pupils at the end of Year 6 based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests. compared with similar Performance in: all schools Key schools 2000 2001 2002 2002 well above average A English B A A C above average B average C Mathematics A A* A B below average D well below average E Science D A C D There are variations in performance from year to year due largely to the small numbers of pupils taking the tests. In 2002 test results at the end of Year 2 showed that standards in reading and writing were well above average but they were below average in mathematics and science. The variation between the subjects is partly due to the proportion of pupils with special educational needs with specific learning difficulties in mathematics and science. When compared to schools with similar intakes standards in reading and writing were above average but well below in mathematics. Inspection evidence shows improvement in mathematics and science partly due to improved assessment and curriculum and better teaching. Inspectors find that standards at the end of Year 2 are well above average in English and above average in mathematics. By the end of Year 6, standards in English, mathematics and science are well above average and improvements are due to some excellent and very good teaching. The school sets sufficiently challenging targets and the pupils are on course to meet them. Overall, the progress made by pupils throughout the school is very good. Pupils with special educational needs achieve very well and make very good progress because of the high levels of support they receive. The more able and gifted and talented pupils are set challenging work and this moves their learning on at a brisk pace. Children in the reception year make very good progress and by the time they start in Year 1 most have exceeded the expected goals for their age in all of the areas of learning. They are particularly successful in personal, social and emotional development and communication, language and literacy. In Years 1 to 6 pupils achieve successfully in other subjects. The standards in music are well above average. Standards are above average by the end of Years 2 and 6 in design and technology, art and design and religious education, and in history by the end of Year 6. PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES Aspect Comment Attitudes to the school Excellent. Pupils are enthusiastic and eager participants in all aspects of school life. They especially enjoy extra-curricular activities. Behaviour, in and out of Excellent. Pupils work and play together in harmony. Rough play and classrooms bullying are rare and there have been no exclusions. Personal development and Excellent. The pupils help to create a purposeful and vibrant community. relationships They are involved in decision-making and are helpful and constructive members of the community. Attendance Very good. Pupils love school and absence is rare. Attendance rates are South Darley CofE Primary - 7 well above the national average. TEACHING AND LEARNING Teaching of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6 Quality of teaching Very good Very good Very good Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.