Scartho Junior School (Closed Academy Converter - Dec. 31, 2011)
Edge Avenue
Grimsby
Lincolnshire
DN332DH

Phone:01472 *** ***
Headteacher: Mr Neville David Rice

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229 pupils, Mixed

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

© Crown copyright 2009

Website: ofsted.gov.uk

Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two additional inspectors.

Description of the school

Most of the pupils at this average sized school are from White British family backgrounds. A small proportion of pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds, although none of these at are an early stage of learning to speak English. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is average. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals is below average. Since the previous inspection, the school has been accredited with a number of awards, including Activemark, Eco Schools Bronze, Healthy Schools and the Financial Management Standards in Schools.

Key for inspection grades

This good school has an accurate view of its effectiveness and provides good value for money. Some aspects are outstanding, such as the exciting range of enriching activities that enable pupils to develop a real joy in learning. Pupils feel totally safe in school because of the warmth that radiates from staff, and the very nurturing way that they care for pupils. Pupils are very keen to take action to improve their health, and participate enthusiastically in activities, such as energetic sporting activities and growing fruit and vegetables. Pupils behave well and show good attitudes to learning. They are keen to contribute positively towards their school community and proud to belong to it. Parents are very supportive. They also say that this is a, ‘school to be proud of’. They particularly appreciate the wealth of opportunities their children have to take part in, activities that present ‘new, interesting and exciting challenges’ so that their children really enjoy school.

As a result of good teaching and a good curriculum, pupils, including those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, make good progress from their above average starting points. Standards by the end of Year 6 are rising, and are significantly above average, particularly in mathematics and science. In English, although standards are above average, they are higher in reading than in writing. The school has identified improving writing as a priority, and sensible adaptations to the curriculum for writing are already helping to close this gap. Pupils’ progress continues to be hampered by a lack of opportunities for developing writing as part of work in other subjects. Although there are examples of good teaching and learning in all year groups, in Years 5 and 6, they are consistently good and pupils’ progress accelerates as a result. In these classes, very high expectations are set by staff. Activities that continually excite, engage and challenge the pupils, particularly the more able, teachers’ skilful questioning and high quality marking that guides pupils’ improvement are consistently evident. These very best teaching practices, particularly to challenge the more able pupils, are not as well embedded in Years 3 and 4.

Pupils’ good overall academic achievement and personal development are the result of good leadership, management and governance. The headteacher’s passion for ensuring that pupils achieve well in a very safe, happy and particularly enriching setting is highly evident. Senior leaders make a strong contribution to the evaluation of the school’s performance. Skilled evaluations of pupils’ performance ensure that improvement priorities, such as writing, are spotted quickly and that action is taken swiftly and decisively. Similarly, the professionalism and commitment of staff make a strong contribution to the school’s success. Improving standards, coupled with the strengthening of aspects of pupils’ personal development, demonstrate that the school has made good improvement since the previous inspection. These, along with pupils’ exceptional skills in information and communication technology (ICT), make sure that they are well placed to be successful as young adults of tomorrow. Excellent partnerships forged, particularly with other nearby schools, and the recent acquisition of a number of national awards, have also helped to benefit pupils’ well-being and strengthened the good quality of education on offer. There is a good capacity to continue to improve.

What the school should do to improve further

• Provide more opportunities for pupils to develop their writing skills in other subjects, so that standards in writing do not lag behind those in reading.
• Ensure that the best teaching practices are applied consistently well across Years 3 and 4, to accelerate progress, particularly for the more able pupils.

When pupils transfer from their infant school, standards are typically above average. Pupils make good progress from their starting points and standards by Year 6 are usually significantly above average, particularly in mathematics and science. In recent years, standards have generally been rising. The 2008 national test results for pupils in Year 6 were the highest in five years. This represents a significant improvement on 2007, when standards in English were only average, and results in writing were lower than expected. This is why the school has identified improving writing as a priority and, as a result of swift and decisive action, standards across the school are now above average. Even so, the proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels of attainment in writing continues to be below that in reading. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those from ethnic minorities achieve well because they have good support to complete work that is matched closely to their individual needs. Standards in ICT throughout the school are well above those expected nationally and pupils also achieve very well in music and French.

Pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is good. Pupils’ thorough enjoyment of school is reflected in their consistently above average attendance and in their enthusiasm to participate in the extremely wide variety of exciting activities on offer. Pupils learn together harmoniously, show care and respect towards one another and feel very safe. They behave well, demonstrate sensible and mature attitudes towards their learning and are always keen to do their best. Pupils’ excellent understanding of healthy lifestyles shows in their eagerness to take part in many energetic sporting activities. They are very clear why it is sensible to choose the healthy options at the tuck shop and at lunchtime. Pupils relish the many opportunities they have for taking on small responsibilities that contribute to the school running smoothly from day-to-day. They are keen to influence school decision making and to help bring about school improvement by, for example, acting as school councillors or ‘eco-warriors’. Pupils develop a good understanding of the diverse cultures worldwide through activities such as exchanging information with other schools in France and Qatar. Their understanding of the diversity of cultures in Britain, however, is not yet fully developed. Nevertheless, pupils’ good personal qualities and high standards in literacy, numeracy and ICT prepare them well for their next stage of education.

Good teaching and learning enable pupils to achieve well. Good organisation, positive relationships, thoughtful deployment of skilled teaching assistants and the extremely adept use of computerised teaching boards all make a strong contribution to pupils’ good progress. Very high quality specialist teaching in ICT, music and French contributes significantly to the excellent progress made by pupils in these subjects. Teachers make effective use of the information they collect, showing what pupils can already do, in order to plan the next steps in learning. Although there are examples of good teaching and learning in all year groups, it is consistently good in Years 5 and 6, and sometimes outstanding. As a result, learning accelerates. In these classes, very lively and stimulating activities that continually excite, engage and challenge the pupils, particularly the more able, skilful questioning that keeps all pupils on their toes, regular opportunities for pupils to discuss their learning together and high quality marking, all ensure that pupils rise to teachers’ very high expectations. These very best teaching practices are not as consistently well embedded in Years 3 and 4, where opportunities to challenge pupils’ thinking, particularly of the more able, are sometimes overlooked.

A good curriculum enables pupils to make good progress. Pupils’ outstanding enjoyment of school mirrors a very strong commitment by the headteacher to broadening and enriching everyday learning through many exciting and memorable experiences. Pupils participate with enthusiasm in an outstanding range of extra-curricular activities, residential visits, and numerous special themed activity weeks, such as environment week. Pupils’ outstanding achievement in ICT reflects an impressive range of innovative and creative opportunities for developing their skills across various curriculum subjects, for example, from podcasting to digital animation. Provision for music and French is also excellent. Recent adaptations to the curriculum for writing are helping to raise standards across the school. More exciting opportunities for writing as part of literacy lessons, and more dedicated time for developing writing skills are contributing to an improving picture. There are however, not yet enough opportunities for pupils to practise writing as part of work in other subjects, particularly when they complete undemanding worksheets. As a result, the gap between standards in reading and those in writing is yet to be bridged. A good range of support programmes boosts the progress of pupils working below the level expected for their age and of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

Pupils’ care and welfare are at the heart of the school. Staff know pupils very well, relationships are strong and high quality pastoral support is evident in daily practices. As a result, pupils feel very safe and are extremely confident that someone is always on hand to help them if they are worried or experiencing difficulties. Appropriate arrangements for safeguarding pupils are in place, and are currently being reviewed and strengthened. Pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make good progress. This is the result of well coordinated provision, which successfully unites parents, staff, and external support agencies with high quality teaching assistants. Procedures for swiftly spotting peaks and troughs in pupils’ learning and for checking their progress towards challenging learning targets are good. Staff use this information well to take appropriate action when learning could speed up, as in writing. Older pupils have a particularly good understanding of how to improve their academic work, which contributes to their accelerated progress. By regularly reviewing learning targets with staff, reflecting carefully on their own successes, and by responding to teachers’ high quality marking, pupils know precisely how to improve. These best practices are not yet consistently well embedded in all classes.

Leadership, management and governance are good. Making sure that pupils achieve well in a very caring, safe and highly enriching setting is the hallmark of the school’s success. Parents particularly appreciate the fact that their children enjoy school so very much. Their confidence in the school stems from the enthusiastic leadership of the headteacher and the commitment and dedication of staff. Leaders work extremely successfully in partnership with parents, other schools and the community. These partnerships significantly extend opportunities for the professional development of staff and extend the curriculum for pupils, such as in sport and ICT. Senior leaders work closely together to evaluate the school’s effectiveness. They have accurately acknowledged its strengths, pinpointed necessary improvements, such as writing, and regularly review and monitor the impact of improvement initiatives. There is a clear understanding of what is required to effectively promote community cohesion. Good opportunities exist for pupils to interact fruitfully with the local community and also develop links overseas. Plans are in place to extend their contribution to the wider national communities. Governors support the school effectively, particularly in responding to parental views and in managing financial matters. Subject leaders take on their additional responsibilities with enthusiasm and are becoming increasingly aware of the school’s performance. They, along with governors, are well aware that their next steps are to extend their skills in order to achieve a consistency of provision across the school.

Overall effectiveness

Achievement and standards

Personal development and well-being

The quality of provision

Leadership and management

Annex B

Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

5 June 2009

Dear Pupils

Inspection of Scartho Junior School, North East Lincolnshire, DN33 2DH

Thank you so much for the very warm welcome you gave us when we inspected your school. We really enjoyed being part of your school community. You were eager to talk to us and answered our questions thoughtfully, politely and maturely. Your behaviour was good and you showed good attitudes to your learning. It was good to hear that you feel so very safe in school. All the adults take very good care of you and give you lots of encouragement to grow in confidence and to learn the skills you will need as adults in the future. I particularly enjoyed hearing your excellent French language skills and playing in the samba band. We were extremely impressed with your computer skills, both in lessons and when some of you were taking part in the ‘ICT challenge day’ in the hall with children from other local schools. You get lots of chances to learn by taking part in exciting activities like these, helped by good teaching. No wonder you told us that you enjoy coming to school so very much.

Your parents told us they are pleased with your school too. We agree with them that you go to a good school. By Year 6, the standards you reach are much higher than expected for that age and the rate at which you learn is also faster than expected. Your high standards, good progress and attitudes to learning are the reasons why you are well prepared for going to secondary school. Even though the adults who work at your school know that you do well in your learning, they still search for ways to improve your school, so that it continues to get better all the time. This is why we have asked the school to make sure that:

• you have more chances to develop writing when you do work in all the curriculum subjects, so that you do as well in writing as you do in reading
• all of your teachers give you work that makes you think really hard and that always gives you the chance to show what you are capable of.

You can help by making sure that you always check what you still have to do to reach your learning targets, and by continuing to try your best in everything you do.

I hope you enjoyed your environment week and that the cricket team is successful in the forthcoming regional final.

Yours sincerely

Kathryn Dodd

Lead inspector