Coston Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Short inspection of Coston Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 9 July 2019, I write on behalf of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Education, Children's Services and Skills to report the inspection findings.

The visit was the first short inspection carried out since your school was judged to be good in May 2015. This school continues to be good. The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection.

You share a strong, inclusive ethos with the school community. Leaders are responsive and have the highest aspirations and ambition for the pupils at the school. You have recently created a specialist provision that exemplifies the school's inclus...ive nature.

Leaders readily take advice. For example, following a recent review, they improved their safeguarding arrangements. A safeguarding steering group has been formed which includes members of the leadership team and governors.

Their remit is to improve the safety and welfare of all members of the school community. One of their first actions was to improve parents' awareness of the risks for pupils when online. Governors challenge leaders well.

This is shown, for example, by their recent questioning of leaders, which focused on pupils' outcomes in the national phonics screening check. They have a strong awareness of developments in teaching and learning. For example, they discussed the school's development of the 'reading into writing' programme with staff and watched the process in action in classrooms.

Governors are imaginative in the way they work, as shown by their sharing of responsibilities, including the chairing of meetings. They receive training prior to their meetings and told me that this training has been invaluable in helping them to provide both challenge and support for leaders. The areas identified for improvement at the previous inspection have been addressed.

However, as leaders are aware, pupils' outcomes in some subjects are not yet in line with those of their peers nationally; and for some pupils absence is a factor in their underachievement. Additionally, teaching strategies remain an area for development. Safeguarding is effective.

The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. Regular and appropriate training for all staff has meant that any issues regarding the safety of pupils at the school are quickly dealt with. Several leaders have had further training to oversee safeguarding at the school, so there is always a senior member of staff available to refer to.

Leaders are highly vigilant when exercising their safeguarding duties and, when issues arise, they quickly deal with them. Leaders have put appropriate support in place to ensure the safety of all members of the school community. For example, outside speakers have addressed assemblies to raise the awareness of online bullying and parents have been kept informed on how best to keep their children safe.

Pupils told me that they feel safe at school. They understand how adults keep them safe and they appreciate the school rules. For example, they stick to the areas of the playground they are allowed to play in.

They know who they can talk to should they have a concern and they also explained to me the school rules for using the internet. Inspection findings ? At the beginning of the inspection we agreed on three lines of enquiry. The first was based on pupils' outcomes in writing at the end of key stage 2.

This was chosen because, overall, pupils' attainment in writing in 2018 was below average. ? Leaders track pupils' progress in writing well, using teachers' detailed records and discussion at 'standards meetings' to identify any underperformance. For example, leaders know that most disadvantaged pupils make progress from their starting points in line with their peers; but that a few with more complex needs require additional support to make the progress of which they are capable.

• Teaching strategies that support pupils' writing are being continually developed. These include the introduction by middle leaders of quality texts to stimulate pupils' writing. Through skilful adaptations to the literacy curriculum, pupils are encouraged to write extended pieces.

Raised expectations have led to improvements in writing skills, including punctuation. Pupils are given more time to reflect upon, edit and improve their own work. ? As a result of these strategies, pupils now write with greater depth and purpose.

For example, pupils prepared for writing by analysing a quality text to identify the language used, structural features, purpose and audience. Pupils' own writing includes skilful descriptions, creating vivid scenes that engage the reader. Even so, leaders recognise that the most able pupils are not yet making the consistently strong progress in writing of which they are capable.

• The second line of enquiry was based on your additional resource provision (ARP) for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This was chosen because the provision is a new venture for the school, and we wanted to establish how well this initiative has been led and managed and its impact on pupils. ? You recognised the need for further support for pupils with SEND within the school and the local community.

Despite some initial difficulties, with the wholehearted support of the local authority, the ARP has been successfully launched with a full cohort of pupils. Governors visit the ARP when they come to school. They appreciate how calm an environment the area is and the efforts that leaders have made to integrate pupils.

Initially, parents were hesitant to move their children into the ARP. Leaders quickly built up positive relationships based on mutual trust. ? From the outset leaders were ambitious for the ARP.

Leaders recognised that the new intake would have little tolerance for a full day at school. Consequently, they put in place timetables that enabled learners to begin with a phased introduction to the provision. This had the desired effect.

Now, all ARP pupils spend a full day at the school, including time spent in mainstream classrooms learning with their peers. All mainstream teachers have received advice and training on supporting their needs. ? The final line of enquiry was based on pupils' attendance.

We agreed this because recent attendance rates were below those found nationally. ? Leaders understand the need for high attendance. They appreciate that there is a correlation between attendance and pupils' outcomes.

Leaders have placed significant emphasis on improving attendance and a number of parents told me that attendance is a high priority at the school. ? Leaders recognise the diverse backgrounds of their pupils. For example, a prominent display in the school entrance highlights the large range of countries that pupils originate from.

Leaders also recognise that, for these families, the number of term-time visits home is having a negative impact on overall attendance. Next steps for the school Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that: ? the emphasis on writing in key stage 2, particularly for the most able, produces outcomes that are at least in line with those of their peers nationally ? efforts to improve attendance have a positive impact on reducing the levels of absenteeism. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children's services for Ealing.

This letter will be published on the Ofsted website. Yours sincerely Jason Hughes Ofsted Inspector Information about the inspection I looked at a range of pupils' work, together with middle and senior leaders. I met with governors, including the chair of the governing body, and the school improvement partner.

Leaders accompanied me on visits to lessons, where we observed teaching and learning, spoke with pupils and looked at their work. I examined a range of documentation relating to safeguarding, including the single central record of staff checks. I scrutinised Ofsted's online survey for parents (38 responses) and associated commentary (37 comments), as well as the staff survey (32 responses).

There were no responses to the pupil survey. I examined the school's website and reviewed information about pupils' progress, attainment and attendance. I also considered the school's evaluation of how well it is doing, its improvement priorities and assessment information for current pupils.

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