Heymann Primary and Nursery School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Short inspection of Heymann Primary School

Following my visit to the school on 22 June 2016, 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 the school was judged to be good in September 2010. This school continues to be good. The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection.

You have led the school through significant change since then, with a rapid growth in pupil numbers currently underway. While this has necessitated the opening of a second site a few minutes' walk away, the school's values, and your staff's... high expectations of pupils' work and behaviour, are evident and consistently applied in both buildings. The school's staff and pupils have embraced the mix of cultural backgrounds represented at the school, which has also increased very quickly.

Leaders have thoughtfully planned the school's curriculum to develop pupils' social, moral and cultural education. For example, during our visits to lessons, the enjoyment and engagement of a Year 2 class learning French was evident. Displays in both buildings proudly celebrate the diversity and achievements of the pupils, reflecting the importance of British values such as tolerance, respect and compassion, which are embedded in the school's values.

Year 6 pupils I spoke with told me how respectful pupils are towards each other's cultures and religions, and how the school's staff promote and develop this positive attitude through lessons, trips and topic weeks that focus on particular themes. The rules of 'be kind, be fair, be honest, be safe' are clearly developed to the full and instilled in the pupils from their first day at the school. Leaders and governors have acted effectively on the areas for improvement identified at the time of the last inspection.

The school is calm and orderly at all times of the day because pupils follow well-established routines and are polite and courteous at all times. Information on pupils' achievements is extensive, detailed and meticulously reviewed by governors, leaders and teachers to ensure that any pupil's underperformance is addressed quickly and effectively. This wealth of information has enabled leaders and teachers to respond rapidly and effectively to the dip in pupils' outcomes in key stages 1 and 2 in 2015, particularly in writing and mathematics.

Your current assessments of pupils' attainment and progress, supported by work in their books, show that the vast majority of pupils are making good progress towards meeting age-related expectations in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of the year. Assessment practices in other subjects are less well developed and inconsistently applied across the school. This means that pupils do not achieve as well as they could do in all areas of the curriculum.

Published information on pupils' performance in 2015 shows that disadvantaged pupils' progress in reading, writing and mathematics was not as good as that of other pupils. Their attendance was also below the national average. You provided me with compelling evidence that, when reviewed individually, all disadvantaged pupils made, and continue to make, good progress and they attain well, given their particular needs and starting points.

However, the relatively small number of disadvantaged pupils on the school's roll means that pupils who have achieved well but not reached age-related expectations often disproportionately affect published information. The situation is similar with attendance, where it is clear that you are taking all possible steps to ensure all pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, attend regularly. Safeguarding is effective.

Leaders and governors place a high priority on keeping pupils safe. Comprehensive records show the range and extent of staff training on issues such as child sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation, the prevention of extremism and first aid. Safeguarding training is a key component of induction training for new staff and volunteers.

Leaders analyse incident logs regularly to identify and address any patterns or trends so that risks to pupils are minimised. Leaders ensure that policies and procedures for safeguarding pupils are up to date and followed closely, in particular those relating to the recruitment of staff and volunteers. Leaders use risk assessments to minimise the possibility of harm coming to pupils, such as on school trips.

Year 6 pupils can explain how they are kept safe in school and how they can keep themselves safe, for example when using the internet or cycling. They say that there are very few incidents involving name-calling, bullying or racism but, should these occur, pupils are adamant that an adult will act immediately and effectively. Inspection findings ??Leaders and governors have an accurate understanding of the school's strengths and areas in need of further development.

They have identified wholly appropriate improvement priorities that reflect their high ambitions for the pupils, within a comprehensive development plan. As a result, the school has continued to improve since the last inspection. ??Governors receive comprehensive information from the headteacher relating to, for example, pupils' achievements and the school's finances.

They check the headteacher's view of the school by making regular monitoring visits and comparing the school's performance to that of other similar schools nationally. Governors' minutes show that they ask searching questions of school leaders and challenge what they are told to ensure that they have an accurate view of the school's performance. ??Senior and subject leaders pride themselves on knowing each child's academic, social and emotional needs in detail.

They pay particular attention to the progress of pupils who are prone to underperformance, such as those who are disadvantaged or have special educational needs and/or disabilities. As a result, the vast majority of these pupils achieve at least as well as their peers. ??Leaders use the additional funding provided through the pupil premium very effectively to support disadvantaged pupils.

Additional teaching support accelerates the academic progress of these pupils and, for the vast majority, this reduces the gap between their attainment and that of other pupils nationally. However, the impact of the funding goes far beyond this, for example in promoting sporting excellence for pupils, where appropriate. ??Children entering the early years make a good start to their education.

The proportion leaving the early years at a good level of development is consistently above the national figure. This means that they are well prepared for the next stage of their education. ??In 2015, the proportion of pupils attaining at age-expected levels by the end of key stage 1 was below the national average in reading, while the proportion attaining at the highest level was well above average.

In writing, pupils' attainment was below average at every level. ??By the end of key stage 2, the proportion of pupils meeting age-related expectations was below average in mathematics. Attainment in writing was below average at the higher levels.

Over time, a lower than average proportion of pupils made expected or more than expected progress in mathematics. ??Specific groups of pupils, such as the most and least able, typically achieve as well as, or better than, similar pupils nationally. Leaders track the progress and attainment of all groups at risk of underachievement very closely and quickly identify any underperformance.

The school's assessment system allows for detailed analysis that also supports teachers in identifying and addressing gaps in pupils' learning and this helps to accelerate their progress. ??Current assessment data shows that the vast majority of pupils are making at least the progress expected of pupils their age in reading, writing and mathematics. As a result, they have met or exceeded expectations for pupils of their age.

The small minority who have not met age-related expectations have made at least good progress from their starting points. ??Samples of work in pupils' books provide strong evidence to support the accuracy of the school's assessment information. Pupils of different ages exhibit increasing maturity in the content of their writing and improved accuracy in their spelling and grammar.

They write confidently for extended periods, engaging the reader through their vocabulary choices and increasing knowledge of particular writing genres. ??Teachers give pupils many and varied opportunities to use and apply their mathematical skills and this is embedding and deepening pupils' understanding and learning. Teachers' and teaching assistants' questioning skills are increasingly effective in developing pupils' reasoning skills and this is helping pupils to master their learning.

??Teachers apply the school's policies on assessment, and marking and feedback to pupils, consistently in writing and mathematics. As a result, teachers are more precise in their guidance to pupils, and pupils are clear about how improve their work. However, this consistency of approach does not extend across the curriculum and this results in pupils not making as much progress as they could in all subjects.

Next steps for the school Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that: ? the emerging good practice in the assessment of reading, writing and mathematics is extended to ensure that pupils make progress that is at least good in all subjects. ??I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children's services for Nottinghamshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

Yours sincerely Stephen McMullan Her Majesty's Inspector Information about the inspection During the inspection, I met with you, both deputy headteachers, the special needs coordinator, an assessment coordinator, the school's office manager, four governors and some pupils from Years 6. I considered the 40 responses on Parent View, Ofsted's online questionnaire, and one letter sent directly to Ofsted by a parent during the inspection. I also considered the 30 responses to the online pupils' questionnaire and the views of 28 staff through the online survey that they completed.

I visited classrooms in Years 2, 4 and 6, jointly with you and your deputy headteachers, and we looked at a sample of pupils' work together. I looked at a range of documents, including an evaluation of the school's performance; plans for school improvement; information on how the pupil premium (additional funding for pupils currently, or previously, in receipt of free school meals) is spent; a number of policy documents, including those for child protection and special educational needs, and the minutes from meetings of the governing body. I looked at the school's website; this meets requirements for the publication of specified information.

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