Ofsted Monitoring Visit, 19th June 2018

Dear parents and carers,

Please find below details of our recent Ofsted monitoring visit conducted by Her Majesty’s Inspector, John Daniell. This monitoring visit was designed to challenge and support the school following the requires improvement judgements in the latest full inspections.

During such visits, the inspector makes a single judgement stating whether or not senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement.

I am pleased to say that Her Majesty’s Inspector found us to be taking effective action.

This judgement recognises the hard work of staff and governors since the last inspection and the steps taken to improve the outcomes for all pupils. I hope you will read the entire report (in the documents section below), but for us the highlights are as follows:

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‘The school improvement processes have been improved as a result of support and suitable challenge from the local authority … This (the local authority) support is helping to improve the quality of the provision.’

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‘You have raised the profile of teaching, learning and assessment by sharing the leadership of monitoring this area more widely’

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'When visiting lessons, I saw some impressive displays which celebrate pupils’ writing and I also saw evidence of progress being made when looking at the work in pupils’ books.'

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‘Your current information on progress being made by children in the early years and pupils in key stages 1 and 2 indicates that progress is steadily improving. This is as a result of more rigorous monitoring, teachers’ higher expectations and more strategic leadership.’

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‘You now benefit from a new chair of the governing body who is a national leader of governance and a vice-chair whose background is in the analysis of data. An experienced headteacher is also due to join the governing body imminently.’

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‘Your recently introduced data tracking system enables you to monitor pupils’ progress more accurately and is understood by teachers, who contribute towards the gathering of assessment information. Teachers plan for learning using this information with the aim of better meeting the needs of the pupils they teach.’

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‘You have raised the profile of reading in the school and this has started to have an impact on the quality of pupils’ writing.’

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‘You have rightly identified the need to diminish the differences in progress made by disadvantaged pupils in the school and other pupils nationally.’

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‘The pupil premium review has resulted in greater consideration being given to the impact of the support provided to disadvantaged pupils.’

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I hope you will agree that the highlights above give a strong message about the progress the school has made since the last inspection. Surrey Street Primary is fully committed to ensuring each and every pupil in the school has the best possible opportunity to reach their full potential. We will therefore use the lessons learned from this monitoring visit to inform our ongoing drive for rapid school improvement.

If you have any questions about the report, please do not hesitate to ask.

With best wishes,

Linda Adams

Headteacher

A Message from the Governing Body

Following our Ofsted inspection in May 2017, we are now able to share the final report with you.

Although the overall outcomes of the inspection are not what we hoped for, which means that the school is judged as Requires Improvement, there is a lot to celebrate from the inspection report:

• We are pleased that the Ofsted inspectors recognised the hard work and determination of the staff to “do the very best for pupils at the school”;
• We are also delighted that the inspectors had the opportunity to spend so much time with the children, who they saw “singing enthusiastically” in assembly, taking their “responsibilities as house captains seriously” and who told them that “learning is fun”;
• The inspectors were also impressed by the Flamingo provision and Welly Wednesdays; and
• The report states that “the headteacher and senior leaders are successfully bringing about rapid school improvement”.

We would also like to thank all the parents who took the time to complete the Parent View questionnaire (https://parentview.ofsted.gov.uk/parent-view-results/survey/result/6840/current ); the results were overwhelmingly positive and reflective of the school. One parent’s words have even been quoted in the Ofsted report.

Because of the helpful and supportive nature of this inspection, and the confidence we have in the headteacher and senior leaders, we believe we will be able to put the process in place to improve outcomes for all pupils quickly so that the school will be judged as good or even outstanding next time.

We would strongly encourage you to read the full report, in which the strengths and specific characteristics of our school are clearly identified. The full report is available on the school website (http://www.surreystreetprimary.com/about-us/ofsted ). If you require a hard copy, please ask at the office and they will print a copy for you.

As always, if you have any questions, please contact me or Mrs Adams via the school office.

Penny Jones (Chair of Governors on behalf of the Governing Body)

Note: Robin Cowan became the Chair of Governors in December 2017

Ofsted Inspection Reports