Introduction
The inspection was carried out by an Additional Inspector. The inspector held meetings with the headteacher, staff, pupils, parents and governors, scrutinised a range of documentation and visited classrooms. He took lunch with the children and observed them at play. The school's own self-evaluation document provided critical evidence in shaping the inspector's judgements. The receipt of 112 questionnaires from parents further assisted the writing of this report.
Description of the school
This is a larger than average primary school serving an affluent area where few children qualify for free school meals. The vast majority of children have White British heritage. Only a handful of children are at the early stages of learning English as an additional language. Low numbers of children need extra help because they find learning difficult. Very few children join or leave the school during a school year, though the current Year 6 is the exception and several children have moved because of their parents' work commitments. When children start in Reception they generally have the skills and knowledge expected of their age but there are some weaknesses in language and literacy, especially among boys.
| Grade 1 | Outstanding |
|---|---|
| Grade 2 | Good |
| Grade 3 | Satisfactory |
| Grade 4 | Inadequate |
Overall effectiveness of the school
Grade: 2
The children rightly say this is a good school. They say it is a happy school where it is easy to ask for help. They take any worries or concerns to their teachers because the caring attitude of staff ensures that they listen and take children's upsets seriously. At lunch time children, 'Go to the ladies in red bibs,' (lunchtime supervisors) with any concerns, knowing that they will be well cared for. Parents echo their children's views of the good quality of the school. They say Down Hall is, 'A very happy school, it is a lovely place with a friendly welcoming atmosphere. I am absolutely thrilled with every aspect of the school,' and, 'in the time my children have attended they have learned valuable lessons. Any fears or concerns they have ever had have been quickly allayed by staff and teachers.' One parent summed the school up perfectly by saying, 'This is a very good school. However, no school is perfect and some issues have arisen but the school itself is the first to admit that improvements could be made.' The real secret of the school's success is that it rightly judges itself to be a good school but there is no complacency. It is a school that reflects continually on how well it is doing and what it could be doing better. This reflection is done as a partnership between all those with an interest in the school. Governors, parents, staff and children are all involved and confident that their views are important and taken seriously. The work of the governors is outstanding. They know their school extremely well. As well as being very supportive and hardworking they also challenge staff when they need to. For example, they discuss the information the school collects on how well children are doing and challenge whether the predictions for their test results at Years 2 and 6 are high enough. Staff accept such challenges and review their predictions. Governors expect the best of the school. The vigorous debate that ensued when asked whether they thought they were good or outstanding as a governing body exemplified their determination to avoid complacency, as well as illustrating their modesty and the high expectations they set themselves. The parents' council does excellent work in reviewing school policies and documentation to ensure that they are meaningful to parents and avoid educational jargon. The school council confidently gives its views on matters of concern to the children and organises a range of fund raising events for the benefit of the children and the charities they support. The parent teacher association (PTA) is very active in its support of the school. Parents say this is a real community school. Because the school reflects so thoroughly on its performance it knows that children achieve particularly well in mathematics and science by the end of Year 6 but that standards are not quite as high in English, although they are still above average. The staff have looked closely at why this is and taken steps to address the issues. They know that too many children struggle with longer pieces of writing that require complex sentences and that the school needs to continue to help them to master this. They know that some boys are not naturally attracted to literature and books so they use techniques to get around these issues. This was illustrated superbly in a literacy lesson with a group of mainly boys from Years 5 and 6 who were reflecting on the feelings of characters from a story. The teacher could have used a stirring story like Macbeth and had them consider the feelings of the main characters. But because he knew the children well he chose a story that he knew would appeal to them, that of the World Cup 2006. As a result, the children were hooked, worked hard and identified how different characters, players, coaches and fans might be feeling. This not only ensured excellent learning of literacy but also helped to develop their social skills as they worked together and exchanged ideas. Getting children to take responsibility for their own learning typifies the best teaching in the school. It was also demonstrated with pupils in Years 1 and 2 who listed questions they would like answers to about various fruits. With excellent teaching like this it is not surprising that teaching makes a substantial impact on pupils' learning. Children thoroughly enjoy the very good range of activities that the school provides to help them to learn. They particularly like the specialist teachers who take them for physical education. They also speak well of the after school clubs and trips; one four-year-old is already looking forward to the Year 6 residential trip to the Isle of Wight. The excellent displays of children's work around the school are testament to the breadth of the activities they enjoy. Art work is of a high standard and gives children the opportunity to study the work of famous artists. There is clear commitment to extend children's understanding of a range of cultures and the school appreciates the need to continue to develop this work. Children explain very clearly what constitutes a healthy and balanced diet through their work in science lessons. The school's celebration of the gifts and talents of individuals, like the motocross champion, the ballet dancer and the budding sports stars, illustrates the knowledge the staff have of the children and their achievements within school and beyond. Not only does the school work hard to improve the standards of children's work and their test results, it also works hard to promote their personal and social development. Children have ample opportunity to take on responsibilities in class or around the school and many enjoy the opportunity of participating in concerts and performances for their families and the wider community, including the local schools' music festival. Excellent links with local schools, both primary and secondary, help staff to share ideas with, and learn from, other professionals. These links enable older children to enjoy science lessons with teachers at a local secondary school which they thoroughly enjoy. Parents speak highly of the way Down Hall staff ensure that children are very well prepared for every stage of their schooling, whether it be starting in Reception or moving between classes and eventually transferring to secondary school. A key figure in the school's success is the headteacher. He has built on the school's strengths with the very good support of his staff and governors. He has taken advantage of the Primary Leadership Programme to help to identify and address the issues in English while also developing the skills of those staff with management responsibilities. The good leadership and management has led to a school that is committed to planting the seeds of learning early and nurturing them to fruition rather than hot-housing children at Year 6 with constant test preparation to try to gain good results. It is this forward thinking attitude, shared by all staff and governors, that has led to improved standards over recent years and that has put the school in a very good position to move up a gear from its current very good status to become outstanding in the foreseeable future. But, of course, the school's success could not be achieved without the cooperation and commitment of the children themselves. They are keen to do well so behaviour is exemplary, attendance is above average and attitudes are excellent. The children say, 'there is no bullying but we sometime have arguments.' In the school's survey of their views the only things they really expressed concern about were school dinners, although they ate them heartily enough, and school uniform. So these are very normal children then! Except that when asked what was good about the school the first to answer was a child from Reception who said, 'you learn things.' Although other children filled in the detail of the kind of things they learn, there is no doubt that this is a good school where staff and parents work together to promote an ethos where children want to learn and do well. And they do.
Achievement and standards
Grade: 2
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section
Personal development and well-being
Grade: 1
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section
Quality of provision
Teaching and learning
Grade: 2
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section
Curriculum and other activities
Grade: 2
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section
Care, guidance and support
Grade: 1
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section
Leadership and management
Grade: 2
This information can be found in the Overall Effectiveness of the school section