The latest inspection (October 2013) is available here
The School has now received the report from the recent OFSTED Inspection. The Inspector, Catherine Kiff, identified a number of strengths, including:
children from a variety of pre-school provisions settle quickly and confidently into school life
pupils in Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) make good progress
the outdoor area is well used by all EYFS children, and teaching staff work skilfully alongside children there to develop their learning
pupils at the end of Year 4 have above average attainment in reading, writing and mathematics
pupils can expect to reach above average standards by the end of Year 6
the most able pupils have high levels of achievement throughout the school
good, well organised provision for pupils who are disabled and have special needs
good relationships between staff and pupils enable the majority of pupils to feel confident and develop good learning attitudes
teachers and skilled teaching assistants, who enjoy a good working partnership
high levels of enjoyment and attendance among pupils
an effective and supportive governing body, which has worked with senior leaders to address some areas of underperformance and started to move the school forward
a safe environment in the school, with robust safeguarding systems
good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, which promotes good behaviour and attitudes to learning throughout the school
a wide range of clubs, including a breakfast club, lunchtime and after-school clubs
strong links with the local community and church.
The school has successfully addressed a number of issues raised in the last inspection in February 2012:
pupils’ handwriting and presentation have improved
teaching assistants are trained and deployed effectively by class teachers
the school is now meeting the needs of its more able pupils
the governing body supports the head teacher in challenging underperforming teaching, so that the school has more good teaching.
However the overall assessment is that the school Requires Improvement. This requires the school to improve the quality of teaching for less-able pupils, to improve teaching to ensure that pupils make enough progress at Key Stage 1 (KS1) and to ensure that the newly appointed senior leadership team is working more effectively to improve standards.
This is what we are going to do to bring about the required improvements, with immediate effect
improve the teaching where necessary by Christmas
ensure that the senior leadership team become more responsible and accountable for the quality of teaching and learning across the school
ensure that senior leaders monitor pupils’ work across the school so that marking is consistent and pupils make progress
focus on the teaching and learning of less-able pupils through targeted lesson planning, lesson observation and regular examination of pupils’ written work
ensure that pupils make more progress across the curriculum in KS1
enable consistently good teaching to become outstanding by providing more opportunities for teachers to improve their practice.
As you can imagine, the staff and governing body have found the OFSTED Inspection challenging, but we are determined to use it to raise the standards of teaching and learning across the whole school. I hope that together- staff, governors, parents and carers we can continue to develop Barningham CEVC School into an outstanding educational setting for all of our children. Should you have any particular concerns that you wish to raise from the report, we would be happy to discuss them with you.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Frances Parr Mrs Elizabeth Hall
National Society Statutory Inspection of Anglican Schools Report
Church Schools are also inspected to establish:
The distinctiveness and effectiveness of the School as a Church of England school
How well the school meets the needs of all learners, through its distinctive Christian character
The impact of Collective Worship on the school community
The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the school as a church school