School report
Brookvale Primary School
Northwich Road, Brookvale, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 6BZ
Inspection dates
24–25 January 2013
Overall effectiveness
Previous inspection:
Good
2
This inspection:
Outstanding
1
Achievement of pupils
Outstanding
1
Quality of teaching
Outstanding
1
Behaviour and safety of pupils
Outstanding
1
Leadership and management
Outstanding
1
Summary of key findings for parents and pupils
This is an outstanding school.
Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. They feel
extremely safe, they are happy and secure,
ready and able to learn and progress
successfully. They have trusting relationships
with the adults in school. Their attendance is
above average.
Pupils are proud of their school. They
contribute in many ways to making it a happy
place for everyone, including acting as
influential school councillors.
The headteacher’s excellent leadership is
strongly supported by an effective deputy
headteacher, by very knowledgeable governors
and by staff at every level in the school.
There is a relentless pursuit of on-going
improvement; for example, the school is
currently focusing on ways to help pupils
develop their literacy skills even more rapidly.
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
2 of 9
Information about this inspection
The inspectors observed 13 lessons. They also made a number of short visits to lessons. They
listened to pupils read in Years 1, 2 and 6 and they observed the teaching of letters and sounds
in the Reception class and in Key Stage 1.
Meetings were held with four members of the governing body, with staff, with a group of pupils
and with a representative from the local authority.
Inspectors reviewed information from 11 responses to the online parent questionnaire (Parent
View). They also met with a group of parents to hear their views about the school.
They took into account the views that staff expressed in the questionnaires they completed.
They observed the school’s work and looked at a wide range of documentation, including
safeguarding documents, development plans, local authority reports, records of pupils’ current
attainment and progress, documents relating to pupils’ attendance and behaviour and pupils’
work.
Inspection team
Diane Auton, Lead inspector
Additional Inspector
Marilyn Massey
Additional Inspector
Maureen Hints
Additional Inspector
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
3 of 9
Full report
Information about this school
The school is similar in size to most other primary schools.
Most pupils are White British, with English as their home language. Currently, no pupils are at an
early stage of learning English as an additional language.
The proportion of pupils supported through school action is above average as is the number of
pupils at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs.
The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for pupil-premium funding is above average.
The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for
pupils’ attainment and progress.
The school provides a breakfast club every day during term-time.
A new headteacher was appointed in April 2010 and a new deputy headteacher was appointed
in September 2011. There have also been a number of changes in teaching and support staff
since the time of the school’s previous inspection, in the Early Years Foundation Stage and in
Key Stages 1 and 2.
Since the school’s previous inspection it has gained the International Schools Award
(Intermediate Level) and has received the National Princess Diana Award for its work on school
buddies.
What does the school need to do to improve further?
Implement plans to build further on pupils’ excellent achievement in reading and writing by:
continuing to develop and extend the school’s ‘reading buddies’ strategy, where pupils across
the age-groups enjoy reading together
using the outdoor classroom and story-telling area to develop opportunities for reading and
writing out of doors.
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
4 of 9
Inspection judgements
The achievement of pupils
is outstanding
Children’s skills, especially in language and communication, are often considerably below
expectations for their age when they join the Early Years Foundation Stage. They make rapid
progress, however, and by the time they transfer to Key Stage 1 their skills are only slightly
below the expectations for their age and they have gained extremely positive attitudes to
learning.
From these very good starting points, pupils continue to make excellent progress in reading,
writing and mathematics throughout the classes in Key Stages 1 and 2 and, as a result, their
attainment catches up with and then overtakes that of pupils across the country.
Pupils reach nationally expected levels of attainment in all subjects by the end of Key Stage 1.
Attainment continues to rise as they move up through the school and for the past three years it
has been significantly above the national average in all subjects by the end of Key Stage 2.
Pupils in the current Year 6 are on track for high attainment by the end of the year.
Pupils’ reading skills are developing very well. Systematic teaching of letters and sounds in the
Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 are giving pupils the tools they need to become
proficient readers. Attainment in reading is at nationally expected levels by the end of Year 2
and it is well above average by the time pupils leave the school in Year 6.
Pupils who are disabled or who have special educational needs achieve extremely well in relation
to their abilities and starting points, as a result of the excellent learning support and care they
are given.
The achievement of pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium is similar to that
of the other pupils in the school. They make excellent progress and their attainment is above the
national average in English and mathematics by the time they leave the school in Year 6.
Pupils apply themselves extremely well in lessons, showing interest in their work. They work
together very well, with a partner or in a group. Pupils of all ages listen carefully to instructions
from their teachers and show they are keen to produce their best work.
Parents’ responses to Parent View and their comments in the meeting with an inspector indicate
that they are very pleased with their children’s achievement in school.
The quality of teaching
is outstanding
The quality of teaching has improved from good to outstanding since the school’s previous
inspection.
Typical features of the excellent teaching seen during the inspection are:
very well-planned lessons where activities move along briskly and pupils’ interest is sustained
throughout
purposeful learning, with pupils given a clear understanding of what they are expected to do,
of how the lesson links up to what they have already learned and of what they will be doing
next
activities with high levels of challenge, indicating teachers’ high expectations of what pupils
can achieve
effective teamwork between teachers and well-trained teaching assistants, ensuring that
pupils of all abilities, including those with disabilities or special educational needs, are given
the support they need to achieve their objectives.
Vulnerable pupils, those with special educational needs and those who may be underachieving
are identified promptly. The school has developed a range of strategies to provide the different
levels of support that individuals or groups of pupils require. Their success is reflected in
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
5 of 9
consistently positive outcomes for all groups of pupils.
Outstanding teaching and a lively curriculum in the Early Years Foundation Stage contribute very
well to the excellent start children make in the Nursery and Reception classes.
Lessons engage pupils’ interests fully and this is helping them to achieve very well. For example,
in a literacy lesson in Year 2, pupils enthusiastically set to work to identify and correct the errors
in a piece of writing that they were told was the work of their favourite puppet. In a class
discussion they spotted the mistakes and they tried very hard to think of interesting and well-
structured alternatives to improve on what the puppet had ‘written’. In the writing activity that
followed, they showed they had made excellent progress in developing their sentence
construction skills.
The behaviour and safety of pupils
are outstanding
Pupils’ exemplary behaviour is reinforced by warm and trusting relationships between pupils and
staff. Pupils are polite and considerate. They understand the school’s simple ‘golden rules’ for
behaviour very well because they have helped to develop them and they keep the rules
diligently.
Pupils are cooperative and hard-working in lessons and this is an important factor in their
successful learning. They are friendly and welcoming to visitors.
Pupils say they feel very safe in school. They are confident that there is always someone on
hand to help if they have a problem.
Older pupils act as play leaders and reading buddies to younger ones, carrying out their
responsibilities sensibly and contributing strongly to a happy school.
Discussions with pupils showed they have a very good understanding of the different types of
bullying, including cyber-bullying and prejudice-based bullying. They say that there is very little
unkind behaviour in school, but that they know that staff will deal with any such problems
quickly and nip them in the bud.
Parents express their confidence in the care the school provides for their children and their
appreciation of the caring and welcoming attitudes of the headteacher, teachers and support
staff, including the learning mentor. They say communications between home and school are
excellent.
Attendance is above average and punctuality is very good, reflecting the school’s positive
partnership with parents.
The school works sensitively and extremely supportively with families and children whose
circumstances might put them at risk. Nurturing programmes are provided for identified pupils
who are potentially vulnerable and the school works productively with a wide range of agencies
that promote pupils’ learning, health and social needs.
The staff who manage the well-attended breakfast club provide pupils with a warm welcome and
a nourishing breakfast and this gets their day off to a very happy start.
The leadership and management
are outstanding
The headteacher and the deputy headteacher are effective leaders who drive improvements
forward energetically. With good help from the middle leaders in the school, they regularly check
on the quality of teaching and its impact on the progress pupils make. The leadership of
teaching is supported by an extensive programme of staff training and development.
Progress reviews every term give the school a clear and detailed picture of how well every pupil
is doing and help identify anyone who may need extra support.
The well-crafted school-development plan sets out improvement aims and priorities and
identifies well-chosen actions to enable the school to continue improving. For example, the
school is currently devising ways to help pupils in Key Stages 1 and 2 to do even better in
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
6 of 9
reading and writing, through a number of planned actions, including developing outdoor learning
opportunities in literacy and increasing opportunities for younger pupils to read together with an
older ‘buddy’.
The school’s creative curriculum brings subjects together into topics that pupils find very
interesting; this helps to make learning fun, especially as many topics include visits to places of
interest. The curriculum is also enriched by visitors to school, by residential trips, by
opportunities to develop sporting, artistic and musical skills and by a wide range of well-attended
after-school clubs.
Pupil-premium funding is used to provide additional teaching assistants, to enable small group or
individual support for pupils who need it and to help to pay for visits and other enrichment
activities for them.
The local authority provides light-touch support for this outstanding school.
The governance of the school:
Governors have a clear and detailed overview of pupils’ achievement because they take
regular opportunities through the year to examine data on how well pupils are doing. They
receive regular reports on the quality of teaching and learning in school. All of this enables
them to play an active part in evaluating the school’s work and to ask searching questions
from a well-informed standpoint. They manage staff performance effectively, ensuring that
everyone is held to account for pupils’ progress. Governors are fully aware of the link between
staff performance and salary progression and this informs all decisions about staff pay. They
ensure that the school’s finances are well-managed and that pupil-premium funding is spent
wisely to help overcome barriers to learning. Governors carry out their statutory duties
effectively, ensuring that safeguarding procedures are managed well and reviewed regularly.
They ensure that equal opportunities are promoted vigorously and that discrimination is not
tolerated in school.
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
7 of 9
What inspection judgements mean
School
Grade
Judgement
Description
Grade 1
Outstanding
An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes
that provide exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. This ensures
that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their
education, training or employment.
Grade 2
Good
A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well
for all its pupils’ needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage
of their education, training or employment.
Grade 3
Requires
improvement
A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it
is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within
24 months from the date of this inspection.
Grade 4
Inadequate
A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and
requires significant improvement but leadership and management
are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular
monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.
A school that requires special measures is one where the school is
failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and
the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not
demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary
improvement in the school. This school will receive regular
monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.
Inspection report:
Brookvale Primary School, 24–25 January 2013
8 of 9
School details
Unique reference number
132195
Local authority
Halton
Inspection number
403644
This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.
Type of school
Primary
School category
Community
Age range of pupils
3–11
Gender of pupils
Mixed
Number of pupils on the school roll
279
Appropriate authority
The governing body
Chair
Julie Karmy
Headteacher
Paula Casey
Date of previous school inspection
19 September 2007
Telephone number
01928 711401
Fax number
01928 710661
Email address
head.brookvale@halton.gov.uk
Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the
guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website:
www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300
123 4234, or email e[email protected]v.uk.
You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted
will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to
inspect and when and as part of the inspection.
You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about
schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk, or look for the link
on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) regulates and inspects to
achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners
of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children
and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-
based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in
prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services
for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.
Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school
must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not
exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.
If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please
telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.
You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you
give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.
To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection
reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.
Piccadilly Gate
Store St
Manchester
M1 2WD
T: 0300 123 4234
Textphone: 0161 618 8524
E: [email protected]v.uk
W: www.ofsted.gov.uk
© Crown copyright 2013