Hateley Heath Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Hateley Heath Primary are well looked after and cared for. They show good manners and generally behave well.

While pupils occasionally argue and fall out, there is little evidence of any bullying. Pupils feel safe in school. They are confident that leaders will deal with any worries that they have.

However, too many pupils regularly miss school and this impacts on how much they can learn.

Pupils do not learn to read quickly enough or as well as they could. Older pupils are now learning more in English and mathematics but work is not challenging enough for the most able.

Many activities in Nursery and Reception do not help the children to de...velop relevant skills and knowledge.

Pupils enjoy history. They can remember a lot about the topics they have studied.

Pupils know very little about some subjects, such as music and French. This is because they are not taught very often.

Every term, parents and carers are invited into school to find out what their child will be learning about.

This is a fun afternoon, where parents and children work together on a new topic. During the inspection, Year 6 parents and pupils were learning about Chinese Dynasties.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Over the last 12 months, the school's leadership has been through a turbulent time, including the long-term absence of the headteacher.

At the time of the inspection, the headteacher had recently returned to work and several members of the governing body were newly appointed. As a result, improvements since the previous inspection have not been sustained or have been introduced too slowly. Some systems and processes are no longer used consistently by all staff.

Due to recent changes, the governing body does not have a clear understanding of the school's strengths and weaknesses. Leaders and governors have not checked if they are using funding to help disadvantaged pupils effectively.

Children's school life gets off to a strong start in pre-school but this is not built on sufficiently well in Nursery or Reception.

Adults do not expect enough from the children. There are too few opportunities for children to explore and learn independently. There are lots of resources, but children, especially in Reception, are not helped to use them properly.

This can lead to silly behaviour or flitting from one activity to another. There is little evidence of progress in learning journals. Adults are not clear about what children need to learn next.

The children are safe and well cared for.

The teaching of early reading is not good enough. Pupils struggle to read the books that they are given because they are not well matched to their knowledge of letters and sounds.

This is disheartening for pupils. Staff do not listen to pupils read often enough. This slows the progress that they can make.

Reading activities for older pupils are well planned and link to interesting texts.

Leaders have concentrated on developing writing and mathematics. The approaches are having a positive impact on the quality of pupils' work.

Pupils enjoy writing and are motivated to do so. Pupils clearly enjoy learning about history and they can talk knowledgeably about the work they have done, for example on the Romans. Teachers make good links to prior learning and emphasise key vocabulary.

However, other subjects are taught less well or not often enough. For example, pupils have little understanding about geography. Older pupils cannot name a river or a capital city in the United Kingdom.

In all subjects, teachers do not provide activities to meet the needs of the most able pupils.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not always receive the help that they need, when they need it. Sometimes leaders do not follow up concerns quickly or effectively enough.

Leaders do not always know how well pupils with SEND are doing.

Too many pupils, especially those who are disadvantaged, do not attend school regularly. This has been the case for a number of years and actions taken by leaders have had little impact so far.

The school supports pupils' personal development, through a range of clubs, visitors and trips. Pupils are taught how to keep safe. Older pupils have a good understanding of the school's values.

They also have opportunities to take on responsibilities, such as school council representative. There are few activities at breaktimes and lunchtimes to encourage pupils to be physically active. Many pupils eat unhealthy snacks at breaktime.

Staff are supportive of leaders and each other. They work well together. Leaders are enthusiastic and keen to take forward developments.

Leaders and governors take appropriate actions to try to reduce staff workload.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

As one member of staff said, 'Keeping pupils safe is at the forefront of the school's work.'

All staff have regular, relevant training. They are confident about what to do if they have worries about a pupil's welfare. Leaders know the school's community well and the issues affecting it.

They ensure that any concerns are followed up quickly and with the right people. Pupils learn about how to keep themselves safe through the curriculum and assemblies. Leaders make sure that the right checks are made on staff before they start working at the school.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

The teaching of phonics is weak. Many adults teaching phonics do not have the subject knowledge to teach it effectively. Pupils' reading books are not well matched to the sounds that they know.

Pupils do not practise reading often enough and they have too few opportunities to read aloud to an adult. Too few pupils are on track to pass the phonics screening check. This impacts on the progress that they can make in a range of subjects.

Leaders should ensure that improvements are made to the teaching of phonics as a matter of urgency. . The curriculum on offer to pupils is not broad and balanced.

Despite recent changes to the timetable, pupils have very limited experiences in some subjects, such as geography, French and music. Most subject leaders have created long-term plans for their curriculum areas. However, in a number of subjects, these are not yet being used effectively in classrooms.

Planning does not take into account the needs of all pupils, especially those who are most able. Some teachers lack the subject knowledge they need to teach at greater depth. As a result, in many subjects, pupils do not make as much progress as they could.

Leaders need to ensure that all pupils develop appropriate knowledge and understanding across all subjects within the national curriculum. . In the early years, adults' expectations are too low and activities do not build on children's prior knowledge.

The curriculum does not meet the children's needs well and they are not prepared adequately for the rest of their schooling. Activities lack purpose and children do not know how or why to use resources. There is no day-to-day leadership.

As a matter of urgency, senior leaders need to provide clear direction to drive improvements, particularly in relation to the curriculum and quality of teaching. . The needs of pupils with SEND are not identified and addressed quickly enough.

Support is not monitored effectively to check that pupils are making strong progress. Plans are not always reviewed in a timely manner. Leaders need to ensure that the school's provision successfully addresses the needs of pupils with SEND and meets the requirements within the SEND Code of Practice.

. Pupils' attendance has been consistently low for at least four years. The number of pupils who are persistently absent is too high, especially for disadvantaged pupils.

This means that some pupils are not making as much progress as they should, because they are missing too many lessons. Leaders' actions to improve attendance have had little sustained impact. Leaders should focus on developing strategies to improve pupils' overall rates of attendance.

. The governing body is not currently fulfilling its statutory responsibilities effectively. This impacts on the quality of education provided by the school.

Several governors are newly appointed to their roles. The governing body should take action to improve their effectiveness in holding school leaders to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils.Due to turbulence in leadership, leaders and staff are not clear about who is responsible for what within school.

Processes and policies are not fully understood by all. This leads to inconsistency and the risk of poor practice being missed. Senior leaders need to review roles, responsibilities and systems across the school.

This is to ensure that everyone follows the same procedures and is consistent in their approach. . Leaders and governors do not have a clear rationale for how pupil premium funding is spent or its intended impact.

Disadvantaged pupils are not making as much progress as they should. Leaders and governors need to review how pupil premium funding is used to ensure that it is equipping disadvantaged pupils with the knowledge and experiences that will help them to succeed in life. .

Too little is done to help pupils to eat healthily or to be active. It is not clear how the physical education and sport premium is used to encourage the development of healthy, active lifestyles. Leaders and staff need to do more to promote a healthy lifestyle among pupils.

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