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Sheringham Nursery School self evaluation and improvement plan 2012-2013 Local context Sheringham Nursery School has 90fte places, with all children attending part-time (180 places in total). The school opened in the 1970s. In 2010, the school was completely rebuilt with an integrated Children’s Centre on site. The school and centre are both led and managed by the Headteacher. The overwhelming majority of the children are from a wide range of minority ethnic backgrounds and a very small minority have refugee or asylum seeker status. The vast majority speak English as an additional language and most of these children are beginners in English when they join the nursery. About 15% of the current intake has special educational needs and/or disabilities, mostly speech and language difficulties or an autistic spectrum disorder. The school is in the Manor Park/Little Ilford area of Newham. The largest ethnic groups are British Asian (in order, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian), with many Black and Ethnic minority groups also represented and a small population of white British families. There is little social housing in the area; many families live in poor quality, overcrowded, privately rented flats. There is a high birth-rate and there is significant population mobility. The proportion of children subject to Interagency Child Protection Plans for more than two years is twice the national average. Data states that approximately 36% of children under five are living in a household receiving benefits; about 3.6% live in a household receiving Job Seekers’ Allowance. Our impression is that this significantly understates the local situation. Overall, Newham has one of the highest rates of child poverty in London and is one of the top ten most deprived boroughs nationally. The school is part of the “Soft Federation” of schools in the Manor Park area. Actions arising from Ofsted 2011: Improve the quality of teaching and learning by ensuring that activities led by adults are structured to enable children to participate more actively and encourage them to talk about the work. progress of different groups of children, and provide a sharply-focused analysis to inform school improvement planning. Ensure that the governing body is more actively engaged in overseeing the work of the school

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Sheringham Nursery School self evaluation and

improvement plan 2012-2013

Local context

Sheringham Nursery School has 90fte places, with all children attending part-time (180 places in

total). The school opened in the 1970s. In 2010, the school was completely rebuilt with an integrated

Children’s Centre on site. The school and centre are both led and managed by the Headteacher.

The overwhelming majority of the children are from a wide range of minority ethnic backgrounds and

a very small minority have refugee or asylum seeker status. The vast majority speak English as an

additional language and most of these children are beginners in English when they join the nursery.

About 15% of the current intake has special educational needs and/or disabilities, mostly speech and

language difficulties or an autistic spectrum disorder.

The school is in the Manor Park/Little Ilford area of Newham. The largest ethnic groups are British Asian (in order, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian), with many Black and Ethnic minority groups also represented and a small population of white British families. There is little social housing in the area; many families live in poor quality, overcrowded, privately rented flats. There is a high birth-rate and there is significant population mobility. The proportion of children subject to Interagency Child Protection Plans for more than two years is twice the national average.

Data states that approximately 36% of children under five are living in a household receiving benefits;

about 3.6% live in a household receiving Job Seekers’ Allowance. Our impression is that this

significantly understates the local situation. Overall, Newham has one of the highest rates of child

poverty in London and is one of the top ten most deprived boroughs nationally.

The school is part of the “Soft Federation” of schools in the Manor Park area.

Actions arising from Ofsted 2011:

Improve the quality of teaching and learning by ensuring that activities led by adults are structured to enable children to participate more actively and encourage them to talk about the work.

progress of different groups of children, and provide a sharply-focused analysis to inform school improvement planning.

Ensure that the governing body is more actively engaged in overseeing the work of the school

Page 2

1. The achievement of pupils at the school

Progress and attainment analysis, Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre

For cohort leaving summer 2012

On entry Average 9.9: well below expected levels of

development

Significantly below 37%

Well below 44%

Below 19%

As expected 0%

Progress on exit Average 4.7(outstanding progress overall)

Slow progress 6%

Satisfactory 11%

Good 16%

Outstanding 67%

Attainment on

exit

Average 14.5

Significantly below 5%

3 children with SEN (2 boys, 1 girl)

No other patterns

Well below 11%

7 children (2 girls, 5 boys)

3 children with SEN

All EAL

2 Bangladeshi.

Below 63%

40 children (17 boys and 23 girls)

8 Bangladeshi

6 Pakistani

Page 3

5 Indian

5 Somali

4 Afghani

36 EAL

No other patterns

As expected 14%

9 children (4 girls, 5 boys)

4 with English as first language

2 White British

No other patterns

Above expected levels 6%

4 children (3 girls and 1 boy)

3 EAL

No other patterns

Achievement of

the ELGS

On track 60%

At Sheringham Primary School,

57.3% of children achieve a good

level of development (78 points in

the EYFSP AND 6+ in PSED and

CLL). This suggests that our data

is robust and accurate.

The average EYFSP score for

children registered to the

Children’s Centre was 84 this year

with 79% scoring 78 points or

higher.

Not on track 40%

Attainment

The average attainment on exit is 14.5 (between 30-50G and 30-50S)

The highest levels of attainment are: Personal, social and emotional development, and physical

development.

Page 4

Lowest areas of attainment

Language for communication and thinking 13.4

Linking sounds and letters 13.4

Calculating 13.4

Lowest areas of progress

3 steps of progress or more represents good progress.

Language for communication and thinking 2.9

Reading 3.1

Linking sounds and letters 3.3

Looking at the cohort which left the nursery school in July 2012, on-entry assessment shows that all

pupils started nursery at below the expected level of development (30-50 band in Development

Matters), with 37% significantly below and 44% well below. The large majority of children speak

English as an Additional Language, with most at very early stages of English on entry.

67% of children made outstanding progress. 16% of children made good progress, 11% satisfactory

and 6% slow progress (the majority of these children had complex special educational needs).

The Senior Leadership team looked at two groups of children from this cohort: the 20 children who

made the slowest progress, and the 20 children who made the fastest progress.

Key issues for children who made slower progress:

Issue Actions

Most had additional needs. Sharper tracking of the progress of children with

SEN against the IEP targets is in place.

Most were boys We have a specific project around boys

attainment (in early communication and writing)

and we will be closely monitoring boys’ progress

overall.

Some of the children experienced a number of There are no planned staffing changes, but if

Page 5

staffing transitions. staffing does change then specific steps will be

taken to secure a good transition between staff

for the most vulnerable children.

2 children had time away from nursery due to

extended family holidays.

Because nursery is non-statutory, our scope for

action is limited. We have put more emphasis on

the importance of not taking holidays in termtime

in the arrangements for new parents, and the

new holiday request form also emphasises this.

Key issues for children who made exceptional progress:

Many had engaged positively with the Children’s

Centre before starting nursery

CC now puts more emphasis on outreach and

engaging with the most vulnerable families.

Many had a positive Home Learning Environment

(HLE).

We have invested more in Toy Library and other

activities to support the HLE. We talk to parents

monthly about children’s development and

learning at home and offer ideas and support.

Many were older, nearly five on exit. This might be expected to affect attainment but

not necessarily progress. Other monitoring (e.g.

ECERS-R) suggests that the nursery is better

geared for older than for younger children and

therefore they have more opportunities to take up

and make stronger progress. This widens the

gap. Focussing on opportunities for younger

children will be central to the monitoring of

teaching and learning this year.

Attainment on leaving the school is satisfactory. 14% are at the expected level (40-60 band) with 6%

at above expected levels. 63% of children are in the band below the expected level, and a further

11% are well below and 5% significantly below (in this last group, all have complex special

educational needs).

However, because of their accelerated progress, the majority of children (60%) are on-track to

achieve the Early Learning Goals by the end of the Reception Year. Data tracking of children at the

end of the EYFS in summer 2012 shows that 57.5% of children at Sheringham Primary School

achieved a “good level of development” (78 points, with 6+ in PSED and CLL). The average EYFSP

score for children registered to Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre was 84, with 79%

scoring 78 points or higher.

National outcomes for 2012: 64% of children achieved 78 points with 6+ in PSED and CLL (56% in

the 30% most deprived areas), and 81% achieved 78 points or more (73% in the 30% most deprived

areas).

Overall, progress of children who attend the nursery school is outstanding. By the end of the EYFS,

children at Sheringham Primary School are close to the national average for attainment of 78 points

Page 6

or more in the EYFSP. Given the low starting points of the children, this is a considerable

achievement.

Areas for improvement:

Introduce new tracker system from September 2012 to generate more comprehensive data.

More rigorous progress tracking by each class teacher, to identify those children at risk of

making poor progress half-termly, and ensure that an appropriate programme is in place.

Support children’s progress through the early stages of English, and in the new Prime Area of

Communication, through an Every Child a Talker (ECaT) programme.

2. The quality of teaching

The key targets from teachers’ performance management in order to improve teaching and learning

during 2011-12 are summarised below. Outcomes here relate to teaching and learning overall, rather

than the progress of individual teachers towards their targets. The previous headteacher and deputy

had a detailed understanding of strengths and weaknesses in teaching and learning.

Targets 2011-2012 Outcomes for the school

Support children’s confidence and language

skills, leading to better progress in PSED and

LCT.

Progress in PSED is outstanding.

Progress in LCT is just below good overall;

continued focus needed.

Ensure adult-led activities are appropriate,

particularly for younger children, leading to better

engagement.

The activities score in ECERS-R for the school is

3.4 – needs further development.

Monitoring in 2012 shows adult-led activities in

some areas are now good/outstanding: creative

development; scientific exploration.

Improve staff understanding and skill in relation to

children with SEN, leading to better progress as

monitored in IEPs.

Staff benefited from SENCO support; there is no

data on progress against IEP targets and this

remains a key area for development.

Develop scientific exploration and investigation,

through practical and play-based activities,

leading to children showing curiosity.

Observations show very effective provision in

place, exciting children’s interest and curiosity.

Lead the class team of staff so that there is

shared understanding about learning and

teaching

Not clear. Further focus on this: teachers

accessing INSET this year on leading change

and motivating colleagues.

Our monitoring data shows that: staff engage with children very well, joining in with their play and

extending their learning. The scale of the nursery school provision enables large-scale, challenging

learning opportunities to be offered daily, inside and out. Adult-led activities are less effective, with

children on occasions having to wait too long before they can make a contribution. Planning is not

Page 7

always geared to children’s progress or interests, though new approaches to early writing have been

successful in engaging lower achieving children and also stretching the more able.

The nursery school is an inclusive environment which supports a large number of children with SEN,

some with complex and challenging needs. Support for the children is good because of the high level

of practitioner skills in this area, but IEP planning and monitoring need development.

The overall programme and learning environment are good. Using the robust ECERS-R schedule,

interaction scored 4.3 and programme structure scored 5.8 (between “good” and “excellent”). Each

classteacher has an individualised action plan with ambitious targets to continue improvement as

scored by ECERS.

Teaching is good overall, with children making accelerated progress during their nursery year. This

accelerated progress continues into the reception year.

In the school year 2012-2013 we are:

Observing and evaluating the quality of teaching, using the new observation form and using

ECERS-R, linked to the revised Teachers’ Standards

Setting targets/action points, some of which will be individual to the teacher, some of which

will tie in with whole-school priorities for improvement.

Using a range of strategies and involving governors in processes to make a secure

judgement about whether, as a result, teaching improves in the school. The report to the

Governing Body each term will summarise: improvement, which initiatives are making a

difference, and which aspects remain priorities.

We are using the observation format, the Characteristics of Effective Learning and information

from the school’s Observation, Teaching and Learning (OTL) Project to generate dialogue

and awareness around what good and outstanding teaching and learning “look like”.

Two key issues identified in our previous Ofsted are:

Adult-led activities are less effective than child-initiated learning (children waiting too long, too

much adult input).

Questions are not always tailored to children’s needs/level of development

The actions taken following that Ofsted report have not yet impacted on these two issues, so there is

a renewed and stronger focus this year in the Improvement Plan.

Areas for improvement:

Developing teaching: see summary of teacher performance management and other

monitoring tools

Improve ECERS scores to 5+ in all areas.

Page 8

3. Behaviour and safety of pupils

Pupils’ behaviour is very good at Sheringham Nursery School, and children make outstanding

progress in their Personal, Social and Emotional Development as a result of the effective teaching,

care and support they receive. The nursery school is exceptionally safe and secure for pupils, many

of whom present as being vulnerable.

Monitoring shows that children settle quickly into the day, with the most vulnerable given excellent

support. Staff are very alert to children’s needs throughout the session. Sometimes, opportunities are

missed to give children the help they need to manage turn-taking and conflicts themselves. Children

are observed to be engrossed in many stimulating hand-on and play-based activities, which could be

developed further with improved accessibility of resources, and more support for children to

investigate observations and questions.

The very high standards evident in the previous Ofsted inspection are being maintained in this area,

with some significant further developments. Effective home-visiting and new settling-in arrangements

ensure that children get a very positive start in nursery, and are able to start developing a strong bond

with their key person. Closer joint working with the Children’s Centre and a wide range of other

agencies/initiatives including:

1:1 family support and early intervention team

Health services (healthy weight, healthy eating)

Behaviour support (Triple P parenting programme delivery)

Attendance is a challenge for nursery schools, because it is non-statutory and there is no support

from the Education Welfare Service as a result. The school follows up all absences efficiently and

allocates additional support to vulnerable families to help with routines and attendance. Our current

level of attendance is 92%, with a steady and sustained rise from 91.3% the term before.

Areas for improvement:

Continue to use a range of strategies to improve attendance.

Further development of children’s autonomy – social development, and as learners.

4. The quality of leadership in, and management of, the school

The current headteacher took up post in April 2012, and the current deputy in September 2012.

Before this, the school had a long-standing headteacher and deputy who worked together for over 20

years. During this time, the school had an exceptional track-record of continuing improvement, but in

the last year or so the pace dropped somewhat, with the school being graded “Good” by Ofsted in

2011 (following Outstanding on the previous two inspections). Actions to address the findings from the

2011 Ofsted were not systematically implemented and monitored, and the teachers’ performance

management cycle was not fully in place, although there was effective monitoring of the quality of

learning and teaching overall on a room by room basis. Overall, the impact of the rebuild, two years

off-site, the bankruptcy of one contractor and a premature return to an unfinished new-build, was

negative for the school’s development. Nevertheless, with continued strong day-to-day leadership and

an experienced staff team, the school continued to provide good nursery education, and this is

reflected in the outstanding progress of the children on roll.

Page 9

As a new senior leadership team, we have set about bringing in necessary changes, implementing

systems to monitor the quality of teaching and learning, track progress, and to promote staff

development. In line with the new EYFS, planning and assessment approaches focus sharply on

supporting children’s progress from their starting points, identifying those children at risk of poor

outcomes, and maximising staff time on the programme with the children. The complexity of the

assessment system has been scaled back, and there is sustained support for staff in observing,

assessing and planning for children’s progress.

The school is a member of the Manor Park Federation, and is leading on a Federation-wide project to

promote children’s early communication (ECaT). The school is also an active participant in the

Federation project to support attainment in writing, leading on the EYFS strand. Additionally, the

school is part of the Newham Nursery School project to promote effective practice in Letters and

Sounds. All three of these projects provide significant support and challenge, and are leading to

improvements in practice.

The school puts a very strong emphasis on safeguarding, and procedures are effectively co-ordinated

by the headteacher. For example, there was effective co-ordination of information from home visits

and Children’s Centre staff to identify and support vulnerable children. A clear system of recording

and acting on concerns is in place, which is used by all staff (there is no “threshold”, any concern can

be raised by anyone). Staff meeting time, Senior Leadership Team time and Supervision Time all

include dedicated elements for safeguarding. When cases are reviewed, there is always a strong

focus on action for the child, and outcomes for the child and family. A “learning culture” encourages

staff to speak freely about what has gone well, and also challenges, so that we learn from our

experiences. There has been staff shadowing of the social work team, and visits to a Children’s

Centre in Tower Hamlets to learn from their good practice.

Very effective joint-work with the Children’s Centre family support worker, the Early Intervention

Team, and Children’s Social Workers keep the most vulnerable children safe.

Parent satisfaction is very high (for further details – see the outcomes of the independently-managed

“Parent Voice” event held in Autumn 2012).

The school and Children’s Centre play a leading role in developing community cohesion. Sheringham

is a safe and secure place for different families and communities to share and use together. We

support families in accessing a full range of opportunities associated with being British citizens,

including:

High quality early education which is enabling children from all groups to make good or

outstanding progress, alongside a continuing commitment to do more for the most

disadvantaged;

Easy access to health services, parenting support, and adult learning;

Access to resources in the local area which families might otherwise not feel confident to use:

the cinema, swimming pool, parks and museums.

Children are regularly taken out on educational visits and offered a rich curriculum which develops

their awareness of the wider world. Examples include our work with Bow Arts, visits to the Discovery

Centre in Stratford and the V&A Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green. Children and their families

are supported in using public transport confidently, and by block-booking the local swimming pool and

cinema we encourage families to feel able to use and enjoy local amenities.

The school and Children’s Centre work very effectively with a range of agencies, including:

Health services

Page 10

The Early Intervention Team (EIT) and children’s social care

Job Centre Plus

Adult learning

All the local schools, through the Manor Park Federation

All the local early years settings, through the Manor Park Early Years Forum, which we set up

and lead on.

Tracking data shows very good outcomes for the majority of this work, and overall we have evidenced

that the more contact a child has with our Children’s Centre services, the better the outcomes at the

end of the EYFS. We are working hard to improve the outcomes for our adult learning services, an

area for improvement in our 2012 Children’s Centre Inspection.

Improving governance has been a major focus in the recent period. The school benefits from a highly

committed chair, whose child previously attended the nursery, and a highly committed vice-chair with

significant expertise in the early years. Since September, governors have received a more detailed

report from the headteacher, which has enabled them to take a clearer view about the quality of early

education and what needs improvement. Meetings have been quorate and the group has grown in

size. Governors have felt confident to ask direct questions and to challenge the performance of the

school. They have participated in monitoring the quality of education through a programme of learning

walks. There has been close monitoring of finances. Overall, governors provide significant support to

the work of the school.

Overall, we are taking a revised approach to school improvement, in the light of the new teacher

standards, Ofsted handbook and other changes. We are ambitious to bring about sustained

improvements in the quality of teaching, and promote still-better outcomes for the children on roll,

particularly focussed on narrowing the gap between the lowest 20% and the rest. The school is

increasingly supported, and challenged, by the governing body, and financial resources are managed

efficiently. With committed and improving governance and an experienced and effective senior

leadership team, the school is very well positioned for continued improvement.

Areas for improvement:

Further improvement of the quality of teaching and learning, focussed on narrowing the gap

between the 20% most disadvantaged and the rest

Develop leadership capacity in the staff team: increasing the effectiveness of co-ordination of

special educational needs, refocusing the role of the deputy headteacher on leading

teaching/learning, developing the strategic role of the Children’s Centre teacher.

Better engagement of parents – monitoring children’s progress, support development at home

Better involvement of governors in monitoring the school and feeding into self-evaluation

Community cohesion: following the revised guidance from the DFE, the school will act to continue to

improve community cohesion through teaching/learning experiences to support children’s spiritual,

moral, social and cultural development of pupils, supported through wider links with the community.

The school will use its more rigorous approach to assessment and progress monitoring in striving to

Page 11

promote equality and meet the needs of all pupils (boys, girls, different cohorts and children with

additional needs and disabilities).

Overall effectiveness

Achievement, teaching and leadership and management are all good, and there is strong ambition to

drive further improvement. The provision for children’s Personal, Social and Emotional Development,

and their behaviour, are outstanding. The school is very well-supported by parents, with a thriving

Children’s Centre offering a wide range of quality services. The considerable emphases on the

strategic development of the Centre, and close links with schools in the Federation, are planned to

bring about even further improvements in children’s health, wellbeing, and progress in the EYFS, with

the ambition of reaching and then exceeding national outcomes by the end of the stage over the next

three years.

Parents

Staff Children

Learning and

teaching

Post-evaluation action plan

This plan is about what we are doing to improve our school between September

2012 and July 2013. It has been written by the headteacher with the involvement of

staff and governors. Parents’ involvement has been through our “Parent Voice”

event. In the plan, we look at four interlinking aspects: parents, children, staff and

teaching and learning. In reality, all these are woven together, but we show them

separately to make the action plan easier to read and use.

Children The care, guidance and support

offered to children at Sheringham is

outstanding, and children’s progress

overall from their starting points is also

outstanding. But there is still a

significant gap between the lowest

20% of children and the rest, and we

want to do our very best for the most

vulnerable children in the school. We

want every child to “start school

healthy, happy, communicative,

sociable, curious, active, and ready

and equipped for the next phase of life

and learning.” (DFE, 2010)

Help every child to make good progress in a caring and supportive environment

Nursery school team to meet half-termly with Children's Centre team, to identify vulnerable children, and agree

actions to intervene early and keep children safe, healthy, and developing well.

SENCO to establish and regularly monitor the Provision Map and Individual Education Plans.

Page 13

Use of the ECaT monitoring tool to identify children at risk of making poor progress in communication.

Fast track families to centre-based services to support children's health and development.

Identify vulnerable children prior to nursery school admission through the pre-nursery group.

Improve transition - work with the childminder network, early years network, and school federation.

Improve attendance with closer monitoring and referral to family support where needed.

We will know when we are succeeding because:

Vulnerable children will be identified, kept safe and healthy, and make good progress.

Children's Centre services will be making a difference.

There will be a smaller gap between the the lowest 20% and the rest in 2013 compared to 2012.

Attendance of the most vulnerable children will improve.

Page 14

Parents

Staff Children

Learning and

teaching

Parents The EPPE Project found the single

factor which makes the biggest

difference to children’s learning in the

early years: the “home learning

environment”.

Because this is the single most

important factor, we are making

exceptional efforts in the year ahead

to improve parent involvement in

children’s learning.

Increase parent involvement in children's learning

Develop a brochure for parents which explains the school's approach to early education.

Home visit all new children to start the dialogue about the child's development, wellbeing and learning.

Develop "Learning Stories" to document children's learning in nursery and develop parent involvement.

Page 15

Share information about Core Books and Core Rhymes so that parents can enjoy them at home with their children.

Re-establish the cycle of parent workshops about children's development and learning.

Key people to discuss children's progress and any concerns monthly with parents (informal).

Key people to meet parents formally once per term for dialogue about the child's learning and wellbeing and to

share information about progress within the EYFS framework.

Independently managed "Parent Voice" events to run twice per year to obtain feedback and suggestions for

improvement.

We will know when we are succeeding because:

Parent Voice feedback shows that parents are more aware of their children's progress within the EYFS in

summer 2013 than they were in Autumn 2012.

Learning Stories and termly meetings show that parents and nursery staff are working together to support

children's learning

Page 16

Parents

Staff Children

Learning and

teaching

Learning and teaching Learning and teaching are good at

Sheringham Nursery School. We are

ambitious to improve, and we are

focussing on three key areas which

are backed up by research:

Learning through play is at the heart

of the new EYFS and is backed up by

many international research projects.

The Characteristics of Effective

Learning – a focus on how children

learn as well as what they learn.

Supporting children’s early

communication – because we know that children’s vocabulary at five is the strongest

predictor of their reading ability in primary school.

Improve learning and teaching, guided by the revised EYFS

Improve opportunities for child-initiated and adult-supported play, using ECERS to measure.

Improve the quality of observation for assessment; use assessment formatively to plan for children's progress.

Focus on the Characteristics of Effective Learning in planning, reviews, Special Books and Learning Stories.

Page 17

Improve teaching and learning in key areas of Communication (using ECaT to measure) and Literacy

(working with Federation Schools).

Promote dialogue about effective early learning through the Observation, Teaching and Learning Project.

Improve the effectiveness of teaching and learning for children with additional needs - the Provision Map.

Use a range of monitoring tools to establish the quality of learning and teaching: Learning Walks, Performance Management, Room Monitoring and ECERS-R & E.

We will know when we are succeeding because:

Children will be more involved in their play, which will show Characteristics of Effective Learning.

Children will make better progress: planning and teaching will link clearly to assessment and help children

to build their learning over time.

ECERS scores will improve from June 2012 to June 2013.

Page 18

Parents

Staff Children

Learning and

teaching

Staff The staff team as central to the

success of the Nursery School. We

have an experienced, stable and

capable staff team but we know we

need to improve support for staff,

especially in the area of safeguarding,

and performance management for

teachers. We need to develop robust

methods of self-evaluation and have a

clear vision of what good and

outstanding early education looks like

and feels like.

More support and guidance, together with more challenge.

Implement a Performance Management system for teachers with clear targets - quality of teaching,

professional development and outcomes for children.

Establish a supervision system for all staff in line with the requirements of the revised EYFS, to improve support

and improve the quality of safeguarding.

Page 19

Clarify the responsibility of class teachers to oversee all planning, assessment and progress-tracking for the

children in their classes.

Clarify the responsibility of class teachers for the quality of all learning and teaching in their classes.

Reduce paperwork in order to increase time for professional discussion and dialogue involving all staff.

Each staff team to have challenging targets for improvement to ECERS-R&E scores.

We will know when we are succeeding because:

There will be a culture of professional dialogue: learning from each other, and learning from best practice.

There will be greater shared understanding of how good our school is, and what need to do to improve.

All staff will know about the progress they are making in their team towards challenging targets to improve.

1. The achievement of pupils at the school

Objectives Activities Timetable Who Resources and costing Success criteria

a) Improve the

tracking of

pupil

progress

from

starting

points, in

order to

accelerate

further the

progress of

the lowest

20%

Develop new “starting

points” assessment

system.

Develop condensed

profiles for monitoring

progress across all areas

of the EYFS.

Teachers to evaluate

progress half-termly and

identify those children at

risk of making poor

progress, for targeted

support.

9-12.12

9-12.12

11.12

onwards

JG

JG

Teachers

Meeting time and

development time

Gap between lowest 20% and

the rest narrows, whilst

maintaining current level of

outstanding progress overall.

b) Better

tracking of

the progress

of children’s

Communicat

ion, to

support

further

progress

which will

underpin all

other

learning

Staff training – use of

the EcaT monitoring

tool.

Develop new record for

tracking progress in

English for children with

EAL.

Early identification and

intervention for children

with delayed Speech,

Language and

Communication

9.12 –

teachers

1.13 – all

staff

9.12

onwards

Teachers

All staff

ECaT training: £1500

Federation ECAT training:

£15,000 (funded by LA)

Staff have improved confidence

in supporting children’s

communication.

ECAT audit shows improvement

in quality of provision for

communication.

Data may show an

improvement in outcomes for

children (may be a short time-

lag before effect).

Page 21

c) Improve

outcomes

for the most

vulnerable

children in

nursery

Nursery team to spend

one meeting per half

term focussing on

vulnerable children, with

the CC team in

attendance. Actions and

support to be agreed

and implemented for

each child/family, in

order to improve the

health, wellbeing and

development of each

child.

Additional/extra

provision to be reviewed

half-termly with the

involvement of parents.

SENCO to track progress

through achievement of

targets and through

parent consultation.

9.12

onwards

9.12

onwards

All staff

LF

Meeting time

Meeting time

Higher levels of referral to

Children’s Centre services to

support the most vulnerable

children and families. Children’s

Centre data indicates positive

impact of services.

Parents say that they are more

confident about supporting the

learning, development and

health of children with special

needs.

Children with special needs

make good or better progress.

d) More parent

involvement

– tracking

progress,

supporting

develop-

ment

Build in time at the end

of each session for

parents to talk to key

people.

Key person and parent

to work together on

establishing the child’s

“starting points”.

9.12

onwards

All staff Time Evidence of regular dialogue,

recorded in children’s record

books.

Parent Voice survey finds

increased awareness of the

EYFS and early education and

indicators of improved Home

Learning Environments.

Page 22

Key people to offer

parents a monthly,

informal review meeting

to discuss the child’s

progress and any

concerns.

Continue to offer formal

meeting every term with

each parent; record

sharper targets and

include more discussion

about supporting

children’s development

at home.

Targets feed into planning, and

children make good or better

progress towards their targets.

e) Improve

transition

arrangemen

ts in order

to enhance

children’s

wellbeing,

health and

progress.

“Children

should start

school healthy,

happy,

communicative

, sociable,

curious,

active, and

Children’s Centre staff to

identify proactively

children coming up to

third birthday for

involvement in the Pre

Nursery group. Home

visits and starting point

assessments to be

completed, where

possible, the term before

transition. Focus on

characteristics of

effective learning and

Prime Areas of the EYFS.

Support children’s early

language and

9.12

onwards

BW

Time Children transfer from settings

and from Children’s Centre

services with “Starting Points”

assessment partly or fully

completed, so that assessment

is more accurate and nursery

staff can start to build on prior

learning and support identified

needs more quickly.

Evaluation from primary

schools shows an improvement

in transition arrangements in

areas of: highlighting needs;

passing on EYFS assessments.

Page 23

ready and

equipped for

the next phase

of life and

learning.” (DFE,

2010)

communication before

they start nursery,

through EcaT.

Work closely with

childminders and other

settings to ensure a

smooth transition,

including sharing of

records, focussing on

EcaT.

Through the Federation,

review and develop the

transition arrangements

into primary school.

JG

Page 24

2. The quality of teaching

Objectives Activities Timetable Who Resources and costing Success criteria

a) Support

teachers

and embed

the

ambition to

improve

the quality

of teaching

Establish PM cycle,

observation with new

proforma, learning walk.

Summarise findings to

inform school

improvement/staff

training.

Promote dialogue about

effective learning and

teaching through

Learning Walks and the

Observation Project.

Work closely with partner

schools in the Federation

to improve children’s

language and

communication (EcaT

Project) and children’s

early writing.

Work closely with the

other Newham Nursery

Schools to improve

children’s skills in linking

9.12

onwards

JG

JG and

LW

JG and

LW

JG

NB

Meeting time Children are more involved in

their play. They show more of

the characteristics of effective

learning. Outstanding progress

is maintained, and the gap

between the lowest 20% and

the rest is narrowed.

Assessment is used formatively

to plan adult-led activities, so

that the activities are well-

matched to the children’s level

of development and children

can make a contribution

throughout. Staff show

increased confidence in Phase

One of Letters and Sounds,

which is successfully embedded

across the curriculum.

Page 25

sounds and letters.

Share and celebrate

practice that leads to

exceptional learning

Develop guidance and

formats that support

teachers in planning for

children’s progress

across the nursery year.

1.13

onwards

9.12

LW

JG and

LW

b) Improve

the

formative

use of

assessment

, involving

parents

Involve all staff in the

Observation Project, to

develop skills in

observation, assessment

and pinpointing what is

needed next (provision

and/or teaching).

Develop the use of

Special Books to

encourage children to

become aware of their

learning style and

strengths.

Involve parents in

discussing Special Books

and observations,

thinking and working

together to support the

child’s learning.

9.12

onwards

1.13

onwards

9.12

onwards

JG with

all staff

LW

LW

Meeting time Observations are accurately

turned into assessments which

support planning for progress,

and which enable staff to have

a professional dialogue about

how children learn, and what

they are learning. Parents are

more fully involved in tracking

their children’s progress in the

EYFS and contribute more

information to school staff.

Page 26

Develop a “Learning

Stories” approach to

documenting children’s

learning, with the aim of

making it more visible to

parents.

9.12

onwards

LW

c) Improve

the quality

of teaching

and support

for children

with SEN

Audit the inclusivity of

the classrooms and

outdoors, and develop an

action plan to meet most

learning needs through a

high-quality,

differentiated

environment and

programme (“Provision

Map”)

SENCO to support all

team members in

understanding key

strategies to support

individual children.

SENCO to establish an

IEP cycle with regular

reviews, involving

parents, and including

support for the child at

home.

SENCO to monitor each

child on EYA+ at least

half-termly to make a

1.13

9.12

onwards

9.12

onwards

9.12

LF

LF

LF

LF

Meeting time

Costs of SENCO training

programme (met by DFE)

Children with SEN and

disabilities will make good or

better progress, or further

assessment of their difficulties

will support the development of

their ongoing programme.

Parents will say that they are

well informed and that they are

more confident in

understanding their child’s

needs.

Page 27

judgment about the

appropriateness and

impact of the support

being offered.

onwards

d) Improve

the overall

quality of

learning

and

teaching,

as

measured

by ECERS-

R.

Training day on the use

of the audits in

September 2012.

Each teacher to have an

action plan to bring

about improvement over

the school year ahead.

Formal monitoring audits

at key milestones to

evaluate progress being

made: 12 months.

9.12

9.12

2.13 and

6.13

JG

All

teachers

JG

£5000

£10,000

The quality of the nursery

school as measured by ECERS-

R/E will improve by a

statistically significant margin

between June 2012 and June

2013, with all areas being good

or better.

Page 28

3. Behaviour and safety of pupils

Objectives Activities Timetable Who Resources and costing Success criteria

a) Enhance

the social

and

emotional

developme

nt of the

most

vulnerable

children.

Identify early those

children who struggle

exceptionally to manage

impulses, cope with

change, or respond

appropriately to

boundaries.

Offer support through

joint key

person/Children’s Centre

interventions.

From

9.12

JG with

all staff

Meeting time. More children/families referred

to Triple P programme, with CC

evaluation showing positive

outcomes.

b) Improve

attendance

Half-termly monitoring of

children’s attendance

with follow-up for those

children attending 90%

or less.

Referrals for in-depth

family support, where

needed, to ensure

children come to nursery

regularly.

From

9.12

From

11.12

JG

JG

Meeting time and Family

Support deployment

Effective strategies and

interventions used to engage

with families whose children

have the lowest levels of

attendance.

Attendance improves from the

baseline of 91.3%

Page 29

4. The quality of leadership in, and management of, the school

Objectives Activities Timetable Who Resources and costing Success criteria

a) Develop

Performanc

e

Manageme

nt to have

a clear

focus on

improving

teaching

and

learning

GB to agree model policy

JG to summarise

observations/PM from

previous period

New cycle of

observation/target-

setting in place from

autumn 2012.

Summary of targets to

improve teaching to be

shared with GB before

end of year.

9.12

10.12

From

11.12

In place

by end of

2012

JG with GB

JG

JG

Time. All teachers have PM in place

with clear targets. Summary

shared with GB. PM plays a part

in maintaining the outstanding

progress made by children at

Sheringham and closing the gap

between the lowest 20% and

the rest.

b) Improve

the

effectivenes

s of the

Governing

Body

Headteacher report to

have a clearer focus on

pupil progress and

attainment, and quality

of teaching.

Governors to monitor the

key milestones in the

School Improvement

Plan at every meeting.

Governors to take part in

appropriate activities to

From 9.12

JG

JG with GB

JG with GB

Time. Governors play an active role in

monitoring the quality of

learning, teaching, care and all

other key aspects of the school.

They have a more accurate and

detailed view of the school’s

performance. Governors

continue to support the school,

but also challenge the school to

do better.

Page 30

support the school’s self-

evaluation, clearly linked

to milestones in the

Improvement Plan.

Chair and Vice Chair to

encourage all governors

both to support the

school, and challenge it

to do better.

Governing Body to

receive quarterly updates

on the budget and bi-

annual reports from the

school bursar, in order to

ensure that funding is

being used effectively.

HD and LM

JG with

school

bursar

service

c) Further

develop

parent

engage-

ment

Hold a bi-annual Parent

Voice event.

Feedback outcomes and

planned changes to

parent group.

Encourage parents to

access information about

the school on the new

website and link to

Ofsted’s Parent Voice

function.

From 9.12

11.12

By end of

2012

JG

JG

JG

£5000

Time

Wesbsite cost: £7000

Parent Voice, website,

publications and other means

lead to increased parent

engagement. The importance of

parent feedback is highlighted

and the school clearly

demonstrates its actions in

response to the views of

parents.

Page 31

d) Begin to

focus on

the longer-

term

project to

develop a

richer and

more

relevant

curriculum,

focussing

on the

Characteris

tics of

Effective

Learning.

Explore the further

development of play-

based learning, linking

with academic research

and leading-edge

practice from around the

UK and beyond.

Explore the further

development of richer

experiences outdoors,

e.g. Forest School or

approaches based on

this.

3.13

onwards

JG and LW

with key

staff

LW

Time

£2500/fees to IOE for

JG’s doctorate in

education.

Key staff are looking beyond

the immediate priorities of this

year’s improvement and

working with the SLT to develop

a longer-term vision of the

future of the school/Centre.

e) Begin to

focus on

the longer-

term

develop-

ment of the

school and

centre at

the heart of

a

community

of learners.

Children’s Centre

increasingly

characterised by a

“learning culture” – clear

routes for adult

progression in their

learning; systematic

approaches to supporting

and celebrating children’s

learning; display

celebrates learning.

9.12

onwards

JG with RE Time Evaluation and monitoring of

adult learning clearly shows

impact. The school/Centre

increasingly displays powerful

images of children as capable

and creative learners, and

parents engaging and

supporting early education.

Page 32