St Cuthbert's RC Primary School
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School Improvement

St Cuthbert’s Primary School

Development Plan 2020 – 21

Summary of Priority Areas

 

Priority Area 1 

                                                                         Quality of Education 

  • Raise standards across the curriculum so that all children achieve, making good or better progress which meets the school’s high expectations for all learners. 

i) Ensure high expectations for SEND and Disadvantaged children so that progress is at least at expected.

ii) Plan for a curriculum that engages children and enthuses them about their work.

iii) Teacher subject knowledge to be enhanced to ensure high quality teaching.

iv)Ensure the planning of reading is detailed to address gaps in skills and increases fluency. 

v) Subject leaders to take a more strategic view of their area.

Evaluation Autumn 20

  • Progress meetings showed staff  using the new sheets and allowed them to quickly see those who were no longer on track due to Covid, allowing for targeted interventions.
  • Precision teaching training (2nd DEC) implemented to support close analysis of barriers. 
  • Staff sharing med term plans with subject leads to ensure progression of knowledge is clear.
  • Marking policy to be reviewed in Spring term to see which elements are working well and review as needed.
  • JS trained staff – Kahoots for end of topic quiz which shows knowledge gained and then shared with subject leads to support assessment
  • Staff meeting (11th Dec) plan for TAs to work outside classrooms on interventions not allocated to classes but more to where greater need is, working on shorter interventions and pre learning. Impact not seen yet.(Jan – Covid) 
  • Monitoring discussed with governors at the Autumn School Improvement Committee, however due to Covid they felt they didn’t want to put any extra pressure on staff.
  • Meetings planned for Spring term for subject leaders to share audits.

 

Priority Area 2 

Behaviour and Attitudes

  • To provide a safe and happy learning environment where children are confident about where they are in their learning journey, where they are going and what they need to do to achieve success.

i) Building children’s resilience to develop a positive and motivated attitude to learning. 

ii) Improve attendance – staff to take a more proactive role in promoting attendance in their classes. 

iii) Ensure behaviour policy is implemented fully and parents engaged in the process to support changes.

iv) Implement ‘Zones of regulation’ in all classes so children have the capacity to verbalize their feelings.
EvaluationAutumn 2020

  • Metacognition course booked in for Jan ‘21 being implemented remotely – course completed but impact not apparent yet due to Jan Covid
  • Jan – covid lockdown – staff calling chi not accessing work to ensure remote learning seen as a working day.
  • Staff are being more proactive in having early conversations with parents in line with Covid risk assessments

 

Priority Area 3  

Personal Development   

  • To provide opportunities for children to develop learning for life.     

i)Ensure the new SRE curriculum is implemented

ii)Introduce a school’s ‘Citizenship Award.’ 

iii)Implement ‘Faith in Action’ for Y6

iv)Support understanding of and improvement in children’s mental health.

              v)To offer opportunities for aspirational thinking. (Stem)

              vi)To promote ‘Pupil Voice.’ 
Targets/ Actions Who? When?  Success criteria Monitored by & how? Evaluation
Evaluation 

Autumn 2020

  • Despite Covid restrictions we have continued to celebrate children’s successes with certificates in class and names on our website and newsletters.
  • Staff using TEN TEN resources – Living Life to the Full to ensure meeting SRE curriculum. 
  • Work alongside the MHST team and training implemented in Autumn term to support children back into school. 
  • A range of resources shared with parents on our website to support the emotional well being of children. 

 

Priority Area 4 

  Effectiveness of Leadership and Management 

  •    To develop highly effective leadership at all levels focussed on high expectations and improving teaching and learning.

                i)To strengthen the SLT 

                   ii) To ensure ‘Safeguarding’ procedures continue to be prioritized and that all systems and staff are interlinked to reduce any risk of harm.                             iii) Ensure leaders have an accurate view of school’s effectiveness informed through pupils, parents and staff – utilizing information to keep the school improving by focussing on the impact of actions in key areas.

                     iv) To ensure CPD is provided to improve and develop staff skills based on analysis of need and professional progression.

                     v) To monitor and support staff well being.

                      vi)   To strengthen Governance.                                                        
Evaluation

Autumn 2020

  • Deputy appointed to permanent post in Dec 2020. 
  • H.M EYFS lead joined SLT
  • Progress meetings held initially at Christmas to review attainment and identify gaps from previous lockdown – from this very clear interventions were set. End of Autumn term second meeting held to review progress and attainment. This showed improved data. The members of staff working remotely had shown good impact due to the very specific teaching they engaged in – short and often. This led to adapting of TA time to implement more focussed support. Impact unknown due to Spring term lockdown.
  • Mastery approach continues and accessed Government funding to supplement resources in school. 
  • A lot of leadership in Autumn term was Covid related: risk assessments, staff and children well being, remote learning, ensuring equipment was accessible. 

Priority Area 5

 Early Years

To        To develop an EYFS curriculum in line with the new framework (2020)

  

Evaluation Autumn 2020

  • Risk assessments and adaptations completed for staff within the setting in line with DFE guidance. 
  • Staff accessed LA training and joined cluster training for implementation of framework. 
  • EYFS lead is working with her team to reduce the amount of evidence collected. 

St Cuthbert’s Primary School Development Plan 2019-20

Overview of Key Priorities

 

Priority Area 1 – Effectiveness of Leadership and Management 

  • To ensure our combined score for reading, writing and mathematics increases to be above the national average – target 75% by July 20.
  • Ensure that staff are confident with the New Ofsted Framework and can use the language of Intent, Implementation and Impact when sharing information about teaching of all subjects. 
  • To improve the well being of staff. Reviewing of marking policy to ensure efficiency of time and that children move on in their learning quickly through strategic comments or verbal feedback. 
  • Ensure that all Governors take an active role within school and have a strategic and systematic approach, so that senior leaders are more effectively supported and challenged to improve the school. 

 

Priority Area 2 – Quality of Teaching, Learning and Assessment

  • To continue to improve outcomes in writing by improving pupils self-editing skills, strengthening the teaching of grammar, punctuation and spelling in context and improving handwriting.
  • To raise attainment in mathematics particularly in upper KS2.
  • To review and develop the teaching of and provision for vulnerable groups, particularly pupils eligible for Pupil Premium Grant
  • To ensure teaching assistant time is targeted for maximum effectiveness in raising standards, targeted intervention, enhancing provision for all children. 
  • To introduce a skill based curriculum, ensuring coverage of Foundation Subjects and subsequent assessment. Developing the process of acquiring the essential knowledge, skills, understanding and behaviours required for deep understanding.

 

Priority Area 3 – Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare

  •  Ensure that we maintain a good standard of behaviour and safety in the school through high expectations and involvement of parents in support of this.
  • Embedding restorative approaches practice into the way we approach times of conflict between pupils.
  • Embedding and developing Positive Play Provision – OPAL 
  • Providing engaging and well-differentiated learning tasks that engender a positive attitude to learning, promote high levels of engagement and build learning to learn capacity. Children to demonstrate a positive growth mindset – ‘I can’t do it yet!’
  • Improving the engagement of the most troubled children by ensuring all adults are fully engaged in managing and modifying the children’s behaviour   ‘The success of our policy will not be tested by the absence of problems but the way in which we deal with them’. 
  • To support our SEND children through the introduction of a nurture room and a specialist teacher to enhance inclusion. 
  • Ensure attendance rises to 97%+  

 

School Development Plan 2019-20 Review

Summary of Priority Areas

Priority Area 1 

            Effectiveness of Leadership and Management 

(i)RWM combined: Senior leaders to increase the impact that middle leaders have on improving the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, enhancing their capacity to lead the school and ensuring that % of children achieving the expected standards in reading, writing and maths combined to be above the National average in KS1 and KS2 (target 75%) by July 2020

  • Providing a strategic direction for improving standards and driving improvements across the whole school.
  • Ensure all aspects of the last Ofsted report are addressed and improvements evident. 

Ensure that staff are confident with the (ii)New Ofsted Framework and can use language of Intent, Implementation and Impact. 

(iii)To improve the well being of staff.

  • Reviewing of marking policy to ensure efficiency of time and that children move on in their learning quickly through strategic comments or verbal feedback. 

Ensure that all (iv) Governors have a clear understanding of their roles and of the crucial balance between the strategic and operational leadership of the school, so that senior leaders are more effectively supported and challenged to improve the school. 

Curriculum intent and implementation worked on throughout year with CPD8 used to support leaders and staff. Curriculum in designated area on website. Impact is an area to work on and ensuring that the planning we have introduced supports greater impact on children’s learning and supports long term memory recall. Leaders in SLT have worked closely throughout Covid 19 to ensure that guidance has been implemented. A strong website, FB and Twitter presence has engaged parents throughout.

Subject leaders did not all manage to monitor teaching and learning fully due to closure but most were able to review books to support their action plans for next year to present to Governors. 

Need to timetable this for next year and to allow time for pupil voice (at a distance.)

Some online courses accessed during lockdown

Some areas not completed fully due to Covid and closure but staff certainly have greater understanding of language of intent…  SLA led training for a deep dive inspection and met with History lead this gave a good insight into what is needed .

CPD organised with Lucie Stephenson from Hexham and Newcastle Diocese and shared session with cluster (us as hosts)

Marking policy reviewed and staff meeting held for staff to have input. 

Marking policy finalized and agreed by governors. 

Reports were reduced necessarily from Covid and most staff adhered to the concept of not putting too much unnecessary curriculum info in. Some good examples to be shared next year to build on this.

Although Governor meetings were held virtually all information was shared in advance and questions from Governors were responded to.Pupil progress meetings held and ch/ groups identified for further support. 

Tracking of PP ch developed to use the same system of step trackers (ladders) as with other children that way clear at a glance if they are making appropriate progress.

 

Priority Area 2 

Quality of Education 

(i)To continue to improve outcomes in writing by improving pupils self-editing skills, strengthening the teaching of grammar, punctuation and spelling in context and improving handwriting.

(ii)To raise attainment in mathematics particularly in upper KS2.

(iii)To develop and review the teaching of and provision for vulnerable groups, particularly pupils eligible for Pupil Premium Grant

  • To ensure teaching assistant time is targeted for maximum effectiveness in raising standards, targeted intervention, enhancing provision and the smooth running of the school. 

(iv)To introduce a skill based curriculum, ensuring coverage of Foundation Subjects and subsequent assessment. Developing the process of acquiring the essential knowledge, skills, understanding and behaviours required for deep understanding.

  • To ensure that progression is evident across classes and Key Stages to allow previous learning to be revisited, built upon and extended. Greater focus to be placed on History and Geography curriculum in line with New Framework. 

Spelling programme introduced in KS2 showing greater impact in classes that are dedicating set lesson time to this. Subject leader to monitor this next year to ensure dedicated time is given for the teaching of spelling in all classes. Particularly as this has an impact on SPAG scores in Y6Spelling included in marking policy to support the identification of a basic mistake that is careless and one that identifies a lack of spelling knowledge. 

Greater use of Lexia to support spelling and home access to be used to develop spelling for those struggling. 
JS (maths lead) attended all NCTEM development sessions and fed back to the staff via staff meetings. All teachers chose various mastery elements to add to their teaching throughout the spring term.TTRS – Country, school wide and class battle of the bands led to an increased amount of children using the program. Children who have regularly accessed the program have all seen their times tables recall speeds improve as well as their accuracy. 

All staff in the school are now following the guidance from White Rose Maths and using this to inform their planning and questions. Reasoning and problem solving questions are becoming the norm in lessons with more opportunities for children to access them.

Spring Term Booster reading has had a good impact, therefore planned in again for next year.Governors requested that the children on that programme be tracked for overall reading attainment to ensure impact is seen in formalized assessments not just in one programme.

Attainment for disadvantaged still an issue so plan to have wider support next year to have greater impact. 

To continue with Hodder reading tests as Chronological alongside actual reading age is a helpful indicator. 

 Assessments reduced to 3 times a year.

Planning allows for end of topic quizzes so that ongoing assessment is possible for foundation subjects and identified as areas to focus on next topic particularly linked to skills.

LA CPD provided for staff new to age ranges to support planning and implementation of curriculum.

Maths subject leader led a staff meeting about White Rose Maths teaching. Idea of all being taught same concept and constant discussion – mini plenaries – to address misconceptions throughout lesson to ensure all have basics but then extension more rapid as ch moving at own pace. 

Pre – teaching not followed yet. To be implemented next term in particular linked to those children who will have gaps from Covid.

Nurture room teacher no longer employed. Due to Covid impact not as successful as had hoped but two TAs who worked in there are goingto continue to work with high need children using a mixture of class based and nurture room strategies. 

Progressive planning completed and LA support used to review plans in place.
Staff are beginning process but some areas need further development. Subject leaders are completing an audit but need to be more proactive in their monitoring. 
Priority Area 3  

Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare

            (i) Ensure that we maintain a good standard of behaviour and safety in the school by: 

  • Providing engaging and well-differentiated learning tasks that engender a positive attitude to learning, promote high levels of engagement and build learning to learn capacity. 
  • improving the engagement of the most troubled children by ensuring all adults are fully engaged in managing and modifying the children’s behaviour   ‘The success of our policy will not be tested by the absence of problems but the way in which we deal with them’.
  • Incorporating restorative approaches practice into the way we approach times of conflict between pupils.
  • Embedding and developing Positive Play Provision – OPAL 
  • Ensure that C-Poms is effectively used and is an accurate tool for recording all safeguarding issues and concerns

(ii)Further embed E- Safety within teaching and within school procedures. 

(iii) Ensure attendance rises to 97%+ by :reducing the number of children who are persistently absent from school ,reducing the number of parents taking family holidays during term time 
Targets/ Actions Who? When?  Success criteria Monitored by & how? Evaluation
Staff meeting held to review behaviour policy with staff and ensure they are following procedures. Greater emphasis needed on those initial conversations with parents if a problem is beginning and not automatically directing to HT. HT involvement for low level behaviour has improved.

For some children the growth mindset has successfully supported them to ‘not give up’ but still not evident throughout school with some children still being too easily put off by a challenge. Hope  / plan is that as children progress through school with that same message then it will become embedded in upper KS2 where issues tend to arise. 

Pupil voice and feedback to governors and teachers to be a focus for next year. 
 Road Centre accessed and waiting list in place. Before closure 4 ch being seen a week, for varying levels of need. We are just beginning our MHST trailblazer work moving into September to meet the team working in our school. Staff have accessed the online Anxiety training to support school returning and for future. 

Nurture room being kept open but TAs to work in it 

Some children who have spent their mornings in the Nurture room have been supported by staff during lunch breaks and during transition to play and back. This has meant those children are supervised and managing the outdoors better with fewer behaviour issues.
Safer internet day was a success. Each class had specific tasks however, they were completed throughout the week and not just on the specific day. Parents e safety session will take place next academic year.

More detailed e-safety planning has been looked at and implemented into the curriculum.

All e safety incidents are monitored throughout the year through CPOMS.

Mini Police experienced educational visits including the PSU Training suite and Custody Suite. This will continue next academic year. 

E cadets will restart in Autumn term. 
Systems in place developed with office staff taking greater role in the collating of information and sharing with HT for decisions about referral.meetings held with parents to support attendance and in some instances improvement seen once strategies of support put in place e.g. simple toileting issue. 

Absence of SEND and Disadvantaged to be an area for next year development plan as some of these children are in danger of becoming persistent absentees.

More early intervention meetings – last year encouraged staff to be more active in their approach to parents for those children showing signs of persistent absence but will extend this next year. 
Priority Area 4 

Outcomes for pupils

           (i)Ensure that the proportion of pupils making expected/ more than expected progress from their starting points meets or exceeds national figures in all subjects at the end of EYFS, Year 2 and Year 6.

  • Identifying pupils that are not making expected or better progress and intervening effectively to accelerate their learning and resolve the underachievement promptly.
  • Improving assessment and tracking of pupils with SEN and use this to inform teaching and learning 
  • Exploring the reasons for gaps in achievement in different classes and ability groups
  • Ensuring consistency of progress across Year Groups and across Key Stages 
  • Ensuring consistency of progress made by pupils with SEN and Pupil Premium
  • Ensuring the value added for all pupils (paying close attention to particular groups of children ie. PP)  is positive and in line with national. 
Actions When?

Who?

 Success criteria Monitored by Evaluation
Tracking system altered to be in line with the rest of our tracking system so that progress is clearer and identifies slow progress quickly – staff to share these as part of preparation for pupil progress meetings.Outcomes targets to be carried forward into next academic year and extended due to issues from absence during Covid

Headlines of SIP 2018/2019 Review

Priority Area 1 – Effectiveness of Leadership and Management 

Senior leaders to increase the impact that middle leaders have on improving the quality of teaching, learning and assessment, enhancing their capacity to lead the school and ensuring that % of children achieving the expected standards in reading, writing and maths combined to be above National average in KS1 and KS2 (target 75%) by July 2019 

  • Providing a strategic direction for improving standards and driving improvements across the whole school.
  • Monitoring systems are used to measure the impact of training and deployment of resources on pupils’ progress.
  • Increasing the frequency and rigor of monitoring processes to evaluate the quality of provision and focus improvement work.
  • Ensure all aspects of the last Ofsted report are addressed and improvements evident.
  • Systematically evaluating the impact of school improvement work and report findings to key stakeholders, particularly parents and carers.
  • Improving the quality and focus of professional development training to meet whole school priorities and strengthen the teaching profile.

Ensure that all governors have a clear understanding of their roles and of the crucial balance between the strategic and operational leadership of the school, so that senior leaders are more effectively supported and challenged to improve the school.

 

REVIEW: 2018 /2019

  • Staff received Local Authority training to moderate Greater Depth writing, ensuring that sufficient opportunities are given to reach GD from an earlier stage in the year. 
  • Local cluster of schools met regularly to moderate work in writing and maths and to collate evidence of standardized work that is being further moderated by the Local Authority. 
  • Primary Science Quality Mark award to celebrate a commitment to excellence in science teaching and learning. 
  • In school tracking data shows that most classes have 80%+ ARE in Reading, Writing and Maths. Year 5 in Reading and Writing were below the target set but above 70%. Year 6 were below across all subject within SATs but in Teacher Assessments were closer to the 80% target. Where Year 6 didn’t make the progress was with Pupil Premium and this brought down the overall progress against ARE.
  • GD across the school was 15% and above in most subjects and year groups. However not in writing which will be a focus for next year.
  • Middle leaders were given further training and support to ensure they are able to lead their subjects with greater rigour. They reported to governors and produced action plans for their subject areas. 
  • All subject leaders attended network meetings to be updated on any new developments. 
  • Regular monitoring visits held by governors and meetings with Head Teacher to review the SIP. 
  • Termly Head Teacher reports shared with the Full Governing Body and questions recorded by the Clerk from the Local Authority.

 

Priority Area 2 – Quality of Teaching, Learning and Assessment

Strengthen teaching so that all lessons are good or better by:

  • Ensuring that assessments are frequent, accurate and used to plan well-pitched lessons that result in good progress for all pupil groups.
  • Using Key Assessment for learning strategies routinely to strengthen learning, resolve misconceptions and evaluate the impact of provision
  • Improving the quality and impact of differentiation across the school, in groups and in all classes.
  •  Increasing level of active participation by pupils in lessons
  • Ensuring that learning tasks are relevant, engaging and matched to pupils’ individual learning needs. 
  • Ensuring that pupils and their parents/carers are aware of their current attainment standards

To continue to improve outcomes in writing by improving pupils self-editing skills, strengthening the teaching of grammar, punctuation and spelling in context and improving handwriting.

To develop and review the teaching of and provision for vulnerable groups, particularly pupils eligible for Pupil Premium Grant

To ensure teaching assistant time is targeted for maximum effectiveness in raising standards, targeted intervention, enhancing provision and the smooth running of the school. 

To introduce a skill based curriculum, ensuring coverage of Foundation Subjects and subsequent assessment. Developing the process of acquiring the essential knowledge, skills, understanding and behaviours required for deep understanding.

 

REVIEW: 2018 /2019

  • Subject leaders have attended Local Authority network meetings to keep up to date with the new Ofsted framework and greater emphasis on Foundation subjects. 
  • Whole school progression of skills has been a key focus to ensure that children are constantly building on prior knowledge and skills within all subjects. 
  • Assessment of foundation subjects has been revitalized so that children can be tracked and provision made for challenge and support in all subject areas. Also allowing subject leaders to have an overview of standards within their areas.
  • Spelling continues to be an area for development next year. 

Prior   Priority Area 3  -Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare

Ensure that we maintain a good standard of behaviour and safety in the school by: 

  • Providing engaging and well-differentiated learning tasks that engender a positive attitude to learning, promote high levels of engagement and build learning to learn capacity.
  • improving the engagement of the most troubled children by ensuring all adults are fully engaged in managing and modifying the children’s behaviour   ‘The success of our policy will not be tested by the absence of problems but the way in which we deal with them’.
  • Incorporating restorative approaches practice into the way we approach times of conflict between pupils.
  • Embedding and developing Positive Play Provision – OPAL 
  • Ensure that C-Poms is effectively used and is an accurate tool for recording all safeguarding issues and concerns
  • Ensure attendance rises to 97%+ by :reducing the number of children who are persistently absent from school and reducing the number of parents taking family holidays during term time 

 

REVIEW: 2018 /2019

  • Overall attendance only a slight increase from 95.52% in 2018 to 95.81% in 2019.

Although in every class there is a very slight increase in attendance and decrease of unauthorised. Persistent  absenteeism has gone down however we will be working on achieving 97%+ next year. 

  • Restorative justice approach used fully in school by all staff including lunchtime supervisors.
  • Opal Platinum award achieved. 
  • Various training has been accessed by staff to support children with their emotional well being.

Priority Area 4 – Outcomes for pupils

  • Ensure that the proportion of pupils making expected/ more than expected progress from their starting points meets or exceeds national figures in all subjects. 
  • Identifying pupils that are not making expected or better progress and intervening effectively to accelerate their learning and resolve the underachievement promptly.
  • Improving assessment and tracking of the pupils with SEN and use this to inform teaching and learning 
  • Exploring the reasons for gaps in achievement in different classes and ability groups
  • Ensuring consistency of progress across Year Groups and across Key Stages 
  • Ensuring consistency of progress made by pupils with SEN and Pupil Premium

REVIEW: 2018 /2019

  • Development of further strategies to ensure that Pupil Premium children make greater progress in line with national average.
  • Planned timetable of booster sessions implemented to target key skills for those children not meeting standards.
  • Greater use of homework clubs to be implemented to support children.