Moulsecoomb Primary school rated 'inadequate'

Moulsecoomb Primary in The Highway, Brighton, was branded “inadequate” after inspectors found teachers had low expectations for their pupils and many children were “persistently absent".

The report also found that “rough play” in the playground had left pupils feeling anxious.

The community school for children aged three to 11 was previously given the second lowest rating – requires improvement.

Inspectors found quality of teaching and outcomes for pupils was “inadequate”.

The report said: “Standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Key Stage 2 have been consistently low and show little sign of improvement.

“No pupils have achieved the higher standard in all three subjects by the end of Year 6 for the last three years.

“Rough play sometimes spills over and tempers fray.

“Staff do not systematically intervene quickly to defuse this behaviour and so it escalates.

“Pupils confirm that events such as this are not uncommon and that they leave some pupils feeling anxious.”

Teacher’s expectations of their pupils in Key Stage 2 was “too low”.

The report said: “Leaders’ and governors’ evaluation of the school is inaccurate.

“Their actions to raise standards are too slow to have sufficient impact."

However, the the report found that its early years provision was “good”.

It also found that the school was an “inclusive community”, leaders were working to improve pupil’s attitudes, and pupils in Key Stage 1 are making better progress than in previous years.

To improve the report said the school must make sure that staff on the playground are quick to notice when play becomes rough and take swift action to restore order.

It must also have “consistently high expectations” of its pupils and plan its lessons carefully.

In a letter to parents, head teacher Adam Sutton said: "We are obviously disappointed with this judgement.

"We have been working hard to improve the school and we will continue to do so."

And he said: "Ofsted has recognised the overwhelmingly positive responses of parents and the work we do together."

Mr Sutton added that Key Stage 2 performance had "not been good enough" but was expected to improve quickly.

Brighton and Hove City Council schools boss Pinaki Ghoshal said: "We have provided a comprehensive package of support to develop leadership and improve teaching at the school."

"We do not dispute Ofsted’s judgement that pupils’ progress at Key Stage 2 has been weak."

Here is Mr Sutton's letter to parents in full:

Dear Parents and Carers,

As you may know our school was inspected recently by Ofsted, who are the government’s school inspectors. Please find their report attached.

The inspectors have identified a number of areas that we need to do better in. We have already been focusing on these through our school improvement plan, but the inspectors have identified the need for more rapid change.

They have judged the school to be ‘inadequate’ overall. We are obviously disappointed with this judgement.

We have been working hard to improve the school and we will continue to do so.

Since our last Ofsted inspection two years ago we have improved a lot of things and our children are now doing better.

This shows clearly in our Early Years and Key Stage 1 data, and the new Ofsted report recognises this.

At the end of Reception year, around two thirds of our children are now assessed as having a good level of development.

This is much better than two years ago. Our Year 1 children’s progress in phonics is also much better.

In Year 2 the number of children achieving the pass mark in reading, writing and mathematics has improved a lot in all three areas.

Their results are now roughly in line with the national average.

We know that our Key Stage 2 performance has not been good enough.

We have been working hard to change this in order to make sure our children leave the school with the skills they need to succeed in secondary education.

We expect things at Key Stage 2 to improve quite quickly in the next few months.

When they do we will have positive data in all four of the areas that Ofsted assesses us on.

Each year we survey parents and children around attitudes, safety and behaviour.  I’d like to thank all of you for giving us your views.

These surveys show a transformation in pupil attitudes and feelings of well-being. I’m particularly proud that these days fewer than 10% of our children say they’ve been bullied.

This is well below the average for Brighton & Hove.

Nearly all our children now say they feel safe and valued at our school, and nearly all our parents have told us their child feels happy and safe at school and is making good progress.

Ofsted has recognised the overwhelmingly positive responses of parents and the work we do together.

We are really pleased about this, and we will be working to try and make our school community even more welcoming and inclusive in future.

We are pleased that the inspectors recognised the excellent provision we provide at Nursery and Reception level.

We will be working hard to make sure this excellent start is built upon throughout our pupils’ time at the school.

Ofsted has also recognised our work with families to achieve positive, affirming relationships.

We understand the importance of this as we strive to give our children the best lives we can through education.

We are determined to be recognised for the good work that we do to enhance the lives of our children, and we would like to thank you for all the support you’ve given us.

If you would like to discuss the report with us, please feel free to find me in the playground or contact the school office.

Here is Brighton and Hove City Council's statement in full: 

"We have been working closely with Moulsecoomb Primary School to improve standards both before and after the inspection and will continue to do so.

"As Ofsted has noted, we have provided a comprehensive package of support to develop leadership and improve teaching at the school.

"It is good news that Ofsted has said school leaders have created a warm, welcoming community and that many parents have spoken positively about various aspects of the school.

"Ofsted has also noted that children get off to a strong start at early years level.

"The inspectors added that improvements in teaching and the curriculum at Key Stage 1 are enabling pupils to make better progress than in the past.

"We do not dispute Ofsted’s judgement that pupils’ progress at Key Stage 2 has been weak.

"However, we are confident that the improvements seen at Key Stage 1 and across the school will soon be reflected in improved Key Stage 2 results as well.”