National Society Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools Report

Arkengarthdale Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Arkengarthdale
Richmond,
North Yorkshire
DL11 6EN
Diocese: West Yorkshire and the Dales
Local authority: North Yorkshire
Date of inspection: 9 June 2014
Date of last inspection: 18 June 2009
School’s unique reference number: 121476
Executive Headteacher: Mark Allison
Inspector’s name and number: Linda Hodson 314
School context
Arkengarthdale is a small primary school situated in the most northerly part of the Yorkshire Dales. The majority of its 31 pupils live within Arkengarthdale, whilst the remainder are drawn from neighbouring villages. All pupils are of White British heritage. Very few attract pupil premium funding, but the proportion supported through school action, for special educational needs, is above average. The school entered into a collaboration with a larger Methodist primary school in the town of Richmond in 2012 and is now led by an experienced executive headteacher. All teaching staff have joined the school in the last two years.
The distinctiveness and effectiveness of Arkengarthdale as a Church of England school are good.
·  The school is very much at the heart of its local community and enjoys mutually supportive links with the local church and wider community.
·  The school provides high quality pastoral care, underpinned by Christian values, which has a very positive impact on pupils’ attitudes to learning and behaviour.
·  Governors decisive actions in establishing the collaboration are ensuring the school’s continued growth as a church school and providing development opportunities for leaders at all levels.
Areas to improve
·  Take a more systematic approach to the exploration of Christian values within long-term worship plans.
·  Ensure future self-review fully reflects the revised inspection framework.
·  Celebrate the school’s Christian character more widely within the physical environment and create spaces that support pupils’ personal reflection and prayer.
·  Provide regular opportunities for pupils to contribute to the planning, leadership and evaluation of worship.
The school, through its distinctive Christian character, is good at meeting the needs of all learners.
Arkengarthdale is a welcoming school community in which each child is valued and supported as a unique individual. Within a distinctively Christian setting, the school offers a wide range of educational experiences that nurture lively enquiring minds, foster independence and help to develop self-confidence and self-esteem. High priority is given to pastoral care, which is firmly rooted in Christian values, such as justice, hope and love. This ensures that all pupils feel safe and well cared for and enjoy coming to school. As a consequence, they develop positive attitudes to learning and their attendance is above average. The school’s leaders have high aspirations and expectations for staff and pupils. Their decisive action has been effective in securing rapid improvements in teaching and learning so that pupils’ academic achievement is now good. Relationships within the school are excellent, with adults effectively modelling the Christian values of trust and respect. Pupils explain that they always try to treat others as they would want to be treated themselves, reflecting the teachings of Jesus. They are polite and well-mannered when talking to adults and co-operate well with each other in lessons and at break times. Older pupils particularly value the “circle of friends” work which supports them in making appropriate choices and provides an opportunity to talk through any issues they may have in confidence. This provision impacts positively on pupils’ social and moral development. As a result, behaviour is now consistently good and sometimes outstanding. Religious education (RE) is given high status within the school and makes a positive contribution to the school’s distinctive Christian character. Together, with the wider curriculum it contributes effectively to pupils’ good spiritual and cultural development. A particular strength is the way pupils develop a very clear understanding of community and culture at local and national levels, through their participation in events such as the Swaledale Festival percussion event. Their understanding of diverse cultures is further developed through the RE curriculum and is enhanced through links with schools in Leeds and Kenya.
The impact of collective worship on the school community is good.
Worship is seen as an important part of the day when the school can come together and is valued for the sense of community this fosters. Individual acts of worship are well planned, ensuring a worthwhile and enjoyable experience for all. They reflect the Anglican foundation of the school and provide opportunities to experience different elements of worship such as celebration, praise, silence and symbolism. Interactive whiteboard displays are used effectively to reflect the school’s distinctive Christian character and to provide visual stimuli during worship. However, there are no permanent displays to encourage pupils to reflect on the worship theme or to make a personal response. Pupils show thoughtfulness and respect during times of prayer or reflection and particularly enjoy the opportunities they have to respond musically. Members of the school council suggest that there is scope for pupils to take a more active role in some acts of worship, through reading and writing prayers and through playing musical instruments. Older pupils would also welcome the opportunity to contribute more regularly to the planning and leadership of worship. The school’s varied worship programme makes a good contribution to pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development. The regular inclusion of Bible stories allows pupils to develop understanding of the school’s values within their Christian context. Pupils reflect on the key messages and values in the stories they hear and apply these to their own behaviour and learning habits. For example, one pupil explained that the story of the Good Samaritan teaches us to help others who may not be our friends.
They are also inspired to take action in service of others, particularly through involvement in community projects or through their support for charities. A more systematic approach to the exploration of Christian values within long-term worship plans would further strengthen current provision. The incumbent is a regular visitor to the school and leads worship each Wednesday. Her input, together with the celebration of major Christian festivals helps to develop an understanding of the Church year and of some Anglican traditions and practices. Pupils therefore develop an understanding of the importance of Jesus Christ within the Christian faith and some awareness of the Trinity. Foundation governors support the school well and contribute to the monitoring and evaluating of collective worship. They ensure that evidence gathered feeds into policy revision and leads to improvement in practice.
The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the school as a church school is good.
Governors see the school’s collaboration with Richmond Methodist Primary School as key to achieving their vision to sustain high quality educational provision in this rural church school. The collaboration agreement allows each school to retain its distinctive Christian character and governing body whilst working in partnership to provide high quality teaching and learning. Arkengarthdale therefore remains very much at the heart of its local community but is now able to offer staff and pupils a wider range of experiences through the partnership. Parents recognise that a major benefit of the collaboration is the quality of the leadership provided by the executive headteacher and his wider leadership team. Their clear direction and support have helped to secure improvements in the quality of teaching and standards of behaviour in a relatively short period of time. As a result pupils’ achievement is now good. The school is welcoming and happy place of learning, where Christian values underpin excellent relationships between staff, children and parents. The school enjoys mutually supportive relationships with the wider community and benefits from the active support and involvements of parents and friends in the daily life of the school. A closer partnership with the local church and the weekly involvement of the incumbent in leading worship is helping to strengthen the school’s provision for RE and collective worship and is promoting understanding of the school’s Anglican foundation. Pupils benefit from a wide range of cultural and sporting activities organised by the school and local community. This helps them grow in confidence and supports the development of individual talents. The school’s leaders and governors ensure that the arrangements for collective worship and RE meet statutory requirements. They have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and are correctly targeting the introduction of the new Agreed Syllabus for RE as a key priority this year. The RE leader is a member of the senior leadership team and leads this subject across both schools. She provides effective support for staff and her monitoring leads to prompt action to secure improvement. The school now needs to ensure that future self-evaluation is closely aligned to revised inspection criteria to ensure that Arkengarthdale continues to grow and develop as a church school.

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