Chestnuts Ofsted result - 'satisfactory'

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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on November 18, 2011 at 12:01

If you are a parent, Dave, or potential parent, have you asked the Head or Chair of Governors?

I entirely accept that local parents and the wider community have a clear and understandable interest in the progress and standards of local schools. But at least on first reading, I'm unclear how posing the question on a website is going to take this forward. Maybe it will and I haven't thought this through properly.

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Permalink Reply by John D on November 18, 2011 at 19:34

If you read the report, it says that additional criteria were introduced after 2009. So - apples and pears.

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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on November 18, 2011 at 20:28

Dave, I agree with Alan on where and to whom the pertinent questions should be posed. The problem with posing them here, or on any open forum, is that the grey areas between "satisfactory" and "good" and "outstanding" get ignored and we end up kicking Chestnuts around the place with little evidence or knowledge of what these overall terms stand for and how they were aggregated from a wider range of sub-headings applying to various aspects of the school.

 

First, however, I think you should widen the picture beyond a mere 2-year stretch. You ignored the March 2006 Ofsted Report.  Nearly 6 years ago that Report suggests the school may have been in more dire straits than in 2009 or 2011. There were pressures following a recent school merger (I'm not sure which two schools had merged) so no doubt the intake of pupils and cohesion of staff settling in were both affected.   Out of 7 inspection headings the school was awarded just 2 at Grade 2 ("good") for two of the 'softer' aspects (Caring, etc); under the 'harder' aspects (Teaching, Leadership etc) the school was scored 5 at Grade 3 ("satisfactory"). Overall, then, a Satisfactory rather than Inadequate - but clearly a less satisfactory Satisfactory than the 2011 Satisfactory !

 

The April 2009 Ofsted Report (at a skim reading) suggests a 'softer inspection' all round than that of 2006 or, even more so, that of Oct 2011. The inspectors may have come more ready to be impressed by the improvements made over a 25-month period. And the Head and Staff were probably more prepared for an Ofsted. So both sides performed and delivered the goods within reason. Out of 8 Inspection headings, the school  scored 4 at Grade 1 ("Outstanding") on three of those 'softer' aspects, and on the Head's Leadership; it also scored 4 at Grade 2 ("Good") on the remaining 'harder' aspects (Teaching etc). On balance the overall result was "Good" rather than "Outstanding". The question may be, how much of that "Good" result was down to an experienced Headteacher?

 

The October 2011 Ofsted was a different sort of inspection. The apparent change in Result may have nothing to do with any deterioration at Chestnuts. The inspection took place on October 19th. Ofsted inspectors would have been only too aware that Michael Gove's search for a hard man to head Ofsted had finally succeeded, after months of nobody applying for the job and some, like Michael Barber, refusing all cajolery and arm-twisting. With the announcement on October 13th that Sir Michael Wilshaw had taken over Ofsted any Lead inspector with an inspection coming up shortly might well have been scared shitless* - especially if his Report would be due for publication within a week or two of Wilshaw getting behind the desk. Sir Michael's more recent words of wisdom include: "Far too many schools are being judged Good or Outstanding when they are clearly nothing of the sort."  and "How can 19% of schools be deemed "Outstanding Overall" when only 4% are judged Outstanding on Teaching ?"  

 

Part of me agrees with Wilshaw on that, but think of the looming Wilshaw Effect on that Inspection team preparing for their Chestnuts visit in the week 17-21st October. I suggest, Dave, you read the recent Chestnuts Report in the light of the Advent of Wilshaw.  Note particularly the inspectors' observations on the lack of experience and rigour on the part of the "senior management" (other than the Headteacher) in monitoring their colleagues' teaching. The inspectors were looking for Wilshawish things with an eye to their own jobs. Chestnuts is probably no worse or better than it ever was.

 

* scared shitless is a technical term used by Ofsted inspectors, not normally used in their Reports.

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Permalink Reply by michaelw on November 18, 2011 at 20:53

Following up on these points, the report also mentions poor maths performance a number of times, e.g. "In the national tests of 2011, pupils attained broadly average levels in reading and writing, but mathematics attainment dipped for the second year running because the school did not move urgently enough to improve the teaching of mathematics."

This may be the main reason why the school went down the ratings, as much of the rest of the report is very positive.

 

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Permalink Reply by Dave on November 18, 2011 at 21:11

Yes I heard from friends with children who go there that it was to do with poorer maths & english results. They got a letter about the ofsted results yesterday. The head teacher is also looking after another school  in the borough at the moment, so may just be unfortunate timing.

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Permalink Reply by Liza on November 24, 2011 at 22:59

Just to clarify, It has nothing to do with the English results, only with Maths which dipped last year only for one year 6 cohort which were not typical.  There is no real concern about maths teaching within the school as a whole. The judgements for many of the other areas were linked directly to this result. The report as a consequence reads quite oddly.  It is likely that there were political motivations for a reinspection at this time which was  not anticipated. The Head teacher is also absolutely not looking after another school in the borough at the moment.

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Permalink Reply by Gina O on November 26, 2011 at 17:00

I do not have children at the school (it was too popular this year) but everyone I know who sends their children there is very happy with it and in particular the headteacher. Before she arrived and before the merger things were not good but she has turned the school around. I was very surprised about the Ofsted report. It was full of contradictions, and I very much got the impression that the inspector was looking for faults to try to explain the lower maths result.

 

In looking for schools for my son I have often found that the Ofsted reports seem to bear little relation to the school being visited. I can only hope from selfish point of view that this makes the school less popular in the next few years and I can get a place there for my daughter 

 

Dave - please can you give your evidence for saying that the headteacher is "looking after another school", whatever that is supposed to mean?

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Permalink Reply by JulieB on November 24, 2011 at 23:13

I am a parent of 2 children at Chestnuts. I have read the report and been to a meeting at school about it and I am happy with the explanation given to me by school and their plans for the future.

In my opinion, the change in overall rating is down to changes in ofsted inspecting rather than anything changing (for the worse) at the school.

I am very happy, as are my children, with Chestnuts and I'm sure they will both get a good education there.

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Permalink Reply by Pat on November 25, 2011 at 9:28

And it has nothing to do with Gove wanting to force schools into Academies and Chestnuts being on his 'naughty' list. Under the new framework, schools will be judged on top line results without context and looking at baseline improvements.

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