Investors in Pupils Report

Context of the school

Mount Pleasant Primary School serves a socially advantaged community just outside Newport. There are currently 255 pupils on roll.  Most pupils come from white British backgrounds. The number of pupils entitled to free school meals is below local and national averages as is the number of pupil with special educational needs.

The school has high attendance rates and high standards of behaviour. The school has been committed to the development of pupil voice and pupil participation for a number of years and has well embedded practices. Following its very successful inspection of March 2013 the school was tasked with raising the standard of self-assessment and peer-assessment.  The school community felt that Investors in Pupils would provide a useful mechanism for this as well as providing an integrating framework for already established opportunities for pupil participation.  The school then developed a clear action plan to implement Investors in Pupils which was led by the coordinator and the School Council with the active and practical support of senior management and involving all parts of the school community.

All stakeholders who were interviewed, governors, parents, staff and pupils, recognize the value of Investors in Pupils and are enthusiastic about maintaining it and developing it into the future. The school promotes Investors in pupils through newsletters, excellent displays and through a vibrant and comprehensive website.  Given the enthusiasm for Investors in Pupils across the school community there is no doubt that it will be sustained into the future.

Strengths of the school which support the principles of 'Investors in Pupils'

Learning 

The school's particular aim of enhancing peer and self-assessment has certainly been realised. All pupils have individual academic targets developed in discussion with their teachers and these are regularly reviewed leading to reward stars when targets have been achieved. Parents, pupils and teachers gave examples of pupils discussing targets with each other. Alongside their academic targets the pupils have personal targets which refer to a personal hobby or challenge. Parents state that the targets provide a basis for conversation about school work and progress with their children. This conversation is also supported by excellent IT communications within the school and with the parents so that parents feel that the whole process has made the pupils "more ambitious for themselves".  Teachers and teaching assistants noted that previously targets were only for pupils with support needs but now every pupil had targets which had a socially integrating effect.

Behaviour

Behaviour in the school is very good. The pupils are friendly and helpful to each other and to adults. Each class has produced a vision statement and a set of class rules.  Class targets have also been a useful additional motivator in helping the pupils to behave. There is such a positive and friendly culture in the school that pupils have very little experience of bullying but they understand how to communicate any worries which they may have.   The pupils themselves contribute to the positive culture by identifying others for recognition.  For example, the School Council chooses a "class of the week" awarded to the best behaved class in assembly and Criw Cymraeg make awards to their peers who have been using Welsh socially around the school.   "Consideration certificates "are given to pupils who have been observed helping their peers.  In addition there are peer mediators to help promote harmonious lunchtimes and reading buddies who help younger pupils to read. This activity also brings older and younger pupils together socially

School and Class Management including knowledge of school finance

Class vision statements and targets are displayed in all classrooms and, in addition, there are a variety of top quality displays around the school promoting the priorities of the four significant pupil participation groups. These are the School Council which has responsibility for Investors in Pupils and pupil well-being, the Eco Council which has responsibility for environmental issues within the school and beyond, the Digital Ambassadors who have responsibility for reporting school news and events and Criw Cymraeg which encourages staff and pupils to speak Welsh around the school. These groups help to run assemblies and help to decide on the distribution of awards and certificates.

In the classroom the pupils readily take on a wide variety of monitor roles and support duties. Some classrooms have "table captains" who ensure that materials are distributed and collected efficiently.  The pupils have a good awareness of different adult roles and the uses of the school's finance.

Attendance

The school has achieved high levels of attendance (over 95%) and is ambitious to improve further.  The figures for spring term 2014 are 96%. In the most recent inspection the inspectors noted the good attendance and also how promptly pupils came to lessons and settled down to work. The school has texting and telephoning systems to support good attendance and a weekly award for the class with the best record but more importantly the pupils enjoy their school and do not like missing days.   This is because of the positive culture of the school but also because pupils are really engaged in collaborative learning and are committed to their targets (and their star rewards).  Pupils who have time out of school are often really keen to catch up and this is facilitated by the amount of curriculum which they can access online e.g. the Bug Club.

Induction

Each class has a class handbook created by the pupils.  The handbooks also contain pages contributed by teaching staff. The pupils are very proud of their class handbooks and were able to describe how they help them to understand more about each other and to come together as a class. In some cases knowing about each other's hobbies and interests has generated new friendships. Although there are very few pupils entering or leaving the school in-year, the handbooks have been helpful to temporary members of staff and to visitors.  Alongside the handbooks pupils have opportunities to come together around special projects, one of which is "Dynamo".  This enterprise project challenges each class to create, produce and market a new product.  The pupils decide how profits will be used across the school and they are extremely proud of the climbing wall which was part-financed from their Dynamo profits.

Areas for development

• 1. The school has a wealth of good and innovative practice in relation to Investors in Pupils and pupil participation. It should endeavor to share this with other schools especially the local secondary school.