St Paul's Catholic Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Increase the effectiveness of leadership and management by ensuring that:
  • leaders, including governors, check systematically that their arrangements for safeguarding meet statutory requirements and address any issues promptly
  • leaders’ assessments of risks to pupils and staff are robust and regular, and that staff are clear about procedures required to maintain the health and safety of pupils and staff
  • leaders provide teachers with detailed advice and guidance about how to increase their effectiveness in order to improve achievement further.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Leadership and management have not been thorough enough in checking that the statutory information for the recruitment of staff is fully in place. They do not have robust systems to monitor the effectiveness of their work in relation to safeguarding.

• Leaders and governors recognise that their monitoring of arrangements for safeguarding should be better. During the inspection, the headteacher took effective steps to demonstrate that the school was compliant with statutory requirements.
• The effectiveness of leaders, including subject leaders, in improving the quality of teaching and outcomes for pupils is limited because they do not check closely enough on the impact of teaching on pupils’ achievement. As a result, teachers do not receive timely guidance about how to improve their work and raise standards further.
• The leadership of special educational needs is effective because teaching is planned well to meet pupils’ needs. Well thought out strategies and effective use of external support help pupils overcome their difficulties. Detailed monitoring shows they are making good progress.
• Leaders tailor the support specifically for disadvantaged pupils to help maximise their learning and promote their self-esteem successfully. Through this work, the school demonstrates a clear commitment to promoting equality of opportunity at all times and tackling any discrimination effectively.
• Checks on the use of the additional funding for physical education and school sport show that pupils are more active than previously and taking part in a wider range of sports. Staff have enhanced their teaching skills by working alongside sports coaches and specialist teachers. Pupils enjoy running the ‘daily mile’ that helps to increase their physical fitness and levels of concentration in lessons.
• The curriculum has good breadth and balance across subjects and is designed to follow pupils’ interests and ideas. The extensive range of educational visits, visitors and after-school clubs enriches pupils’ experiences and broadens their horizons.
• Leaders promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development extremely well. The school’s core values, such as honesty, respect and friendship, are embedded through the curriculum. These are seen in pupils’ daily interactions and relationships with each other. They teach pupils respect for people different from themselves, the value of democracy and a strong sense of right and wrong, which help to prepare them well for life in modern Britain.
• Most parents who spoke to the inspector or who completed Ofsted’s online survey are positive about the work of the school. They are appreciative of the efforts of the headteacher and her staff to involve them in their children’s learning.
• Local authority advisers and other external consultants provide help for leaders in gaining an accurate view of teaching and the achievement of pupils.

Governance of the school

• Governors have not kept their work with regard to safeguarding under close review. They have not been systematic enough in checking that all their policies and procedures relating to health and safety have been implemented effectively.
• Governors ask leaders challenging questions about the school’s performance. Through their regular meetings with leaders, they gain a clear understanding of the quality of teaching and the school’s performance compared to national figures. They understand how the performance of staff is managed to address any underperformance promptly and to reward effective practice. They set suitably challenging targets for the headteacher.
• Governors manage their finances effectively. They check carefully on how additional funds are spent and are clear about the impact they have on the achievement of disadvantaged pupils and pupils’ participation in sport.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders ensure that all staff receive regular training in the latest requirements for child protection. They follow up any concerns about pupils promptly. Consequently, no pupils are at risk of significant harm. Pupils confirm that they feel safe in school and trust the adults to look after them well. However, leaders, including in the early years foundation stage, have not assessed risks robustly and systematically enough to ensure the continuing health and safety of pupils and staff at school. For example, emergency evacuation drills have not been regular enough for leaders to test their effectiveness. Leaders are not proactive enough in anticipating and managing the risks that pupils and staff may face, nor do they ensure that staff are clear about procedures for maintaining all aspects of health and safety.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Teaching is consistently good. Teachers have successfully implemented new approaches to meet the requirements of the national curriculum and assess pupils’ work accurately. As a result, pupils make good progress as teachers set purposeful work that develops their knowledge, understanding and skills well.
• Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ achievement and their behaviour. Pupils say they have to try hard in lessons and appreciate the clear guidance from teachers about how to improve their work.
• Teachers and teaching assistants are skilled in providing precise support for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. They give pupils useful strategies for managing their feelings and build their confidence as learners.
• Disadvantaged pupils benefit from precisely targeted teaching that enables them to catch up to others and achieve well. Teachers ensure that the most able pupils in this group are suitably challenged to help them achieve as well as others in school.
• Reading is taught well and teachers ensure that pupils develop good skills in phonics that enable them to quickly become fluent readers. Teachers develop pupils’ skills in comprehension effectively by presenting them with challenging texts that extend their thinking.
• The teaching of writing is effective and teachers make sure that pupils have a wide range of opportunities to write at length across subjects. For example, Year 6 pupils wrote to high standards, using sophisticated vocabulary, about their understanding of ‘conscience’ in religious education.
• The teaching of mathematics is thorough. Teachers ensure that pupils develop competence in calculation and their knowledge and skills across other aspects of mathematics to enable them to solve increasingly complex problems.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils develop effective personal and social skills, in part because they are an integral part of the curriculum, but also because they are at the heart of the work of the school.
• The warm and effective relationships between staff and pupils contribute to pupils’ enjoyment of school. Pupils say that their teachers are ‘great’ and take the time to help them with their work or any worries they may have. They undertake a variety of roles within school, such as ‘digital’ leaders for ICT, with obvious pride and sense of responsibility.
• Adults and pupils promote and model a culture of mutual understanding and respect. Staff ensure that all pupils are treated equally so that the school makes them feel welcomed and valued. Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities or who are vulnerable in some way are well cared for and encouraged to participate fully in what school has to offer.
• Most pupils say they feel safe in school. They confirm that bullying, derogatory and aggressive language are rare and not tolerated here. They have a clear understanding that bullying can take different forms, such as racist name-calling or cyber bullying. They have confidence in the adults to sort things out quickly and effectively should this occur.
• Parents speak highly of staff and how they go ‘over and beyond’ to ensure pupils have positive experiences at school. They praise the nurturing ethos and ‘family feel’ to the school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Typically, pupils are friendly, polite and keen to talk about their work to visitors to school. They demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning and sustain good levels of concentration in lessons.
• Pupils understand clearly the school’s system of rewards and sanctions to promote good behaviour. They strive hard to earn house points and the much-prized ‘platinum’ and ‘diamond’ awards for effort and achievement.
• Parents and staff are mostly positive about standards of behaviour. The school’s records show that there are very few incidents of poor behaviour. The small numbers of pupils with poor behaviour are supported well, reducing the need for exclusion.
• A few parents expressed a concern about behaviour but inspection evidence shows that, overall, this is managed well. However, occasionally, a few pupils lose concentration and become inattentive which slows down their progress. Most pupils enjoy coming to school and this is reflected in their regular attendance and punctuality.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• In 2016, most pupils made good progress across key stage 2 in reading and mathematics and broadly average progress in writing. In both key stage 1 and key stage 2 pupils’ attainment was in line with or above national figures in each subject at the expected standards for their age. This prepares them well for the next stage in their education.
• However, fewer pupils than nationally, especially those who were the most able, achieved better than the expected standard. Judging from the school’s own unvalidated assessment information, the learning observed in lessons and the work in pupils’ books, a greater number of the most able pupils are on track to achieve beyond the expected standard in each subject than last year.
• Pupils read with fluency and confidence, using their phonics knowledge and skills to read unknown words successfully. Older pupils enjoy reading across the wide range of fiction and non-fiction books available to them in school. The most able readers are extended well in their understanding by more difficult texts.
• Pupils’ handwriting and presentation are much improved this year. Pupils write regularly at length to good standards across subjects. They use their skills in grammar, spelling and punctuation to good effect when writing for a variety of different purposes, such as a diary entry about the ‘Great Fire of London’ in history and a description of the African savanna in geography.
• Pupils demonstrate effective mastery of calculation skills and a good understanding in all aspects of mathematics. They apply their knowledge and skills to solve problems with increasing success.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress because their support is finely tuned to meet their needs. They thrive in school because good attention is given to increasing their self-esteem as learners and including them fully in school life.
• Disadvantaged pupils, including those who are the most able, make good and sometimes better progress than others in school from similar starting points. Extra help to improve attitudes to learning and build self-confidence is successful in speeding up academic progress.

Early years provision Requires improvement

• Leaders are not consistent enough in monitoring the procedures for maintaining the safety and welfare of children. They do not check systematically that their procedures are effective, for example in relation to fire safety drills. Nevertheless, the early years leader has a good overview of children’s development and has established a cohesive staff team who are keen to improve their effectiveness.
• Parents appreciate the arrangements that help children settle quickly into routines in the Reception class and make a positive start to school life. They welcome the opportunities to be involved in their children’s learning and praise the approachability of staff.
• Most children enter the school with the knowledge and skills broadly typical of those seen for their age. From their starting points, children make good progress across all areas of learning. As they leave Reception, the number of children who have achieved a good level of development is above national figures, meaning they are well prepared for Year 1.
• Learning journeys track children’s progress carefully and show how activities are adjusted to meet the needs of disadvantaged children well, particularly in their personal development. Children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities have their needs identified at an early stage and the school works well with other agencies to ensure their needs are met effectively, for example in the development of their speech.
• Teaching is consistently good and children benefit from well-planned adult-led teaching, including the teaching of phonics, which underpins the development of early reading and writing skills successfully. Children also have opportunities to follow their own interests. For example, some boys were observed during inspection developing their knowledge of magnetism from a previous lesson by testing out their toy cars, understanding that if they ‘stick’ then they are made of metal.
• Children enjoy warm relationships with staff and with each other. They listen carefully to instructions from staff and behave well, showing great curiosity and delight in their learning.

School details

Unique reference number 109269 Local authority South Gloucestershire Inspection number 10000895 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Voluntary aided 4 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 199 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Carol Lawler Maxine Sewell 01454 866790 www.stpaulscatholicprimary.co.uk/ admin@stpaulscatholicprimary.co.uk Date of previous inspection 22–23 February 2012

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

• The school is slightly smaller than the average primary school. Pupils are organised in seven single-age classes.
• The large majority of pupils are of White British heritage.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is below the national average.
• An above-average proportion of pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• The school provides care for pupils through a breakfast club.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations of pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

Information about this inspection

• This inspection took place over two days. Inspectors observed teaching and learning across the school, some in conjunction with the headteacher. In addition, they made visits to classrooms, the dining hall and the playground.
• Meetings were held with pupils, governors and school leaders. The lead inspector also spoke with an adviser from the local authority, who provides support to the school.
• Inspectors took account of the 39 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View), and written comments. They also took account of the 22 responses to the Ofsted staff questionnaire and the 39 responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire for pupils.
• Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documents, including the school’s improvement plans. They examined information on current pupils’ progress, minutes of the governing body meetings, safeguarding procedures and the plans for the use of the sport premium.
• Inspectors listened to pupils read, talked to them in classrooms and evaluated samples of their work.

Inspection team

Sandra Woodman, lead inspector Fiona Allen Nick Sheppard

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector