St Edward's Catholic Primary School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the quality of teaching, learning and assessment so that pupils make more progress in a range of subjects by ensuring that all teachers:
  • use assessment information accurately to match activities to pupils’ ability and build on their prior knowledge
  • have sufficient training and guidance to improve their subject knowledge across a range of subjects
  • have high expectations of the most able pupils
  • follow the school’s policy for the presentation of pupils’ work.
• Strengthen the impact of leaders work on pupils’ outcomes by:
  • developing the role of middle leaders in evaluating the work of staff
  • improving the monitoring of teaching, learning and assessment, particularly in the foundation subjects
  • ensuring a balance to the time spent on subjects in the curriculum
  • improving the role that governors take in challenging and supporting the work of leaders
  • continuing to check on the strategic oversight of safeguarding.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Requires improvement

• Since her appointment, the headteacher has focused on improving the quality of teaching and learning. Governors are supportive of these changes and the headteacher has engaged effectively with staff to set a new direction for the school.
• Leaders’ honest and accurate evaluation of the school has identified the main priorities for improvement. The improvements, agreed by leaders and governors, show that appropriate strategies are in place to bring about much needed change. Despite early signs of improvement, it is too soon to measure the impact of actions on outcomes for pupils.
• Previously, teachers did not receive enough support to help them improve their practice. In response, the headteacher has implemented a programme of support. Although the programme has only recently been introduced, there is evidence that staff are being held to account for their work and this is helping to improve the quality of teaching.
• The role of middle leaders in developing the foundation subjects has been weak. This has meant that pupils’ progress in subjects other than English and mathematics has not been good enough. Leaders have not been rigorous enough in their monitoring of learning in the wider curriculum. This has led, for example, to weaknesses in pupils’ spiritual moral, social and cultural development.
• Leaders have effective plans in place to improve the wider curriculum, including pupils’ spiritual moral, social and cultural development. However, the implementation of these plans is at a very early stage so the impact on pupils’ knowledge and skills across the wider curriculum is not fully developed. Pupils have opportunities to enhance their learning through enrichment activities such as clubs.
• Leaders make sure that the pupil premium funding is spent well. Disadvantaged pupils’ progress and attainment is in line with that of other pupils nationally.
• The coordinators for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have a clear overview and check the additional support those pupils receive. Extra funding to support pupils with SEND is used well, particularly to employ teaching assistants to support pupils. As a result, pupils with SEND make good progress from their starting points.
• The additional funding for physical education (PE) and sport is used to provide a range of sporting opportunities for pupils. As a result, the proportion of pupils who meet the key stage 2 requirement to swim 25m is high. Leaders’ evaluation of how the additional funding is used to develop staff is less well understood.
• The ethos of this school is successfully built on its values. Pupils are proud to belong to the school and parents and carers appreciate the caring nature and support that their children receive. A growing range of activities to support an understanding of cultural diversity is helping pupils prepare for life in modern Britain.

Governance of the school

• Under the new leadership of the school, the governing body recognises the need for change and are fully supportive the headteacher’s and other leaders’ vision for the school. Governors now have a more comprehensive understanding of the strengths of the school and areas for further improvement. They share leaders’ high expectations and are proud to be part of the school. Governors receive regular, detailed information on the school’s performance and the standards pupils reach in comparison with national averages. Records of the work of governors show that they provide limited challenge for leaders about the outcomes for all pupils. As a result, governors’ knowledge and understanding of the quality of the wider curriculum is less well developed. Governors’ contribution to and understanding of the school’s self-evaluation is compounded by too few visits to the school to see the impact of leaders’ actions on pupils’ outcomes. Governors have now agreed a programme of link governors’ visits and scrutiny of leaders’ work.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are fit for purpose and effective. Vetting checks on staff are complete.
• The headteacher has ensured that staff keep records of safeguarding cases securely and in sufficient detail. Staff are well trained in the most up-to-date safeguarding practice. Leaders keep clear records of this training and its effectiveness.
• The safeguarding team of designated safeguarding leads ensures that concerns are dealt with to keep pupils safe. However, over time, there has been a lack of strategic oversight of safeguarding. The new headteacher has reviewed the safeguarding processes and has trained staff to improve this. The school has made much progress over a short period of time. For example, staff are beginning to work on how the curriculum can fully support pupils’ understanding of how to keep safe.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teaching is not equally effective across all subjects. As a result, pupils do not make the progress of which they are capable across key stages 1 and 2. Scrutiny of pupils’ work in books confirms this.
• Some teachers do not check what pupils can do carefully enough and do not plan work which is matched closely enough to pupils’ needs or builds on their prior learning. Consequently, some pupils find work either too hard or too easy and this impedes pupils’ progress, especially that of the most able.
• Pupils across the school are now making less progress in mathematics and writing. Teachers ensure that pupils’ basic mathematics skills, such as addition and subtraction, are developed well over time. However, teachers do not ensure that the broad range of mathematics is taught and pupils do not develop the more advanced skills of problem solving and reasoning sufficiently. This means that, currently, pupils do not make as much progress as they should.
• Some teachers ask challenging questions that require pupils to explain their thinking and provide reasons for their answer. This helps them to move learning quickly on. However, this is not the case in all lessons.
• Where assessment information is not used accurately to identify precise gaps in pupils’ learning, the effectiveness in the teaching of writing is reduced. This means that the levels of challenge and support for pupils do not help them make strong progress in writing.
• Not all teachers have high enough expectations of pupils, including how they present their work. In some classes, pupils’ letter and number formation is weak and often unchallenged.
• Phonics is taught well from Nursery and pupils are able to read well. Teachers have fostered a love of books and pupils enjoy reading. There are many opportunities for pupils to read widely and develop their comprehension skills.
• A wide range of small-group interventions is used to help pupils to catch up. Many of these interventions are effective. However, in some cases, teaching assistants working with small groups do not make the most of time available to work with pupils.
• Relationships between adults and pupils are strong. Pupils generally behave well in lessons. Pupils say that they enjoy learning and want to improve their skills and knowledge.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• The school has a fully inclusive ethos. Staff help pupils settle in school and engage positively in learning. Pupils and parents appreciate this.
• Pupils have positive attitudes to their learning. They are eager to learn and talk enthusiastically about the subjects they enjoy.
• Pupils feel safe in school because they are well cared for and feel confident that members of staff will help them if they have any issues. Pupils know how to keep safe, including while online, because of guidance they receive. The school participates in ‘safer internet week’ and involves other agencies in the teaching of safety messages, for example the fire service.
• Pupils say that incidents of bullying or name-calling are rare. They have full confidence in reporting such incidents to a member of staff. They are confident that they will be listened to and that appropriate action will be taken to resolve their conflicts.
• The school grounds are safe and pupils enjoy using equipment at breaktimes and lunchtimes to keep fit and have fun. The school’s sports apprentice leads activities at lunchtime, helping pupils to keep physically active.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. They are polite and respectful towards adults, visitors and each other.
• Since the appointment of the current headteacher, teachers say that behaviour has improved. Pupils say that a new red card system is working well and rewards motivate them to behave well. There are few behavioural incidents and most parents say that incidents are dealt with promptly and effectively by staff.
• There have been no permanent of fixed-term exclusions for over two years.
• Leaders’ tracking of behaviour shows that the vast majority of pupils typically behave well. The school has trained staff to use ‘emotion coaching’ as a strategy to de-escalate pupils’ behaviour and provide social and emotional support for the most vulnerable. This is helping pupils to better manage their feelings and emotions.
• Attendance and the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent are at the national averages.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Attainment for pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2018 in reading, writing and mathematics was above the national average and pupils made good progress.
• Attainment for pupils at the end of key stage 1 in 2018 in reading, writing and mathematics was in line with the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who met the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics screening check was in line with the national average.
• In Reception, the proportion of children who meet the expected standard has risen and is now above the national average.
• Assessment information and work in pupils’ books indicated that the support and guidance that vulnerable pupils receive enable them to achieve as well as their peers. As a result, pupils with SEND are making strong progress.
• Disadvantaged pupils are attaining as well as all pupils nationally and are making good progress.
• However, inspection evidence shows that the progress currently being made in core subjects is not equally good, particularly in writing and mathematics.
• Leaders acknowledge that there is more work to be done to refine the accuracy of assessment and how staff use this to sharply match work to pupils’ needs.
• There are variations in the amount and quality of work covered in the other subjects. Pupils’ work shows that progress is not equally good. This is having a detrimental effect on pupils’ knowledge and understanding in, for example, science.

Early years provision Good

• Leaders have taken effective action to improve this area of the school. For example, the Nursery outdoor learning environment has been redeveloped and staff now use it more effectively to support children’s learning.
• The child-led curriculum engages and motivates children. A group of Nursery boys were enthusiastically mixing porridge for ‘Goldilocks the criminal’ and the vocabulary that this generated helped them develop their spoken language well.
• Children’s speaking and listening skills are developed well by the majority of staff. Staff encourage children to engage in conversations and model the correct use of language. However, sometimes adults do not use pure sounds when helping children to hear and say the sounds that they need to use in their early writing.
• There is a strong focus on developing social skills, such as taking turns through the use of simple board games.
• Children enter the early years with skills and abilities typical for their age. The proportion of children in Reception reaching the expected standard has risen and is now above the national average. Children are making good progress and are well prepared to start Year 1.
• Children in the Nursery get a flying start because the leader uses assessment information accurately to plan activities.
• Partnerships with parents are developing. For example, Nursery uses simple homework tasks for parents to complete with their children. The school uses the returned work as a way of capturing parents’ views on how well their children are progressing.
• Safeguarding is effective. Transition arrangements are in place to help children settle well into Nursery and Reception. Leaders ensure that the welfare statutory requirements are met. Staff are vigilant and understand the procedures for safeguarding. They encourage children to play safely and to care for each other.
• Leaders work as a team to monitor the quality of early years education. This work is at an early stage and the strong practice in Nursery teaching has not yet been embedded across all classes.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 125707 Warwickshire 10058613 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Voluntary aided 2 to 11 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 208 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Miss Stella Skillen Mrs Angela Sarjeant Telephone number 01675 463249 Website Email address www.stedwardsrcprimary.co.uk head3503@welearn365.com Date of previous inspection 3 December 2014 to 9 January 2015

Information about this school

• The headteacher took up post at the beginning of the autumn term 2018.
• This school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.
• Most pupils are of White British background. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is below average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils supported through the pupil premium is below average.
• The proportion of pupils with SEND is below the national average. The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan is average.
• The school runs before-school, after-school and holiday clubs.
• The most recent Section 48 inspection took place in March 2015. This inspection judged the school to be a good school.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed learning in all year groups.
• Inspectors talked with pupils about the school and looked at examples of pupils’ work.
• Inspectors observed pupils around the school, including on the playground.
• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, deputy headteacher, subject leaders, members of the governing body and groups of staff. Inspectors also met with a representative from the Diocese of Birmingham.
• Inspectors carried out a joint scrutiny of pupils’ work with leaders.
• Inspectors spoke with parents informally at the start of the school day and took account of the 51 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.
• Inspectors took account of the 43 free-text responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.
• Inspectors looked at a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation of its current performance, the school’s most recent information on the attainment and progress of pupils, information relating to the safeguarding of pupils and the school’s most recent information relating to the attendance of pupils.

Inspection team

Richard Kentish, lead inspector Louise Blackburn Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector