St Jude's Church of England Primary Academy Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Strengthen the quality of teaching and assessment, and their impact on pupils’ learning, by:
  • making sure that middle-attaining key stage 2 pupils build well on their prior attainment and have opportunities to use and apply their skills, particularly in mathematics and writing
  • setting work that challenges pupils at both key stages to demonstrate their full capabilities and achieve at greater depth
  • developing pupils’ reasoning skills in mathematics so they can explain their thinking lucidly and attain higher standards.
• Strengthen leadership and management, by:
  • ensuring that the wide range of actions that the school takes to safeguard pupils is carefully recorded to give a clearer overview
  • monitoring and recording incidents of poor behaviour accurately so any patterns can be identified and acted upon promptly.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher is resolute in her determination to improve outcomes for all pupils. She communicates her high expectations clearly to all staff who share her commitment to raising pupils’ achievement. As a result, outcomes for pupils have improved considerably since the school became an academy. The headteacher has a genuine belief that all pupils can achieve well.
• Leaders work closely together. Members of the wider school leadership team are free to innovate and develop better ways of working, in the pupils’ best interests. The dedicated team of subject leaders is committed to developing provision in their subject areas. This has led to a rich and diverse curriculum.
• The engaging curriculum that is tailored to meet the needs of the pupils is a strength of the school. The broad range of subjects, together with a variety of extra-curricular clubs, promotes pupils’ achievement and personal development well. Visits to places of interest, for example to Warwick Castle and an art gallery, add immediacy and excitement to pupils’ learning.
• Teachers with responsibilities for leading subjects draw on a range of evidence, including pupils’ work and discussions with pupils, to accurately gauge the effectiveness of teaching. They know what needs to be improved and formulate well-crafted plans. This results in better teaching and learning for pupils.
• Leaders have established a rigorous system for assessing and tracking pupils’ progress. Teachers’ assessments are moderated with those of other teachers in school, and across other schools within the trust, to ensure that they are accurate. Teachers use assessment information in a timely manner to identify pupils at risk of falling behind, and then provide targeted support for these pupils so they remain on track.
• School leaders invest in the professional development of teachers and other staff. As a result, the workforce has the necessary skills and expertise to provide high-quality learning experiences and meet the pastoral needs of pupils well. Teachers have attended training to enhance their subject knowledge. They use their greater understanding to identify misconceptions during lessons and help pupils move on faster in their learning.
• Leaders and governors have an accurate view of the school’s performance. They know the school’s strengths and what needs to be done to improve further. Action plans are detailed, identify the correct priorities and are regularly evaluated. Leaders take decisive action and are quick to respond when there are any shortfalls in pupils’ performance. Teachers are rigorously held to account for the achievement of pupils for whom they are responsible. There is a culture of continuous reflection and evaluation to confirm that pupils benefit from any new approaches in teaching and learning.
• Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is an integral part of the learning experiences at St Jude’s. Diversity is valued and celebrated, and aptly captured by a phrase in the school’s brochure, ‘children are the rainbow of the world’. As a result, pupils in the school community demonstrate a high degree of respect, care and compassion for one other. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Leaders make effective use of the pupil premium funding to raise the achievement and enrich the learning experiences of disadvantaged pupils. One-to-one tuition, small group teaching, and an extended school day for some of the older pupils enable almost all disadvantaged pupils, including the most able, to make good progress.
• Leaders and governors ensure that additional funding for special educational needs is spent effectively. Specialist support and advice are commissioned when necessary and combined with regular staff training to provide personalised support for individual pupils. As a result, current pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are making increasingly better progress.
• Leaders ensure that additional funding to promote physical education and sport is used to good effect to increase the number of pupils who participate. This is particularly effective for those pupils who were reluctant to engage in physical activity in the past. Pupils now enjoy cricket and basketball in addition to their usual sports. The school recently hosted a successful dance festival, as well as winning a basketball tournament.
• The large majority of parents are very supportive of the school. Parents express positive views about the school and are happy with the quality of education and wider provision offered. Governance of the school

• Members of the local governing body work effectively with school leaders to help drive ongoing improvement and to shape the strategic direction for the school.
• Governors have the necessary skills to carry out their strategic roles successfully. They have attended training and worked alongside educational consultants to help them to understand data and ask searching questions of leaders.
• Governors provide a good level of challenge and support to leaders. They obtain a wide range of information about how well the school is performing, including detailed reports from leaders, feedback from parents and information about pupils’ attainment and progress. These regular checks make sure governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for development.
• Governors work collaboratively with school staff to check on other aspects of the school’s provision. For example, they assure themselves that the site is safe by conducting premises checks. Following visits, governors identify areas for development that are addressed on subsequent visits.
• The trust provides a considerable level of challenge to the headteacher and local governors through a termly ‘raising achievement board’. The diocesan improvement adviser also provides helpful advice and impartial, accurate evaluations of the school’s work.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders carry out thorough employment checks on all staff and volunteers to minimise the risk of unsuitable people coming into contact with pupils. Everyone who works at the school receives regular safeguarding training and updates. Staff are confident about the immediate action they would take if a child were to be at risk of harm.
• All staff place a high priority on keeping pupils safe both in school and beyond. There is a culture of vigilance where any concerns are reported and acted upon quickly. The school works well with other external agencies to ensure the best support for pupils and their families. Actions taken by the school are appropriate and ensure that pupils receive the support they need. However, the records of follow-up actions are sometimes not specific enough and lack clarity.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Leaders’ high expectations, combined with ongoing training for teachers, have ensured that teaching is good throughout the school. Teachers understand and consistently adopt agreed policies in relation to teaching and learning. As a result, nearly all pupils make good progress across a range of subjects.
• Teachers use their accurate understanding of what pupils already know and can do to ensure that new learning builds effectively on their existing knowledge and understanding. Teachers match pupils’ work well to their ability, enabling pupils to make good progress from their starting points. There are well planned opportunities for pupils to consolidate their learning through practice and applying their skills in other contexts.
• Teachers place a strong emphasis on the development of literacy and numeracy skills across the curriculum. For example, pupils learn about the monarchy and Roman numerals, and relate this to their work in mathematics. Making these relevant cross-curricular links supports good progress in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Teachers use questioning well to probe pupils’ understanding and make sure they remain engaged in their learning. For example, in writing lessons teachers ask helpful questions that check pupils’ understanding about the differences been formal and informal writing structures. As a result, misconceptions are resolved and pupils successfully construct sentences in an appropriate style.
• Early reading skills are taught well. Teachers use a wide range of effective multi-sensory approaches to teach phonics. Reading is also promoted widely across the school through attractive book displays such as ‘raving about reading’ and ‘Where will your book take you today?’ Pupils are enthusiastic about their reading. Year 6 pupils confidently talk about books they have read and would recommend to others.
• There are good relationships between adults and pupils, based on mutual respect. The school’s inclusive ethos means that pupils, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, are well supported and make good progress. Teachers encourage all pupils to try hard and participate fully. The majority of pupils rise to the occasion and are keen to achieve their best.
• Pupils display good attitudes to learning and take great pride in their work. Without exception, work in their books is very well presented. Pupils know what they need to do next to improve their work.
• Teaching assistants make a positive contribution to pupils’ progress. In lessons, support staff challenge pupils to do even better and to think for themselves. Consequently, pupils gain in confidence and achieve well.
• There is a strong focus on developing pupils’ speaking and listening skills. This is particularly beneficial for those pupils who are new arrivals to the United Kingdom.
• Teachers plan work which requires pupils to think deeply in some lessons. For example, in a religious education lesson, pupils explored what the word ‘miracle’ means to Christians. Pupils were able to justify their answers during challenging discussions. However, on other occasions opportunities for pupils to study in greater depth were limited.
• In key stage 2, middle-attaining pupils do not always have the chance to apply their reasoning skills and thereby deepen their understanding in mathematics. This hampers their achievement.
• The teaching of writing is generally effective. Pupils write well using appropriate spelling, grammar and punctuation. Pupils are aware of their intended audience and their writing flows. However, the tasks pupils are given are sometimes narrow in scope. This prevents middle-attaining pupils from demonstrating the full range of their writing abilities.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• The learning environment is consistent with the school’s motto of ensuring that pupils are ‘safe, secure and successful.’ Most pupils know what they need to do in order to experience success because their teachers have made learning explicit.
• Adults ensure that pupils are valued, well cared for, and supported in their learning. As a result, pupils enjoy coming to school and develop into responsible, considerate and caring individuals who make a positive contribution to their school community.
• Pupils eagerly take on key roles and responsibilities to help with the organisation and running of the school. For example, the ‘rainbow ambassadors’ influence whole-school decision-making. Sports leaders organise well-attended games during playtimes and before school, where pupils play together fairly.
• The wider curriculum places an appropriate emphasis on pupils’ personal development. The curriculum teaches pupils how to stay safe and keep others safe. For example, pupils told inspectors about the practical strategies that they use for keeping safe when online.
• A small group of volunteer parents known as parent champions work alongside families, offering support and signposting other sources of help when necessary. Pupils and their families benefit from the support they receive.
• Pupils enjoy attending a well-run breakfast and after school club. They are provided with healthy food options. Supervision is good and adults engage well with pupils.
• While some pupils were unable to explain clearly the fundamental British values, it was evident from the school environment, pupils’ interactions and observing learning in lessons that these values are part of the fabric of the school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• The school environment is bright, stimulating and orderly. It fosters a sense of calm and purposefulness. There are attractive displays which celebrate the pupils’ achievements and motivate pupils to work hard.
• Pupils are courteous, polite and respectful. Staff have high expectations about how pupils should behave in school and on the playground. They deal with any infringements of the behaviour policy swiftly. In lessons, pupils concentrate well and work hard. Most pupils behave sensibly and help each other. Occasionally, some boys are less focused on their learning and need reminders from staff about their behaviour.
• Pupils know about the different forms of bullying, including cyber bullying. They reported to inspectors that bullying is rare, although when it does happen it is dealt with well. There have been very few reported incidents of racism. However, when one has occurred, leaders have taken actions to reduce the likelihood of it happening again.
• Pupils’ attendance has improved year on year since the school opened as an academy. The school’s strategies to tackle poor attendance are working. Attendance is now above the national average. Lateness, while not of a significant concern, still needs further attention. Records do not always indicate why a pupil is late to school.
• Staff consistently adopt the school’s clear procedure for managing incidents of poor behaviour. However, this behaviour log is not monitored or analysed as rigorously as it should be; therefore, leaders are not fully aware of any patterns that this information may show. Playtimes and lunchtimes are sociable occasions when pupils play happily together.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils’ progress has improved considerably over time. Pupils typically make good progress from their starting points. Work in pupils’ books confirms that the progress of current pupils is strong in English and mathematics and across a range of subjects.
• Pupils make good progress in acquiring phonic skills and knowledge from starting points that are lower than those seen nationally. The proportion of Year 1 pupils achieving the expected standard in phonics is close to the national average.
• Pupils who are new to learning English make good progress as a result of the support they receive to develop their literacy skills quickly and build up their vocabulary.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress because teachers quickly identify their barriers to learning and provide targeted support to meets their individual needs.
• The results of national tests and assessments in 2016 show that the progress pupils made across key stage 2 in reading and writing was well above that of all pupils nationally. Their progress in mathematics was broadly similar to that of other pupils. The proportion of pupils who attained the expected standard for their age was above the national figure in reading and writing and matched the national figure in mathematics. The proportion who achieved a high standard was above the national average in reading, but below it in writing and mathematics.
• The most able pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, make progress in writing and mathematics which is broadly similar to that of other pupils nationally with the same starting points. Their progress in reading is significantly above the national figure.
• Disadvantaged pupils generally achieve well and some make strong progress. By the end of key stage 2, the progress they make in reading and writing exceeds that of other pupils nationally. At the end of key stage 1, disadvantaged pupils achieve similarly to other pupils, although there is still further work to do to ensure that more disadvantaged pupils achieve at greater depth in reading, writing and mathematics.
• In 2016, the proportion of pupils who attained the expected standard in writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 1 was above the national average. In reading, it was broadly in line. The proportion of pupils assessed as working at greater depth in mathematics was in line with the national average. However, fewer pupils who joined Year 1 having reached the early learning goals in mathematics were assessed as working at greater depth compared to pupils with similar starting points nationally.

Early years provision Good

• As a result of effective leadership and well planned provision, children in the early years make good progress from low starting points. Systems for assessing what children know and can do are robust and checked with early years providers in other schools. Leaders know the strengths and areas for development because they carefully evaluate the quality of provision.
• The provision for two-year-olds provides a safe, stimulating and nurturing environment where children play, explore and learn together. The setting meets statutory requirements regarding adult to child ratios.
• There are warm, encouraging relationships between adults and children in the early years. In the Nursery, children are provided with a wide range of enticing activities which help them to develop and learn. They have plenty of opportunities to speak and listen to others. Reception and Nursery children show enjoyment when learning and behave well. Staff establish good routines.
• Children, including those who are disadvantaged or those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, join in activities with excitement and delight. They remain focused on the task in hand and progress well in their learning. For example, a small group of children sang tunefully ‘London’s burning’ whilst marching outside playing percussion instruments with great gusto.
• Teaching is good in the Nursery and Reception classes. Teachers and other adults provide exciting activities in the different areas of learning. The activities encourage children to use their senses to explore objects and materials, and develop curiosity. Resources are relevant to the children’s interests and closely linked to a theme. This helps the children to make sense of what they are learning. Occasionally, some of the structured activities limit children’s learning because they do not encourage them to discover and learn in more depth.
• The clean and spacious early years area is colourful and bright. The environment supports children as they play, explore and learn. Children use a large outdoor area with a range of resources. However, leaders have identified that there is further work to be done to make this area more inviting and provide greater scope for children to follow their interests.
• The teaching of phonics is good and children apply these skills in their writing. Small-group work to develop early language skills is effective for all children, particularly those whose first language is not English. Children are keen to talk to visitors and confidently share their learning experiences.
• The school works well to involve parents in their children’s learning. Teachers invite parents into school to attend activities alongside their children. Parents contribute to their children’s learning journeys.
• The proportion of children who met the expected standard by the end of Reception in 2016 was just below that seen nationally. Early years premium funding was used effectively to boost the progress of disadvantaged children. Children made good progress from their starting points and were well prepared to enter Year 1. Appropriate support has been put in place for those pupils who did not achieve a good level of development by the end of Reception.
• Safeguarding is effective and all statutory requirements are met.

School details

Unique reference number 140355 Local authority Wolverhampton Inspection number 10025159 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Primary School category Academy sponsor-led Age range of pupils 2 to 11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 465 Appropriate authority Academy trust Chair Madeleine Freewood Headteacher Denise Dalton Telephone number 01902 558848 Website www.stjudes.wolverhampton.sch.uk Email address stjudes.primary@wolverhampton.gov.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.
• St Jude’s became an academy in March 2014 as part of a multi-academy trust. The Wulfrun Academies Trust is sponsored by the Church of England Central Education Trust.
• This school is larger than the average-sized primary school.
• The school has a Nursery and provision for two-year-olds, Time for Twos. The governing body manages both.
• Pupils come from a wide variety of ethnic heritages. A higher proportion of pupils than the national average speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils supported with a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan, or through special educational needs support is broadly in line with the national average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is slightly above the national average.
• The school met the government’s floor standard in 2015. This is the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

Information about this inspection

• The inspection team observed learning in all year groups, including carrying out some joint observations with senior leaders. Inspectors reviewed pupils’ work in books and on classroom and corridor walls.
• Inspectors talked to pupils during lessons, around school and during planned meetings to gather their views.
• Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, other leaders, school staff and the chief executive officer of the trust. An inspector also met with the diocesan improvement adviser and four members of the local governing body.
• Responses from 27 parents and carers to the Ofsted online questionnaire (Parent View) were analysed in addition to a recent survey carried out by the school. Inspectors also gathered the views of parents at the beginning of the school day.
• Inspectors heard pupils read.
• Inspectors took into account 24 responses to the staff questionnaire.
• The inspection team looked at a wide range of information including the school’s website, development plan, assessment information from its pupil tracking system and leaders’ monitoring of teaching. Inspectors reviewed documentation relating to safeguarding, as well as the minutes of local governing body meetings.

Inspection team

Tim Hill, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Paul Longden Ofsted Inspector Anna Smith Ofsted Inspector