St Jude's Catholic Primary School

Age group 3 – 11 Inspection date(s) 15 – 16 March 2012 Inspection number 379245 St Jude’s Roman Catholic Primary School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 116376 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 379245 Inspection dates 15–16 March 2012 Lead inspector Michael Barron

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Type of school Primary School category Maintained Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 184 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Paul Docherty Headteacher Christine McGrew Date of previous school inspection 5–6 May 2009 School address Bishopsfield Road Fareham Hampshire PO14 1ND Telephone number 01329 235131 Fax number 01329 827939 Email address fiona.cherrington@st-judes.hants.sch.uk achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked

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after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when.

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You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. Inspectors observed 18 lessons taught by seven teachers. One was a joint observation with the headteacher. Inspectors heard pupils from Year 1, Year 2 and Year 6 read and made short observations of sessions on the teaching of phonics ( pupils learning letter patterns and the sounds they represent ). They held meetings with the headteacher, staff including senior leaders, members of the governing body, teaching assistants, and pupils. The inspectors took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection. They observed the school’s work, and looked at documentation including: school policies, development planning, pupils’ work and records of their learning and progress. They observed and discussed pupils’ behaviour and scrutinised the school’s safeguarding procedures. The inspectors analysed several completed questionnaires from staff and pupils as well as 73 from

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Information about the school

This is a smaller than average sized primary school. The school’s intake includes a sizeable number of pupils whose parents serve in the armed forces. The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is below average. Most of this group have moderate learning difficulties or social and emotional needs. However, they are spread unevenly throughout the school and the majority are in Year 6. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is also below average. Almost all pupils are White British and few are of minority ethnic heritage. There is Early Years Foundation Stage provision in the school’s Reception Year class. The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectation for pupils’ attainment and progress. There have been several changes to the teaching staff and to the make up of the school’s senior leadership team since the last inspection. These include the appointment of an assistant

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Information about the school

headteacher in September 2011. The school has several accreditations, including Enhanced Healthy School status. There is privately run provision on the school site, which includes a Nursery School opened in 2009, a breakfast club and an after- school club. It is not managed by the governing body and was therefore not included as part of this inspection. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

 St Jude’s, satisfactory at its previous inspection, is now a good school. It has recovered well from a period of instability in staffing and leadership and management. A vast majority of parents and carers hold positive views about the school, especially the good quality of education it provides. The school is not outstanding because the quality of teaching, though good overall and much improved since the previous inspection, is not yet outstanding.  All groups of pupils make good progress, as they move through the school. By Year 6, pupils’ attainment is average overall. However, attainment in mathematics is not as good as in reading or writing in all year groups. Pupils often find it difficult to apply their basic arithmetic skills successfully when trying to solve mathematical problems.  The quality of teaching varies from satisfactory to outstanding and is good overall. Teachers usually ensure that lessons provide pupils with interesting

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Key findings

activities that meet their varying learning needs well. However, occasionally when the pace of lessons slows, pupils do not progress as rapidly as they could do.  Pupils are well behaved, polite and considerate to others. They feel safe and say they enjoy school. Attendance is above average and attitudes to learning are good. Pupils are confident that any rare instances of antisocial behaviour by others will always be dealt with effectively by adults.  Leadership and management are good. The headteacher works well with the senior leadership team and governors to ensure that the school’s self-evaluation is thorough, ongoing and rigorous. It is linked well to managing the performance of the school and continuing to improve the quality of teaching. However, the school is aware that the role of subject leaders is an area in need of development. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate

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Key findings

Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise pupils’ attainment in mathematics by January 2013 to match their attainment in reading and writing by:  improving pupils’ ability to apply basic arithmetic skills successfully when solving mathematical problems.  Improve the quality of subject leadership by January 2013 by:  providing training for subject leaders to help them become confident in monitoring achievement and in analysing progress data in the subjects for which they are responsible.

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Achievement of pupils

Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skill levels slightly above those expected for their age as nearly all attend the on-site privately run Nursery which focuses on developing children’s skills in all areas of learning, prior to them joining the school. However, until 2009, children did not attend a similar pre-school setting and entered the school’s Reception Year class with skill levels below expectations, especially in relation to the development of language and numeracy. This includes pupils presently in Year 2 and Year 6.

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Achievement of pupils

Provision is good in the Early Years Foundation Stage. Children enjoy their time in the Reception Year because the classroom provides them with a well-resourced and stimulating environment in which to learn. They have frequent opportunities to develop their curiosity about the wider world. Teachers and teaching assistants build up children’s ability to work both with adult direction and through child-initiated tasks. Daily phonics sessions ensure children make good progress learning letter names and sounds and this helps to build up their early reading skills. However, their progress in developing skills in number work is less well developed.

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Achievement of pupils

A scrutiny of pupils’ work confirmed their good progress throughout the rest of the school. Pupils say that teachers usually make lessons interesting. Teachers ensure that the more able pupils are encouraged to work to their full potential. Pupils requiring extra help with their learning, including pupils with disabilities and those who have special educational needs, as well as those from minority ethnic backgrounds, are well supported and make similar progress to all other pupils. As a result, attainment in Year 6 is presently above average in reading and writing and this represents good progress from below average starting points. However, pupils in all year groups often have trouble using their basic arithmetic skills successfully when attempting to solve mathematical problems. This was evident during a lesson to a Year 5 class when pupils attempted to solve a series of mathematical problems by

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Achievement of pupils

using their multiplication and division skills. Nearly all displayed a good understanding of how to multiply and divide numbers but several made basic errors Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Achievement of pupils

applying this knowledge when trying to work out problems.

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Achievement of pupils

There is a focus throughout the school on building up pupils’ literacy skills and inspectors observed good quality teaching of sounds and letters. This was especially the case in Key Stage 1 where pupils are taught how to successfully use a wide range of strategies for decoding words when reading. This improves their confidence to try to read new words and develops their reading skills. As a result, attainment in reading in Year 2 is comparable to the national average. Older pupils are able to explain their views and ideas clearly and confidently. This was evident during a Year 6 literacy lesson. Pupils discussed their work, based around the biblical story of the Samaritan woman, in detail and were able to explain their points of view with clarity and reasoned argument both through discussions and in their written work.

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Achievement of pupils

Parents and carers say that the school has improved since the last inspection and believe that their children now enjoy school and are achieving well. One parent and carer reflected the views of the majority with the comment, ‘We are well pleased with our son’s progress.’ Another commented, ‘My daughter goes in to school happy and comes out happy.’ Inspectors agree with these views.

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Quality of teaching

The quality of teaching is good overall, with outstanding practice evident in some year groups. Lessons are designed to stimulate pupils’ interests. Nearly all are well paced and the tasks pupils are asked to complete are matched closely to their previous learning and different abilities. Teachers and teaching assistants work closely together to ensure that pupils requiring extra help with learning are well supported and so make the progress they are capable of. As a result, pupils have good attitudes to learning. They behave well in lessons and work hard. On the few occasions when teaching is less successful the pace of learning slows and pupils do not make the progress they are capable of.

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Quality of teaching

Typical of the outstanding teaching seen was a literacy lesson in Year 6 where pupils were asked to create a piece of descriptive writing based on a story about a savage. The work pupils were asked to complete was well matched to their different abilities and motivated them to work hard. Pupils enjoyed the lesson and found their work interesting and challenging. Those pupils requiring extra help with their work, including those with disabilities and those with special educational needs, made similar outstanding progress to all other groups of pupils in developing their descriptive writing skills.

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Quality of teaching

Teachers plan the curriculum well to mix different subjects together and make learning interesting and enjoyable for pupils. Teachers mark pupils work well with good use of comments to help pupils improve their work. Teaching makes a positive impact on pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. For example, pupils are encouraged to explore similarities and differences between different people and to appreciate not only their own faith but also the faiths and cultures of Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Quality of teaching

others. Parents and carers believe their children are well taught and inspection evidence supports their judgement.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Parents and carers correctly believe that their children are safe in school, and pupils, including those whose circumstances could make them potentially vulnerable, agree with this view. Pupils look forward to coming to school and this is reflected in their consistently above average rates of attendance. The school is successful in continuously improving attendance and pupils’ punctuality is good. Pupils say that any concerns they may have are always dealt with quickly and fairly by adults. A majority of the parents and carers who responded to the inspection questionnaire agreed that, overall, behaviour is typically good and inspectors agree with their views. A few expressed concerns about some aspects of pupils’ behaviour. However, pupils say that the behaviour of the vast majority is good. They are also aware that a small minority of pupils find behaving well quite difficult, but say there is very little

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

disruption in lessons because teachers always cope with this very effectively. Pupils also understand how bullying can take different forms and are well aware of potential internet safety issues such as ‘cyber bullying’. They are also confident that bullying of any type is always dealt with quickly and firmly by the school.

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Leadership and management

The headteacher has worked well with the staff and the governing body since the last inspection to introduce more rigour to the school’s monitoring and evaluation processes. These are now linked effectively to managing the performance of the school and improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ achievement . Governance is good. The governing body fulfils its statutory duties well and offers the school an effective level of both support and challenge when required to do so. Individual governors perform their duties well and play a full and active role in the life of the school.

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Leadership and management

The school’s relationship with parents and carers is good. They appreciate the way the school keeps them informed about their children’s progress and involves them in their children’s learning. Resources are good and used well to enhance lessons. Links with outside agencies are used effectively to support pupils’ learning and well-being, especially that of pupils whose circumstances may make them vulnerable.

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Leadership and management

Safeguarding procedures meet statutory requirements and there are no concerns about the safety of pupils. Staff and governors are well aware of the importance of their duty to protect pupils and receive regular training about safeguarding issues.

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Leadership and management

The staff work closely together as a team to ensure that all pupils are given equal opportunities to succeed and to make sure that any rare instances of discrimination Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Leadership and management

are tackled firmly and effectively . Teachers and teaching assistants know that their opinions are valued and the school provides good quality regular training for staff to support their professional development. However, not all subject leaders display the confidence or ability to monitor achievement and progress in their subjects effectively. The curriculum is good. It provides pupils with structured opportunities to develop new skills and use them successfully in different contexts. It also successfully promotes pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Leadership and management

Improvements since the previous inspection in the effectiveness of the school, the quality of teaching, pupils’ achievement and the effectiveness of leadership and management provide a clear indication that the school has a good capacity to secure further improvement.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well. Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils. Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An inadequate school needs to make significant improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils. Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it improves.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 46 46 8 0 Primary schools 8 47 40 5 Secondary schools 14 38 40 8 Special schools 28 48 20 4 Pupil referral units 15 50 29 5 All schools 11 46 38 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ). The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding schools. Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attainment: the standard of the pupils’ work shown by test and examination results and in lessons.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school’s efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils’ punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and what the school has accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to maintain improvement.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and headteacher, to identifying priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their understanding, learn and practise skills and are developing their competence as learners.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a school’s overall effectiveness based on the findings from their inspection of the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over longer periods of time. It is often measured by comparing the pupils’ attainment at the end of a key stage with their attainment when they started.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils’ freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning.

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carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsted’s

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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1ND

Thank you for making us really welcome when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking to you and seeing you working hard in lessons. We also enjoyed watching your celebration assembly and listening to you singing so well.

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1ND

Through talking to you and looking at the questionnaire you completed, we know that you believe your school is a good one, and we agree with you.

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1ND

Here are some of the things we found out about your school.

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1ND

 You attend a happy and friendly school which gives you a good start to your education in the Reception Year class.  Your school is led and managed well.  Teaching is good and helps you to make good progress.  You enjoy school and get on well with each other.  You feel safe at school and behave well.  Adults work hard to help you if you are having any problems.  The like the way in which teachers mix subjects together in lessons to make learning more interesting.

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1ND

We have asked your school to help you to improve your mathematics by giving you more opportunities to develop your ability to solve problems successfully. We have also asked your school to help teachers who lead subjects to improve the way in which they work out how well pupils are making progress.

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1ND

Your school has improved since the last time it was inspected. All of you can help it to improve even more by coming to school as often as you can and by working hard.

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1ND

Michael Barron Lead inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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