St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Inspection report

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Age group 3–11 Inspection date(s) 22–23 May 2012 Inspection number 377573 Unique Reference Number 107345 Local authority Bradford Inspection number 377573 Inspection dates 22–23 May 2012 Lead inspector Sarah Drake

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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 Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 478 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Michael Garnett Headteacher Susan Long Date of previous school inspection 15 October 2008 School address Queen's Road Ingrow Keighley BD21 1AR Telephone number 01535 605880 Fax number 01535 690419 Email address office@stjosephsprimary.co.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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Introduction

Sarah Drake Jonathon Yodaiken Additional inspector Additional inspector Peter Martin Additional inspector

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. The inspectors observed 26 lessons taught by 15 different teachers. These include a series of support sessions for individuals or to promote pupils’ understanding of the links between letters and sounds. They held meetings with members of staff, members of the governing body, two groups of pupils and a group of parents and carers. The inspectors observed the school’s work and scrutinised a range of documentation about pupils’ achievement and school management including school self-evaluation and development planning, safeguarding, and data about pupils’ attainment and progress. They also took into account the responses to the inspection questionnaires completed by pupils, members of staff and 85 parents and carers.

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Information about the school

St Joseph’s is much larger than the average-sized primary school. The majority of pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of pupils that are known to be eligible for free school meals is rising and is broadly average. The proportions of pupils that are of minority ethnic heritage and those who speak English as an additional language are also rising and are above average. The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is broadly average. A small number of pupils are in the care of the local authority. The school meets the current floor standards which set the government’s minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress. It holds the Eco Schools Silver and the Artsmark Gold awards.

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Information about the school

Since the previous inspection the school has experienced significant changes in staffing. The headteacher was appointed in April 2012, after acting in the post since January 2011. The deputy headteacher is currently acting in post and the assistant headteacher is in the second year of a temporary contract. In September 2012 the school will begin a planned reduction in size to one-form entry.

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Information about the school

A privately run out-of-school club operates on site. This did not form part of this inspection but a report of its quality can be found on the Ofsted website. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is sat isfactory and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key Findings

 This is a satisfactory school. It is not yet a good school because pupils’ achievement and the quality of leadership and management are satisfactory and teaching is not yet of consistently good quality throughout the school. Parents, carers and pupils hold positive views about the school and particularly praise the way in which staff know and support pupils as individuals. Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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Key Findings

 Children achieve well in the Early Years Foundation Stage so that the majority usually join Year 1 with the skills expected for their age. Pupils’ progress through the rest of the school is satisfactory so that attainment in Year 6 is broadly average. In writing, the proportion of pupils working at the higher levels is below average.

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Key Findings

 The quality of teaching is satisfactory. It is consistently of good quality in the Early Years Foundation Stage and there are pockets of good teaching elsewhere. However, it is not yet consistently good enough throughout the school to ensure that pupils achieve well over time. Good relationships greatly enhance the quality of the learning environment in every classroom.

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Key Findings

 Pupils behave well and enjoy their time at St Joseph’s, describing it as ‘brilliant, happy and safe’. Pupils of different ethnicity and with very different life experiences cooperate well in lessons and around school, showing respect and consideration for others. Attendance is rising due to determined efforts by school leaders.

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Key Findings

 Satisfactory leadership has guided the school through an unsettled period and, through effective management of performance including teaching, introduced a range of changes that are bringing about improvement. Whole-school planning and leaders’ evaluation of the impact of actions on pupils’ achievement are both at an early stage of development.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment at the end of Key Stage 2, especially in writing, by: - introducing rigorous systems to identify, and then act upon, the specific weaknesses demonstrated by different groups of pupils - enabling more pupils reach the higher levels for their age - increasing pupils’ involvement in evaluating the quality of their written work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that it is consistently at least good, by ensuring that all teachers: - use assessment effectively to adapt lessons and provide correct levels of challenge for pupils of different ability, especially the more-able - clearly indicate their expectations of pupils and sustain a brisk pace of learning throughout all lessons - provide pupils with written guidance on how to improve their work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of leadership and management by: - ensuring that school development planning has clear and measurable success criteria linked to pupils’ achievement - analysing with rigour the impact of different actions taken - ensuring that children in the Nursery receive their full entitlement of hours.

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Achievement of pupils

One pupil’s comment about recent changes to the curriculum that, ‘we work harder because it is more fun and we are more interested’, exemplifies pupils’ positive attitudes to learning throughout the school. Typically, pupils settle, listen and behave well in lessons although, when expected to listen for too long, they can lose focus and become a little restless. Pupils work well independently and in pairs or small groups because they have good relationships and they want to succeed. They use the school’s good range of information and communication technology (ICT) resources with confidence and competence to support their learning. Pupils, and their parents and carers, know their targets and the levels they are working at but pupils do not yet have sufficiently well-developed skills to evaluate their work and to identify what they need to concentrate on next in order to improve its quality. Pupils of all ages and abilities enjoy reading. Those who need to, successfully use their

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Achievement of pupils

knowledge of the links between letters and sounds to decode unknown words. Attainment in reading is broadly average at the end of both Year 2 and Year 6.

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Achievement of pupils

Increasing numbers of children are joining the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills well below those expected for their age whereas in the past most children’s skills have been below expectations. In the well-organised Nursery and Reception classrooms and outdoor areas, children soon become confident learners who sustain their concentration well and understand the need for school routines. They enjoy experimenting and sharing their discoveries with adults or each other, and usually join Year 1 with average skills across all areas of learning.

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Achievement of pupils

Following a brief downward trend in attainment at the end of Year 6 this is now rising in both English and mathematics. In 2011, more pupils than in the previous two years gained the expected Level 4 although the proportion gaining the higher level 5 in writing was significantly below average. Current pupils’ work is also broadly average but attainment in writing lags behind that in reading or mathematics. The specific weaknesses demonstrated by different classes and year groups vary so that, for example, in one class in Key Stage 2 pupils’ vocabulary is relatively limited, whereas in another, careless spelling errors are evident. Pupils who are disabled and those who have special educational needs, those who speak English as an additional language or who are potentially more vulnerable for other reasons are all fully included in lessons. They make similar progress to their peers due to the effective

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Achievement of pupils

support of teaching assistants, particularly in one-to-one and small group work. Almost all parents and carers express positive views concerning their children’s progress.

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Quality of teaching

In the Early Years Foundation Stage, adults’ observations of individual children’s skills are used well to plan and deliver activities that are adapted to their needs. Adults build well on children’s interests. For example, the current topic based on ‘The Gruffalo’ has been extended more widely to animals and enhanced by the visit of one child’s pet tortoises. Adults use questioning well to encourage children to reconsider their work, for example, their drawings of a garden using crayons or ICT, and this frequently leads to their making additions or other alterations.

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Quality of teaching

Higher up the school the quality of teaching is more varied, although good relationships and effective behaviour management feature in every classroom. The teaching is also successful in instilling in pupils a love of reading. In the best lessons teachers make clear to pupils their expectations of what they will achieve, and adapt these well to provide good levels of challenge for all, including the more-able. Such lessons move at a good pace. Teachers provide a range of varied, well-chosen resources and activities that capture and sustain pupils’ interest, and use probing questioning that extends well pupils’ speaking, listening and thinking skills. For example, in mathematics, Year 2 pupils had to use a range of skills to discover a partner who held the correct answer to their problem. In Year 4, inspired by their Antarctic topic, pupils made good use of their independent research to develop written scripts to be acted out in future lessons. Such lessons support well pupils’

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Quality of teaching

spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Elsewhere, teachers can talk too much so pupils become passive learners and do not always have enough time to complete their work. The teaching does not always adapt activities well enough to provide the optimum challenge for all pupils, especially the more-able. The quality of marking is similarly inconsistent. Some provides high-quality pointers for improvement whereas other pupils receive a tick or a bland, positive comment with little or no guidance. Teaching assistants support disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and other needs well, in focused activities but are not always sufficiently well employed during whole-class sessions. Regular homework enhances pupils’ learning and its completion is well supported through the much- appreciated homework club. Pupils, parents and carers are happy with the quality of teaching.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

The high levels of respect and appreciation that pupils throughout the school show for others’ talents and needs create a happy, well-ordered community in which good behaviour and positive relationships are the norm. Pupils, parents and carers are agreed that, while instances of disruptive behaviour or bullying do occur these are rare and dealt with swiftly and effectively by staff. School records confirm this. Pupils understand about different types of bullying, including racism, and that such behaviour is wrong. They also have a good awareness of the hazards posed by, for example, drugs or the internet, and provide sensible answers as to how to protect themselves from harm. Almost all parents, carers and pupils say that children feel and are safe in school. Older pupils carry out their monitor roles responsibly and pupils of all ages are generous fund-raisers for charity. Pupils are welcoming, confident, polite and helpful. Their good behaviour has a very positive impact on the

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

quality of their learning. Pupils’ attendance and punctuality have improved since the previous inspection. Attendance is just average although too many pupils are still taken on holiday during term time.

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Leadership and management

School leaders work together effectively towards achieving their vision for the school. However, in part due to uncertainties about staffing and future changes to the number of pupils on roll, there has not yet been time for recently introduced changes to have a measurable impact on pupils’ achievement. Senior and middle leaders have clearly defined roles and all staff are being held more closely to account for pupils’ progress in their areas of responsibility. All class-teachers now contribute to and understand the system to track pupils’ progress. However, the information is not used to best effect in order to guide either evaluation of the impact of new initiatives or the setting of success criteria for development planning. The identification of specific weaknesses in the work of different groups of pupils is not yet rigorous enough. Effective performance management and access to a range of professional

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Leadership and management

development have helped to improve the quality of teaching, although inconsistencies remain. The pace of pupils’ progress is increasing, and this is leading to a reduction in the gap in attainment between the school’s pupils and similar pupils nationally. Good quality pastoral care, including the provision of a breakfast club and liaison with other agencies, enhances the promotion of equality of opportunity and enables those pupils who are more likely to be vulnerable to make similar progress to their peers.

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Leadership and management

Members of the governing body, many of whom are relatively new to their role, are linked to different aspects of school life and ensure safeguarding arrangements meet requirements. The school is taking action to ensure that Nursery-age children have access to provision for the required number of hours weekly but, as yet, the action has not led to an increase. The creative curriculum is soundly based on building pupils’ development of skills across a range of subjects. The recent introduction of new ways for teaching mathematics is having a positive impact on pupils’ enjoyment and achievement in this subject. Visitors, visits to places of interest and a good range of extra-curricular activities enhance the curriculum. The curriculum promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral and social development particularly effectively. Parents and carers are becoming increasingly engaged with their children’s learning.

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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 54 42 2 2 Primary schools 14 49 32 6 Secondary schools 20 39 34 7 Special schools 33 45 20 3 Pupil referral units 9 55 28 8 All schools 16 47 31 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.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

The data in the table above are for the period 1 September to 31 December 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 ).

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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

Floor standards the national minimum expectation of attainment and progression measures

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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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to share with their children. It describes Ofsted's main

findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Keighley, BD21 1AR

Thank you very much from all members of the inspection team for your warm welcome and friendliness when we visited your school recently. We enjoyed our time at St Joseph’s and were particularly pleased to see how well you behave and get on with each other. Special thanks to those of you who spoke with and read to us.

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Inspection of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Keighley, BD21 1AR

Yours is a satisfactory school where all the adults are particularly successful at looking after you and making you feel safe and happy so that you can concentrate on your learning. Children in Nursery and Reception become eager learners and make good progress. Higher up the school you also enjoy learning, including reading. These positive attitudes help you to make satisfactory progress and to reach broadly average attainment in English and mathematics. To help you make better progress, especially in writing, we have asked the senior leaders to make sure that all teaching throughout the school is of at least good quality and, in particular, that all teachers help you to understand more clearly what you need to do to improve your work. We have also asked them to check carefully that the actions they take have a positive impact on your attainment and progress.

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Inspection of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Keighley, BD21 1AR

We know that your school has experienced quite a lot of changes recently. It was good to hear you say how much you enjoy working with pupils of different ages in some mathematics lessons, and learning new information and skills through your topic work. You are certainly becoming very competent at using your netbooks and other types of electronic equipment. Your attendance and punctuality have also improved – well done − and we hope that your attendance improves even more so that you do not miss out on your learning and fun. This letter comes with our best wishes for the future.

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Inspection of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Keighley, BD21 1AR

Sarah Drake 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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