St Paulinus Catholic Primary School

St Paulinus Catholic Primary School Inspection report

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Age group 3–11 Inspection date(s) 24–25 May 2012 Inspection number 377640 Unique Reference Number 107753 Local authority Kirklees Inspection number 377640 Inspection dates 24–25 May 2012 Lead inspector Amraz Ali HMI

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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 440 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair David Roberts Headteacher Roxanna Drake Date of previous school inspection 10 February 2009 School address Temple Road Dewsbury WF13 3QE Telephone number 01924 325330 Fax number 01924 325331 Email address ellen.sinclair@edukirklees.net 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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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 after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Introduction

Amraz Ali Gillian Bishop Stefan Lord Her Majesty's Inspector Her Majesty's Inspector Additional inspector

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. There were no responses to the on- line questionnaire (Parent View) to use in planning the inspection. The inspectors observed 25 lessons taught by 19 different teachers, including five observed jointly with the headteacher. The inspectors listened to some pupils read. Discussions were held with pupils, staff and two members of the governing body. Inspectors talked to parents and carers as they collected their children at the end of the school day. The inspectors observed the school’s work, including examples of pupils’ work in books, documentation relating to the leadership and management of the school and that relating to pupils’ achievement. Aspects associated with behaviour and safety were also scrutinised. The inspectors also took into account the questionnaires completed by pupils, school staff and 81 parents and carers.

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Information about the school

Situated near the centre of Dewsbury and serving a mixed socio-economic area, this school is much larger than the average-sized primary school. Most pupils are from White British backgrounds but the proportion from minority ethnic backgrounds has increased since the last inspection and is average, as is the proportion who speak English as an additional language. The percentage of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is below average. The proportion known to be entitled to free school meals is broadly average. A very small number of pupils is in the care of their local authority.

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Information about the school

The school meets the current floor standards, which set the government’s minimum expectations for attainment and progress. 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

 Good improvements since the last inspection mean that this is now a securely good school. Great emphasis is placed on promoting pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development which ensures that pupils receive a good all-round education where both their academic and personal achievement is good. The school is not outstanding because teaching and achievement over time are good and the achievement of boys and more-able pupils is sometimes inconsistent.

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Key Findings

 Senior leaders and the whole staff team have robustly tackled the issues that were identified at the time of the last inspection. Consequently, pupils achieve well over time from their starting points and attainment is typically well above average by the time they leave Year 6.

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Key Findings

 The quality of teaching is good overall with examples of outstanding practice, particularly in Key Stage 2 where rates of progress are most rapid. Lessons are well- planned and usually extend the learning of most pupils. However, levels of challenge for more-able pupils are not always high enough.

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Key Findings

 Pupils feel safe, behave well and their attitudes and engagement in lessons make a significant contribution to their good learning and progress over time. High levels of care and the very positive ethos along with well-planned assemblies and classroom worship mean that the provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Pupils enter school happy and looking forward to the day ahead. A typical comment from one pupil was ‘I love it here’. They say that they enjoy learning and help one another in class. Although a few parents and carers express concerns, a very large majority of parents and carers is positive about the school and their children’s experiences. Attendance is average and improving.

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Key Findings

 The school is led and managed well. The headteacher has a strong vision focused on ensuring that pupils do as well as they can in a caring Catholic environment. The performance of staff is managed effectively. Good leadership of teaching means that training and development are used well to improve practice and raise standards.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve the attainment and progress of boys across the school, particularly in writing. For example by: - introducing more boy-friendly reading materials - planning writing tasks which appeal to both boys and girls - planning more activities within the Early Years Foundation Stage Unit which more effectively engage boys, particularly outside activities.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching so that more is consistently good or outstanding. For example by: - improving the level of challenge for the most-able pupils - sharing the good and outstanding teaching practices - matching work even more closely to the abilities of all pupils, particularly the most able - using more challenging questions for the most-able pupils.

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Achievement of pupils

Parents and carers are positive about their children’s achievements and inspectors agree with this view. The achievement of pupils in lessons observed during the inspection and that reflected in the examples of their work scrutinised, was good. Children enter the Early Years Foundation Stage unit with skills which are below those typical for their age. As a result of good teaching, a stimulating learning environment and good support from staff, children make good progress in all areas of learning. They make particularly good gains in their personal, social, emotional and physical development. Their progress during Key Stage 1 continues to be good overall and by the end of Year 2 they reach broadly average standards in reading, writing and mathematics. However, the attainment of boys tends to lag behind that of girls. Good progress is maintained consistently throughout Key Stage 2, and by the end of Year 6 attainment is significantly above average overall. The proportions of pupils

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Achievement of pupils

who reach the higher levels in reading are in line with the national average. However, the proportion of pupils reaching the higher level in writing tends to be below average. Although good overall, the progress of boys is less consistent than that of girls across the school, particularly in writing.

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Achievement of pupils

Basic skills are taught effectively, so that pupils acquire the confidence to use numbers and apply their understanding of simple operations securely to devise strategies for solving problems. Pupils who speak English as an additional language make good progress because they are fully included in lessons. Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs make good progress overall because of the wide range of extra help provided for pupils. The introduction of regular daily practice of activities to learn about letters and sounds is ensuring that pupils are making good progress in this area which is helping them with their reading and writing.

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Quality of teaching

A very large majority of pupils and almost all parents and carers indicate in the pre- inspection questionnaire that they believe teaching is good. Inspectors endorse this view because most lessons observed were judged to be good, with a small number which were satisfactory and some outstanding. The relationships between pupils and staff are good. Routines are well-established so that lessons begin promptly, pupils’ behaviour is good and classrooms are calm and orderly environments for learning. These are contributory factors that make the provision for pupils’ spiritual development outstanding. Teachers’ good subject knowledge ensures that pupils have a good understanding of the work they are asked to complete; instructions are clear. Teachers make effective use of technology, such as interactive whiteboards, so that teaching points are made clear using presentations and Internet sources. The use of teaching assistants is usually effective, particularly in

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Quality of teaching

supporting the work of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs.

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Quality of teaching

Although lessons are usually well-planned and tasks are identified for at least three levels of ability, there are times when the most able are not always challenged. Some tasks do not for example place enough challenge before pupils and sometimes pupils are expected to complete relatively easy work, which is well within their capability, before they are able to move on to more challenging tasks. Pupils themselves identify that where this occurs, they would welcome the opportunity to move to the more difficult work sooner. Teachers' questioning skills are used effectively to check on pupils' understanding and to move learning on. However, at times opportunities are missed to tailor questions so that the learning of the most able is extended further. A particular strength is the effectiveness of teachers' marking which routinely identifies what pupils have done well and how they can improve their next piece of work. However, there are some inconsistencies in the way that

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Quality of teaching

pupils are expected to respond to their teachers’ comments. When teaching is particularly effective, and judged to be outstanding, teachers exude enthusiasm in their subject, capture pupils' attention and motivate them to achieve exceptionally well. For example, in a Year 5 English lesson the teachers’ good use of interactive technology, excellent questioning and very effective relationships with pupils led to pupils excitedly working well in pairs to write instructions for a game. Fast-paced and exciting, praise and encouragement was used well so that pupils demonstrated exceptional levels of concentration and involvement. However, these features are not found in every lesson and on a small number of occasions pupils spend just a little too long listening to their teachers. When this happens, their attention wanes, there is less time for independent work and their learning slows.

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Quality of teaching

The teaching of reading is good overall. It is systematic and the teaching of letters and sounds is having a positive impact. Where pupils show signs of falling behind in their learning or are identified as having a particular need, they are offered extra help in the form of one-to-one reading or help within small groups. Within the Early Years Foundation Stage Unit there are many effective features, including good levels of care, interesting activities and improvements to the outdoors. However, on occasion the use of the outdoor area is underdeveloped in engaging some of the boys in purposeful learning. Additionally, some lack of challenge for the most able can be seen, for example, in the way that children are not routinely expected to deal with numbers beyond 20 even when they are able to count beyond 20.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Although the vast majority of parents, carers and pupils indicates that the behaviour of pupils is good, a small number express concerns over the behaviour of a small minority of pupils. A very small proportion of pupils who completed the inspection questionnaire indicated that behaviour is not always good in lessons. The inspection found that teachers manage pupils’ behaviour well and saw no behaviour that disturbed the learning in lessons. Indeed, behaviour in lessons was good and sometimes outstanding. A small proportion of pupils indicated a concern about behaviour around the school and again inspectors saw only limited occurrences where pupils exhibited a lapse of self-control when not supervised, for example, in running along a corridor on the way out to lunch. The pupils that inspectors spoke to stated categorically that the behaviour observed during the inspection was typical of the school. Pupils are polite and usually respectful in their relationships with staff and

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

other pupils. Pupils often greet visitors with a cheery ‘hello’ and they show care and respect for school property and the resources they are provided with, such as play equipment at break times.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

In lessons pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning. Their relationships with teachers and adults are good, which has a significant positive impact on their learning and achievement. Pupils respond well to the behaviour management strategies in place across the whole school and within individual classes; and particularly appreciate their involvement in the formation of class rules. They feel that the rewards and sanctions are fair. They have a good understanding of how to manage their own behaviour and this has a significant impact on their learning in classrooms. The vast majority of pupils comments that the school deals well with all types of bullying which helps pupils to feel safe in school. Pupils value the help from the lunchtime and break time ‘befrienders’, who are happy to help any pupil who needs a friend.

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Leadership and management

Leadership and management are good and have been effective at bringing about secure improvements in both the quality of teaching and the attainment of pupils. Particularly effective has been the work of the teaching and learning team, which has supported individual teachers to improve aspects of their teaching. Performance management and training linked very closely to whole-school improvement priorities have similarly contributed to improvements. Consequently, since the previous inspection, the school has successfully improved the quality of teaching so that much is now good and some is outstanding. This has led to improved achievement across the school and some impressive levels of attainment at the end of Year 6. All of the staff are proud to work at the school and are proud of its achievements. Good improvements in the role of middle leaders mean that leaders and managers at all levels are clear about their roles and responsibilities.

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Leadership and management

Even where leaders are new in their roles, they are aware of strengths and areas where further improvement is needed. Leaders have an accurate view of the strengths and weaknesses of the school or subjects they co-ordinate. There are effective plans in place for future development.

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Leadership and management

Curriculum planning and the provisions for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development remain strengths and make a significant contribution to pupils’ positive experiences and enjoyment of school. The school promotes equality and tackles discrimination effectively and pupils show great understanding and respect for one another, particularly those of different faiths or cultures. There are very good systems in place to track individual pupils’ attainment and progress closely. Regular reviews of progress hold staff to account for the progress of pupils in their care. Governors are very well-informed about the strengths and areas for further improvement at the school and they are clear about their role in both supporting and challenging the work of the school. Clear improvements since the last inspection demonstrate that the school has a good capacity to improve further. Leaders and managers ensure that pupils are kept safe at all times.

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Leadership and management

Although parents and carers are generally positive about the school, some state that they would welcome more information about how to help their child or about the arrangements for special educational needs.

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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 up 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 Paulinus Catholic Primary School, Dewsbury, WF13 3QE

As you know, I visited your school recently with Mrs. Bishop and Mr. Lord. Thank you for the way you welcomed us. We really enjoyed talking with many of you about your school. We were all impressed by the way that you all get along well together and behave well in lessons and around the school.

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Inspection of St Paulinus Catholic Primary School, Dewsbury, WF13 3QE

St. Paulinus Primary is a good school. You are learning to read, write and do mathematics well. You make good progress in your learning and make particularly good progress in the last few years in Key stage 2 but I have asked the teachers to try to make sure that boys make better progress, particularly in writing. Your teachers work hard to make your lessons interesting and to help you with your learning. I have asked them to try to make more of your lessons like the very best lessons we saw, by making sure that the work for the most able is a little bit more difficult.

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Inspection of St Paulinus Catholic Primary School, Dewsbury, WF13 3QE

The headteacher, senior teachers and the governing body provide good leadership to make your school a safe and happy place for you to play and learn.

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Inspection of St Paulinus Catholic Primary School, Dewsbury, WF13 3QE

Thank you again for your friendliness and help. I hope that you continue to enjoy your time at St. Paulinus and keep working hard!

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Inspection of St Paulinus Catholic Primary School, Dewsbury, WF13 3QE

Amraz Ali Her Majesty's 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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