St Jude's CofE Primary School

St Jude’s Church of England Primary School St Nicholas Street, Portsmouth, PO1 2NZ

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Satisfactory 3 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Pupils achieve well in all subjects. They enjoy coming to school where the good teaching ensures that they make good progress. Attendance is above average.  The headteacher and her team have provided the school with strong leadership, establishing a culture and ethos of high expectation and aspiration. This has been successful in securing and sustaining rapid improvements in pupils’ achievement.  Since the previous inspection, teaching has improved and has led to students making faster progress than previously in their reading, writing and mathematics.  Children in the Reception classes achieve well.  Pupils with disabilities or special educational needs make good progress due to the good teaching and the good support they receive from the teaching assistants. Teachers are skilled at planning for individual needs and ensure that lessons include these pupils as fully as possible.  Pupils’ behaviour is good and pupils are

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

highly respectful. They are rightfully proud of their school and enjoy opportunities to represent it in the wider community. They feel very safe in school.  Teachers have high expectations, which are understood and reflected in the pupils’ positive attitudes to learning in lessons.  Governors are responsive to the changes at the school and have, over time, challenged teachers to improve their teaching.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because:

 Teachers do not always move pupils onto activities in lessons fast enough so that some, on occasion, mark time instead of making speedy progress.  Pupils are not given regular opportunities to reply to the comments given by teachers to improve their work.  Additional adults in lessons are not always helping pupils to recognise their strengths and areas to improve.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspection was carried out with half a day’s notice and took place over two days.  Inspectors visited 24 lessons and observed 14 teachers. The headteacher and senior staff joined the inspectors for a number of observations. In addition, one inspector made a number of short visits to lessons to look at how pupils with disabilities and special educational needs were learning.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, staff, pupils, governors and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documents, including the school improvement plans, priorities for development, achievement data and documents relating to safeguarding children.  Inspectors took account of the 73 responses to the on-line Parent View survey and the 24 responses to the staff questionnaire during the inspection.  An after-school club is managed by the governors and was part of this inspection.

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Inspection team

John Cavill, Lead Inspector Additional Inspector Kathy Maddocks Additional Inspector Jonathan Cooper Additional Inspector Peter Thrussell Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 St Jude’s is a larger–than-average-sized primary school.  The majority of pupils are from White British backgrounds. The remainder come from a range of minority ethnic groups of which a high proportion has English as an additional laguage. The school is experiencing a recent rise in the number of pupils from minority ethnic groups, especially in the Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is slightly below average.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is average.  The proportion of pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium, additional government funding, is above average.  More pupils than usual join or leave the school other than at the usual times.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum

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Information about this school

expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching and so accelerate the rate of pupils’ achievement, especially at Key Stage 1, by:  sharing more widely the outstanding practice that is already present in the school  ensuring teachers use information about the progress of individual pupils in lessons to reshape tasks and improve learning  teachers providing pupils with clear next step comments on how to improve and regular opportunities for pupils to review and improve their work  ensuring that additional adults in lessons are encouraged and able to help pupils recognise their strengths and areas to improve.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Reception Class children start with skills and abilities that are broadly those expected for their age. Progress is good for all children in the Early Years Foundation Stage, including those who are disabled and have special educational needs, because they receive well-targeted and effective support. Pupils now join Key Stage 1 with ability levels that are above those expected in most areas, but writing is weaker.  Pupils continue to make overall good progress across the school. Many pupils are making exceptionally good progress, which is redressing some previous underachievement. The gap between writing and other basic skills is beginning to close. Progress speeds up at Key Stage 2 and current Year 6 pupils are working at above expected levels. The proportion of pupils who make and exceed their expected progress compares favourably with national figures.  Effective support for pupils who join the school at times throughout the year, many of whom

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The achievement of pupils is good

speak English as an additional language, is provided by bilingual teachers and teaching assistants. Their support ensures pupils’ good progress in communication skills in English.  The school is clearly focused on inclusion and supporting individual needs. This ensures that pupils with disabilities or special educational needs are fully integrated into lessons and consequently make similarly good progress to their peers.  Pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium make good progress. Additional computer equipment, purchased to support pupils’ ability to learn independently, is supporting these pupils and has helped close the gap and improve their attainment. Pupils in receipt of free school meals attained a Key Stage 2 average points score below that of other pupils up to 2012. This gap has closed with current pupils.  Learning the sounds and names of letters successfully is helping pupils read and write well. They

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The achievement of pupils is good

are able to blend letters well as they read, using this knowledge when writing. Pupils in Year 1 were observed learning a new sound and then recognising this sound within simple words, writing them confidently through listening to them.  Pupils are very articulate and able to communicate well verbally explaining what is, and what is not, understood.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching has improved because school leaders check the performance of teachers much more carefully.  Teachers’ good subject knowledge and careful planning of lessons make sure that pupils of all abilities are fully involved. In all classes, pupils are keen to learn and do well, showing obvious enjoyment in their learning. However, while some outstanding teaching exists, some teachers lack some of the skills necessary to improve their teaching to outstanding and develop pupils into independent learners able to take control of their own learning.  Good teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage ensures that children have a good start to school. Expecting children to learn for themselves is encouraged from the start. In an effective Reception class lesson, the teacher helped the children to plan the session and then enabled them to develop their physical and literacy skills with lists to ensure they checked the safety of

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The quality of teaching is good

the bikes.  In the best lessons, learning is good or better because teachers are skilled and able to identify and adjust the learning for individual pupils quickly. In the Year 4 literacy lesson pupils had to understand the elements of journalistic text and the teacher secured good progress with questioning that pupils looked again at what they had learnt in a previous lesson to help them better understand the task in hand.  Learning is sometimes held back because sometimes teachers do not ensure that pupils are able to set about their work quickly enough and this can slow the pace of learning. Teachers and other adults are not always encouraged to help pupils identify what they are good at, as well as helping them understand how they can do even better.  Teachers’ marking of pupils’ work is variable in quality. Some teachers give clear guidance as to how pupils can improve their work, but pupils are not always given regular opportunities to

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The quality of teaching is good

reflect upon the comments and make the necessary improvements.  The majority of parents who responded to the questionnaire said they are happy with the way their children are taught at school and that they make good progress.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils is good

 All pupils are well behaved and come to school ready to learn. In lessons, pupils work diligently and are respectful of each other and of their teachers. Very infrequently there is some silly or inappropriate behaviour, such as chatting to each other, but this is rare and is usually limited to times when the teachers are not expecting enough from pupils in the lesson.  Pupils move around the school calmly and play outside well together. They report that they are very happy at the school. All pupils, including those in the Early Years Foundation Stage, say they feel safe and very secure. The majority of parents who responded to the questionnaire agreed that behaviour and safety are good. This is reflected in the increasing numbers of applications for places at the school.  Behaviour in the after-school club is good and provides a good range of activities for the pupils to participate in together. Pupils who attend are encouraged to complete homework and this is

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The behaviour and safety of pupils is good

helping them to progress well.  Attendance has improved strongly and is now above average, mainly due to the successful efforts of the pastoral support team. Pupils are punctual to school and getting into lessons. However, there are a few pupils who do not attend regularly enough, but these have been identified and are being monitored closely.  A few parents raised some concerns regarding bullying at the school. In discussions with the pupils they show a good understanding of the different forms of bullying and said that there is now no bullying of any kind, including physical, emotional and cyber bullying. They also said that they were confident that the adults in school would quickly resolve any problems that they might have.

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The leadership and management is good

 The headteacher has provided the school with inspirational and far-sighted leadership. Supported by a very strong leadership team and committed governors, rapid improvements have been brought about in the quality of teaching, behaviour, attendance and pupils’ achievement.  Leaders use their good coaching and mentoring skills well to provide good advice and training. In this way, the quality of teaching is getting better, although the team does not use its most effective teachers well enough to spread good practice to others.  Leaders manage the performance of teachers well. They ensure there is a good match between how well teachers are paid and how well pupils learn. Professional development is carefully used to ensure the individual and school improvement needs are met. Staff share a common goal to improve still further.  Leaders check the progress of pupils effectively. Challenging targets are set and overall

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The leadership and management is good

performance is monitored regularly. Intervention activities support learning and the progress of pupils with additional needs is monitored to ensure that additional provision is fit for purpose.  The curriculum provides pupils with a wide range of experiences both in and out of school. It is planned to ensure it reflects the wide range of cultures that are represented by the pupils. Visits are used to stimulate learning, improve pupils’ social skills and promote their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development as the pupils experience the wider community.  The school does not tolerate discrimination of any kind and demonstrates a commitment to equal opportunities. The recent enrichment week, celebrating aspects of Arabic culture, contributed well to developing pupils’ understanding and tolerance.  Leaders robustly manage all statutory requirements relating to safeguarding.  The local authority has supported leaders well in their endeavours to secure improvements at

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The leadership and management is good

the school. They are now providing much lighter touch support to this good school.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has supported the recent staffing reorganisation at the school and knows how well the school is doing. The governors are fully supportive of senior leaders and their quest to improve the quality of teaching. They challenge successfully where teaching is not at least good. There are high expectations of teachers and governors review performance to ensure that salary progression reflects the quality of teaching and leadership responsibilities. Governors understand how well pupils are doing at the school through robust systems to monitor the effectiveness of improvement planning and its impact on the rapidly improving pupils’ achievement. Funding to the school is monitored well, especially that received through the pupil premium. The governors evaluate the benefits of all spending at the school and

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The leadership and management is good

require leaders to justify how it impacts directly on the outcomes for pupils, for example the improving achievement for pupils in receipt of free school meals following some focused spending on this group.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes that provide exceptionally well for all its pupil’s needs. This ensures that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 2 Good A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well for all its pupil’s needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 3 Requires improvement A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within 24 months from the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors. A school that requires special measures is one where the school

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Grade Judgement Description

is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.

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School details

Unique reference number 116344 Local authority Portsmouth Inspection number 401591

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School details

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

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School details

Type of school Primary School category Voluntary controlled Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 406 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Wendy Evans Headteacher Joy Waelend Date of previous school inspection 19–20 May 2010 Telephone number 023 9282 4061 Fax number 023 9275 0543 Email address head@st-judes.portsmouth.sch.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', 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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School details

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 and as part of the inspection.

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School details

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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School details

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. 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,

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School details

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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School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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