Holy Family Catholic Primary School

Holy Family Catholic Primary School Parliament Road, Armley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS12 2LH

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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 do well in their learning, and their achievement, by the time they leave school in Year 6, has improved over the last three years.  The vast majority of pupils, including those in Nursery and Reception, make good progress from their starting points.  Teaching is consistently good, so pupils are keen to learn and behave well.  Beyond regular lessons, pupils take part in a fascinating range of trips and clubs. They also have many opportunities to learn in the school’s Living Classroom with its chickens, ducks and rabbits.  The headteacher, who inspires confidence throughout the school, works very well with staff and governors to raise standards, improve teaching and make the curriculum more exciting.  Leadership makes sure that pupils are cared for very well so that they feel safe, enjoy learning and talk about their experiences with enthusiasm.  Pupils are proud of what the school does for

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

them, which is reflected in their very strong personal development.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 The improvement in standards and pupils’ progress have not been evident for long enough to be regarded as outstanding.  There is not yet enough outstanding teaching to make sure pupils’ progress is always first- rate.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 12 lessons or part lessons taught by seven teachers.  Meetings were held with groups of pupils, two members of the governing body, the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, some staff and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors took account of 54 responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) and the views of parents who were in school during the inspection. Inspectors also received several letters from parents.  Twenty-two questionnaires from staff were analysed by the inspection team.  They observed the work of the school and examined a variety of documents including those relating to pupils’ progress, the school’s evaluation of its own performance, plans for development, attendance, behaviour and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Roger Gill, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Mary Lanovy-Taylor Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This school is smaller than an average sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium funding is above the national average.  The percentage of pupils supported at school action is broadly average. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups and those learning English as an additional language is similar to that found nationally.  The school provides for small numbers of pupils from the Travelling community.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations of learning and progress.  There is a before- and after-school club on site (The Playstation), which is not run by the school’s governing body. This is inspected separately and its report can be found on the Ofsted website.  About half of the staff are new to the school since its last inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching to raise standards and quicken the rate of pupils’ progress even further by:  shortening the length of introductions in lessons so that pupils spend more time on investigating and finding things out for themselves  setting even more demanding challenges for the most able pupils  improving the marking of pupils’ work so that easy to understand targets for improvement, in English and mathematics, are included as often as possible  making sure that all pupils possess a firm understanding of how to reach the next level in their work  increase opportunities for pupils to use and develop their skills of reading, writing and mathematics across the curriculum.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children start school with skills which are below the expectations for their age and often well below the expectations in areas associated with literacy and numeracy. They make good progress in Nursery and Reception because they learn a lot through play, visits out of school and the lively discussions they have with adults. Children are well prepared to start Year 1 in all aspects of learning.  By the end of Year 6, standards are at the national average over a three year period, but there is a rising trend of results, culminating in a very successful year for standards and progress in 2012, due to the direction and vision for improvement shown primarily by the headteacher. Pupils’ progress is also quickening in Key Stage 1. This is demonstrated by improved results at the end of Year 2 in 2012, and pupils’ high level of understanding about letters and the sounds they make in Year 1.  Currently, pupils are not getting enough opportunities to practise their reading, writing and

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The achievement of pupils is good

mathematics in subjects like science, history and geography. This limits their chances of deepening their knowledge and understanding and building, even further, on their already good achievement in English and mathematics.  Although progress is improving, work for all pupils is not always tailored to their needs in a sharp enough way. So, while more-able pupils, in general, are given harder work to do there are some who could tackle even more difficult tasks.  Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs do as well as other pupils because care is taken to determine how they need to learn. Teachers and teaching assistants work closely together to make sure they succeed. Parents are often very appreciative of the school’s efforts for these pupils.  Those pupils from Travelling backgrounds do well, especially when they need to catch up after having been away for a while.  Pupils who receive support from pupil premium funding learn at the same rate as other pupils

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The achievement of pupils is good

because they benefit from the extra staff that the school employs to help individuals and groups. Sometimes they do very well as demonstrated by the Year 6 results in 2012.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is good and pupils learn well owing to the lively relationships and the way that activities are generally well suited to pupils’ different needs. Some more-able pupils could make even better progress but this does not prevent progress overall from being good.  Good teaching begins in Nursery and Reception where children soon learn to read, write and use numbers well because play, signing, rhymes and stories are all used successfully to make learning enjoyable and productive. Opportunities to practise and extend learning outside the classroom are a little limited but the school has a good plan underway to develop this aspect.  Elsewhere, in Years 1 to 6, learning advances consistently well which is an improvement since the last inspection when inconsistency across the school was identified. The teaching of reading, for example, is good because letters and the sounds they make are tackled thoroughly from

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The quality of teaching is good

Nursery onwards. Also, reading in groups with an adult is organised effectively and the school has implemented a successful scheme of reading at home.  Teachers use information about how well pupils learn to set targets and plan new work. Pupils are given targets to reach but generally, because this is a relatively new system, pupils’ knowledge of these targets, and what they mean, is a little hazy. Similarly, teachers make useful comments in pupils’ work to point out successes but the pointers for improvement are sometimes vague and leave pupils wondering what to do precisely such as: ‘You need to use more connectives.’  Teaching assistants are used effectively in lessons to teach groups of pupils, typically disabled pupils and those with a special educational need. These pupils make good progress owing to the careful planning for their individual need and the useful liaison with parents. Progress for these

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The quality of teaching is good

pupils is not yet outstanding because some introductions in lessons go on too long. This prevents them getting on as quickly as possible, especially to investigate and find things out for themselves.  Similarly, pupils from minority ethnic heritages, those learning English as an additional language and pupils from Travelling families make good progress due to the helpful teaching they receive.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Leadership possesses a detailed knowledge of the circumstances of individual pupils and their families, which is why pupils feel safe and very well supported. As a result, pupils are very proud of their school and behave well at all times.  Adults provide a listening ear if pupils are unhappy, for example, the learning mentor’s Rainbow sessions, for pupils who need to talk about personal problems, are greatly prized by everyone concerned including parents who know that their children receive valuable support and guidance.  Behaviour in lessons is good. Pupils are respectful and share ideas well, but there is a tendency for them to remain passive, for too long, while listening to teachers. This limits their ability to demonstrate more dynamic behaviours in learning such as lively debate, and problem solving. This prevents behaviour from being outstanding overall.  Behaviour is outstanding when pupils undertake activities that they find fascinating, such as a

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

Northern Ballet workshop for pupils in Year 5 or an interactive drama presentation, by a theatre group, for pupils in Years 1 and 2. These events have a strong influence on pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Pupils say, correctly, that bullying, racist language and misbehaviour in lessons are rare.  They want to come to school as is demonstrated by above average levels of attendance. As one pupils said, ‘this is the best school I have been to – and I have been to three!’  Parents applaud the behaviour in school. The opinions expressed on Parent View about children being happy in school, feeling safe and being looked after well are very favourable.  Pupils understand about bullying and how to deal with it, which is why they feel safe and can cope well with the minor playground disputes that occur.  Behaviour is good partly because of the responsibilities given to pupils. For example, older pupils

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

are Buddies to children in Reception, while others, of all ages, look after the animals in the Living Classroom.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher leads his team with a strong sense of direction and an ability to make sure everyone is working towards the same ends. This is why the staff all show such support for the school and its work.  Since the last inspection, for example, a new system of checking pupils’ progress has been introduced and the curriculum has been revitalised to include many activities that inspire pupils, such as the Living Classroom.  The deputy headteacher and other members of the senior team work with a clear idea of their role and know how they can contribute to pupils’ improving progress. Lessons are observed regularly and pupils’ work is studied giving useful insights into how learning could be made even better. As a result, the school knows that there could, for example, be more outstanding teaching and pupils’ skills, such as writing, could be developed more effectively in all subjects.  A comprehensive system of appraisal and performance management has been adopted, which is

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The leadership and management are good

linked to the pay scales. Teachers feel that their strengths are valued and that they are well supported in making any necessary improvements in their work.  The sizeable change in staff since the last inspection has not knocked the school off course at all. Parents, for their part, are very positive about how the school has improved in the last three years.  The local authority supports the school well. It provides the right amount of help for a school that they rightly judge as being good and improving.  The governance of the school:  Governors possess a good knowledge of the school and they ask knowledgeable questions about how the rising trend of results can be maintained. The work undertaken by committees makes sure that full governing body meetings run smoothly leading to a clear understanding of how good the school is and what needs to be done next. As a result, they know how well various groups of pupils are doing, for example, those who receive pupil premium funding and

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The leadership and management are good

Travellers. Governors fulfil their statutory duties and ensure safeguarding meets requirements.

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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 pupils’ 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 pupils’ 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 is

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Grade Judgement Description

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 108026 Local authority Leeds Inspection number 400960

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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 aided Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 206 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Michael Johnson Headteacher Peter McQuillen Strong Date of previous school inspection 17 May 2010 Telephone number 0113 214 3565 Fax number 0113 279 8051 Email address headteacher@holyfamily.leeds.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, please

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School details

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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