Holy Saviour Roman Catholic Primary School, Nelson

Holy Saviour Roman Catholic Primary School Holland Place, Off Reedyford Road, Nelson, Lancashire, BB9 8HD

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Overall effectiveness

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

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 The quality of teaching is not consistently good.  Teachers do not always make it clear what pupils are expected to do during lessons.  Activities do not always challenge pupils, especially the more-able pupils.  Pupils are not always given time to respond to teachers’ comments.  There is too much variation in the rate of progress between classes, especially in writing and mathematics.  School leaders have an overly positive view of how well the school is doing. A range of plans and actions aimed at improving standards has been introduced but procedures to assess whether these are effective have yet to be put in place.

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The school has the following strengths

 The acting headteacher has a very clear idea of the direction she wants the school to take. She is well supported by her leadership team whose members share her determination to drive up standards.  Some teaching is of good quality.  Pupils enjoy school and behave well. They are respectful to others and welcoming towards visitors.  Pupils feel safe in school. The excellent relationships that they enjoy with staff and each other help to create a good working atmosphere in most classes.  Attendance is above average and improving.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 11 lessons, one of which was a joint observation with the acting headteacher. They also observed small group sessions delivered by teaching assistants, and listened to pupils reading.  Meetings were held with groups of pupils, members of the governing body, a local authority representative, the headteacher of the short-stay school with which Holy Saviour works in partnership and school staff.  Inspectors took account of 22 on-line questionnaires (Parent View).  A range of documents was looked at, including the school’s analysis of how well it is doing and the improvement plan, pupil progress information, checks on the quality of teaching, minutes of governing body meetings, and records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding. Inspectors also examined the work in pupils’ books.

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Inspection team

Louise Murphy, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Dave Blackburne Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a smaller than average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium funding is above average.  The proportion of pupils supported through school action is below the national average.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or who have a statement of special educational needs is above the national average.  The school works in partnership with Hendon Brook Short Stay School to provide for the needs of dual-registered pupils.  The majority of pupils come from a White British background and speak English as their first language.  An acting headteacher and associate deputy headteacher have been in post for one term.  The school meets the current government floor standards, which are the minimum expected for pupils’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of good or better teaching by:  consistently providing work that is sufficiently challenging, particularly for more-able pupils  giving pupils time in lessons to correct and edit their work  making sure that pupils always know exactly what they should do during independent activities .

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and accelerate pupil progress so that it is good or better in all classes by making sure that:  pupils are able to use their basic skills to solve increasingly complex mathematical problems  there are more opportunities provided for pupils to use their writing and mathematical skills across the curriculum.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the impact of school leaders, including the governing body, by:  carefully checking that the procedures put in place are helping to raise standards  improving the accuracy of school’s view of its own performance.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Most children enter Reception class with skills and abilities that are below or well below those expected for their age. They make good progress relative to their starting points and start Year 1 with skills that are below, but nearer to, expected levels.  Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 is broadly average. The proportion of pupils making expected and more than expected progress over time is similar to national figures but the progress of pupils currently in school varies widely from one year to another, particularly in writing and mathematics. This is because the quality of teaching is not consistently good.  At the end of Key Stage 2 attainment in mathematics is below that in English and in 2012, the progress made in mathematics by some groups, including less-able pupils, was below pupils nationally. This is because pupils do not learn basic mathematical skills consistently well enough

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

to support them when working out more difficult mathematical problems. For example, Year 4 pupils confidently chanted the six and two times tables. However, when asked individually to answer ’two times five equals’ and ’five times six equals’ they were unable to do so.  Pupils’ writing skills are broadly as expected for their age but not better than this because they seldom write at length, especially in subjects other than English.  Year 1 pupils have well-above average skills in matching letters to the sounds they make. The newly appointed literacy lead teacher, quickly recognising that pupils could read words very well but needed to deepen their understanding of what they were reading, has introduced training to make sure that all staff question pupils carefully when listening to reading. The impact of this is yet to show in attainment levels, which are broadly average by the end of Year 6.  The attainment of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding is below that of their peers and

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

pupils nationally. However, due to the wide range of additional support put in place for these pupils, the gap is becoming narrower.  The progress made by disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is similar to others. There are pupils who make good progress. For example, the school has recently worked very well with the local short-stay school to support a pupil who has been able to make significant gains in learning and personal behaviour management.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 The quality of teaching requires improvement because it is not consistently good or better across the school. Teachers are eagerly visiting other schools to observe good and outstanding teaching, engaging in training and implementing new ways of working. There are also examples of good teaching within the school that provide models of what to aim for. However, these initiatives are too recent to have yet had their full impact on improving standards.  In some lessons teachers’ expectations of what pupils can do are not high enough and the work does not challenge all pupils, particularly the more-able. For example, during a mathematics lesson pupils were measuring ribbons. Many pupils completed the task very quickly and spent time, without further challenge from the teacher, discussing what colour their ribbon should be.  Marking has improved since the last inspection and teachers consistently follow the new system.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

They congratulate pupils on something done well and provide guidance on how to make their work even better. However, they do not always give pupils the time to respond to this good guidance.  Teachers and teaching assistants now provide small group and individual support for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, pupils eligible for the pupil premium grant, those who are not on track to achieve their targets and pupils experiencing emotional and behavioural difficulties. This support is now closely focused so that pupils can be supported to make the progress that they should and all pupils have the same opportunities.  Learning objectives do not always make it clear to pupils exactly what they should be doing because they are too broad; for example, ‘fiction writing’. Moreover, in some lessons teachers do not accurately model what pupils need to do to complete independent tasks. For example, in one

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

mathematics lesson pupils were challenged to make as many division sums as they could in two minutes but they were not explicitly told that the sums all had to start with the biggest number, which led to answers such as ’four shared between eight equals two’.  Teachers do not provide enough opportunities for pupils to practise their writing and mathematical skills in other subjects.  Teachers have excellent relationships with pupils so that pupils are comfortable to ask for support when they need it. Year 5 pupils were particularly keen to tell the inspector how their teacher provides them with ‘helping hands’ which are written reminders about what the pupil should be including in their pieces of work. Pupils use these to improve their work independently before they hand it in to the teacher.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils behave very well in and around the school; they are extremely courteous and welcoming to visitors. They routinely hold doors open for adults and each other.  Pupils are keen to get on with their work and they enjoy attending school. They would highly recommend Holy Saviour to their friends. This is reflected in the attendance figures which are improving and now above average.  Pupils take on a number of roles and responsibilities around the school including house captains and school councillors. They are proud to help those less fortunate than themselves and raise money for local and global causes. For example, during the Olympic celebrations pupils raised money to support families in third world countries.  Parents believe that behaviour is well managed, any bullying is effectively dealt with and that their children are kept safe. Pupils have a good understanding of different types of bullying,

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

including cyber-bullying. The bully buddies around school help pupils to resolve any issues. However, pupils agree that there is no real bullying because they are all good friends and ‘work together as a unit.’  Pupils feel very safe in school and agree that if they had any issues or concerns then any member of staff would listen and help them to sort out their problem.  Behaviour is not yet outstanding because there are occasions when activities in lessons are not challenging enough and pupils become distracted. However, when they do, a reminder from staff brings them quickly back to task.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The new senior leadership team has high ambitions for the school and is introducing a number of new systems intended to drive up standards. However, its members are not yet carefully checking how these actions are impacting on pupils’ learning or the quality of teaching and, as a result, they have an overly positive view of the school’s performance.  Leaders recognise that there are issues regarding the progress made by some pupils. They have acted quickly to set up systems to identify pupils who require additional support and are making sure that staff are trained to meet the needs of these pupils. This indicates that the school can make further improvements.  New measures have been introduced for checking the performance of teachers, and progression up the pay-scale is now closely linked to how effective teachers are in their work.  Pupil premium funding is being used to provide specialist equipment, additional one-to-one and

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The leadership and management requires improvement

small group support for eligible pupils. School leaders, including governors, check that the money is wisely spent and attainment for these pupils is improving.  Pupils enjoy the additional activities provided by the school, for example, after-school sports clubs, and Year 6 pupils are really looking forward to their residential visit. The curriculum also supports pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development very well.  The local authority has increased the level of support provided since the new leadership team came into post. It has brokered the support of an experienced headteacher to mentor senior leaders and continues to include the school in the Pendle Project which funds training especially for teaching assistants.  The school works smoothly and effectively in partnership with the local short-stay school.  The governance of the school:  The governing body is highly supportive of the school and governors do question school

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The leadership and management requires improvement

leaders. However, in the past they have not been challenging enough to allow them to have a thorough understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They now recognise this and have the determination and appropriate skills to enable them to hold school leaders increasingly to account regarding pupil performance and the quality of teaching. Governors understand fully what the pupil premium grant is for and that performance management must support improvement in the quality of teaching. Governors take up training opportunities and are willing to undertake more to further improve their skills. They make sure that all statutory responsibilities including budgetary and safeguarding meet 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 119654 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 405874

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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 5–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 199 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Paul Stinchon Headteacher Lynne Murphy Date of previous school inspection 10 March 2011 Telephone number 01282 612319 Fax number 01282 612319 Email address head@holysaviour.lancs.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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