St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Chedworth Drive, Warndon, Worcester, WR4 9PG

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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 make good progress and achieve well. By Year 6 standards in English and mathematics are above average.  Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage benefit from high quality teaching and develop quickly. High expectations and well established routines help support their start at school. This allows them to settle quickly and achieve well.  Disabled pupils, those who have special educational needs and those eligible for further support, all make good progress.  Pupils are given memorable experiences across a range of subjects which engage them in learning. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good.  Pupils’ behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. They have a good attitude towards their work, feel safe in school and attendance is above average.  The headteacher, staff and governors have high aspirations and expectations of all pupils. They have rapidly improved the effectiveness

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

of the school since the last inspection. As a result, the overall quality of teaching has risen, improving pupils’ progress.  Governors support the headteacher well to improve the quality of teaching and monitor teachers’ performance, securing the improvements in pupils’ achievement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Pupils’ opportunities to think and learn by themselves are sometimes limited by having to spend too much time listening to adults in lessons.  Teachers’ marking does not consistently provide pupils with the information they need to improve their work and this can affect their progress.  The more-able pupils are not always provided with opportunities to practise their problem solving skills in mathematics or to develop their language skills in longer pieces of writing in English.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors visited 16 lessons taught by eight teachers; four were joint observations with the headteacher and deputy headteacher.  Inspectors observed and spoke to pupils during lessons and at lunch and break times. They met formally with a group of pupils.  Meetings were held with senior leaders and managers, and the Chair of the Governing Body. A meeting also took place with a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a range of documents, including arrangements for safeguarding, performance management, attendance, information about pupils’ attainment and progress, and pupils’ books.  They took into account the 12 responses from parents and carers shown on Parent View (the online questionnaire), and responses to the staff questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Ronald Hall, Lead inspector Additional Inspector David Westall Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is an average-sized primary school.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is below average, but the proportion supported at school action plus or through a statement of special educational needs is above average.  The proportion of pupils supported by additional funding through the pupil premium, including those known to be eligible for free school meals, is average.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  The majority of pupils are of White British heritage, but the proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is above average.  No pupils are currently educated in alternative provision away from the school site.  There is a separate nursery provision on the same site as the school.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching from good to outstanding by:  making sure that teachers’ marking gives pupils the information they need to help them improve their work  making sure that the pace of learning does not slow in some lessons due to pupils having to sit and listen to teachers for too long.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate the progress of the more-able pupils by:  providing them with more challenging opportunities to develop their mathematical problem solving skills  developing their language skills through providing more opportunities for them to write longer pieces of work.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 All children in the Early Years Foundation Stage make good progress. Most children reach levels that are broadly similar to what would normally be expected when they move into Key Stage 1.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Good progress continues across the school, reflecting the good teaching pupils receive. This has resulted in above average, and improving, attainment at the end of Year 6. The gap in achievement that existed between English and mathematics has closed, as have the gaps in achievement between different pupil groups.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The proportion of pupils currently at the school who make and exceed their expected progress compares favourably with the national average. Occasionally, more-able pupils do not do as well as they could because they are not always provided with opportunities to extend their skills sufficiently, for example, writing extendedly in English and problem solving in mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium make good progress. Additional staffing to support these pupils has led to an improvement in their attainment. The 2012 results for Year 6 showed that their overall attainment was much closer to that of other pupils in the school than was the case nationally.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and pupils with English as an additional language are supported well. They make good progress from their individual starting points and are integrated in lessons as much as possible. This demonstrates that the school strongly promotes equality of opportunity for pupils.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The effective teaching of phonics (letters and the sounds they make) has helped all pupils to improve their skills in reading. Pupils read fluently and blend sounds well. Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage were observed blending letter sounds and using these in sentences of their own as well as reading them in a range of complex sentences. By Year 6 pupils were reading a Dickens’ novel and were able to discuss the social, moral and personal aspects of the story to a very high level.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching across the school is good, with some being outstanding. All pupils are making better progress because of the effective action the school has taken over time to improve teaching. Peer observations and close links with other schools and the local authority have enabled teachers to improve their own practice.

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The quality of teaching is good

 The pace of learning in lessons is generally good and where teaching is outstanding pupils work at a very fast pace. In some lessons pace slows due to teachers talking too much and pupils not beginning their own work quickly enough.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Pupils enjoy a wide range of practical activities in lessons which regularly involve them in exciting learning opportunities. Following a visit to different religious centres, for example, pupils produced some high quality written work which demonstrated their good spiritual understanding.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers’ high expectations were exemplified in a Year 2 mathematics lesson where pupils were exploring subtraction. Probing questioning and clear explanation by the adults resulted in all pupils making excellent progress. The pupils were fully engaged, challenged themselves and each other and were full of confidence.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers use verbal explanations well to aid learning and accelerate progress. However, written marking does not provide sufficient information for pupils to know how to improve their work.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils’ behaviour is good and their attitudes to learning are positive. These are important factors in ensuring that pupils make good progress during their time at the school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school offers a welcoming environment for all pupils, who respond well to the high expectations of teachers. Pupils are polite and show respect for their peers and adults.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say that they really enjoy school, and this is reflected in their above average and improving rates of attendance. One pupil commented, ‘I really enjoy coming to this school’.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Parents and carers believe that the school is a safe and secure place and that their children are very well cared for. Pupils also say that they feel very safe and are confident that adults will always help them if they have any concerns.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The school is a very inclusive and positive learning environment and all pupils, including those with disabilities, are provided with the support they need in order to take a full part in school activities.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Older pupils state that they enjoy caring for the younger ones and are insistent that very little misbehaviour takes place either in lessons or at playtimes. They are aware that a very small minority of pupils sometimes find it difficult to behave well all of the time.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils of all ages say that incidents of bullying are very rare. They are also confident that, should bullying of any type, including physical, emotional or cyber-bullying ever happen, it would be dealt with quickly and firmly by adults.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher, senior leaders and staff have improved the quality of teaching and learning and have developed an exciting environment in which pupils succeed and feel valued. Parents are positive about the school. There is good capacity for further improvement.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders at all levels are fully involved in improving teaching and raising standards. The national standards for teachers are used effectively to evaluate the quality of teaching. Leaders work closely with the governing body and the local authority, as well as with their local schools, to strengthen teachers’ skills and improve practice further.

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The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum meets the needs of pupils well. A particular strength is that pupils enjoy practical experiences based on their interests across a range of subjects.

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The leadership and management are good

 The senior leaders regularly check the quality of teaching and learning and carefully track each individual pupil’s achievements. All staff are clear about what is expected. Subject leaders check learning across the school and provide effective opportunities for staff to learn from each other.  The school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well through close involvement with the local church and links with the local and wider communities. For example, pupils participate in many community activities and regularly join in with fundraising activities.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  The governing body knows how well the school and the pupils are doing and supports the headteacher well. Governors have supported the improvements made in the quality of teaching and have successfully challenged teachers to improve. Governors review teachers’ performance regularly, linking salary progression to the quality of teaching and staff leadership responsibilities. Leaders and managers at all levels effectively analyse how well the school is doing, and plan improvements from this information. The governors monitor the changes to make sure they improve pupils’ achievement. Funding to the school is monitored effectively to evaluate the benefits. The headteacher is challenged by the governors on how funding obtained through the pupil premium is spent and what impact it has on the outcomes for pupils. The attainment and progress of pupils in receipt of the pupil premium are checked

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The leadership and management are good

regularly at progress meetings with the class teachers, which focus on the impact that the additional intervention activities provided specifically for this group have had on the individual pupils.

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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 116925 Local authority Worcestershire Inspection number 405678

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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 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 208 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Fr. Paul Johnson Headteacher Marian Jay Date of previous school inspection 30 March 2011 Telephone number 01905 452772 Fax number 01905 452772 Email address office@st-josephs-pri.worcs.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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