St Robert Southwell Catholic Primary School, Horsham

St Robert Southwell Catholic Primary School Lambs Farm Road, Roffey, Horsham, RH12 4LP

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Outstanding 1 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 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 because teaching is typically good and sometimes outstanding.  The teaching of reading is particularly good. As a result, standards in reading at the end of Year 6 are above average, with a higher than average proportion of pupils reaching the higher levels.  Senior leaders, staff and the governing body work effectively as a close team. They have an accurate picture of what needs to be done to improve the school further.  The range of subjects and activities offered by the school is broad, lively and stimulating. so that pupils are keen to learn and their attitudes in lessons are extremely positive.  Pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school is excellent and they feel very safe. Pupils’ enjoyment of school is reflected in attendance rates, which are consistently above average.  Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is strongly promoted. Pupils

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

respond enthusiastically to events such as assemblies. They develop a mature awareness of different cultures and talk about different faiths and beliefs with sensitivity and respect.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teaching is not yet outstanding because occasionally teachers’ expectations of some groups of pupils are not high enough. As a result, the work set for these pupils is sometimes not difficult enough for them.  At times, the pace of learning is not rapid enough to maximise pupils’ progress. Information about pupils’ progress is not always used precisely enough to give teachers and parents a sharp picture of the achievement of individuals and groups of pupils, or in turn to prompt outstanding progress.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed 10 lessons or parts of lessons, including three joint lesson observations completed with the headteacher.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, the Chair of the Governing Body, a local authority representative, senior leaders, staff and pupils.  The inspector took account of 35 responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in addition to the results of a recent school questionnaire and responses to the staff questionnaire.  The inspector observed the school’s work and analysed a range of documents and policies, including the school improvement plan, information about pupils’ progress, attendance records, safeguarding documents and a sample of pupils’ work.

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Inspection team

Julie Sackett, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils who are eligible for the pupil premium in this school is very low. This is additional funding provided by the government to support pupils entitled to free school meals, those who are looked after by the local authority and the children of service families.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs supported through school action is below average.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below average.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups and of those who speak English as an additional language is below average.  Pupils are taught in mixed age classes.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching and improve achievement further by making sure that  learning always moves on at a rapid pace in lessons  teachers’ expectations of what pupils can do are consistently high, so that all pupils are provided with appropriately challenging work at the right level of difficulty  tracking systems are used to measure more precisely the progress made by individual pupils and groups of pupils.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Children’s skills and understanding when they start school are generally in line with those expected for their age. They make good progress during their time in Reception Year because relationships are strong, expectations are high and adults work well together as a team.  Children’s attainment at the end of Reception Year has steadily improved over the last three years, particularly in children’s mathematical understanding, so that it is above average. The school’s information about the progress of current pupils shows that these improvements are now extending through the school.  Pupils make good progress across Key Stages 1 and 2 so that attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 is typically above average in reading, writing and mathematics. A dip in attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 in 2011 was due to there being an above average proportion of pupils with additional needs. This dip was successfully reversed in 2012.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 In 2012, the proportion of pupils attaining the higher levels at the end of Year 6 was well above average in English and average in mathematics. The school has been running sharply focused groups for the more able pupils to help lift their achievement in mathematics. School information about pupils’ progress shows that this initiative has been successful, with more pupils on track to attain the higher levels in mathematics in 2013.  The teaching of reading, including the link between letters and sounds (phonics), is well organised and effective. In Year 1, pupils’ attainment in the phonics screening check was above average in 2012. Initiatives such as ‘Big Write’, an approach which encourages pupils to talk about their writing and to be involved in improving their writing, have contributed very well to pupils’ enjoyment of reading and writing and have given them opportunities to write for a range

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The achievement of pupils is good

of different purposes.  The very few pupils eligible for the pupil premium are well supported. They make good progress and reach similar levels of attainment to other pupils in the school in English and mathematics. Pupil premium is used flexibly to pay for specialist support to develop pupils’ emotional well- being, as well as for academic support. The average point score for this group was above the national average in 2012. There were no Year 6 pupils eligible for the pupil premium in the preceding two years.  The school is committed to ensuring that all pupils have equal opportunities to succeed. The inclusion leader’s thorough knowledge of specific needs is used to good effect to ensure that support for disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is of good quality. As a result, these pupils make good progress. Pupils who speak English as an additional language make at least good progress because support in school is closely tailored to individual needs,

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The achievement of pupils is good

parents work closely with the school and expectations are high.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is typically good and sometimes outstanding. Teachers’ confident subject knowledge is used to good effect to provide stimulating and well-paced lessons which are much enjoyed by the pupils. For example, during the inspection, pupils in Years 5 and 6 relished the opportunity to make a pair of slippers from their own designs. They were highly motivated to succeed and so made excellent progress in their ability to select the best tools for the job, use tools safely and change designs to overcome difficulties, concentrating for extended periods of time.  Teachers often provide strong role models by actively listening to pupils’ comments and ideas and by valuing what they have to say. As a result, pupils are confident about expressing their ideas in whole-class discussions and work extremely well with each other.  Usually, teachers use questioning very well to check pupils’ understanding and to move their

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The quality of teaching is good

learning forward. For example, in a Year 5/6 lesson, pupils made good progress in developing their understanding of square numbers because the teacher’s questioning built strongly on prior learning. However, at times, pupils are not moved on to the next task or activity soon enough during lessons and, as a result, their progress slows.  The teaching of reading is particularly successful. Consequently, the proportion of pupils making good and better progress in the development of reading skills is above average. The teaching of phonics is well established in the school and has been enhanced in recent years. Parents and members of the local community make a much valued contribution by helping to ensure that pupils regularly read aloud and discuss books.  Pupils are well informed about how well they are doing and what they can do to improve their work. Work is regularly marked and written comments by the teacher give pupils pointers about

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The quality of teaching is good

what to do next. Individual targets for the pupils are noted in the front of English and mathematics books and are routinely used by pupils during lessons to help them to move to the next level.  Teaching assistants play a confident and effective role in lessons and in teaching small groups so that pupils of differing abilities, including disabled pupils and those with special educational needs, make similar progress to their peers. For example, in a Year R/1 lesson, teaching assistants skilfully questioned children about their reading books and successfully helped children to complete their writing so that they made good progress in the development of reading and writing skills.  Occasionally, the progress made by some groups of pupils is not as rapid as it could be because teachers’ expectations of what pupils can do are not high enough and the work set has not been sufficiently challenging. .

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils’ attitudes to learning are excellent, from the youngest children in the school to those in Year 6. Pupils happily take on responsibility for their learning and play an active part in lessons. During the inspection, pupils talked to the inspector with confidence about their learning targets. They said that they were looking forward to going to parents’ evening to hear how well they are doing and what they need to do to improve.  Pupils cooperate with each other exceptionally well. They value the ideas of their fellow pupils and demonstrate strong respect for everyone in school. For example, in a Year 4/5 mathematics lesson, one pupil decided to help another pupil who was struggling by explaining how she had solved a division problem. As a result, not only was her friend able to solve the problem herself but was also able to go on to explain how she had done this to the rest of the class.  Pupils are polite and welcoming and keen to talk to visitors about their work. They behave

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

extremely well in lessons and when moving around the school. Pupils know that adults will help them to sort out any concerns. Some pupils told the inspector that they appreciate the way the peer mediators help them to sort out any disagreements by listening to both sides of an argument. Older pupils are proud of the role they play in helping to look after younger pupils during playtime.  Discrimination of any sort is not tolerated in the school. Records show that incidents of bullying are rare and pupils confirmed that this was the case. Pupils understand the different forms that bullying can take, such as racism and cyber bullying, and know how they can help to keep themselves safe by, for example, never giving personal information over the internet. All parents who completed the on-line questionnaire consider pupils to be safe and well behaved.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher’s strong leadership and commitment make an outstanding contribution to the development of the school’s positive and highly inclusive ethos. She and her assistant headteacher work extremely well together as a team, ably supported by experienced and effective subject leaders’The school plays an active part in the local community. For example, senior and middle leaders visit other schools in the locality to share good practice and to help schools that need extra support. The local authority provides ‘light touch’ support for this good school.  The school’s view of the quality of its own work is accurate and used very successfully to identify areas for further development. Leaders have a very clear view of what needs to be done to improve achievement further. Aspects of the school identified for improvement at the last inspection have been addressed in full. For example, activities are more closely matched to

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The leadership and management are good

pupils’ interests, pupils are very well informed about their learning and they know what they need to do to improve their work.  There are clear links between teachers’ performance and pay progression.  Information about how well pupils are learning is regularly and effectively used by leaders and teachers to check pupils’ progress from term to term. However, there is not always a strong enough focus on the smaller steps pupils are making in their learning during each term. Leaders have rightly recognised the need to tackle this issue so that pupils’ progress is more precisely measured and provides teachers and parents with sharper information about how well pupils are doing and when they need extra help.  The school promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development very well. Subjects such as music and design and technology are extremely well taught and make a strong contribution to the pupils’ enjoyment of school.

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The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school:  Governors ask pertinent and searching questions and provide good levels of challenge for the school. They know how well the school is performing in relation to other schools nationally. Governors have a good understanding of the quality of teaching in the school and about how teachers are rewarded and supported to improve their practice. Comprehensive reports provided by the headteacher ensure that the governors are well informed about the achievement of different groups, including how well pupil premium is being used to support pupils’ achievement. Safeguarding arrangements are robust and meet statutory 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 126053 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 413205

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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 147 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Veronica Peppiatt Headteacher Anne Hudspith Date of previous school inspection 10 February 2010 Telephone number 01403 252357 Fax number 01403 252394 Email address office@st-robertsouthwell.w-sussex.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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