St John Bosco RC Primary School

St John Bosco RC Primary School Hall Moss Road, Blackley, Manchester, M9 7AT

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 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

 Overall achievement is not good. Pupils do not consistently make good enough progress in mathematics.  Teaching is not consistently good. The quality of teaching is better in English than it is in mathematics.  Teachers are not always clear enough about what they expect pupils to learn in lessons. As a result, activities do not always meet the needs of all pupils. There are not enough opportunities for pupils to develop their skills independently.  Marking in mathematics is variable. Teachers do not always provide pupils with clear enough guidance about what they need to do to improve their work.  Although leaders undertake regular activities to check how well the school is doing, they do not always focus sharply enough on whether actions are having an impact on pupils’ progress.  Middle leaders do not always have the necessary skills to carry out their roles effectively. Leadership of mathematics is not

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

bringing about improvements quickly enough because there is an over-optimistic view of how well the school is doing.

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The school has the following strengths

 Achievement in English is good. Pupils start school with language skills which are well below those expected for their age, but by the end of Year 6, attainment in English in line with the national average.  Provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage is good, and enables children to make a good start to their learning.  Pupils are happy and safe. As a result, behaviour is good, pupils enjoy school and attendance has improved so that it is now average.  Leaders’ action plans are focused on the right priorities. Governors have increased the level of challenge they provide to leaders.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed all teachers and parts of 14 lessons. They also observed teaching assistants working with small groups.  Inspectors listened to pupils read, and analysed the quality of work and marking in their books.  Opportunities were taken to talk to pupils about school in lessons, at break and lunchtimes, and a formal discussion was held with representatives from the school council.  Meetings were held with the headteacher and deputy headteacher, middle leaders, three governors and a representative from the local authority.  Inspectors took into account 10 responses from parents to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View), and took the opportunity to talk to a number of parents as they were bringing their children into school.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation. These included minutes of meetings, school policies, action plans, data tracking pupils’ progress, the school’s own record of monitoring

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Information about this inspection

activities, and records relating to behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

Christine Birchall, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Christine Addison Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 St John Bosco Roman Catholic Primary school is smaller than the average sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils supported at school action, school action plus, or with a statement of special educational needs, is average.  Most pupils are White British, with very few speaking English as an additional language.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium is well above average. (Pupil premium funding is provided by the government to support pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, pupils who are looked after by the local authority and the children of military personnel.) In this school, pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium are those known to be eligible for free school meals.  The school meets the government’s current floor targets, which set out the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.  Since the previous inspection a new headteacher and deputy headteacher have taken up post.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the teaching of mathematics, so that pupils’ achievement and attainment is as consistently good as it currently is in English by: - ensuring that teachers use their knowledge of how well pupils are learning to provide activities which meet the needs of all learners - ensuring that teachers have a clear understanding of what pupils have to do to make progress in mathematics, and that they are clear what they want them to learn in lessons - providing more opportunities for pupils to apply their skills to real-life problem-solving situations - ensuring that pupils have enough opportunities to work independently so that they learn to be less reliant on the adults - ensuring that marking helps pupils to understand what they need to do to improve - identifying and sharing good practice in mathematics teaching.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of leadership and management, by: - providing support and challenge for middle leaders, especially in mathematics, to ensure that they have the skills and knowledge to carry out their role - ensuring that leaders use the outcomes of monitoring activities to check that actions are having an impact on pupils’ achievement and are about improvements.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 Children typically enter the Early Years Foundation Stage with skills and knowledge which are well below those expected for their age, particularly in speech and language. As a result of good provision, accurate assessment and good levels of care, they make good progress. For the first time in 2012, children left at the end of Reception with skills and knowledge which were average.  Achievement in English is good. In reading, pupils in Key Stage 1 are able to use phonics (the knowledge of letters and the sounds that they make) to sound out words. By the end of Year 6, pupils read with enthusiasm and expression, and talk with enjoyment about the authors and types of books which they like to read. In writing, pupils are able to write for a range of purposes, produce extended pieces of writing, and have clear strategies for drafting and improving their work.  Achievement overall however, requires improvement. This is because pupils do not make

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

consistently good progress in mathematics. There are variations between year groups. Pupils do not always understand what it is they should be learning, and struggle to apply their mathematical skills to solving problems.  Achievement for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, as well as those who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium also requires improvement. There is a range of additional support provided for pupils with special educational needs but teachers are not rigorous enough in checking that they are having an impact on pupils’ learning. There is no difference between the achievement of pupils who are known to be eligible for the pupil premium and those who are not. Gaps between the attainment and progress of these two groups are narrower than those seen nationally.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching overall requires improvement because there are differences in the quality of teaching in English and mathematics. Although inspectors saw some examples of good teaching in mathematics, there was too much which required improvement. Good practice in mathematics teaching is not shared enough to help others improve.  Teachers do not always have a clear enough idea of what is needed to help pupils make progress and they are not precise enough in their expectations of what they want pupils of differing abilities to learn. Consequently, there is generally a lack of challenge, which means that work is often too easy.  Too much talk from the teacher means that teachers do not listen to and act on feedback from pupils. They are not quick enough in changing the direction of lessons when it is clear that things are not going according to plan. Too often, pupils of all abilities complete work very

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

rapidly, and teachers and teaching assistants do not provide more challenging extension activities quickly enough. As a result, the pace of learning slows.  Pupils are not given enough opportunities to develop their skills of working on their own or in groups and, as a result, they rely very heavily on adults to help them with their learning. Teachers do not give pupils enough opportunities to apply their mathematical skills to solving problems.  Teachers and teaching assistant provide good quality care for pupils and this creates a very positive climate for learning where pupils enjoy their work and want to do well. However, teachers do not always check on the work of teaching assistants closely enough in lessons to see how well pupils who are being supported by them are learning, and they do not always provide sufficient guidance to help teaching assistants to respond to pupils’ needs.  Marking is generally good in English, providing clear guidance and next steps for how pupils

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

could improve their work. However, marking in mathematics is much more limited and does not focus clearly enough on informing pupils about how they can improve their work.  Teaching in the Early Years Foundation Stage is good. As a result of careful assessment systems, teachers and other adults have a good understanding of how well children are learning and what additional support they may need. Considerable focus has been placed on developing children’s speaking and language skills and, as a result, they become increasingly confident in talking to adults and their peers about themselves and what they are doing. Teachers are aware that provision for developing children’s skills in the outside environment is not as good as provision inside, and plans are in place to address this.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Pupils say that they are happy in school and feel safe because they know that adults will take care of them. Teachers and teaching assistants work hard to address any social and emotional issues which may be a barrier to pupils’ learning. Parents are very supportive of the school and agree with the positive views of their children. As a result, pupils enjoy being in school, attendance is average and pupils are punctual.  Behaviour around school is good, both inside and outside lessons. Pupils understand the difference between right and wrong, and treat each other and visitors with respect and courtesy. They say that there is a small amount of bullying, but they are confident that adults will sort things out for them quickly. They have a good understanding of how to keep themselves safe and where to go for help if they need it.  Pupils are proud of their work and keen to do well, so they do their best in lessons. They enjoy

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

the range of additional opportunities which the school provides, such as visits to places of educational interest and clubs, and they welcome opportunities to contribute to the school community, for example, through the gardening club or the school council.  Behaviour is not outstanding because pupils are not given enough opportunities to be independent in their learning. In some lessons some pupils become passive because they are not sufficiently challenged.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 Senior leaders have high ambitions for the school. They know the school’s strengths and areas for development, and they have relevant action plans which are focused on the correct priorities for improvement. However, although they regularly undertake a wide range of monitoring activities to check how well the school is performing, they are not sufficiently rigorous in evaluating outcomes to see whether actions are having an impact on pupils' progress and school improvement. Action plans do not always have clear enough success criteria or timescales for when impact should be in evidence.  Progress of pupils is monitored regularly and there are regular meetings between teachers and senior leaders to check on progress in particular classes. Pupils who are underachieving are identified, and there are good systems for providing them with appropriate additional support. However, systems for checking whether additional support is working are not robust enough, so

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The leadership and management requires improvement

pupils do not consistently make the progress they should.  The role of middle leaders is currently underdeveloped, and they are not yet having significant impact in bringing about improvements in their areas, particularly in mathematics. The headteacher has recently provided more professional development opportunities for teachers to develop their skills, and these are appreciated by the staff. New systems have recently been introduced to use performance management as a robust tool for improving teacher performance, and there are now clear systems in place which will enable leaders to link pay progression to teachers’ performance and their impact on pupils’ learning. However, historically, this has not been the case.  Leaders regularly observe lessons, but judgements focus on the performance of the teacher rather than the impact on pupils’ progress. This has led to an over optimistic view of the quality

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The leadership and management requires improvement

of teaching, particularly in mathematics  The school’s curriculum provides a range of additional opportunities to enhance pupils’ learning. This contributes well to pupils’ good social, moral, spiritual and cultural development.  There are good partnerships with parents to help them to support their child’s learning, and parents feel confident that they are well informed about how their child is progressing. Leaders take effective steps to remove barriers to learning, but the promotion of equal opportunities overall requires improvement because there are still variations in the achievement of pupils.  The local authority has a good understanding of the school’s performance, and has provided quality support for teachers’ professional development, as well as support and challenge for the senior leadership.  The governance of the school: - Since the arrival of the current headteacher, governors have taken decisive action to improve

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The leadership and management requires improvement

their ability to carry out their role effectively. They take steps to collect first-hand information about the school’s performance through regular visits and meetings with leaders as well as observations in classrooms. They expect and receive regular updates from the headteacher about pupil performance. They check that the pupil premium funding is spent wisely, and know that gaps between the achievement of those entitled to pupil premium funding and those who are not are narrower than that seen nationally. Systems for the headteacher’s performance management are robust, and governors are requiring the school this year to provide more information about the performance of teachers in general. All statutory safeguarding responsibilities 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 105530 Local authority Manchester Inspection number 402981

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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 228 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Danny Fleming Headteacher Cathy Quinn Date of previous school inspection 21 May 2008 Telephone number 0161 740 7094 Fax number 0161 795 6843 Email address contact@st-johnbosco.manchester.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

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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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