Setting

Miss Kerry O'Sullivan Headteacher St Clare's Catholic Primary School Garmoyle Close Wavertree Liverpool Merseyside L15 0DW

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Primary School, Liverpool

Following my visit to the school on 24 April 2014, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report my findings. Thank you for the help you gave and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the school since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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Primary School, Liverpool

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in December 2013. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Primary School, Liverpool

Senior leaders and governors are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. They should take further action to:

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Primary School, Liverpool

 Make clear in the school’s improvement plan, the actions the school needs to take to become good at the next inspection. Also in the plan, make it easier to check whether the actions have been successful or not.  Using the results of senior leaders’ checks on the quality of teaching, include in the improvement plan, details of which aspects of lessons need to be improved for teaching to be judged as good.

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Evidence

During the visit, I held a meeting with you, a meeting with three other senior leaders, a meeting with three representatives of the governing body and a meeting CfBT Inspection Services Suite 22 West Lancs Investment Centre Maple View Skelmersdale WN8 9TG T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 01695 566 937 Direct F 01695 729 320 Direct email :jsimmons@cfbt.com with a representative of Liverpool Local Authority. We discussed the actions that have been taken since the inspection, the impact on pupils’ achievement and the quality of leadership and of teaching. I toured the school with the headteacher and discussed changes to teaching and to the building.

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Context

Since the inspection the Special Educational Needs Coordinator has left the school.

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Main findings

 The headteacher has put into place more frequent meetings with staff to check on the progress of pupils in their classes. This, in addition to extra teaching for those pupils who are not at the level expected for their age in reading, writing and mathematics, has helped to raise standards.  The headteacher has devised a schedule for more frequent checks on teaching. This involves looking through pupils’ work every two weeks, short no-notice visits by a consultant and quick checks to teachers’ lessons. As a result teachers get more frequent feedback and help to improve their teaching. According to the school’s records this is working because the quality of teaching is improving.  The deputy headteacher has led the improvements in tackling pupils’ absence. As a result of this effective work, pupils’ attendance has improved. The number of pupils who are absent for a significant proportion of time has reduced from 16 to

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Main findings

4.  The improvement plan to move the school towards being judged as good at the next inspection needs to be improved. It is not based well enough as yet on the findings of the school’s frequent checks on teaching. The statements in the plan used to check whether the school’s actions have been successful (success criteria) are not clear or measurable enough which means the governing body struggles to identify clearly if the school is making progress. The improvement plan needs some adjustment so that the school can track a route to become good at the next inspection rather than just tackling the points for improvement identified in the previous inspection report.  The governing body has continued to improve its overview of teaching and pupils’ achievement. Members make sure they have a range of evidence before deciding whether the improvements have been effective or not and they have an increasing focus on value for money when making decisions about employing staff or building

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Main findings

improvements. Recruitment of a governor with expert knowledge of education and of assessment data has added to the skills of other members.

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Main findings

Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

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External support

For the last few years the local authority has been involved directly in the school helping it to improve. As the quality of school leadership improved, the local authority has changed its level of support so that it is now less directly involved in leading change itself. This is because the local authority’s help has enabled teachers who lead subjects to make effective changes for themselves. The help has also helped to improve the quality of teaching.

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External support

As a result of the local authority advice and support there was a final resolution to long-term absence in the school and to eradicate inadequate teaching.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body, the Director of Children’s Services for Liverpool and as below.

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

The letter should be copied to the following:

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Her Majesty’s Inspector

 Appropriate authority - Chair of the Governing Body  Local authority – including where the school is an academy  Diocese – for voluntary aided and voluntary controlled schools  The person or body responsible for appointing foundation governors if the school has a foundation  DfE - Academies Advisers Unit [ colin.diamond@education.gsi.gov.uk ] – for academies

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