Our Lady of the Visitation Catholic Primary School

Our Lady of the Visitation Catholic Primary School Greenford Road, Greenford, Middlesex, UB6 9AN

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Requires Improvement 3 Leadership and management Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Early years provision Good 2

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

 Pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching have been maintained since the previous inspection, although there has been some variability from year to year.  Senior leaders have not been sufficiently rigorous in using the criteria in the school’s plan to improve teaching and pupils’ achievement.  Teaching is not consistently good and as a result, the proportion of pupils’ achieving above expected progress in reading, writing and mathematics is not as high as it could be.  Checks on teaching are not focused closely enough on the progress that pupils are making. Leaders’ analysis of the quality of teaching is not consistently accurate and they do not give clear enough advice on how teachers should improve.  Governors do not have a full grasp of all aspects of the school’s work to provide effective support and challenge to improve either the quality of teaching or achievement.  There is not enough evidence in pupils’ books to

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

show that they are being given sufficient opportunities to write at length in a range of subjects and contexts.  Teachers’ marking does not consistently correct pupils’ spelling mistakes or give pupils enough guidance as to how they can improve their work in mathematics. This results in pupils repeating mistakes.  Leaders’ analysis of how well different groups of pupils are achieving lacks rigour.  Disadvantaged pupils in some classes do not benefit as much as they should from the additional funding. The gap in attainment widens between them and their classmates as a result.

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The school has the following strengths

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good.  Pupils’ behaviour is good and the school is a very harmonious and happy place.  Children achieve well in Nursery and Reception because provision is good.  The school has good relationships with parents and carers, who are positive about how approachable the staff are.  There are good procedures in place to ensure that pupils are safe.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors made 19 visits to classrooms to observe pupils’ learning. The headteacher accompanied an inspector on a visit to mathematics classes in Year 6. Inspectors also spent time examining pupils’ work books, particularly those completed by pupils in 2013/14. They observed other aspects of the school’s work, including briefly visiting an assembly.  Meetings were held with members of the governing body, including the Chair, as well as with teachers and school leaders. Inspectors also met with a representative from the local authority.  Pupils took inspectors on a tour of the school. The inspectors listened to pupils read and spoke with them about their reading and their work. Inspectors met with two separate groups of pupils. They spent time in the dining hall and on the school playground, where they also spoke informally with pupils.  Inspectors took account of the 47 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View) that had been

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Information about this inspection

completed during the last 12 months. Inspectors also spoke to parents and carers at the school gate. Inspectors reviewed 34 questionnaire responses from staff.  Inspectors looked at a number of documents, including the school’s own information relating to pupils’ achievement, the school’s self-evaluation summary and plan of action. They considered records relating to behaviour and attendance and checks on teaching and documents relating to safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Martin Marsh, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 This is a larger-than-average-sized primary school.  One in eight pupils is supported by the pupil premium (this is additional funding for looked after pupils and pupils eligible for free school meals and for pupils with parents in the armed forces). This is below average.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs is below average.  Just over two thirds of pupils belong to minoirty ethnic groups other than White British. Four out of ten pupils speak English as an additional language, many of whom are from Polish backgrounds.  The school meets the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  The school runs a breakfast club which was visited as part of this inspection. External providers run after- school clubs but these were not inspected.  Pupils attend the Nursery on a part-time basis.

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection there have been significant leadership and staffing changes. The current headteacher was appointed in April 2014 after serving two terms as acting headteacher following the resignation of the previous headteacher in July 2013. The current deputy headteacher, after a year’s secondment to the school starting in September 2013, was appointed to the position permanently in September 2014. Seven experienced teachers left the school in July 2013 and the school appointed new staff, seven of whom were new to the profession. The Chair and Vice Chair of the Governing body have been in post since April 2014.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so more pupils make faster progress in reading, writing and mathematics by:  using information about what pupils know and understand to plan more carefully for different groups of pupils  increasing the range of opportunities that pupils have to write at length in different styles and subjects, particularly those who are the most able  giving more time for pupils to complete the tasks they have been given  improving the quality of marking so that there is a consistent approach to pointing out spelling mistakes and more precise guidance as to how pupils can improve their work, particularly in mathematics.  Improve leadership and management by:  ensuring that school plans for improving achievement and teaching indicate how senior leaders will check that planned actions have been successful  ensuring that all leaders, particularly middle leaders, are up-to-date with training and equipped with the

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

necessary skills to monitor and evaluate their areas of responsibility rigorously  analysing the performance of different groups of pupils to gain an accurate view of how well they are doing and put in place extra support if needed  making sure that all disadvantaged pupils benefit from additional funding to enable them to make faster progress  identifying clear targets for teachers and checking that they are securing faster progress for all pupils  ensuring that governors receive training so that they can understand information about pupils’ progress and effectively challenge and support school leaders.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 The high turnover of experienced staff has led to inconsistencies in teaching and achievement. As a result, teaching and achievement require improvement.  The new headteacher is at the early stages of developing the capacity of leaders at all levels, so that the vision for improving pupils’ learning can be driven at a faster pace.  Areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection have not been tackled successfully. The new senior leadership team is balancing current priorities for development with previous weaknesses. The school’s ‘Growth Plan’ is therefore extensive, primarily because there are many areas for development. Although the plan is focused rightly on key areas for improvement such as pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching, quantifiable success criteria, clear milestones and monitoring are not set out precisely enough to identify and evaluate the impact of actions over time.

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The leadership and management require improvement

 Senior and middle leaders are not consistently accurate in their analysis of the quality of teaching. Their assessment of teaching is largely focused on the teachers’ actions rather than on the quality of pupils’ learning. Consequently, feedback to teachers is not always evaluative and there is a lack of clarity about the areas for teaching that needs further improvement.  School leaders are not consistent in ensuring that all disadvantaged pupils benefit as much as they could from the additional funding. In a few classes, these pupils are not all making the progress they should  Effective provision in the Nursery and Reception is a key factor to the children achieving well.  The curriculum provides very well for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils have a strong sense of right and wrong and a deep understanding about social justice. ‘Does not matter what religion you are… we should be united as one family,’ was one boy’s comment when showing inspectors a

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The leadership and management require improvement

display about ‘Peace’. Inspectors read a display of thoughtful prayers written by the pupils in preparation for Remembrance Day. The prayerful singing in assembly and the pupils’ wholehearted involvement when learning to play African drums were examples of how successful the school is in promoting pupils’ spiritual and cultural development.  The school successfully celebrates the diversity of its pupils and works well to foster good relations, tackle discrimination and prepare them for life in modern Britain. The curriculum is enhanced by a good range of visits and visitors to the school.  Parents value the opportunities provided by the school, to share any concerns and find out about their child’s learning and progress.  The school’s use of the government funding for sports is enabling teachers to be more confident at teaching physical education, providing more opportunities for pupils to participate in competitive sports

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The leadership and management require improvement

and ensuring all pupils are able to swim. Pupils are interested in sport, participate enthusiastically and understand how playing sport can keep them healthy.  The school’s well-attended breakfast club is safe and well run.  The local authority has an accurate view of pupils’ achievement and the quality of teaching. As a result of the recent appointments of new senior leaders, the local authority has begun to provide the necessary support to help the school make better progress. The local authority’s recent review has identified shortcomings which concur with the inspection evidence.  The governance of the school:  Governors are very well intentioned and have a real desire to fulfil their roles effectively. However, they do not all have the experience or skills to know how well the school is doing. This is because they do not have a thorough enough understanding about pupils’ achievements and the quality of teaching.

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The leadership and management require improvement

Hence, the level of challenge to senior leaders for pupils’ achievement is not rigorous. However, they asked the local authority to conduct a review of the school so they would have a better idea of how the school was performing compared to others.  Governors do not have an in-depth grasp of the use and outcomes of the additional funding for disadvantaged pupils. They are aware of how teachers’ performance is rewarded by pay and the school’s appraisal and pay policies. They also fulfil statutory requirements with regard to the headteacher’s performance management.  Governors visit regularly, which gives them an accurate understanding of parents’ and carers’ views of the school. However, they do not focus sharply on how school leaders ensure that teaching is leading to improved achievement for all pupils.  Governors make a good contribution to ensuring pupils are safe and in meeting statutory requirements

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The leadership and management require improvement

for safeguarding and the recruitment of staff.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils are proud of their school and keen to share their achievements with inspectors. They dress smartly, are kind towards each other and respectful and courteous towards adults.  Pupils are keen to learn and there are very few instances when pupils’ behaviour prevents other children from learning. Pupils are shown a high level of care by adults and respond by caring for each other.  Attitudes to learning are good and pupils take care with their work and try their best to complete work they are set, both in school and at home.  Parents and carers spoken to at the school gate or who responded on Parent View indicated that their children are happy at the school, and this is shown by their above-average attendance and good punctuality. Pupils also said they enjoyed coming to school.  In the playground, pupils look after each other and ensure that no one is left out of games. Pupils aspire

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Behaviour

to be members of the school council, become sports ambassadors, be part of the international committee or just to ‘look after the younger ones’. They also care for the environment by looking after play equipment and depositing litter in the bins. No litter or graffiti was seen around the school or in pupils’ books. Pupils enjoy representing the school in sports and cultural events. They willingly take on responsibilities that will help others.  Sometimes a few pupils can become restless, lose concentration and become less responsive when they are asked to listen for extended periods. This is why behaviour is not outstanding.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. The school takes all aspects of safety seriously. It makes sure that key people in the school have enhanced training to deal with any issues related to child protection. All staff have recently undergone training to recognise signs of abuse and how to deal with a problem were it to occur.  Pupils feel safe from bullying and any prejudice-based name calling, which they know will not be tolerated. Recent work to help pupils to understand what bullying is has been effective and so pupils understand the different forms of bullying, including bullying using electronic technology, and what to do if it were to happen.  Pupils understand how to stay safe outside of school, particularly when crossing the road and when using electronic media.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching is not consistently good. Some teachers do not use what they know about the skills and abilities of pupils well enough. This sometimes results in groups of pupils having to listen to explanations about things they already know. As a result, they do not have enough time to complete the tasks they have been given. At other times it can lead to pupils attempting work they do not understand or which is too easy for them.  Not enough support is given to those pupils in the school who are eligible for additional funding. Although support is effective in Year 6, too many pupils are not given the extra help to catch up quickly enough.  Marking in mathematics does not give pupils precise enough guidance as to how they can improve their work. Sometimes pupils are set additional questions but these are often not attempted or not marked when they are. Examples were seen where pupils were making errors which were not spotted or

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

corrected.  Marking of written work is better and pupils respond intelligently, sometimes at length, to the comments that teachers make. While some teachers correct spelling mistakes appropriately, there is inconsistent practice across the school and so pupils’ spelling is not as good as it could be.  Pupils enjoy writing but they do not get enough opportunity to write at length in range of subjects and styles. This particularly slows down those who are more able at writing because they do not get enough time to express their ideas fully. Pupils are taught grammar and punctuation well.  Teachers use a range of different approaches to interest pupils. In a Year 2 religious education lesson a video promoted good discussion among pupils about how Jewish people share a special meal to prepare for Shabbat. This, together with a selection of Jewish artefacts, promoted excellent discussion and understanding among the pupils about how and why people pray.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers enjoy good relationships with pupils and have high expectations of their behaviour.  Reading is promoted well in the school. The library is well resourced and in many classrooms there are displays of books related to topics they are learning about.  Additional adults are well managed by teachers and provide good support to the groups they work with. Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs benefit particularly from the extra help, enabling them to take a full part in lessons. Outside of the classroom, additional adults work with individuals and groups to enable them to catch up with their classmates or extend their learning.

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requires improvement

 Although the school’s unvalidated Key Stage 2 data suggest attainment was above average for Year 6 in 2014, pupils’ work elsewhere in the school does not match up with this. In a minority of classes across both key stages, achievement in reading, writing and mathematics requires improvement. Pupils are not moved on to new learning quickly enough and pupils do not do enough work in their books.  Based on 2013 Key Stage 2 data, disadvantaged pupils eligible for additional funding were a term behind their classmates in reading and two terms behind in writing. They were less than a term behind in mathematics. Compared to non-eligible pupils nationally they were less than a term behind in all three subjects. Unvalidated data for 2014 indicates that the gap has narrowed compared to their classmates. However, the gap is not closing quickly enough in other parts of the school and in some classes, it is

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requires improvement

widening.  Pupils’ ability to spell is weaker than their use of grammar and punctuation. A revised spelling programme to include the expectations of the new National Curriculum has recently been introduced. The policy about correcting pupils’ spellings is not applied consistently.  The 2014 Year 1 phonics screening check indicates that the proportion of pupils that met the expected standard is lower than in 2013. This is because of the weaker teaching in phonics (letters and the sounds they make) for this group of pupils. The school now has programmes which are helping pupils to make a quicker start in learning to read especially in Reception. By the time pupils leave in Year 6 they read confidently and with enjoyment.  In mathematics, pupils can calculate accurately and quickly because these skills are taught well. Pupils’ ability to apply their knowledge is weaker because they are not routinely given enough opportunity to

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requires improvement

tackle challenging problems. This slows down their progress.  The most -able pupils make similar progress to their classmates. They do not make consistently good progress in subjects and activities because they are sometimes asked to do tasks that are too easy and they are rarely given opportunities to write at length or tackle challenging problems.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make similar and sometimes faster progress than their classmates. Additional support both inside and outside lessons is generally effective and helps them take a full part in the life of the school and to learn at least as well as other pupils.  Pupils who speak English as an additional language, including those whose first language is Polish, and those from the range of other minority ethnic groups in the school, make similar progress to other pupils.

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is good

 The progress in Early Years Foundation Stage is good. Children enter the Nursery with skills that are in line with those of similar-aged children nationally. The proportion of children that reach a good level of development by the end of Reception is above the national average. The increasing numbers of children who speak English as an additional language make similar progress to their classmates.  Teaching caters well for all areas of learning both inside and outside the classroom and children have many memorable experiences. A group of pupils in Nursery were making biscuits and considering the different textures and smells before and after they were cooked in the oven. In the same class a group of pupils outside the classroom were playing a game which involved singing in Polish and then playing the same game again while singing in English. Both groups of pupils were totally involved and making good

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is good

progress as a result.  Children’s behaviour is good and routines are well established. Children in Reception knew they could only speak when they had a ball in their hands during a session on the carpet where they were asked to think about which foods are healthy. Adults enjoy excellent relationships with the children.  Leadership of Early Years Foundation Stage is good. Observations of children are accurate and are used to plan activities that are suitable for the needs and interests of the children. The more able children are sometimes not given activities and asked questions that are demanding enough and so they do not progress as quickly as they could. This is why provision is not outstanding.  The Nursery and Reception areas meet all statutory welfare 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 failing

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Grade Judgement Description

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 101920 Local authority Ealing Inspection number 448221

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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 460 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Hilary Mackenzie Headteacher Kathleen Coll Date of previous school inspection 30 June–1 July 2010 Telephone number 020 8575 5344 Fax number 020 8575 6734 Email address admin@olovrc.com 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 and 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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