St Ignatius Catholic Primary School

St Ignatius Catholic Primary School Storrs Hill Road, Ossett, West Yorkshire, WF5 0DQ

p.1

Overall effectiveness

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

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The headteacher’s strong leadership, good teamwork and the focus on improving teaching and learning have been instrumental in the school’s recent success. The capacity for further improvement is assured.  Pupils’ achievement is good. Throughout the school, pupils make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. By Year 6, their attainment is above average.  Teaching is always at least good, with very positive relationships between adults and pupils being at the heart of every classroom.  Teachers’ performance is checked regularly and systematically. Support and further training are closely matched to both whole-school and individual needs. As a result, leaders and governors have improved teaching and raised pupils’ achievement.  Pupils feel happy, safe and secure in school, knowing there is always someone to turn to if they have a problem.  The catholic ethos of the school effectively promotes what it means to be British. The values of

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

tolerance and respect thread through all aspects of the pupils’ daily lives.  Pupils behave well. They show great care and consideration for others, whether at work or at play. They are very polite and well mannered.  The school makes excellent use of the pupil premium. As a result, the achievement of disadvantaged pupils is outstanding. They rapidly catch up with their peers.  The governing body fully understands the school’s strengths and areas for development. Governors hold leaders to account by rigorously assessing the school’s performance.  The school works in effective partnership and benefits from the work with its improvement partner and other schools in the academy trust.  Early years provision is good overall, being particularly strong indoors.

p.1

It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ responses to their marking are not consistently at a high level.  Pupils are not always expected to produce the same quality of reading, writing and mathematics when doing topic work.  The recently appointed middle leaders are not as yet taking the lead in driving improvement in their areas of responsibility.  In the early years, children’s achievement is not as good when they learn in the outside area as it is when indoors.

p.1

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching and learning in 13 lessons. They also observed some small-group sessions led by teaching assistants.  Inspectors listened to some pupils from Years 2 and 6 reading. They analysed evidence from teachers’ planning, pupils’ books and classroom displays.  Inspectors examined evidence relating to safeguarding procedures, including child protection, attendance, incidents of bullying or poor behaviour, and health and safety.  Inspectors analysed the school’s self-evaluation of its performance, action plans for improvement, information on pupils’ standards and progress, and documents related to checks on the quality of teaching.  Meetings were held with the headteacher and deputy headteacher; five members of the governing body including the Chair of the Governing Body; leaders responsible for the early years, English, mathematics and special educational needs.  A meeting was held with a representative of the academy trust and the School Improvement Partner.

p.2

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors spoke formally with a group of pupils and informally with pupils during playtimes and in the lunch hall.  Inspectors took account of the 34 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, in conjunction with responses to the school’s own very recent survey. They spoke informally with parents at the start of the school day. Inspectors also took account of the 15 questionnaires completed by staff.

p.2

Inspection team

Andrew Morley, Lead inspector Additional Inspector

p.2

Information about this school

 St Ignatius is smaller than the average-sized primary school.  The school is part of the Bishop Konstant Catholic Academy Trust.  Most pupils are of White British heritage and very few speak English as an additional language.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils, those supported through the pupil premium, is below average. The pupil premium is additional government funding for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those looked after by the local authority.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  Children attend the Nursery provision part time and full time in the Reception class.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of Year 6.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching and learning, so that it is outstanding, by:  teachers having consistently high expectations of pupils’ responses to the good guidance provided in marking  teachers providing more challenging opportunities for pupils to develop their reading, writing and mathematical skills in all subjects.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen leadership and management by developing the role of the recently appointed middle leaders so that they are more skilled in their ability to check the quality of provision and progress that pupils are making in their specific areas of responsibilities.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Develop the quality of the outdoor space in the early years to ensure that children learn as effectively outdoors as they do indoors.

p.3

The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher has galvanised staff and governors into a good team to ensure a strong and consistent approach to improving pupils’ quality of learning and their achievement.  Members of the leadership team, including governors, have tackled inconsistency in the quality of teaching and a slight decline in rates of pupils’ progress, so that teaching is now consistently good and attainment above the national average at the end of Year 6.  The school’s view of its own performance links well to development planning and focuses on the right priorities for improvement, which aim to raise pupils’ achievement to outstanding. These priorities are shared with and understood by all staff and governors.  Systems to manage teachers’ performance are robust and hold teachers to account for their work and for the progress made by their pupils. Staff are very appreciative of the many opportunities for training,

p.4

The leadership and management are good

including training of teaching assistants, which are well matched to individuals’ needs and increases in salary are appropriately linked to the progress made by pupils and the meeting of agreed targets.  The school has an effective system to track the progress that pupils are making. Information from this is very effectively linked to the quality of teaching and learning, through both observation and scrutiny of pupils’ work. This provides valuable information about which features enhance progress and where improvement is needed.  The recently appointed subject leaders are beginning to play a role in supporting improvements and providing assistance for their colleagues. The school is now embarking on action to build greater capacity in subject leadership following recent staff changes. This involves further training in respect of subject knowledge and evaluating assessment data.  The catholic ethos of the school is at the heart of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

p.4

The leadership and management are good

Pupils reflect on the differences between right and wrong in personal education lessons that focus on ethical values. Assemblies and the pupil council reinforce British values of democracy and tolerance. The election of the school council models democracy at work and pupils were very articulate as to what a fair and just society should look like. The school strongly fosters good relationships and discourages discrimination .  Pupils are very appreciative of the curriculum. They enjoy their lessons and take part in a whole range of additional activities to enrich their learning experience. They spoke enthusiastically of the after-school clubs and the opportunity to learn subjects, such as French. Leaders have focused on improving outcomes in the core skills of reading writing and mathematics. However, these skills are not securely taught in all other areas of the curriculum.  The school has good links with all of the other schools in the academy trust and this is benefiting staff in

p.4

The leadership and management are good

respect of training and the observation of effective practice. The School Improvement Partner knows the school well and her detailed evaluations of all aspects of the performance of the school are supporting improvements. She provides a good link between the local authority and academy trust.  The additional primary school sports funding is used effectively to extend the school’s already extensive provision. The employment of specialists to work alongside and to train teachers is leading to teachers’ increased confidence and skill in leading physical education lessons. Pupils’ enjoyment of physical activity and teachers’ competence in teaching physical education have increased as a consequence. The school participates in a whole range of school sports, including football, basketball and athletics. This has benefited pupils’ health and well-being.  Leaders promote equality of opportunity effectively. This is demonstrated in their commitment to pupils in

p.4

The leadership and management are good

need of additional support. There are only a small number of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding. This funding is allocated precisely, following careful analysis of assessment information. Disadvantaged pupils benefit from support to help develop their intellectual and social skills. Booster classes support those needing extra support in their spelling, grammar and mathematics. Specialist teachers are employed when necessary to enhance the progress of these pupils.  Since the previous inspection, the school has worked successfully to ensure good relationships in the school, with the local community and with parents, who are now very supportive and confident in the leadership of the school. Parents appreciate the opportunity to be involved in supporting their children’s learning in the early years.  Safeguarding procedures fully meet requirements and ensure the safety of pupils and adults. The

p.4

The leadership and management are good

headteacher and Chair of the Governing Body are exceptionally well trained in all safeguarding matters. Consequently, child protection procedures are very thorough.  The governance of the school:  The governors have been instrumental in tackling the issues raised at the last inspection. They have ensured that they have the necessary skills and knowledge, for example to understand progress data well. Governors are skilled in asking for information to help them hold the leaders to account. This is evident, for example in the quality of information produced for the management of teachers’ performance.  Governors’ knowledge of the quality of teaching and learning across the school is very good. They ensure they obtain evidence from a range of sources to so they have an accurate understanding of the quality of teaching. Consequently, governors are extremely well placed to reward only good performance.

p.4

The leadership and management are good

 Governors are committed to ensuring value for money. Spending decisions are evaluated carefully to check their impact on pupils’ progress, for example how the pupil premium funding is spent. The additional primary school sports funding is always used to ensure that all pupils’ benefit.  Governors make sure safeguarding procedures are constantly reviewed, updated and rigorously implemented by staff.

p.5

Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. This helps to make for a calm, happy and welcoming school. Any disruption to learning is very rare. Pupils are very communicative and rightly proud of their school.  Pupils enjoy taking on responsibility. There is a range of opportunities for the older pupils to take on leading roles. They are very supportive of the younger children at playtimes and lunchtimes. Members of the school council carry out their role with great maturity.  Pupils are very caring and supportive of each other. They take care of equipment and behave well in the playground, corridors and dining room. Lunchtimes are very pleasant experiences and the pupils enjoy chatting with the friends.  Behaviour in lessons is good and there is no evidence of any low-level disruption. Pupils enjoy learning, listen carefully to their teachers and generally respond positively to what is asked of them during lessons.

p.5

Behaviour

Pupils take great care and are proud of their books. There is evidence of outstanding presentation of writing.  Pupils and their parents report that bullying is rare. The very effective support for the few pupils who find behaving well more difficult than most ensures that their behaviour improves well over time.  The pupils are rightly proud of the school and enjoy being with their friends. This is evident in their above average attendance and it is continuing to improve.

p.5

Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is good. Pupils have good relationships with all in the school community, feel very well looked after by the adults around them and appreciate that they are cared for well. They move safely around the school, at lunchtime and in assemblies, showing due regard for themselves and others.  Pupils are quite clear about what constitutes bullying. They say any incidents are very rare and dealt with swiftly by staff. Their parents and carers agree. Pupils also say how well staff help resolve any problems when friends fall out with each other.  Pupils learn how to identify risk and stay safe, such as when using the internet. They know it is important to alert adults if they are concerned about the content of websites.  Regular safety checks are carried out and staff receive appropriate training to ensure pupils are safe.  The majority of the parents who responded to Parent View expressed the view that their children feel safe

p.5

Safety

at school. This is also the case in the school’s own recent survey to which a larger number of parents responded.

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is consistently good across the school. Teachers have high expectations of the pupils’ work and behaviour, and their classrooms are calm and purposeful as a result. Relationships, both between pupils and between the pupils and adults, are key to the quality of the classroom experience for the pupils.  The programme for teaching phonics (the sounds that letters make) and initial reading and writing skills are taught well. Lessons follow a clear pattern that the pupils become familiar with, and resources are used creatively to stimulate their imaginations and hold their attention. This is built on in Key Stages 1 and 2 with reading and writing taught equally well. However, these skills are less well promoted in subjects other than English.  There are very focused sessions for pupils in receipt of pupil premium funding which helps them to learn exceptionally well. These pupils have individual plans to ensure their progress is checked on a weekly

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

basis, with provision being appropriate to their individual needs.  Teachers are skilled in adapting the work they set to meet the needs of different groups of pupils. For example, in a Year 5 mathematics lesson, in which the pupils were learning about time, the teacher very skilfully moved the pupils to a higher level of learning. The teacher also set a reasoning task that challenged the most-able pupils to think deeply about how to solve some complex problems. This practice was typical of the overall effective quality of teaching mathematics.  Teachers are very skilled in checking the progress of pupils in lessons and the quality of marking is consistently good throughout the school. However, teachers do not consistently insist that pupils respond to the advice they give, nor encourage pupils to think about how they will improve their performance.  Teachers successfully plan and provide engaging and stimulating lessons for pupils, who respond well by

p.6

The quality of teaching is good

producing consistently good work that is always well presented.  The standard of work in pupils’ books and their improving rates of progress show that there is at least good capacity to move the quality of teaching to outstanding. The school uses the most effective practice evident in the school and the trust as an effective model for further improving the overall quality of teaching.

p.6

The achievement of pupils is good

 When children start, both in the Nursery and Reception classes, their personal and academic skills are generally typical for their age. They make good progress, especially in their communication and language skills. They are well equipped for the next stage of their development in Year 1.  In Key Stage 1, standards in reading, writing and mathematics dipped in 2014. However, because of improvements to the quality of teaching, pupils are now working at least at the levels expected for their age.  Published results show that by the end of Year 6 pupils reach above average standards. In 2014, attainment was above average in reading, writing, mathematics and spelling and grammar. Pupils currently in Years 6 are making good progress and are attaining standards above those expected for their age in reading, writing and mathematics.  Pupil achieve well in reading. The teaching of phonics is a priority and results in the Year 1 phonics

p.6

The achievement of pupils is good

screening tests are above average. Throughout the school, pupils are confident readers and enjoy reading. As a result of teachers’ encouragement, they read a wide range of texts, which supports their learning well. This ensures pupils’ achievement in reading is above average by the time they leave Year 6.  The achievement of disadvantaged pupils is outstanding. The provision for this group of pupils is of a high quality. While there are insufficient numbers of these pupils to meaningfully compare their achievement with other pupils, on an individual basis they are all making good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. This shows the school’s commitment to equality of opportunity.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make at least good progress. The school works closely with outside agencies to secure advice and funding. This enables teachers to design support programmes that are carefully tailored to individual needs.

p.6

The achievement of pupils is good

 The most-able pupils are well challenged and their achievement is good. In the 2014 Key Stage 2 tests, the proportion of pupils achieving Level 5 was above the national average. The proportion of pupils achieving Level 6 was above the national average in mathematics and in the spelling and grammar test.  Although pupils experience some good opportunities in all the other curriculum subjects, occasionally they do not always achieve the same standard in reading, writing and mathematics in these subjects.

p.6

The early years provision is good

 Children’s skills on entry to the Nursery class are generally as expected for their age in all areas of learning. As a result of good teaching, focused support and a variety of activities to engage them in their learning, they make good progress in both Nursery and Reception classes and achieve well.  The leadership of the early years is good and very much a team approach. The leader, alongside colleagues, carefully checks the impact learning activities have on children’s progress. High quality learning journeys are used to celebrate the children’s progress and address weaknesses in both the provision and in children’s learning.  The quality of teaching is good in the early years. There is a good balance between adult-directed activities and those chosen by children. As a result, children explore and find things out independently and they learn well.  The teaching of phonics is good. Children develop their understanding of phonics quickly because sessions

p.6

The early years provision is good

are well taught and pupils use these skills to develop the building of key words.  In the outdoor space, activities do not always hold the children’s attention or build on what they have been learning inside.  The children enjoy their time in the early years. They are confident learners, who behave well and respond well to the adults supporting them.  There is rigorous attention to safeguarding and children’s welfare benefits their learning considerably. The children are very secure and happy, and parents are pleased with the care and quality of teaching that their children receive.

p.7

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

p.8

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.

p.8

School details

Unique reference number 138946 Local authority Wakefield Inspection number 462195

p.9

School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

p.9

School details

Type of school Primary School category Academy converter Age range of pupils 3–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 168 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Nicola Bowie Headteacher Jacqueline Rush Date of previous school inspection 6 June 2013 Telephone number 01924 302895 Fax number 01924 302898 Email address admin@stig.bkcat.co.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 .

p.9

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.

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

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’.

p.10

School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.10