St Michael and St Martin Catholic Primary School

School report St Michael and St Martin RC Primary School Belgrave Road, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW4 7AG

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Early years provision Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The effective leadership of the headteacher, senior leaders and governors, has ensured that the school continues to improve. There is a clear sense of direction for further improvement, supported by all pupils, parents and staff.  Children get a strong start in the early years classes and achieve well. Teachers use well- chosen activities to develop children’s skills rapidly.  Standards are rising at the end of both key stages. Pupils make good progress in reading and writing and outstanding progress in mathematics.  Teaching is good and improving. Teachers know the pupils well and have high expectations of them. As a result, pupils work hard and take pride in their work.  Pupils’ interest and enthusiasm are captured through a wide range of interesting topics. The school’s core values make a very strong contribution to pupils’ outstanding spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Pupils’ behaviour is outstanding as they have

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

excellent attitudes to learning and a real thirst for knowledge.  Pupils feel very safe in the school and appreciate the excellent care and support they receive. There is always someone they can go to if they have a problem.  The strong governing body knows the school well and offers effective support and challenge in equal measure.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always provide quality guidance for pupils on how to improve their work.  There are fewer opportunities for Key Stage 2 pupils to extend their writing skills across a wide range of subjects.  The most-able pupils are not always given work to deepen their knowledge and understanding, especially in subjects other than mathematics and English.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 24 teaching sessions, four of which were observed jointly with school leaders. In addition, inspectors scrutinised pupils’ books and looked at how pupils were learning across a range of subjects.  Meetings were held with two groups of pupils, three governors including the Chair of the Governing Body, the local authority’s school improvement adviser and school staff.  Inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a number of documents. These included the school’s attainment and progress information, planning and monitoring documentation, the school’s improvement plan and self-evaluation summary, the safeguarding policies and behaviour and attendance records.  Inspectors took account of the 52 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and the 35 responses to a staff questionnaire.  Inspectors talked to pupils about the school’s work and listened to some pupils read.

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Inspection team

Nasim Butt, Lead inspector Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than the average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is higher than that found nationally. Only a small minority are at an early stage of speaking English.  Most pupils come from a wide variety of minority ethnic backgrounds. A small minority of pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium is below average. The pupil premium is additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals or who are looked after.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is also below average.  The school’s early years provision comprises morning and afternoon nursery provision and two Reception classes which children attend on a full time basis.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for

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Information about this school

pupils’ attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise the quality of teaching and achievement to outstanding by making sure that:  the most-able pupils are always given work that deepens their knowledge and understanding, especially in subjects other than English and mathematics  all teachers provide quality guidance on pupils’ next steps in learning and ensure that pupils follow this advice quickly.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and increase progress in writing at Key Stage 2 by:  Increasing opportunities for pupils to use and extend their writing when working in other subjects.

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The leadership and management are good

 The strong and determined leadership of the headteacher and her senior team to provide all pupils with the very best educational experiences has been central to the school’s success. Staff at all levels share the headteacher’s ambition and high expectations for the school and the pupils’ achievement and behaviour. As one member of staff commented, ‘We are all working together as a team to give our children the best possible start in life.’  The leadership of teaching is strong. Previously identified weaknesses in teaching have been addressed, in particular the effective use of assessment information to plan for pupils’ learning. All leaders maintain a sharp focus on the impact new initiatives are having on the quality of teaching. Regular feedback to staff about their performance is used to acknowledge good teaching and tackle performance that does not meet the high expectations set.  Subject leaders have secure knowledge and understanding of self-evaluation and how to use the

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The leadership and management are good

outcomes of this to drive further improvement in their area. For example, they look regularly at the quality of pupils’ work to evaluate depth of learning and rates of progress. This analysis has led to a sharper focus on improving teaching strategies for the most-able pupils as well as pupils at the early stages of learning the English language.  Systems to monitor teachers’ performance are thorough. Every teacher has a personalised development plan and, through support and challenge, is increasingly effective in developing individual expertise. The governing body oversees the cycle of checking teachers’ performance rigorously and ensures teachers’ pay matches their teaching skills.  The deployment of a full-time teacher to support disadvantaged pupils and specialised sports instructors for focused sessions after school, are two effective ways in which additional funding is used. Both the pupil premium and the primary school sports funding has been successful in improving the achievement,

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The leadership and management are good

engagement and well-being of pupils. As a result pupils’ confidence and self-esteem are growing and this is having a positive impact in terms of narrowing the gap between the performance of disadvantaged pupils and their peers.  The curriculum is very engaging, seamlessly blending the teaching of reading, writing and mathematics with a good range of practical and academic subjects. As a result, pupils’ writing skills for example, are well developed at Key Stage 1 and standards are above average. At Key Stage 2, however, where attainment in writing is broadly average, pupils have had fewer opportunities to use and extend their writing when working in other subjects. Inspection evidence indicates that leaders are now starting to address this effectively.  School leaders ensure that pupils are equally well prepared for life in modern Britain. For example, well- planned assemblies, lessons in citizenship and personal, social development promote pupils’ tolerance and

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The leadership and management are good

respect towards those from other cultures, faiths and communities. These successfully promote pupils’ outstanding spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Senior leaders have benefited from the support of the local authority in improving the school. Valuable support, through moderation of pupils’ achievement and progress and support in measuring the impact of teaching, has enabled senior leaders to get an accurate view of school improvement.  Safeguarding meets statutory requirements. The school’s procedures and systems ensure pupils and staff are looked after well and kept safe from harm. Checks on the suitability of staff to work with children are robust. In this way, the school successfully promotes equality of opportunity, is committed to fostering good relations and ensuring that discrimination of any kind is tackled robustly.  The governance of the school:  Governors have a good understanding of information about pupils’ achievement and progress, partly the

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The leadership and management are good

result of the useful training package provided by the local authority. They are increasingly effective at challenging school leaders to ensure all pupils, including those who receive additional funding, are making the best possible progress.  Governors are clear about the strengths and weaknesses of the school and their role in raising standards. Through regular visits to the school they are clear about the quality of teaching and its impact on pupils’ progress. This ensures governors are knowledgeable about the performance of teachers and take informed decisions when rewarding good teaching and tackling underperformance.  With two key leaders leaving this year, governors have supported the headteacher very well to ensure that the arrangements to replace them are robust and that the school maintains its strong capacity to improve further.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding. Pupils are very positive about all aspects of life in the school. They show great respect for one another and for adults. The school’s core values underpin all its work and promote pupils’ excellent attitudes to learning.  Pupils are very enthusiastic and come to school eager to learn. They are courteous and behave extremely well in class and around the building. They are cheerful, well-mannered and determined to do their best. They have a real thirst for knowledge as seen in the strong motivation they show for acquiring new learning in lessons.  Pupils always make sure their work is neat and well presented. They take a pride in producing work of a good quality that is attractive to read.  Pupils appreciate the school’s well-developed system of rewards to promote outstanding behaviour. As a result, they are very eager to collect ‘house points’ and avoid getting de-merits at all costs. Older pupils

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Behaviour

show care and compassion for younger pupils when they mingle with them in the playground.  Attendance is above average, reflecting pupils’ enjoyment of school life. They are also punctual and come very well prepared to learn.

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Safety

 The school’s work to keep pupils safe and secure is outstanding. Pupils say they feel very safe in school, which is a view supported by all parents who expressed an opinion.  Pupils have an excellent understanding of how to keep themselves safe, for example on the internet and social media. They support one another in staying safe and are alert to potential health and safety risks, which they draw to the attention of adults.  Pupils say there is no bullying at the school. They are confident that an adult will sort out any concerns they may have. They know all about different types of bullying, such as cyber bullying and racially prejudiced bullying and find ways to combat it, for example by being very open about it even if it does not directly affect them.  Pupils who are new to the school, including those who arrive from other countries, receive all the support they need to feel safe and to flourish both academically and personally.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Inspection findings, work in pupils’ books and the school’s own records show that teaching is good. It enables pupils to make particularly good progress in the early years and Key Stage 1.  Teachers have good subject knowledge and use questioning well to check pupils’ understanding. This was done especially well in some lessons where teachers challenged a range of pupils to explain and deepen their thinking.  Teachers have excellent relationships with their classes and usually set work that is interesting and varied. Additional adults provide a good balance of support and challenge for pupils so that they have scope to find the answer for themselves yet receive help where necessary.  Reading is taught well, with a strong emphasis on improving pupils’ reading skills throughout the school. For example, phonics sessions, where pupils learn about the sounds linked to letters, are matched well to the next steps in their development. Teaching in these sessions challenges pupils so that they make rapid

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The quality of teaching is good

progress. Effective teaching higher up the school provides pupils with good opportunities to research and draw their own conclusions about what they read.  The teaching of writing has improved in both key stages; as a result, higher standards and stronger progress over time can be seen in pupils’ books. For example, strategies to make writing more interesting and use ‘the voice of the author’ are well taught by teachers, resulting in a higher proportion of more-able pupils in Year 6 this year making good progress.  Excellent teaching in mathematics enables pupils to make very rapid progress and reach above average standards at the end of both key stages. Teachers pay careful attention to teaching mathematical language so that pupils are able to use it correctly. Throughout the school, pupils’ reasoning and thinking skills are constantly honed as a result of applying their mathematical knowledge and skills to solving

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The quality of teaching is good

problems in a real life context.  Teachers teach a wide range of subjects well including, for instance, science and physical education. Learning the skills to throw a shot putt, or investigating scientifically which substance is causing blockage in a washing machine, were some of the exciting learning opportunities that pupils accessed during the inspection.  Most teachers provide good quality written feedback to pupils when they mark their books; this helps them to deepen their learning and make good progress over time. Marking indicates whether pupils have got their work right and learnt what they were meant to in the lesson; in most cases it also makes clear what they could do to improve their work. However, the guidance teachers provide on pupils’ next steps in learning is of variable quality. As a result, pupils do not always follow the advice and gain the maximum benefit.  In the main, teachers provide a good level of challenge for different pupils including the most and least

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The quality of teaching is good

able, using a good range of tools and resources. Occasionally however, the most-able pupils are not given work that deepens their knowledge and understanding, in particular in subjects other than mathematics and English.

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The achievement of pupils

 Following a period of steady progress after the previous inspection, pupils’ achievement has increased rapidly in the past two years. Pupils make good progress in reading and writing, and outstanding progress in mathematics. Their attainment is rising rapidly.  Children enter the early years with skills that are below those typical for their age. They make rapid progress and are well prepared for moving into Year 1. The proportion of children reaching a good level of development at the end of Reception in 2014 was above the national average. Children in the current Reception class are on track to match this performance.  Good teaching of phonics ensures pupils read well. The proportion of pupils achieving the standard in the Year 1 phonic check, in 2014, was well above average. Pupils who read to inspectors used this knowledge well. They were able to work out words they did not recognise. Older pupils develop a wide range of

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The achievement of pupils

strategies to support their reading and understanding of different texts.  Pupils’ attainment in writing by the end of Year 2 is above average and broadly average by the end of Year 6. Standards in reading and mathematics are now above average at the end of both key stages. Pupils’ progress in writing at key Stage 2 has improved and is now good but their progress in mathematics is more rapid. Scrutiny of pupils’ books across a range of subjects, including English and mathematics, shows good progress over time in all year groups.  In 2014, the small number of disadvantaged pupils in Year 6 were two terms behind that of their classmates in writing, and one term behind them in reading and mathematics. In relation to other pupils nationally, they were four terms behind in writing, almost three terms behind in mathematics and two terms behind in reading. The school’s current information shows that these gaps are closing rapidly across

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The achievement of pupils

all year groups. Disadvantaged pupils who had previously fallen behind are being helped to catch up and are now making good progress and achieving well.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress. Staff target resources effectively and review progress regularly to assess the impact of their actions.  In the past, the most-able pupils were not always challenged sufficiently well. However, improved assessment and better teaching are enabling them to make faster progress. The most-able pupils currently in Years 2 and 6 are on track to achieve high standards.  Pupils who speak English as an additional language make good progress and achieve well. They develop their skills quickly in the early years and continue improving as they move through the school. The small minority of White British pupils throughout the school make equally good progress and achieve well.

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The early years provision

 Achievement of children in the early years is good. Children who enter with weak social or communication skills are helped to catch up quickly. Their behaviour is outstanding. Consequently, most children reach a good level of development and move confidently into Year 1.  Staff have high expectations for children’s progress and plan activities that engage their interests. They work well alongside each other and share resources well. They encourage each other to try things out and experiment. For example, one child commented on the need to use ‘cement’ when graduating from ‘the little pigs house’ made of straw to one made from bricks.  Opportunities for children to practise their emerging writing skills are evident, both indoors and outdoors, and children use their developing understanding of phonics well to help them spell words. Children in the Nursery make very rapid progress as a result of a well-planned and concerted approach by adults to

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The early years provision

develop their key skills.  The early years provision is well led. Careful analysis of information about children’s progress ensures that no group of children is left behind. Consequently, all children make good progress including those who are disadvantaged, those who have special educational needs and those who speak English as an additional language. However, opportunities to extend the learning of the most-able children in Reception are not always taken. As a result, the early years provision is not outstanding.  Safeguarding procedures are strong, in line with the rest of the school. Teachers have good relationships with parents who are pleased with the good start their children make. They are confident their children are safe and well looked after.

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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 102531 Local authority Hounslow Inspection number 448719

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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 472 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Sandra D’Souza Headteacher Eileen Byrne Date of previous school inspection 10–11 June 2010 Telephone number 020 85729658 Fax number 020 85721982 Email address head@stmichaelrc.hounslow.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 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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