Our Lady and St Rose of Lima Catholic Primary School

Our Lady and St Rose of Lima Catholic Primary School Gregory Avenue, Weoley Castle, Birmingham B29 5DY

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Overall effectiveness Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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This is a good school

 Strong leadership and good governance is moving this school forwards at a rapid pace.  Achievement has improved significantly in Key Stage 2 since the previous inspection and leaders have addressed all of the issues raised.  All pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, the most able, disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs, achieve well.  Teaching in upper Key Stage 2 and that provided by senior leaders for targeted groups is outstanding. As a result, pupils make rapid progress and standards at the end of Year 6 in 2015 were well above average.  Lessons are exciting and fun. Teachers carefully plan activities at the right level for all groups. High levels of challenge are presented.  Pupils’ physical fitness is strongly promoted. The two-minute daily fitness challenge has aided pupils’ health and well-being. This contributes to good levels of attendance, which is above average.  Pupils’ personal development, behaviour and

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This is a good school

welfare is outstanding. Pupils are very respectful and polite and they demonstrate exemplary attitudes to learning.  Children make good progress in the early years because teaching is good and it is well managed.  Vibrant displays throughout the school add to the stimulating learning environment.  Governors are very knowledgeable. They provide a good balance of challenge and support and are fully involved in school life.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Rates of progress in early years and Key Stage 1 are not as rapid as in Key Stage 2.  Teachers do not always ask pupils questions which make them think hard or enable them to explain their answers.  Disadvantaged pupils are not yet reaching the same standards as others in the school.  Leaders do not always collect enough evidence to support their judgements of children’s starting points in the early years.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Further improve the quality of teaching and pupil outcomes, especially in early years and Key Stage 1, by ensuring that: – pupils’ basic skills are embedded before pupils are moved on to more challenging work – teachers ask more probing questions to make pupils think hard and develop their reasoning skills.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Build on the current effectiveness of leadership and management by ensuring that: – any remaining gaps between disadvantaged pupils and other pupils in the school are reduced – early supporting evidence is collected to verify children’s starting points in nursery and reception.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The focused and determined leadership of the headteacher has ensured that all previous key issues have been fully addressed. She has set a clear and ambitious direction for the school. As a result, the quality of teaching is increasingly outstanding and standards are rising rapidly at the end of Key Stage 2.  Leaders have made good appointments and successfully created a united staff team. Teachers are very committed to improving their practice and staff morale is high. All adults promote a culture of excellent behaviour and highly positive attitudes to learning.  Senior leaders know their school very well and their evaluations are precise and honest. Improvement plans are sharply focused on the most important priorities and these are evaluated on a regular basis.  Teachers and support staff are held fully to account. Challenging targets are set which are related to the school’s current improvement priorities. Training is provided to ensure staff have the skills and knowledge

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

needed to carry out their roles and duties effectively. This includes safeguarding training.  Those who are new to teaching are well supported in order to quickly gain the skills and knowledge needed to demonstrate the high-quality teaching expected.  The monitoring of the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress is very comprehensive. Leaders regularly check the quality of teaching through lesson observations, looking at pupils’ books and scrutinising any data collected. They check the progress made by all groups of pupils regularly in order to pinpoint precisely where additional support is needed. Any additional support provided is also checked.  Subject and phase leaders play a full role in checking on the quality of teaching. They lead training for staff and also attend external courses to make sure their own skills and knowledge are kept fully up to date. The new curriculum has been fully implemented and a method of assessing pupils without levels

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

has been successfully introduced. Teachers are accurate in their assessments and these are validated by external consultants and local schools who work in partnership with Our Lady and St Rose of Lima.  Good links are made between subjects to develop literacy and numeracy skills. Science is taught regularly and pupils carry out experiments which expand their enquiry skills. Interesting topics foster pupils’ historical and geographical knowledge. A wide range of clubs, visits and visitors enrich the curriculum and add to pupils’ enjoyment of school, for example the recent cartoonist visit.  Leaders strongly promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils are taught to appreciate and respect those from different backgrounds and with different beliefs. Pupils from other countries are warmly welcomed and quickly learn to speak English. Pupils have a good understanding of British values. In describing democracy one Year 6 pupil wrote: ‘we are lucky because we can choose and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

elect our leaders, some countries can’t.’ Through good teaching and the promotion of Catholic virtues and values, pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.  Leaders have taken steps to make sure that disadvantaged pupils make as much progress as other pupils in the school. The pupil premium is used to good effect to provide good-quality teaching and support for targeted pupils and their families, including support from an attendance and family support worker. As a result, these pupils achieve well and reach standards which are above others nationally. While disadvantaged pupils make good progress, published data and schools’ own information show that they do not reach the same standards as others in the school, despite having the same starting points.  The sports premium has been used well to create a sports cluster with six other local primary schools and to employ a cluster coordinator, a ‘sports and well-being improvement champion’. As a result, staff have

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

increased confidence and knowledge in teaching physical education and large numbers of pupils take part in competitive and fitness activities. The daily two-minute challenge ensures all pupils have daily exercise, for example skipping, boxing or basketball. Pooling funding with other local schools has enabled the sports premium to be spent effectively and create economies of scale.  Leaders have worked hard to build positive relationships with parents and address previous concerns. They collect their views regularly through questionnaires and provide workshops which help parents support their children with homework. As one parent wrote, ‘I believe the home-school learning link to be very strong.’ Of those who responded to the online questionnaire, the very large majority have positive views and would recommend the school to others. Most feel their children are safe and happy.  The local authority has commissioned Birmingham Education Partnership to provide support. This has

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

been very valuable and utilised to good effect by the school. Advisers have helped improve early years, supported the creation of an assessment system without levels and focused on improving writing in Key Stage 1. The school’s partnership work with three other local schools has also been instrumental in helping the school improve by sharing good practice and validating teachers’ assessments of pupils’ work.  The governance of the school – Governance is effective. Governors have a broad range of skills and expertise which they put to good use to challenge and support school leaders. They receive very detailed reports from the headteacher on how well the school is performing. They are familiar with published data and school information about the achievement of pupils. As a result, they have a very good knowledge and understanding of standards in their school compared to other schools nationally. – Governance is proactive. Governors keep a careful check on the effectiveness of leadership and the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

quality of teaching. They carry out learning walks with leaders to gain first-hand information. They set challenging targets for the headteacher and are aware of how teachers’ performance is managed. – Governance fulfils its statutory duties effectively. Governors attend regular training to ensure they carry out their safeguarding duties diligently. They take their financial responsibilities seriously and have a clear understanding of how the pupil premium and sports funding are used and the impact this funding is having on the learning of eligible pupils.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. All staff understand the procedures to follow if they are worried about a pupil. Any concerns raised are carefully recorded and followed up quickly. All staff and governors are fully trained, including in the dangers associated with radicalisation and extremism.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Teaching is good throughout the school and is increasingly outstanding as a result of effective staff training and development. It is particularly strong in upper Key Stage 2. There is a high degree of consistency in the quality of teaching that results in all groups of pupils making good progress and achieving well over time.  Teachers develop positive relationships with pupils, which has a beneficial impact on pupils’ motivation and learning. Teachers have good subject knowledge and plan lessons which cater for pupils’ different abilities.  Teaching is good across a range of subjects and teachers plan stimulating and challenging activities to interest and engage pupils during lessons. For example, Year 3 pupils had to estimate and work out the missing capacity of liquid in different containers. Pupils worked well in pairs and discussed their results. They were highly engrossed and responded enthusiastically to the difficult problems posed.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Most lessons build on pupils’ previous knowledge and skills, but work in pupils’ books in Key Stage 1 shows that occasionally, teachers move pupils on too quickly. For example, pupils in Year 1 were asked to colour three quarters of a shape before they had demonstrated that their basic knowledge about halves was secure. This leads to pupils becoming confused.  In the main, teachers use questions well. However, they do not always probe pupils’ understanding and challenge their thinking through focused questions. Sometimes teachers accept brief responses and pupils are not encouraged to explain their answers. This results in pupils’ language and reasoning skills not being fully developed.  Effective and well-managed support is in place for those who are disadvantaged or who have special educational needs. Teaching assistants and additional teaching staff provide good-quality support. This focused input results in pupils being fully included in school life and achieving well.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 The needs of the most able are extremely well catered for. Senior leaders teach targeted groups of pupils every day. The very high quality of teaching that pupils receive enables them to make accelerated progress and achieve standards which are above those expected for their age.  Teachers create a very positive climate for learning. Excellent displays throughout the school celebrate the best examples of pupils’ work and show the range of subjects taught. Displays in classrooms also provide helpful prompts to aid pupils during lessons. All rooms are kept neat and tidy so that pupils can work efficiently and effectively.  The teaching of reading has improved as leaders responded quickly to the fall in phonics (letters and the sounds that they make) test results in 2014. A new scheme was introduced and children were provided with flash cards of daily words, in addition to their reading books. Phonics groups are also flexible, so

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

children can change group if necessary. As a result, standards in the Year 1 phonics test improved in 2015 and were in line with the national average.  Marking is used purposefully to extend pupils’ learning. Teachers add helpful comments to show pupils how to improve. The school’s policy is applied consistently and fully understood by pupils. Pupils respond to the advice or tasks given using green pen so that teachers can quickly see that pupils have taken note.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is outstanding.  Pupils are confident and proud of their achievements and their school. They contribute towards maintaining the tidy and well-organised environment by looking after their belongings and not dropping litter. They understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle and enthusiastically take part in the daily two-minute fitness challenge.  Older pupils are caring and supportive to younger pupils. They are keen to take on additional roles demonstrating their maturity and responsible attitudes. For example, pupils apply to become ‘charity champions’ to raise money for a chosen charity. Elections are also held for school ambassadors, school council and Eco committee members.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs show good levels of determination in tasks set. Support is always on hand to help them if they get stuck. Very high levels of concentration are also

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Personal development and welfare

evident in the early years, where children become absorbed in the variety of activities on offer.  Pupils feel safe and know how to keep themselves safe as a result of practising safety routines, such as fire drills, and being taught about potential dangers. Pupils have an excellent understanding of computer safety and know that they should not disclose personal information.  Pupils have a very good knowledge about different types of bullying, including cyber bullying. Those spoken to were adamant that bullying does not happen in their school. Where low-level incidents occur, they are confident that, if reported, these are dealt with quickly by adults.  Breakfast club provides a valuable resource for parents and pupils. Pupils enjoy the food provided and the range of games and activities provided by staff. It prepares pupils well for the day ahead and their learning.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.  Pupils’ excellent conduct and readiness to learn reflect the high expectations placed upon them by leaders, teachers and support staff. Pupils work enthusiastically in lessons and this contributes to their good progress. Good levels of respect are shown to adults and other pupils.  Pupils, parents and staff who expressed their views agree that behaviour is consistently good. Pupils behave very well in lessons and around school. They are well mannered and everyone is made to feel welcome. Pupils know and follow the school rules. They are keen to earn house points for their team in order to win the Friday fun afternoons.  School leaders keep a detailed record of any incidents which occur. Records checked show that pupils are asked to reflect on their behaviour and how they will modify this. Parents are also asked to sign to show they are aware of the incident and agree with the actions taken. Each class has a behaviour book which

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Behaviour

moves up the school with the pupils. This allows leaders to analyse trends and patterns over time. This highly efficient system ensures that behaviour remains outstanding.  Pupils are very keen to come to school and rarely miss a day. As one parent wrote, ‘my daughter doesn’t stop talking about the school day from pick up to bedtime.’ An attendance officer keeps a close check on those who are persistently absent and follows these up swiftly. As a result, attendance is above average over time.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils make good progress from their starting points. In 2015, standards were average at the end of Key Stage 1 but well above average at the end of Key Stage 2. Pupils who left Year 6, including those who were disadvantaged, made outstanding progress in reading, writing and mathematics.  School’s own information and work in pupils’ books shows that current pupils are making good progress across a range of subjects. Effective teaching and targeted support for individuals and groups is leading to higher outcomes and rapid rates of progress in Key Stage 2. Progress in Key Stage 1 and the early years is not yet as rapid.  Disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs make good progress due to the quality of teaching and support they receive in lessons. They make similar progress to their classmates as a result of this extra help.  Disadvantaged pupils make good progress and achieve well due to the effective use of the pupil premium

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Outcomes for pupils are good

funding. This provides additional adult time to boost pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills. By the end of Key Stage 2 the gaps in attainment compared to other pupils nationally have closed, but compared to others in the school, this gap is still quite wide, especially in writing and mathematics.  The most-able pupils make good progress across the school. This is because of the high-quality daily teaching they receive from the assistant headteachers and the challenging work they are set. As a result, the number of pupils reaching the higher levels at the end of Key Stage 2 was well above the national average in 2015.

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Early years provision is good

 Approximately two thirds of children join nursery with skills and knowledge which are below those which are typical for their age, especially in mathematics. They are, however, more advanced in their physical development and writing skills. Children make good progress and by the time they enter Year 1, the large majority are working at a good level of development.  Teaching is good and children learn well as lessons are made interesting and exciting. Good use is made of both the indoor and outdoor areas to promote early skills. Occasionally, teachers do not ensure that the skills needed are taught sequentially or basic skills are embedded before moving children on. For example, work in books showed addition being taught while other work showed some children were not yet secure in ordering and forming numbers to 10 correctly.  Children settle quickly and behave well because they become engrossed in activities that motivate them

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Early years provision is good

to want to learn. They learn to play together, share resources and work alongside their classmates. Whether they are learning indoors or outdoors, adults ensure that children are safe through the systems in place.  The setting is led and managed effectively. The leader checks that the quality of teaching is good and provides good support to those who are new to teaching. Records of children’s achievements are collated and used to inform planning. However, there are some weaknesses in the collection of evidence to support judgements made about the levels children are working at on entry to nursery or Reception class. Very little evidence was available for inspectors to verify the information presented. Evidence does, however, accumulate as the year progresses, and by the end of Reception it is clear children have made good progress.  Parents are strongly encouraged to be involved in their child’s learning and support them at home.

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Early years provision is good

Children’s emotional health, safety and well-being are all catered for effectively due to the high-quality nurturing and support in place.

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School details

Unique reference number 103443 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 10002520

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School details

This inspection 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 227 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Father Gary Buckby Headteacher/Principal/Teacher in charge Suzan O’Meally Telephone number 0121 464 2283 Website www.olstrose.bham.sch.uk Email address enquiry@olstrose.bham.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 27–28 November 2013

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Information about this school

 This is an average-sized primary school.  The early years consists of a nursery and one Reception class. Most nursery children and all Reception children attend full time.  The large majority of pupils are White British and most speak English as their home language.  The proportion of disadvantaged pupils known to be eligible for pupil premium funding is above the national average. The pupil premium is additional government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those in the care of the local authority.  The proportion of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs is below average.  A breakfast club is managed by the governing body.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress by the end of Year 6.  Two new assistant headteachers and four new members of teaching staff have been appointed since the

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed teaching in all classes. They saw 18 parts of lessons, 10 of which were jointly observed with the headteacher.  Meetings were held with pupils, the headteacher, other staff with leadership responsibilities and members of the governing body. Inspectors also spoke to a representative of the Birmingham Education Partnership, who provide support on behalf of the local authority.  Inspectors took account of the 51 responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View), the comments made by parents through parent text comments and information from surveys collected by the school. They also spoke to parents as they brought their children to school.  The inspection team took account of 22 staff responses to the inspection questionnaire. There were 16 responses to the pupils’ online questionnaire and their views about the school were considered.  Inspectors listened to pupils read, talked to them about their learning and reviewed the work in their

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Information about this inspection

books.  Inspectors reviewed a number of documents, including the school’s checks on how well it is doing, the school improvement plan, data on pupils’ current levels of attainment, leaders’ reports following lesson observations, and records relating to behaviour, attendance and safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Heather Simpson, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Clair McNeill Ofsted Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . 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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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted.

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Inspection team

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, further education and skills, 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Inspection team

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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

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