Christ The King Catholic Primary School

Christ the King Catholic Primary School Kings Approach, Bramley, Leeds, LS13 2DX

p.1

Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

p.1

Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate

p.1

Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

p.1

Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

p.1

This is an inadequate school

 Leaders and managers have not secured the necessary improvement over time and have not had sufficient impact on the quality of teaching and outcomes for pupils.  Given pupils’ broadly average starting points, leaders have not considered in sufficient detail whether different groups of pupils are making the progress of which they are capable. As a result, too many pupils are underachieving in reading and writing.  Teaching is too variable throughout the school and inadequate overall. Expectations by teachers of what pupils of most ability groups can achieve are not high enough.  Comments in pupils’ books do not always help pupils to know how to improve their work.  Transition between key stages is weak. Many pupils in Years 1 and 3 do not build on the progress they have made in previous years.  The progress made by children in the early years is inadequate and is not checked carefully enough by leaders so that

p.1

This is an inadequate school

appropriate challenge can be provided.  The activities and resources for children in the Reception class do not successfully capture their interest and therefore they are not able to learn effectively through purposeful play, especially in the outside area.  Senior leaders are too reliant on external support to help them make checks on the work of the school. They do not use the information provided by external partners with sufficient rigour for improvement to be established.  Pupils’ knowledge and understanding of different faiths and the concept of democracy is underdeveloped.

p.1

The school has the following strengths

 The newly appointed governors have the skills needed so that they can challenge senior leaders more effectively. They are clear about where improvements are needed.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability make good progress.  Pupils are polite and courteous to adults and visitors. They get on well with each other.  Parents value the work done by the school to ensure that those families and their children, who need particular support or additional help, receive it in a timely manner.

p.1

Full report

In accordance with the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Urgently improve teaching so that it is consistently good or better in all classes in order to make certain that pupils reach higher standards and make the progress of which they are capable by:  raising teachers’ expectations of what pupils can achieve in lessons by providing work that is appropriately challenging and reflects pupils’ needs  planning lessons that build on previous learning in order to more effectively secure pupils’ understanding, including using mathematical concepts in different contexts  ensuring that no time is wasted in lessons and that misconceptions pupils may have developed during lessons are quickly corrected  checking that teachers provide high-quality guidance to pupils so that they know how to improve their work  doing more to make sure that pupils’ skills and knowledge are firmly secured, especially in the more complex abilities in reading needed by pupils in key stage 2

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 making more effective use of learning support assistants so that they provide effective support and challenge where it is most needed.

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Urgently improve the quality and effectiveness of leadership and provision in the early years by:  checking that all children are making the progress of which they are capable in all areas of learning so that any underachievement is identified swiftly and is addressed  ensuring that children choose appropriate activities and resources especially when they are working in the outside area, so that they can sustain their concentration and thus make good progress.

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve pupils’ knowledge and understanding of different faiths, democracy and the rule of law to better prepare them for life in modern Britain.

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the effectiveness of senior leaders so that they can secure rapid and sustained improvement by:  defining clear priorities and aims for the school so all are clear about what these are  ensuring that the information from the checks on the quality of teaching is used to identify where additional support for teachers is needed so that pupils make better progress  making sure that the targets set for individual teachers are robust and that leaders’ expectations of the quality of teachers’ work are high enough  ensuring that all external support is undertaken for a specific purpose and that it effectively contributes to school improvement.

p.2

What does the school need to do to improve further?

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.

p.2

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

 The headteacher and other senior leaders have not demonstrated the necessary skills to bring about rapid improvement. The school’s overall effectiveness has remained satisfactory for too long and too many pupils are underachieving. Much time has been spent gathering information but this has not been analysed thoroughly to identify the actions needed to ensure that pupils are achieving their potential. Senior leaders’ priorities for school improvement are unclear. Their view of the school’s performance is overoptimistic and not supported by inspectors.  Since the previous inspection, work has been undertaken to address the issue of mathematics teaching throughout the school. As a result, pupils are making better progress in this subject than formally. However, following the disappointing results in 2015 in reading, senior leaders have not observed the teaching of reading in order to identify how well this subject is taught within the different classes, and to

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

establish if pupils are making sufficient progress. When visiting headteachers have observed lessons, they have not been asked to look at this important subject.  Leaders are reliant on the support of staff from the Catholic Compass Partnership of Schools to help them consider ways forward. There has been help for individual teachers and opportunities for staff to visit other schools to observe practice. However, this work and the information gathered when leaders make checks on the quality of teaching are yet to impact on the quality of teaching throughout the school.  The leadership of teaching is weak. There have been several changes of staff during the last year which has been a challenge for leaders. Targets for teachers to reach, so that they can improve their practice are in place. However, these targets are very general and are based on a small number of measures. They are not sufficiently robust to ensure that senior leaders can hold teachers to account appropriately

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

for the outcomes for pupils in their classes. Reviews of teaching quality do not focus sufficiently on the progress made by pupils so that teaching practice can be improved and good progress for all pupils becomes the norm.  A new system to check the progress being made by pupils has been used since September 2015. Leaders are not interrogating this information robustly so that priorities can be identified and the appropriate action taken. Leaders were unable to speak with confidence about the progress being made by different groups of pupils throughout the school. However, the progress of the very small number of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is tracked carefully. Appropriate links are made with external agencies, if needed, and additional support provided. This work is proving successful for these pupils.  Pupils enjoy the different subjects within the curriculum. There are visits out of school designed to link

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

with themes being taught in the classroom, as well as visitors going into the school. A number of mainly Christian festivals are celebrated and pupils do have some awareness of other faiths. There is a diverse mix of pupils in the school from different countries who get on well together and this helps to develop their understanding of other cultures well.  Pupils are respectful to adults and their peers and have a strong understanding of right and wrong. These characteristics help to develop pupils’ social and moral development well but their understanding and awareness of democracy and the rule of law, for example, are less well developed. As a result, pupils have a mixed understanding of life in modern Britain.  Leaders and governors are checking more closely to ensure that pupil premium funding is used both to support disadvantaged pupils’ learning and also, if they wish, to enable them to join the breakfast and

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

after-school clubs. Nevertheless, in some cases, there is still a difference between the progress of these pupils and that of their peers.  The primary physical education (PE) and sports funding is being used appropriately to help improve teachers’ ability to teach PE successfully. Pupils enjoy taking part in sports activities and know that doing this is important to help their fitness and health.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders work hard to ensure that pupils are safe. Policies and systems regarding safeguarding are secure and up to date. Records of incidents, including those of a racial nature are recorded and leaders follow up these and other incidents thoroughly. Staff have undertaken the ‘Prevent’ training (government advice to schools to have due regard to the need to identify signs of extremism and radicalisation) organised by the chair of the governing body, and a

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

simpler version of this training will be given to pupils.  Since the school was last inspected in October 2013, the local authority has had little impact on the school’s improvement. Together with senior leaders, its view of the provision within the school is overoptimistic. The diocese has a more realistic view of the school’s provision.  The last visit made by the school improvement partner, employed by the local authority, did not contribute successfully to school improvement although their report set out clearly the key priorities for the school to help them identify how to improve.  Newly qualified teachers may not be appointed.  The governance of the school  Governors undertook a thorough review of their work following the last inspection. They immediately acted on the recommendations. Governors undertook training so that they can do their job effectively. New appointments were made, governors have reorganised the way they work and a detailed calendar

p.3

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

of activities and meetings ensures that they are able to fulfil their statutory duties well. Consequently, governors now have the skills necessary to challenge leaders. They have tightened, this year, the procedures by which they measure the performance management of the headteacher. They receive reports regularly from the headteacher and records show that they are rigorous in their questioning both regarding the quality of teaching in the school and the progress made by pupils. Despite this challenge, school leaders are not setting a clear direction for the school.  Governors are tracking the impact and spending of additional funding carefully. They ensure that the money is spent more broadly than previously to ensure that pupils can access all that the school offers. Governors have helped leaders develop themes for displays within the school to support pupils’ understanding of how to be good citizens and to take their place in the world. However, they

p.4

Effectiveness of leadership and management is inadequate

recognise that embedding this knowledge fully within the school is underdeveloped.

p.4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

 Most pupils throughout the school are making inadequate progress because teaching over time is too weak. There are considerable inconsistencies in the quality of teaching throughout the school which impacts significantly on how most pupils, especially the most able, are making progress. In addition, there are weaknesses in the way teachers use the information about how well pupils are doing so that they can set appropriate work for them.  Several pupils told inspectors that work is often too easy. Teachers’ expectations of what pupils can achieve in lessons are frequently too low. Pupils’ misconceptions go unchecked for too long in some lessons because mistakes pupils make are not corrected quickly.  Too many pupils, particularly when they move from one key stage to another, are not building on the learning and progress they have made in the previous year. When inspectors looked at pupils’ books, it

p.4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

was evident that some pupils went backwards when they moved into a new key stage.  During the inspection, inspectors saw some time was wasted in lessons: for example, pupils waiting quietly for others to join them on the carpet or to finish what they were doing, before the lesson could continue. In some lessons, particularly those for guided reading, the pupils who were working on their own were behaving sensibly but were not challenged appropriately. Sometimes they were allowed to daydream and as a result made very little or no progress.  When inspectors looked at books, they found that much of the pupils’ work was presented carefully but they also identified that some pieces of work were unfinished. Staff had not followed up where work was missing, thus not following the school’s marking policy. Many pieces of work are unmarked. In those books that are marked, the usefulness of the comments is variable and too often pupils are not informed

p.4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

about what they should do in order to make their work better. Some very basic errors are not corrected, especially in topic books. Pupils in Year 1 have a ‘green for go’ and ‘pink for think’ system which they explained to inspectors and they said it helps them to know how to improve.  While there are pockets of good teaching in mathematics, too many pupils remain unclear about how to apply their mathematical knowledge in different contexts.  Phonics (the sounds letters make) is taught effectively in key stage 1 and this enables many pupils to read successfully. However, there are some older pupils who struggle with reading because they lack the skills to blend sounds into words. The mechanics of reading are taught successfully in key stage 1 but the more complex skills of comprehension and interpreting a text, needed in key stage 2, are not well taught.  The impact of the current training for learning support assistants, when they support pupils in class, is yet

p.4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

to take full effect. At present the quality of their work is inconsistent.

p.4

Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  The welfare of all pupils, especially those whose circumstances make them vulnerable and those who are new to the country, is very important to school staff. The family liaison officer plays a key role in ensuring that pupils’ needs are met and the work done with other staff from the Bramley Cluster group of schools is having a good impact on these pupils and their families.  Pupil premium funding is being used effectively to enable some disadvantaged pupils to attend the breakfast club which provides them with a good start to the day.  Pupils know that name-calling and bullying of any sort is not allowed. They know it occurs occasionally and told inspectors that they are confident of the steps staff will take if any bullying takes place. Posters and information around the school reinforce these messages.  Records of bullying, behaviour and racist incidents are kept with evidence provided to indicate how issues

p.5

Personal development and welfare

were resolved.  Members of the school council recently visited the Houses of Parliament and met with the local Member of Parliament. However, both for them and for many of their peers, understanding of democracy and the rule of law is limited.

p.5

Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils respond to instructions quickly and with the minimum of fuss. For example, changing their shoes before going out at playtime is done sensibly. Pupils are happy to talk to adults and are proud of their school and the displays of their work.  Pupils are keen to learn and enjoy coming to school. Their attendance is regular throughout the school. There are appropriate systems to challenge but also support families when their children do not attend school regularly.  During conversations with inspectors, pupils recognised the need for sensible behaviour both during lessons and outside. Despite a small playground, pupils are able to organise themselves appropriately when playing games or using equipment.  There were very few results from Ofsted’s online parent questionnaire, Parent View. All the parents who were spoken to during the inspection were exceptionally positive about pupils’ behaviour and expressed

p.5

Behaviour

their confidence in staff’s ability to sort out any problems.

p.5

Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

 The progress made by most pupils as they move up through different year groups is too variable because teaching is not good enough. Leaders have not ensured that most-able pupils in particular are effectively challenged to reach the standards of which they are capable. Despite leaders’ wish to promote better outcomes for all pupils, because of the underachievement throughout the school, pupils are not getting equal opportunities to succeed.  Year 6 pupils in 2015 made insufficient progress in reading. Although relatively small in numbers, disadvantaged pupils did make better progress than their peers in this subject, but the proportions making expected progress were below the national average for both disadvantaged pupils and other pupils. However, in mathematics, the numbers of pupils making the expected progress was broadly in line with the national average.  The results for pupils in Year 6 who took the English grammar, spelling and punctuation test in 2015 were

p.5

Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

broadly in line with the national picture at Level 4. The results for boys and girls were very similar. However, the results for the small number of disadvantaged pupils were much lower than for other pupils in the school and other pupils nationally.  The progress made by the current pupils, including the most able and those pupils who are new to learning English, is very variable. When inspectors observed pupils’ books, in different subjects, very few pupils are making appropriate or better progress. As a result, pupils are not adequately prepared for their next stage of education.  The proportion of pupils in Year 1 reaching the expected standard in the national phonics reading check in 2015 fell very slightly compared with the previous year. Nevertheless, it remains above the national picture. However, it is lower than the national picture for disadvantaged pupils.  There are very few pupils who have special educational needs or disability. Their progress is monitored

p.5

Outcomes for pupils are inadequate

closely and they receive appropriate interventions so that they do not fall behind. The impact of additional funding is evident for these pupils, but it is less evident for those pupils who are disadvantaged.

p.6

Early years provision is inadequate

 Leadership of early years is weak. The progress made by individual children is not tracked with sufficient rigour so that leaders know which aspects of their learning are better than others and can adapt provision if necessary. Consequently, teachers’ expectations are at best modest for all groups of children.  Three quarters of the current children began in the Reception class with skills and abilities that were slightly below those typical for their age. The others entered with broadly average levels.  The proportion of children last year who reached a good level of development, with similar starting points to the current cohort, was higher than the national picture. However, the progress being made by children this year is inconsistent and a third of the cohort have either made no progress, very little progress or have regressed. Consequently, many children will need to make up considerable ground in

p.6

Early years provision is inadequate

the coming months to have the appropriate skills and knowledge needed when they start Year 1.  The attention leaders give to the impact of pupil premium funding is limited. Consequently, leaders are unable to identify if the additional money is making a real difference to those children for whom it is intended to support.  Teaching is not having sufficient impact on the outcomes for children. They make better progress when they are involved in adult-led activities rather than those that they choose for themselves. Inspectors saw children wandering around outside particularly and spending too much of their time playing without any real focus to their learning. This situation, combined with a lack of clear knowledge about individual children, means that adults are not able to promote children’s development effectively.  Adults engage with children but their questioning is often promoting low-level answers or basic recall, or

p.6

Early years provision is inadequate

is a request for them to respond to basic instructions. As a result, questioning has a limited impact on improving the language skills of some children.  The impact of the specific programme to help children who are new to learning English is effective and these children are moving forward well in improving their speaking and listening skills. Children are keen to read and several are beginning to blend sounds together as they discover new words.  Children behave well and are keen to help each other, and staff ensure that children are safeguarded appropriately. Parents are invited to contribute to their children’s learning but some parents who responded to Parent View would like more information about the progress their children are making.

p.6

School details

Unique reference number 108023 Local authority Leeds Inspection number 10002108

p.7

School details

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

p.7

School details

Type of school Primary School category Voluntary aided Age range of pupils 4–11 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 195 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Philip Jackson Headteacher Neil Ryan Telephone number 0113 257 9230 Website www.christthekingleeds.co.uk Email address n.ryan@ctkcps.org.uk Date of previous inspection 23 October 2013

p.7

Information about this school

 This is a smaller than average-sized primary school.  The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium (additional government funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and looked after children), is below average.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds and with English as an additional language is above average.  A below-average proportion of pupils receive support for their particular special educational need or disability.  In 2015, the school met the government’s current floor standards, which are the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 6.  Children start the early years with full-time education in the Reception class.  Since the previous inspection there have been a number of staff changes.  There is a breakfast club and an after-school club. These are run by external providers and did not form

p.7

Information about this school

part of this inspection. The school does run its own breakfast club and some pupils who are eligible for pupil premium funding do attend this club.

p.7

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed lessons in all classes. Some were observed jointly with members of the senior leadership team. They also observed Year 5 pupils leading an act of collective worship and heard pupils from Years 1, 3 and 5 read.  Inspectors reviewed pupils’ work in lessons and did a thorough work scrutiny of pupils’ books from each year group and for a wide range of subjects.  Meetings were held with senior leaders, the chair of the governing body and three other governors. Inspectors met with a representative from the Bramley extended services cluster and also with three headteachers from the Catholic Compass Partnership of Schools. A telephone discussion was held with a representative of the local authority. The inspectors also held a conversation with the director of education for the Leeds diocese.  Inspectors met with a group of pupils who are new to learning English. Other pupils were spoken with

p.8

Information about this inspection

informally at lunch and playtime. Four parents met with the lead inspector and several other parents spoke to inspectors when they brought their children to school.  Inspectors analysed a range of data provided by the school which related to pupils’ attainment, progress and attendance. Other documents considered included school policies, plans and improvement documents, a report relating to a review of governance, minutes of governing body meetings, records of behaviour, and records of support for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs or disability.  Nine parents responded to Parent View.  The inspectors took account of the 17 responses to the staff questionnaire. There were six responses to the online pupil survey.

p.8

Inspection team

Marianne Young, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Lynda Johnson 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 .

p.8

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.

p.9

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

p.9

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,

p.9

Inspection team

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

p.9

Inspection team

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.9

Inspection team

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

p.9