St Joseph and St Teresa's Catholic Primary School

St Joseph and St Teresa’s Catholic Primary School Doncaster Lane, Woodlands, Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN6 7QN

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 This is a school that has gone from strength to strength since the previous inspection. Strong, determined leadership has been the key factor behind the significant improvements made.  Senior leaders and all members of staff have worked tirelessly and with a marked degree of success to improve provision and outcomes for their pupils. This is a school that has a corporate approach to school improvement, in the belief that ‘Together Everyone Achieves More’.  Governors are well informed and highly skilled. They visit regularly and know what is going on. They keep a sharp check that pupils will benefit from any new development.  ‘The children feel like they belong to a large family’ is a comment typical of the parents who made their views known to an inspector.  Pupils say that they feel safe and well looked after. The fostering of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and their emotional well-being is given high priority.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Pupils behave well and have positive attitudes to learning.  Teaching is typically good now at every key stage because the leadership of teaching and learning is effective.  Children have a good start to their learning in the early years. They are happy, settled and keen to learn.  Pupils make good progress in most subjects. They make the best progress in mathematics and writing. However, some of the most able pupils do not achieve as well as they could, particularly in reading.  Progress in reading is not as strong. Pupils say that they do not find all of the books in school interesting and so are sometimes not inspired to try their best in reading activities.  The school is good at identifying which pupils need to catch up and is quick to provide additional support. However, current procedures make it more difficult to identify any of the most able pupils who could do even better. 28–29 September 2016

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Help pupils make even better progress in every subject, but particularly in reading, by ensuring that: – pupils have more opportunity to read a wide selection of books that really interest and inspire them to improve their reading fluency and comprehension skills – teachers and teaching assistants know how to help pupils foster an in-depth understanding of their work and so enable more pupils to work at a high standard – expectations are consistently high for all pupils, particularly those who are most able, including the most able disadvantaged pupils.  Refine systems for checking pupils’ progress so that leaders, staff and governors can quickly identify any pupil, including those who are most able, who could do even better, and take swift action to ensure their work improves. 28–29 September 2016

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development flourishes at St Joseph and St Teresa’s. The school is founded on a strong Catholic ethos, one which encourages staff and pupils alike to give ‘love and respect to all’. Special events, such as ‘Diversity Week’, ‘Black History Month’ and ‘World Faith Week’, help pupils learn to have a great deal of respect for others, including those of other faiths and cultures.  The headteacher, well supported by the senior leadership team, has been utterly determined to improve provision and outcomes for pupils. This is a view reiterated by many parents, who typically comment, ‘The headteacher is an inspirational leader and the school continues to improve under his care.’ Senior leaders have successfully harnessed the support of the strong, enthusiastic and committed staff team.  Discrimination is not tolerated and the school does all it can to try and ensure that all

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

pupils benefit from all the school has to offer.  Staff responses to the inspection questionnaire about the school were almost all entirely positive.  Senior leaders keep a careful check on how well pupils are learning in the classroom. Staff readily support each other and are keen to lead aspects of the school’s work. Everyone works together in exploring how they can help pupils do better.  Plans for improvement focus on the right issues. For example, the school is currently focusing on improving outcomes in reading. Actions are agreed and then followed up thoroughly and their impact is regularly evaluated. As a result, the school has improved all aspects of its work since the previous inspection.  Performance management procedures are linked closely to pupil outcomes and whole- school priorities.  The school benefits from working collaboratively with its partner school in the federation and with a range of other schools in the local authority and the diocese. For

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

example, subject leaders have grown in confidence by learning from the best practice in other schools. This has helped ensure that pupils’ work in their subject of responsibility has improved.  Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain. For example, every school year starts with a ‘Democracy Week’. Prospective school councillors write their own manifestos and pupils gain a working knowledge of democratic processes by holding their own election.  The curriculum has improved since the previous inspection. Many parents reported how pleased they are that the school is now providing more opportunities for pupils to take part in educational visits, clubs and sporting activities. For example, during the inspection, lower key stage 2 pupils enjoyed a visit to a museum in preparation for their topic on the Stone Age. They dressed up in Stone Age style clothes, smelled the type of food that Stone Age people might have eaten and made Stone Age style tools.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

The trip motivated the pupils to work hard when they got back to school.  The school keeps a careful check on how much progress pupils make and is particularly good at helping pupils catch up with their work. However, procedures for identifying those pupils who could do even better are not as well developed. This 28–29 September 2016 means that some of the school’s most able pupils do not reach their full potential, particularly in reading.  Pupil premium funding is used to provide both academic and pastoral support. As a result, disadvantaged pupils typically do as well as other pupils, relative to their individual starting points. Carefully focused support is provided to help pupils catch up. However, less is done for the most able disadvantaged pupils to help them foster an in-depth understanding of their work.  Physical education (PE) and sports premium funding has been used to upskill teachers and pupils alike. The teaching of PE has improved because teachers have the chance

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

to work alongside and learn from specialist sports coaches. One member of staff has also subsequently been trained as a specialist sports coach, through additional training. The school recently received a School Games Sportsmark Gold Award in recognition of its success in encouraging pupils to participate in a wider range of sports and inter-school competitions.

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Governance of the school

 Governors have played a key role in the improvements made since the previous inspection. For example, governors had direct involvement in the refurbishment of the school building. Governors also carefully check how pupils will benefit from any new developments, such as the recent additional residential visit to Whitby for pupils in key stage 2.  Governors are fully aware of the school’s strengths and improvement priorities. They have the necessary skills to support the school but also to hold school leaders to account. Governors increasingly question the impact of actions senior leaders take to improve pupils’ achievements. They do not just accept what they are told by senior leaders but regularly visit the school to see any improvements for themselves.  Governors form a strong team and add significantly to the effectiveness of leadership and management. They bring a wide range of skills and expertise in areas such as

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Governance of the school

computing, building works and education, as well as some strong links with the Church and the community.  Governors are very knowledgeable about pupil outcomes and the quality of teaching and help ensure that performance management arrangements lead to improved provision and outcomes. They access additional training when necessary and regularly check the impact that additional funding has on pupils’ outcomes.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Leaders ensure that staff receive up-to-date training. Procedures are adhered to by staff and checked regularly by governors.  Members of the school council accompany governors on regular health and safety walks. This ensures that the pupils’ perspective and opinions are taken into account.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 Evidence from pupils’ workbooks throughout school from this term and last year, and the school’s own records and observations of teaching and learning, show that the 28–29 September 2016 quality of teaching has improved since the previous inspection. The quality of teaching is typically good now.  Classrooms are calm and orderly. Pupils are hard-working and most are keen to learn.  Teachers and teaching assistants frequently ask probing questions, which get pupils thinking hard about their work. This helps their learning move on at pace.  Marking has improved. Staff adhere to the agreed procedures. The feedback provided shows pupils how they can improve their work still further.  Expectations are much higher in mathematics lessons than at the time of the previous inspection. As a result, many pupils are coming on in leaps and bounds. Practical equipment is used well to help pupils gain a thorough grounding in new skills and

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

concepts and to help pupils solve mathematical problems. Pupils are expected to work hard and explain how they have worked something out.  During the inspection, older pupils confidently used negative numbers in different contexts, such as on bank statements and thermometers. Pupils were then challenged to consider if a negative number could ever be larger than a positive number. A key stage 1 class set about discovering how they could subtract a one-digit number from a two-digit number. They were challenged to work this out for themselves. Such activities help pupils consolidate new learning and enable the teacher to check who had understood their work and who needs extra help.  Pupils now have more regular opportunities to produce extended pieces of writing and this, alongside some more effective teaching of phonics and grammar, punctuation and spelling, is helping improve the quality and content of pupils’ writing.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

 The teaching of reading has improved. However, leaders acknowledge the need to provide additional training so that all teachers and teaching assistants know how to help improve pupils’ comprehension skills and deepen their understanding of more complex texts.  Pupils do not have enough books that they find interesting in school. This means that they are sometimes not inspired to try their best in reading activities.  Teachers demonstrate good subject knowledge across most subjects of the curriculum. Most lessons have a clear focus. Teachers and teaching assistants regularly check how well pupils understand their work. Additional support is swiftly provided for those who fall behind or are less confident in their learning. However, not all members of staff know how to help pupils foster an in-depth understanding of their work to enable them to work at a high standard, particularly in reading. As a result,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

the most able pupils are sometimes given work that is too easy for them.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. The school provides a harmonious learning environment. Pupils show respect and care for each other.  Pupils’ physical and emotional well-being is given a high priority at St Joseph and St Teresa’s. One parent typically commented, ‘The staff are very supportive in helping my children reach their full potential’. 28–29 September 2016  Relationships are strong. Members of staff are typically very supportive of pupils who may have specific emotional needs. Nurture groups run by the learning mentor help develop pupils’ self-belief and confidence.  Pupils have a good understanding of how to stay safe. Pupils helped write the school’s anti-bullying policy and the guidelines for using a computer safely. This helps ensure that they are understood by all.  Most of the 20 parents who responded to the Parent View questionnaire agree that

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Personal development and welfare

their children are safe and well looked after at school. However, a small minority of these parents expressed some concerns about pupils’ behaviour and about how effectively the school deals with bullying. These concerns were explored thoroughly. No evidence emerged during the inspection to suggest that the school does not deal effectively with any incidents of bullying or incidents of poorer behaviour.  Pupils who spoke to an inspector say that they think behaviour is much better now and that incidents of bullying are rare in school. These pupils agreed that if they did have any problems at all, they are confident they would find an adult to help them.  The school keeps a sharp check on pupils’ well-being. Records show that the school is vigilant in following up any alleged incidents or concerns, such as the very few incidents of derogatory name-calling.  Lessons and assemblies encourage pupils to be caring and respectful. Anti-bullying

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Personal development and welfare

ambassadors, too, play a leading role in highlighting the effects of bullying and in telling pupils what to do if they have any problems. The school has recently received the Anti-Bullying Bronze Award in recognition of its work in this area.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils conduct themselves well in and around school. They typically respond immediately when they are asked to do something by an adult in school. This is a marked improvement from the time of the previous inspection.  Pupils are proud of their school. They conduct their many roles of responsibility with maturity and commitment and feel that they have a key part to play in ensuring that everyone stays happy and safe at school.  The school keeps a very careful check on how well pupils attend. Any unexplained absences are followed up swiftly. Attendance has risen markedly since the previous inspection and reflects pupils’ enjoyment of school life. The school does all it can to maintain such a positive trend.  Pupils are thoughtful and reflective. There are several areas and displays to encourage prayer and reflection throughout school. Pupils also have the opportunity to contribute

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Behaviour

to assemblies and acts of worship.  Most pupils have a good understanding of how to be a successful learner. Attitudes to learning in the classroom are largely very positive now. Nevertheless, a few pupils become a little distracted in lessons at times and fail to consistently produce their best work. This is especially so when they do not find their work as interesting or if their work is too easy. However, this is the exception rather than the rule. Most pupils are keen to learn and they want to do well. No pupils were observed to be disrupting learning during the inspection.  Pupils’ work is typically well presented. Most pupils rise to the clear expectations set by the school regarding the quality and content of their work. Older pupils are rewarded 28–29 September 2016 with a pen licence when they can show that they can write with a fluent cursive script. They then have to earn their pen licence back again when they start a new school

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Behaviour

year to ensure that expectations remain high.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 Pupils make good progress, relative to their starting points, in most year groups. The work in pupils’ books and the school’s own performance information show that most pupils are now making better progress than at the time of the previous inspection.  Achievement across many subjects of the curriculum is good and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is very strong. The quality of pupils’ writing in subjects such as history, geography and science is typically of the same standard as in their discrete English lessons. During the inspection, pupils demonstrated that they also become adept at computing from a young age.  Pupils are well prepared for the next stages of their education.  Significant improvements in teaching are resulting in faster rates of progress across most year groups, particularly in mathematics and writing.  Comparisons between the standards attained from year to year can fluctuate

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Outcomes for pupils Good

somewhat. This is usually due to the specific characteristics of pupils in some classes, and in some classes a significant number of pupils join the class part way through a school year. This was one of the factors behind key stage 2 pupils in 2016 not doing as well in reading, as the school expected.  The number of disadvantaged pupils varies significantly from year to year. In some year groups, half of the pupils are eligible for the additional funding, whereas in other year groups no pupils are eligible for the funding. However, the school is proactive in its support for disadvantaged pupils and carefully identifies any potential barriers to learning. The work in pupils’ books and the school’s assessment information show that disadvantaged pupils make typically similar rates of progress to other pupils nationally. Additional support is helping most of the disadvantaged pupils catch up with their

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Outcomes for pupils Good

learning. However, expectations are not high enough for some of the most able disadvantaged pupils, so they do not do as well as they could.  Pupils who have special educational needs often make fast rates of progress, relative to their individual starting points, as do pupils who need to catch up. This is because the school is very quick to provide additional support.  The most able pupils are sometimes well challenged in lessons, but this is not always the case. Some pupils do not secure an in-depth understanding of their work or reach a high standard when they are capable of doing so, particularly in reading.  Since the previous inspection, pupils have particularly done well in mathematics and writing. In 2015, half of the pupils made better progress than is typically expected, relative to their individual starting points. Pupils are now doing much better in mathematics, because mathematics teaching has improved throughout school.

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Outcomes for pupils Good

 The school has successfully addressed the recommendation from the previous inspection to improve achievement in writing. Pupils’ writing is typically well structured and grammatically correct. They are encouraged to plan their writing carefully and have regular opportunities to write at length. 28–29 September 2016  The number of pupils who achieve the expected standard in the Year 1 phonics test has risen since the previous inspection. Indeed, in 2015, this was the case for every pupil in Year 1. Pupils’ improving knowledge of the sounds that letters represent is helping them to enjoy reading from an early age.  Progress in reading is rather inconsistent. Although pupils make stronger progress in some classes, progress is slower in other classes. This is because reading activities are sometimes not challenging enough and some pupils say that they are not that interested in the books available in school. This can hamper pupils’ fluency and

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Early years provision Good

 The early years has improved since the previous inspection due to the strong leadership and the committed and hard-working staff team. They help ensure that, by the end of the early years, children are ready to start Year 1.  Partnerships with parents, providers and other agencies are strong. Parents complete ‘Proud Moments’ cards and these are displayed to celebrate children’s achievements and boost their self-esteem. Parents who made their views known to an inspector are very positive about their children’s start to school life. One parent typically commented, ‘Our child loves school and feels very safe and well cared for.’  During the inspection the children were very happy, well behaved and settled in the setting, despite some having only just started school. Relationships are first-rate and this helps children grow in confidence. Classroom routines are clear, so children know what is expected of them.

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Early years provision Good

 Children are interested in most of the activities in the setting. For example, during the inspection, children thoroughly enjoyed a range of activities outdoors around a pirate theme. Some children enthusiastically washed the pirate’s clothes and hung them on a washing line, others enjoyed ‘walking the plank’, while some carefully counted some of the jewels in the treasure chest. However, a few of the activities are not challenging enough for the brightest children in the setting.  Children’s starting points when they enter the school vary from year to year due to the differing make-up of each year group. Children’s knowledge and skills are generally in line with or a little below those typical for their age in most areas of learning. However, this is not always the case, because some year groups have relatively large proportions of children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. 

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Early years provision Good

The use of additional funding is enabling disadvantaged children to progress just as well as other children in the setting.  Most children now make good progress in the early years, relative to their starting points. The numbers of children reaching levels that are broadly typical for their age are usually in line with or above those found nationally.  Teaching in the early years is typically good. Staff regularly assess what children know, understand and can do and adapt the activities to help children learn more effectively. Staff recognised that some children did not have as strong communication and language skills or personal and social skills as in other areas of learning. As a result, staff set up several ‘role play areas’, such as a post office and a doctor’s surgery. Adults in the setting work alongside the children and skilfully intervene to extend these skills. 28–29 September 2016  The staff team are currently focused on providing some more challenging and

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Early years provision Good

stimulating activities to help ensure that the most able children in the early years extend their knowledge and skills still further. 28–29 September 2016

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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

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Email address admin@st-joseph-st- teresas.doncaster.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 11–12 September 2014

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Information about this school

 The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.  This school is smaller than average-sized primary schools. It is federated with another Catholic primary school in the same diocese.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium funding is broadly average. However, this does vary from year group to year group. In some year groups, almost half of the pupils are disadvantaged.  The majority of pupils are of White British heritage.  The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is smaller than that found nationally.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is broadly average. However, the proportion of pupils with a statement of special 28–29 September 2016 educational needs or with an education, health and care plan is above average and is high in some year groups.  The school meets the government’s current floor standard, which sets out the

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Information about this school

minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics. 28–29 September 2016

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching and learning in a range of subjects and heard pupils in key stages 1 and 2 read.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in classrooms, in the playground and around school.  Discussions were held with pupils, senior leaders, staff, governors and representatives from the local authority and from the diocese.  A number of documents were examined. They included the school’s view of its own performance, records of the checks made on teaching and learning, the school improvement plan, information about pupils’ progress and records relating to attendance, behaviour and safeguarding.  Inspectors took account of the views of parents through analysis of the school’s own questionnaire to parents and the 20 responses to Ofsted’s online parent questionnaire (Parent View).  The 16 responses from staff to the inspection questionnaire about the school were also scrutinised.

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Inspection team

Fiona Gowers, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Angela Harper 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

In the report, 'disadvantaged pupils' refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. www.gov.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and- alternative-provision-settings .

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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.

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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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.gov.uk/ofsted

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