St Luke's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of a good school: St Luke’s Church of England Primary School St Crispin Drive, Duston, Northampton, Northamptonshire NN5 4UL

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Outcome

St Luke’s Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this school. They told me that they like their lessons. They appreciate the way teachers support them to learn and help them to achieve their best. Pupils feel well cared for. They say that there are always adults to talk to if they feel worried or unhappy. Relationships between adults and pupils are strong. Conversations between adults and pupils are good natured. Pupils behave well and are respectful. For example, pupils greet their teachers with handshakes as they enter the classroom. Pupils look after each other. For example, at lunchtimes older pupils help younger pupils to play games and make friends.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are many opportunities for pupils to enjoy learning beyond their lessons. Pupils take part in a wide variety of sports and other clubs. They enjoy experiences linked to the curriculum. For example, some pupils recently visited Bletchley Park. This helped them to learn about events in the Second World War.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say that they feel safe in school. There are few instances of poor behaviour. Pupils told me that staff deal with any bullying well. The large majority of parents and carers speak fondly about the school. They value the care and quality of education the staff provide.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school provides a good quality of education. Leaders’ ambition is for all pupils to achieve their best in a nurturing environment. They plan sequenced steps of learning for pupils in most subjects to achieve these aims. However, some subjects do not show how knowledge links together over time. Leaders, including trust leaders, are reviewing curriculum plans to improve this.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Where leaders have planned the order of learning in different subjects, teachers know what to teach to pupils and when. Teachers are clear about what pupils need to know before they can take on more challenging work. For example, in physical education (PE), 17–18 September 2019

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pupils in Year 2 used their knowledge of basic movements to create ways to attack and defend in a game of tag rugby.

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On a day-to-day basis, teachers adapt their lesson plans so that pupils gain good knowledge and understanding in most subjects. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve well. Adults provide additional support for pupils with SEND when it is needed. Pupils with SEND told me that teachers provide equipment to help them to complete their work successfully. This helps them to catch up or move on to more demanding work as soon as possible.

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Younger pupils make a strong start in learning to read. Children learn to read from the beginning of the Reception Year. Teachers are well trained to teach phonics. Leaders ensure that pupils who are slower to make progress catch up quickly. The words in the books pupils read match with the sounds they are learning. Pupils make good progress in their reading. They build their vocabulary well. Teachers help pupils to become fluent readers and understand what they are reading. Throughout the school, the importance of reading for pleasure is evident. Even reluctant readers are happy to read to the ‘reading dog’.

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Mathematics is well taught. Teachers plan lessons that help pupils build the mathematical knowledge they need. Teachers make sure that pupils practise and apply their knowledge in daily ‘fluency sessions’. This helps pupils to remember important mathematical concepts.

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Some teachers do not maintain consistently high expectations of the quality of pupils’ work in books. This lowers the standard of their written work across subjects.

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Staff are supported well to be successful in their roles. They appreciate the training that leaders and the trust provide. Teachers told me that leaders are very considerate of their well-being and workload.

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The school supports pupils’ personal development well. Besides the many extra-curricular clubs and events, pupils have good-quality pastoral care. For example, the KCAR (keep calm and relax) club cares for pupils at lunchtimes. Pupils lead whole-school collective worship. They focus on issues such as bullying to make sure that all pupils understand and know what to do to keep safe.

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Children in the early years are happy and kept safe in an exciting environment. Communication with parents is good. Parents appreciate the workshops provided by the school. These help them with their child’s learning at home. The curriculum is well planned to meet children’s needs. Teachers make sure that children make a good start to their early reading and mathematics. Children develop a good understanding of the world around them. They make good progress across the curriculum. They are nurtured and well prepared for their learning in Year 1.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 17–18 September 2019

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A strong culture of safeguarding exists throughout the school. Staff and governors receive up-to-date training to identify the potential risks for pupils. They know what to do if they think a pupil may be at immediate risk.

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The designated leaders for safeguarding act promptly to ensure that pupils are safe. They work with external agencies to get pupils and their families the help they need. Leaders teach pupils how to stay safe in a range of circumstances. These include when using the internet and cycle safety.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 While the school’s curriculum is planned to build pupils’ knowledge sequentially, it is not always clear how aspects of knowledge are linked over time, for example how pupils’ knowledge of shape and space in mathematics is developed across the year and through the school. Leaders should ensure that curriculum plans clearly identify how aspects of knowledge are connected in all subjects.  Although some teachers have high expectations of the quality of pupils’ work, this is not consistently the case across all classes. Not all teachers maintain high expectations of the quality of pupils’ spelling and handwriting, for example. Leaders should insist that all teachers maintain high expectations of the quality of pupils’ work.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called a section 8 inspection of a good school or non-exempt outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that the school could now be better than good or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first section 8 inspection since we judged the predecessor school, St Luke’s Church of England VA Primary School, to be good on 14–15 May 2014.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school. 17–18 September 2019

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

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. 17–18 September 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10110110 Type of school Primary

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School details

Website http://stlukesprimaryschool.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school converted to an academy in November 2016.  The school is part of the Peterborough Diocese Education Trust (PDET).  A section 48 inspection of the predecessor school’s religious character took place on 2 December 2015. The school was judged outstanding.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector visited lessons in all year groups and spoke to teachers about the lessons they deliver.  Visits to lessons were carried out jointly with senior leaders.  The inspector listened to pupils read. Pupils told the inspector about how they learn to read and about books they enjoy.  Pupils told the inspector about their school and showed her examples of their work.  Meetings were held with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and assistant headteacher. The inspector met with the subject leaders for English, PE and mathematics. The inspector also met with the leaders responsible for the early years and for the provision of pupils with SEND. 17–18 September 2019

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 The inspector met with four members of the governing board (including one member who joined the meeting by telephone), the governance lead for PDET and two representatives from the trust.  Parents spoke informally with the inspector at the start of the school day. The inspector also took account of the 87 responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, and the 40 responses to Ofsted’s survey for staff. There were no responses to the pupils’ survey. However, the inspector scrutinised the school’s own surveys carried out with pupils.  The inspector looked at a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation of current performance and plans for improvement; the overview of the school’s curriculum planning; the school’s most recent published information on the achievement and progress of pupils; information relating to safeguarding; information about behaviour management; information relating to the school’s use of the pupil

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premium funding and funding for pupils with SEND and the school’s most recent information relating to the attendance of pupils.  The inspector considered the teaching and learning in reading, mathematics and PE, and scrutinised the school’s planning and pupils’ work in subjects such as science; personal, social, health education; geography and history.

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Inspection team

Stephanie Innes-Taylor, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 17–18 September 2019

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regulates and inspects to 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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