St Peter's Catholic Primary School

Inspection of a good school: St Peter’s Catholic Primary School Augusta Place, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire CV32 5EL

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Outcome

St Peter’s Catholic Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Christian values are at the heart of St Peter’s school. Staff bring to life the school’s mission statement of ‘We put Jesus at the heart of everything we do’. Pupils speak with confidence about being kind, and about forgiveness and hope.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe and happy in school. They have confidence in the staff to take care of them. One pupil said, ‘If I have any worries, there is always an adult to look after me.’ Pupils know how to keep themselves safe when using the internet and when cycling on roads.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well. They move around the school sensibly. Pupils enjoy helping each other when working together on tasks and activities. Pupils say that bullying does not happen. Pupils take on extra roles, such as buddies, prefects and school councillors. They help others by raising funds for charities, including a school for the blind in Sierra Leone.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The outdoor play area in early years does not promote learning as effectively as indoors.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff have high expectations of pupils. However, leaders know that pupils need to remember more in history. Staff work hard to ensure that pupils ‘learn and grow as children of God’. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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

Since the previous inspection, the headteacher, ably supported by her governors and teachers, has worked relentlessly to ensure that all pupils achieve well. High standards in reading, writing and mathematics have been maintained over time.

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

Leaders have designed an exciting curriculum, which joins up learning with other subjects. Leaders structure subjects to ensure that pupils develop new knowledge and skills step by step. The curriculum meets the needs of all pupils effectively. Pupils’ social skills develop through a curriculum enhanced by a well-attended range of after-school 17 December 2019

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Pupils learn about different cultures. Year 5 and Year 6 pupils studied Louis Sachar’s book ‘Holes’. They learned about life in Texas and the consequences of being in a juvenile correction centre through making wrong choices. This had a strong impact on their cultural and moral development.

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Pupils enjoy learning. They concentrate well in lessons because teachers give them work that keeps them occupied. There is no low-level disruption because learning is exciting. Pupils have positive attitudes and do not give up when learning is hard.

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Reading is at the heart of the school curriculum. Pupils are avid readers. They recommend books by Michael Morpurgo and David Walliams to one another, by talking about the ‘best bits’. The school’s rigorous approach to reading begins as soon as children start early years. Younger children can work out unfamiliar words because of the clear way in which teachers teach the sounds that letters make. Teachers pronounce these sounds with clarity and precision and model how to write them.

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The mathematics curriculum is demanding and well ordered. Pupils enjoy learning mathematics. In Years 3 and 4, pupils know the mental methods to multiply by 10, 100, and 1000. They easily remembered what to do, because of the clear explanations given by the teacher.

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In history, Year 3 and Year 4 visited a site in Telford to learn about life in the Stone Age. Pupils handled animal skulls. They compared reasons for hunting in the past and today. This helped them understand the need to protect animals. Year 2 and Year 3 pupils reflect on whether inventions, such as plastic, discovered by Alexander Parkes, are safe for the environment. Sometimes, in history, pupils do not have sufficient opportunities to revisit topics. This prevents them from remembering what they have previously learned.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve well because adults understand their difficulties and support them in lessons. Teachers have high expectations of these pupils and adapt work well to meet their needs.

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Children are happy and settled in the early years. The indoor environment is well organised. Pupils share equipment and cooperate well. They busily use their early reading, mathematical and creative skills. Staff provide helpful support to develop children’s vocabulary skills effectively. However, the outdoor area is not as well developed. As a result, the rich language and broad range of learning that exists indoors, especially writing, is not taking place as effectively outside.

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The headteacher and leaders have worked successfully to ensure that the school keeps on improving. Staff told inspectors that leaders manage their workload well and that they are well supported.

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Parents say that they are delighted with everything that the school offers, because their children love learning and enjoy coming to school. 17 December 2019

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding is strong in the school. This is because leaders and governors take safeguarding seriously. They make sure that staff get the training they need to keep children safe. Staff know exactly what to do if they are worried about a pupil. School records show that any concern is followed up straight away.

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Safeguarding

Checks are made of the school site by staff and governors to ensure that the premises are safe for adults and pupils. Pupils know the school’s ‘five finger code’ of the trusted adults they go to if they have a worry.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have made sure that in all subjects the curriculum was clear about what pupils need to learn and when they will revisit what has been taught. This helps pupils know more and remember more. However, in history, plans are not delivered as well as they should be. As a result, some pupils do not remember what they have learned as well as they do in other subjects. Leaders need to ensure that teachers know when to revisit what has been taught so that pupils commit the new learning to long-term memory. They also need to make sure the teachers check that pupils have remembered what has been taught.  Leaders have thought carefully about the content of the early years curriculum. However, the outdoor environment in the early years is not as inviting or well developed as the indoor area. This means that learning is not as effective as it should be. Further work is needed to continue to improve the outdoor area so that it promotes

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

all areas of learning effectively, particularly writing, and matches the same good quality as that of the indoor environment.

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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 second section 8 inspection since we judged St Peter’s Catholic Primary School to be good. 17 December 2019

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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.

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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 December 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10111775 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Chair of governing body Miriam O’Gorman-Brown

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School details

Website http://dev.st- peterscatholic.warwickshire.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 28 January 2016

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Information about this school

 Leaders have chosen to create a separate Reception class since the last inspection.  The school is being led by an acting headteacher because the headteacher is on leave.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors met with the headteacher, acting headteacher, the leader of early years, the special educational needs coordinator, teachers and the chair of governors. The lead inspector spoke by phone to a senior member of the Archdiocese of Birmingham Education Service.  Inspectors considered reading, history and mathematics in depth as part of this inspection. Inspectors evaluated leaders’ curriculum plans, undertook learning visits, met with teachers, talked to parents at the school gate and reviewed a range of pupils’ work. Inspectors also met with pupils to discuss their experience of school.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of school documents, including leaders’ plans to improve the school’s and pupils’ behaviour records.  Inspectors met with the school’s designated safeguarding lead and reviewed the school’s arrangements for keeping pupils safe. Inspectors also considered the quality of 17 December 2019

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staff training.  Inspectors observed playtimes and lunchtime.  The inspectors considered 37 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey.

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Inspection team

Bogusia Matusiak-Varley, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jeremy Bird Ofsted Inspector 17 December 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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