Setting

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Sarah Staniforth Head of School St Peter & St Paul Catholic Primary School Coppice Drive Newport Shropshire TF10 7HU

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School

Following my visit to your school on 12 December 2019, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. The findings do not change the overall effectiveness judgement of outstanding from the last section 5 inspection.

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School

This inspection was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for a no formal designation inspection of schools. The inspection was carried out to enable Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector to better understand the quality of education in specific subjects provided by outstanding primary schools.

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Main findings

You evaluated the whole-school curriculum last year. As part of this evaluation, you identified French as a significant weakness. This was caused by staffing issues and some ineffective teaching. Leaders took the decision to stop the teaching of languages for a set period of one to two terms. You did this so that you could re- evaluate the subject plans for languages and work on a new scheme to reintroduce a more effective foreign language curriculum.

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Main findings

Since the curriculum review, pupils have access to some language learning within their wider curriculum, in particular during the autumn term. For example, pupils learn about different countries, cultures and customs as well as religions in the ‘window into the world’ topic. Plans are now in place to begin the teaching of a foreign language in summer 2020. Leaders, in their new plans, are suitably ambitious for all pupils. You have thought about what skills and knowledge pupils need to learn to become good linguists. You have begun to recognise that a solid basis of letters and their sounds in English and in a foreign language prepares pupils well for key stage 2. New subject plans in languages correctly place greater emphasis on the teaching of skills such phonics and grammar as well as vocabulary. They include the teaching of the sounds letters represent, which is a vital skill that was previously missing from the teaching of

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Main findings

You liaise with the local secondary school to seek advice and support to ensure that all staff will be trained and have the subject-specific knowledge they need. Furthermore, you envisage the new foreign language, either French or Spanish, to be ‘prominent in all aspects of school life’, for example by including the foreign language in the Lord’s prayer.

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Main findings

Pupils understand the value and benefits of learning a new language. Pupils can give many examples of how learning a language could help them in later life. Pupils say that they did not enjoy their French lessons because they did not challenge them enough. For example, in the past pupils were taught large numbers of words without the basic skills of what to do with these words in a sentence.

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Main findings

Pupils speak very highly of the languages they are currently learning in the wider curriculum. For example, Year 6 pupils were studying South America as a topic, and they explained how they learned Spanish and Portuguese words and used them in their learning throughout this topic.

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Evidence

I met with you, the curriculum leader and two members of staff. I spoke to pupils from Year 4, 5 and 6 about their learning in languages. I evaluated the curriculum plans and policies for languages.

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Context

Your school is a smaller-than-average size primary school. It is a Catholic faith school. There are currently 191 pupils on roll. The proportions of pupils from minority ethnic groups and pupils who are entitled to free school meals are below average. The school has a broadly average proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Context

I am copying this letter to the chair of governors and the regional schools commissioner and the Director of Children’s Services for Telford and Wrekin. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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