Setting

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

p.1

Lisa Hobden Headteacher St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School Hardybutts Wigan Lancashire WN1 3RZ

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School

Following my remote visit with Tim Vaughan, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 5 November 2020, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the visit’s findings. Thank you for the time you made available to discuss your actions since September 2020, when the government expected all schools to open fully to all pupils.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School

This visit was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections are temporarily suspended. Following changes to government guidance and the imposition of COVID-19 (coronavirus) lockdown restrictions, we made this visit remotely to reduce pressure on the school.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School

Ofsted’s visits to schools during the autumn term are not inspections. We are not giving graded judgements. We did not undertake the usual range of inspection activities and were unable to check other sources of evidence, such as visits to lessons or looking at pupils’ work. The content of this letter gives an overview of our discussions about what has happened in your school this term.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School

During the visit, we spoke to you and the senior and middle leadership teams. We did not speak to pupils.

p.1

Context

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s education system is managing the return to full education for pupils, following an extended break in formal schooling due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

p.1

Context

In undertaking this focused work, HMI are visiting a broad range of schools. HMI will visit a sample of:

p.2

Context

 approximately 1,200 schools across all Ofsted grades (outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate)  maintained schools, academies and free schools, special schools and centres of alternative provision, including those in cities, and coastal, town or rural communities.

p.2

Context

The information from this visit will feed into Ofsted’s national reporting so that the insights can be shared with the government and the education sector. We did not find any significant concerns during the visit. In such a case, an inspection report would be published on our website and available to parents and carers.

p.2

Context

We did not consider your response to COVID-19 during the spring and summer terms 2020, when the school was not open to all pupils.

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 You opened the school to all pupils on 2 September 2020.  Pupils’ attendance is slightly above what it normally is at this time of year.  Pupils are studying all subjects from the primary national curriculum, but you have made some changes to the content of some subjects. For instance, in physical education, pupils are not currently swimming because the local pool has closed temporarily. You plan for pupils to return to your usual curriculum by summer term 2021.  Teachers in all classes have carried out assessments of pupils’ reading. You told us that these assessments did not identify common gaps in pupils’ knowledge. However, you have increased the amount of time pupils spend reading in all subjects, to strengthen their fluency, understanding and enjoyment of reading.  In mathematics, you have found that pupils’ understanding of place value is not as secure as you would expect at this point in the school year. You have

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

ensured that there is a whole-school focus on developing this understanding.  Teachers have also checked pupils’ knowledge in other subjects. They have identified important learning that may have been missed or forgotten during the spring and summer terms. Curriculum plans have been adapted to address these gaps.  You have developed a remote-education programme that matches the school’s usual curriculum. This can be delivered in the event of individuals, classes or the whole school needing to self-isolate at home.

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Thank you again for contributing to this important national work. The views and experiences you have shared will help to inform future policy.

p.3

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the director of education for the Archdiocese of Liverpool, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Wigan. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

p.3