St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Redhill

Inspection of a good school: St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Redhill Linkfield Lane, Redhill RH1 1EA

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Outcome

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Redhill continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to be part of this diverse and welcoming community. They feel safe and happy. An atmosphere of kindness, inclusion and mutual respect permeates through the school. Pupils learn in an environment where they thrive and flourish. Pupils have a strong focus on what is right and wrong that underpins the decisions that they make.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff have trusting and caring relationships with pupils. Pupils are polite and courteous. They behave well in lessons and around the school. Pupils understand that bullying is not tolerated here. They are confident that any incidents of unkind behaviour will be dealt with quickly. One pupil said, ‘We are all friends – it doesn’t matter what we look like or where we come from.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders aspire for pupils to enjoy school, achieve their potential, and are well prepared for their future lives. Pupils have many opportunities to develop their leadership skills, such as being a house captain, computing ambassador or part of the primary leadership team. They enjoy taking part in the different clubs and activities that are available. Currently, pupils are very excited that a number of trips to places such as Hever Castle are being reintroduced.

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

Leaders are ambitious for all pupils, including children in early years. They are determined to motivate pupils to become lifelong learners. The school’s values of ‘respect, resilience, responsibility, empathy, adaptability and ambition’ are regularly celebrated and rewarded when pupils demonstrate them.

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

Leaders place great importance on reading. They are ambitious for every pupil to become a confident and fluent reader. Children get off to a flying start in Reception. Story times are engaging and teachers foster a love of reading. Pupils are given books to read that are carefully matched to the sounds they learn in lessons. Staff quickly spot when pupils fall behind and give extra help when it is needed. While the teaching of phonics is 8 and 9 February 2022

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carefully organised and largely effective, leaders have identified that some staff require further training to develop their expertise.

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Mathematics is taught effectively. Staff successfully introduce younger children to a range of mathematical concepts. Consequently, children use their knowledge of number to discuss and develop their ideas. Teachers provide opportunities for pupils to recall and revisit previous learning at the start of each lesson. This helps pupils to make links with their learning and embed their knowledge. However, in some subjects, teachers do not always check and make sure that pupils understand how different parts of their learning link together precisely enough.

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Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Lessons are interesting, lively and engaging. Pupils are inquisitive about their work. They share and discuss their ideas in lessons in a considerate way. In early years, children carefully follow the well-established routines and are deeply engaged in their learning.

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Teachers identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) accurately. They work closely with staff to ensure that pupils with SEND are provided with learning that is closely matched to their needs. Where required, leaders work positively with external professionals to make sure that these pupils get the help they need.

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The personal development of pupils is embedded into the everyday life of the school. Pupils learn why it is important to show respect and empathy to others. They are very knowledgeable about their rights and those of others. Pupils talk respectfully about the similarities and differences in religious celebrations. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain. They attend services at the local church, organise and raise funds for national and international charities, and attend national events to showcase their singing talent.

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Governors share leaders’ ambitions and commitment for all pupils and staff to succeed. Leaders and governors look after their staff exceptionally well. Staff enjoy working at the school. They feel valued and say that leaders consider their workload and well-being. Parents and carers are highly appreciative of the school’s nurturing ethos. One parent echoed the thoughts of many by saying, ‘This is a great school – there is such a caring attitude towards everyone.’

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have well-established systems in place to keep pupils safe. This includes carrying out appropriate checks to ensure the suitability of staff. Regular training means that staff understand what to do if they are worried about a pupil. Leaders follow up any concerns quickly. They make sure that pupils and their families receive the help they need. Leaders work well with external agencies to ensure that support is timely and appropriate. Pupils know what actions to take to keep themselves safe, including when online. This includes speaking to a trusted adult in the school if they have any worries. 8 and 9 February 2022

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 At times, there are inconsistencies in how phonics is taught. Leaders should continue providing staff with phonics training to further strengthen staff expertise. This will help ensure that all staff are clear about how to teach the school’s phonics programme.  In some of the foundation subjects, teachers do not check and help pupils make links with what they know already. This means that over time, pupils do not remember the essential knowledge as well as they could. Leaders need to sharpen assessment in the foundation subjects to ensure that it is as effective as it is in the core subjects.

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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 or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, 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 deem the section 8 inspection a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in February 2012.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View 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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How can I feed back my views?

If you are the school and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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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. 8 and 9 February 2022

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.stjosephs-redhill.surrey.sch.uk

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Date of previous inspection

31 January 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Roman Catholic voluntary-aided primary school. Its most recent section 48 statutory inspection of Anglican and Methodist schools took place in June 2017.  The school is currently using one alternative provider.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders, and has taken that into account in her evaluation of the school.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector met with the headteacher, senior leaders, staff and pupils.  The inspector met with three governors, including the chair of the governing body. The inspector also had telephone discussions with a representative from Surrey local authority and a representative from the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector met with subject leaders, looked at 8 and 9 February 2022

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curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of pupils’ work.  To inspect safeguarding, the inspector checked the single central record of recruitment checks and talked to leaders responsible for safeguarding. The inspector also talked to a range of staff and pupils informally.  The inspector considered the responses to the confidential staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school.  The inspector took account of the responses to Ofsted’s Parent View questionnaire and the additional free-text responses.  The inspector met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils informally during social times and in lessons.

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Inspection team

Louise Walker, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector 8 and 9 February 2022

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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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