St Jude's Church of England Primary Academy

Inspection of a good school: St Jude’s Church of England Primary Academy Paget Road, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV6 0DT

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Outcome

St Jude’s Church of England Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have created a school where everyone is respected and feels welcome. St Jude’s is a warm and happy place. Pupils enjoy being here and feel safe. They know that they are cared for. Parents and carers are equally positive, making comments such as, ‘My child has progressed leaps and bounds since attending.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and pupils are proud that it is okay to be different here. Pupils are friendly and polite. They are sensible and behave very well whether in or out of the classroom. Pupils are confident that staff would deal with any incidents of bullying effectively. The school is calm and settled.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are attentive in lessons. Teachers have high expectations of all pupils. Staff arrange small groups for pupils who need support. These pupils improve their work and well-being as a result. Pupils make strong progress in their learning and achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders ensure that pupils take part in a wide range of activities beyond the academic curriculum. For example, pupils learn Spanish, learn to play the synthesiser, sleep outdoors in a yurt and enjoy a residential trip to Edgmond Hall. Pupils enjoy their responsibilities across school, including working as sports leaders to help younger pupils during lunchtimes.

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

Children settle quickly into school routines. Staff provide young children with effective care and support. Children develop trusting relationships with each other and with staff. Learning in early years is fun. Staff carefully plan and teach the concepts that children need to learn. They skilfully develop children’s language skills. They ask lots of questions that encourage the children to talk. When teaching mathematics, staff use appropriate resources to support children’s learning. Adults work with children in small groups when they need extra support to improve their skills. Staff use outdoor spaces well to engage children in learning through play. Children make good progress in early years. 1 and 2 February 2022

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The teaching of phonics and early reading is effective. Teachers make learning phonics fun. They use rhymes that pupils repeat, such as, ‘pat on the back, fancy that’ and, ‘same sound, different appearance’. This helps pupils to remember the sounds that they are learning to read. Leaders want all pupils to succeed in phonics. They make sure that pupils who fall behind receive effective support. As a result, pupils quickly learn to read confidently and fluently.

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Leaders prioritise reading across the school. Leaders have carefully chosen engaging books that are appropriate for each year group. Pupils listen to and learn from a wide range of books. Older pupils describe different authors and stories they enjoy, although younger pupils are less confident in talking about these things. Leaders check that all pupils read to an adult at least twice a week in school. Pupils of all ages enjoy and value reading.

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In mathematics, key concepts such as addition and multiplication are carefully sequenced so that pupils deepen their knowledge over time. Teachers build in opportunities for pupils to revisit and practise what they have already learned. Pupils use their knowledge to solve problems and explain their reasoning. In most lessons, mathematical resources are used well to support pupils. Sometimes, when working sums out in their head, pupils do not use the simplest way to solve these mathematical calculations. This slows them down.

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Pupils benefit from a rich and varied curriculum. Leaders make sure that all pupils study a wide range of subjects. Leaders guide teachers to know what to teach and when to teach it. This helps pupils deepen their learning as they build on what they have learned before. However, at times, teachers do not identify pupils’ mistakes in their work soon enough. This means that pupils continue to make the same errors.

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Leaders have recently updated the curriculum. Some subjects, including art, are carefully sequenced and well established. Pupils have deeper knowledge in these subjects. For example, Year 6 pupils know about the artist L S Lowry and his use of the vanishing point. In a few subjects, the curriculum is not as well developed. Leaders have only recently begun to revise and implement subjects such as computing and design technology. Pupils do not yet have a depth of knowledge in these subjects.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported very well. The SEND coordinator ensures that pupils with SEND are fully included in all school activities. Leaders’ passion for inclusion helps these pupils to make strong progress.

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The local academy committee is going through a period of transition in membership. The trust works closely with the committee. The trust uses external expertise effectively to evaluate the strengths of the school and to hold leaders to account.

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Staff appreciate the way that leaders support them and manage their workload. This is a happy, harmonious school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 1 and 2 February 2022

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Leaders ensure that the correct checks are carried out on staff before they start work at the school. Leaders train staff regularly so that they know how to keep pupils safe. Staff are vigilant. They report any concerns promptly. Leaders and staff identify the support that pupils need quickly. Leaders work effectively with external agencies to keep pupils safe and access the help they need.

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Older pupils explain how to keep themselves safe on the internet. If pupils see anything that worries them, they know that they should ‘block, flag and report’ it to an adult.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum in some subjects, including design technology and computing, is not as well developed or implemented as in others. This means that pupils’ learning in these subjects is not as effective as it could be. Leaders should ensure that the curriculum in these subjects is further embedded so that pupils deepen their knowledge and understanding.  In some classes, teachers do not pick up on pupils’ errors quickly enough. For example, pupils use capital letters in the wrong place and incorrectly form upper- and lower-case letters on the line. Teachers do not address these mistakes consistently well, so pupils’ misconceptions persist. Leaders should ensure that staff check that pupils’ misconceptions are addressed in a timely way so that pupils understand how to improve their 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 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 first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2017.

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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. 1 and 2 February 2022

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The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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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. 1 and 2 February 2022

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School details

Headteacher Denise Dalton (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

Website www.stjudes.wolverhampton.sch.uk

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Date of previous inspection

10 and 11 January 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, there has been a new chair of the local academy committee.  There have been changes in senior leadership and in the leadership of some subjects.  The school is part of the St Chad’s Academies Trust.  The school is in a partnership with Trinity Church of England Primary Academy in Wolverhampton. The schools share the same executive headteacher. Leaders work together across both schools, but have responsibility for their own subjects in their own school. Both schools are part of the trust.  The school received its most recent section 48 inspection on 30 March 2017. Section 48 inspections were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They restarted in September 2021. The next inspection will be within eight years of the previous section 48 inspection.  The school does not use alternative provision. 1 and 2 February 2022

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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 his evaluation of the school.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector met with the headteacher, the head of school and a number of other school leaders.  There was a meeting with the chief executive officer of the multi-academy trust, the chair of the local academy committee and the trust diocesan adviser.  Deep dives in reading, mathematics and geography were carried out. Each deep dive included discussions about the curriculum with subject leaders, visits to lessons and scrutiny of pupils’ work. The inspector also met with pupils to discuss their learning in these subjects and listened to pupils read.  The inspector considered a range of documents provided by the school.  The inspector reviewed safeguarding records, including the checks made on staff prior to appointment. Training logs were also reviewed.  The inspector reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s Parent View survey, including the free-text responses.  The inspector reviewed the responses to Ofsted’s staff questionnaire and spoke to staff

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Information about this inspection

throughout the inspection.  The inspector spoke to pupils informally throughout the inspection in lessons and out on the playground at break- and lunchtime.

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Inspection team

Mark Cadwallader, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 1 and 2 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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