St Luke's Catholic Primary School

Inspection of St Luke’s Catholic Primary School Shaw Lane, Prescot, Merseyside L35 5AT

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 5 and 6 April 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend St Luke’s. They said that they enjoy coming to school because learning is interesting. Pupils know that staff care about them, which helps pupils to feel safe and happy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils succeed in the calm and caring environment that leaders have created. Pupils work hard and are eager to learn. This is because staff have high expectations for all pupils to achieve well. Pupils in the school council take their role seriously. This prepares them well for the future by developing a sense of responsibility. For example, they have held debates and helped to obtain parasols for the playgrounds and a salad bar for lunchtimes.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils understand the importance of treating everyone with kindness and respect. They behave well and develop positive relationships with others in the school. They are confident that any concerns about bullying would be dealt with quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the clubs that they can join. These include mindfulness, dance and multi-sports. They have helped to deliver food hampers and have taken part in services at a local church. This helps to develop their experience of the wider world.

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better?

Leaders have put in place an ambitious, well-designed curriculum. Subject leaders are knowledgeable about their subjects and share this expertise with teachers. Leaders give careful thought to the order in which teachers deliver the subject curriculums. For example, in science, pupils learn about electrical circuits before they build fairground rides in design technology.

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better?

Teachers use their strong subject knowledge to deliver the planned curriculum well in most subjects. In these subjects, assessment strategies are well developed and allow teachers to check that pupils have learned the curriculum. However, this is not the case in a minority of other subjects. In these subjects, leaders are unsure whether pupils have learned all that they should.

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better?

Leaders recognise the importance of pupils learning to read. Staff read to pupils daily, which helps to develop pupils’ love of reading. There is a clear structure and sequence to the teaching of phonics in the early years and also in key stage 1. Staff provide effective support to pupils who struggle to read well. Most pupils develop the ability to read fluently and confidently. This helps pupils to improve their comprehension skills across all year groups.

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better?

Leaders are ambitious for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders ensure that these pupils’ needs are identified early. Staff have received training in how to support pupils with SEND well. As a result, these pupils have access to the full curriculum and achieve well. 5 and 6 April 2022

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In the early years, the curriculum in some areas of learning, such as reading and mathematics, is well ordered. In other areas of learning, leaders are still in the process of finalising the curriculum. Unlike other key stages, the early years curriculum does not set out clearly the precise knowledge that children need to learn. This hinders children’s preparation for Year 1.

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Leaders have high expectations for pupils’ behaviour. There is little disruption to learning. Pupils show high levels of respect towards each other. When taking part in discussions, pupils listen and respond to each other well. They are polite and well mannered to adults.

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Pupils have a wide range of experiences and opportunities to promote their wider personal development. The curriculum is used to develop pupils’ character and to prepare them for life in modern Britain. Pupils learn about diversity, how to manage relationships and the importance of respect. Leaders have also prioritised pupils’ well-being. Staff ensure that they support pupils to develop their confidence and resilience, so that pupils are ready for the next stage of their education.

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Leaders and governors work well together to improve the school. Governors have an accurate understanding of the quality of education on offer at the school. Leaders take account of the workload and well-being of staff. They make sure that they prioritise tasks which have the biggest impact on pupils’ learning.

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Parents and carers have highly positive views about the school. As one parent said: ‘St Luke’s is a wonderful, nurturing school, where the children are always at the heart of all that they do.’

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders make sure that the safeguarding of pupils is a high priority. Staff are well trained to identify and support pupils who may be at risk. The procedures for reporting concerns are understood by staff. Leaders work effectively with other external agencies. When concerns are identified, leaders access support for children and families quickly.

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Safeguarding

Pupils learn how to stay safe as part of the curriculum. This includes learning how to stay safe around dogs and when crossing the road, and how to avoid risks when they are online.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few subjects, assessment strategies are not well developed. Leaders are therefore unsure whether pupils have learned all that they should. Leaders should 5 and 6 April 2022

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ensure that assessment strategies are secure in all subjects. This will allow teachers to plan learning that builds on what pupils already know.  In the early years, leaders have not identified the most important knowledge that children need to learn in some areas of learning. This hinders children’s preparedness for the curriculum in Year 1. Leaders should ensure that the early years curriculum in all areas of learning clearly identifies leaders’ intended learning. They should also make sure that the curriculum is clearly ordered so that children can build on what they already know.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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. 5 and 6 April 2022

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School details

Local authority Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council

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School details

Inspection number 10226179 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 3 and 4 July 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Catholic primary school, within the Archdiocese of Liverpool. Its most recent section 48 inspection took place in February 2020. The next inspection will be within eight years of the last section 48 inspection.  Leaders do not use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  In order to judge whether the school continues to be good, the inspectors focused the inspection on specific subjects of the curriculum. Inspectors undertook deep dives in reading, mathematics, science and geography. This involved meeting with senior and subject leaders, scrutinising the curriculums and visiting lessons in these subjects. Inspectors met pupils from the lessons visited 5 and 6 April 2022

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and looked at their work. They met with the teachers from the classes visited. Inspectors listened to pupils reading.  Inspectors looked at the single central record and checked the school’s systems for monitoring and reporting safeguarding concerns. They also met with the designated safeguarding leader.  Inspectors met with the special educational needs coordinator to help evaluate provision and practice for pupils with SEND in the school.  Inspectors spoke with a range of staff and pupils to find out what it is like to be a pupil, or to work in this school.  Inspectors met with a representative group of governors.  Inspectors reviewed key documents, including the school’s self-evaluation form, school action plans and monitoring records.  Inspectors checked all survey responses, including those from pupils, staff and parents. This included taking into account 10 responses to Ofsted Parent View,

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Ofsted’s online survey. They also met with some parents on the second day of the inspection.

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Inspection team

Simon Hunter, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Janette Walker Her Majesty’s Inspector 5 and 6 April 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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