Saints Peter and Paul Catholic High School

Inspection of a good school: Saints Peter and Paul Catholic High School Highfield Road, Widnes, Cheshire WA8 7DW

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Outcome

Saints Peter and Paul Catholic High School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to attend Saints Peter and Paul Catholic High School. They told inspectors that they feel well cared for and valued for who they are. They make friends easily and feel happy and safe at school. Pupils are knowledgeable about and accepting of differences between people and communities. They trust leaders to resolve any bullying incidents quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well in their lessons. They live up to leaders’ high expectations. Pupils are polite and try their best in class. They also behave well around school. They wear their uniforms with pride.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders, including governors, aim to secure pupils’ preparedness for life beyond school. Pupils benefit from this all-round ambition for their education. They typically enjoy school and achieve well, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who are disadvantaged.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value and benefit from the range of clubs that staff provide. They told inspectors that there is something for everyone to try and to enjoy. Pupils cited school drama productions, the ‘pride in who you are’ group and the sustainable gardening club as examples of the rich breadth of activities that are on offer.

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

Governors and leaders take the time to listen to the views of pupils about all aspects of school life. Leaders value and take account of what pupils tell them. This has helped leaders to put in place a broad and ambitious curriculum offer that matches the needs and interests of all pupils, including those with SEND. For example, leaders have adjusted and strengthened the curriculums in those subjects that make up the English Baccalaureate. This means that more pupils are well prepared to study these subjects at key stage 4. 5 and 6 July 2022

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Subject leaders have designed ambitious subject curriculums. These curriculums cover the important knowledge that staff need to teach. Subject leaders order learning thoughtfully so that important parts of the subject curriculums are built on well across lessons. Typically, pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, learn and achieve well.

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Staff know what they should be teaching. They use their knowledge of the curriculum to spot any gaps in pupils’ subject knowledge. Most staff then carefully reshape learning so that pupils’ knowledge is securely embedded before they move on to new subject content. However, in a few subjects, some staff are less skilled in selecting the most suitable activities to build pupils’ understanding. Consequently, in these subjects, some pupils lack the rich subject knowledge that they acquire in other subjects.

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Leaders identify with accuracy any pupils who find reading difficult. Skilled staff provide effective support so that this group of pupils become confident and fluent readers. Staff provide all pupils with meaningful opportunities to read regularly across the curriculum subjects. These opportunities help pupils to become more proficient readers and confident learners.

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Leaders have effective systems in place to identify pupils with SEND. Staff use their training well to ensure that pupils with SEND, including those pupils who attend the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision), get the help that they need to access the curriculum.

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Pupils arrive to lessons on time and ready to learn. They pay attention to their teachers. Pupils are confident to join in with and contribute to learning activities. Their learning in lessons is not disrupted by poor behaviour from other pupils.

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Leaders ensure that pupils access a well-designed personal development curriculum that prepares them well for life in modern Britain. Pupils are offered a wide range of clubs and activities to widen their experiences and knowledge. Pupils are supported well to make choices about their next steps into education, employment and/or training through useful and impartial careers advice and guidance from staff and visitors.

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Staff told inspectors that they appreciate leaders’ efforts to support their well-being and to ensure that they have a reasonable workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that staff are kept up to date with any risks that pupils may face. Staff are trained to spot the signs that pupils may be at risk of harm. This means that they are vigilant and report concerns quickly. Leaders make sure that any concerns about pupils’ safety and well-being are acted upon promptly.

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Safeguarding

Leaders are quick to identify whether pupils require additional support from external agencies. They ensure that pupils get the timely help that they need. 5 and 6 July 2022

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Pupils learn about a range of risks to their safety and how to avoid them. They are confident to seek help from staff when they need it.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, some pupils do not develop rich knowledge. This is because some teachers do not select the most appropriate activities to help pupils to deepen their learning. Leaders should ensure that teachers are supported to design effective approaches to learning that enable pupils to practise and strengthen their knowledge.

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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 as 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 June 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.

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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 July 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10226296 Type of school Secondary comprehensive

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School details

Number of pupils on the school roll 1,278

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.saintspeterandpaul.halton.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6, 27 and 28 June 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Catholic school. The school’s most recent section 48 inspection took place in January 2018.  This school includes a specially resourced provision for up to 12 pupils, aged 11 to 16, diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.  A small number of pupils attend alternative provision at one registered external provider.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection that the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with senior leaders and subject leaders.  The lead inspector met with a group of governors, including the chair of the governing body.  The lead inspector spoke with representatives of the Archdiocese of Liverpool. 5 and 6 July 2022

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 The lead inspector spoke with the school’s improvement partner and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors reviewed the school’s records of safeguarding checks and referrals to the local authority. Inspectors spoke with staff about how they keep pupils safe. Inspectors also asked pupils how they learn to keep themselves safe and what to do if they have any concerns.  Inspectors held discussions with staff and considered the responses to Ofsted’s survey for staff.  Inspectors spoke with pupils from all year groups and considered the responses to Ofsted’s survey for pupils.  Inspectors considered the views of the parents and carers who responded to Ofsted Parent View. This included the free-text responses.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in art and design, English, history and mathematics. In these subjects, inspectors met with subject leaders, considered subject curriculums, visited a

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sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also looked at curriculum documents and samples of pupils’ work from some other subjects.

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Inspection team

Stephen Ruddy, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Elizabeth Haddock Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 July 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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