St Bede's Catholic Primary School

Inspection of a good school: St Bede’s Catholic Primary School Preston Road, Clayton Green, Chorley, Lancashire PR6 7EB

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Inspection dates: 18 and 19 October 2022

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Outcome

St Bede’s Catholic Primary School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff welcome pupils warmly each morning at St Bede’s. Pupils said that teachers are kind. This helps them to feel cared for and valued. Pupils trust staff to help them with any worries that they may have. They feel happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children in the early years delight in the activities that staff provide to help them to learn well. They grow in confidence and independence.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations for what each pupil should achieve. Pupils are enthusiastic and eager to learn. They join in classroom discussions and share their ideas enthusiastically. Most pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Teachers have clear expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils understand the rules and behave well. Poor behaviour seldom disrupts their learning. Pupils play happily with each other during break and lunchtimes. They know that if any bullying occurred, their teachers would act quickly to stop it.

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What is it like to attend this school?

From an early age, pupils enjoy taking on responsibilities, such as being milk monitors or becoming prefects. They care about others and regularly raise funds for a wide range of charities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have plentiful opportunities to explore their interests through a variety of after- school activities, such as the science, technology, engineering and mathematics club. They enjoy singing in the choir. They enjoy representing their school in the local inter- school sports tournament, The Clayton Cup.

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

The newly appointed headteacher, alongside the senior leadership team, has quickly established a clear view of the school’s strengths and those areas requiring further development. Along with governors, leaders have already set out a clear path to improve 18 and 19 October 2022

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the school further. Leaders are aspirational for all pupils, and children in the early years, at St Bede’s.

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Leaders have recently reviewed their curriculums. They have identified with clarity the essential knowledge that they want pupils, and children in the early years, to learn. Leaders have also carefully thought out the order in which new knowledge should be taught. However, as the curriculum has only just been reviewed, leaders remain in the process of establishing how effectively and consistently the curriculum is delivered by staff.

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Teachers make sure that pupils have appropriate opportunities to make connections between different areas of the curriculum. For example, pupils find out about Antarctica when learning about explorers in their history lessons. This knowledge is then deepened when they find out about this region in geography. Pupils, including children in the early years, develop a suitable depth of knowledge across the curriculum. Most learn well.

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Teachers present information clearly in lessons. They use leaders’ assessment systems well. Teachers regularly check what pupils remember before introducing new learning. This means that pupils build securely on what they already know. Pupils revisit and practise their knowledge so that they can recall this readily, when needed.

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Children in the early years benefit from well-designed and engaging experiences, both indoors and outside. Staff expertly develop children’s knowledge and skills through activities that excite and motivate them. For example, children were able to develop their knowledge of counting to 10 by embarking on a treasure hunt for a particular number of objects.

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Leaders want all pupils to become confident, lifelong readers. Pupils benefit from working with visiting authors and having regular visits to the library.

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Children start their journey to learn to read as soon as they begin in the Nursery class, where they enjoy joining in with stories and rhymes. They listen carefully to sounds, which successfully prepares them well for learning phonics as soon as they start in the Reception class.

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All staff are well trained to teach the phonics programme. The interesting books that staff choose for pupils precisely match the sounds that they are learning in class. This helps children and pupils to enjoy reading. They quickly become independent readers. Teachers swiftly provide extra support if pupils need to catch up with their reading knowledge.

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There are clear systems in place to ensure that leaders identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) in a timely manner . They have access to the same curriculum as other pupils. However, in some lessons teachers do not take account of the needs of pupils with SEND as well as they could to adapt the delivery of the curriculum. This means that some pupils with SEND do not achieve as highly as they could in their learning. 18 and 19 October 2022

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Staff help pupils to develop into respectful and responsible citizens who are well prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils develop a respect for people’s differences. They learn a great deal about different faiths and religions.

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Governors know the school well. They are supportive of the headteacher, but are not afraid to ask challenging questions. Staff are proud to work at the school. They appreciate the care that leaders take to ensure that they have an acceptable workload.

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Parents and carers are highly supportive of the school’s staff. Most would recommend it to others. They typically said that St Bede’s is a caring, nurturing school where children can thrive.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure a strong culture of safeguarding across the school. All staff receive regular safeguarding training. This helps them to be alert to any signs of harm or neglect that a pupil may face. Staff are aware of what to do if they have any concerns about a pupil’s welfare. Staff act on concerns quickly and diligently.

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Safeguarding

From an early age, pupils learn what to do if they have any worries or concerns. They learn how to stay safe, for example when using the internet and social media.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders’ revised curriculums are in the early stages of implementation. This means that leaders are not fully assured that the curriculums are being delivered consistently and effectively by all staff. Leaders should ensure that the new curriculums are implemented rigorously and evaluate their impact on pupils’ learning.  On occasions, teachers do not adapt the delivery of the curriculum well enough to meet the needs of some pupils with SEND. This means that a few pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that teachers develop the necessary skills to adapt the delivery of subject curriculums to meet the needs of all pupils with SEND.

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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 an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns 18 and 19 October 2022

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about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in May 2017.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents 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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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. 18 and 19 October 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10240167 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 23 May 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. The school’s most recent section 48 inspection took place in January 2018.  A new headteacher was appointed in September 2022.  Leaders do not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher, other leaders and members of staff.  The inspector scrutinised a range of safeguarding documentation, including the single central record. They spoke with staff to check how well they understood their safeguarding responsibilities.  The inspector considered a range of documentation, including leaders’ self-evaluation and plans for improvement. 18 and 19 October 2022

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 The inspector looked closely at early reading, mathematics and geography. The inspector spoke with subject leaders, looked at curriculum documents, visited lessons, and spoke with teachers and some pupils about their learning. They also looked at pupils’ work.  The inspector scrutinised curriculum documents and spoke to subject leaders across a range of subjects.  The inspector observed pupils read to a familiar adult.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at lunchtime and playtimes.  The inspector spoke with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. The inspector also spoke with a representative of the local authority and with a representative from the Archdiocese of Liverpool.  The inspector spoke with parents to gather their views about the school. The inspector considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey, including the free-text comments.

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 The inspector spoke with staff to gather their views about their workload and well- being and considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff.  The inspector gathered the views of pupils during the inspection and considered responses to Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.

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Inspection team

Julie Morley, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 18 and 19 October 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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