St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

Inspection of St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School Commerell Street, Greenwich, London SE10 9AN

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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 Good Previous inspection grade Good 18 and 19 April 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and staff are aspirational for all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders have high expectations for what pupils can achieve and want the very best for them. The curriculum ensures that pupils learn and remember knowledge successfully in most subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are kept safe and said that they feel like valued members of the ‘St Joseph’s family’. They trust adults to help them with any issues or worries that they may have. Pupils are happy and enjoy school. This is because there are warm and caring relationships between adults and pupils.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour is calm and orderly. Pupils generally show respect to each other and towards adults. Leaders have established clear expectations for pupils’ behaviour and conduct. Nevertheless, these expectations are not consistently upheld by all adults. In a few instances, staff do not expect pupils to stay focused on their work and develop the positive attitudes that leaders aim for.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have a wide range of opportunities and experiences outside of lessons. These are planned to support the development of their talents and interests. For example, pupils attend a variety of extra-curricular activities such as art, film and football clubs. Educational visits, including a residential for older pupils, enrich the curriculum and provide pupils with plentiful first-hand experiences of the wider world.

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better?

Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum that starts in the early years. The content of the curriculum is well chosen and clearly sequenced. Across a range of subjects, the key knowledge, skills and vocabulary that pupils need to learn and remember have been identified and mapped out with clarity.

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better?

Teachers have good subject knowledge. They know which strategies to use to enable pupils to learn and understand key ideas. This includes opportunities for pupils to practise and revisit what they have been previously taught. As a result, in most subjects, pupils develop their knowledge well. Sometimes, though, activities and resources are not chosen to help pupils remember this knowledge in detail and in the long term. For example, when talking about their prior and current learning, sometimes pupils are not expected to recall and use the vocabulary that they have been taught. This is particularly the case for the subjects where leaders’ curriculum thinking is not as far ahead, such as design and technology. In these subjects, pupils are less able to build on their prior learning or make meaningful links between knowledge.

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better?

Staff quickly identify where a pupil may need additional support with their learning and appropriate extra help is put in place. Pupils with SEND experience the same 18 and 19 April 2023

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curriculum as their peers. Leaders have made sure that staff are well trained to adapt their teaching to meet pupils’ needs. Leaders also work with external agencies to ensure that pupils get the right support.

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Leaders prioritise reading. Staff have been trained to deliver a structured phonics programme. As a result, most have the expertise to teach the early reading curriculum with confidence and precision. However, in a few instances, leaders have not ensured that all staff are confident in putting their training into practice. This means that, on occasions, support and adaptations are not sharply focused on increasing pupils’ phonic knowledge, especially for pupils who find learning to read difficult. Leaders have additional training and guidance planned for staff to address this.

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Pupils practise the phonics that they have been taught through reading books that are closely matched to the sounds that they know. Extra support is provided for pupils who have any gaps or are falling behind. Throughout the school, leaders promote a love of reading. For example, they invite parents in to read with their children, organise for older pupils to act as reading buddies for younger ones, and make books available for reading at breaktimes. Daily story time sessions are popular and enjoyed by pupils.

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In the early years, leaders have set out a clear approach to ensure children are ready for the next stage of their learning in Year 1. Systems and routines have been established to support children to learn the intended curriculum. However, on occasions, staff miss opportunities to extend children’s language and reinforce understanding of important ideas.

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The provision for pupil’s personal development is comprehensive and carefully thought through. Pupils have many opportunities to take on roles of responsibility. For example, they can be elected to be a member of the school parliament, a house captain, a sports leader, an anti-bullying ambassador or a school chaplain. Pupils learn how to keep physically and mentally healthy, as well as about respecting difference.

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Leaders and governors know exactly what they want for the school and its future. Governors provide an effective balance of challenge and support for leaders.

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All staff benefit from planned professional development, including collaborative working relationships with other local schools and the local authority. Staff are proud to work here. They feel that their workload and well-being are taken into account by leaders.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 18 and 19 April 2023

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Regular and relevant training for staff helps them to identify any pupil who may be at risk of harm. There are systems and procedures in place for concerns to be reported. Leaders respond to concerns raised in a timely manner. Leaders work well with other agencies to get help for pupils and families where needed.

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Pupils learn how to keep safe. They learn about keeping safe online and what makes healthy and unhealthy relationships. Pupils are supported to identify and manage their emotions. Pupils know that there are adults that they can talk to if they have any worries.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders have developed clear policies and procedures for learning and behaviour, including in the early years. However, not all staff fully understand and implement them. This leads to some inconsistencies in how well pupils learn and behave. Leaders need to ensure that their high expectations for learning and behaviour are realised by all staff, from the Reception Year onwards.  The curriculum is well planned and coherent. However, in some cases, its implementation is not enabling pupils to remember in the long term the crucial knowledge and skills that leaders have identified. Leaders need to support teachers to deliver the curriculum in all subjects in a manner that enables pupils to know more and remember more.

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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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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 April 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 9 May 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This school is a Catholic school within the Diocese of Southwark. A section 48 inspection, for schools of a religious character, was carried out by the Archdiocese of Southwark on 28 February 2017.  Leaders do not make use of any alternative provision.  The headteacher has been in post since September 2022.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.  This was the first routine inspection 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 carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, science and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. They listened to 18 and 19 April 2023

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pupils read. Other subjects were also considered as part of this inspection, including art, design and technology, and computing.  Inspectors met with the chair of governors, the local authority adviser, the headteacher and other senior leaders and subject leaders.  Inspectors spoke with leaders, staff and pupils about safeguarding. Inspectors also checked safeguarding records and documentation.  Inspectors considered the responses to the Ofsted Parent View survey and spoke to a number of parents informally during the inspection.  Inspectors also considered staff survey responses.

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Inspection team

Julie Wright, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Kieran Bird His Majesty’s Inspector 18 and 19 April 2023

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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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