St George's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of St George’s Church of England Primary School Buxton Road, Heaviley, Stockport, Cheshire SK2 6NX

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 11 and 12 July 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and well cared for in this school. They benefit from a broad and rich education. Leaders expect pupils to succeed academically. Pupils achieve well because they benefit from an effective curriculum that is taught well. They are welcoming towards others and they are happy to celebrate the differences between people.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Teachers have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils strive to give their best in lessons and around the school. Pupils conduct themselves sensibly and behave well. Pupils value the support that they receive from their teachers. They are respectful towards their peers and adults.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are confident that teachers will help them if they are worried or upset. This makes them feel safe. Bullying is dealt with seriously and promptly by leaders. However, sometimes leaders do not record concerns regarding safeguarding, attendance information or inappropriate behaviours accurately. As a result, governors and leaders do not have an effective oversight of such issues.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy a wide range of opportunities that nurture their interests. For example, they participate in different clubs such as gardening, dodgeball and sewing clubs. Pupils play a range of instruments such as the ukulele and keyboard.

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better?

Leaders have constructed a curriculum that matches the scope and ambition of the national curriculum. The curriculum is rooted in the school’s values and it helps pupils to appreciate the diverse society in which they live.

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better?

Leaders select the content of the curriculum carefully so that pupils are introduced to new learning in a logical order from the early years to the end of Year 6. The curriculum in the Reception classes enables the children to be well prepared for their education in key stage 1.

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better?

In most subjects, teachers have secure subject knowledge. Most teachers carry out effective checks to make sure that pupils have learned what they should. Teachers use this information carefully to address misconceptions and adjust their future teaching to quickly address any misconceptions.

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better?

Reading has a high priority across the school. Leaders make sure that children learn to read as soon as they start in the early years. Teachers deliver the phonics programme effectively. They ensure that pupils who find reading difficult, including those pupils with English as an additional language, receive the support that they need to catch up. Pupils develop a love for reading. They make extensive use of the school library. Pupils spoke enthusiastically about the fiction and non-fiction texts that they have read. 11 and 12 July 2023

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Leaders identify pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) early. They ensure that the right support is in place for pupils in and out of class. Leaders make sure that parents and carers are kept informed about their child’s progress. Teachers adapt their teaching to meet the needs of pupils with SEND so that they can achieve well.

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Pupils’ conduct around the school is mostly calm and orderly. They are cooperative and respectful towards one another in class. Pupils are eager to learn. Children in early years learn to share and regulate their emotions.

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Most pupils attend school regularly and on time. Leaders work with agencies that support vulnerable and disadvantaged families well. However, they do not analyse the information that they hold about pupils’ attendance as well as they could. This hampers their ability to spot patterns and to tackle persistent absences more efficiently.

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Leaders make sure that pupils receive sound guidance to ensure that they become active, socially responsible and tolerant citizens. Pupils who are new to the country feel welcomed. Pupils learn about being healthy in mind, body and soul. They understand what healthy relationships look like. Pupils can apply for a range of leadership positions such as eco ambassador and restorative ambassadors. Leaders support pupils’ mental health well. A range of trips and visits build pupils’ interests in the subjects that they study. For example, pupils’ trip to a Chester museum helped them understand more deeply the life of a Roman soldier.

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Leaders, including those responsible for governance, are committed to the school, its values and the community that it serves. However, governors do not have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. This is because they do not have sufficient understanding of their statutory responsibilities, including those related to safeguarding. This is compounded by the limited information that they receive from school leaders to support them in holding leaders to account effectively. Staff are positive about leaders’ measures to support their workload and well-being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

All staff are vigilant about signs and symptoms of safeguarding risks. Leaders enlist a wide range of services to support vulnerable pupils. All staff, including governors, receive training to keep pupils safe.

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Safeguarding

Staff report their concerns to safeguarding leaders in a timely manner and action is taken promptly. However, the records of these concerns, including incidents of inappropriate behaviour, are sometimes not accurate or recorded and reported clearly. Records of safeguarding incidents are sometimes held in numerous places. This hampers leaders’ ability to see patterns and take preventative measures where necessary. 11 and 12 July 2023

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Pupils know how to keep safe online. They learn to spot risk and inappropriate behaviour.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders do not record or report information about safeguarding and behaviour incidents well enough. This means that leaders and governors are not able to gain a clear picture of the school’s strengths and weaknesses in these areas. Governors should ensure that leaders improve their recording of safeguarding concerns and incidents of poor behaviour so that leaders are able to monitor the effectiveness of the school’s work more effectively.  Leaders do not analyse attendance information well enough. This means that they do not have a clear overview of absence trends, including for certain groups of pupils and new arrivals, over time. Governors should ensure that leaders analyse patterns of attendance more rigorously and that they receive accurate reports of these trends in order to hold leaders to account.  Governors’ understanding of their statutory responsibilities is not strong enough. This means that they sometimes accept the word of leaders and do not hold them

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

to account well enough. Governors should ensure that they are fully equipped to carry out their duties effectively.

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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. 11 and 12 July 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10256063 Type of school Primary

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.st-georges.stockport.sch.uk/

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13 December 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This school is part of the Diocese of Chester. The most recent section 48 inspection took place in February 2018.  The school admits a large number of pupils who have asylum seeker refugee status.  There is a before- and after-school club that is managed by the governing body.  Leader do not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded 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 COVID19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 11 and 12 July 2023

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 Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, members of the governing body, including the chair and vice-chair of the governing body, and representatives of the diocese and the local authority. Inspector also met with the SEND coordinator.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, history and art and design. 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.  The inspectors reviewed the school’s personal, social and health education programme along with the school’s approach to fostering pupils’ personal development.  Inspectors observed pupils reading to familiar adults.  Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and during break and lunchtimes  Inspectors examined the single central record and looked at how safeguarding

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incidents are reported and recorded. Inspectors spoke to leaders, teachers, support staff, governors and pupils about the culture of safeguarding in the school.  Inspectors considered the responses made by parents to Ofsted’s Parent View, including any free-text comments, as well as other surveys held by the school. Inspectors also spoke with some parents to gain their views of the school. Inspectors also considered the responses to the staff and pupil questionnaires.

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Inspection team

Zarina Connolly, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Tim Sherriff Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 July 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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