Corpus Christi Catholic School

Inspection of a good school: Corpus Christi Catholic School Langbank Avenue, Ernesford Grange, Coventry, West Midlands CV3 2QP

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 October 2023

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Outcome

Corpus Christi Catholic School continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The principal of this school is Kevin Shakespeare. This school is part of the Romero Catholic Academy, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the senior Catholic executive leader, Helen Quinn, and overseen by a board of directors, chaired by Brendan Fawcett.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are welcoming, happy and enthusiastic. The school has developed an inclusive community. Pupils understand the importance of diversity and difference. For instance, pupils talk proudly about their annual cultural diversity week when they celebrate the cultural heritage of pupils in the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s mission is to ‘open the hearts and minds’ of all pupils. This is the cornerstone that underpins all aspects of school life. High expectations for behaviour and learning are well established from the start. Pupils strive to ‘be safe, be kind, and be your best’. Pupils rise to meet these expectations. Positive relationships across the school build on the school’s values.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The curriculum includes many hands-on experiences for pupils through the school’s ‘Romero child’s charter’ enrichment programme. Staff are ambitious for all pupils. They deliver a creative and engaging curriculum to all pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Some pupils with SEND also benefit from nurture and expertise in the school’s ‘mini hub’ provision.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school makes sure that all pupils benefit from the extensive enrichment offer. Pupils enjoy an exciting range of clubs. These include cooking, eco-warriors, photography and extensive sports clubs utilising the purpose-built sports area.

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

The trust, governors and staff have high aspirations for all pupils, both socially and academically. Inclusion is at the heart of this school. Every pupil accesses a broad 24 and 25 October 2023

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curriculum where the content is organised in a way that helps pupils to progress. Staff identify the key knowledge that pupils need to learn, from Nursery through to Year 6.

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Reading is prioritised across the school. Staff’s strong practice in the early years, combined with carefully selected books that are matched to pupils’ phonics knowledge, enables children to confidently rehearse and practise the sounds that they have learned. Interventions for those pupils falling behind are effective, as staff quickly identify misconceptions and provide effective modelling. This helps pupils to develop into fluent and confident readers. The school promotes a love of reading throughout the curriculum. Leaders have selected a diverse range of ‘must-read’ books. This ensures that all pupils experience a wide range of texts. Pupil librarians take their responsibilities seriously, ensuring that their exquisite library area is a place where all pupils can relax and enjoy books.

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Teachers carefully plan tasks to help pupils revisit prior learning, ensuring that pupils have no gaps in key knowledge before moving on to new learning. Pupils’ work is of a high quality. In mathematics, pupils demonstrate effective use of calculation strategies and problem-solving skills. The high-quality physical education curriculum inspires all pupils to succeed and excel in competitive sport. The many opportunities for pupils to compete in sport build confidence and help to embed values, including fairness and respect.

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The early years curriculum is exemplary. The stimulating environment enables children to be independent. Children are highly motivated and sustain concentration when participating in exciting and interesting activities. Children become confident and develop their communication skills well.

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Leaders know the needs of pupils with SEND well. There are effective procedures in place to identify pupils’ barriers to learning. Leaders offer timely and effective support to ensure that pupils with SEND can take part in the same learning as their peers. For example, the school makes use of practical equipment to ensure that mathematics is accessible for all. However, the school’s strategies for some of the younger pupils with social and emotional needs are not as effective as they could be in helping these pupils to remain focused in lessons.

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Most pupils behave well, both in and out of class. They know the importance of working hard. Staff have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils know this and try their best not to let their teachers down.

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Spiritual, moral and social development underpins school life. Many older pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, undertake pupil leadership responsibilities. These include being on the school council, sports ‘game changers’, head pupils, junior police community support officers and anti-bullying ambassadors. As one pupil noted, this means they can ‘make a difference and be role models for younger pupils’.

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The school has experienced a high level of staff changes recently. As a result, some subject leaders are new to role, so they have not been able to fully evaluate the effectiveness of some of the wider curriculum areas. 24 and 25 October 2023

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The school takes staff’s workload and well-being into consideration when making decisions. Staff value the training provided by the trust to develop teaching expertise and subject leadership. Parents and carers talk highly of the school and value the support they receive from staff.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some foundation subject leaders are new to fulfilling the responsibilities and expectations of their role. As a result, these leaders are at the early stages of developing the necessary experience and skills to drive improvements in their subjects. The school should continue to draw on support from the trust to provide new subject leaders with the right training and opportunities to develop their confidence and expertise in monitoring and improving their subject.  Some pupils in key stage one with social, emotional and mental health needs do not receive the best support in lessons to help them regulate their emotions and behaviour. As a result, they are not accessing the curriculum as well as they should. The school should embed recently introduced strategies to ensure that consistent support is in place for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs so that they achieve well.

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

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Corpus Christi Catholic School, to be good in May 2015.

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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. 24 and 25 October 2023

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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' is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 24 and 25 October 2023

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School details

Website https://corpuschristi.coventry.sch.uk/

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6 March 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school joined the Romero Catholic Academy in August 2015.  The school is in the Archdiocese of Birmingham. The school’s last section 48 diocesan inspection was in January 2017. Section 48 inspections were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They restarted in September 2021. The school’s next inspection will be within eight years of the last section 48 inspection.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision for pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and senior leaders. 24 and 25 October 2023

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 The inspector talked to a representative from the diocese.  The inspector met with representatives from the local governing body and the board of directors.  The inspector met with the senior Catholic executive leader.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of pupils’ work.  The inspector listened to pupils read to a familiar adult.  The inspector considered a range of documents, including the school’s self- evaluation and improvement plans. Minutes of local governing body meetings and reports from external reviews were also scrutinised.  The inspector looked at records of pupils’ attendance and behaviour. The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school and talked to

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them about behaviour, bullying and welfare.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspector talked to parents at the start of the school day. The inspector also reviewed the responses to the surveys for staff, pupils and parents and gathered the views of staff and pupils through discussion.

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Inspection team

Cathy Young, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 24 and 25 October 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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