St Peter and Paul's Catholic Primary School, Mawdesley

Inspection of St Peter and Paul Catholic Primary School, Mawdesley Ridley Lane, Mawdesley, Nr Ormskirk, Lancashire L40 3PP

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Inspection dates: 16 and 17 November 2023

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Good 16 and 17 November 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this small and caring school. They arrive full of smiles and confidently say goodbye to their parents and carers. Positive relationships between staff and pupils are evident throughout the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are kind and considerate. They are supportive of one another and know what it means to be a good friend. Pupils play sociably with each other at breaktimes. They move around the school sensibly, demonstrating high levels of courtesy towards adults.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils develop a keen interest in a range of subjects. However, the school’s expectations of what pupils should achieve are not high enough in some subjects. Weaknesses in how well the curriculum is designed and delivered in some subjects mean that some pupils do not develop a deep body of knowledge over time. They do not achieve as well as they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), benefit from activities that help to keep them physically active. For example, they enjoy exploring the school woodland area and playing sports such as football and tag rugby. Some pupils have the opportunity to develop leadership skills by taking on responsibilities such as house captains, lunchtime monitors and by ringing the bell to signal the end of playtime.

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better?

The school has prioritised the teaching of reading from the early years to Year 6. Pupils read widely and often. They also enjoy adults reading carefully chosen books to them at story times. A new early reading and phonics curriculum has recently been introduced. Most staff have received appropriate training so that they deliver this programme effectively. As a result, children in the Reception class and pupils in key stage 1 gain a secure knowledge of phonics.

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better?

In some subjects, the school has ordered learning thoughtfully. Typically, in these subjects, when staff introduce new content, they ensure that it builds logically on pupils’ previous learning. Staff check on what pupils know and can remember. They use this information to shape future learning.

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better?

In several other subjects, however, the school has not ensured that the knowledge that pupils should learn is clear enough to staff. Subject leadership in these subjects is underdeveloped. The school does not provide effective support for some subject leaders. This means that these leaders lack expertise in designing and checking the implementation of subject curriculums. In turn, teachers do not receive the guidance and support that they need to design appropriate learning. They do not provide pupils with suitable activities to enable them to know more and remember more over time. Consequently, some pupils do not achieve as well as they should. 16 and 17 November 2023

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Pupils with SEND access the same curriculum as their peers. There are effective systems in place to identify pupils’ additional needs. The school ensures that pupils with SEND receive the support that they need. Nevertheless, the weaknesses in how well the curriculum is designed and delivered in some subjects mean that some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they should.

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Pupils are positive about their school and their learning. Most pupils are attentive and try their best in lessons. Low-level disruption is rare. Pupils know that the school rules are there to help them to learn and keep them safe.

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The school ensures that pupils’ physical and emotional health is supported well. Pupils are taught about healthy relationships and how to keep safe. However, other aspects of pupils’ personal development, such as their understanding of fundamental British values and cultures that are different to their own, are not secure. Pupils are not as well prepared for life in modern Britain as they should be.

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The school communicates well with parents and carers. For example, it guides them on how to support their child’s learning at home in reading. Parents told inspectors that they appreciate being invited to weekly celebration assemblies. This helps them to feel involved in their children’s education.

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The school is considerate of staff’s workload and well-being. For example, it considers how best to implement new initiatives without overburdening staff.

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Governors are also mindful of the well-being of staff across the school. However, they do not have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and priorities. This means that they do not provide the level of challenge that the school needs to ensure that pupils receive a high-quality education.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

While pupils are safe at this school, inspectors found some shortcomings in the safeguarding arrangements. The school, including governors, does not ensure that all staff have up-to-date training in all aspects of safeguarding. In addition, the school does not record safeguarding concerns as well as it should. This makes it challenging for the school to carefully monitor safeguarding concerns. It also makes it difficult for the school and governors to evaluate the effectiveness of their safeguarding practices. However, pupils are not at immediate risk of harm.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school has not identified the essential knowledge that pupils must learn and in what order this should be taught in some subjects. This makes it difficult for teachers to design learning that enables pupils to build a secure body of 16 and 17 November 2023

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knowledge. This hinders pupils’ achievement. The school should clarify its curriculum thinking so that teachers know exactly what pupils must learn and when this should be taught.  The leadership of some subjects is underdeveloped. This means that teachers are not provided with the support and guidance that they need to deliver the curriculum well. The school should ensure that it develops subject leadership so that teachers are helped to deliver all subject curriculums effectively.  Pupils are not taught to understand the importance of fundamental British values and what these mean to them as citizens in modern Britain. This means that pupils are not prepared as well as they should be for life in modern Britain. The school should ensure that pupils have opportunities to become responsible and active citizens while preparing them for the diverse society in which they live.  Governors do not have a sufficient depth of understanding of the quality of

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education that pupils receive. Over time, they have not challenged the school sufficiently well about pupils’ learning. Governors should ensure that they gain a clear oversight of the effectiveness of the quality of education and hold the school to account for its actions to bring about improvement.  The school does not make certain that all staff have up-to-date training on all aspects of safeguarding. In addition, the school does not record safeguarding concerns as well as it should. This makes it difficult for the school and governors to evaluate the effectiveness of their safeguarding practices. The school should ensure that staff have well-developed safeguarding knowledge, and that it has a thorough record-keeping system that is used consistently well.

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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’ 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). 16 and 17 November 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.sspeterandpaulsschoolmawdesley.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 1 November 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Catholic primary school within the Archdiocese of Liverpool. The most recent section 48 inspection took place in October 2023. The next section 48 inspection is due from September 2028.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.  At the time of the inspection, there were fewer than five pupils in the early years.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this inspection under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We deemed the inspection a graded (section 5) inspection under the same Act.

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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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 16 and 17 November 2023

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 Inspectors met with the headteacher and other senior leaders. The lead inspector also spoke with a representative of the local authority and the diocese.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also observed some pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors 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.

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 Inspectors spoke with pupils in meetings and around the school at lunchtimes and breaktimes.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including leaders’ evaluation of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement and documents relating to pupils’ behaviour and attendance.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text responses. Inspectors also spoke with some parents during the inspection.  Inspectors reviewed the online surveys for staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Victoria Burnside, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan His Majesty’s Inspector 16 and 17 November 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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