St Augustine's Catholic Primary and Nursery School, A Voluntary Academy

Inspection of St Augustine’s Catholic Primary and Nursery School, A Voluntary Academy Park Avenue, Mapperley Road, Nottingham NG3 4JS

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Inspection dates: 30 and 31 January 2024

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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

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Overall effectiveness Good

The headteacher of this school is Frances Moore. This school is part of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, James McGeachie, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Nigel Stevenson. Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s values of service, love, forgiveness, courage, justice, compassion and hope sing out from the school walls. These values guide the school’s work and serve as a model for how leaders, staff and pupils treat each other. Pupils know the school’s values inside out.

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What is it like to attend this school?

St Augustine’s is a calm, welcoming school. Pupils are friendly and polite. They enjoy meeting visitors and are proud to tell them about their school and their work. Pupils feel happy and safe, knowing they can turn to their ‘trusted adult’ if they have any concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well. They move sensibly around the school, using their ‘fantastic walking’. Staff use consistent routines to reinforce their high expectations. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are included in all aspects of school life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school proudly celebrates the many different cultures that pupils come from. On heritage day, pupils enjoy wearing national costumes. They and their families take joy in sharing food from their different cultures together.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value the opportunities they get to be leaders, for example by ‘leading the line’, as house captains and as members of the school council.

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better?

The school has made reading a priority. All pupils are taught the skills they need to become successful, independent readers. Children in Nursery enjoy learning initial sounds and tracing letters. In Reception, children learn the phonics sounds they need to succeed in reading. Teachers make phonics enjoyable, for example by ‘hiding’ the new sound for the day. Children are excited by their learning and join in enthusiastically. Those who need extra help come to school early and get close support from well-trained adults.

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better?

Leaders have ensured that all pupils can decode the books they are given. Pupils read a wide range of classic books and texts and ones that reflect the school community. Pupils enjoy learning and performing poetry. They love how the staff put on voices to read to them during story time.

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better?

The school has an ambitious curriculum that builds on children’s learning in the early years. The knowledge and skills that pupils should know and remember are set out in detail in every subject. Lessons typically begin with a ‘forget-me-not’ activity that helps pupils recall important knowledge. In some subjects, checks on pupils’ learning are not fully developed. It is not always clear how well pupils learn the intended curriculum. Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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At the regular coffee mornings, parents and carers can talk to staff about their concerns. Staff who work with pupils on a one-to-one basis use the strategies identified in pupils’ plans. This is not always the case when pupils with SEND learn alongside their peers in the classroom. On occasion, the curriculum is not adapted well enough to meet pupils’ needs.

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Children get off to a positive start in the early years. They quickly learn the routines that help them to settle and focus on their learning. Staff remind children of the importance of ‘good sitting’ and ‘good listening’. They encourage good hygiene and manners. The curriculum is carefully planned to build children’s vocabulary. The environment in the early years does not always support the aims of the curriculum as well as it could.

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Pupils’ conduct in school is calm and polite. There is little disruption to learning. Staff model and notice the behaviours they want to see, such as ‘fantastic walking’. Relationships are strong. The school teaches pupils the importance of the quality of their character as well as their work. Pupils know the importance of treating others with respect. They understand the qualities and values they need to be successful citizens.

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The school helps pupils to develop a strong moral compass. Quotes and stories from the Bible teach pupils about right and wrong. Quiet corners and ‘prayer chairs’ offer a space for quiet reflection. Pupils take part in a variety of trips. For example, they visit sites of historical interest in Nottingham. There is a range of clubs on offer, especially for sport. Some pupils would like there to be a broader offer.

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Staff feel supported by leaders. They feel that the new behaviour systems are helping them to manage their classes well. Staff know that their workload and well- being are considered.

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Trustees and governors complement the school’s work. They ensure that the school works on the right priorities, and they know when to step in with extra support.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few wider curriculum subjects, approaches to checking on how well pupils remember the taught curriculum are less well established. This means that leaders are not always aware of pupils’ misconceptions and do not adapt the curriculum accordingly. Leaders should continue to develop subject leadership so that there are firm mechanisms in place to review and adapt the curriculum in all subjects, from the early years upwards. Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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 The environment for learning in the early years does not always support children’s learning as well as it could. This means that children do not always have resources and activities to extend their learning. Leaders should continue to improve the environment in the early years.  Teaching does not always ensure that the needs of pupils with SEND are met in the classroom. The curriculum is not adapted well enough to take account of the strategies to support these pupils’ learning. The school should ensure that all teaching consistently uses the strategies in pupils’ SEND profiles to enable these pupils to make progress against the intended curriculum.

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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). Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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School details

Website www.st-augustines.nottingham.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20 March 2018

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Information about this school

 The school is part of the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust.  This is a Catholic school. The school’s religious character was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in December 2018. Its next section 48 inspection is due from September 2024.  The school does not use 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

 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 inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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 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.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, history and physical education. For each deep dive, the inspector discussed the curriculum with teachers, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site.  The lead inspector met with the chief executive officer of the multi-academy trust, members of the board of trustees and governors, including the chair of the governing body.  The inspectors gathered parents’ views by considering the responses to Ofsted’s

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online survey, Ofsted Parent View, and by talking to parents before school. The inspectors also evaluated responses to Ofsted’s staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Deirdre Duignan, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Ben Waldram Ofsted Inspector Academy 30 and 31 January 2024

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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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