St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale

Inspection of St Gabriel’s Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale Vicarage Road South, Castleton, Rochdale, Lancashire OL11 2TN

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 6 and 7 February 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at St Gabriel’s Roman Catholic Primary come in to school every day with a smile. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are proud of their success.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils consistently meet the high expectations that the school sets for their achievement. Pupils, including those with SEND, are absorbed in lessons. This is reflected in the work that they produce and how excited they are to talk about what they have learned. Pupils are well prepared for the next stages of their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils respect each other. They are extremely polite and well-mannered. Their tremendously positive attitudes mean that there is no disruption to their learning. Pupils trust staff to deal with any rare incidents of misbehaviour quickly. Pupils value the strong relationships that they have with adults at the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils diligently carry out positions of responsibility, particularly their ‘paid roles’ in Year 6. They enjoy earning rewards from the school bank for completing their duties such as being computer monitors or sports leaders.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including those with SEND, embrace the opportunities to take part in local events. For example, they star in theatre productions with the local amateur dramatic society and take part in sports competitions at a football club in the community. These opportunities add considerable value to pupils’ learning and wider development.

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better?

The school has ensured that there is a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum on offer to all pupils, including those with SEND. From the Reception class to Year 6, the school has carefully mapped out the key knowledge that pupils should learn in each subject.

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better?

Staff are well equipped to design learning activities that enable pupils to learn the curriculum well. They benefit from the high quality of training that the school provides. This helps them to deliver the curriculum as intended.

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better?

Staff are adept at identifying the misconceptions and misunderstandings that pupils have about their learning. In the main, they use assessment strategies well to identify where pupils may have gaps in their knowledge. Staff use this information effectively to shape pupils’ future learning. However, in a small number of subjects, staff do not provide pupils with enough opportunities to revisit their prior learning. This means that some pupils struggle to recall what they have been taught previously and, therefore, cannot build on what they know.

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better?

The school places reading at the heart of the curriculum. Pupils, and children in the Reception Year, read widely and often. They talked enthusiastically to inspectors 6 and 7 February 2024

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about their favourite books and authors. Staff carefully and systematically check that pupils can remember previously learned sounds. The school ensures that any pupils that find reading difficult get the extra support that they need to catch up quickly with their phonics knowledge. As a result, most pupils become confident and fluent readers by the end of Year 2.

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The school has effective systems in place to quickly and accurately identify the additional needs of pupils with SEND. Staff work well with parents and carers and a wide range of other agencies to secure appropriate support for pupils. Staff skilfully adapt the delivery of the curriculum to meet the needs of these pupils. Staff provide strong encouragement to pupils with SEND so that they become independent young people.

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Pupils, and children in the Reception Year, display a real thirst for learning. They demonstrate extremely positive attitudes to their learning. There is a calm and friendly feeling around the school. Pupils’ rates of attendance are high. Where there are any slight dips in pupils’ attendance, the school intervenes successfully to minimise any further absence.

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The school provides pupils with access to a broad programme of trips and visits that helps them to develop their talents and interests. Pupils understand how to keep themselves safe online and how to look after their physical and mental health. They benefit from the wide range of enrichment experiences on offer. For example, they enjoy ocarina and football clubs or performing in the school choir at local events.

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Pupils have a deep-rooted knowledge of fundamental British values. They pride themselves on making everyone feel welcome in their school, regardless of differences. However, pupils do not learn enough about different religions. As a result, pupils’ knowledge of this aspect is limited.

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Governors know the school community well. They provide strong support to the school and hold it to account effectively for the quality of education that pupils receive.

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Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the support that they receive to manage their workload. They appreciate the initiatives for pupil assessment that have been introduced to protect their well-being and workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, staff do not provide pupils with meaningful opportunities to revisit their prior learning. This means that some pupils struggle to recall what 6 and 7 February 2024

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they have been previously taught. The school should provide staff with the support that they need to help pupils to revisit key information so that their knowledge builds securely over time.  The school has not ensured that pupils learn enough about different religions. This means that some pupils are not as well prepared as they should be for life in modern Britain. The school should ensure that pupils access a suitable curriculum that fully prepares them for the future.

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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). 6 and 7 February 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 19 and 20 June 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The headteacher was appointed in January 2016.  This is a Catholic primary school within the Salford diocese. The last section 48 inspection took place in December 2016. The next section 48 inspection is due in the 2024/25 academic year.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.  The governors manage a breakfast and after-school club.

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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 that the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The lead inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 6 and 7 February 2024

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 The inspectors met with the headteacher, other senior leaders and staff. They also met with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to staff, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspectors also considered the curriculum in some other subjects.  The lead inspector observed some pupils reading to a trusted adult.  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 observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and breaktimes. They

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also spoke with pupils about their experiences of school.  The inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses. Inspectors also considered the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for staff and for pupils.

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Inspection team

Ruth Moran, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Peter Berry Ofsted Inspector 6 and 7 February 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 staff 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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