St Edmund's RC Primary School

Inspection of St Edmund’s RC Primary School Upper Monsall Street, Miles Platting, Greater Manchester M40 8NG

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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 17 and 18 July 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this friendly and welcoming school. They told inspectors that they appreciate seeing their friends each day and that they enjoy being part of the school’s community. Pupils know that staff will help them if they have any concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for what pupils can achieve, which most pupils rise to. Pupils, including those who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), typically learn well. They value recognition for their hard work, such as through celebration assemblies.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well during lessons and at social times. They eagerly help their peers. For instance, older pupils help to serve food and to sweep up at lunchtime. Many pupils have a strong appreciation of equality issues. They know the ways that people are unique and the reasons why many of these differences are protected in law.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a range of experiences. For example, they go on trips to art galleries, museums and other places of interest. Year 6 pupils look forward to a camping residential. These visits help to enhance pupils’ learning of the curriculum. The school provides sports clubs, including in football, running and basketball. Some older pupils run their own lunchtime activities, such as book and computing clubs.

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better?

The school, with appropriate support and challenge from the governing body, has successfully addressed the areas for improvement identified at the time of the last inspection. For example, the school quickly identifies the additional needs of pupils with SEND. Staff work closely with parents and carers, and external professionals, to help these pupils to follow the school’s full curriculum.

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better?

The school has designed and adopted a suitably broad and balanced curriculum. It has determined the important knowledge that pupils should acquire and the order in which teachers should introduce it. Most pupils achieve well across a range of subjects.

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better?

Teachers have strong subject knowledge. They mostly choose suitable activities and explain new learning well. However, occasionally, teachers do not focus well enough on helping pupils to learn new vocabulary and concepts. As a result, some pupils develop gaps in their learning, which limits the depth of their knowledge.

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better?

Staff typically use assessment strategies effectively to identify how well pupils are progressing through the curriculum. Teachers use this information to shape future learning. Nonetheless, they are not as persistent in checking or correcting pupils’ mistakes, including in their written and spoken communication. This hinders some pupils in learning as well as they should. 17 and 18 July 2024

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The school has prioritised reading. It has designed the curriculum around high- quality texts, starting from the beginning of the early years. Pupils read widely and often. They visit the school’s ‘book den’ regularly. Older pupils recently ordered some new books, following a review of which books their classmates would like to read. Pupils develop their reading fluency by listening carefully to oral storytelling.

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Children in the early years listen and join in with plentiful stories, rhymes and songs. This helps to prepare them for learning phonics at the start of the Reception Year. Staff have had training in implementing the phonics programme following the school’s agreed approaches. They provide pupils with books to practise their reading which match pupils’ phonics knowledge. Staff typically provide effective support for pupils who find reading difficult. This helps most pupils to become confident, accurate readers.

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Pupils are polite, well mannered and respectful towards others. Most pupils have positive attendance habits. The school is continuing to work with some parents to ensure that pupils attend school on time and as regularly as they should. Pupils know why it is important to attend school; for example, they explained to inspectors that it will help them to achieve their future aspirations. Pupils said that they might like career pathways that involve becoming surgeons, authors, engineers and pilots.

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The school provides well for pupils’ personal development. Pupils learn how to be safe and healthy. They also develop their leadership skills. For example, older pupils take on several leadership roles in school, including acting as science ambassadors, digital leaders, house-point captains, nurture champions and members of the ‘GIFT’ team. Pupils learn how to be active and responsible citizens as part of the ‘urban crew’. They visit a local care home and take part in litter-picks in the nearby area.

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Staff appreciate being part of the school and described it as like being part of a family. The school takes good account of their workload and well-being, for instance by providing training and additional time for them to fulfil their roles successfully. Staff benefit from working alongside staff from the other school in the federation.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

n In a few subjects, teachers do not help pupils to learn new vocabulary and concepts sufficiently well. Over time, this causes gaps in some pupils’ learning which prevent them from developing a richness of knowledge. The school should ensure that staff help pupils to understand subject-specific vocabulary and concepts so that they achieve more depth in their learning. 17 and 18 July 2024

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 From time to time, staff do not check or address pupils’ mistakes thoroughly enough. This means that the errors that some pupils make, including in their written and spoken communication, go uncorrected. The school should support staff in identifying and remedying pupils’ inaccuracies with more persistence, so that pupils learn as effectively as they should.

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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). 17 and 18 July 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.stedmundsrcprimaryschool.co.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 7 and 8 March 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

n The school is one of two schools that form the Federation of St Edmund’s and St Patrick’s RC Primary Schools. Governance is shared across both schools. n The school does not make use of alternative provision for pupils. n The school provides a breakfast club for pupils.  This Roman Catholic school is in the Diocese of Salford. The school’s last section 48 inspection, for schools of a religious character, was in June 2019. The next section 48 inspection is due to take place before June 2027.

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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

n Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision. n Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 17 and 18 July 2024

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n Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders and visited a sample of lessons. They spoke with teachers and with some pupils about their learning. Inspectors looked at samples of pupils’ work. They also considered the curriculum in some other subjects. n The lead inspector observed some pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to a familiar adult. He discussed reading with a group of older pupils. n Inspectors met with the headteacher and other school leaders. The lead inspector met with representatives of the governing body, including the chair of governors. He also spoke with representatives of the local authority and of the diocese. n Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and around school, including at breakfast club, at playtime and during lunchtime. They spoke with several

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groups of pupils about their experiences at school and considered the responses to Ofsted’s online pupil survey. n To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single central record and took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils. They considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first. n Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation, including the school’s self- evaluation documents, improvement plans, minutes of governing body meetings and documents pertaining to pupils’ behaviour and levels of attendance. n Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being. They considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff.  Inspectors took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They spoke with some parents at the start of the school day.

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Inspection team

David Lobodzinski, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Olivia Barnes Ofsted Inspector 17 and 18 July 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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