Mawdesley St Peter's Church of England Primary School

Inspection of Mawdesley St Peter’s Church of England Primary School Hurst Green, Mawdesley, Ormskirk, Lancashire L40 2QT

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Inspection dates: 24 and 25 September 2024

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 24 and 25 September 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love coming to school. They told inspectors this is because staff encourage them to believe, achieve and shine. Pupils feel happy and safe in school. They work and play together well. Older pupils show kindness and friendship to the younger ones. Pupils behave well. They are polite and respectful towards their peers, staff and visitors.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for what pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), should learn. Pupils strive to realise the school’s aspirations for their success. Typically, pupils progress well through the curriculum and achieve highly in subjects, such as English and mathematics. They also develop a strong body of knowledge in some other subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning. They relish, for example, the opportunities staff provide for learning through nature in the local area. Through these activities, pupils learn many skills, such as taking managed risks when using tools. Children in the Reception Year learn how to cross the road and stream safely.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have some meaningful opportunities to contribute to life at the school. For example, the ethos group helped to write a new school prayer, and the school council contributed to the design and costings for refurbished toilets.

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

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum that is broad and balanced. It promotes equality and diversity well. As a result, pupils develop a deep appreciation for fundamental British values. They know the importance of respecting people’s differences.

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

Learning in most subjects is organised well, helping teachers to build pupils’ knowledge in a logical order. Where this is the case, pupils can connect and remember their learning over time in these subjects. In a small number of subjects, pupils have not retained the crucial knowledge set out by the school. This is because staff do not routinely check which learning pupils missed when reviewed programmes of study were introduced.

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

Classrooms are calm and purposeful. Pupils respond to the school’s high expectations for behaviour. Learning is seldom disrupted because pupils engage well in their lessons. In the early years, adults’ skilful interactions with children contribute strongly to their language and social development. For instance, a child playing alone with a long cardboard tube was guided to use it as a messaging device. Several children joined in, and the teacher enhanced their play with vocabulary that the children used independently once the teacher had left the group.

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

The school places a high priority on teaching pupils to read. Staff deliver the school’s phonics programme well. They carefully check for any gaps in pupils’ phonics knowledge. Timely extra support helps pupils to catch up with the phonics programme quickly. Children begin to develop a love of books in the early years. They love to join in with familiar stories and rhymes. Most pupils become confident, fluent readers by the end of 24 and 25 September 2024

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key stage 1. This helps them to experience the pleasure that comes from reading. This love of reading continues into key stage 2. Older pupils spoke animatedly to inspectors about their favourite books and authors.

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Staff ensure that learning activities are adapted appropriately so that pupils with SEND access the same curriculum as their friends. However, the additional needs of some pupils are not identified precisely enough. As a result, the targets set for them do not closely match their needs and they do not make the progress they could.

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The school understands the importance of providing opportunities that go beyond the academic. There is a well-designed curriculum for personal, social and health education that also responds to the needs of pupils as they arise. Pupils learn how to maintain healthy relationships with others. They know how to look after their physical and mental health.

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The school has built strong relationships with parents and carers. Parents are extremely positive about the school and its place in the community. They appreciate the efforts ‘Team MSP’ makes to involve them in their children’s learning. The school takes seriously any pupil’s absence and works with parents to resolve issues. Pupils’ levels of attendance are high.

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Governors understand their roles and carry them out well. Staff are proud to work at the school. They appreciate the school’s consideration of their workload and well-being. For example, they value the creation of staff teams to share subject leadership responsibilities.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 A small number of foundation subjects are at an early stage of implementation. Where this is the case, some pupils have gaps in their knowledge due to weaknesses in the previous curriculum. These gaps are not identified or addressed effectively by staff. This hinders pupils’ progress through the curriculum. The school should make sure that staff enable pupils to overcome the gaps in their previous learning so that they have secure foundations on which to build new subject information.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils with SEND do not have their needs identified and managed precisely enough. This limits teachers’ ability to provide the right support to help pupils to overcome barriers to their learning. The school should ensure that staff know the strategies that will enable all pupils to achieve the best possible outcomes. 24 and 25 September 2024

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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.

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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). 24 and 25 September 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 10 June 2021, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Church of England school in the Diocese of Blackburn.  The school’s most recent section 48 inspection was in October 2023. The next section 48 inspection is expected to take place by the end of autumn 2028.  A new headteacher has been appointed since the school was last inspected.  The school does not make use of any 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. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024, will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 24 and 25 September 2024

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  To review the work of the school, the inspectors spoke with the headteacher, other school leaders and representatives of the local authority and diocese.  The inspectors completed deep dives in these subjects: early reading, history and mathematics. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with staff and spoke with some pupils about their learning. They also reviewed a sample of pupils’ work.  The inspectors discussed some other subjects with the school and with pupils.  The lead inspector observed some pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to staff.  The inspectors discussed with the school its provision for pupils’ personal development,

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behaviour and attendance, SEND and early years.  The inspectors spoke with staff about their well-being, workload and training. Additional meetings were held with early career teachers and their mentor. Inspectors reviewed the responses from staff to Ofsted’s online survey.  Inspectors met with groups of pupils to ask them about their experiences of the school. They observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons, lunchtime and when moving around school. There were no responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.  The inspectors reviewed the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. An inspector spoke with some parents as they arrived at the school to collect their children.  The lead inspector met with members of the governing body, including the chair of governors. The inspectors reviewed examples of the minutes of meetings of the governing body.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors reviewed the single

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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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Inspection team

Sharon Cowey, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Lindy Griffiths Ofsted Inspector 24 and 25 September 2024

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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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