Our Lady and St Gerard's Roman Catholic Primary School, Lostock Hall

Inspection of Our Lady and St Gerard’s Roman Catholic Primary School, Lostock Hall Lourdes Avenue, Lostock Hall, Preston, Lancashire PR5 5TB

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Outstanding Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 1 and 2 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to this happy and caring school. They have positive relationships with their peers. Pupils appreciate how well cared for they are by kind and nurturing staff. This helps pupils to feel safe in school. Children in the early years make a remarkably strong start. They learn to manage their emotions and to consider the feelings of others. Pupils are well prepared for each stage of their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is ambitious for pupils’ achievement. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), live up to these aspirations. They achieve well across a broad range of subjects.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a wide range of trips and clubs that help them to develop their individual talents and interests. For example, pupils enjoy participating in theatre productions and competing in a range of sporting activities. All pupils benefit from learning to play a musical instrument.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of the positive contribution that they make to school life. They are enthusiastic about the responsibilities that they are offered. These responsibilities include taking on roles as school councillors or digital ambassadors. Pupils also raise funds for local and national charities.

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

Governors have worked closely with the school to improve the areas for development identified in the school’s previous inspection. This has resulted in improved standards across the school. By the end of Year 6, pupils achieve well in a range of subjects.

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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 which meets the needs of pupils. The content that pupils should learn and the order in which they should learn it has been clearly set out. This means that teachers know what to teach and when to teach it.

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

In most subjects, teachers have been well trained to deliver the curriculum effectively. They check that pupils’ understanding is secure before introducing new learning. Pupils have plentiful opportunities to revisit and practise what they have previously learned in these subjects. This helps them to know more and remember more over time. Pupils typically achieve well in these subjects. At times, staff are not quick enough to address the gaps that some older pupils have in their learning. When this happens, they move on to new learning before they are ready and do not achieve as well as they should.

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

The school has made sure that pupils develop a love of reading from an early age. In the early years, children have many opportunities to listen to stories and rhymes. The school has implemented an effective phonics curriculum. Teachers in the early years and in Years 1 and 2 skilfully build pupils’ phonics knowledge.

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

The school makes sure that pupils read books that are carefully matched to their phonics knowledge. Teachers quickly spot any pupils who may not be keeping up with the pace of 1 and 2 October 2024

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the phonics programme. Staff support these pupils to catch up with the reading curriculum quickly. Older pupils speak enthusiastically about the books that they have read and enjoyed.

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The school has designed effective systems to identify the specific needs of pupils with SEND. Staff ensure that these pupils learn the same content as their peers through suitable adaptations to the delivery of the curriculum. Overall, pupils with SEND achieve well. They participate in all aspects of school life.

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Pupils have positive attitudes to learning. Children in the early years settle exceptionally quickly to the school’s routines and they concentrate for sustained periods. They love learning outside in what they call the ‘classroom under the sky’.

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Most pupils attend school regularly. The school takes appropriate action to improve the attendance of those pupils who do not attend regularly.

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Pupils learn about a range of important issues, such as equality and diversity. They learn how to look after their health and emotional well-being, for example through talking with trusted adults if they have a problem. Pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships. They know how to keep themselves safe, including online.

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Governors perform their roles well. They know the school’s strengths and priorities for improvement and they provide effective challenge, while remaining considerate of staff well-being and workload. Staff are proud to work at the school. They are well supported to fulfil their roles effectively.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Weaknesses in the previous curriculum mean that, in a few subjects, pupils have gaps in their learning that teachers do not identify and address consistently well. This means that pupils sometimes do not have the essential knowledge on which to build. The school should continue their work to ensure that gaps in learning are identified, and that pupils are helped to catch up.

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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. 1 and 2 October 2024

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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 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). 1 and 2 October 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.ourlady-st-gerards.lancs.sch.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 21 and 22 September 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This Roman Catholic school is part of the Diocese of Salford. The last section 48 inspection, for schools of a religious character, took place in March 2017. The next section 48 inspection is expected to place by the end of 2025.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision for pupils.

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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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 1 and 2 October 2024

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 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the headteacher and other school leaders.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, geography, science and art and design. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at a sample of pupils’ work.  The lead inspector observed pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum and reviewed pupils’ work in some other subjects.  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

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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The lead inspector held a meeting with representatives of the governing body, including the chair of governors. She spoke to representatives of the diocese and the local authority.  Inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They considered responses from staff and pupils to Ofsted’s online surveys.  Inspectors spoke with pupils about their experiences of school and their views of behaviour and bullying. They observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes.  Inspectors spoke with staff about their workload and well-being.

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Inspection team

Cleo Cunningham, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Peter Berry Ofsted Inspector 1 and 2 October 2024

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