St Pius Xth Catholic Primary School, Consett

Inspection of St Pius Xth Catholic Primary School, Consett Thornfield Road, The Grove, Consett, County Durham DH8 8AX

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good

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Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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The headteacher of this school is Joanne Cruise. This school is part of the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Nick Hurn OBE, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Martin Gannon. 1 and 2 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a small, and welcoming school. Pupils enjoy a broad and ambitious curriculum. The school is aspirational for all pupils to broaden their knowledge and understanding of the wider world, and achieve well. Pupils are enthusiastic learners. They are nurtured and valued as individuals. The school weaves its religious character through the curriculum. It is vividly reflected in the warm and respectful relationships.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy school, feel safe and behave well. They develop strong, trusting relationships with staff. Pupils are confident that staff will help them with any worries they have. Staff deal with incidents of poor behaviour effectively. From the early years, pupils develop positive attitudes to learning. Most engage well in their lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the variety of school clubs available, such as rugby, dance and golf. They hold positions of responsibility and develop leadership skills. These include as members of the school council and being a ‘Mini Vinnie’ or ‘Eco Warrior’. Older pupils appreciate the opportunity to be ‘Reading Angels’, where they help to develop and manage the school library. Pupils develop a keen sense of the importance of looking after others. They eagerly organise and participate in many charity fundraising activities run by the school.

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

The school has reviewed and revised the content of the curriculum. The curriculum is carefully sequenced from the early years. Children in the early years make a positive start to school life. They develop their early numeracy and literacy skills well. Some curriculum subjects are new and in the early stages of implementation. New approaches to teaching are helping pupils of all ages to know more and remember more of the curriculum.

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

The school is determined to raise standards. The school is eager for more pupils to exceed national expectations. Curriculum subjects are designed to build and extend pupils’ knowledge over time. There is a strong focus on ensuring that pupils develop an increasingly deep knowledge and understanding of the wider world. However, the checks that teachers make on pupils’ learning is inconsistent. As a result, teaching is not consistently well focused to address gaps in some pupils’ learning. On occasion, these pupils lose concentration and do not achieve as well as they could in lessons.

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

Children in the early years learn the right things to equip them for their learning in key stage 1 and beyond. This includes an emphasis on developing children’s language and communication skills. The school has thought carefully about how pupils learn important subject vocabulary. For example, from the early years, teachers encourage pupils to use learned vocabulary when answering questions. Pupils relish responding using different voices or whispering the meaning of words to their friends.

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

Children start to learn phonics from the beginning of the Reception Year. Staff check pupils’ learning of phonics regularly. They provide timely extra support when needed, to help pupils to keep up with the phonics programme. Pupils enjoy reading. They talk animatedly about authors and books that they enjoy. Reading is promoted throughout the 1 and 2 October 2024

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curriculum. Older pupils like helping younger children to learn to read as their ‘reading buddies’.

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The school has a proud history of supporting pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), in a caring way. The school identifies and supports the needs of pupils with SEND well. Teachers make appropriate adaptations to learning when necessary. Staff tailor teaching and resources to help pupils to access the curriculum when needed.

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Most pupils attend well. The school provides suitable challenge and help to parents to promote the importance of regular attendance. When necessary, leaders work with external agencies to ensure that everything possible is done to support pupils to attend regularly.

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The curriculum for pupils’ personal development is rooted in the school’s Catholic values. Pupils learn about life in modern Britain and develop respect for diversity and different faiths. They know how to eat healthily and learn strategies to support their positive mental health. Pupils learn how to stay safe, including when crossing the road and online. They take part in residential trips and sporting competitions. They like visiting the theatre to watch the pantomime. Younger children enjoy outdoor learning in the school’s woodland area.

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Trust leaders and those responsible for governance provide effective challenge and support to the school to secure purposeful improvements. Staff are well supported in taking on the changes to the curriculum. They benefit from the training opportunities provided by the trust. Leaders are considerate of staff’s welfare and workload. Most parents typically speak highly of the ‘caring’ and ‘dedicated’ staff.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 At times, the use of assessment is not sufficiently precise to ensure that teaching is consistently matched to some pupils’ needs. Some pupils may not achieve as well as they could. The school should intensify their actions to improve the implementation of the curriculum and ensure that assessment informs learning so that all pupils achieve their best. 1 and 2 October 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). 1 and 2 October 2024

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School details

Headteacher Joanne Cruise (Executive Headteacher)

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school converted to become an academy when it joined the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust on 1 November 2021. When its predecessor school, St Pius X Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, was last inspected by Ofsted it was judged to be good for overall effectiveness.  The school is a member of the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle and has a Catholic character.  The school’s most recent section 48 inspection, which is an inspection of the school’s religious character, took place on 30 June 2023. The section 48 inspection judged this aspect of the school’s provision to be good.  The school does not make use of alternative provision.  The school provides breakfast and after-school care. 1 and 2 October 2024

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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.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors met with the executive headteacher, subject leaders who are also teachers, and the school administrator. The lead inspector also met with the vice-chair of the board of trustees, a foundation governor, the deputy CEO for the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust and the senior director of performance and standards for the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust. The lead inspector spoke on the telephone with the director of education for the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.  Inspectors met with some members of staff and some pupils.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, mathematics and history.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors looked at curriculum plans, visited lessons, spoke to teaching staff and some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector listened to some pupils reading to an adult.  The lead inspector spoke to leaders about the curriculum in geography and science, reviewed some pupils’ English, science and geography books and scrutinised information relating to the support and provision for pupils with SEND.  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.  Inspectors spoke to some parents informally at the end of the school day and considered the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for parents, pupils and staff.

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Inspection team

Stephanie Innes-Taylor, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jacqueline Mowat Ofsted Inspector 1 and 2 October 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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