Lowton St Mary's CofE (Voluntary Aided) Primary School

Inspection of Lowton St Mary’s CofE (Voluntary Aided) Primary School Newton Road, Lowton, Warrington, Cheshire WA3 1EW

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Inspection dates: 14 and 15 January 2025

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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 14 and 15 January 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. They are safe and feel happy. Pupils are well looked after by their teachers and staff. They behave well and are attentive during lessons. Most pupils are confident that they can raise a concern about bullying with a member of staff. The school takes appropriate action to resolve any issues when pupils do report their concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high ambitions for pupils, including for those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Typically, pupils achieve in line with, or above, national averages in end of key stage 2 assessments. Additionally, the proportion of pupils meeting the standards of the phonics screening check in Year 1 have been consistently high over time.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy the wider opportunities that are available to them. For example, they take pride in undertaking a variety of roles and responsibilities. These range from acting as ‘buddies’ to being members of a ‘champions of change’ group, which at the time of inspection was leading a recycling project. Pupils engage well with citizenship activities, such as by raising money for charities. The school provides pupils with some extra- curricular clubs, such as sports clubs. In some sports, pupils also compete against other local schools.

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

The school has revised much of its curriculum in recent times. This has ensured that the curriculum is broad, balanced and outlines the expectations for what pupils will learn by the end of each year. In many subjects, the school has clearly broken down these expectations further by identifying the important knowledge that pupils should learn, and when it will be taught. This typically helps staff to deliver curriculum content in an effective and coherent way. Pupils achieve well in many of these subjects.

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

In some subject curriculums, including in a small number of early years curriculum areas, the school is still working to identify the most crucial knowledge that pupils should learn. This sometimes hinders how well the school helps pupils to deepen their understanding in these subjects. It also occasionally impedes the school in designing and adapting learning activities well, so that pupils acquire the knowledge that they should learn. Consequently, pupils develop some gaps in their learning in these subjects.

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

The school fosters a love of reading. Pupils enjoy the stories that their class teachers read to them. The school delivers its phonics programme well. It provides a range of additional support for pupils to keep up with the expectations of the phonics programme. Pupils quickly gain the knowledge that they need to become confident, fluent readers.

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

The school carries out regular checks on pupils’ learning. In many cases, the school uses these checks well to spot pupils who need additional help with their learning. The school has also improved its oversight of how well the curriculum is implemented by teachers. In 14 and 15 January 2025

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some instances, this has led to the school taking effective action to improve the design and delivery of the curriculum.

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The school has effective procedures in place to quickly identify pupils with SEND. Pupils with SEND often receive appropriate support to follow the same ambitious curriculum as their classmates.

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Children in the early years get off to a positive start. They develop warm relationships with their teachers, which helps them to feel safe. Children quickly learn classroom routines and expectations. They are prepared well for Year 1.

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The school has robust systems in place to address any attendance concerns. This helps most pupils to attend school regularly. Pupils have positive attitudes to their education. They conduct themselves sensibly around school.

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Overall, the school caters for pupils’ personal development well. It helps pupils to develop warm and inclusive attitudes towards those who might be different to them. Pupils develop a secure knowledge of how to look after their bodies and how to build safe, healthy relationships with others. They learn how to keep themselves safe online. Pupils develop an age-appropriate understanding of fundamental British values.

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Leaders are considerate of staff’s workload and make sure that it is manageable. For example, leaders provide staff with dedicated time to carry out their wider duties. Although governors do fulfil their statutory duties, their strategic insight into the school’s improvement work is not as secure as it could be. This limits how effectively governors support and challenge the school to further improve the quality of education that pupils receive.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a small number of subjects, the school has not identified the important knowledge that pupils should learn. This sometimes leads to pupils not developing knowledge as securely as they could. The school should finalise its curriculum thinking, so that staff are clear on what they should teach pupils and at what point.  At times, the school does not design and adapt learning activities well to suit pupils’ learning needs. Occasionally, this means that some pupils do not acquire the intended knowledge. The school should ensure that learning is consistently well matched to pupils’ needs, so that they achieve well across the curriculum.  The governing body does not have a robust insight into some aspects of the school’s strategic work and the impact that this work has on the education that pupils receive. 14 and 15 January 2025

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Consequently, governors are not as well equipped to challenge and support the school, to bring about the best possible outcomes and experiences for pupils, as they could be. Governors should ensure that they have the knowledge and expertise needed to fulfil their statutory duties effectively.

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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). 14 and 15 January 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 29 and 30 October 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school makes use of one registered alternative provider for a small number of pupils.  An external provider operates a before- and after-school club for pupils on the school’s site.

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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. 14 and 15 January 2025

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors conducted deep dives in these subjects: early reading, art and design and mathematics. They met with subject leaders and teachers. They visited lessons, looked at examples of pupils’ work and spoke with groups of pupils about their learning. The lead inspector observed pupils from Years 1 to 3 read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors considered the curriculum in some other subjects and spoke with pupils about their learning.  Inspectors spoke with staff about a range of matters, including their workload and well- being.  Inspectors spoke with representatives of the local authority and the diocese. The lead inspector also spoke with the school’s external school improvement partners.

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 The lead inspector spoke with representatives of the governing body, including the chair of governors.  Inspectors met with the leaders responsible for attendance, behaviour and pupils’ personal development.  Inspectors spoke with pupils about their wider experiences at school.  Inspectors looked at a range of policies and documents related to pupils’ welfare and education. They observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and around the school.  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 took account of the responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for staff and for pupils.  Inspectors met with parents at the beginning of the school day and took account of the

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responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.

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Inspection team

David Spruce, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

David Deane Ofsted Inspector 14 and 15 January 2025

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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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