St Vincent's Catholic Primary School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School Burnside Road, Dagenham, Essex RM8 2JN

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Inspection dates: 25 and 26 February 2025

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Outcome

St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Helen Craft. This school is part of the Good Shepherd Catholic Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief accounting officer (CAO), Michael Corcoran, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by John Anthony.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to this welcoming and friendly school. Staff know pupils and their families extremely well. The school has also developed strong links with the local community. The school’s nurturing atmosphere is built on genuine care for one another. Pupils hold their teachers in high regard. Pupils arrive each day motivated to learn. The school has high expectations for pupils’ achievement, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). It is a stimulating place for pupils to learn. They achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations of pupils’ behaviour, and they conduct themselves in accordance with these expectations. Pupils behave well in lessons and around the school. Classrooms are calm and purposeful. Pupils live out the school’s values. For instance, pupils are compassionate, respectful, cooperative and develop perseverance. Staff take any bullying concerns very seriously. Incidents are dealt with robustly and resolved quickly. Pupils know what to do if they have any worries. They are happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a rich array of different experiences, such as visits to local places of interest including theatres and museums. Various after-school clubs are available, in which many pupils take part. These include, for example, dodgeball, chess and football. 25 and 26 February 2025

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

The school’s curriculum is broad and ambitious. Knowledge, skills and important vocabulary have been clearly identified. Staff know what pupils should learn and when they should learn it. Curriculum content is logically ordered so that pupils can build on previous learning when presented with new ideas. For example, in mathematics, children in the Nursery are taught how to add one more to numbers up to five. Pupils in Year 2 build on this knowledge successfully by counting in steps of two, five and 10 when solving problems with coins.

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

Teachers design appropriate and interesting learning activities that help to engage pupils in their learning and apply what they know. Pupils are motivated to do their very best. For instance, pupils in Year 6 studying early Islamic civilisations in history were able to confidently compare and contrast life then to the present day. Pupils ask appropriate questions to clarify their understanding. They recall the recent knowledge that they have understood and typically achieve well. However, sometimes, pupils’ longer-term recall and understanding of subject content are not as secure. This is because some teaching does not revisit previous learning to ensure that pupils have mastered ideas fully. As a result, pupils are not supported as well as they could be to make links or connect ideas with what they already know.

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

The school provides high-quality training for staff to further develop their subject knowledge. Staff have a secure understanding of the subjects that they teach. This helps them to present information clearly to pupils. Staff check pupils’ understanding throughout the lessons and are quick to pick up on, and address, any misconceptions.

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

Reading is a high priority at the school, with staff trained to deliver the phonics programme effectively. Pupils practise reading using books that contain the sounds that they already know. Parents and carers receive helpful guidance on supporting their children to read at home. If pupils find reading difficult, staff provide effective help. Pupils enjoy stories and rhymes, helping them to develop a love of reading. All of this enables pupils to develop into fluent readers in readiness for their learning in Year 3 and beyond.

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

The school makes sure that the needs of pupils with SEND are identified swiftly. They are included in all aspects of the school. Leaders regularly review the provision for pupils with SEND to ensure that the right support is in place to enable pupils to learn effectively. Pupils with SEND engage in their learning well and progress through the curriculum successfully.

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

Promoting pupils’ wider development is central to the school’s ethos. It fosters an understanding and awareness of others that encourages pupils to be kind and empathetic citizens. Pupils learn how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and how to stay safe at home and in the community. They understand fundamental British values such as democracy and the rule of law. The school ensures that pupils learn about the diverse characteristics and beliefs found in modern society. Pupils show respect for the differences of others. 25 and 26 February 2025

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The school promotes good attendance and punctuality. Leaders analyse patterns and trends of pupil attendance. They look carefully at the attendance of each pupil to find out what support they can offer to ensure that absence rates remain low.

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Governors and trustees bring many useful skills and experience to their roles. They quickly and accurately identify the most important issues that need to be addressed to further improve the work of the school. Staff appreciate the school’s consideration of their workload and well-being. For example, the school has streamlined its approach to marking. Staff are very proud to work at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, teaching does not enable pupils to regularly revisit their learning from previous terms and years. This means that, sometimes, pupils struggle to remember some of their previous learning. The school should ensure that pupils revisit and remember their prior learning so that they can build on what they know as they move through the curriculum.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024, graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School, to be good for overall effectiveness in May 2012. 25 and 26 February 2025

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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). 25 and 26 February 2025

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School details

Website www.st-vincent.barking-dagenham.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School converted to become an academy school in September 2022. When its predecessor school, also called St Vincent’s Catholic Primary school, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good for overall effectiveness.  The school is part of the Good Shepherd Catholic Trust.  The school is a Roman Catholic school in the Diocese of Brentwood. It was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in April 2024.  The school runs a breakfast club each day.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. 25 and 26 February 2025

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 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.  The inspector met with the headteacher and other school leaders. He held discussions with the CAO of the Good Shepherd Catholic Trust and with the chair of the board of trustees. The inspector spoke with members of the local governing body, including the chair of governors.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of school 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.  The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.

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 The inspector considered the provision for pupils with SEND.  The inspector discussed pupils’ attendance and behaviour with school leaders.  The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. In addition, he met with pupils, formally and informally, to hear their views.  The inspector considered the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses. He also took into consideration the responses to the online surveys for staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Chris Birtles, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 25 and 26 February 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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