St John the Evangelist Catholic Academy

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: St John the Evangelist Catholic Primary Gloucester Road, Kidsgrove ST7 1EL

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Outcome

St John the Evangelist Catholic Primary has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The principal is Helen Rigby. This school is part of The Newman Catholic Collegiate, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Ian Beardmore, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Gillian Meller.

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What is it like to attend this school?

St John the Evangelist is an incredibly warm and welcoming school. Staff are very caring and set high expectations for the achievement of all pupils. Mostly, pupils achieve well in reading, writing and mathematics.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has clear expectations for how pupils should behave in lessons and around school. Pupils are extremely polite and kind. The most vulnerable pupils are successfully supported. This helps them settle and engage well. Lunchtimes are very positive times filled with well-organised activities and games. Pupils know that staff will sort out any worries they have. As a result, pupils feel happy and safe.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is committed to offering a broad range of inclusive extra-curricular and enrichment opportunities. Pupils take part in football, dance and photography clubs. Visits to, for example, a local museum and art gallery to learn about the invention of the spitfire bring the history curriculum to life. Pupils learn about science through nature in regular outdoor woodland lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Year 6 pupils attend an annual residential where they take part in canoeing, caving and archery. These activities help to build pupils’ resilience and independence. Pupils are ready for the next stage in their education. 8 and 9 April 2025

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

The curriculum is mostly well thought through and meets the aims of the national curriculum. In most areas, the curriculum has been developed with concepts, knowledge and vocabulary carefully set out for each year group in each subject. Most subjects identify knowledge that builds effectively over time. However, in a small number of subjects, concepts and knowledge are not as progressive as they should be.

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

Staff possess the right knowledge to implement the curriculum effectively. They revisit important learning and make regular checks on pupils’ knowledge. However, when pupils are still unsure of the learning, sometimes the gaps in knowledge are not always addressed successfully. When this happens, some pupils do not reliably remember the most important concepts and knowledge. This affects how well pupils achieve in a few subjects.

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

Reading is a high priority. The phonics curriculum is taught exactly as it is set out. All staff have appropriate knowledge to teach phonics. Staff teach phonics and early reading effectively. They model pure sounds and how to use phonics knowledge to read unfamiliar words. Staff regularly check on pupils’ phonics knowledge. They address misconceptions swiftly and identify pupils who need additional support. Pupils who need to catch up receive help to do this. Books are well matched to pupils’ knowledge. A love of reading is encouraged through pupil librarians recommending books to younger pupils. Pupils can attend a teddy bear story time club. Pupils quickly learn to read with fluency.

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

In early years, children are very well cared for by nurturing staff. The environment is well set out to support successful learning. Children know how to access and use resources independently. Some children join the school with speech and language difficulties. Staff successfully support children to develop their speech and vocabulary, for example, through targeted small-group work and role-play activities, such as taking food and drink orders in the class tea shop. Children achieve well in the early years.

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

This is a very inclusive school. The school identifies pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) swiftly and involves external agencies as needed. Staff follow the advice of external agencies to support some pupils with SEND effectively. The school is developing expertise among staff in supporting all pupils with SEND. Curriculum adaptations that the school makes are not always effective. As a result, some pupils with SEND are not as well supported as they could be. This affects how well some pupils with SEND achieve.

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

Pupils understand about life in modern Britain, such as fundamental British values. For example, they articulate clearly what democracy means and how a democratic vote is held. Pupils know that they use a democratic process to vote for school councillors.

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

The school places importance on pupils developing a sense of responsibility. Pupils value the opportunity to become a prefect and well-being ambassador. Pupils are encouraged to be active citizens. The school’s ‘Evangelists’ team decide on which charities to support. 8 and 9 April 2025

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For instance, the school has raised funds for a charity that provides meals for the homeless.

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Governors and trustees understand their roles and responsibilities. They know the school very well. Governors and trustees hold leaders to account effectively. They make appropriate checks on safeguarding practices. Staff report that their workload is very well managed, and their well-being is prioritised and supported.

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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, concepts and knowledge are not as progressively designed as they should be. This affects how pupils achieve in these areas of the curriculum. The school should make sure that in these areas the curriculum is designed so that knowledge is clearly progressive and builds over time.  Small gaps in knowledge are not always successfully addressed. Where this happens, some pupils do not reliably remember the most important concepts and knowledge. This affects how well pupils achieve in a few subjects. The school should make sure that all gaps in learning are swiftly identified and successfully addressed.  Some pupils with SEND are not supported well because curriculum adaptations that the school makes are not always effective. This affects the achievement of some pupils with SEND. The school should ensure that strategies to support pupils with SEND are effective so that they achieve its ambitious outcomes.

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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, 8 and 9 April 2025

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behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in July 2015.

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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). 8 and 9 April 2025

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School details

Date of previous inspection 1 May 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 This is a Catholic school in the Archdiocese of Birmingham.  The school’s most recent section 48 inspection was in March 2022.  The school does not make use of any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

n Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision. n 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 her evaluation of the school. n The inspector met with the principal, vice principal and other leaders. The inspector met with the CEO and a representative from the archdiocese. Meetings were held with the school’s curriculum leaders, teachers and support staff. 8 and 9 April 2025

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n The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. n The inspector listened to pupils read to a familiar adult. n The inspector observed pupils’ behaviour and interactions during lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes and spoke to pupils during the inspection. n To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: 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. n The inspector considered responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. The inspector spoke to parents and carers. The inspector also reviewed responses to Ofsted’s online staff survey and responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Emma Titchener, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 8 and 9 April 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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