Holly Mount Roman Catholic Primary School, Bury

HOLLY MOUNT RC (VA) PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 18 th - 19 th June 2001

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HOLLY MOUNT RC (VA) PRIMARY SCHOOL

Short inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated.

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HOLLY MOUNT RC (VA) PRIMARY SCHOOL

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 1

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Holly Mount Lane Greenmount Bury

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Name of chair of governors: Fr G O’Donoghue

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 25 th November 1996 Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 2

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Team members

23868 Dr B Blundell Registered inspector 12682 Mr J Griffin Lay inspector 10144 Mrs M Marriott Team inspector 30590 Mr P Tuttle Team inspector

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Team members

PPI Group Ltd 7 Hill Street Bristol BS1 5RW

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Team members

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to:

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Team members

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Team members

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 3

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 4 - 7

Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Holly Mount RC Primary School is a school for girls and boys, situated in Tottington, Bury. There are 326 pupils on roll. The ethnic background of the pupils is nearly all white with United Kingdom heritage, together with smaller numbers of Pakistani, white European and other white backgrounds. The percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is well below average. No pupils have English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils having special educational needs is below average, but the percentage of pupils with statements of special needs is broadly average. The nature of pupils’ special needs includes specific learning difficulties, speech and communication problems, hearing impairment and emotional and behavioural difficulties. Pupils’ attainment on entry is broadly above average.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The overall effectiveness of the school is very good; pupils aged eleven have left the school over the last three years more than two terms ahead of pupils nationally in English, mathematics and science; the overall quality of teaching is very good, and leadership and management are excellent. The school provides very good value for money.

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What the school does well

• Standards for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well above average. • Leadership and management by the headteacher and senior management team are excellent. • The overall quality of teaching is very good throughout the school. • Pupils’ attitudes are excellent, as are relationships; behaviour is very good. • Provision for pupils in the Foundation Stage is very good.

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What could be improved

• Overall standards in information and communication technology do not yet meet national expectations. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school was last inspected in November, 1996. The quality of teaching has greatly improved, with a far higher proportion of teaching now being very good or better. The key issue to raise standards in art in Key Stage 2 and design and technology in both key stages has been appropriately addressed. The issue to promote and implement schemes of work for foundation subjects has been addressed. The curriculum coordinators now manage their subjects satisfactorily, with the headteacher monitoring teaching appropriately. The school has made very good improvement since the last inspection.

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by 11 year olds based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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Key

mathematics A* C A B well above average above average average A B C D Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 5 science A* B A B below average well below average D E

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Key

In the national tests for pupils aged eleven in the year 2000, results were well above national averages in English, mathematics and science. Compared with schools of a similar type, having a similar proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, results in 2000 were well above average in English and above average in mathematics and science. Over the three years from 1998 to 2000 taken together, pupils have left the school nearly a year ahead of pupils nationally in English, two and a half terms ahead in science and just over two terms ahead in mathematics.

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Key

Standards for pupils aged seven in the national tests in 2000 were well above average in reading and writing and above average in mathematics. Over the three years from 1998 to 2000 taken together, pupils have left Key Stage 1 over two terms ahead in reading and six months ahead in writing and mathematics.

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Key

The school’s results for pupils aged eleven are improving at a slower rate than results nationally; this is largely because they are already so high.

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Key

The school’s targets for 2001 are suitably ambitious.

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Key

The work seen during the inspection indicates that standards for pupils currently aged eleven are well above average in English, mathematics and science. Pupils aged seven attain above average standards in reading, writing, mathematics and science. Standards in art are above national expectations throughout the school. In history, geography, physical education, music and design and technology, standards meet national expectations. Standards in information and communication technology, whilst improving, do not yet meet national expectations.

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Key

Pupils achieve well overall; the school meets the needs of all its pupils appropriately.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Pupils’ attitudes to the school are excellent. They enjoy school and show initiative well.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Pupils’ behaviour is very good. The absence of bullying and oppressive behaviour is excellent. If pupils have a worry, they sit on a “friendship bench” in the playground and other pupils come to talk to them.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Personal development is very good and relationships are excellent.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Attendance is well above average. The rate of unauthorised absence is below average.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

Lessons seen overall Very good Very good Very good Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.

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Teaching of pupils: aged up to 5 years aged 5-7 years aged 7-11 years

The overall quality of teaching is very good throughout the school. In the lessons seen during the inspection, 34 per cent were excellent, 52 per cent were very good and 14 per cent were good. The Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 6 quality of teaching in English and mathematics is very good; the skills of literacy and numeracy are taught very well. Particular strengths in teaching include teachers’ expectations, which are very high, and class management. Teachers are adept at explaining the learning objectives for lessons, so that pupils understand the purpose of a particular lesson; this significantly improves pupils’ learning. Particular strengths in pupils’ learning include their perseverance and concentration. The school meets the needs of all its pupils well. All pupils are fully included.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum The quality and range of the curriculum are very good in the foundation stage and good in Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs The school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs is very good. Pupils’ individual education plans are well constructed and contain tightly focused targets.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with English as an additional language Not applicable.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Provision for pupils’ personal development is very good. Provision for their spiritual and moral development is very good, for their social development, it is excellent and for their cultural development, it is good.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils The school cares for its pupils well. Child protection procedures are good.

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Aspect Comment

The school works very well in partnership with parents; parents raise considerable sums of money for the school. A particular strength in the curriculum is the provision in the foundation stage. The provision of extra-curricular activities is good. All areas of the curriculum meet statutory requirements. There are examples of good assessment procedures in the school. Homework is used well in Key Stage 2 to support pupils’ learning. A particular strength in homework for the older pupils is the way in which it is adapted to suit pupils who are working at different levels.

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff are excellent. The school has a very clear educational direction. The needs of the pupils are paramount.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities The governing body’s fulfilment of its statutory responsibilities is excellent. The Chair of Governors is a frequent visitor to school; he regularly takes class Masses. Finances are handled prudently.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance The school’s evaluation of its performance is very good.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources The strategic use of resources is very good and supports pupils’ learning effectively.

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Aspect Comment

A particular strength in leadership and management is the dedication and care of the senior management team and the governing body. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 7 The school applies the principles of best value well.

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Aspect Comment

The accommodation is very well maintained by caretaking and cleaning staff. The school secretary is both competent and efficient. Classroom assistants work well with teachers and support pupils’ learning effectively.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• Their children like school. • The school has high expectations. • The school is well led and managed. • Teaching is good. • They are comfortable approaching the school with questions. • Some parents would like to see a greater range of extra-curricular activities. • Some parents would like more homework to be set.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

The inspection team agrees with parents’ positive views; it finds the range of extra-curricular activities to be good and homework levels to be satisfactory for the younger pupils and good for the older ones. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 8

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

1. Over the three years from 1998 to 2000 taken together, pupils have left Key Stage 2 nearly three terms ahead of pupils nationally in English, two and a half terms ahead in science and over two terms ahead in mathematics. In the work seen during the inspection, standards in English, mathematics and science were all well above average for pupils aged eleven; a significant number of pupils in the current Year 6 have been entered for Level 6. ( Note: Level 4 is the nationally expected level). Setting of Year 5 and 6 pupils in mathematics is having a positive effect on standards for all pupils.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

2. In English, standards for pupils currently aged eleven are well above average; standards for pupils aged seven are above average in reading and writing. Pupils in Year 6 can write a synopsis of a text competently. They improve writing such as, ‘Mr Fry had been trying to sell his vandalised building for two years’ by adding, ‘The tall building, showered with graffiti, stood sad and alone’. Pupils aged seven have very good reading strategies; they use phonic skills appropriately to help them read “unknown” words. Year 2 pupils showed very good knowledge of Shakespeare; they described the types of play that he wrote and showed understanding of why ladies did not act. In their written work, they showed good knowledge of alliteration, using phrases such as “the winding weeds”.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

3. Standards in mathematics are well above average for pupils currently aged eleven; they are above average for seven year olds. Pupils aged seven competently worked out the halves and doubles of numbers. They could follow a sequence of halves, such as, 80,40,20,10,5,2 ½ and were then keen to find the next number in the sequence. Year 6 pupils, in a top set, could use a variety of function machines to try out difficult patterns. In a lower set for pupils aged eleven, pupils ably ordered negative and positive numbers in descending or ascending order.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

4. In science, attainment is well above average by the end of Key Stage 2 and above average at the end of Key Stage 1. Year 6 pupils experiment on the solubility of materials using correct scientific terminology. They know the importance of burning as a chemical change and that burning can produce heat energy, light, electricity and also drive machines.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

5. Pupils with special educational needs achieve well. The provision for special educational needs is very good throughout the school. Individual education plans have tightly focused targets. Both this group of pupils and those higher attaining pupils who find aspects of English difficult are benefiting from the school’s provision of 15 minutes per day working on an ICT (information and communication technology) package tailored to their requirements.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

Leadership and management by the headteacher and senior management team are excellent.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

6. This school is extremely well led on both the academic and pastoral sides. The school has a superb learning atmosphere and an air of great friendliness. The headteacher and senior management team are excellent leaders. They are all most competent teachers and lead by example.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

7. The school has a very clear educational direction; there is no complacency. The school’s aims, which are re-visited annually, are clearly manifested in the life of the school. The school development plan is a useful working document, to which all staff contribute. Financial planning is excellent and appropriately supports the school’s priorities. Specific grants are well used for their appropriate purposes.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

8. The governing body is very effective in giving firm direction to the school. It has an excellent understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. The governing body has a wide range of expertise, including governors who have had a long association with the school. The Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 9 Chair of Governors is a regular visitor to school, taking assemblies and conducting class Masses. The governing body fulfils its role appropriately and all statutory requirements are met.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

9. The headteacher has carried out effective monitoring of all classes, for both literacy and numeracy. Teachers have all been provided with written and verbal feedback. Currently, only the literacy coordinator has monitored teaching; all coordinators monitor planning appropriately.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

The overall quality of teaching is very good throughout the school.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

10. The overall quality of teaching is outstanding in all areas of the school. In the lessons seen during the inspection, 34 per cent were excellent, 52 per cent were very good and 14 per cent were good. The features that made the best lessons excellent were the teachers’ very high expectations, a brisk and appropriate pace and an enthusiasm for the subject that was communicated effectively to pupils. In such lessons, the teachers made the learning objectives crystal clear so that pupils were left in no doubt as to why they were in the lesson.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

11. In an excellent lesson for pupils in the class for Reception and Year 1 pupils, the teacher inspired pupils’ thinking skills. She had high expectations and encouraged pupils to devise their own questions after they had read the text of a “Caterpillar Diary”, one of which was, “How does the caterpillar change in the cocoon?” In an excellent history lesson for Year 5 pupils, the teacher demonstrated excellent knowledge and understanding, inspiring pupils to learn about the superstitions associated with sea monsters. There is real warmth between the teachers and their pupils; this enhances pupils’ learning throughout the school. For example, in a Year 6 numeracy lesson, the teacher had such an encouraging manner that her pupils really wanted to do their very best.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

12. Excellent lessons were seen in the foundation stage and in both key stages during the inspection. Every teacher in the school delivered at least one very good lesson.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

Pupils’ attitudes are excellent, as are relationships; behaviour is very good.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

13. Pupils really enjoy coming to school. They have a real thirst for learning. In class, they pay rapt attention to their teachers. In a Year 3 / 4 science lesson, they showed thorough enjoyment of science. They wanted to learn as much as they possibly could about the different types of teeth and their properties.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

14. When pupils in Year 6 were interviewed, they said, “Nobody is a pain at this school”. In their lessons, often the only disturbance they had was “listening to the birds singing in the trees.” Relationships both between pupils and with adults are excellent. Teachers and other adults treat pupils with respect. Pupils throughout the school mirror this respect in their high regard for adults. In an assembly for pupils in the Upper Junior classes on the theme of “Temptation” pupils felt very comfortable expressing their views on smoking to the headteacher.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

Provision for pupils in the foundation stage is very good.

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Standards at the school for pupils aged eleven in English, mathematics and science are well

15. Children in the Foundation Stage are taught either in a Reception class, or a class for Reception and Year 1 pupils. There is no nursery. In both these classes, children are very well provided for. The teachers are most capable and meet the needs of all the children well. Gifted and talented children are appropriately provided for. The classroom assistants work well with the teachers. The only factor preventing this area from being excellent is the lack of a dedicated outdoor play area. The school has identified this as an area for future development.

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Overall standards in information and communication technology (ICT) do not yet meet

national expectations. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 10 16. Standards in this subject are improving. The appointment of the deputy headteacher, who is also the ICT coordinator, at the beginning of 2001, is having a considerable impact on standards. He is most knowledgeable and gives unstinting help to his colleagues to further their expertise. The opening of a new ICT suite in September this year should have a further positive effect on standards. Nonetheless, pupils at the end of both key stages are not yet meeting national expectations. In particular, their skills in control, monitoring and modelling are not yet up to standard.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

In order to improve the school further, the headteacher, senior management team and governing body should:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

• improve overall standards in information and communication technology (paragraph 16). Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 11

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 10

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

34 52 14 0 0 0 0 The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 326

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 5 FTE means full-time equivalent.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 5

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 54

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 0

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 11

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 10

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Attendance

National comparative data 5.2 National comparative data 0.5 Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 12

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2000 17 28 45

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 17 17 17 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 27 27 26

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 98(98) 98(96) 96(94) at NC level 2 or above National 84(82) 88(86) 88(87)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Boys 17 17 17 Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls 27 26 27

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentage of pupils School 98(96) 96(98) 98(96) at NC level 2 or above National 84(82) 88(86) 88(87)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1

Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year.

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2000 19 30 49

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 16 17 18 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 29 28 28

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 92(85) 92(71) 94(93) at NC level 4 or above National 75(70) 72(69) 85(78)

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Boys 15 16 16 Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls 25 29 29

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Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2

Percentage of pupils School 82(85) 92(80) 92(93) at NC level 4 or above National 70(66) 72(69) 80(75) Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year. Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 13

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage 0 Black – Caribbean heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage 0 Black – African heritage 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group 0 Other minority ethnic groups 0 0 This table refers to pupils of compulsory school age only. This table gives the number of exclusions of pupils of compulsory school age, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 12.5 Financial year 1999-2000

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 29.6

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 506,212

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 8 Expenditure per pupil 1,476

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 114 Balance brought forward from previous year 26,399

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Teachers and classes Financial information

FTE means full-time equivalent. Balance carried forward to next year 18,883 Holly Mount RC VA Primary School - 14

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Percentage of responses in each category

Strongly agree Tend to agree Tend to disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child is making good progress in school. 50 44 5 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

Behaviour in the school is good. 57 41 1 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 39 47 11 2 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 43 47 8 1 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 67 30 2 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 71 27 1 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school works closely with parents. 47 45 7 1 0

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is well led and managed. 73 25 1 0 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 58 39 1 1 1

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Percentage of responses in each category

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 30 48 17 2 3

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