Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School Blackburn

ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 1 st – 4 th October 2001

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ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Full 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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ROMAN CATHOLIC 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. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Holmbrook Close Blackburn Lancs

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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: Revd Fr B Kealey

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 15 th September 1997 Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 4

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Team members Subject responsibilities Aspect responsibilities

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

16493 Mr N Sherman Registered inspector Equal opportunities English The school’s results and achievements How well are pupils taught? How well is the school led and managed? What could the school do to improve further? 9352 Mr M Weaver Lay inspector Pupils’ attitudes and values and personal development How well does the school care for its pupils? How well does the school work in partnership with parents? 29504 Ms S Herring Team inspector Science Art and design Design and technology Music How good are the curricular and other opportunities offered to pupils?

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

8263 Ms M Forsman Team inspector Foundation stage Special educational needs Information and communication technology History 17543 Mr R Coupe Team inspector Mathematics Geography Physical education

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

The inspection contractor was: Lynrose Marketing Limited Bungalow Farmhouse Six Mile Bottom Newmarket Suffolk CB8 0TU 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: The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE INSPECTION TEAM

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 5 London WC2B 6SE Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 6

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

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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HOW HIGH ARE STANDARDS? 11

The school’s results and pupils’ achievements Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

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AREAS OF THE CURRICULUM, SUBJECTS AND COURSES 28

Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 7

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School is situated in the town of Blackburn in Lancashire. The school is part of the Blackburn and Darwen Education Action Zone. Whilst most pupils live on the estate where the school is situated, some pupils live in the lower Darwen and Everton districts immediately close to the school. At present, all pupils are Roman Catholic and the school caters for pupils aged 4 – 11. There are 147 pupils on roll with slightly more girls than boys. The school is smaller than average. There is an above average number of pupils who claim free school meals. The number of pupils with special educational needs is average as is the percentage of pupils with statements of special educational need. There are no pupils at the early stages of learning English. Pupils enter the school with well below average levels of attainment, with skills in communication, language and literacy being poor.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

The school is effective overall. The overall quality of teaching is good in English and mathematics and pupils achieve well in most aspects of these subjects as a result. Pupils achieve well in science. The school has devoted a large amount of time and focus to English and mathematics in order to raise standards. As a result, some other subjects, such as history, geography and information and communication technology, have not received enough attention and standards in these subjects at present are not high enough. The leadership of the headteacher is good, but some areas of the school’s management, particularly in monitoring teaching and learning across the curriculum, have not been effective in identifying and addressing some areas of weakness. The school provides satisfactory value for money.

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What the school does well

• The quality of teaching is good. • Pupils achieve well in some aspects of English and mathematics. • Pupils demonstrate good behaviour and work hard in lessons. • Pupils are well cared for. • Provision for pupils’ moral and social development is good. • Provision for pupils with special educational needs is good, with support staff providing effective guidance to pupils in lessons. • There is good leadership of the school by the headteacher.

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What could be improved

• Standards in writing and some aspects of mathematics in both key stages. • Standards in information and communication technology, history and geography. • The time allocated for some subjects at Key Stage 2. • Provision for pupils’ personal development. • The monitoring of teaching and learning. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the governors’ action plan . Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 8

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

The school was last inspected in September 1997. It has made satisfactory improvement since its last inspection and most of the shortcomings identified for improvement have been tackled. Standards in pupils’ speaking and listening have been raised as have the range and quality of reading resources. The quality of development planning has improved and the current improvement plan provides a clear picture of where further progress in the school is to be made. Curriculum materials to support teachers in planning pupils’ learning have been improved and used more effectively. Attendance levels have improved. In addition, the school has maintained the high level of good and very good teaching noted at the last inspection. Balancing these developments has been the slower progress in raising standards in information and communication technology where standards currently remain below expectations by the time pupils leave the school. In addition, standards in history and

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

geography have fallen since the previous inspection. However, given the strong and purposeful team spirit very much evident, the school shows sufficient capacity to build on its strengths and improve further.

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STANDARDS

The table shows the standards achieved by pupils at the end of Year 6 based on average point scores in National Curriculum tests.

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schools

English C D E D well above average above average A B mathematics D D E D average below average C D science D D E C well below average E

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schools

The results of the 2001 Key Stage 2 National Curriculum tests and teacher assessments indicate that pupils reached standards in English, mathematics and science that were well below the national average. When the results are compared with similar schools, based on the number of pupils who claim free school meals, pupils reached below average standards in English and mathematics and standards that were in line with the national average in science. The findings of the inspection are that standards in English and mathematics are below the national average and reflect the attainment in the end of key stage tests. In science, standards reflect the national average. Discrepancies between the 2001 results for science and inspection findings reflect the good attention paid by the school to improving pupils’ use of investigation work in science.

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schools

The results of the Key Stage 1 National Curriculum tests indicate that pupils reach standards that were well below the national average in reading and mathematics and below average in writing. When compared with similar schools, standards were above average in writing, average in reading and below average in mathematics.

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schools

Pupils enter the school with well below average levels of attainment. They achieve well in most aspects of English and mathematics. Standards in literacy and numeracy are below average, and the school could make greater use of subjects, such as history and Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 9 geography, to promote pupils’ skills in these two aspects of their learning. Standards in information and communication technology are below expectations, as they are in history and geography. In the Foundation Stage, pupils make good gains in many aspects of their learning and are on course to attain the early learning goals as outlined for children nationally in the personal, social, emotional, physical and creative aspects of their development.

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schools

Pupils with special educational needs make good progress. The school is careful to ensure that the needs of all groups of pupils, including those with higher attainments, are sufficiently challenged; however, they could achieve more in history and geography. The school does set challenging targets for improvement. There is no significant difference in attainment between the standards reached by boys and girls.

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Aspect Comment

Attitudes to the school Pupils have good attitudes to the school and work with a good deal of commitment in lessons.

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Aspect Comment

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms The vast majority of pupils are polite and well behaved. They are aware of the school’s expectations in this regard and behave in a positive manner.

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Aspect Comment

Personal development and relationships Relationships between pupils and between pupils and adults at the school are good. There are too few opportunities provided for pupils to develop skills of independent learning.

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Aspect Comment

Attendance Recent work to improve pupils’ attendance rates has ensured that attendance is now satisfactory.

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Teaching of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

Quality of teaching Good Good 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 in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

There is much good teaching in the school. Children in the Foundation Stage are effectively taught and make good gains in their learning in their first year at the school. Strengths in teaching across the school lie in the teaching of English and mathematics, which is often good. Good attention is paid by teachers to ensuring that pupils’ basic skills in these subjects are taught well. Whilst the teaching of literacy and numeracy is satisfactory, pupils’ learning in these areas could be strengthened by providing them with more opportunities to develop their skills in other subjects. There is good teaching in art and design, ensuring that pupils achieve well. The teaching of science is satisfactory. The learning and the teaching of information and communication technology skills have recently improved as a result of the improved range of resources. However, insufficient use is still made of information and

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Teaching of pupils in: Reception Years 1 – 2 Years 3 – 6

communication technology to support pupils’ learning in some subjects. Too little time has been allocated to the teaching of history and geography and as a result pupils have not Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 10 been taught the necessary skills and knowledge in these subjects. In many classes where good teaching and learning occurs, lessons are characterised by carefully planned activities to support pupils’ learning of oral skills, effective management of pupils, and the careful planning of learning for all groups of pupils based on the good knowledge teachers have of pupils’ ability.

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Aspect Comment

The quality and range of the curriculum The curriculum that is planned for children in the Foundation Stage is satisfactory overall. The quality of the curriculum for pupils at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 is satisfactory overall although the lack of time for history and geography has had a detrimental impact on pupils’ learning in these subjects. Some lessons are too long and the school needs to look at the balance of time to different subjects. There is a good range of extra-curricular activities.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils with special educational needs Good overall. Pupils with special educational needs have their needs suitably addressed. Learning support assistants give the pupils good support, enabling them to achieve well in relation to the targets that are set for them.

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Aspect Comment

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development The school makes good provision for pupils’ social and moral development and satisfactory provision for their spiritual and cultural development. Provision for pupils’ personal development is unsatisfactory overall and more opportunities could be provided to enable them to work in an independent way.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school cares for its pupils There is a good level of pastoral care for the pupils with all staff having a good knowledge and understanding of them. Good attention is paid to tracking pupils’ academic progress in English and mathematics, but assessment procedures in the foundation subjects are not as well developed.

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Aspect Comment

How well the school works in partnership with parents The school strives hard to establish close links with parents. Whilst some parents support their children in their learning by hearing them read or assisting them complete their homework, not all parents give the same degree of encouragement and the impact of parents’ involvement is limited. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 11

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Aspect Comment

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff The headteacher gives the school clear leadership and a sense of purpose. The deputy headteacher and staff ably support her. The school does not always effectively manage some resources, including the time of learning support assistants.

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Aspect Comment

How well the governors fulfil their responsibilities The governors have a good understanding of the school and of the areas where further improvements can be made. They are effective in fulfilling their statutory responsibilities.

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Aspect Comment

The school’s evaluation of its performance The school makes good use of end of key stage National Curriculum tests in evaluating where improvements in pupils’ performance are to be made. While some monitoring of teaching takes place, this generally lacks direction and has been ineffective in identifying some weaknesses in some subjects. Good use is made of data about similar schools to compare and contrast the school’s own performance.

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Aspect Comment

The strategic use of resources Generally the school makes satisfactory use of its resources to support pupils’ learning. However, the use of the time of support staff is not always used to best effect in some lessons. Careful thought is given to ensure that best value is achieved for the monies that are spent.

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Aspect Comment

Staffing, accommodation and learning resources. The school is generously staffed, with a good number of support assistants to help in classrooms. Resources for English, mathematics, science and information and communication technology are good. Resources in other subjects are satisfactory. The range and quality of accommodation is good and pupils learn in an appealing learning environment.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

• The commitment of the staff to the school. • The way in which pupils are cared for. • How all pupils are valued for their achievements. • The community ‘feel’ of the school. • The range of extra-curricular activities. • The regularity of newsletters.

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What pleases parents most What parents would like to see improved

Inspection findings support parents’ positive views of the school. The school has acknowledged the need to raise the number of extra-curricular activities and the profile they have in pupils’ learning. As a result, a number of new initiatives have commenced and Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 12 inspection findings judge these to be good. Whilst parents are given newsletters, inspection findings support parents’ views that these are infrequent.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

1. Children’s attainment when they join the school is well below average and their language skills are poorly developed. Childrens’ mathematical understanding and their general knowledge and understanding of the world are also poor. By the end of the Foundation Stage, pupils have made good progress in their personal, social and emotional development and in their physical and creative development. By the end of the Foundation Stage, children attain the expected levels for children of this age in these areas of learning. Although the children make good progress in developing their skills in communication, language and literacy, mathematical development and knowledge and understanding of the world, because of the very low point of attainment on entry to the school, they do not achieve the early learning goals in these areas of learning.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

2. The results of the end of Key Stage 1 National Curriculum tests and teacher assessments over the three years from 1999 have fluctuated. The 2001 test results indicate that standards in reading were well below average and in writing were below average, and the number of pupils who attained the higher levels was well below average in both aspects. Standards in mathematics were well below average and, over the three-year period, standards have not been as high in mathematics as in English. When compared to similar schools, based on the number of pupils who claim free school meals, the picture is more positive. Pupils’ performance was above average in writing, average in reading yet below average in mathematics.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

3. The inspection findings indicate that by the end of Key Stage 1, standards are below national expectations in English and mathematics and in line with expectations in science. Inspection findings closely relate to the National Curriculum tests and teacher assessments. Considering the very low starting point in terms of pupils’ general level of attainment when they enter the school, their achievements in each of these subjects are judged to be good. Pupils make good progress in the development of their early reading and writing skills and progress in mathematics is satisfactory.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

4. On the basis of the 2001 end of Key Stage 2 National Curriculum tests, pupils’ attainment was well below average in English, mathematics and science. Trends in attainment from 1999 have been mixed and reflect the attainment in different years and cohorts of pupils. The number of pupils who attained the expected level in the 2001 tests for English and mathematics, for example, shows a marked decline over those for 2000. However, this 2001 cohort of pupils had a very high number of pupils with statements of special educational needs and this has had a marked impact on the number of pupils attaining the expected levels. When the 2001 results are compared to similar schools, pupils’ performance was below average in English and mathematics and in line with the national average in science.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

5. Inspection findings, based on the pupils in the current Year 6 group, indicate that standards are below national expectations in English and mathematics and in line with expectations in science. The good attention that many teachers pay to the development of pupils’ speaking and listening skills has a positive impact on the rate Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 13 of pupils’ learning in English, boosting standards generally in the subject. Whilst pupils’ learning and their overall levels of achievement are generally good, there are missed opportunities to develop pupils’ reading and writing skills through other subjects of the curriculum. Similarly, there are missed opportunities to develop pupils’ numeracy skills through information and communication technology, for example. In science, whilst good attention is paid to developing pupils’ scientific knowledge and understanding, too few opportunities are provided for pupils to develop their learning

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

through open-ended investigations. Standards are often below average in this area of learning as a result.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

6. The school does set challenging targets for improvements in English and mathematics. The headteacher, staff and governors are keen to ensure that, despite the historically high numbers of pupils with special educational needs and the very low levels of attainment on entry to the school, pupils do achieve to the best of their ability. The decision, for example, to enter four pupils for the higher Level 6 in the 2000 National Curriculum tests supports this. However, despite the good gains in learning, particularly in English, mathematics and science, as pupils move through each of the classes, the school is unlikely to reach the national targets set for English and mathematics in 2002.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

7. The school has striven to raise standards in the core subjects of English, mathematics and science since the last inspection. A key area identified for improvement was to develop pupils’ speaking and listening skills. In many lessons observed during the inspection, a key feature of teaching was the creative opportunities provided by teachers for pupils to pose or answer questions, or discuss issues or points of the lesson in small groups. Such work has a positive impact on pupils’ confidence as well as developing their oral skills.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

8. By the end of both key stages, standards in art and design, design and technology, music and physical education are in line with expectations as they were at the time of the last inspection. Pupils make satisfactory gains in learning in these subjects. Standards in geography and history have declined since the last inspection when they were in line with expectations. This reflects the lack of time given to these subjects to enable pupils to develop their knowledge and skills to a satisfactory level. As a result, pupils’ achievements are unsatisfactory and standards are currently below expectations in both subjects. Standards in information and communication technology were judged to be below national expectations at the time of the last inspection. Despite the recent improvement in the level of resources in information and communication technology, too few opportunities are effectively planned to

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

ensure that pupils’ develop their skills in their everyday learning. Standards remain below expectations at both key stages and pupils’ achievements are currently unsatisfactory. Although pupils achieve as well as they can in English, mathematics and science, they do not achieve as well as they can in geography, history and information and communication technology.

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The school’s results and pupils’ achievements

9. Pupils with special educational needs make good progress in many classes. The school has boosted the number of classroom assistants within the school with the brief to support pupils in their learning. There is good liaison between the support assistants, teachers and the newly appointed special needs co-ordinator. This results in pupils’ learning being well planned and their progress sufficiently tracked in relation to their individual targets. Pupils are mostly given work that reflects their abilities and is suitably challenging and this enables them to achieve well. The good knowledge and understanding that many teachers have of pupils ensures that pupils with higher Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 14 attainments are also suitably catered for in English, mathematics and science. However, given their higher levels of ability, these pupils could achieve more in subjects such as history and geography. There is no significant variation in attainment

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

10. The pupils’ attitudes, personal relationships and behaviour are strengths of the school. This confirms the findings at the last inspection and supports parents’ beliefs. Pupils’ behaviour overall is good and on occasions very good, such as during assembly times and in many lessons. This is often as a direct result of effective teaching strategies and work that is interesting and provides appropriate challenge. Pupils’ attitudes to school are good. Most pupils are considerate, show mature attitudes and demonstrate a sense of pride in their work and their school. They are enthusiastic about coming to school. In lessons, they concentrate for considerable periods of time, particularly in long afternoon sessions even when some of the lessons are not sufficiently challenging. Pupils’ settle well to tasks and generally organise themselves quickly, readily taking interest in what they are to learn. Pupils’

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

generally have appropriately high self-esteem, which is continuously built up by the staff and classroom assistants.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

11. Pupils’ behaviour throughout the school is good with only minor misdemeanours being noted. Children at the Foundation Stage behave well and are quickly taught what the school’s expectations are in respect of behaviour. In the playground, the pupils play well together and enjoy one another’s company. The school has clear guidelines in place that are consistently reinforced sensitively by adults in school and these successfully promote the pupils’ positive behaviour. Pupils themselves are keen to adhere to the class and school rules and have participated in determining some of the sanctions in the event of bullying. Pupils move around the school in a quiet and orderly manner. There has been no need to exclude any pupil during the last year and the generally high quality of behaviour results in a lack of bullying, racist tendencies or oppressive behaviour. Pupils respect the agreed school rules and are

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

aware of the impact their behaviour has on others. They show respect for one another during play times and when required to work collaboratively in lessons.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

12. The personal development of pupils throughout the school is unsatisfactory overall. Pupils are willing to undertake day-to-day administration tasks that the school asks of them, such as preparing the hall for assemblies. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 are aware of how they might improve their writing and are keen to take some responsibility for their own learning. Although pupils listen readily to each other during lessons, there are insufficient opportunities for pupils to explore issues in greater depth and give their views on them. Too few opportunities are provided for pupils to undertake their own research using computers or library books to aid them in their work, resulting in their personal development being insufficiently developed. Similarly, whilst pupils fulfil some responsibilities, such as clearing away at the end of lessons and setting out and removing chairs and benches for assemblies, there are insufficient roles of

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

responsibility currently available. There is no school council and this further inhibits the potential that the pupils have to contribute to the further development of the school. This is an area requiring attention.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

13. The quality of relationships between pupils and between pupils and adults are good. Children at the Foundation Stage quickly establish a strong rapport with the adults who support them in their learning. At Key Stage 1 and 2, pupils readily work by themselves, in pairs and in groups as required, regardless of gender, sharing Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 15 resources and aiding one another’s understanding. They are trustworthy and show consideration for each other. They show respect for each other’s feelings and personal belongings and are continually polite to one another.

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Pupils’ attitudes, values and personal development

14. The level of attendance is satisfactory overall and is broadly in line with that found nationally. This indicates an improvement since the last inspection when attendance was unsatisfactory. A small number of pupils, however, are regularly absent from school and this has an adverse impact on the overall attendance figure, which would otherwise be good. The number of authorised absences has substantially reduced following the introduction of a number of school strategies aimed at encouraging parents to ensure their children attend on a regular basis. The majority of pupils are punctual in arriving at school and registration in both morning and afternoon sessions is conducted quickly and efficiently. Whilst teachers record pupils’ attendance satisfactorily in lessons, school registers are not always fully completed in line with the school’s guidelines.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

15. The overall quality of teaching at the school is good. Despite the high turnover of staff since the last inspection, the school has maintained the high quality of teaching noted at the time of the last inspection. Then, teaching was good or better in just over six out of ten lessons. A very similar picture emerges for the current inspection. During the inspection, teaching was good or better in 67% of the lessons seen, satisfactory in 31% and unsatisfactory in 2%, which was one lesson.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

16. The quality of teaching at the Foundation Stage is good, ensuring that children, who enter the school with very low levels of attainment, make good gains in many areas of their learning. Clear emphasis is placed on promoting children’s early acquisition of language and numeracy skills and equal attention is given to ensuring that children learn to play, co-operate and work purposefully with each other. The teacher has a very secure knowledge and understanding of the needs of young children and both she and the support staff are very sensitive to the fact that for many children school is often the first time they are expected to work and play as a member of a larger social group. All staff quickly develop a secure knowledge of what children should learn based on the day-to-day assessments that are undertaken. From this come carefully prepared learning tasks that are suitably planned to meet the range of ability in the

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

class. The children’s learning is carefully planned around well-structured play activities that have a strong impact on the children’s personal, social and emotional development. As a result of the good teaching, many of the children quickly develop positive attitudes to their learning and to each other and work hard in all they attempt. The warm and positive relationships very much evident and established in the Foundation Stage further support the good gains in learning many children make.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

17. At Key Stage 1 and 2, the teaching of English and mathematics is good. Strong emphasis is placed throughout the school on developing pupils’ basic skills in English and mathematics. Pupils make good gains in their learning of these skills as a result. The school has been successful in implementing the National Literacy Strategy and pupils gain significantly from the careful explanations teachers give as, for example, they highlight for pupils how authors use language creatively in order to obtain a certain effect. Whilst pupils in both key stages are given a wide range of different writing tasks to accomplish, there are insufficient planned opportunities for them to broaden their literacy skills in some other subjects of the curriculum. Across the Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 16 school, the teaching of mathematics is good, and the school has successfully embraced the principles and guidelines of the National Numeracy Strategy. Whilst

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

teachers give some careful and effective consideration to extending pupils’ numeracy skills through other subjects, such as design and technology, there is further scope to develop pupils’ skills through information and communication technology. The teaching of science is satisfactory. Pupils are given very good support prior to the end of year assessment tests, which enables them to attain good results in these, but not enough emphasis is given to developing pupils’ independent research and enquiry skills.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

18. The teaching of art and design is good at Key Stage 2, ensuring that pupils make good gains in the application of their art skills and in their general knowledge of the works and styles of famous artists. The teaching of information and communication technology is currently satisfactory. The recent significant boost to the level of resources and computer equipment to support teachers is having a positive impact on the rate of pupils’ current learning in this subject. The two electronic whiteboards are used to good purpose by many teachers and pupils are rapidly gaining an increased understanding of how technology is playing an increasing role in their daily lives. Teachers are shortly to undergo further training to ensure that the equipment and software is used to its full potential to support pupils in their studies. At present, for example, teachers miss opportunities in some lessons to use computers more fully to

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

support pupils’ learning. Over time, the teaching of information and communication technology has not been effective. The quality of teaching of physical education is satisfactory with pupils’ learning strengthened by clear explanations from teachers, ensuring that pupils understand what is expected of them during the lessons. The teaching of design and technology and music in both key stages is satisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

19. Until recently, the school has reduced the amount of time allocated for the teaching of history and geography across the school in order to increase the attention given to the teaching of English and so raise standards. As a result, pupils have made insufficient progress in history and geography and their achievements in these subjects remain below those expected for seven- and eleven-year-olds. Whilst some satisfactory and good teaching was seen in individual lessons during the course of the inspection, the shortcomings in pupils’ knowledge and the lack of depth in their history and geography work strongly indicate that teaching over a more sustained period of time has been unsatisfactory.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

20. There are positive features in the teaching of pupils with special educational needs across the school. The recent appointment of a new co-ordinator to oversee arrangements for pupils with special educational needs has led to improvements in the quality of the planning of pupils’ individual learning plans, helping to ensure that their needs are well met. Most teachers plan learning for the pupils carefully. Work is carefully modified to a level to ensure pupils learn at the level of which they are capable. Classroom assistants give good support when working directly with pupils and often boost pupils’ confidence during the work they are asked to undertake. As a result, pupils make good gains in their learning.

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

21. Across the school, teaching has many positive features. Staff give careful consideration to planning activities that support and extend pupils’ speaking and listening skills. In many subjects, teachers effectively use open-ended questions that require thoughtful and careful response from pupils when answering. The concluding parts of lessons are used well by teachers to draw out from pupils what they have learned or what they have found difficult. This boosts their confidence and ability in Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 17 speaking to a wider group, as well as developing their understanding of the need to listen carefully to others. Teachers manage pupils well and all teachers have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour, stressing to pupils the importance of working sensibly yet purposefully with one another. Organisation of classrooms is effective and good use is made of the learning areas outside classrooms to support pupils’

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

22. Although teaching is good overall, it could be strengthened in a number of ways. Marking, whilst supportive, is not always precise enough in giving pupils further guidance as to how they may improve their work. In addition, the use of learning support assistants at the start of lessons is not always effective and, in a great number of lessons, they often mark time while the teacher is explaining the nature of work that pupils are to undertake. The library is used well to develop pupils’ interest and appreciation of literature. In general, however, teachers have too low expectations of pupils in terms of producing, for example, project work over a more sustained period of time. A noticeable weakness in learning is the pupils’ ability to undertake independent studies. This limits pupils’ personal development. More opportunities for pupils to use the information and communication technology suite,

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HOW WELL ARE PUPILS OR STUDENTS TAUGHT?

for example, over and beyond the formal teaching of information and communication technology skills, offers increased scope to boost pupils’ learning.

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PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

23. The quality of learning opportunities provided by the school is satisfactory and includes all subjects of the National Curriculum and religious education. Provision for the development of pupils’ personal and social education is satisfactory. The curriculum is relevant to the age and needs of all groups of pupils, including those with special educational needs and higher attainments. The previous report identified the lack of a scheme of work in some subjects to guide the teachers in their planning. This has been addressed and planning materials for teachers are now in place for all subjects, though some are in the process of being updated. For example, the music scheme is being modified, following evaluation of its effectiveness and the purchase of new resources. There are now clear indications of the topics to be taught in each year group and account is taken in the foundation subjects of the mixed age groups

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

in some classes. The national strategies for teaching literacy and numeracy are well embedded in the day-to-day teaching of the subjects. Pupils’ numeracy skills are developed through other areas of the curriculum, such as science and design and technology. Good questioning by the teachers in most lessons helps pupils to develop their speaking and listening skills, though the low level of literacy skills of some pupils means that they need a reader to enable them to achieve their best in the statutory science tests in Year 6. An area of weakness is the lack of planned opportunities for pupils to enhance their learning through the use of computers across the range of subjects. The curriculum for the Foundation Stage is suitably planned to take full account of the recently introduced materials designed to help teachers in planning learning for children in this stage.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

24. Whilst all subjects are covered, the generous amount of time allocated to English and religious education has a detrimental effect on some other subjects, for example, history and geography. History and geography are allocated approximately an hour a week for half the year and this means that topics cannot be covered in sufficient depth. Consequently, standards in both subjects are unsatisfactory. Some of the Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 18 afternoon lessons are too long and their effectiveness is, therefore, reduced. Consideration needs to be given to the timing of lessons. For example, some classes spend up to an hour and a half on English before break, and science lessons for Year 3 to Year 6 can last for almost two and a half hours. There is a need to determine whether this could be allocated more effectively to achieve a more balanced coverage of the curriculum.

p.17

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

25. The extra-curricular provision is good. This is an improvement since the last inspection and is being developed further with the introduction of more clubs due to commence during the second half of the autumn term. Parents, both at the pre- inspection meeting and on the pre-inspection questionnaires, expressed concerns over the small number of clubs. However, the school has now increased the range activities available. Clubs are in place for boys and girls, with some clubs planned specifically for infants and juniors. Clubs have good support and an even gender mix with the exception of drama, which is mainly attended by girls.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

26. The links with partner institutions are satisfactory overall. A close relationship has been developed with the nearby high school to which most pupils transfer when they are eleven. This has proven particularly helpful to a number of pupils last year who used the high school’s science facilities to support them in achieving higher than average attainment in science. Appropriate links are also in place with other local primary schools, where they join together with the high school for an annual musical concert. The school has plans to develop links with a Blackburn school with a high Asian ethnicity to aid Our Lady’s pupils to relate personally to people from other cultures.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

27. The provision for pupils’, moral, and social development is good. Provision for the pupils’ spiritual and cultural development is satisfactory. This confirms the findings of the last report. Provision for pupils’ spiritual development is satisfactory. A strong Catholic ethos pervades the school and effectively influences pupils’ moral and social development .Pupils develop a good awareness of right from wrong. Assemblies, which include an act of worship, are held daily, either in the hall or separately as infant and junior groups, and prayers are said at the end of morning and afternoon sessions. A calm and peaceful atmosphere is created on these occasions, though opportunities for pupils to sing or to reflect on their contributions to school life are not always provided. Lessons provide good opportunities for pupils to listen to one another but there is little evidence of staff planning opportunities for pupils to develop

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

their spirituality across the curriculum. The school recognises this weakness and has planned a staff training day for the spring term to consider how opportunities to develop pupils’ spirituality might be enhanced in all subjects.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

28. The provision the school makes for pupils’ moral development is good. All staff are good role models for pupils in respect of behaviour. Teachers apply the school and class rules in a consistent manner and demonstrate fairness in their dealings with pupils. They treat pupils’ ideas and suggestions with respect, which further enables pupils to understand and value good behaviour and respect for one another. Some opportunities are also created in assemblies for pupils to consider the impact their actions have on others. Teachers provide opportunities in subjects, such as history, to enable pupils to consider decisions made by influential people and the fairness of those decisions as they affect others’ lives.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

29. The planned provision for pupils’ social development is also good. Relationships between pupils and between pupils and adults are good. Pupils play well together in Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 19 the playground and show respect and consideration for one another. A good range of extra-curricular clubs, such as drama, contributes well to pupils’ social development, whilst other activities, such as visits to places of interest, including the theatre, science and history museums and a trip to France, very effectively support their social development on a wider basis. Emphasis is placed upon pupils’ work and progress being celebrated, with weekly assemblies, recognising their achievement both in and outside of the school. Few roles of responsibility, however, are given to pupils and, as a result, the opportunities to further develop their social skills are hindered.

p.18

PUPILS OR STUDENTS?

30. Provision for pupils’ cultural development is satisfactory. Pupils learn about their own heritage and have experience of other cultures in history and geography when, for example, they study clothes worn by people in other countries. A range of good quality books has recently been purchased to raise pupils’ awareness of other cultures but, as they are relatively new, they have yet to make a significant impact on pupils’ learning. Assembly times are supported appropriately by the playing of music, though this tends to be Western European. Links are being pursued with a school in Blackburn to provide opportunities to enhance pupils’ personal awareness of multi- cultural Britain and the contribution that other cultures offer, but this is an area for development.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

31. The provision for pupils’ health, safety and well-being is good. Procedures for improving attendance and behaviour are good and the provision for ensuring freedom from oppressive behaviour is very good. This confirms the general findings at the last inspection. The school is a calm and caring place where pupils are known by staff and are welcomed, respected and valued. Relationships throughout the school are good and parents feel that the school promotes good behaviour that helps their children to become mature and responsible.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

32. The procedures for monitoring and improving pupils’ attendance are now good and have improved since the last inspection when the level of attendance was unsatisfactory. Improved strategies have been put in place and are followed closely by all staff. The educational welfare officer visits the school regularly and provides effective support for absence and poor punctuality concerns. With the exception of a very small number of children who have high levels of absence, the strategies have proven highly effective. The school secretary keeps good records and parents provide the required notes and telephone calls to school in the event of absence.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

33. The school’s procedures for monitoring and improving pupils’ behaviour are good. School and class rules are well known by pupils and staff take the opportunity to reinforce the agreed rules on appropriate occasions. The focus is placed on recognising and rewarding good behaviour, which encourages the great majority of pupils to behave well consistently. Staff consistently apply the principles of the behaviour policy and this effectively helps to make the school a pleasant and orderly community which has a positive impact on pupils’ quality of learning. Pupils readily observe the rules. There is an agreed range of rewards and sanctions and staff take care to recognise and celebrate pupils’ good behaviour. Older pupils have participated in deciding some of the sanctions for unacceptable behaviour.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

34. The procedures for child protection are good. There is a designated person who receives training and provides an appropriate level of information to staff, whilst Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 20 safeguarding pupil confidentiality. Records are kept confidentially and the designated person attends case conferences appropriately. The governors and staff are vigilant with regards to the health, safety and welfare of the pupils. Annual checks are conducted as required on sports equipment, fire extinguishers and electrical equipment. Some items of electrical equipment and a gas cooker designated for removal have yet to be removed. The provision of a secure outdoor play area for children in the Reception class is good.

p.19

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

35. The procedures to assess pupils’ academic progress are satisfactory reflecting the position identified in the last inspection. In the Reception year, the children are assessed upon entry and at the end of the school year to determine what gains they have made in their learning. The teacher in the Reception class also makes simple but effective on-going assessments of the children’s progress across the full range of activities and in their personal development and is in the process of using this information to plan work which is more specifically matched to the needs of individuals. In the rest of the school, pupils’ progress in each subject is assessed at the end of each topic or each half term and this is recorded in an ‘Individual Pupil Profile’.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

36. The school has introduced a series of commercial standardised tests in English and mathematics to track pupils’ achievement and the results are used to teach pupils in groups of similar attainment, particularly in literacy and numeracy. A very thorough analysis is made of pupils’ answers in the science statutory assessments at the end of Year 6 to identify any general areas of weakness and to make any necessary changes in the curriculum for the following year. For example, a weakness in interpreting information from graphs was noted and, subsequently, more opportunities were given for pupils to practise this skill. This thorough analysis has had a positive effect on the number of pupils achieving the expected standard in science. A similar strategy has yet to be used with the same rigour in English and mathematics. The school has noted the pupils’ results at the end of Year 2 and then Year 6 to check

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL CARE FOR ITS PUPILS?

that suitable improvements have been made. The school is considering using the optional statutory assessments at the end of Years 3 to 5 in the same way so as to improve the tracking of pupils’ progress from year to year. At present, whilst the school is effective in using assessment information to raise pupils’ achievements, there are few systematic procedures in place to assess pupils’ progress in the foundation subjects.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

37. Parents view the school positively. They perceive that the school is effective in enabling their children to make good progress in their learning, and that the children receive good teaching and support to help them become mature. Parents’ perceptions of the school’s provision are, for the most part, accurate. A number believe that there are insufficient after school clubs and that insufficient opportunities are given for pupils to talk at lunchtime. However, the number of after school clubs has been increased with more due to start in late autumn and the freedom pupils and children have to talk with their friends at lunchtime, is good.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

38. The school strives to include parents in its work, but has received only a limited response to the range of initiatives offered. A range of well thought-out, interesting activities for parents has also been provided, which, despite the good initial response from parents, have all closed due to lack of ongoing support. Curriculum evenings to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 21 inform parents of how literacy and numeracy are taught and how they can support their children’s learning have been attended by only a very small number of parents. In these areas, the effectiveness of links with parents is unsatisfactory, despite the school’s best efforts. This generally confirms the findings of the last report.

p.20

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

39. Many parents respond well to the consultation evenings before and after pupils’ end of year reports are issued. In addition, a good response was gained from parents attending the school’s ‘It’s A Knock Out’ social day. There is no parent teacher association, however, due to lack of parental support, although a small number of parents regularly support the work of the school through social and fund raising events. These parents form a small but dedicated core of parents who are keen to support the school, many of whom also act voluntarily as lunchtime supervisors. Despite the work of the small but dedicated core of parents, the overall effectiveness of parents in the work of the school remains unsatisfactory.

p.21

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

40. The quality of information for parents is satisfactory and many parents believe that the school keeps them well informed. Parents are particularly pleased about the quality of communication in their children’s end of year reports. These are good overall, providing clear indication in most subjects of what pupils know, are able to do and what they understand. Helpful pointers for further improvement are often incorporated both in subjects sections and overall comments. A small minority of reports, however, make little comment on what pupils know and understand in subjects other than English, mathematics and science. The school newsletter is of good quality but it is not issued on a frequent basis. The school’s annual report from Governors and its prospectus are informative and are presented in an easy to read style. The school has responded positively to parents’ comments that they did not know what their children would be studying each term by providing yearly information

p.21

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

on a half-termly basis, together with a timetable and guidance for parents to support their children. The school is aware, however, of the need to inform parents of the current range of after school clubs available and those planned to start in late autumn, and to address parents’ concerns relative to the clubs available and the age range which they serve.

p.21

HOW WELL DOES THE SCHOOL WORK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS?

41. The contribution of parents to children’s learning at home is limited. All parents have been informed of the homework guidelines and the school’s expectations. A small number of parents listen to their children read and support them in homework tasks, but many do not. Homework diaries are often signed but are not used as a two-way communication with the school.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

42. The leadership of the school by the headteacher is good, and the overall quality of leadership and management of the school is satisfactory. These findings reflect those of the previous inspection. The headteacher has a good knowledge of the school and the pupils and leads the school in a purposeful manner. The newly appointed deputy headteacher and the staff, who work well together to ensure that the school’s Catholic ethos permeates many aspects of school life, ably support the head. Many parents and governors attest to the good leadership of the school and their views are well founded.

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

43. The headteacher and staff work effectively together and a strong and purposeful team spirit is very much evident. All staff are valued and make a full and active Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 22 contribution to the school’s continued development. Teachers support one another well and newly appointed staff are fully involved in school matters and encouraged to participate fully in school decision making. Staff give good support to one another in respect of curriculum planning and many co-ordinators give a good lead to their colleagues in developing aspects of a subject. Measures to improve the co-ordinators’ role in evaluating the standards pupils attain in their subjects of responsibility have improved since the last inspection. Monitoring of pupils’ work, for example, takes place on a regular basis. However, despite the enhanced opportunities to manage their subjects, few co-ordinators have had regular opportunities to monitor and

p.21

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

effectively evaluate the rate of pupils’ progress by direct observation of their colleagues’ teaching. This lessens the impact of their work and has allowed weaknesses in some subjects, such as history and geography, to remain. There is a need to strengthen the management of arrangements for direct observation of teaching throughout the school. The school makes satisfactory arrangements for ensuring requirements for performance management comply with guidelines, and individual teachers have appropriate targets linked to whole school development.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

44. The school has taken appropriate action on the issues identified for improvement at the time of its last inspection. Materials have been devised to guide teachers in planning the development of pupils’ speaking and listening skills and teachers’ knowledge and understanding of how to promote these in lessons has been enhanced. This has contributed significantly to the good progress many pupils make in this aspect of their development. Resources in reading have been substantially improved, thereby raising pupils’ enjoyment and appreciation of reading. The school has worked hard in developing a range of strategies that has boosted the rate of attendance and stressed the importance to parents of their children’s regular attendance. In addition, the process of planning developments in the school is much improved. The school development plan is drafted after full discussions with staff and governors and targets are well founded on the school’s current and more medium

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

term aims. Proposals and projects are carefully costed. However, the plan’s success criteria are not always sufficiently linked to measuring improvements by evaluating carefully the standards pupils attain. For example, the school has not evaluated the impact on standards resulting from the amounts of time allocated to different subjects.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

45. The efforts to raise the standards pupils attain in information and communication technology, which was were judged to be below expectations at the last inspection, have been less successful. Despite, for example, recent considerable improvements in the range of equipment to support pupils’ information and communication technology development, at present, few staff have had the full training in how to successfully incorporate information and communication technology into their everyday teaching. Moreover, the increased attention the school has paid to developing pupils’ English skills by raising the amount of time given to this subject has led to a weakening in the standards pupils attain in history and geography, which at the time of the last inspection, were found to be in line with national expectations.

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

46. The governors give the school good support and effectively fulfil all their statutory requirements. Many visit the school frequently and this keeps them up-to-date with events and developments taking place at the school. In addition, the headteacher provides governors with full and regular information about school matters and the subject co-ordinators keep them informed about the curriculum. Governors are fully involved in the development planning process and take an active part in discussions in relation to the school’s strategic development. Historically, the school has a had a Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 23 higher than average number of pupils with special educational needs, and Governors have ensured that these pupils receive good support. They have increased the number of learning assistants to support these pupils in lessons. This has contributed effectively to the good progress that many pupils with special educational needs in

p.22

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

47. The school has good procedures for financial planning and for the control and management of the school budget. This is confirmed by the latest audit report, which identified good practice. The minor recommendations for improvement outlined within it have already been adopted. The governors are well informed and play an important part in effectively matching the budget to the identified needs of the school. Procedures to ensure that ‘best value’ is achieved for the funds that are spent are carefully observed. Costs therefore are competitive, and whilst many services are bought in from the local authority, the school has sought comparative tenders from other agencies. The headteacher has day-to-day responsibility for the financial management of the budget. She is well informed about funds that are allocated to the school as a result of the school being a member of the Education Action Zone and her experience and expertise ensure that spending is adhered to within the agreed

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

levels. She is well supported by an efficient secretary, who enables her to have immediate access to a computerised printout concerning any aspect of the budget. In addition to the specifically designated grants, such as those for staff training, the school has been extremely successful in obtaining additional grants, for example, ‘Seed Challenge’ funds for particular purposes. All are clearly identified, well monitored and used appropriately. Whilst reserves are higher than normally expected, there is a clear plan to use the surplus to support imminent building work.

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

48. The school has a generous number of suitably qualified staff to match the demands of the curriculum. There are eight teachers employed, including the headteacher and deputy. The headteacher has a small teaching commitment, but also covers for short- term supply. Wherever possible, co-ordinators’ roles are matched to their professional qualifications, expertise and experience. Appropriate job descriptions are in place for all, including senior management, teachers, support staff and the co-ordinator for special educational needs. However, because of the recent large turnover of staff, the co-ordinators’ defined roles are not yet fully implemented and this lessens the impact they currently have in monitoring teaching and learning. Staff appraisal procedures are in place and opportunities for staff development and in service training are good. The one newly qualified teacher is well monitored and receives a

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

good level of support from her teacher mentor. The school benefits from a high level of support staff, both in the Foundation Stage and for pupils with special educational needs. The quality of their input when working with pupils is frequently good. However, there are occasions, particularly at the start of lessons, when their time is not always effectively used.

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

49. Learning resources are good in English, in mathematics at Key Stage 1, and in information and communication technology, with the acquisition of several new computers and two white boards. Resources for other subjects are generally satisfactory.

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

50. The accommodation is spacious, light and airy and makes a good contribution to pupils’ learning. Classrooms are large as is the information and communication technology suite. There are designated library areas in each of the key stages, a large hall and extensive grassed and well-maintained hard play areas. With the exception of the computer equipment, these areas and resources are used effectively Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 24 to support pupils in their learning. The interior is kept clean, tidy and well maintained by a very effective and conscientious site manager, who takes pride in his work and has extended his role by devising an internal painting programme. Governors are forward looking in seeking ways to further enhance the facilities. They have replaced windows and woodwork and should shortly improve the provision for pupils by the addition of a food technology room. Despite the precautions taken to deter vandalism,

p.23

HOW WELL IS THE SCHOOL LED AND MANAGED?

the school is visually pleasant. It provides a safe, secure and attractive environment for pupils, who, along with their parents, appreciate what it has to offer them. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 25

p.24

WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

51. In order to improve the quality of pupils’ learning further, the headteacher, staff

p.25

1) raise standards in English and mathematics by ensuring that:

• more opportunities are provided through educational drama to develop further pupils’ speaking and listening skills; • greater scope is given for pupils at both key stages to produce creative and more extensive pieces of writing in other subjects; • more opportunities are provided to develop pupils’ mathematical skills through solving everyday problems. (paragraphs 5, 17, 18, 77, 78, 81, 82, 85, 89, 91

p.25

that:

• greater use is made of computers in lessons; • staff knowledge and understanding continues to be improved; • effective use is made of assessment information in planning pupils’ learning. (paragraphs 8, 18, 23, 27, 82, 85, 91, 99, 109, 119, 120 –124, 131)

p.25

3) raise standards in history and geography by ensuring that:

• the time allocated for history and geography is sufficient to allow pupils to explore themes in greater depth. (paragraphs 8, 19, 24, 43, 45, 109, 114, 118)

p.25

4) develop ways to enhance pupils’ personal development particularly

through enhancing their personal study and independent learning skills. (paragraphs 12, 22, 98, 109, 118, 124)

p.25

5) develop a planned programme for the effective and consistent monitoring

of teaching . (paragraphs 43, 48, 86, 90, 113)

p.25

plan:

• making more effective use of learning support assistants in some lessons; • continue to seek ways to ensure that as many parents as possible support their children in their learning • provide parents with regular information about what is taking place in school • ensure that marking gives sufficient guidance in how pupils may improve their work. ( paragraphs 22, 27, 30, 40, 41, 85) Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 26

p.25

Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 17

p.26

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

p.26

Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Percentage 19 48 31 2 The table gives the number and percentage of lessons observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about teaching. [When the total number is substantially less than 100, add] Care should be taken when interpreting these percentages as each lesson represents more than one [two, three, etc] percentage point[s]. [Where the total is close to or greater than 100, use only the first sentence.]

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 147

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 63 FTE means full-time equivalent.

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 3

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 26

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 0

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 9

p.26

Information about the school’s pupils

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

p.26

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. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 27

p.26

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 1 for the latest reporting year 2001 6 18 24

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results Reading Writing Mathematics

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls - - -

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 79 (87) 96 (78) 79 (96) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (83) 86 (84) 91 (90)

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 2 and above Girls - - -

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

Percentage of pupils School 75 (83) 67 (74) 83 (87) at NC level 2 or above National 84 (84) 83 (88) 89 (88)

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 1 (Year 2)

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

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Number of registered pupils in final year of Key Stage 2 for the latest reporting year 2001 8 14 22

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

National Curriculum Test/Task Results English Mathematics Science

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls - - -

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 55 (78) 50 (67) 82 (83) at NC level 4 or above National 75 (75) 71 (72) 87(85)

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Teachers’ Assessments English Mathematics Science

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Boys - - - Numbers of pupils at NC level 4 and above Girls - - -

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Percentage of pupils School 55 (61) 50 (72) 50 (78) at NC level 4 or above National 72 (70) 74 (72) 82 (79) Percentages in brackets refer to the year before the latest reporting year.

p.27

Attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)

Number of pupils are given as a total figure only as the number of boys at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 is less than 10. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 28

p.27

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – Caribbean heritage - Black – Caribbean heritage - -

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black – African heritage - Black – African heritage - -

p.28

Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Any other minority ethnic group - Other minority ethnic groups - - 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.

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 7.6 Financial year 2000/01

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 17.8 £

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Average class size 23.8 Total income 394 076

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: YR – Y6 Total expenditure 407 071

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 5 Expenditure per pupil 2 769

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 142.5 Balance brought forward from previous year 40 160

p.28

Teachers and classes Financial information

Balance carried forward to next year 27 165 FTE means full-time equivalent.

p.28

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers who left the school during the last two years 3

p.28

Recruitment of teachers

Number of teachers appointed to the school during the last two years 3

p.28

Recruitment of teachers

Total number of vacant teaching posts (FTE) 0

p.28

Recruitment of teachers

Number of vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of a term or more (FTE) 1

p.28

Recruitment of teachers

Number of unfilled vacancies or vacancies filled by teachers on temporary contract of less than one term (FTE) 0 FTE means full-time equivalent. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 29

p.28

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Percentage of responses in each category

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

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

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child is making good progress in school. 71 21 5 0 3

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

Behaviour in the school is good. 55 39 3 0 3

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

My child gets the right amount of work to do at home. 47 45 8 0 0

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I am kept well informed about how my child is getting on. 58 34 5 0 3

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

I would feel comfortable about approaching the school with questions or a problem. 68 26 3 0 3

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school expects my child to work hard and achieve his or her best. 82 16 0 0 2

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school works closely with parents. 55 39 3 3 0

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is well led and managed. 66 26 3 0 5

p.29

Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school is helping my child become mature and responsible. 58 32 5 0 5

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

The school provides an interesting range of activities outside lessons. 34 29 26 3 8

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Other issues raised by parents

A minority of parents at the pre-inspection meeting highlighted the difference in security fencing for the Key Stage 2 classroom compared to the ‘openness’ of the playground for Key Stage 1 pupils. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 30

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

52. The quality of education provided for children in the Foundation Stage is good. Children enter the Reception class at the beginning of the year of their fifth birthday and attend full-time after a short induction period. The attainment of the majority of the children when they start school is well below what is expected for their age. As a result of the good teaching they receive, most children are approaching but not yet achieving the expected early learning goals in their communication language and literacy, in their knowledge and understanding of the world and in their mathematical development by the time they enter Year 1. In their personal, social and emotional development and in their physical and creative development, children reach the standards expected. Overall, children make good progress in their learning in their first year in school.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

53. Assessment shows that when children start school, their literacy and numeracy skills are well below average. They have a limited appreciation of the significance of words, letters and numbers and have a narrow range of experience. An increasing number of children have some experience of pre-school education. When the children are assessed at the end of the Reception year most basic scores have improved. There is effective ongoing assessment of daily experiences which ensures that teachers have a good appreciation of children’s’ progress.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

54. The school introduces children to full-time education in a well-considered and sensitive manner. There are good links with the local nursery schools and the staff carry out a programme of home visits to establish relationships with the children and their families before children start school.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

55. The curriculum for the Foundation Stage is securely based on the early learning goals for children of this age. Teachers and support staff work closely together to devise medium term and weekly plans to ensure that the children make progress through the ‘Stepping-Stones’ outlined in the planning materials recommended for schools for children of this age. Good daily planning ensures that children experience a good balance of activities. All staff are aware of children’s needs and take care to provide for all groups. Early assessment ensures that children with special educational needs are identified quickly and are provided with necessary support.

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AREAS OF LEARNING FOR CHILDREN IN THE FOUNDATION STAGE

56. The quality of teaching in the Foundation Stage is consistently good and ensures that the children make good progress their first year of full-time schooling. There is an obvious and shared understanding among all staff of the way young children learn. Teaching is characterised by clear objectives, professional expertise and good relationships between staff and children.

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Personal, social and emotional development

57. Most children enter the Reception class with poorly developed personal and social skills. Good teaching ensures that the children make good progress in this area of their development and they achieve the early learning goals by the time they enter Year 1. The children clearly enjoy coming to school and are keen to learn. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 31 58. All adults involved in the Reception class work hard to improve children’s self-esteem and they emphasise the value they place on each individual. This encourages children to contribute confidently without worrying about wrong answers. The open style of questioning used by teachers encourages children to become involved in their learning. At the time of the inspection a small number of children had only been in full-time education for two weeks but were already learning to listen to their teachers. Behaviour is good and children learn to observe the conventions of working together.

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Personal, social and emotional development

All adults involved with the Foundation class present good opportunities to the children to work and play in a co-operative manner. As a result, the children are starting to appreciate the need to take turns and to share equipment fairly and they are beginning to develop an understanding of what is right and wrong.

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Personal, social and emotional development

59. Teachers encourage good habits of social behaviour for example by establishing consistent routines. There is a good balance between whole class and small group teaching that allows children to learn and practise social skills and to develop confidence. Children move around group activities quickly and without fuss. The majority make very good attempts at getting changed for physical education independently and understand the need for co-operation with the others.

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Communication, language and literacy

60. By the end of the Foundation Stage, attainment in communication language and literacy for the majority of children is below what is expected of children at this age. Good teaching ensures that most children make good progress from very limited language and general vocabulary skills when they start school to a level where they are working well towards achieving the early learning goals. A minority of children achieve levels in line with expectations by the time they start in Year 1. The children make better progress in reading than in other aspects of their language skills reflecting the strong attention paid by teachers and support staff to promoting children’s early interest in books. Children handle books properly, recognise favourite titles and use pictures to help them tell the story. At the time of the inspection early in the school year a few children recognised single words and most could name some

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Communication, language and literacy

letters. By the end of the Foundation Stage some children read appropriate texts. Teachers make good use of ‘Big Books’ not only to demonstrate the excitement and pleasure of reading but also to build the children’s vocabulary and develop their phonic skills. The children are encouraged to use the visual clues obtained from pictures and to look carefully for repeated words and letters. However, while children explore the nature of books and understand that the words on a page tell a story, few have a sufficient understanding of the main features of a story such as who the main characters may be or that a story is based on a sequence of events. Few children are able to make reasoned attempts at words they may be unfamiliar with.

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Communication, language and literacy

61. The children’s speaking skills are in line with what is expected and they are willing to join in conversations and use full sentences. The systematic teaching of phonics helps children recognise and use the sounds of letters. Teachers effectively use structured play opportunities to extend the children’s vocabulary and to develop their speaking skills. The children’s listening skills are less well developed and they take some time to learn how to listen purposefully and to retain and employ information or instruction.

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Communication, language and literacy

62. The children’s writing skills are developed through a range of opportunities. Children understand that print carries meaning and that letters can be used to make words. By the end of the Foundation Stage, most children are attempting to write very simple Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 32 stories but only a minority are starting to write letters in a recognisable way. Some are still mastering their names. The level of adult support and ’scribing’ restricts the occasions when children can practise writing skills.

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Mathematical Development

75. Although most children make good progress, by the end of the Foundation Stage, the mathematical skills of the majority of children are below what is expected because of their low starting point. A minority of children achieve the early learning goals. Many children’s progress is hindered by poor recall and a limited ability to apply mathematical ideas in the context of imaginary ‘real life’ situations.

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Mathematical Development

63. The children are becoming increasingly familiar with the numbers to 10 but their ability to recognise and identify a number more or less than a number from 1 to 10 is limited. Many lack a secure knowledge and appreciation of the value of the numbers to 9 and are uncertain how numbers are applied to different sets of objects. Most children recognise common colours and shapes, but their limited mathematical vocabulary makes it difficult for them to explain what are the basic features of a shape and how one may differ from another. Children are beginning to apply appropriate vocabulary to indicate size. Most children achieve consistent number formation. However, the children’s ability to develop their own methods in solving everyday mathematical problems is very limited.

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Mathematical Development

64. Teaching approaches are often imaginative and motivating and the overall quality is good. Children are provided with a good range of practical equipment and this proves a useful aid to developing their general level of understanding and learning. In addition, teachers make some good use of information and communication technology to enhance the children’s mathematical learning, for example, when children matched long and short objects by ‘dragging and dropping’ them on the interactive whiteboard.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

65. By the end of the Foundation Stage the children’s knowledge and understanding of the world is below what is expected. Children’s limited language skills hinder their ability to express their meaning, describe their experiences or devise their own questions in exploring how things work.

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

66. Teachers provide good opportunities for children to observe, investigate, and identify living things and objects. This helps to ensure children make good gains in learning about the world around them as they begin their full time education. Children learn to appreciate the senses, for example by examining their fingers and hands closely under magnifying glasses, and then using their hands to find hidden objects in the sandpit and describing them while blindfolded. Imaginative and resourceful teaching ensures that children improve their understanding of the world moving from their immediate awareness of their own bodies to planning imaginary journeys such as, for example, selecting the right kind of transport to get them to Spain or Blackpool. Children are regularly offered appropriate computer programs to support their understanding of how technology plays a part in their daily lives. Children have a

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Knowledge and understanding of the world

limited perception of the basic customs and traditions of other people. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 33 67. All adults involved in working with the children effectively direct their questions and promote discussion to extend the children’s general knowledge and understanding. However, at times the level of adult management and assistance is too much and occasionally restricts what the children themselves contribute to their learning. The role-play area is shared with the classes at Key Stage 1 and is used for imaginative and structured play.

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Physical development

68. As a result of good teaching, the children make good progress and by the end of the Foundation Stage, achieve the early learning goals in this area of their development. 69. Teachers and support staff pay good attention to the promotion of the children’s physical skills and abilities and effectively ensure that the children develop good gross motor skills. The children run, jump and stop on command and are developing control of movement. Most can balance a beanbag and demonstrate accuracy in throwing it over a distance. They have regular access to the school hall for physical education and games and there is a range of outdoor toys available in the secure play area. The children are given frequent opportunities to use this equipment and this has a positive impact on their learning.

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Physical development

76. Children are developing appropriate fine motor skills in their use of pencils and scissors. They handle paintbrushes and felt pens with deliberation and care.

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Creative development

77. By the end of the Foundation Stage children are achieving the early learning goals. They become increasingly aware that they can communicate ideas through a wide range of materials.

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Creative development

78. Teaching is good and ensures that there are regular opportunities for the children to develop their creative abilities. Teachers provide good opportunities for pupils to use a variety of materials and tools through a range of interesting activities. Children are encouraged to explore a range of media and textures. For example, they created autumn leaves by sprinkling dye on fabric and cutting the leaf shape. Teachers effectively promote some aspects of the children’s cultural development through artwork and the children have designed patterns for African robes and bead designs for hair ornaments.

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Creative development

79. Effective teaching ensures that the children are given suitable opportunities to develop, practice and refine their skills. For example, the children improved their first version of a countryside scene by completing a second version by mixing their own colours after observing how this could be done. However, children do need considerable adult help when undertaking such work. Children’s progress is also evident in music where they demonstrate increasing control over clapping patterns. However, their progress in music is hindered to some extent by limited skills in other aspects of their learning such as their ability to listen attentively, recall accurately and acquire suitable musical vocabulary.

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ENGLISH

Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 34 80. On the basis of the 2001 end of Key Stage 1 national test results, standards in reading were well below the average and in writing were below the average. In comparison with similar schools, based on the number of pupils entitled to free school meals, standards were average in reading and above average in writing. The inspection findings indicate that standards are below average in English as they were at the time of the last inspection. However, good progress has been made in raising pupils’ attainment in speaking and listening.

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ENGLISH

81. On the basis of the 2001 National Curriculum tests for Key Stage 2, pupils reached standards that were well below the national average. When compared with similar schools, standards were below average. Standards have fluctuated greatly over the past three years. While the most recent results indicate a sharp drop over those for 2000, this is due to differences in the natural ability between the different groups of pupils. In 2001, for example, a large number of pupils had a statement of special educational need. The number of pupils reaching the higher levels has steadily improved in recent years. When compared with similar schools, for example, the number of pupils who reached the higher Level 5 in the tests for 2001 was well above average.

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ENGLISH

82. The findings of the inspection are that by the end of Key Stage 2, standards in English are below average as they were at the time of the last inspection. However, the school works hard to compensate for the very low levels of English many pupils demonstrate when they first enter the school. Good attention is paid in many classes to the continued development of pupils’ skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing. However, while pupils’ achievement overall is good, there are too few opportunities for pupils to develop their writing skills in other subjects. Pupils with special educational needs are well supported during the course of their learning and they too make good gains in their learning. There is no significant variation in attainment between the sexes. There are no pupils currently at the school who are at the early stages of learning English.

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ENGLISH

83. By the end of both key stages, despite making good gains in learning, standards in speaking and listening are below the national average. Across the school, most teachers pay close attention to the development of pupils’ speaking and listening skills and many lesson plans highlight clearly the skills pupils are expected to develop during the course of a lesson. Literacy sessions, where pupils read aloud or discuss how an author has used language to create a particular effect give good opportunities for pupils to develop both their confidence in speaking aloud and in presenting a particular point of view. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils listen attentively to the teacher and each other and are aware of the social convention of letting others finish what they are saying before speaking themselves. However, their sentences are quite simple and few are able to hold a sustained conversation with interesting vocabulary,

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ENGLISH

for example. At Key Stage 2, pupils continue to develop their confidence when speaking in front of a wider audience and although their vocabularies are generally limited, pupils become more proficient in adding detail to their oral work when answering questions or expressing a viewpoint or an opinion. Teachers are careful to allow pupils time to think through what they are to say, and are sensitive to those who are not as confident as others in participating in oral work. Despite the generally good gains made in learning, pupils would benefit from greater opportunities to participate in educational drama or role-play activities in other subjects, for example. At present, too few teachers make use of drama as a means of developing and extending pupils’ oral skills. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 35 84. Key Stage 1 pupils make good progress in their ability to read although standards

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ENGLISH

remain below those expected for seven-year-olds. Good use is made of the literacy hour by teachers and support staff in supporting pupils’ reading development. They ensure that pupils develop their understanding of the importance of breaking down unfamiliar words to gain understanding of the text. Most pupils read with a fair degree of understanding and accuracy. However, few pupils read with expression and few have a suitable awareness of writers of books for children or can say why they might prefer one author to another.

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ENGLISH

85. Pupils continue to make good progress in Key Stage 2. Most are able to self-correct when necessary and read accurately by the end of the key stage. Levels of fluency are variable. Higher attaining pupils read expressively and ‘step into the shoes’ of a character when reading a certain passage. Good opportunities are provided by teachers for pupils to explore the reading materials in the school library. This successfully develops pupils’ understanding that reading materials come in different forms and that non-fiction material, for example, has a contents and index page or a glossary to help the reader locate the information they seek. In general, too few opportunities are provided for pupils to develop their reading skills for research purposes and the school is only just exploring the benefits of the Internet as a means of developing the pupils’ reading skills. However, as pupils move towards the end of

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ENGLISH

Year 6, they are given good opportunities to explore the work of classical authors such as Shakespeare. Such work allows pupils to develop their understanding of how authors use language in different ways to create plays as well as allowing pupils the scope to explore how language evolves and changes over time.

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ENGLISH

86. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils’ attainment in writing is below expectations. Around two thirds of the current Year 2 pupils are working at the expected level for seven- year-olds, but hardly any are achieving at the higher Level 3. Progress is satisfactory. Pupils suitably increase their mastery of writing the letters of the alphabet and understand that a sentence is demarcated by a full stop and capital letter. However, few demonstrate the ability to use such punctuation during the course of their everyday writing, and few pupils are able to join up their writing in a neat and cursive style. Pupils make good strides in their spelling abilities. Teachers ensure that pupils learn frequently spelt words through everyday lessons and at home through homework.

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ENGLISH

87. As they move through each of the classes in Key Stage 2, pupils make good gains in their learning and applying their writing skills although attainment remains below expectations at the end of Year 6. Good opportunities are provided by all teachers to enable pupils to discuss, plan, draft and amend their writing. This develops pupils’ appreciation of how some writing has to be carefully thought over before being presented to a wider audience. Teachers provide opportunities for pupils to write in a variety of formats thus developing their awareness that writing is constructed for different reasons and that the layout of a letter, for example, will take a different format from a front page of a newspaper report. Most pupils, including those with special educational needs, are able to write in different styles and many enjoy writing simple poems. However, only a few of the higher attaining pupils are able to use their

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ENGLISH

vocabulary to write expressive or imaginative pieces of writing that fully hold the interest and attention of the reader. Teachers ensure that pupils are given opportunities to develop and practise their handwriting skills through handwriting sessions although in some cases, the skills practised during these lessons are not transferred in the course of pupils’ everyday writing. There are too few opportunities provided for pupils to develop their writing skills in other subjects of the curriculum Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 36 and this hinders the development of their writing skills. Pupils do not undertake research work in depth or use a word-processor sufficiently as a way of presenting the results of their findings.

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ENGLISH

88. Across the school, pupils with special educational needs who need more support in their learning work effectively with the support assistants who provide good quality guidance. Many of the support assistants are effectively briefed by the teacher and the special needs co-ordinator and the pupils’ work is carefully planned to ensure that they learn what their classmates may be learning but at an appropriate level. Assessment of their progress is continual and good account is taken of this in planning the next steps in pupils’ learning. As a result pupils with special educational needs make good progress in English. 89. The quality of teaching in both key stages is good and ensures that most pupils develop positive attitudes to their learning as they progress through the school. Pupils are enthusiastic about their work and they enjoy greatly the materials they are asked to explore in the opening part of literacy hour sessions. The majority of pupils work

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ENGLISH

hard in lessons and try hard to present their written work neatly. The school has successfully adopted the principles of teaching the literacy hour, which are well understood by teachers, and has also increased the time available for English by providing an hour a week for pupils to undertake extended writing. This is having a positive impact on the rate of pupils’ progress. A key feature of many lessons, is the effective use of open-ended questions by teachers which allows pupils many opportunities to develop their speaking and listening skills. Teachers have high expectations of pupils and time in many lessons is used to good effect. Teachers provided good opportunities for pupils to read aloud their work or venture an opinion about the work of a classmate and they use the concluding parts of many lessons effectively to review what has been learned.

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ENGLISH

90. Although teaching is good overall it could be strengthened in a number of ways. While some effective use was made of computers during the lessons seen during the inspection, in general insufficient use is made of information and communication technology to support pupils’ literacy development. Opportunities for pupils to produce more extended pieces of writing through some subjects such as history or geography are limited and at present, the school has not carefully thought through how aspects of literacy can be fostered through other subjects. While marking is supportive, in some classes, it does not always give clear enough guidance as to how pupils may improve their efforts.

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ENGLISH

91. Good leadership has positively contributed to good gains in pupils’ achievement in the subject. The good guidance materials produced by the school to assist teachers in planning pupils’ learning through speaking and listening has had a strong impact on pupils’ achievements in this aspect of their learning. The school is effectively monitoring the pupils’ achievements in end of key stage and other tests and teachers are using this and other assessment information to adapt their planning to meet the needs of pupils. However, the management of the subject could be strengthened by more regular planned and systematic monitoring of teaching and learning. At present, although the co-ordinator does have non-teaching time to manage the subject, opportunities for her to evaluate the quality of teaching and learning in English across the school through direct observation are limited and this restricts her effectiveness.

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ENGLISH

The range and quality of resources are good. The school has substantially increased the number of books to support pupils’ learning in English since the last inspection and this has impacted well on the pupils’ healthy interest in reading. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 37

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MATHEMATICS

92. The results of the end of Key Stage 1 national tests for 2001 are well below average and below average when compared with similar schools. The inspection findings indicate that standards are below average. The results of the end of key stage tests for mathematics in 2001 at Key Stage 2 indicate that standards were well below the national average and below average when compared with similar schools.

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MATHEMATICS

93. Attainment at the end of both key stages is below the national average, and is at the same level noted at the last inspection. However, the results of the current tests and those of recent years do not indicate the effect of the high numbers of pupils with special educational needs. Progress is satisfactory generally. Nevertheless, the school is aware of the need to further raise standards and appropriate action already taken has resulted in improved teaching. This has included more effective assessment of pupils’ attainment and the reorganisation of class groupings for lessons. Pupils with special educational needs make good gains in their learning, aided by the good support many of them receive from learning support assistants during the course of lessons.

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MATHEMATICS

94. In both key stages, pupils’ ability to apply and use their knowledge and understanding of mathematics in real life situations is weak. This is compounded by their limited knowledge of mental arithmetic facts and by the narrow range of strategies they have to call upon when asked to solve problems. For example, a group of Year 6 pupils were comfortable when reading large numbers containing millions, but had difficulty in estimating the answer to the problem 19 x 99. Pupils can calculate the time taken for a journey when using a timetable and know some facts about shape and measurement. However, they become confused when asked to estimate, for example, first the perimeter, and then what the area of the school library may be. By systematically introducing, extending and developing the range and use of mathematical vocabulary in lessons, the school is working hard to improve pupils’ low level of confidence in solving everyday problems. Teachers are also gradually

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MATHEMATICS

extending pupils’ approach to learning by reducing the use of worksheets and written exercises to practical activities, and by providing better opportunities for pupils to learn strategies for problem solving and investigation.

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MATHEMATICS

87. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils’ number work is satisfactory. They count and order numbers up to one hundred and about two-thirds can correctly count in twos, fives and tens. Whilst a minority pupils have a good understanding of place value, many others are still dependent on number lines or other similar devices to give them confidence. Most understand the meaning of double and halve and when shopping, they recognise the denomination of all coins to £1 enabling them to calculate simple money problems. They measure lines using irregular measures, such as cubes, before more accurately measuring in centimetres. For other measures they talk about heavier, lighter, more and less, but a minority are less familiar when talking about kilograms and litres. All are able to produce simple graphs and pictograms from the compilation of information, such as their favourite colour.

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MATHEMATICS

88. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils are becoming comfortable with mental arithmetic calculations. They satisfactorily understand place value including the value of tenths and hundredths in decimals. They solve problems satisfactorily involving the four rules, simple money calculations and percentages of numbers. However, they show weaknesses in division. In mental arithmetic, number facts are not firmly embedded Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 38 and instant recall and pupils’ responses are slow. An appropriate understanding of fractions is developed so that pupils can talk about and handle mixed, proper and improper fractions. Furthermore, they understand the relationship between fractions, ratio and decimal fractions. Pupils are able to name several solid and flat shapes and talk about the number of faces, edges and vertices. They have a secure understanding of the geometrical relationship between acute and obtuse angles and

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MATHEMATICS

can solve problems associated with them, such as calculating, drawing and measuring them. Use of algebra is appropriately developed when pupils are solving simple addition and subtraction sums involving brackets. However, when larger numbers are used, or when multiplication and division are introduced, pupils are not clear of the correct procedures or order of working to solve them.

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MATHEMATICS

89. The quality of teaching overall is good with some very good features. Teaching has improved since the last inspection and during the inspection no unsatisfactory teaching was observed. Teaching is better in Key Stage 2 than in Key Stage 1, where sometimes the pace is too gentle and teachers’ expectations of what pupils can achieve are not always high enough. As a result, pupils with higher attainments do not always achieve as well as they might. In the best lessons, activities are very well planned and are well matched to meet the needs of pupils of different attainment. In a good Year 6 lesson seen during the inspection, the teacher ensured that pupils’ learning progressed through a series of small steps of increasing difficulty and challenge. By the end of the lesson, although pupils still had some difficulties in handling fractions using appropriate language, they knew far more that when they

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MATHEMATICS

started and talked confidently about fractions using the appropriate language. Teachers use resources well to bring pupils’ learning to life. For example, in a Year 5 lesson, the teacher used the overhead projector and a variety of good resources to teach her class about scales of measurement. Most pupils are interested in their work and all teachers encourage the pupils to work hard, maintain concentration and try to complete their work well. Support staff work well with low attainers enabling them to make similar progress to other pupils.

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MATHEMATICS

90. The recently appointed co-ordinator has good subject knowledge and expertise. She has a clear vision of how to improve teaching and learning in mathematics and has already identified some effective strategies to raise standards, which are being implemented. These include the organisation of pupils into more appropriate learning cohorts and the better use of assessment in planning pupils’ future learning. The school is beginning to analyse pupils’ achievement in tests more effectively and then to address identified weaknesses through curriculum planning. For example, the school has recognised the need to improve standards in data handling and is addressing this, but more needs to be done to raise standards across all aspects of the mathematics curriculum. Class targets have been set, but target setting for individual pupils are not consistently set. There are procedures to monitor teaching and learning, but these are not sufficiently rigorous to ensure that there is consistent

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MATHEMATICS

improvement in standards and performance. The development of pupils’ numeracy skills across the curriculum is steadily improving and particularly good examples of this were to be seen in science displays and in geography workbooks.

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MATHEMATICS

91. A good quantity of learning resources has been purchased for Key Stage One, but in Key Stage Two, resources are just sufficient to meet the needs of the curriculum. As yet, the use of information and communication technology is negligible in lessons and is in need of development, particularly through the acquisition of appropriate software. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 39

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SCIENCE

92. The results of the teacher assessments in 2001 indicated that at the end of Key Stage 1, pupils’ attainment is well below the national average. When compared with similar schools, standards are average. At the end of Key Stage 2, the national test results show that standards were well below the national average and average when compared with similar schools.

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SCIENCE

93. Standards are average at the end of both key stages and progress is satisfactory overall. Pupils make good progress in the development of their scientific knowledge and understanding, but less progress is made in the development of their ability to undertake investigation work and pursue their own lines of scientific enquiry. This maintains the findings of the previous report. The difference in inspection findings and data from the end of key stage tests and teacher assessments is due to the difference in attainment between cohorts. In the 2001 cohort, for example, the number of pupils who had special educational needs was very high. The work of pupils currently in Year 6 was slightly below the expected level. However, scrutiny of pupils’ books from previous years shows that the school prepares pupils well for the statutory tests and the intensive teaching of knowledge and thorough revision enables pupils to reach the expected level by the end of the year. Discussion with

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SCIENCE

pupils in Year 6 indicates that their scientific knowledge is better than the work presented in their books and the appropriate use of adults to support some pupils in the reading and understanding of questions in the assessment tests enables them to achieve well.

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SCIENCE

94. All pupils achieve well as a result of effective teaching of skills and through regular assessment of their progress. Lower attaining pupils and those with special educational needs are helped to participate fully in their lessons through support with their reading and to help them maintain concentration. The school seeks specialist advice from their linked high school to provide suitable tuition for the higher attaining pupils. As a result, one pupil achieved a Level 6 in the most recent national tests, which was well above the level expected for an 11-year-old. However, opportunities for pupils to develop independent research and enquiry skills are limited and this limits their overall progress in understanding how to apply their scientific knowledge to practical situations.

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SCIENCE

95. By the age of seven, pupils have experienced a good range of suitable practical activities and have a sound understanding of how things change as they grow. In their study of plants, they discover that growth is affected by a variety of factors, including sun and water. They draw and label the parts of a plant and understand the life cycle from bulb to flower. They are aware of factors affecting their own environment and devise posters to show how to care for the world. In studying themselves and their senses, pupils learn the importance of a healthy diet and they draw a graph to show their favourite flavour of crisps. They have a satisfactory knowledge that materials have different properties and uses, such as plastic being is used for umbrellas because of its waterproof qualities. They know that you can change materials through heating or cooling them, though a lower attaining pupil records that all materials melt like chocolate when heated. When dropping coins on

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SCIENCE

different surfaces pupils discovered that the table was the hardest and the carpet was the softest. Their understanding of physical processes is unsatisfactory. Pupils can distinguish between artificial and natural light and sort sources of light into the appropriate group. Most pupils can draw a simple circuit to make the bulb light, but Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 40 their understanding of electricity is limited. Whilst all pupils experience similar activities, higher attaining pupils can give clear explanations of what they have observed and write their own simple conclusions. During the course of their experimentation, pupils have insufficient opportunities to use different sources, such as computers, to find their own information.

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SCIENCE

96. By the age of eleven, through regular practice and discussion throughout the juniors, pupils have a sound understanding of a fair test. This was demonstrated when pupils decided that everyone should run round the playground for the same length of time before checking their breathing rates. The majority of pupils are beginning to formulate a hypothesis by predicting that ‘We breathe faster when we exercise.’ Through good direct teaching of scientific practice they also learn to be precise about their use of language. For example, the teacher asks pupils to rethink the statement that we breathe faster after exercise. Most pupils have a satisfactory understanding of the needs of living things and can name the function of the heart and lungs. In discussion, pupils can give a good explanation of the characteristics of a solid and a liquid, though they are less sure when asked about gases. The majority have a

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SCIENCE

satisfactory understanding of how to separate simple mixtures, such as sand and salt through a funnel and filter paper. They conduct an experiment to determine the effect of heat on how much sugar can be dissolved in water and draw a line graph to show their results. Most pupils can draw a diagram of a simple circuit using the accepted symbols and can identify which circuits will light the bulb, though they have difficulty in explaining why. Again, all pupils participate in similar activities with the higher attaining pupils demonstrating a greater depth and clarity of understanding in their learning.

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SCIENCE

97. Teaching is satisfactory throughout the school and one very good lesson was observed in Key Stage 2. This is a good improvement since the last inspection when a high percentage of lessons were judged to be unsatisfactory. This improvement is due to teachers’ increased understanding of the requirements of the programmes of study for each age group. A strong feature of all lessons is the good direct teaching of knowledge so that, for example, pupils use the correct scientific vocabulary. In the very good lesson seen, the teacher promoted good discussion of things which are patently unfair, to emphasise the meaning of a fair test, for example, using a teaspoon as compared to a jug of water to compare how quickly different substances dissolve. The teacher sets good scientific practice in asking for reasoned predictions, encouraging pupils to use and apply their existing knowledge. The good range of

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SCIENCE

experiments was well prepared and a simple recording sheet helped pupils to organise and record their results.

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SCIENCE

98. Across the school, most lessons have a sound structure with clear explanations, suitable activities and the opportunity for pupils to come together to discuss what they have learned. Although teaching is satisfactory overall, it could be strengthened in certain ways. In some lessons, the pace is too slow and pupils lose concentration. There are occasions where lessons last for the whole afternoon, and sufficient care is not always taken to ensure that there is an appropriate balance between the teacher talking and the practical activities the pupils undertake. In some cases, the lesson expands to fill the time available rather than varying the range of activities. Whilst there are regular opportunities for pupils to engage in a good variety of investigations, these are invariably instigated by the teacher, with few opportunities for pupils to devise their own experiments to improve their level of understanding. Where they are

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SCIENCE

used well, for example, in supervising pupils to obtain precise measurements or in working with a small group to keep them on task, special support assistants improve Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 41 pupils’ learning. In some lessons, however, they are involved in preparation of resources and have no direct involvement in the pupils’ learning.

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SCIENCE

99. There are good opportunities for pupils to develop their numeracy skills through reading simple measuring instruments and by displaying their findings on graphs. Literacy is developed through the writing of explanations and the labelling of diagrams. Some use is made of technology, for example, as pupils in Year 2 used the electronic white board to generate a graph about their eye colours and Year 5 used a sensor while investigating light. However, insufficient use is made of computers to support learning on a regular basis. The curriculum is enriched by visits to places of interest, such as the science museum, where pupils enjoy the wide range of hands- on experiences. The subject is managed well and good support and advice about suitable activities and resources are readily available. Extensive efforts are made to analyse pupils’ answers in the statutory tests and the information is used well to

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SCIENCE

address any areas of weakness. This has been a significant factor in the improvement in the number of pupils attaining the appropriate level. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 42

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ART AND DESIGN

100. As at the last inspection, pupils at the age of seven and eleven are attaining the standards expected for their age. Very good use is made of the time allocated to the subject to structure the teaching of skills and care is taken not to duplicate the learning which the subject has in common with design and technology. Direct teaching of skills and the opportunity for pupils to experiment with various implements and resources, give pupils confidence and enable them to achieve as well as they can. Pupils make satisfactory progress in their learning of different artistic techniques and approaches as they move through each of the classes.

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ART AND DESIGN

101. By the age of seven, pupils mix paints to effectively produce a variety of shades and colours and use these well, as demonstrated in their paintings of pictures inspired by Brody’s ‘Morning Song’. In science, they demonstrate a good use of colour as they paint animals’ hidden habitats and in history, they demonstrate their skills of observation as they paint a variety of artefacts. Work in Year 1 shows that pupils have experience of collage as they produce an effective picture of a butterfly using a range of natural materials.

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ART AND DESIGN

102. By the age of eleven, pupils are developing good use of brush strokes to create texture and depth in their painting, for example, on a pebble dashed gable, and they organise colours to convey the seasons. They mix colours well and can create a good match for a wide range of shades on the colour chart. Their sketchbooks show they are developing good skills in enlarging a detailed picture using a grid and are aware of the appropriate proportions for a face. They make sensitive use of shading when drawing a still life of cups and a dish on the table. The subject makes a good contribution to pupils’ personal development as they have opportunities to express themselves though colour. They study the work of a range of artists, such as Monet, and a range of art from different cultures, recording Aboriginal journeys and recreating patterns from totem poles. Planning indicates that all areas of the programmes of study are covered though opportunities for working three-

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ART AND DESIGN

103. No direct teaching was seen during the inspection in Key Stage 1. Evaluation of teaching plans and pupils’ work indicates that teaching is satisfactory. The quality of teaching at Key Stage 2 is good overall. A strong feature of the teaching is the effective teaching of skills and planned opportunities for pupils to learn by experimenting with colour and a range of implements, such as different sizes of brush. This was seen when older pupils used the outline of a landscape to create texture by using sweeping brushstrokes or using the tip to dab on paint more thickly, creating an illusion of movement in the grass. Clear instructions are given so that pupils are fully aware of what will be covered in the lesson and very good use is made of pupils’ work to demonstrate good technique and to improve their work and their learning in the subject generally. Good planning ensures that maximum use is made of the time available. Good use is made of the area outside the classroom to

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ART AND DESIGN

give pupils sufficient space for their work. Lessons are generally brisk and purposeful and this promotes pupils’ good attitudes to the subject.

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ART AND DESIGN

104. The subject is led well by the co-ordinator. The clear scheme of work provides good support for colleagues. The scheme is relatively new but ongoing evaluation by staff indicates they are happy with the content and that this is already helping to raise standards. Resources are readily available and this is helping to create independence, as pupils are able to choose the appropriate material for themselves. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 43 Learning has been enhanced by pupils having the opportunity to join in a visiting workshop and also by working with a local artist to create a mosaic on the school wall.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

105. By the age of seven and eleven, pupils’ attainment is broadly in line with national expectations, maintaining the standards identified in the last report. Through the well- structured teaching of skills, effective use is made of the time available for the subject and pupils of all abilities achieve well. Pupils of all abilities make good progress as they move through each of the classes.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

106. By the end of Year 2, pupils are developing systematic ways of working through a good range of practical activities and regular use of a good planning sheet on which pupils record their designs and evaluate their finished product. Pupils design and make a healthy sandwich and are aware of the importance of hygiene and safety when handling food. They consider smell, taste and appearance when designing a fruit salad. Pupils have good opportunities to examine a variety of textiles in Year 1 and dip and dye materials to show different colours, making a simple robe from their material. They try different tools for cutting card and plan and make a printing block using balsa wood and foam. Pupils in Year 2 learn how to make a hinge as they design and make a pop up Easter card. They design their own weaving and carefully evaluate their efforts.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

107. Throughout Key Stage 2, pupils are involved in a well-planned programme of activities to develop their skills. By the age of eleven, pupils are developing an understanding of nutrition as they design and make a nutritious pizza. They evaluate the product according to taste, smell and aroma and seek a second opinion to compare results. They practise a range of techniques, including Victorian quilling and screen-printing. They investigate ways in which to make a stronger structure, including folding paper and putting several layers together. They plan and make a photograph frame and give good evaluations of their results, saying: ‘The card at the back is very strong so it stands up. If I did it again I would change the size of the hole.’ Pupils in Year 5 describe the effect of using a cam when designing and making a toy, and use their understanding to create the mechanism for a jack-in-the-box. They also use card, dowelling and wood to make a car. Pupils have not had the

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

experience of using batteries to make moving models or of using the computer to help in the designing process. They have, however, used a technical construction kit.

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DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

108. Although limited observation of direct teaching was noted during the inspection, evaluation of pupils’ work and teachers’ planning suggests that the quality of teaching in both key stages is satisfactory. In the one lesson observed, teaching was good, and a well-structured approach helps pupils to appreciate the need for detailed planning and careful consideration of the criteria for designing. Scrutiny of pupils’ design books show that good emphasis is placed on the teaching of skills throughout the school and pupils experience a good range of practical activities. This was seen in the practising of stitching before pupils made a bookmark. There are opportunities for pupils to develop their literacy skills through labelling their designs and evaluating their work. Pupils also use their numeracy skills in careful measuring.

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GEOGRAPHY

109. Pupils’ attainment in geography is below expectations by the age of seven and 11 and pupils make unsatisfactory progress as they move through both key stages. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 44 Since the last inspection in 1997, standards have declined in both key stages. Topics have not been studied extensively enough to enable pupils to gain a suitable understanding of people and places, and pupils have not had sufficient opportunity to develop their geographical skills through independent enquiry. Too little time is allocated to geography to enable pupils to cover the subject in sufficient depth and detail. Some opportunities for adapting cross-curricular links are provided in the work they do. For example, mathematics is used for measuring, reading scales and co- ordinates, but the opportunities used to develop information and communication technology or literacy through the provision of independent research skills are few.

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GEOGRAPHY

Pupils do not make enough progress in geography and there are gaps in their learning.

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GEOGRAPHY

110. In Key Stage 1, pupils have studied features of China, enabling them to make a comparison between the way British and Chinese people live. For example, they observe that diets are different and that Chinese people generally use chopsticks, whilst in Britain, knives and forks are more commonly used. Similarly they recognise that speech is not the same and that different characters are used to communicate through the written word. The pupils draw objects from a ‘birds’ eye’ view, such as a shoe, a cup or a tin. Later they are able to describe and draw a simple map of their route to school. Through a local study they can identify which features of their environment they dislike and how they would like to improve them. However, they have very little knowledge or experience of places outside their immediate area and have not developed satisfactory geographical knowledge and skills.

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GEOGRAPHY

111. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils can name the countries of the British Isles and some of the European countries. They know that Africa, Asia and the Americas are continents but are unable to provide much information about them. In general, pupils’ knowledge of the location of continents, countries, cities, towns and rivers is below that expected for pupils of this age. For example, Year 6 pupils could recall only two rivers of the British Isles and could not recall the name of the Pennine Mountains, despite living very close to them. They satisfactorily create maps of places, drawing appropriate symbols to identify features, and can use six figure co-ordinates when locating places on an ordinance survey map. Some links are made with history. For example, they identify the Victorian influences on the seaside town of Llandudno and of their own town of Blackburn. By using this information, they find and contrast

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GEOGRAPHY

physical similarities and differences; however, such work is at a superficial level and does little to develop pupils’ understanding of key geographical concepts.

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GEOGRAPHY

112. The quality of teaching seen during the inspection was satisfactory and some good teaching was observed. However, the restricted time allocation has resulted in unsatisfactory progress in both key stages and pupils have not been effectively taught the key skills and knowledge. The quality of teaching over time has been unsatisfactory. In a good lesson seen in Year 4/5, the class and the pupils were engrossed in their topic about water. The teacher had created a high level of interest and through well-crafted questions, subsequent discussion improved pupils’ understanding of why and how water was clean when it left the tap. This led the pupils to consider and design water filtration plants that clearly demonstrated the good extent of their learning. The class assistant, too, provided good support to pupils with special educational needs, enabling them to make similar good progress. Over time, teaching has not enabled pupils to develop an appropriate level of

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GEOGRAPHY

geographical knowledge and there are gaps in their learning. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 45 113. The school has now raised the profile of geography and a new scheme of work has been implemented although the impact of this is not yet reflected in the standards that pupils are achieving. The new co-ordinator is seeking ways to further develop geography and has attended in-service training with this aim in mind. However, there is need to ensure that the school procedures for monitoring and evaluating the curriculum will be carefully applied to ensure that standards and the rate of pupils’ learning improves. Generally teaching resources are satisfactory, although there is a shortage of maps.

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HISTORY

114. Standards of attainment at the ages of seven and eleven are below national expectations. This represents a decline since the last inspection and is related to the limited amount of time now allocated to the subject. Pupils of all abilities in both key stages make good progress in lessons but their progress over time is unsatisfactory. The subject is not covered in sufficient depth to allow pupils to acquire the appropriate skills and knowledge and there are significant gaps in their learning.

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HISTORY

115. The quality of teaching seen in lessons during the inspection was good and sometimes very good. Lessons are well planned and taught. Teachers display good subject knowledge and an appreciation of historical skills. They offer pupils a good range of activities and experiences designed to develop their learning of how people lived in the past. Pupils in Year 6 were asked to construct a model ‘shaduf’, a device for lifting water from the Nile, while Year 2 pupils looked at photographs of 1960s and compared life then to the present day. Teachers use questions and discussion well and encourage pupils to put forward ideas. Year 3 pupils not only examined large- scale maps of Roman London but also discussed their authenticity.

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HISTORY

116. The quality of teaching enables pupils to make good progress in lessons but the restricted time allocation results in unsatisfactory progress over the key stages, and pupils have not been effectively taught key skills and knowledge. As a result, the quality of teaching over time is unsatisfactory. The evidence from the scrutiny of previous work shows inconsistent teacher expectations, particularly about the quality and quantity of work undertaken. Lessons do not happen frequently enough for pupils to develop and practise skills or to build up a body of knowledge and the recall of their previous learning is weak.

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HISTORY

117. By the end of Key Stage 1, pupils understand that change occurs over time. They are familiar with ordering people by age and understand the concepts of yesterday, today and tomorrow. They recognise change in themselves and suggest how their likes and dislikes have changed. They apply this to other people and know that their grandparents had different likes and dislikes. This awareness is further extended into the world around them and pupils recognise that their locality has changed too. In other aspects, pupils’ knowledge and understanding is insufficiently developed. They have limited knowledge of significant figures from the past and important events. Few of them, for example, are able to explain why Florence Nightingale is remembered or what she is remembered for.

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HISTORY

118. By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils’ attainment is below expectations. Although the units required in the National Curriculum are covered, the level of work is superficial and pupils’ knowledge and understanding is restricted. There can be long gaps of up to six months between the historical themes pupils explore. As a result, they do not Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 46 have the opportunity to study in depth or to develop the higher order skills of inferring and making conclusions as a result of exploring historical material. Pupils studying World War 2 in Year 6 considered issues, such as evacuation, rationing and wartime jobs, but at an undemanding level of lists and descriptions. Later work on Britain since 1948 covered important areas but the level of enquiry and research was basic. There is a lack of challenge for higher attaining pupils, for example, in extended

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HISTORY

writing or collated research. 119. The way in which pupils’ learning is planned for in the subject is currently under review because of changes in class structure. The present provision includes a variety of interesting and stimulating experiences, such as visits to Ribchester Roman Camp and Victorian school days, but there is a lack of structured teaching. The use of artefacts has been limited until recently. There is a basic arrangement for assessment at the end of each year but it is not consistently employed across the school to enable teachers to plan the next steps in pupils’ learning. There is no provision for the use of information and communication technology at present. While some pupils in Year 6 researched Ancient Egypt on the Internet at home, too few opportunities are regularly and consistently provided for all pupils to explore historical information by using computers and accompanying software.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

120. Standards of attainment at the ages of seven and eleven are below national expectations. Standards were also below expectations at the time of the last inspection. Recent progress has been good, however, owing to the school having recently implemented a number of important improvements. These have not yet had time to impact on the learning of the whole school.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

121. This year the school has embarked on a series of major improvements in the teaching and provision for information and communication technology. The ratio of pupils to computers is now better than the national average and a computer suite has been set up for all pupils. This provides for whole class teaching of information and communication technology skills once a week for each class. The school has taken the advice of the local education authority staff in reviewing its curriculum planning and now operates an appropriate scheme of work. Similarly, the school audited its resources and made good any inadequacies. It is now in a position to deliver the programmes of study for information and communication technology in full. The computer suite also provides the opportunity for an after-school Computer Club and occasional classes for parents.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

122. As a result of the above work, the quality of teaching is now satisfactory overall and is starting to impact positively on pupils’ achievements and learning. Teachers’ competence and confidence in the teaching of information and communication technology has been improved because of recent on-site training delivered by the local advisory staff. This is evident, for example, in the good use being made of the interactive whiteboards for whole class teaching in both key stages. These are being used not only to teach information and communication technology skills but also to support learning in other subjects. For example, pupils in Year 2 were involved in generating a graph on colour as part of a science lesson and the use of the white board was a strong feature of numeracy teaching in Year 4 when pupils learnt how to read scales accurately. The planned training for teachers under the ‘New Opportunities Fund’ project has not yet been delivered.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 47 123. Pupils at the end of Key Stage 1 are familiar with the operation of the computer and know what it can be used for. They select and place objects on the screen, for example, when building a townscape by positioning graphics of houses and roads. They use paint tools to make sets of objects and with support generate charts. Use of word processing has been limited to names and single words and is a weak feature of pupils’ attainment generally. Few pupils are able to explain what a ‘font’ means and their ability to manipulate how their typed text may appear on the screen is limited. There is noticeable similarity in work produced by all abilities. Evidence from the inspection suggests that pupils have not had adequate access to computers to practise and reinforce skills or to operate at an appropriate level. Recent improvements are intended to rectify these inadequacies.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

124. The attainment of pupils at the end of Key Stage 2 is below expectations although recent progress has been good. Pupils use word processing skills to produce reports and stories, sometimes with added clipart. They know that fonts can be changed and enlarged and borders added. Pupils know most of the basic ‘Paint’ tools and use them purposefully. Younger pupils in Key Stage 2 have written simple programs to control a floor robot. With support, older Key Stage 2 pupils use the facilities within spreadsheets to produce graphs and lists. There has been occasional use of CD- ROM for reference. Pupils have not had the opportunity to use email in school or to use the Internet for research and their learning of how such facilities can support their learning is limited. A significant number of pupils have access to computers at home and use their own computers for homework and research. Until recently pupils have

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

not had sufficient access to computers to become confident and competent users of information and communication technology. The provision of regular lessons this term is fostering progress.

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INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

125. The management of the subject is satisfactory. Recent developments in the subject have had a strong impact on the range and quality of resources to support pupils’ learning in the subject. The co-ordinator is keen to ensure that these are regularly and consistently used during the course of everyday lessons once teachers have undertaken the training that is planned for them over the course of the current academic year.

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MUSIC

126. Standards at the age of seven and eleven are in line with expectations. This represents an improvement since the last inspection when standards at Key Stage 2 were found to be below national expectations. A new scheme of work and improvements in teachers’ knowledge and confidence in teaching music have impacted well on the standards that pupils in both key stages reach. Pupils generally make satisfactory progress, although progress made in appraising music is unsatisfactory. Teaching does not give pupils sufficient opportunities to critically appraise music. Pupils aged seven to eleven are beginning to record their ideas graphically but this is at an early stage, and their knowledge of standard notation is limited. All pupils have the opportunity to listen to a range of recorded music in class and in assembly, though there are few opportunities to listen to live music. 127. Recent improvements in the subject suggest that the current achievement of pupils is

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MUSIC

satisfactory overall, and the recently increased emphasis on pupils’ practical activities supports the improving trend. In line with this, the school has used some new funds to provide peripatetic violin and guitar lessons for some pupils and this will increase the range of musical opportunities in school. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 48 128. In the hymn practice, all pupils demonstrate that they can sing tunefully and with enjoyment. By the age of seven, most pupils move rhythmically in response to a piece of music, and play untuned percussion instruments in time to the music. They are beginning to explore ways in which sound can be arranged through pictures and higher attaining pupils can interpret a pattern of circles by striking the triangle loudly or softly as appropriate. Planning shows that pupils learn a range of traditional songs, such as ‘Boys and Girls Come Out to Play’, and also listen to and interpret a range of

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MUSIC

sound effects, such as fireworks or echoes in a cave. Key Stage 1 pupils have few opportunities to perform for others or to play tuned instruments and their skills in performing and appraising music are at an unsatisfactory level.

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MUSIC

129. By the age of eleven, most pupils have had the opportunity to listen to a range of composers and can identify Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’. Many pupils sing in the church choir but there is not a choir in school. However, pupils do have the opportunity to sing and perform together in Christmas and other productions, such as ‘The Pirates’, and for a wider audience as they join with other schools to perform the ‘Minibeasts Concert.’ Pupils are improving their skills of recording sounds and tunes through graphic notation, using symbols to represent different instruments, and recognise crotchets and quavers. They play tuned percussion instruments, such as the xylophone and the chime bars, and some pupils belong to the recorder club. Pupils listen to and sing music and songs from around the world, such as calypsos and folk songs like the ‘Gypsy Rover’. They can devise their own accompaniments, although

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MUSIC

there are few opportunities for pupils to appraise and so improve their own performances. Pupils aged seven to eleven are beginning to record their ideas graphically but this is at an early stage, and their knowledge of standard notation is limited. All pupils have the opportunity to listen to a range of recorded music in class and in assembly, although there are few opportunities to listen to live music.

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MUSIC

130. The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall, although there are some unsatisfactory features. The better lessons were well planned with good practical activities well suited to the age group. In a good lesson seen in Year 1, the teacher ensured that all pupils were listening so that they could learn from the clear instructions, and good use was made of the time as music was already playing as they returned from a physical education lesson. Some teachers have good strategies for helping pupils acquire skills. For example, pupils in Year 3 were encouraged to touch their nose for the first beat of a bar to emphasise its importance and in Year 4 and 5 good use was made of a 4 by 4 grid to form a basis of pupils’ musical creations. Where teaching has weak features, it is often the result of poor use of time. In one lesson seen during the inspection, pupils spent a long time waiting for the teacher to find the correct

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MUSIC

section on a commercially recorded lesson. There were long gaps in the musical element of the lesson as the pupils waited patiently for the chance to play their percussion instruments and, consequently, pupils made few gains in their learning. Some activities last too long and pupils lose interest and concentration, for example, as they wait for each child to have an opportunity to clap the syllables of their name. In one lesson, the flow of learning is interrupted unnecessarily as the teacher stops the whole class to discipline one group, rather than dealing with the offending pupils directly. When making music in groups, consideration should be given to using the hall rather than the classroom so that pupils are not distracted by each other’s activities.

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MUSIC

131. In changing to a new scheme of work support will be available from the local music service. The peripatetic music lessons in violin and guitar are having a positive effect on the musical life of the school. Similarly, learning is enhanced by visits from an Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 49 African musician and a musical group using a variety of implements to create music. Pupils’ progress is assessed through observation and is included in Individual Pupil Profiles. Little use is made of information and communication technology to aid learning in the subject. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 50

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

132. Inspection findings show that attainment at the end of both key stages is in line with national expectations. Standards have been maintained at Key Stage 2 since the last inspection, although the report then identified standards at Key Stage 1 to be above those normally expected for pupils aged seven. Strengths of the subject are in swimming, because of the good provision for the pupils in Key Stage 2, and the teaching of games. Teachers are less confident in teaching dance and gymnastics and these are areas of the curriculum where pupils’ progress is not so rapid. An appropriate amount of time is allocated to the subject and, because of the spacious hall, large sports field and good quality hard playing area, pupils have plenty of opportunities to practise skills.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

133. In Key Stage 1, pupils extend their physical skills through an appropriately planned and developing programme of studies. In Year 1, pupils show a good awareness of space as they explore movement through change of speed and direction. They learn how to throw and catch a beanbag satisfactorily, before throwing and catching with a partner. The more controlled pupils can do this with one hand. Pupils in Year 2, further develop these games skills appropriately. Directional control is becomes more pronounced as pupils get older and older pupils can vary the type of throw they use and manage to land the beanbag in a hoop from an acceptable range. Simple marking and interception techniques are developed through games, although only a few pupils have a strong sense of position in this. All pupils, including those with special educational needs, make satisfactory progress at Key Stage 1.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

134. In Key Stage 2, only games lessons were observed. Pupils have refined their running skills. They can satisfactorily adapt their running skills into change of pace, direction and swerve, suitably adapting them to games so that they can effectively mark or escape from a partner. However, within the confines of a defined area, such as a netball court, these skills are not particularly well aligned with the need to combine them with a sense of position and space. By the end of Year 6, pupils have learned how to control and travel with a ball sufficiently well to manoeuvre through a number of closely placed obstacles. They understand the difference between a chest and bounce pass and use them in games, but the technique they show is only satisfactory. Good use is made of warm-up and cool-down activities, and pupils understand the importance of this. Standards in swimming are satisfactory. Pupils make satisfactory progress throughout the key stage.

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

135. Overall, teaching is satisfactory. However, examples of good teaching were seen in both key stages. Pupils achieve especially well where they are systematically taught the necessary skills and are given time to practise, demonstrate and evaluate their work and that of others. Good examples of this were seen in Year 1 and Year 6. The effect of this good teaching and, in particular, the evaluation of demonstration, is to enable pupils to recognise good practice, resulting in a high level of motivation, good concentration and a willingness to improve performance. All teachers place a high priority on safety and make good use of apparatus. Occasionally, some lessons lose impetus because teachers are too cautious in involving pupils in the distribution of equipment. When available, support staff use their skills well to provide additional help in lessons. A good example of this was in Year 6 when a disruptive pupil with

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PHYSICAL EDUCATION

special educational needs was well managed, enabling both the pupil concerned and the rest of the class to make good progress. Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Roman Catholic Primary School- 51 136. The school is still developing its scheme of work and the co-ordinator is carefully evaluating the success of the changes made. However, appropriate in-service training may well diminish a lack of confidence which a few teachers have in their delivery of gymnastics and dance. A few extra-curricular activities and interschool games and matches provide additional opportunities for pupils to practise what they have learned in lessons.

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