St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey

105073 Unique Reference Number Wirral LEA 277287 Inspection number 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006 Inspection dates Mr Ian Thompson CfBT Lead Inspector Reporting inspector

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This inspection was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Wheatland Lane School address Primary Type of school Wallasey Voluntary aided School category Merseyside CH44 7ED 3 to 11 Age range of pupils 0151 638 3919 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0151 638 6104 Fax number 257 Number on roll Fr J Fagan Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs R Blakemore (Acting) Headteacher 16 October 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 277287 6 March 2006 - 3 to 11 7 March 2006 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report 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.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by three additional inspectors.

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Description of the school

This is an average-sized school in an area of severe social and economic deprivation. Most pupils are of white British heritage. There are a variety of minority ethnic groups and of these a very small proportion of pupils are at an early stage of learning English. The proportion of pupils with additional learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average. The proportion with a statement of special educational need is well below average. The acting headteacher has been in post since January 2006.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006

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Grade: 4

The school has too positive a view of its performance and evaluates its effectiveness as satisfactory. Inspectors judge it to be inadequate because there are significant weaknesses in pupils' achievement, the quality of teaching and in the way the school is led and managed. In accordance with section 13 (3) of the Education Act 2005, HMCI is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. Teaching and learning are inadequate with the result that pupils do not make the progress that they should. Provision in the Foundation Stage is satisfactory. Children make satisfactory and sometimes good progress and work towards the national standards expected by the end of their Reception year. Pupils make satisfactory

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Grade: 4

progress in Years 1 and 2 and attain standards that are close to average. Progress slows badly in Years 3 to 6 and pupils underachieve. As a result, standards are below average. Work seen during the inspection indicates that standards are falling. The school is a safe and friendly place so that most pupils are happy to be there. They are generally well behaved and enjoy learning. Pupils' personal development is satisfactory, as is the school's arrangements for their care. The curriculum is satisfactory; learning is enriched by a number of extra-curricular opportunities. Attendance is satisfactory and improving. Leadership and management are inadequate. The school has made insufficient progress since its last inspection because it has not had clear enough direction for improvement. Initiatives put in place since January 2006 have led to some improvement but it is too early to see a significant impact. Governors are very supportive but have not made the

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Grade: 4

school's management fully accountable for its performance. Following a period of declining standards, the school does not have sufficient capacity to improve and therefore value for money is inadequate.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Improve the quality of teaching and learning to raise achievement and standards in English, mathematics and science. • Improve leadership and management so that: - the school has clear direction for improvement; - monitoring ensures that staff at all levels are made accountable for standards and performance. 2 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006

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Grade: 4

Achievement is inadequate. The school acknowledges that too many pupils do not do as well as they should during their time in the school. Children enter the school with below average attainments and many have poor social skills. Teachers in the Foundation Stage deal well with these difficulties, enabling children to make satisfactory and sometimes good progress towards the standards expected by the end of the Reception year. Results in national tests and assessments at the end of Year 2 in 2005 were close to average, showing that most pupils made satisfactory progress in Years 1 and 2. This is still the case. Results in tests at the end of Year 6 in 2005 were below average in mathematics and science and in the lowest 5% of schools nationally for English. For this group of pupils, there was a sharp decline in pupils' achievement and standards and targets were missed. Results show a declining trend over the last four years. Standards in Year 6 are lower than at the time of the

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Grade: 4

last inspection. Then, as now, standards in mathematics were a cause for concern. Work seen during this inspection indicates that standards are still falling. Inspectors found few significant differences in the achievement of different groups of pupils. However, pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress because of the support they receive. Those at an early stage of learning English also benefit from additional help and make good gains in learning English.

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Grade: 3

The school sees this aspect of its work as good, but inspectors judge it to be satisfactory. Pupils are generally well behaved and most show good attitudes to work and school. Relationships between the pupils and adults in the school are good. Some low-level disturbance caused by a small minority of pupils does occur in some classes. This is quickly and effectively dealt with by teachers. Pupils know how to stay safe and older pupils take some responsibility as they act as play leaders, providing positive role models for younger pupils in the playground. They make other valuable contributions to the school community, for instance by acting as receptionists. Attendance has improved recently and is now close to average. The school council has only recently been reformed and it is too soon for it to have a significant voice in school affairs. Pupils are developing an awareness of a healthy lifestyle, for example

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Grade: 3

by eating healthy snacks at break. Provision for spiritual, moral and social development is good overall but pupils' knowledge and awareness of other cultures are not promoted sufficiently. The development of the pupils' basic skills in literacy and numeracy is not consistent enough to prepare them adequately for the future. 3 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006

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Grade: 4

The quality of teaching and learning is inadequate overall. The school evaluated it as satisfactory. Teaching does not meet the full range of pupils' needs and there are significant weaknesses. Pupils do not consistently make the progress of which they are capable. Teaching has a number of good features in the Foundation Stage and learning is good because the teamwork of the staff ensures that pupils' progress is closely monitored and built upon. In Years 1 and 2, teaching leads to satisfactory progress being made by most pupils. In Years 3 to 6, progress is inadequate in relation to pupils' earlier achievement. Lesson planning does not provide well enough for pupils' individual needs. Teaching does not consistently challenge the pupils, so that too few make the progress of which they are capable. Teachers' application of day-to-day assessment is patchy. In a lesson where checks on pupils' understanding were neglected,

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Grade: 4

one pupil said, 'We don't understand what we are supposed to do.' Some good teaching was seen during the inspection where activities were matched well to pupils' needs, pace was maintained and learning was good. This gives the school a platform of good practice on which to build improvement.

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Grade: 3

The Foundation Stage curriculum is satisfactory overall, with some good features, such as the emphasis on personal development and promoting independence. Learning opportunities are well organised, but outdoor facilities are insufficient to give children the full range of experiences that they should have. Curriculum provision for Years 1 to 6 is satisfactory and meets statutory requirements. It is enriched by a number of educational visits and additional activities, such as a science week. Very good support is provided for pupils who are at an early stage of learning English. Provision for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is well organised. Recent improvements in the use made of assessment have been introduced to match the work more precisely to pupils' needs. However, it is too soon for these changes to have had significant impact. Provision for literacy, numeracy and the development of information and

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Grade: 3

communication technology skills is satisfactory.

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Grade: 3

Care guidance and support are satisfactory. Parents and pupils agree that pupils are well cared for. They are able to learn in a calm atmosphere with clear expectations for behaviour, safety and health. The work of the home-school link officer is particularly successful in helping pupils to overcome barriers to learning and gain confidence in their ability to achieve. As a result, the attitudes to learning of the majority are good. The school is at a very early stage of making the most of these positive attitudes to 4 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006 improve standards and progress. Guidance for pupils on how to make the best progress in their academic work is very variable and lacks cohesion. Because assessment data and other information are not used consistently in planning for progress, the pupils' targets are often too general to provide clear guidance on what to do next. Too much

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Grade: 3

relies on the skills of individual teachers. As a result, pupils are often unclear about how they can improve their work further.

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Grade: 4

The school has too positive a view of its effectiveness, although it accepts that standards and achievement are inadequate. The leadership has not established a common sense of purpose to bring about improvement and standards are falling. The school's self-evaluation is inaccurate. Monitoring of the school's performance is inadequate and does not identify the weaknesses to be tackled. Consequently, improvement planning does not provide clear strategic direction for the school. Issues raised by the last inspection, relating to standards in mathematics and the use of assessment, have not been dealt with effectively. Weaknesses in teaching and the use of assessment are major factors in preventing pupils doing as well as they should. Although some initiatives put in place since January have led to some improvement, for example in the use of assessment and target setting, it is too soon for these changes

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Grade: 4

to have had an impact on standards. There is insufficient monitoring of classroom standards to enable managers to guide the teachers who would benefit from support. Although governors are supportive and have a good understanding of the way that the school works, they have not held the school to account rigorously enough to bring about an improvement in its performance 5 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006 .

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set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s

website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Wallasey, 6 March 2006 to 7 March 2006

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Overall

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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learners?

NA 3 How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? NA 3 The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 4 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation NA No The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA No Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

NA 4 How well do learners achieve? NA 4 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 4 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

NA 2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 2 The behaviour of learners NA 3 The attendance of learners NA 3 How well learners enjoy their education NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 3 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 3 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 3 How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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needs and interests of learners?

NA 3 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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needs and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low.

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and supporting all learners?

NA 4 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 4 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 3 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 4 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 4 The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities NA Yes The adequacy and suitability of staff to ensure that learners are protected

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The extent to which schools enable learners to be healthy

Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to eat and drink healthily Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to take regular exercise Yes Learners are discouraged from smoking and substance abuse Yes Learners are educated about sexual health

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The extent to which providers ensure that learners stay safe

Yes Procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements Yes Risk assessment procedures and related staff training are in place Yes Action is taken to reduce anti-social behaviour, such as bullying and racism Yes Learners are taught about key risks and how to deal with them

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The extent to which learners make a positive contribution

Yes Learners are helped to develop stable, positive relationships Yes Learners, individually and collectively, participate in making decisions that affect them Yes Learners are encouraged to initiate, participate in and manage activities in school and the wider community

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The extent to which schools enable learners to achieve economic well-being

Yes There is provision to promote learners’ basic skills Yes Learners have opportunities to develop enterprise skills and work in teams NA Careers education and guidance is provided to all learners in key stage 3 and 4 and the sixth form NA Education for all learners aged 14–19 provides an understanding of employment and the economy

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

As you know, inspectors visited your school to check on how well it is doing. Thank you very much for the way you welcomed us into your school. We enjoyed talking to you and found you helpful and friendly. Although there are some good things happening in your school, we came to the decision that it needs extra help to give you the education you deserve. We have recommended that the school needs 'special measures'. This means that, as well as receiving extra help, inspectors will make visits to St Joseph's to check that improvements are being made. These are the things we thought were good. - You usually behave well in lessons, try hard and most of you enjoy school. - Most of the time you get on well together and willingly take on jobs and responsibilities. - Those of you who find learning difficult get good help. - The school teaches you how to stay safe and keep healthy. These are the things we thought should be improved.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

- We feel that you are capable of doing better, particularly in English, mathematics and science. - We have asked your teachers to find ways to help you learn more successfully. - We have asked your headteacher and the governors to find ways of making the school a better place to learn and to keep checking that all lessons are as good as they should be. Thank you for helping us with our work. We hope that you carry on enjoying school and do your best to help Mrs Blakemore and your teachers make St Joseph's a better school.

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