St Anne's Catholic Primary School

Inspection Report St Anne's Catholic Primary School

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104477 Unique Reference Number Knowsley Local Authority 286954 Inspection number 1 °2 November 2006 Inspection dates Delia Hiscock Reporting inspector

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

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Marina Crescent School address Primary Type of school Huyton, Liverpool Voluntary aided School category Merseyside L36 5XL 4 °11 Age range of pupils 0151 4778260 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 0151 4778261 Fax number 206 Number on roll (school) Mr Chris Marsh Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Maggie Keating Headteacher 3 December 2001 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 286954 1 °2 November 2006 4°11 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 two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This popular, broadly average sized school serves an urban population. A small proportion of pupils is eligible for free school meals and there are relatively few pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. All the pupils are of White British heritage.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Grade: 2

St Anne's is a good school that provides good value for money. This is because it aims high for its pupils, knows itself exceptionally well, is unequivocal in tackling signs of underachievement and takes exceptional care of its pupils. The headteacher places pupils' personal needs, well-being and the preparation for their future at the heart of the school's work. Pupils place their trust in the adults in school and mature into personable and responsible individuals who care about others. This is one of the reasons why parents and carers find the school so approachable. With the strong leadership team and perceptive governance, the headteacher has transformed the school environment and enabled the school to sail smoothly through a period of change by recruiting effectively and supporting those new to the school. Pupils are happy to come to school and are very proud of their involvement in it, for example, in bringing about improvements to the school grounds. Their attendance is

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Grade: 2

excellent and the vast majority achieve well. Leaders at all levels are very much involved in moving the school forward, and strong teamwork and support enable the school to build on its successes. The school is beginning to recoup some of the features of the very good achievement in years 2001 to 2004, and in science in particular, after a sharp decline to below average standards in this subject in 2005. Pupils in Years 5 and 6 are forging ahead again. As a result, standards at the end of Year 6 are above average overall and are well above average in English. Pupils' good achievement is the result of new expertise in the teaching of science and some other outstanding teaching. Children in the Foundation Stage make satisfactory rather than good progress because the activities provided for them are not stimulating enough. Pupils make good progress in Key Stage 1. However, not all higher attaining pupils have recently achieved as well

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Grade: 2

as they should in writing and mathematics. The school has largely resolved this issue, although some pupils in lower Key Stage 2 could still do better. The high proportion of worksheets used in teaching here and limited academic guidance overall mean that pupils do not always understand what they need to aspire to in their work and how they might improve it. The curriculum is designed effectively to widen pupils' experiences and to equip them with the skills and knowledge they need to help them deal with the choices open to them in the future. Pupils' skills in information and communication technology (ICT) are much improved since the previous inspection.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Ensure that teaching sets rigorous challenge for all higher attaining pupils. • Improve provision in the Foundation Stage to provide more stimulating activities and hence boost children's progress. • Improve the quality of academic guidance so that pupils understand how well they are learning and what they need to do to improve their work. 2 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Grade: 2

Standards at the end of Year 6 are above average because the pupils, including those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, make good progress and achieve well. The school's four year pattern of well above average standards peaked in 2004. In 2005, this trend was interrupted by the shortfall in meeting challenging targets, particularly in science, where standards fell well below average. Standards in English continued to be well above average and those in mathematics to be above average because progress was not as affected in these subjects by some staffing changes. Preliminary test results in 2006 and pupils' work show that the school has recovered from this dip in performance because of effective leadership intervention and successful recruitment that has improved teaching. Standards at the end of Key Stage 1 are consistently above average but, in 2006, higher attaining pupils did not achieve as

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Grade: 2

well as they should in writing and mathematics because teaching did not set enough challenge. In Key Stage 1, this has been largely resolved but a small proportion of academically able pupils in their lower junior years could still achieve more. In the Foundation Stage, children build adequately on their average levels of development on starting and attain expected standards overall at the end of their Reception Year, although standards in personal, social and mathematical development are above average.

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Grade: 1

Pupils' personal development and well-being are outstanding. Pupils love coming to school and their attendance is excellent. Very good relationships exist between everyone in the school and, as a result, the pupils are well behaved, keen to learn and really involved in other activities which the school provides. They take on responsibility around the school conscientiously and recognise the importance of helping others in school and in the world beyond. They appreciate the work of the school council in helping to develop the school grounds and in tackling important concerns, such as parking outside the school. These are features that have helped them to become safety conscious from an early age, see that responsibility is essential in the community and develop an informed understanding of being healthy. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding and very much fostered by the school's faith.

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Grade: 1

They celebrate the diversities of other faiths and cultures and are aware of conflicts that can affect British society today. Their skills in literacy and numeracy and ICT help prepare them well for the future but it is the qualities that pupils demonstrate when working with others that shine through. 3 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is effective and enables the vast majority of pupils to make good progress and to thrive as learners. Excellent relationships, good planning, probing questioning, and teachers' use of ICT are the key features that help pupils to work purposefully, enjoy their work and understand clearly what they are to learn in lessons. Teaching assistants provide an additional and effective layer of teaching, including that provided for pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The pupils are conscientious, very effective listeners and often self-motivated. However, for some higher attaining pupils in their lower junior years, learning is hampered by the use of too many worksheets that over-reinforce skills grasped in earlier lessons and make progress laborious. Often, marking does not explain how pupils might improve.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good. It provides a wide range of first hand learning activities and meets the needs of the vast majority of pupils, ensuring that they develop well and make good progress. Pupils particularly appreciate and benefit from an extensive programme of educational visits and visitors, a good range of extra-curricular activities, and some effective links across subjects. Pupils are taught how to keep healthy and stay safe through the school's very effective programme of personal, social and health education that permeates school life. Close links with the local nurseries and schools, and local resources for ICT have reaped rewards for learning and boosted the range of skills pupils acquire for the future, including those of pupils who are gifted and talented. In the Foundation Stage, the curriculum features suitable themes and opportunities for the children to explore for themselves but these activities do not

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Grade: 2

enrich the children's learning beyond satisfactory.

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Grade: 2

The quality of care, guidance and support provided is good overall. Pupils say that they feel very safe and happy, and they express high levels of trust in staff. They know there is always someone to talk with and, very importantly, that the support provided really works. This is because the quality of care and help provided for the pupils is exceptional. These features make a huge contribution to the exemplary personal qualities that many pupils show in their work and play around the school. All the procedures for child protection and for checking potential risks are in place and are regularly updated. Academic guidance is based on the school's effective tracking of progress, but only a few pupils understand how well they are doing, where to focus their efforts in order to improve and to what they might aspire to do better. 4 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. The headteacher has a powerful vision for the future of the school, high expectations of what pupils should achieve and some outstanding qualities of leadership to bring this about. With astute governance, successful recruitment and well communicated processes, leadership has transformed the school environment, and continues to develop the skills of staff new to the school and of leaders at all levels. There is good capacity for further improvement. The school's evaluation of its work is excellent in scope and accurate in most detail. It takes very good account of the views of everyone, and of pupils in particular. Standards, achievement, and pupils' personal development and well-being are at the fore of the school's work. To bring this about, there is comprehensive monitoring and analysis, effective improvement planning, followed by professional training, and robust

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Grade: 2

intervention to tackle signs of underachievement. Targeted aspects of pupils' achievement include the setting of suitable challenge for all the higher attainers now, following staff changes in role. Leadership is rightly in the process of renewing professional support where needed to meet this aim. The value for money provided by the school is good and an excellent use of grants has been made to improve the accommodation. 5 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006 .

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Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Inspection judgements

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

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 3 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The behaviour of learners 1 The attendance of learners 2 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you so much for all the help you gave us during our visit to your school. It was great talking with you. We found you to be really friendly, helpful and courteous ambassadors for your school. This letter is to tell you what we think about your school. Perhaps you might like to discuss with each other what you could do to improve the points we raise with you? We found your school to be a good one. The reasons for this include you, as well as the teachers and helpers. We can see that you are doing well in your work. One of the reasons for this is that you listen really well to each other and to your teachers. You behave well too. We could see that you have learned such a lot about how to keep safe and healthy. You are very lucky to be in a school where everyone cares so well for each other and steps in when someone needs help. This is one of the things that help you to work together so well. There are three things that we have asked the school to improve. They are to:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

• make sure that the work set for you to do stretches everyone to learn as well as they can • provide even more stimulating learning activities for children in the Foundation Stage • help you to know how well you are learning and how you can improve your work. These will help you to learn more for yourself. This is really important for your skills for the future. Keep up your good work! Good luck for the future. 9 Inspection Report: St Anne's Catholic Primary School, 1 °2 November 2006

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