St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School

St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School Inspection report

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104382 Unique Reference Number Wolverhampton Local Authority 308587 Inspection number 4 °5 June 2008 Inspection dates Susan Walsh 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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Primary Type of school Community School category 4 °11 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 168 School The governing body Appropriate authority Chris Lockley Chair Jane Morris Headteacher 4 May 2004 Date of previous school inspection Emsworth Crescent School address Pendeford Wolverhampton WV9 5NR 01902 558621 Telephone number 01902 558625 Fax number

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4-11 Age group 4 °5 June 2008 Inspection dates 308587 Inspection number .

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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

The school is a little smaller than most primary schools. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is below average as is the proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups. The proportion of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is below average. The number of pupils joining the school at times other than in the Reception class is above average.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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Grade: 3

St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School is a satisfactory school where achievement is satisfactory and standards are average. Children start the Reception class with standards that are similar to national expectations. They make satisfactory progress through the Reception class but precise and regular checks are not always made on children's progress throughout the year. Pupils make satisfactory progress through the school and by the time pupils reach the end of Year 6 standards in English and science are similar to the national average. Pupils make good progress in mathematics, particularly in Key Stage 2, and reach above average standards. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. Teachers usually have high expectations of the more able and average ability pupils but work is not always well matched to the needs of the less able pupils and this holds back their achievement. Pupils with learning difficulties

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Grade: 3

and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress and the school works effectively with external agencies to make sure their needs are met. The rich and exciting curriculum and good pastoral care underpin the pupils' good personal development. There are many interesting things to do which capture the pupils' imaginations. The school's emphasis on investigation and problem solving has evolved through its work on provision for gifted and talented pupils at both local and national levels and is helping to develop enquiring minds in all pupils of all abilities. Although the curriculum is good overall, it is only satisfactory in the Foundation Stage because children do not have enough opportunities to use their own initiative and learn through purposeful play and not enough use is made of the outdoors. Pupils from different cultural and social backgrounds get on very well together. They say, 'We love coming to school; all our friends are here.' Their obvious enjoyment of school is reflected

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Grade: 3

in the above average attendance rates and good standards of behaviour. Parents are generally satisfied with the quality of education provided by the school and typically talk about the 'friendly and helpful' staff. The school gives a high priority to promoting pupils' well-being and as a result pupils have a good knowledge of how to keep healthy and feel safe. Pupils are proud of their school community and are keen to contribute through their roles as school councillors or playground leaders, which they take very seriously indeed. They have plentiful opportunities to contribute to the wider community particularly through the activities of the choir and brass group. Satisfactory leadership and management have resulted in improving standards, particularly in mathematics. The school is involved with many worthwhile initiatives but these are not always monitored or evaluated with sufficient rigour to ensure they are uniformly implemented and

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Grade: 3

have the fullest impact on achievement and standards. Some aspects of the school's self-evaluation are too positive because judgements are not based on the rigorous monitoring of teaching and learning linked to a thorough analysis of the extensive data available. This clouds the school's perception of the big picture, as does the lack of reliable information about pupils' standards when they leave the Reception class. Nevertheless, the school has made big strides in improving standards and achievement in mathematics and satisfactory improvements to standards in science. This demonstrates the school's satisfactory capacity for further improvement. 4 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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Grade: 3

Although children's accomplishments on entry can vary from year to year they are usually similar to national expectations when they enter Reception. However, their skills in communication, language and literacy are sometimes below average. This has been recognised and an effective programme helps children to link letters and sounds. Children make satisfactory progress in the Reception class because of satisfactory teaching combined with a satisfactory curriculum. Relationships between adults and children are good with lots of praise for children. Children's behaviour is generally good but some children can find it difficult to share. Many activities are supported by adults and they work well to expand children's vocabulary and develop their thinking skills. However, there is not always the correct balance between adult-led and child-initiated learning and children do not always have sufficient opportunities to make

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Grade: 3

purposeful choices. The outdoors is not always used to full effect to develop children's skills in all areas of learning. Assessment is used effectively to group children by ability but is not always used to measure accurately the rate of progress of individual children. Information about children's standards when they leave the Reception class are not always reliable because assessment systems are not rigorous enough.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the school's analysis of data and monitoring of teaching and learning so that evaluation focuses rigorously on the impact of provision on standards and achievement. ■ Provide more opportunities for child-led activities and purposeful play in the Reception class, including making more effective use of the outdoors. ■ Ensure that regular checks are made on children's progress in the Reception class and that assessments are precise and result in accurate information about children's attainment when they leave the Reception class. ■ Make sure that work is always closely matched to the needs of all pupils, including the lower ability pupils.

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Grade: 3

Children leave the Foundation Stage with attainment that is broadly typical. Standards at the end of Key Stage 1 have often been above average but dipped in 2007 to average. Currently, standards in Key Stage 1 are above average particularly in reading and writing and pupils have made good progress despite a significant number of pupils joining the school late. Pupils in Key Stage 2 make satisfactory progress. The school has worked hard to improve standards and achievement in both mathematics and science. Pupils now make good progress in mathematics and standards are currently above average at the end of Year 6. Standards have improved to average in science from a low base and achievement in science is now satisfactory. Standards in English have not improved at the same rate and achievement in English is satisfactory. The school is aware that progress in writing is inconsistent, with variations in the rates of progress

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Grade: 3

in different year groups. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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Grade: 2

Pupils have good attitudes towards their school work and want to succeed. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. They much enjoy practical and creative activities where they can really get involved but they can lose focus when they have to listen to the teacher for lengthy periods. Pupils are keen to keep fit and healthy and know well how to keep safe. They take home with them the ideas generated at school. Pupils make a good contribution to the community, understanding how important it is to look after the environment. Play leaders are very popular and help create a good atmosphere in the playground. Their contribution is valued by other pupils. Pupils are well prepared for their futures because they develop very positive attitudes, learn to cooperate, work well in teams and they have good opportunities at school to learn about managing money.

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Grade: 3

The teaching has some strengths but also weaker elements that hold back the progress of the pupils. Relationships between pupils and teachers are very good indeed. Pupils' contributions are always valued and this gives them confidence. Behaviour is managed very effectively, minimising disruptions in class. Good use of interactive whiteboards and a good variety of other resources are used well to make lessons more interesting and support learning. Some teachers often talk for too long at the start of lessons. This causes some pupils to lose interest and also limits opportunities for pupils to work independently and reinforce their learning. Teachers usually offer challenging work to higher and middle attaining pupils but work is not accurately matched to the needs of lower attaining pupils, which limits their progress.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is pivotal in supporting the pupils' good personal development. Very good provision for personal, social and health education ensures that pupils know how to keep healthy and safe. The curriculum for mathematics has been improved through a greater focus on developing pupils' mental arithmetic and problem solving skills and this has helped to raise standards. Provision for science has also been recently improved and there are now more opportunities for investigation which have enthused the pupils but have not yet had time to impact fully on standards. The rich and exciting variety of activities and visits are used well to bring learning alive in the classroom and good links between subjects make learning more relevant. The pupils appreciate the wide range of clubs, including those for sport and music. Although the curriculum is very good for pupils in Years 1 to 6, it is only satisfactory in the

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Grade: 2

Reception class because of the narrow opportunities for child-initiated learning and limited use of the outdoors.

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Grade: 3

The school provides good pastoral care for pupils but has weaknesses in the quality of academic guidance. The good standard of care makes a significant contribution to pupils' personal 6 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008 development and their enjoyment of school. Staff are caring and know pupils' personal needs well. Good links with external agencies help to ensure that vulnerable pupils are well supported. Child protection procedures and risk assessments are in place. Many parents were concerned about the behaviour of a minority of pupils particularly in lower Key Stage 2. The school has worked successfully with outside agencies to improve the behaviour of some of its most challenging pupils. A minority of parents have expressed concerns about bullying. The school does take their concerns seriously but does not always document the actions it has taken.

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Grade: 3

The quality of academic guidance is inconsistent. The quality of marking varies from teacher to teacher. Whilst some teachers tell pupils clearly how to improve their work, the guidance provided by some teachers is brief. The use of academic targets is also inconsistent. Some teachers encourage pupils to mark and assess their own work but this is not always as rigorous as it could be.

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Grade: 3

Leaders, including governors, have developed some stronger features of the school but there are weaknesses in their monitoring of its performance. They have ensured that pupils have access to a lively curriculum and good pastoral care that ensures pupils enjoy school and have good personal development. The school has successfully tackled weaknesses in standards in mathematics and science. In particular, the effective leadership and management of mathematics has accelerated pupils' progress and resulted in much improved standards. The school has a satisfactory view of its overarching strengths and weaknesses but deficiencies in the school's arrangements for monitoring and evaluating its work contribute to its over-positive self-evaluation in some areas. Questions have not been raised about inconsistencies in assessment of children's standards on entry into Year 1. The school has extensive data about

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Grade: 3

pupils' achievement and standards in Key Stage 1 and 2 but this is not always used effectively as a management tool to check the achievement of pupils and to monitor teaching and learning. As a result of weaknesses in monitoring and evaluation, including the direct monitoring of lessons, there are pockets of good practice but not always a consistency of approach. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008 .

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Grade: 3

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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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? Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 3 The effectiveness of the Foundation Stage 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

3 How well do learners achieve? 3 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 2 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?

3 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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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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 3 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 3 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

6 June 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, Wolverhampton, WV9 5NR It was a delight and a privilege to visit your school. The inspection team really enjoyed talking to you all and listened very carefully to what you had to say. You go to a satisfactory school. You are making satisfactory progress and by the end of Year 6 you are reaching similar standards to other children. Older pupils are doing well in mathematics and younger ones are doing well in reading and writing. Teaching and learning are satisfactory. You told us that your teachers look after you and that they always try to help you. Your teachers work very hard to make sure lessons are interesting but sometimes the activities in lessons do not meet the needs of those of you who find school work more difficult. The school provides lots of exciting things to do and ensures that you grow into sensible mature

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

young people. It is clear that you have a good time at school because of all the fun things you have to do. You told us that you really like the clubs, especially for sports and music. It was good to hear that you know lots about keeping healthy and safe. We think your behaviour is good. You have good manners and make visitors very welcome indeed. Your recent trips to the National Space Centre, Moscow and to Dovedale sounded very exciting and we hope Year 5 have a super time at Weston-super-Mare. We have asked your teachers to make sure that children in the Reception class have enough opportunities to learn through play and to make their own choices. We have also asked them to provide a greater variety of activities outside. The managers in your school are doing a satisfactory job. We have asked them to make better checks on the school's work. This includes making thorough checks on the progress of children in the Reception class.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you again for being such good company. I wish you well for the future. Yours sincerely Susan Walsh Lead inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: St Paul's Church of England Aided Primary School, 4 °5 June 2008

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