Montreal CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The headteacher supports and leads staff well. Teaching is good. Leaders and governors ensure that pupils gain much from a wide range of extra activities and trips and meet interesting visitors to the school.

Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, make good progress. However, their attainment is below average. Leaders and staff are taking many reasonable steps to resolve this issue.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) make strong progress. Few pupils attain greater depth in their work. Pupils told inspectors that mathematics is their favourite subject.

Inspectors found that this is because leaders ma...ke sure that staff teach this subject competently. Governors, leaders and staff listen to and act on the views of pupils, including pupils with SEND, in developing the work of the school. Senior and middle leaders and governors know the school's successes.

They are acting to ensure that it becomes even better. Governors and leaders make certain that staff spot and help those pupils and families who need protecting from harm. Staff in early years give children a confident head start to their time at school.

Children learn well, including by developing communication skills, reading and writing. The behaviour of pupils is good. This includes pupils with SEND in each class and those attending the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND.

Leaders and staff genuinely believe in the school's ambition to educate, love and care for the pupils of Cleator Moor and West Cumbria. However, some of the planned curriculum in different subjects is not part of a sequence of learning, building on the knowledge that pupils have learned before. Throughout the school, staff teach pupils effectively the skills of reading.

Pupils quickly become keen, confident, able readers. Even so, older pupils' vocabulary is not as good as it should be. This is because these pupils learn from a range of non-fiction books that is too narrow.

Middle leaders successfully contribute to the school's improvement. Their skills and knowledge in their subjects are expanding strongly. They guide the work of their colleagues effectively.

Some subjects, such as science, are led expertly.

Information about this school

The school is smaller than the average-sized primary school. Almost all pupils are of White British heritage.

The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium funding is above average. The proportion of pupils with SEND is above average. Currently, 11% of pupils have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

Several of these pupils have communication difficulties and some have medical needs. The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan is well above average. Some pupils with SEND spend part of their day learning in resourced provision at the school.

This provision is funded by the school. The times when pupils join or leave the school is broadly average. Children typically start at the school in the Reception class.

The school's most recent section 48 inspection for schools with a religious character took place in June 2018. No pupils at the school attend alternative provision. The headteacher joined the school in 2017.

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