Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this happy and harmonious school.

They aspire to embody the unofficial school motto of 'be kind, be kind, be kind' through their words and actions. Pupils treat one another with care and respect. They maintain high standards of behaviour both in the classroom and at social times.

Pupils contribute strongly to the school community. For example, older pupils act as 'buddies' to younger children when they join the school, helping them to settle in and learn the routines and expec...tations of school. Pupils who volunteer for the 'growing in faith together' teamwork with the school council to organise events that bring the school together to raise awareness of worthy causes.

The eco-team inspire pupils to take care of the school environment.

Classrooms buzz with the joy of learning. Pupils benefit from a calm and supportive atmosphere where they are free from distraction and able to focus on their studies.

In the early years, children are helped to develop behaviours that support them to be successful learners, such as concentration and resilience. Pupils work with determination to reach ambitious curriculum goals with support and encouragement from teachers and their peers. As a result, pupils achieve well.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school and governors are united in their commitment to provide pupils with an ambitious and well-rounded education. Governors are knowledgeable and keep themselves well-informed about the school's work. This enables them to provide suitable support and challenge to the school.

Governors also have a sharp focus on staff welfare. They assure themselves that staff are happy and able to carry out their roles effectively.

Reading is at the heart of the curriculum.

Pupils are exposed to a broad range of texts. This helps most pupils to develop into enthusiastic readers. Children make a swift start to learning to read in the early years.

Staff are well-trained to develop children's phonics knowledge. As they develop their expertise, pupils practise reading using books that match the sounds that they know. This develops their reading fluency and confidence.

Staff swiftly recognise any pupils that need additional help with reading. These pupils receive suitable support that meets their needs.

The school has designed a broad and ambitious curriculum.

In the main, it has identified the important knowledge that pupils should learn. However, this is not the case for some aspects of the curriculum in the early years. Consequently, at times, staff are not able to prioritise the most important knowledge and vocabulary that children should learn to prepare them well for key stage 1.

Teachers value the many opportunities to collaborate with their colleagues when designing learning. They craft purposeful lessons that build securely on pupils' prior knowledge. Teachers make careful checks on pupils' understanding, quickly spotting and correcting any emerging misconceptions.

Teachers appreciate the school's streamlined approach to lesson preparation and assessment which supports them in managing their workload.

Pupils' learning is enhanced by regular opportunities to learn outside the classroom. These enrich pupils' understanding and provide chances for pupils to develop their knowledge of British customs and cultures.

For example, in the early years, children visit local shops and the library to choose books and listen to stories. Older pupils have visited museums, places of worship and the recycling centre. Pupils particularly enjoy the annual trip to watch a pantomime at Christmastime.

The school is determined to overcome any barriers that would prevent any pupil from participating in all that the school has to offer. It has robust processes to identify pupils that require additional help to access their learning, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff are trained to deliver expert assistance which enables these pupils to successfully progress through the curriculum.

Parents and carers value the far-reaching care and support that the school provides to its pupils and families. For example, if a pupil's attendance begins to decline, the school swiftly engages with the family to identify the underlying causes of absence. Where needed, the school takes suitable action to help families to improve their child's attendance.

Pupils benefit from an extensive programme that supports their wider development. For example, pupils learn about healthy and unhealthy relationships. This starts in the early years, where children learn important social skills, such as turn-taking and sharing.

Pupils learn about how to keep themselves healthy, including the importance of maintaining positive mental health. This learning prepares pupils well for life beyond primary school.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In the early years, some aspects of the curriculum do not outline clearly enough the important knowledge and vocabulary that children should learn. As a result, in these areas, teachers are not consistently able to help pupils develop the knowledge they need to be well prepared for key stage 1. The school should ensure that staff have the information they need to be able to prepare children well for their next stage of learning.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in December 2015.