Mawdesley St Peter’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Mawdesley St Peter's Church of England Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

St Peter's has a calm, purposeful atmosphere.

Staff and pupils respect each other. Teaching staff have high expectations of pupils, which means that pupils are motivated to work hard in lessons. They feel proud to be part of the school 'family'.

Pupils' behaviour in lessons and around school is of a high standard. Pupils attribute this to teachers' fair approach. Pupils understand the rewards and consequences associated with the school's 'PRIDE' reward system.

Those pupils who spoke to inspectors said that bullying is rare. They told inspecto...rs that if they fall out with their friends, teachers resolve any conflict quickly.

Pupils said that they feel safe and that their teachers care for them.

For example, pupils know how to stay safe while using the internet. They know about risks in the local area, such as busy roads. All parents and carers who responded to Parent View, Ofsted's online questionnaire, agreed that pupils are safe at school.

Pupils enjoy the wide range of school clubs taking place at lunchtime. They said that school is fun. Trips, such as the visits to Wales, London and the Houses of Parliament, develop pupils' experience beyond the village community.

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

Leaders have devised a challenging curriculum. Governors hold leaders to account for pupils' achievement by asking challenging questions about the quality of education. Staff and governors share leaders' high expectations for pupils, including those who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Leaders work closely with other agencies, if needed, to support pupils' learning and well-being. The curriculum meets the needs of all pupils, including those with SEND. As a result, pupils achieve well.

Leaders place much importance on reading and phonics. They have ensured that staff have received the necessary training so that they can deliver the phonics curriculum well. Effective support is in place for pupils who fall behind and need to catch up.

Pupils read books that match the sounds that they have learned in school. They apply their phonics skills well to read new words. Older pupils read a wide range of stories from a selection of authors and this deepens their knowledge.

They have particularly enjoyed the recent work on 'Great Expectations'. Leaders' actions contribute well to pupils to becoming confident and fluent readers.

Teachers deliver the planned curriculum effectively.

In the Reception Year, children's early mathematics, language and communication skills develop well. This helps children to make a strong start to their education. The majority of pupils are ready for Year 1.

Curriculum planning in English, mathematics and science follows a logical order from early years to Year 6. The curriculum builds on what pupils already know. Pupils talked in detail about their prior learning and how this helps them with their current learning.

Assessment systems help teachers to check that pupils have a secure knowledge and understanding before moving on to more challenging subject content. For example, in mathematics and science, pupils have opportunities to explain their reasoning and use prior knowledge well to solve more complex problems and investigations.

The curriculum in other subjects shares many similarities with the English, mathematics and science plans.

In these subjects, pupils develop their knowledge over time due to teachers' strong subject knowledge and the careful ordering of subject content. Even so, pupils are not as able to make connections in their learning within and across these subjects. This stops them from deepening their understanding over time.

Pupils appreciate that they each have rights and responsibilities. They know that they should treat everyone with dignity and respect. The curriculum enables pupils to explore and learn about different religions and cultures.

Pupils benefit from calm and warm relationships with the adults that work with them. Pupils told inspectors that they are able to complete work without disruptions.

Staff enjoy working at St Peter's.

They appreciate leaders' consideration of their workload and welcome the new assessment systems.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders ensure that keeping children and pupils safe is a priority for all staff.

Leaders know the local community well. They understand the risks that pupils may face and use this information to provide training for staff. Staff are alert and know what to do if they think a pupil may be at risk.

Governors regularly check the arrangements for safeguarding. The curriculum ensures that pupils learn about any risks that they may face beyond school. Assemblies and regular teaching sessions make sure that pupils receive information on how to keep themselves safe.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Pupils access a well-planned curriculum. However, leaders are not making the most of links between some subjects. As a result, some pupils do not apply their prior knowledge to different contexts.

Leaders should ensure that pupils know how to make connections between their prior learning, when learning new concepts and ideas in subjects other than English and mathematics. This is to deepen pupils' knowledge and understanding.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find some evidence that a good school could now be better than good, or that standards may be declining, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will convert the section 8 inspection to a section 5 inspection immediately.

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good on 11 November 2010.

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