Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, and children in the early years, enjoy coming to school to learn. They form strong bonds with their peers and with staff. Pupils said that they are happy and safe at school.

They explained how they talk to staff and use the 'worry monster' if they are concerned about anything.

Pupils told inspectors that any incidents of bullying will be sorted out straight away. Pupils learn to respect and appreciate cultural and religious diversity.

They understand the harm that discriminatory behaviour, such as racism, sexism and homophobia, can cause.

Pupils are active citizens who care deeply about their community. They have a good understanding of envir...onmental issues, and recently helped to design and landscape local allotments.

Pupils organise litter picking campaigns, to help keep their neighbourhood clean and tidy. They are proud of this work.

Pupils relish educational trips and visits to theatres, museums and local places of interests, including Crosby Beach.

They are encouraged to pursue their interests and hone their talents in different areas of sport and music.

Staff expect pupils to achieve well. A well-planned curriculum enables most pupils, including children in the early years, to achieve well in a wide range of subjects.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), including those in the nurture base, also learn well.

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

Leaders, staff and governors have high expectations of pupils. Overall, they have designed an ambitious curriculum, including for children in the early years.

In most subjects, they have created a logically ordered curriculum that interests and engages pupils. Staff help pupils to acquire the knowledge and skills that they need for high school, and to become valuable and productive members of society. Children in the early years are well prepared for the demands of key stage 1.

In most subjects, teachers use well-established assessment procedures to check how well pupils are learning. However, in one or two subjects, teachers' checks on pupils' achievement are at an earlier stage of development. In these subjects, some teachers do not have a deep enough understanding of the knowledge that pupils have learned, or where pupils may have gaps in their learning.

In addition, in a minority of subjects, some teachers do not deliver aspects of the curriculum in the order identified by leaders. Occasionally, this hinders how well some pupils build up new knowledge.

Leaders know that reading is the key to enabling pupils to access all areas of the curriculum.

Due to this, reading and phonics are prioritised. Pupils who read to the lead inspector did so confidently and fluently. Pupils are extending their reading repertoire and discovering books from a range of authors in different genres.

The phonics curriculum is implemented well in the early years and in key stage 1. The support that adults provide to pupils who find more reading difficult successfully helps them to improve their letter and word recognition. It also increases pupils' reading fluency.

Children in the Nursery and Reception classes love singing songs and finding out about the world around them. Typically, during story time, staff create a sense of excitement. Children enjoy performing well-rehearsed movements and actions to nursery rhymes and poems.

Leaders are quick to identify pupils, and children in the early years, who need additional help. They work with a wide range of specialist partners, and parents and carers, to make sure that pupils with SEND get the timely support that they need. Pupils in the nurture base do not miss out on any aspect of learning.

They benefit from high-quality support from well-trained staff.

Staff manage pupils' and children's behaviour consistently well. They also work closely with pupils to help them devise strategies to manage their own behaviour.

As a result, the school is a calm and purposeful place where pupils enjoy learning. Lessons are rarely disrupted by poor behaviour.

Leaders provide a rich personal development curriculum.

Pupils enjoy attending after-school clubs. They are especially keen on football, music, dancing, multisport, science, gym and book clubs. Pupils are caring towards their peers and staff.

They demonstrate this as well-being warriors. Pupils are proud of their achievements. They talked enthusiastically to inspectors about their recent performance of 'The Greatest Showman' at a local church hall.

Staff enjoy working at the school. Those new to teaching told inspectors that the tutoring and mentoring support that they receive from senior leaders are helping them to implement the curriculum confidently. Staff also said that leaders are considerate of their workload and well-being.

Governors know which areas of the curriculum are strongest. They also know which subjects need to be developed further. Governors are determined to work with leaders and staff to improve pupils' attendance further.

They have effective plans in place to reduce the number of pupils who are regularly absent from school.

Typically, parents are very positive about the school. They said that staff go the extra mile to meet their children's personal, social, academic and special educational needs.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Senior leaders do all that they can to minimise risks and keep pupils safe from harm. They ensure that safeguarding procedures and policies are up to date and fully implemented by staff.

Leaders make sure that staff are familiar with the government's latest guidance on keeping pupils safe in education.

Staff are highly skilled at spotting potential signs of neglect or abuse. They know precisely how to raise concerns if they are worried about the welfare or safety of a pupil.

When required, safeguarding leaders work with a range of external partners to make sure that pupils get the help that they need. Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe through different aspects of the curriculum.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a minority of subjects, sometimes the curriculum is not implemented in the way that leaders intend.

This prevents some pupils from learning all that they could. Leaders should ensure that teachers implement the content of the curriculum in the agreed order. This will help pupils to consolidate their learning and to know more and remember more of the curriculum.

• In some subjects, leaders and teachers are refining how they use assessment strategies to identify the gaps in pupils' learning. From time to time, this means that some teachers do not have a full enough understanding of the knowledge and skills that pupils are acquiring. Leaders should ensure that assessment systems give teachers all the information that they need about pupils' learning and development in these remaining subjects.