St Anne’s RC Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and proud to attend this school.

They look forward to their learning each day. Pupils are kind and treat staff and each other with respect. They follow the school rules and listen carefully to their teachers.

In the past, the school's expectations of what pupils can achieve have not been high enough. However, it now has high ambition for the learning of every pupil, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). A new curriculum is starting to have a more positive impact on the development of pupils' subject knowledge.

However, there is still more to do to ensure that pupils learn well across the curriculum.
<...br/>Pupils eagerly give their time to support their school, for example, by acting as mental health ambassadors, school ambassadors or being part of the 'Laudato Si' committee. In doing so, pupils gain confidence in their own abilities and they develop a keen sense of responsibility.

A wide range of clubs and educational visits broaden pupils' experiences and harness their interests and talents.

Parents and carers, who shared their views with inspectors, were positive about the school. They value the support that it provides for pupils and families.

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

The school's reading curriculum starts as soon as children begin school. As well as listening to lots of well-chosen stories, children in the Nursery class learn to identify the sounds that they can hear in the indoor and outdoor learning environments. The phonics programme begins as soon as children join the Reception class.

Through staff training, the school ensures that staff deliver the phonics curriculum consistently well. Pupils read books which match the sounds that they know. Pupils who are at the early stages of reading receive the support from staff that they need to keep up with the pace of the phonics programme.

As pupils move through the school, they are encouraged to develop a love of reading. Most older pupils read well. They talked knowledgeably and enthusiastically with inspectors about their favourite books and authors.

The school has taken swift and effective action to begin addressing weaknesses that previously existed in its curriculum. It has implemented an ambitious programme of study, which is broad and balanced and matches the requirements of the national curriculum. However, in a number of subjects, the school has not identified the precise knowledge that pupils should learn and when they will learn it.

Consequently, some pupils, including those with SEND, do not learn some of the important content that they need for later learning. They do not achieve as well as they should in some subjects.

The school is making many of the improvements required to further develop the curriculum.

However, some subject leaders are in the early stages of developing the necessary expertise to check how well the new curriculums are being implemented. This means that they are not sure what is working well and they do they know what further action they need to take to bring about sustained improvement.

Teachers typically present information clearly and check that pupils understand what they are learning.

However, the school's assessment systems in some subjects are underdeveloped. As a result, this prevents teachers from identifying and addressing gaps in pupils' previous knowledge as quickly as they should. This hinders pupils' progress in these curriculums.

The school has high expectations of pupils' behaviour and attendance. This starts in the early years, where relationships between adults and children are strong. This helps children to feel secure and to develop positive attitudes towards their learning.

Lessons are rarely disrupted by poor behaviour. The school promotes attendance well. Pupils enjoy coming to school to learn and to spend time with their friends.

They also value the high-quality pastoral support that they receive.

The school develops pupils' broader development well. Pupils proudly told inspectors that activities such as gardening, British sign language and archery clubs, help them to develop confidence and to develop new interests.

Pupils respect people from different backgrounds and cultures. They enjoy raising money for worthy causes.Pupils learn about the importance of healthy lifestyles and how to look after their mental health and well-being.

Governors are highly committed to the school. They provide appropriate challenge and support to the school. Staff share the school's high ambition for pupils and have worked collaboratively to rapidly bring about much needed improvements to pupils' learning.

Staff workload and well-being have been carefully considered when making changes to the curriculum. Staff feel valued and are proud to work at the 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 a number of subjects, the school has not clarified precisely enough the knowledge that pupils will learn and in what order staff should teach this information. As a result, there are gaps in pupils' learning which hinders them from building a strong body of knowledge over time. The school should specify what pupils should learn in these subjects and when they should learn it so that pupils can build upon their prior knowledge and achieve well across the curriculum.

The school has not ensured that some subject leaders have enough expertise to check on how well the curriculum is being implemented. This reduces the school's ability to determine how well its curriculum is working and to identify where further improvements are needed. The school should ensure that subject leaders have the guidance that they need so that they can check on the quality of the delivery of subject curriculums and its impact on pupils' learning.

• The school's assessment systems in some subjects do not enable teachers to check how well pupils, including pupils with SEND, are learning the intended curriculum. As a result, teachers do not identify or address pupils' misconceptions quickly enough. The school should ensure its assessment systems support teachers to address quickly pupils' gaps in knowledge so that they learn well in these subjects.