St Bartholomew’s CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

St Bartholomew's School places families at the heart of all it does.

There is a strong sense of community here. Everybody is welcome. Staff work closely with parents and carers to build positive relationships.

This helps to remove any barriers to attendance and learning. Parents are delighted with the support they receive.

The school is aspirational for all pupils.

The curriculum is ambitious. Pupils achieve well from their starting points. Staff are committed to all pupils' inclusion and achievement.

Effective support is in place for pupils who need it. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve the best possib...le outcomes.

Pupils are proud to attend this school.

They enjoy their learning and the many visits to places such as theatres, museums, and art galleries. Pupils take part in a wide variety of sporting and musical activities and have many opportunities to participate, compete and perform.

Relationships between adults and pupils are warm, positive, and respectful.

Pupils feel confident that staff will always listen and help if they have any worries. Pupils are safe here. They are taught how to stay safe in the community and online.

Pupils behave well. They helped to write the rules and know to be kind and respectful.

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

Provisional data 2024 at the end of key stage 2 is below national expectations for reading, writing and mathematics.

However, the school does provide an effective education for pupils. Many pupils leave and join the school at different times throughout the year. There is also a high proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language.

This presents the school with significant challenges in ensuring all pupils receive an education that is closely matched to their starting points. The current curriculum and effective teaching are now helping pupils to make stronger progress from their varying starting points.

The school provides a well-designed, ambitious curriculum.

The school has identified and sequenced the key knowledge that pupils should learn in each subject. This helps teachers to know what to teach and in what order.

Teachers have secure subject knowledge.

They explain concepts clearly and ask questions skilfully to help pupils think deeply. The activities that pupils complete help them to secure their knowledge. For example, in geography, pupils use a range of maps to help them develop their locational knowledge.

The school has developed its own strategies to help pupils to remember more of the curriculum over time. Strategies such as 'use it or lose it' sessions help pupils remember key knowledge consistently well.

However, during some whole class teaching sessions for mathematics and English, including a small proportion of early reading sessions, teachers do not always check pupils' understanding.

This leads to the curriculum not being tailored to meet pupils' individual needs and some pupils becoming distracted. In these instances, the school does not identify and respond to gaps in younger pupils' knowledge and skills quickly enough. Instead, the school relies heavily on a later range of additional catch-up sessions in order to support pupils to catch up successfully.

Reading is a high priority throughout the school. There is a sharp focus on ensuring those at the early stages of reading get off to a strong start. However, in some sessions, checks on what pupils know and remember lack consistency.

Pupils enjoy sharing interesting stories from the school's reading spine that reflect the school's diverse community. They benefit from choosing books to read at home from the school's inviting and well-resourced library.

Pupils with SEND are supported by staff who know them well.

Information about pupils' specific needs is detailed and is used by staff to adapt learning in lessons effectively. The school fully includes pupils with SEND in every aspect of school life, including enrichment visits, sports, and leadership roles.

Children get off to a positive start in early years.

In nursery, adults work on important basic skills, such as turn-taking and sharing equipment. They develop warm and positive relationships with children. The school prioritises children's communication skills.

Some children join the school with limited language. Adults model important new vocabulary for children to repeat and practise.

The school has an extensive offer to support pupils' personal development.

This includes personal, social, health and economic education lessons and linked assemblies. The school works with other agencies, such as the fire service, to ensure pupils know how to stay safe. Pupils demonstrate a deep understanding and respect for other cultures and the wide diversity within their community.

The local governing body is knowledgeable and proactive in its support and challenge of the school. Governors have a clear understanding of the strengths and next steps for the school. Leaders are mindful of staff workload, and staff feel supported by them.

They are proud to be part of the team at St Bartholomew's.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teachers do not consistently check pupils' understanding in mathematics and English lessons.

In these lessons, the curriculum is not adapted well to meet pupils' needs, leading to a lack of attention from some pupils. As a result, these pupils develop gaps in their learning. The school should ensure that teachers consistently check pupils' understanding and attention in lessons so that any errors and misconceptions can be addressed in a timely manner.