St Charles Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

St Charles Catholic Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils flourish in this nurturing and welcoming school. Leaders make sure that everyone matters and is treated equally. Pupils are safe and happy, knowing that trusted adults will help them with any worries.

They benefit from the high expectations of all school leaders and staff. The school is a close and harmonious community, where older pupils take good care of the younger ones. The school's strong values shine through in daily life.

Pupils behave well in this school, both during lessons and at playtimes. They play well together outside, show good manners and are poli...te throughout the day. Pupils respect each other.

Staff encourage pupils to appreciate the views of others from different backgrounds and faiths. Behaviour is managed sensitively and with care so that learning is not disrupted.

Pupils love to take on a wide range of responsibilities, such as being part of the chaplaincy team, a school councillor, or a play leader.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive skilled and effective support.

Parents and carers were overwhelmingly positive in their feedback about the school. Many parents wrote and spoke about how 'The school has a lovely, family feel'.

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

The school's curriculum is sequenced well from early years to Year 6. It is ambitious and relevant to the pupils at the school. For example, pupils learn about local history and make links with the community.

In a few subjects, curricular thinking has not precisely identified the important content pupils need to learn. This means some pupils do not build knowledge and deepen their understanding as well as they could.

Teachers present information to pupils clearly.

They use resources effectively to support all pupils in their learning. On occasion, teaching does not check on what pupils know and remember securely. This leads to gaps in pupils' knowledge, understanding and readiness for future content.

Pupils with SEND are supported well through careful planning and adaptations to the curriculum where necessary. Parents of pupils with SEND value the communications they receive and their involvement in discussions about their children's education.

Pupils enjoy reading and quickly become skilled and fluent readers.

From the moment they start school, in early years, children learn how to read using phonics confidently. Staff deliver this phonics programme with expertise, and children enjoy learning new sounds in stories and rhymes. Pupils read books that are closely matched to the sounds that they have learned.

If pupils fall behind, they get the support that they need to catch up quickly.

Pupils achieve well in reading and mathematics. The standard of pupils' handwriting is, from an early age, exceptional.

Pupils can learn a wide range of musical instruments, take part in a choir and love to sing in assemblies. Staff make sure that pupils learn about important individuals from a wide range of backgrounds.

Attendance is rigorously monitored and given a high priority.

Pupils' personal development is a notable strength. Pupils plan and run their own activities to raise funds for the school and their chosen charities. The school council helps to improve the environment.

The school chaplaincy is currently designing a new outdoor prayer area. The school provides high-quality pastoral support to pupils. They are taught to manage risk and keep safe, including when online.

Pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships and of growing up.

A wide range of outings and visitors help to enrich the wider curriculum. For example, pupils in Year 6 visited the Houses of Parliament.

The whole school recently celebrated 'Windrush 75', utilising the close local links to this area by hosting calypso workshops, visits from diverse authors, including Caribbean poets, and theatre workshops. Pupils in Years 3 and 4 recently competed in the Grenfell Athletic Tournament.

Governors are committed and know the school well.

They ensure that they have the information they need to hold leaders to account and plan for the future. They visit the school regularly and talk to staff and pupils. Staff enjoy working here and receive strong support from leaders for their well-being.

The school has close links with parents and the local community and engages with them thoughtfully.

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 few foundation subjects, leaders have not identified the important content pupils need to learn precisely.

This means some pupils do not build knowledge and deepen their understanding as well as they could. The school needs to make sure that the important knowledge and vocabulary that pupils need to learn are sequenced to help pupils build this securely over time. ? On occasion, teaching does not make secure checks on what pupils know and remember.

This means that, occasionally, pupils have gaps in their knowledge and understanding about how to access new learning confidently. The school needs to make sure that teaching uses assessment information to identify and address any gaps in pupils' knowledge to ensure they are fully ready for future learning.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 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 would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which 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 in March 2014.

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