St John Evangelist Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

St John Evangelist RC Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school and offer a warm welcome to visitors. They are very courteous to each other and to the adults who look after them. Pupils are taught how to be 'ready, respectful and safe'.

They know how to raise concerns with trusted adults if needed and are confident in doing so. As a result, pupils are kept safe at school.

Pupils have the opportunity to develop their talents through a range of clubs on offer, including Irish dancing, chess and sewing.

They can showcase their skills at the annual 'St John's Got Talent' event. Pupils take on ...responsibilities around the school as classroom monitors and faith leaders. They are encouraged to serve in their community, for example through collecting for local homeless shelters.

The curriculum is ambitious and typically well designed. Leaders have high expectations of pupils and, in turn, they take pride in their learning. Pupils produce work of high quality and are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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

Leaders have designed a broad curriculum in line with what pupils need to learn nationally. This is sequenced so that pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), typically build their knowledge over time. For example, in history, pupils learn about how crime was dealt with in Roman Britain and the punishments that were used.

They draw on this knowledge when comparing the experience of children working in Victorian poorhouses, and consider the changing perceptions to crime and rehabilitation.

In some subjects, the curriculum has not been designed with the same precision. In these instances, the important knowledge pupils need to learn has not been broken down into small steps.

This makes it difficult for staff to check that pupils have secured the prior knowledge and skills they need before moving on to more complex tasks. This means that some pupils do not connect what they have learned to new ideas and, therefore, do not develop as deep an understanding in these subjects.

Reading is prioritised.

Pupils begin learning to read when they start their Reception Year. Pupils have regular opportunities to practise their reading using books that are closely matched to the sounds they are learning. All staff receive training to implement the agreed phonics programme, and this is typically delivered with precision.

Those who struggle with reading are quickly identified, and appropriate support is provided. Pupils, including children in early years, enjoy sharing their school rhymes and stories.

Leaders work swiftly to identify pupils with SEND.

They engage effectively with external agencies and specialist services to ensure that pupils receive appropriate support. This includes establishing a network for families as pupils with SEND transition to secondary school or specialist provision. Staff receive extensive training to support pupils with a range of needs.

This, and the nurturing environment, ensures that pupils are able to access the same curriculum as their peers whenever possible. For some pupils, a more bespoke curriculum is designed, and they work towards suitably ambitious end goals.

Pupils behave very well in lessons and around the school.

Learning is rarely disrupted. Bullying incidents are rare, and pupils know how to report concerns if they arise. Leaders and governors work closely with the local authority to continue to improve attendance and punctuality, as for some families this remains a priority.

Pupils' wider personal development is well considered. The curriculum is designed to support pupils' understanding of important concepts such as well-being. Pupils learn about the link between their physical, mental and spiritual health.

They are able to put this into action by using the whole-school programme of breathing exercises to self-regulate, and Year 5 and Year 6 'brain buddies' help other pupils around the school to manage their emotions.

Staff feel supported by leaders and are proud to be part of the school community. Governors fulfil their statutory duties.

For example, they use their expertise well to work with leaders to consider possible contextual and safeguarding risks in the local area. Governors check on staff's and headteachers' workload regularly, and have a number of strategies in place to support well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, the curriculum has not been broken down into the small steps that pupils need to secure. In these cases, assessment is not used as effectively to check that pupils have the prior knowledge and skills they need before moving on to more complex learning. This means that pupils are not sufficiently connecting their existing ideas to new ones nor deepening their understanding in these subjects.

The school should ensure that the important knowledge pupils need to learn and remember is clearly identified across the curriculum. The school should also ensure that assessment is focused on checking that pupils have secured the most important ideas.

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 October 2014.