St Joseph’s Catholic primary School, a Voluntary Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils work hard to meet the high expectations that leaders and staff have of their academic achievement and personal development. Pupils strive to live up to the school values of trust and friendship. They told inspectors that their strong friendships in school make them feel happy.

Pupils benefit from positive relationships with staff. There are effective systems in place for pupils to report any concerns. Pupils are confident that staff will listen to their worries.

This makes them feel safe. If bullying should happen, leaders deal with it quickly and effectively.

Staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour.

Leaders ensure that pupils with l...eadership responsibilities contribute to setting and modelling these expectations. Pupils regularly display good manners. They do their best to treat others in the same way that they would like to be treated themselves.

Pupils benefit from a range of opportunities to contribute to their school and the local community. Older pupils regularly support their younger peers in key stage 1 with learning to read. Members of the school council, and other groups of pupils, are proactive in organising fundraising events for local charities, including food banks.

These opportunities build pupils' confidence and their understanding of the important role that they can play in society.

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

Leaders have constructed a curriculum that is ambitious for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This curriculum enables pupils to achieve well overall.

However, by the end of Year 6, in 2022, pupils did not attain as well as other pupils nationally in mathematics. Leaders have identified the weaknesses in the curriculum that caused this to happen. As a result, teachers are more alert to gaps in pupils' knowledge and are spending more time revisiting prior learning to make sure that it is secure.

In the majority of subjects, leaders have identified the important knowledge that pupils should learn and the order in which this knowledge should be taught. Teachers check what pupils know and remember from previous lessons. In the main, teachers provide pupils with learning activities that help them to deepen their knowledge over time.

In one or two subjects, leaders have not considered how some of the key knowledge that children learn in the early years is built upon effectively in the Year 1 curriculum. Pupils repeat some concepts that were taught in the Reception Year in Year 1. In these subjects, some pupils do not deepen their knowledge in Year 1 as well as they should.

Children in the Reception Year begin the phonics programme as soon as they start school. Leaders ensure that pupils in key stage 1 continue to develop a deep body of knowledge in phonics. Pupils quickly learn the sounds that letters represent.

Staff monitor pupils' understanding of phonics closely. There is timely extra support for those pupils who need it. This helps these pupils to catch up with their peers.

Leaders ensure that pupils read books which are closely matched to the sounds that they are learning. Many pupils who join the school in the Reception Year become confident readers by the end of key stage 1. Leaders promote and develop a love of reading well across the school.

Staff read high-quality stories and novels to pupils regularly. Pupils have frequent opportunities to visit the school library where they access a wide range of texts across different genres. Children in the Reception Year also benefit from their regular visits to the local community library.

Leaders have effective systems to identify the needs of pupils with SEND at an early stage. Teachers adapt how they deliver the curriculum and the learning activities for pupils with SEND effectively. This means that most pupils with SEND access the same curriculum as their peers.

Where required, leaders have put in place individual learning plans for some pupils with SEND. Staff ably deliver these.

Children in the Reception Year cooperate and share well.

They promptly follow instructions from staff and are keen to share their successes. Across the school, lessons are rarely disturbed by disruptive behaviour. This allows pupils to get on with their work without interruption.

Pupils experience a broad range of opportunities that enhance their personal development. Pupils understand the differences between people and the importance of treating everyone equally. Leaders ensure that pupils learn about the signs of healthy relationships.

Pupils benefit from a variety of trips. These include visits to different places of worship, museums and places of historical significance.

Governors support and challenge leaders well.

Governors and leaders are considerate of staff's workload and well-being when making decisions about policies and procedures. Staff are positive about working at the school and value the support that they receive from leaders.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders and staff are vigilant to potential safeguarding issues. Ongoing training helps them to identify pupils at risk of harm. Leaders respond to safeguarding concerns in a timely manner and work effectively with external agencies when needed.

This helps pupils and their families receive the extra support that they need.

Leaders ensure that pupils learn how to keep themselves safe outside of school. For example, pupils recognise how to keep safe when cycling on the road and what to do in response to an emergency.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In one or two subjects, leaders have not considered how some of the key knowledge that children learn in the early years is effectively built upon in the Year 1 curriculum. Consequently, pupils repeat some concepts in Year 1 that they have learned in the Reception Year and do not deepen their body of knowledge as well as they should. In these subjects, leaders should ensure that the Year 1 curriculum effectively builds on what children have learned in the early years.