St Jude’s Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

St Jude's Catholic Primary School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are highly positive about their school.

They enjoy the safe and harmonious environment. Pupils behave very well. In lessons, they focus attentively showing deep levels of concentration.

Pupils have well-developed social skills. For example, they play happily together at playtimes, demonstrating positive relationships with each other and with adults, and in lessons, they collaborate well when working in groups.

The school is highly ambitious for all pupils to achieve their very best.

Chi...ldren in the early years benefit from a warm and welcoming environment. They get off to a great start in their education. Pupils rise enthusiastically to staff's high expectations and work hard.

Across the school, pupils achieve very well in many subjects, particularly in English and mathematics.

Pupils relish opportunities to make a difference to their community. They proudly support charities they have carefully and deliberately chosen.

Furthermore, pupil leaders determinedly encourage everyone to carry out projects that improve the school, such as developing a sensory garden. Pupils also enjoy writing to influential people about issues they care about, such as environmental matters and social justice concerns. In addition, the school provides many opportunities to enhance and enrich learning, such as trips to museums and to see live music and theatre.

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

The school is determined to provide a broad, balanced and high-quality education for all pupils. The school has designed an ambitious curriculum for all subjects. In many subjects, including English and mathematics, the most important knowledge that pupils must learn is set out in detail.

In these subjects, pupils develop their understanding in a clear and sensible sequence over time. This enables them to make connections between concepts, apply their learning and achieve well.

However, in a few subjects, while pupils learn lots of interesting information, the important knowledge that pupils need to remember and the order in which they need to learn it are not identified with sufficient clarity.

In these subjects, teachers do not know exactly what they must teach and the order in which they need to teach it so that pupils learn the knowledge they need to be ready for their next steps. When this is the case, pupils do not achieve as well as they could.

Teachers have strong subject knowledge.

They consistently use effective strategies to explain new ideas and concepts. For example, in the early years, adults develop children's understanding well through carefully targeted conversations and questions. Throughout lessons, teachers consistently check what pupils know and can do.

This ensures that they identify and address pupils' errors quickly and effectively.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive high-quality provision. Careful identification of pupils' additional needs enables staff to provide targeted interventions and support.

Pupils in the specially resourced provision benefit from bespoke learning packages delivered by expert staff. Across the school, pupils with SEND are supported effectively to access the curriculum and achieve well.

Pupils achieve highly in reading.

The school ensures that all pupils learn to read with fluency and comprehension as quickly as possible. Well-trained staff deliver the school's chosen phonics programme skilfully and consistently. As a result, all pupils, including those with a hearing impairment who attend the specially resourced provision, learn the phonics knowledge they need.

The school ensures that pupils develop wide vocabularies and learn how language works. This gives them the knowledge they need to understand the texts that they read.

Strong relationships pervade the school.

When taking part in group conversations, pupils listen carefully to each other and confidently build on what their peers have to say. Right from the start of early years, children learn to follow clear routines. They organise themselves well when learning and rarely waste time.

Pupils are prepared very well for life in modern Britain. They learn age-appropriate knowledge about healthy relationships and how to keep themselves safe, including when online. Through their highly inclusive attitudes, pupils demonstrate a strong understanding of tolerance and mutual respect.

They are adamant that everyone is welcome in the school. Pupils also learn how to keep themselves physically and mentally healthy. For example, they learn about eating healthily and about the importance of regular exercise and sleep.

All leaders, including governors, work closely together to continue to improve the school. They have a strong, shared understanding of the school's strengths and areas that need to develop further. Staff feel valued.

They benefit from regular, effective training that enables them to do a great job for the pupils in their care.

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 subjects, the knowledge and skills that pupils need to remember and the order in which they need to learn it are not identified with sufficient clarity.

Teachers do not know exactly what to teach and when to teach it. This means that sometimes pupils do not learn the important information they need to remember to be ready for their next steps. Leaders should refine the curriculum where needed so that pupils can build their understanding systematically and achieve highly in all subjects.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 for overall effectiveness in September 2015.