St Margaret Clitherow Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Everyone at St Margaret Clitherow's tries to live by its values of love, respect, forgiveness and compassion. Pupils enjoy learning, are happy in school and attend really well.

Their positive attitudes towards learning are infectious.

Pupils feel safe because they are well cared for by adults. Leaders and staff ensure that there is strong pastoral support in place for pupils and their families.

Staff have high expectations of all pupils' learning and behaviour, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils meet these expectations. They achieve well overall, and their successes are recognised.

Leaders and staff cele...brate diversity and encourage pupils to do the same. They also promote orderly conduct and behaviour. Throughout the school, pupils' behaviour is impeccable.

They understand and follow the school rules consistently well. As a result, the school has a calm learning environment, and pupils are respectful of their peers and adults. Pupils said that bullying does not occur here.

Staff identify and respond quickly to any issues that arise.

Across the school, pupils enjoy taking part in the extra-curricular activities on offer, including basketball, multi-skills, gymnastics, football, dance and archery.

Pupils want to contribute actively to their community by taking on leadership responsibilities.

They enjoy carrying out their roles as environmental ambassadors, playground friends and news reporters.

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

Leaders give careful thought to their curriculum design. Their thinking is based on making sure that all pupils benefit from an ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum.

Teachers have secure subject knowledge. In many areas of the curriculum, staff are well supported by subject leaders, who provide helpful guidance on how to deliver each subject curriculum well. Teachers explain key concepts clearly and link new learning to what pupils have learned previously.

Teachers typically use assessment well. In mathematics, for example, they routinely check what pupils already understand about their prior learning. They identify misconceptions and build on pupils' learning so that they can remember key concepts.

As a result, pupils achieve well. In the early years, children settle in quickly. Staff help them to develop important knowledge, including their understanding of numbers.

They regularly have opportunities to recall their learning and grow in confidence using what they know in different contexts.

In some subjects, such as modern foreign languages and geography, leaders' curriculum thinking is at an early stage. Teachers are less clear about the concepts that need to be emphasised and secured at each stage of pupils' learning.

Consequently, some gaps arise in pupils' knowledge. These gaps can prevent pupils from being ready to understand new learning over the long term.

Leaders make reading a priority.

Teachers and teaching assistants have been well trained to teach the phonics programme consistently. Children begin learning to read as soon as they join the school. Generally, teachers make sure that they practise sounds regularly and secure their knowledge.

Children's language development is also carefully planned for and supported from the Nursery class up. Pupils who speak English as an additional language are given extra support. Staff make sure that pupils read books that are closely matched to their phonics knowledge.

Staff share stories and high-quality texts with pupils to develop their vocabulary and love of reading.

Leaders identify and support pupils with SEND well. These pupils are fully involved and supported in school life.

Staff plan necessary adaptations to ensure that pupils follow the same curriculum as their peers.

Pupils are taught about healthy relationships. They are encouraged to develop a strong sense of what it means to be a responsible citizen.

Pupils enjoy putting this into practice through various leadership roles. For example, some act as environmental monitors and assist leaders in running the biodome greenhouse. Pupils also recently raised money for a national charity and undertook a community litter-picking exercise.

Pupils celebrate diversity and are respectful of different faiths and cultures. Through the selection of texts and authors, leaders aim to reflect diversity in the school community. Leaders provide a range of educational visits, such as to the Royal Albert Hall and Greenwich Maritime Museum, to enrich pupils' learning.

Pupils' behaviour and conduct at school are impeccable. This contributes to an enabling, calm and orderly learning environment.

Governors are knowledgeable and have a range of expertise.

They provide a balance of support and challenge for school leaders.

Staff have mixed views on how leaders consider their well-being and professional development. Some were concerned that full consideration is not given to the demands placed upon them.

Leaders are aware of and beginning to address this.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders prioritise the safeguarding of pupils.

Staff have regular and detailed safeguarding training. They know how to identify and report concerns to leaders.There is a culture of vigilance, and responsibilities for safeguarding are shared by all staff.

Leaders are meticulous in their record-keeping. They work diligently with external agencies to ensure that suitable and timely support is put in place for pupils and their families.

Through the curriculum, pupils learn about how to keep safe, including online safety.

Staff promote pupils' emotional health and well-being.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some staff expressed concerns about how leaders consider and mitigate against the pressures on them. Leaders should build on recent actions to improve staff's well-being and strengthen the quality of support on offer to staff so that they can undertake their roles effectively.

• The implementation of the curriculum is new in a few subjects. This means that in some instances, pupils are not learning and remembering the knowledge that leaders want them to. Leaders should provide teachers with further support and training to ensure the curriculum is delivered as intended.