St Margaret Mary’s RC Primary School Manchester

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils told inspectors how happy and proud they are to attend this harmonious and welcoming school.

Pupils respect and value diversity. They are quick to help and support each other. Older pupils relish opportunities to contribute to the smooth running of the school in their roles as leaders, monitors or ambassadors.

Pupils value the support that they receive to enhance their personal development. They were particularly keen to share their impressive knowledge about physical and mental well-being with inspectors. Pupils also benefit from participating in activities in the school's wider community, such as singing at local events, or providing an eco-friendly recycling... service for parents and carers.

The school has high expectations for the academic achievement of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils strive to meet these aspirations. The school provides effective support to help pupils to overcome any barriers to learning that they face.

Pupils achieve well. Their strong performance in national assessments in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of key stage 2 is testament to this.

Pupils behave well.

Learning is rarely disturbed during lessons. Pupils are considerate of others. They enjoy playing or chatting sociably with each other at breaktimes.

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

In recent years, the school has redesigned its curriculum to better meet the needs of its pupils. The new curriculum sets out a logical order in which learning should occur from the Nursery Year to Year 6. This enables pupils to build up secure knowledge as they progress through the school.

Pupils are benefiting considerably from the revised curriculum. In most subjects, they recall key information from recent learning accurately and with ease.

The school ensures that, for the most part, teachers use effective strategies to support pupils' learning.

As a result, the curriculum is delivered consistently well across the school. Teachers make frequent checks that pupils have fully grasped their learning before introducing something new. In most subjects, teachers identify and address any misconceptions or gaps in pupils' knowledge quickly and well.

In a few subjects, the curriculum is relatively new and is still being embedded. In these areas, some teachers, and other staff who support pupils' learning, are still developing their expertise in making sure that pupils remember and practise what they have already learned. At times, this means that pupils' recall of prior learning is not as secure as it could be.

As a result, pupils sometimes find it harder to learn new information or achieve as well as they could in these subjects.

Reading is at the heart of the school's curriculum. Pupils enjoy times when their teacher reads to them.

They benefit from the high-quality literature that the school provides. In the early years, children become familiar with well-loved stories, songs and rhymes. Older pupils relish the opportunities that their teachers provide to revel in a book of their own choice.

They become avid readers. This supports their learning across the curriculum, including their understanding and appreciation of a range of cultures.

Children make a flying start with their reading in the early years.

They quickly grasp how to use phonics to read words. Skilled staff across the school adhere to the school's phonics programme with fidelity. Pupils practise their reading knowledge diligently and with enthusiasm.

By the time that they reach the end of key stage 1, almost all pupils can read with accuracy and fluency. The small number of pupils who continue to struggle with reading typically benefit from well-targeted and effective support.

Pupils with SEND benefit from the expertise of staff in identifying and meeting their varying needs.

Pupils with SEND achieve well as a result.

Pupils' attendance at school is well above that in other schools nationally. Pupils make the most of the opportunities on offer at school.

They recognise that having positive attitudes to school contributes to both their personal development and their academic success.

The school places a high priority on pupils' personal development. It provides a rich and diverse range of experiences to broaden pupils' understanding of the wider world.

Pupils flourish at school. They grow in confidence and independence. Pupils in Year 6 told inspectors how well prepared they feel for moving on to their chosen secondary schools.

They are well equipped to embrace the new challenges that they will face there and in later life.

The school ensures that there are strong and positive relationships across its community. For example, the school makes sure that staff receive the support that they need to manage their workload while maintaining a high-quality education for all pupils.

Governors are well informed about the work of the school. They provide effective support and challenge.

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 school does not ensure that pupils are able to recall key information well. This sometimes makes it more difficult for pupils to understand and learn new information. The school should ensure that, in these subjects, staff are fully equipped to check that pupils' knowledge is secure before introducing new learning.

Also at this postcode