St Mary’s Catholic Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

St Mary's Catholic Primary School is a caring school where everyone feels welcome. Pupils are happy and treat each other with respect. They live out the school's mission statement by being kind and helping each other.

Pupils behave well both inside and outside the classroom. They move calmly around the school site. They understand the high expectations that the school has for how they should behave, and most pupils live up to these.

Pupils have positive relationships with adults. They feel safe and trust adults to keep them safe. The school has high expectations of what pupils can achieve.

This motivates pupils to try hard. Pupils are confident and enthusiast...ic to learn. Classrooms are purposeful learning environments.

Pupils engage well with their learning because they enjoy their lessons.

Pupils are proud of their leadership roles, where they organise events to raise money for charity and lead worship. Through this they develop character and responsibility.

They attend a wide range of clubs, including art, music, netball and gymnastics. They deepen their curriculum knowledge through, for example, visits to the Roman Baths and from visiting authors.

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

The school has reviewed some subjects within the curriculum, following a drop in outcomes for pupils in key stage 1.

These new curriculums are well thought out and carefully sequenced. Staff know precisely what to teach. They build in opportunities for pupils to recall their knowledge.

However, in some subjects, the school does not check if pupils have remembered essential knowledge. This means some pupils cannot recall what they have learned, so they do not build their knowledge securely.

The school supports pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to learn the same curriculum as their peers.

Adults adapt resources to help pupils with SEND to learn effectively. When pupils need more support, the school gives them extra help to build their knowledge.

The early reading curriculum is implemented well.

The phonics programme begins at the start of Reception and continues beyond Year 2 for those pupils who still need support. Adults are well trained in delivering the programme. They assess and support pupils to build their knowledge of letters and the sounds they represent.

For example, children in the Reception Year learn to use known sounds in order to blend words. Pupils are familiar with the structure of the programme and join in with enthusiasm.

Adults are well equipped to support pupils to read.

This means when pupils fall behind, they quickly gain the knowledge and skills they need to become confident, fluent readers. Pupils read books matched to the sounds they know. Adults make sure pupils make sense of the stories they read by checking their understanding and the meaning of words.

Pupils apply their phonics knowledge in their writing with accuracy.

The school has implemented a personal, social and health education curriculum that supports pupils to be safe and develop their character. Alongside this, the school plans wider opportunities to enrich pupils' experiences.

For example, pupils visit a life skills centre, take part in an arts week and in sports tournaments, where they achieve well. The school makes sure all pupils experience these wider opportunities.

The school keeps a sharp focus on attendance.

When it falls, the school takes appropriate action and works with families to improve it. As a result, attendance is improving and closer to national figures for individual groups.

Pupils are polite and they behave well.

Most pupils follow instructions quickly and engage well with their learning. Children in the Reception Year know and follow routines well.

Pupils reflect the school's ethos in the way they show fairness and equality to each other.

They develop a sense of right and wrong and show respect for the differences they have. They begin to understand the world beyond the school, for example through their work with an international development charity, during which they learn to show empathy for children who do not have access to clean water. Pupils learn about their own mental health.

For example, in 'Mind Apple Time', they have time to focus on their own well-being and what helps them to have a healthy mind.

Governors are knowledgeable of the school's strengths and development areas. They check the impact of the school's work and make sure areas of focus are improving.

The school is mindful of staff workload when implementing new policies. Staff value the school's awareness of their well-being and the support they receive to carry out their roles effectively.

Parents and carers are positive about the school.

They value its small size and nurturing environment. They say staff are caring and their child is happy there.

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 curriculum subjects, the school does not check if pupils have remembered essential knowledge. This means some pupils cannot recall what that they have previously learned and do not build their knowledge well. The school should ensure that curriculum implementation supports all pupils to build their knowledge over time so that they know and remember more in these subjects.

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