St Sebastian’s Catholic Primary School and Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.

Outcomes for pupils are outstanding. All groups of pupils, including the most able and those with special educational needs, make at least good progress in reading, writing and mathematics reaching well-above average standards by the end of Year 6. The teaching of mathematics and phonics (the sounds the letters make) is a particular strength in Key Stage 1.

Pupils enjoy reading and reading is promoted well across the curriculum. Senior leaders use pupil premium funding effectively. As a result disadvantaged pupils make outstanding progress and leave St Sebastian's with levels of attainment that are well-above average.

Th...e broad, balanced and rich curriculum contributes to pupils' outstanding spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and prepares pupils well for the opportunities and challenges of life in modern Britain. The primary school sports premium is being used effectively by senior leaders to broaden the range of sporting opportunities open to the pupils and encourage healthy life-styles. The headteacher, ably supported by his senior team, has united the school community behind his uncompromising vision that nothing but the best will do.

As a result teaching is never less than good and pupils achieve well across the school. The local authority uses staff expertise at St Sebastian's to help other schools, locally, to improve. The quality of teaching has been maintained at the outstanding level of the previous inspection.

As a result pupils have excellent attitudes to learning and make rapid progress. The early years provision is well led and managed. The children make rapid progress given their starting points.

Pupils' behaviour and the school's work to keep pupils safe and secure are outstanding. The governors are very effective. They have an excellent understanding of the school's performance including the quality of teaching and the standards achieved by the pupils.

Information about this school

St Sebastian's is an average-sized, one-form-entry primary school situated in the Fairfield district of Liverpool, which is about two miles east of the city centre. The school has been in a hard federation with another Catholic school, St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School and Nursery, since April 2006. Both schools have the same headteacher and governing body.

Several staff work across both school sites. The Field of Dreams Nursery is housed on the school site and is managed by the federation. Both St Cuthbert's and the Field of Dreams Nursery are inspected separately by Ofsted and were not included in this inspection.

There are slightly more girls in the school than boys. Two foundation classes enable the school to provide full-time and part-time early years education. The proportion of pupils supported by the pupil premium (the extra funding the school receives to help with the education of children eligible for free school meals or who are looked after by the local authority) is above average as is the proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds.

The number of pupils who speak English as an additional language is slightly below average. An above average proportion of pupils live with a disability or have special educational needs. The school does not make use of any off-site, alternative providers for its pupils' education.

The school is a centre of excellence for the teaching of Spanish. The local authority has identified the school as a centre of good practice and the headteacher is providing professional support to senior leaders in three other schools. St Sebastian's met the government's floor standards in 2014.

The floor standards are the minimum expectations for pupils' attainment and progress in reading, writing and mathematics. The school is the holder of a large number of awards. These include: Investors in People (Gold Award); Social and Emotional Aspects to Learning (best practice); the Association for Physical Education (outstanding commitment to primary physical education and sport); Green Flag (eco-schools award); International Schools; National Association for Able Children in Education; Arts Mark Gold; and the Basic Skills Quality Mark.

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