Warrington St Barnabas CofE Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Warrington St Barnabas CofE Primary School continues to be a good school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at St Barnabas live up to the school's motto and 'let their light shine'. They are polite, respectful and happy.

Pupils feel safe in this welcoming community. They know that staff care for them. Children in the early years, including in the two-year-old provision, thrive.

Pupils take part in lessons enthusiastically. They enjoy learning and try their best. Pupils' behaviour around school is exemplary.

They follow the school's rules diligently. Pupils wear their reward and leadership badges with pride. Their achievements, no matter how small, are ...celebrated.

Pupils said that the school is 'a place for everyone'. They celebrate their uniqueness and diversity. Pupils appreciate each other's differences.

They are kind to one another. Children in the Nursery class learn how to share and to take turns.

The school offers esteemed leadership roles for many pupils.

Pupils relish the responsibility of being mini-police or worship leaders. Most pupils make use of the many fantastic enrichment opportunities. For instance, pupils enjoy learning about cookery, gardening and circus skills.

The school expects the best from its pupils and staff. Pupils live up to these high expectations. By the end of key stage 2, most pupils achieve well across the curriculum.

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

The school has designed an ambitious and broad curriculum. The essential knowledge that pupils should learn has been carefully chosen. Teachers use their strong subject knowledge to deliver the curriculum successfully.

They expertly model the use of subject-specific vocabulary. In turn, pupils use this vocabulary to confidently explain their ideas clearly. In most subjects, teachers design learning effectively to help pupils to remember more.

However, in a small number of subjects, some teachers do not use the information that they are given about pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) as effectively as they could. As a result, a small number of pupils with SEND do not always build their understanding securely.

In the Nursery and Reception classes, staff have identified where children's gaps in learning are.

They use this information to put effective support in place. Consequently, children in the early years are prepared well for learning in key stage 1. Across the school, teachers regularly check how well pupils have learned the intended curriculum.

This helps them to identify and remedy misconceptions quickly so that by the end of key stage 2, most pupils achieve well.

Reading is seen as the gateway to opportunity. Meaningful text choices are intertwined through the curriculum.

Staff are trained to deliver the phonics programme well. Those pupils who struggle with reading receive support that helps them to keep up with the phonics programme. Pupils enjoy reading a rich selection of books.

In early years, children readily recall the rhyme of the week. Pupils, including those who arrive later in the school year, learn to read fluently and accurately.

The school is tenacious in its approach to improving attendance rates.

It supports parents and carers effectively to help them to get their child to attend regularly. The number of pupils who are persistently absent has reduced. Pupils understand the importance of attending school each day.

Staff act as positive role models for pupils. They teach pupils how to behave exceptionally well. Staff gently remind pupils of the behaviour expectations.

This starts with the children in early years, who quickly settle into the school. They learn to follow the school's routines swiftly. Pupils who arrive in school at different points in the year, soon feel part of the community.

Staff are adept at identifying any additional needs that pupils may have. In the main, staff are skilled to adapt the delivery of the curriculum for these pupils in most subjects. In these subjects, pupils with SEND achieve well.

The school's programme for pupils' wider development is ambitious. In particular, the focus on careers and raising pupils' aspirations for their future steps is remarkable. Pupils are supported, from an early age, to aspire high.

There is no ceiling put on their achievement. Take-up of the extensive enrichment opportunities is high. Pupils value the chance to learn new skills.

Their experience of the world is widened through interesting and carefully planned trips and visits that stretch beyond the curriculum. For example, they benefitted from a talk with a local scientist about the impact of climate change on her work.

The school is supported well by the governing body.

The governing body embraces the school's context and supports the school to work successfully to overcome barriers to learning that pupils may have. Staff are immensely proud to work at this school. Their views are listened to and taken into consideration.

For example, workload has been eased by reducing the number of assessment tasks that they complete.

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 small number of subjects, some teachers do not use the information that they receive about pupils with SEND well enough to adapt the delivery of the curriculum.

As a result, a small number of pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they should. The school should ensure that staff are supported to use this information well to adapt and break down learning to meet the needs of pupils with SEND.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

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 would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which 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 in November 2014.