St. Joseph's Infant School

Overview

This ungraded inspection confirmed the school remains ‘good’, though evidence suggests a graded inspection might yield a lower judgement. The school is described as a ‘friendly and welcoming’ environment where pupils feel safe and valued. However, inconsistencies in curriculum planning and teaching quality limit pupil achievement in certain areas.

Strengths

• Pupils feel ‘safe’ and confident in reporting concerns, with leaders addressing bullying ‘swiftly and effectively’.
• The reading curriculum is ‘designed well’, with clear phonics expectations and workshops helping parents support learning at home.
• Staff build ‘good relationships’ with pupils, fostering a positive attitude towards learning and high expectations for those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• The personal, social, health and economic curriculum is used ‘effectively’ to help pupils develop empathy and understand safety.
• Staff appreciate the ‘supportive environment’ and leaders’ consideration of workload and well-being.

Areas to improve

• Ensure ‘consistently effective phonics teaching’ so pupils learn to read quickly enough, addressing current gaps in ambition and delivery.
• Clearly identify the precise knowledge and sequence for every curriculum area to hinder ‘systematic improvement in pupils’ knowledge and skills’.
• Implement routine assessment strategies across all subjects to monitor progress closely and plan future work ‘more precisely’.

Safeguarding

The report states that ‘the arrangements for safeguarding are effective’.