St Joseph's Primary School

Overview

The inspection occurred during industrial action, meaning the ETI was “unable to assure... of the quality of education” and could not fully evaluate outcomes, provision, or leadership. Despite these limitations, the report notes that the principal and governors co-operated, providing evidence on self-evaluation and safeguarding.

Strengths

• Year seven children “read with confidence and fluency” and could “explain the authors’ use of language”.
• Year six pupils spoke “confidently and positively” about their learning and the “varied range of sporting and cultural after-school activities”.
• The school development plan is “based on comprehensive consultation” and uses “qualitative and quantitative data”.
• The Board of Governors is “well-informed” and reports “confidence in the school leadership”.
• A system exists to “set and track targets for the children’s individual progress”.

Areas to improve

• The employing authority, governors, and staff must “plan for, and manage, issues related to the sustainability of the school provision and school budget”.

Safeguarding

The report states that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education” and children feel safe, though the ETI was “unable to evaluate fully the outworking of the arrangements” due to the industrial action.