St Joseph's Primary School

Overview

The inspection was conducted during industrial action, with teachers refusing to co-operate with inspectors. Consequently, the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) states it is “unable to assure... of the quality of education being provided” and assigns “No performance level available” for all key areas. The school is designated a “high priority for future inspection with no further notice.”

Strengths

• A group of Year 6 pupils reported “friendly working relationships” with staff and peers.
• Children stated they “feel safe” and are “aware of what to do if they have any concerns about their safety or welfare.”
• The school provided documentation showing safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education.”

Areas to improve

• The report identifies no specific areas for improvement in teaching or leadership, as these could not be evaluated due to non-co-operation.
• The school must “review aspects of the school’s child protection and associated policies to ensure that they reflect more fully the guidance from the DE.”

Safeguarding

The report notes that while safeguarding arrangements broadly reflect Department of Education guidance, there is a need to review policies to ensure they “reflect more fully” this guidance, and full evaluation was impossible due to the industrial action.