St Mary's Limavady

Overview

This Sustaining Improvement Inspection was conducted during industrial action, meaning only senior leadership cooperated with inspectors. Consequently, the report states the ETI is “unable to assure parents/carers... of the quality of education being provided for the pupils.” Evaluations are based solely on evidence available at the time, with full impact assessments deferred to future inspections.

Strengths

• Curriculum development at key stage 4 and post-16 has been prioritised, reducing the proportion of pupils on bridging courses from one-third to one-sixth.
• Outcomes for pupils at GCSE and post-16 have increased over three years and are “well above the corresponding Northern Ireland (NI) averages for similar schools.”
• A staff development programme has produced a “toolkit for learning and teaching” with agreed principles to guide practice.
• Pupils report that learning strategies are “fun and engaging,” citing “mutual respect and trust between teachers and pupils.”
• Pupils value leadership opportunities, including peer mentoring and acting as “shared education ambassadors.”

Areas to improve

• The report identifies no specific areas for improvement, as the industrial action prevented a full evaluation of classroom teaching and safeguarding arrangements.

Safeguarding

The school provided evidence that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education,” and pupils reported feeling safe, though the ETI was “unable to evaluate fully the outworking of the arrangements” due to the strike.