St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 4 May 2023

St Joseph's serves its local community well. This is a school full of happiness. Pupils and staff enjoy being members of this tight-knit community where every child is cherished. Pupils know that staff care and look after them well. They trust them to deal with any concerns they may have. Pupils feel safe at school. Pupils value diversity. They have a strong understanding of celebrating each other's differences. They show respect for one another in their kind behaviour. There is little bullying. Pupils behave well around the school and in lessons. Pupils take an active interest in their lessons as staff have high expectations of what they can learn. Pupils are of the view that school is fun as well as challenging. They enjoy talking about what they have learned, including the latest class book they are reading. A wide range of opportunities are offered to develop pupils' interests and leadership. These include being part of school council, eco warriors and learning about water safety on the beach. Pupils recently visited a memory café to develop their understanding of dementia.

What the school should improve

• In a few subjects, leaders' strategies to check pupils' understanding and retention of knowledge and skills are not fully developed. This means that teachers are not as clear as they could be about which aspects of the curriculum pupils know well. Leaders should continue their work to develop assessment in these subjects so that teachers have a clear view of whether pupils have learned what was intended.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)