St Mary Queen of Martyrs VC Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 24 May 2022

Pupils say that they feel happy and safe at school. Pupils told the inspector that the safeguarding team is always around to help, if they need it. Pupils' behaviour is a strength of the school. Pupils are polite and respectful of the views of others. Staff remind pupils regularly of the high behaviour expectations or 'SM Qualities'. As a result, pupils are ready, respectful and safe. Classrooms are very calm and productive places in which to learn. Some pupils use the 'calm zones' near classrooms to get them in the right frame of mind to learn. Pupils with social and emotional needs receive support from trained adults. This helps these pupils to deal with their anxieties and grow in confidence. Pupils say that bullying is rare. When it does happen, they say that adults talk through the problem with them. Leaders' record-keeping supports this view. The number of recorded bullying incidents is very low. Pupils are proud of their school. One pupil described the school as 'a loving, understanding and hardworking place'. Pupils say that they work hard because they want to be the best they can be.

What the school should improve

• In some wider curriculum subjects, such as history and design technology, the curriculum is not well sequenced. The curriculum does not identify precisely what pupils need to know by the end of each year. In the longer term, the curriculum does not provide opportunities for pupils to revisit previous learning often enough. As a result, pupils do not remember what they have been taught in detail. Leaders need to ensure that pupils are helped to remember more by revisiting previous learning more frequently and setting out clearly what they intend pupils to learn at the end of each year. It is clear from leaders' actions that they are in the process of bringing this about. For this reason, the transitional arrangements have been applied.
• Approaches to assessing pupils' learning in the wider curriculum are not precise enough. The checks that teachers make do not cover sufficiently the knowledge and skills that pupils have been taught. This means that gaps in pupils' knowledge are not always identified and addressed. Leaders should review their assessment systems in the wider curriculum to help staff evaluate and support pupils' skills and knowledge.
• The breadth of clubs that pupils can attend is not wide enough. Too few pupils can access an after-school activity that interests them or stretches their talents. Leaders should ensure that more pupils have the opportunity to participate in after-school clubs and activities.

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