St Robert's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 7 November 2023

St Robert's Catholic Primary School is a welcoming, inclusive and diverse community. Teachers and support staff care passionately about each child. They take a keen interest in pupils' ideas and opinions. Everyone is valued. The Catholic values of the school are a central feature of its work. These values are reflected in the acts of kindness that pupils carry out in the school and in the community. Pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), say that they feel safe. This is, in part, due to the diligent work of leaders and staff at the school. When safeguarding or pastoral concerns arise, staff deal with issues swiftly and sensitively. Pupils behave well in class and around the school during playtime. Occasionally, there are instances when a minority of pupils forget their manners or disrupt the learning of others. Nevertheless, pupils are resilient and forgiving. Teachers have high expectations. They insist on using positive praise to help find the best in each child. Children in the early years are happy. There is a lively atmosphere in Reception class, where children make friends and play well together. However, children do not get off to the best start. In recent years, a large proportion of children have not developed the literacy, communication and language skills needed to make them ready for Year 1.

What the school should improve

• Provision in the early years requires improvement. Deliberate, well-planned opportunities for pupils to speak, listen and write are sporadic or do not challenge children as well as they might. In recent years, not enough children have been ready for their next stage in learning. The school should ensure that the curriculum in the early years is ambitious and implemented in a consistent and effective way, so that more children reach the expected standard and are ready for their next stage in learning.
• Some pupils, at an earlier stage of learning to read, are taught letter sounds that are too difficult. Occasionally, these pupils struggle to access the lesson or complete activities with success. This is not a good use of their time and can have a detrimental effect on pupils' confidence when reading. The school should ensure that lessons are pitched appropriately to better meet the needs of pupils learning to read.
• The school is at an early stage in its thinking about how to best support the increasing number of pupils who speak English as an additional language. The school should ensure that it has an effective strategy to support the induction of these pupils, helping each new starter get off to a flying start.

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