St Urban's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 29 November 2022

Pupils, parents, carers and staff are proud to be members of this warm, welcoming school community. Leaders ensure that the school's Catholic ethos and values of 'living, learning and growing together' thread through all aspects of school life. These values are made meaningful to the pupils. Pupils are taught about the character virtues and strengths that can support decision-making, positive relationships and life in the wider world. The very positive relationships between staff and pupils reflect these core values. Leaders have high expectations of all pupils. They create a calm and highly positive environment in school, which allows pupils to develop exceptional attitudes and behaviours. When appropriate, skilled adults support pupils to manage their emotions. Pupils know they are cared for and that their teachers believe in them. They feel safe, happy and get on well together. Pupils are considerate of each other in tricky times and work incredibly well together in class and on special projects. Leaders give considerable emphasis to positive relationships with parents, carers and the community. Parents highlight the support they have received from the school during the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent return to school. Parents value the care that staff give to pupils. This caring approach from all staff is evident in the daily life of the school. The strong links between home and school support pupils to attend well and participate in the wider experiences that the school offers.

What the school should improve

• There is variance in how effectively staff are trained to deliver the phonics programme. This inconsistent delivery means that some pupils are not becoming fluent readers as quickly as they should. Leaders should improve staff training to ensure that the phonics programme is delivered consistently well, enabling all pupils to become fluent readers.
• Teachers do not consistently make the necessary adaptations to their teaching to enable pupils with SEND to gain the knowledge they need. When these adaptations are not made, this limits what pupils with SEND remember in some areas of the curriculum. Leaders should train teachers on how to make appropriate adaptations to teaching to better meet the needs of pupils with more complex needs.

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