St William's Catholic Primary School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 13 December 2023

Pupils are integral to making St William's Catholic Primary School the warm and welcoming place that it is. They are happy in school, and they build strong friendships with others. Pupils behave exceptionally well. They are kind and considerate. Pupils display impeccable manners. They are highly respectful to one another and to the adults they meet. The school is a haven of calm, where pupils learn without distraction. They enjoy active and sociable playtimes. The school has a clear vision for how it wants to prepare pupils for the next steps in their lives. It has raised its expectations of what pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), can achieve. Pupils take pride in their learning and, typically, they achieve well. Pupils, including children in the early years, benefit from a wealth of experiences that support them to develop their confidence. For example, older pupils recalled their recent residential trip enthusiastically. They spoke of overcoming their fears and building resilience through an array of outdoor and adventurous activities. Pupils are entrusted with a range of leadership roles, such as acting as school councillors and reading ambassadors. They relish these opportunities, and they enjoy making suggestions about how to make the school even better. All pupils can participate in these activities, including those with SEND.

What the school should improve

• The school's work to refine some subject curriculums is at an earlier stage. In turn, staff have not built their curriculum expertise in these subjects sufficiently well. Occasionally, some pupils' learning is uneven as a result. The school should ensure that staff are provided with the support they need to deliver their revised class curriculums as well as intended.
• In those subjects where the curriculums are newer, the school's approaches to checking on what pupils know and remember are less well developed. This makes it more difficult for teachers to assess where pupils have potential gaps in their knowledge. As the school implements revised curriculums in these subjects, it should ensure that teachers are fully equipped to check what pupils know and can do before introducing new learning.

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