St Alban & St Stephen Catholic Primary School & Nursery

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About St Alban & St Stephen Catholic Primary School & Nursery


Name St Alban & St Stephen Catholic Primary School & Nursery
Website http://www.ssas.herts.sch.uk/
Inspections
Ofsted Inspections
Headteacher Ms Tess Hackett
Address St Alban & St Stephen Catholic Primary School, Cecil Road, St Albans, AL1 5EG
Phone Number 01727866668
Phase Primary
Type Voluntary aided school
Age Range 3-11
Religious Character Roman Catholic
Gender Mixed
Number of Pupils 457
Local Authority Hertfordshire
Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their nurturing school.

By and large, they love learning and are enthusiastic to share what they know. For example, a well-thought-through music curriculum shows in pupils' understanding of musical terms and their ability to sing in tune. Strengths in the school's curriculum serve to ensure many pupils achieve highly.

Recent changes in the early years mean that children get off to a flying start. Children in the early years admire the adults. They use flashcards, for instance, to act in role as a teacher, correctly explaining to others the sounds that letters make.

Pupils are compassionate. They refer to the positive influence of adults in... school and at home. This teaches them to recognise and respect how people differ.

For example, pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of 'hidden' disabilities.

Many pupils access the ample extra-curricular clubs. These include languages, sports and drop-in well-being clubs.

The well-being clubs allow pupils to mingle and talk about whatever is playing on their mind, under the watchful eye of staff.

Generally, pupils follow the 'golden rules'. They recognise how doing so ensures school is a calm and safe space.

Collecting house points to contribute to a team award encourages cooperation.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school's curriculum is well-planned. Leaders are particularly proud of the improvements made to the early years curriculum.

These changes are better preparing children for Year 1 and beyond. Leaders continue to review subjects thoroughly. They make small changes to specify the precise concepts, skills and words pupils should learn.

There have also been some recent changes to consider the local context. In this way, it encourages pupils to see how what they learn relates to their place in the world. This includes the careful planning of school trips and visitors to complement pupils' learning.

Recently, leaders called upon education research to improve staff's practice. Though it was high-quality, a few staff are not using the training effectively. Sometimes, how they explain concepts or demonstrate skills lacks clarity.

This is particularly problematic for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Some of these pupils cannot infer meaning as well as their peers. It shows in their attention waning in lessons and them struggling to complete work well.

There is a rigorous phonics programme in place. Having received effective training, staff are suitably skilled. When teaching, they watch pupils closely.

As needed, they spring into action. For example, they ensure pupils correctly move their mouths to practise reading the sounds letters make. There is a suite of high-quality catch-up support in place for those pupils who fall behind.

Though in the early stages of implementation, this support is helping those pupils to catch up.

The school carefully caters for pupils with SEND. Staff monitor pupils closely.

They liaise with leaders to identify pupils' barriers to learning. They then make simple adjustments to address these. Most parents appreciate how the school makes best use of the resources it has, to provide suitable support.

For example, the use of writing slopes to encourage better posture and neater handwriting. There are also bought-in counsellors to teach pupils how to manage their thoughts and feelings.

Pupils, staff and leaders are rightly proud of the school's well-considered personal development programme.

There are opportunities to develop pupils' social skills. For example, discos and film nights, as well as opportunities in lessons that develop their ability to voice and discuss ideas. There are a range of responsibilities for pupils.

For example, the 'squabble squashers' offer peer mediation; the junior librarians maintain the school libraries; and the eco team educate the school in assemblies and whole-school events like the 'annual green day'.

Since the infant and junior schools amalgamated, there has been frequent change in leadership. It has been unsettling for the school community.

Nevertheless, current leaders have steadied the ship. For example, they oversee clear expectations and a workable system that ensures pupils attend school regularly. However, there is still some uncertainty in leadership.

Most leaders are in acting roles or are developing in a role they took on recently. There is also no substantive headteacher. Governors understand the need to secure leadership.

They know to manage change carefully to ensure the school can go from strength to strength.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Occasionally, teachers' explanations could be clearer.

Leaders have not ensured that staff consistently use their recent training to inform their teaching practice. As a result, pupils continue to overly rely on their background knowledge to infer meaning. Leaders should further support staff to increase the clarity of their explanations so that more pupils can understand and learn new knowledge efficiently.

• Leadership is developing at the school. This has temporarily slowed aspects of school improvement. The governing body should support leaders in establishing a workable leadership structure and ensure they have the guidance needed to effectively fulfil their responsibilities.

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