Sacred Heart Primary School and Nursery Class
Bellshill
North Lanarkshire Council

2 September 2008

Contents

1. Background
2. Key strengths
3. What are the views of parents, pupils and staff?
4. How good are learning, teaching and achievement?
5. How well are pupils’ learning needs met?
6. How good is the environment for learning?
7. Leading and improving the school
Appendix 1 Indicators of quality
Appendix 2 Summary of questionnaire responses
Appendix 3 Good Practice
How can you contact us?

1. Background

Sacred Heart Primary School and Nursery Class were inspected in April and May 2008 as part of a national sample of primary and nursery education. The inspection covered key aspects of the work of the school at all stages. It evaluated nursery children’s and pupils’ achievements, the effectiveness of the school, the environment for learning, the school’s processes for self-evaluation and innovation, and its capacity for improvement. There was a particular focus on attainment in English language and mathematics.

HM Inspectors examined the quality of the children’s experience in the nursery, pupils’ work and interviewed groups of pupils, including the pupil council, and staff. Members of the inspection team also met the chairperson of the Parent Council, representatives of the parent-teacher association (PTA) and a group of parents.

Sacred Heart Primary School is a denominational school serving the Orbiston area of Bellshill. At the time of the inspection the roll was 294 including 37 children in the nursery class. The proportion of pupils entitled to free school meals was above the national average. Pupils’ attendance was in line with the national average.

2. Key strengths

3. What are the views of parents, pupils and staff?

HM Inspectors analysed responses to questionnaires issued to a sample of parents, P4 to P7 pupils, and to all staff. Information about the responses to the questionnaires appears in Appendix 2.

Parents were highly satisfied with almost all aspects of the work of the school and the nursery. Parents thought their children enjoyed nursery and found the activities stimulating. They felt that nursery staff knew their children well and were friendly and caring. Parents of children at the primary stages thought that teachers set high standards for pupils’ attainment. They felt that reports gave them helpful information about their child’s progress and children were treated fairly. Almost all felt welcome in school and thought it had a good reputation in the local community. Almost all pupils were enthusiastic about the school. They thought teachers were good at letting them know how to improve their learning and felt safe and well looked after. All staff enjoyed working in the school and were very positive about the quality of teamwork and communication amongst staff. They thought that the headteacher and senior staff encouraged innovation.

4. How good are learning, teaching and achievement?

Learners’ experiences

The overall quality of the curriculum was very good. Staff in the nursery class provided children with a broad range of stimulating learning opportunities. They interacted positively with children and used praise well to celebrate their achievements and raise their self-esteem. At the primary stages, pupils benefited from a variety of well planned, stimulating and relevant learning experiences. Citizenship, enterprise and creativity permeated the curriculum. Pupils developed literacy and numeracy skills in a planned and progressive manner across the curriculum. Those at the early stages had regular opportunities to be involved in their learning through purposeful play. Pupils at all stages had sufficient access to good quality physical education, in line with national advice. Pupils were actively involved in promoting healthy eating and healthy lifestyles. The overall quality of teaching was good and some was very good. In the nursery class, staff made effective use of questioning to encourage children’s thinking and develop their ideas. They did not yet involve children fully in independent learning. At the primary stages, teachers had established a very positive climate for learning. They introduced lessons clearly, actively involved pupils in their learning and built effectively on pupils’ prior learning. Some lessons were too teacher-led and pupils were not always encouraged to think for themselves or take responsibility for their own learning. In the best lessons, teachers used questioning skilfully to check pupils’ understanding and challenge their thinking. Staff used feedback well in some lessons to help pupils improve their learning. They used information and communications technology (ICT) effectively to support pupils’ learning.

Learners’ experiences in the nursery were good. Most children participated actively in a wide range of learning activities. They were developing confidence in selecting resources. Staff valued children’s views and involved them in planning what they wanted to learn. The quality of learners’ experiences in the primary school was very good. Pupils were enthusiastic and consistently engaged with their learning. They regularly worked in groups and pairs to assess their own and others’ progress and made suggestions for improvement. They were able to explain their thinking and ideas when working together to solve problems. Pupils at P4 worked well together to assess each others’ skills in physical education and to demonstrate their skills to others. Pupils in P2/3 investigated different types of sound through purposeful play. Pupils in P6 were effectively raising awareness of healthy eating through the ‘Hearty Soup’ enterprise initiative. This involved them in purchasing ingredients and producing recipes which they sold to pupils in classes. Pupils in P7 used the Internet independently and confidently to find information.

Improvements in performance

The school had successfully improved its performance in a number of important areas. Overall, this represented a good improvement in performance of the nursery class and very good performance in the primary classes.

Children in the nursery class were making good progress in communication and language. They were confident when talking to one another and to adults. They followed instruction well and enjoyed listening to stories. Most children recognised their own name in print and enjoyed experimenting with mark making. Staff did not always ensure that children had sufficient opportunities to write in all areas of the play room. Many children used the book area independently to look at favourite books.

In English language, pupils at the primary stages had achieved very good standards in reading and writing. These high standards had been maintained over the past three years. Almost all pupils had attained appropriate national levels in listening, talking, reading and writing. Some pupils were attaining these levels earlier than might normally be expected. All pupils, including those with additional support needs and English as an additional language, had made good progress in their coursework. At all stages, pupils listened well to one another. They talked effectively in groups and spoke articulately about their thoughts and ideas. Staff had begun to record and monitor pupils’ attainment in listening and talking systematically. Pupils in the younger stages were successfully developing literacy skills through active learning. Those in P1 and P2 were using magnetic letters and portable whiteboards to identify and reproduce sounds. Most pupils from P3 to P7 read fluently and many read widely for pleasure. Pupils could describe the key features of different types of books. They showed very good knowledge of language and an obvious enthusiasm for reading. Pupils at the upper stages were using the study of novels very effectively to develop their knowledge of listening, talking, reading and writing in a progressive and motivating way. Pupils from P1 were encouraged to write independently for a variety of purposes. At all stages they planned and produced high quality written work. The standards of pupils’ punctuation, sentence structure and spelling were consistently good.

Children in the nursery class were making very good progress in their understanding of early mathematics. Almost all children had an understanding of time sequence that related to the nursery day. They enjoyed playing with numbers and were able to count confidently. A few could write and recognise numbers. They measured ingredients when baking. Many were able to sort out and name simple shapes and were developing an appropriate understanding of mathematical language in play contexts.

Pupils’ attainment in mathematics at the primary stages was very good. The school had maintained consistently high levels of attainment over the last few years. Most pupils achieved appropriate national levels, with many at the early and upper stages achieving these levels earlier than might normally be expected. Pupils not attaining national levels were making good progress towards appropriate targets which had been set for them. Pupils at the early stages had made a very good start to developing early mathematical skills. In information handling, pupils at all stages could interpret information from a range of graphs. Pupils at the upper stages used computers well to gather, analyse and display data from environmental studies topics. From P3, pupils were confident in mental and written calculations. They had a good understanding of money. By P7, pupils were competent in rounding numbers and showed a sound knowledge of fractions and decimals. A few pupils were less confident working with percentages and measurement of volume. Pupils from P4 were confident measuring digital and analogue time and by P7 pupils accurately calculated time. Pupils in P6 were secure in their knowledge of angles. Across the school, pupils had a good knowledge of the properties of shapes and were confident in identifying two- and three-dimensional shapes. Most pupils could use a range of strategies successfully when solving problems.

Children in the nursery class were making good progress in understanding the world around them. They investigated the natural world through planting and caring for seedlings. Children participated imaginatively in role-play and enjoyed dressing up. They had insufficient opportunities to develop creative skills in art and craft. All children had daily access to energetic play and were developing their coordination and awareness of space. They were developing good hand and finger control using a wide range of resources including jigsaws.

The physical education programme for pupils in the middle and upper primary included an innovative approach to improving pupils’ coordination, communication and concentration skills. Pupils worked progressively on physical activities in class groups, small groups and pairs. A music specialist provided high quality additional support to pupils participating in school shows. The school was developing its environmental studies programme to develop pupils’ numeracy and literacy skills and their use of ICT. Staff also planned to provide more opportunities for pupils to engage in active learning. The school ran a nurture group which catered in morning sessions for pupils in the early stages of primary and in the afternoons for small groups of older pupils. Those in the nurture group undertook learning activities to promote skills in relating to others and were developing important life skills.

The school took very effective steps to help pupils develop their wider achievements. Children in the nursery were happy and confident. They were familiar with basic nursery routines and were learning to share and take turns when playing. Most were developing friendships. Children were developing independence when undertaking personal tasks. In the primary classes, pupils demonstrated positive attitudes to many aspects of citizenship. Those at the upper stages acted as buddies to younger pupils. They worked effectively with children in the nursery and P1 to support their learning and contribute to their care and welfare. Some pupils in P7 were trained peer mediators who offered ‘drop-in’ support for pupils across the school. The school had gained Health Promoting School status and two Eco-Schools Scotland green flags for recycling, litter management and healthy and safe living. Pupils had achieved success in competitions including art and enterprise. The school celebrated the wider achievement of pupils at weekly assemblies and through the ‘achievement tree’ prominently displayed in the school entrance. A high proportion of pupils participated in out-of-hours programmes including, dance, football, netball and volleyball. Pupils enjoyed choosing from a range of motivating ‘golden time’ activities organised by pupils in P7. The school had involved pupils actively in raising funds for a number of charities.

The school had made very good progress in overtaking the priorities in its improvement plan. Several of these had achieved a measurable impact on nursery children’s and primary pupils’ experiences. For example, nursery staff had improved outdoor play to focus on progressing children’s skills. Teachers in the primary classes were developing literacy and numeracy across the curriculum and further developing active and independent learning. Developments in cooperative learning were having a positive impact on pupils’ learning experiences. These measures had resulted in sustained improvement in pupils’ attainment and their motivation to learn. The school knew its strengths and development needs very well and was constantly aiming to improve.

5. How well are pupils’ learning needs met?

Children’s learning needs in the nursery were well met. Staff had a good knowledge of children and provided them with a range of interesting learning experiences. They observed them at play and recorded their findings. They did not use assessment information effectively enough to track children’s progress in their learning or to identify learning goals. In the primary classes, approaches to meeting learning needs were very good. Teachers provided well-balanced support, taking into account individual needs in most classes. Support for learning teachers, pupil support assistants and visiting specialists interacted very well with pupils and staff. They assessed and met the needs of individual pupils flexibly and effectively. Pupils with English as an additional language received high quality support from a visiting specialist, and daily support from a pupil support assistant. This helped them to develop their language skills progressively. A number of pupils had individualised educational programmes (IEPs). These contained targets and success criteria which were shared with pupils and parents. Some of the targets set within these plans lacked clarity and progression. The educational psychologist provided effective support to staff and good links were in place with speech and language therapists. An early years worker provided effective support to pupils at the early stages to promote their literacy and numeracy skills. A support for learning teacher worked with groups of more able pupils to provide additional challenge in technology and poetry. Pupils benefited from the nurture group environment. It increased their social and emotional skills and their readiness to learn and engage positively with others. Staff in the nurture group liaised regularly with class teachers to ensure the learning needs of pupils were met effectively.

6. How good is the environment for learning?

7. Leading and improving the school

Appendix 1 provides HM Inspectors’ overall evaluation of the work of the school.

Sacred Heart Primary School and Nursery Class provided a high standard of education for its pupils. Staff had created a very caring, supportive and nurturing environment for learning. The school’s ethos and the quality of teamwork were very good, and staff were committed to meeting the needs of all pupils. Improvements to the curriculum and high quality learning and teaching had enabled the school to raise pupils’ attainment in English language and mathematics over the last three years. Pupils enjoyed school and were keen and motivated learners, who achieved very well in a wide range of areas.

The headteacher provided excellent leadership. She had fostered very good teamwork with staff and gave high priority to improving learning and raising the achievement of all pupils. She was held in the highest regard by pupils, parents, staff and the wider community. The headteacher was ably supported by a depute headteacher and two principal teachers. The depute headteacher was highly committed to the school and was responsible for the pastoral care and support for all pupils. She fulfilled her remit very effectively and was instrumental in developing the very caring and supportive environment. The principal teachers were models of best practice and provided well-judged support which was valued by class teachers. They led staff development and had achieved significant improvements to the curriculum, teaching and learning. The school’s arrangements for evaluating its work were very good. Staff were very committed to self-evaluation and were playing lead roles in taking forward aspects of improvement. Monitoring activities were managed systematically. The school frequently sought the views of pupils and parents within the school improvement plan. Staff valued the feedback from regular classroom observations by senior staff. These could be improved by a clearer focus on the impact of teaching strategies on learners.

Nursery staff were aware of the implications of the Scottish Social Services Council Codes of Practice.

At the last Care Commission inspection of the nursery class there was one recommendation that had been addressed.

What happens next?

As a result of the high performance, the strong record of improvement and the very effective leadership of this school, HM Inspectors will make no further reports in connection with this inspection. The school and the education authority have been asked to prepare an action plan indicating how they will address the main findings of the report, and to share that plan with parents. Within two years of the publication of this report the education authority, working with the school, will provide a progress report to parents.

June Orr
HM Inspector

2 September 2008

Appendix 1 Indicators of quality

The sections in the table below follow the order in this report. You can find the main comments made about each of the quality indicators in those sections. However, aspects of some quality indicators are relevant to other sections of the report and may also be mentioned in those other sections.

This report uses the following word scale to make clear judgements made by inspectors:

Appendix 2 Summary of questionnaire responses

Important features of responses from the various groups which received questionnaires are listed below.

Appendix 3 Good practice

In the course of the inspection, the following aspects of innovative and effective practice were evaluated as being worthy of wider dissemination.

How can you contact us?

If you would like an additional copy of this report

Copies of this report have been sent to the headteacher and school staff, the Executive Director Learning and Leisure Services, local councillors and appropriate Members of the Scottish Parliament. Subject to availability, further copies may be obtained free of charge from HM Inspectorate of Education, Europa Building, 450 Argyle Street, Glasgow G2 8LG or by telephoning 0141 242 0100. Copies are also available on our website www.hmie.gov.uk .

HMIE Feedback and Complaints Procedure

Should you wish to comment on any aspect of primary inspections, you should write in the first instance to Chris McIlroy, HMCI, at HM Inspectorate of Education, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA.

If you have a concern about this report, you should write in the first instance to our Complaints Manager, HMIE Business Management and Communications Team, Second Floor, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA. You can also e-mail HMIEComplaints@hmie.gsi.gov.uk . A copy of our complaints procedure is available from this office, by telephoning 01506 600200 or from our website at www.hmie.gov.uk .

If you are not satisfied with the action we have taken at the end of our complaints procedure, you can raise your complaint with the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The SPSO is fully independent and has powers to investigate complaints about Government departments and agencies. You should write to the SPSO, Freepost EH641, Edinburgh EH3 0BR. You can also telephone 0800 377 7330 fax 0800 377 7331 or e-mail: ask@spso.org.uk . More information about the Ombudsman’s office can be obtained from the website: www.spso.org.uk .

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HM Inspectorate of Education

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