Blackpool St John’s Church of England Primary School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at this caring school. They know that staff will support them if they have any worries.

Many new pupils arrive at the school at different times during the year. They are made to feel welcome and settle in quickly.

The school has high expectations for pupils' social and academic achievement.

Pupils typically achieve well, including those who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The pastoral support for pupils is a strength of the school. This helps pupils to feel safe and to be ready for their learning.

Pupils behave well. They typically engage well during lessons, which are calm and p...urposeful. Pupils understand why the school's 'golden rule', treating others the way that you want to be treated, is important to follow in school and beyond the school's gates.

The school provides pupils with rich experiences that they might not otherwise have. For example, extensive trips enrich pupils' learning. These include visits to zoos, museums and places of worship.

Pupils have opportunities to develop their talents and interests, such as by playing musical instruments and by performing at festivals. They partake in clubs after school, for example in sports, cooking, dance and art.

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

The school has designed a curriculum that is broad, balanced and commensurate with the national curriculum.

It has identified the knowledge for pupils to learn, which is ordered logically, so that pupils build on what they already know. This curriculum thinking begins in the early years, where children get off to a flying start to their education.

Staff benefit from a comprehensive package of training and coaching that helps them to develop their subject knowledge.

In the main, teachers provide pupils with learning activities and clear explanations that help them to build their knowledge. However, from time to time, staff do not deliver all subject curriculums consistently well. This variability hinders how well some pupils learn.

Overall, during lessons, staff check that pupils understand new information and concepts as these are introduced. Nonetheless, in some subjects, the strategies that teachers use to check pupils' knowledge are still being determined. As a result, pupils' knowledge is not as secure as it could be, as some gaps in their learning have not been addressed.

The school identifies pupils' additional needs quickly. It works closely with external agencies, parents and carers to support pupils with SEND to learn well alongside their peers. Pupils with SEND are included in the full life of the school.

Pupils' enjoyment of reading is fostered by the school. For example, pupils visit the local library and enjoy daily story time. Class libraries are stocked with texts that have been carefully chosen to reflect the diversity in the community.

Pupils enjoy reading from a variety of different texts and authors.Staff have had training to help them to deliver the phonics programme typically well. This begins from the start of the Reception Year.

Pupils practise their reading with books that contain the sounds that they already know. Those who struggle with reading, including pupils who speak English as an additional language, receive targeted support from staff. This helps them to develop their reading fluency in readiness for key stage 2.

Pupils are mostly well mannered and polite. In the early years, children learn quickly how to share and take turns. Staff foster children's self-care skills and independence well, to enable them to learn successfully through their play.

Pupils typically attend school regularly. The school works with external professionals to support pupils and their families to improve levels of attendance. This work is ongoing, particularly for pupils who are disadvantaged.

The school provides pupils with a well-thought-out programme to enrich their personal development. Pupils learn about safety outside of school, including how to be safe online and when near open water. Older pupils learn about responsibility in their roles as school councillors, prefects, worship wardens and eco-councillors.

To support the community, pupils raise money for local charities and donate to a local foodbank.

The governing body fulfils its statutory duties well, with a focus on supporting and challenging the school to encourage continual improvement. Staff are positive about working at the school.

They appreciate the open and supportive culture that exists. Staff are given the time that they need to undertake their roles well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• At times, there is variability in how effectively staff implement some subject curriculums. This hinders how well some pupils learn. The school should ensure that staff are fully equipped to deliver subject curriculums consistently well.

• In some subjects, the strategies for teachers to check on pupils' learning are in development. Because of this, the gaps that some pupils have in their knowledge are not routinely picked up. The school should refine its approach to assessment so that staff better identify and address gaps in the important information that pupils should know and remember.