National Society Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools Report

St Mary’s Church of England Primary School
Broomfield Drive
South Reddish
SK5 7DR
Diocese: Manchester
Previous SIAMS grade: Outstanding
Current inspection grade: Outstanding
Local authority: Stockport
Dates of inspection: 19 November 2015
Date of last inspection: 15 April 2010
School’s unique reference number: 106106
Headteacher: Mrs Elizabeth Irvin
Inspector’s name and number: Barbara Kinch 475
School context
St Mary’s is a Voluntary Controlled Primary school in the Reddish district of Stockport. The community it serves comprises mainly white British families and the socio economic composition is mixed. A very small number of children come from ethnic minority groups. About 20% of children qualify for additional government funding under the Pupil Premium arrangement. The proportion of boys to girls in school is high. 15% of children attract Special Educational Need and Disability (SEND) funding.
The distinctiveness and effectiveness of St Mary’s as a Church of England school are outstanding
·  Strong Christian values and principles guide leadership at all levels and this promotes high expectations, positive attitudes to learning and good attendance.
·  Explicit Christian values are lived out in school and demonstrated in the relationships, behaviour and well being of all the learners
·  The Christian basis on which all worship is founded enriches and informs the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all learners.
·  The school environment radiates the Christian ethos of the school through its demonstration of Christian values which affirm, stimulate and encourage all stakeholders
Areas to improve
·  Widen the scope for the evaluation of worship so that all stakeholders are able to contribute to and enrich the experience for all learners
·  Maintain and strengthen links with St Mary’s Church to encourage reciprocal ways of sharing resources and expertise
·  Ensure the Christian character is fully demonstrated on the school’s website.
The school, through its distinctive Christian character, is outstanding at meeting the needs of all learners
The school environment exudes it Christian foundation. The symbol of the rainbow permeates all aspects of school life with its message of promise and hope. Each class is named after a colour and children talk confidently about its meaning. Core Christian values of love, forgiveness and respect are explicit and are underpinned by other values such as courage, thankfulness, hope and peace which are identified by the pupils and explored half-termly through whole school and class worship. All members of the school community describe the ethos of the school in terms of its explicit Christian principles. Pupils understand that values ‘help them to live better lives and care for each other ’. Value laden displays in shared areas and classrooms promote beliefs in God’s love and care. A very thought provoking display entitled ‘You say, God says’ contains biblical quotes which answer children’s concerns and doubts about their abilities. This has a profound effect on the spiritual experience of the learners. ‘As Christians we serve each other by…..’ is the title of a display which reflects the wide range of local, national and global charities supported by the school throughout the year. Recognising and reaching potential and making the right choices are central to the school’s mission statement. Appropriate levels of challenge are an integral part of the academic, spiritual and social development of the learners. Through a personalised curriculum children are encouraged to take on the leadership of their own learning through ‘Chilli Challenges’. These progress from ‘mild,’ to ‘spicy,’ ‘hot’ and ‘on fire’. Children select their own level of challenge at the outset and are excited and motivated by moving up the challenges whilst still enjoying the security and reassurance of achievable goals. The implementation of the new Diocesan scheme for RE is proving inspiring, innovative and consistent with the challenge approaches of the rest of the curriculum. The calm and purposeful atmosphere leads to high standards of behaviour and respect and relationships based on the Christian values of loving and caring are excellent. Forgiveness is not only understood but is lived out by all the children who show respect and friendship to each other. Strategies such a talk partners, which change weekly, enable children to build up trust in each other. They say that there is no bullying and that they love school and feel valued and safe, as a result attendance is very good and there have been no exclusions. This is not fully reflected on the school’s website.
The impact of collective worship on the school community is outstanding
Worship is central to the Christian life of St Mary’s. Daily worship takes place in a variety of settings, whole school, key stage and class worship. Children really enjoy worship and are fully engaged in it. They appreciate coming together as a school but also the more intimate times for class worship when they have the opportunity to read Bible stories to each other and say prayers together as they pass a holding cross among them. Each classroom has its own worship area which contains a cross, a holding cross, a peace plant and a candle but each has individual items to personalise their own space. One class has Lego pieces where the invitation to children and visitors is, ‘ As you put another brick to help build this house , say a prayer for someone you share yours with ‘. Another invites you to place a small tile in a glass and say a prayer as you do so. Children participate in this spontaneously reflecting the high priority given by the school to spiritual development. Worship has a strong focus on the Bible and the person of Jesus Christ and the component parts of the worship table reflect God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit and this is reinforced as the worship table is set. Meaningful prayer takes place in different forms .The Lord’s prayer is sung daily, and traditional and extemporised prayers are used at lunchtimes and at the end of the day. Children say that prayer makes them feel closer to God. Singing is enjoyed by all the children who sing all the ‘I Sing Pop’ songs with enthusiasm. From the changes in colour of the cloths used in worship the children recognise and understand the seasons of the church’s year. Leadership is shared by all staff and they plan according to the current theme and to a clear pattern of worship in gathering, engaging, responding and with importance given to sending out with a point on which to reflect. Each leader evaluates the impact of the worship but this is does not include other members of the school community. A wide range of visitors including clergy, charities, Christians in School Trust and the Ethnic Diversity Service regularly lead and support worship. The vicar of St Mary’s is a frequent visitor to school and on the day of the inspection helped to lead a very moving act of worship which, whilst allowing the children to confront the difficult issues surrounding the terrorist atrocities in Paris, used ‘Rainbow’ stories of hope and courage and the summit on climate change to be held there, as a counter balance for hope in the future. This was highly effective and resulted in some deep and reflective comments from the children one of whom said ‘it made me feel less scared and more hopeful’
The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the school as a church school is outstanding
Leadership of the school consistently promotes and demonstrates a vision founded on values whose significance to Christianity is widely known. Staff say that everyone ‘buys into the vision ‘. The mission statement is based on all members of the school community being affirmed as individuals and in reaching their full potential. Shared leadership at all levels is fostered and developed and opportunities for professional development in guiding the Christian ethos of the school ensure that continuity and consistency of provision and practice is maintained. Leaders of worship and religious education demonstrate passion and enthusiasm. Consistent monitoring and evaluation of teaching and learning ensure standards and achievement continue to rise. Governors value the nurturing ethos and have an accurate knowledge of the impact that the Christian character of the school has on achievement and wellbeing through informed self evaluation. They offer appropriate challenge about teaching and learning strategies based on a sound knowledge of the relevant data. They have a clear understanding of the importance of spiritual development and the shared values of the Christian community. The support they offer the school is enhanced by their commitment to training from the diocese and local authority. Recent questionnaires completed by parents show that the overwhelming majority hold the school in high regard and feel that the positive Christian ethos contributes to their children feeling safe and cared for and that this helps them to make good progress. They feel welcomed, valued and supported. Parents reinforced the sentiment of one who said ‘you don’t judge a school by its postcode!’ Newsletters, emails, the website and the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) all enrich the home school relationship. Although the school has very few children from ethnic minority backgrounds, it prepares children well through the curriculum, worship and links with another school in the diocese for life in a multicultural world. Community links are developing and the school works hard to forge close links with St Mary’s Church by holding key events and services there. This is not yet as strong as it might be and greater potential exists for this to be reciprocated.

SIAMS report November2015 St Mary’s CE Primary School Reddish SK5 7DR