The school

St James’s Primary School is a denominational school. It serves the Gockston and Shortroods areas of Paisley. The roll was 107 when the inspection was carried out in May 2011. Children’s attendance was below the national average in 2009/2010. Around one fifth of children have English as an additional language.

Particular strengths of the school

• Polite, well-behaved children who are keen to learn.
• Staff teamwork.
• Partnerships with parents, agencies and local businesses which enhance children’s learning.
• The commitment of the headteacher and staff to improving the school.

The following areas for improvement have been agreed with the school and education authority:

• Increase pace and challenge to enable children to make better progress in literacy.
• Develop planning further to ensure a more coherent approach to delivering Curriculum for Excellence.
• Improve self-evaluation by making more effective use of information gathered to secure improvement.