Ofsted inspection in November 2012:
Year on year, students’ test marks get better and better. By the time they leave school, they are ahead of students in other schools and are well prepared for their next stage of education, employment or training.
Ofsted inspection of the same school, under the same head, without any significant changes to demographic, funding or other external events, in September 2013:
Too many students fail to make the progress expected of them in English and mathematics across Key Stage 3. When they begin their GCSE studies, they have too much ground to make up and, as a result, GCSE results for the last two years have been much lower than expected, given the students’ starting points.
November 2012:
Teaching is mostly good or outstanding which is why students make such good progress.
September 2013:
Too much teaching is ineffective and not enough is good, leading to students’ inadequate achievement.
November 2012:
The headteacher and senior staff know what the issues are for the school and quickly sort them out.
September 2013:
Leadership and management are inadequate because the school is not improving quickly enough. There has not been a sufficiently cohesive drive by leaders and staff to raise standards. Leaders have an overly positive view of the quality of teaching and the school’s performance. They do not analyse the performance of key groups of students sharply enough to help them plan effectively for improvement.
November 2012:
Behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. Students have good manners and respect adults. They enjoy and feel safe at school and their attendance has improved.
September 2013:
• Some students do not feel safe around the school grounds.November 2012:
Students with a visual or hearing impairment or those who have other special educational needs also make good progress in The Hub, due to the high quality of support they receive from teachers and specialist support workers.
September 2013:
• Disabled students and those who have special educational needs, including students in the Hub, make insufficient progress. Although teachers clearly identify these pupils and receive good information about their circumstances, not all teachers adjust their teaching to meet their needs. The large majority of disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs in Year 7 last year, made little progress or went backwards in English.
November 2012:
September 2013:
• The governing body is aware of the quality of teaching and the strategies the school is using to improve its quality. Governors are aware of how well students are doing, including in comparison with students nationally. They regularly ask questions about teaching and attend some of the staff training sessions. As a result, they are aware of which staff are performing well and how performance management is being used to reward staff when they have made a difference to students’ outcomes. Governors themselves are well-trained through a planned programme and hold the headteacher to account for the performance of the school. They have ensured that the pupil premium is used effectively to help potentially disadvantaged students to do better.
September 2013:
• The governing body has not questioned the school’s leaders robustly enough about students’ achievement; the decline in performance has not been investigated and they have not checked on how well groups of students are doing. They have simply accepted information given to them by senior leaders and, as a result, they do not hold an accurate picture of the school’s effectiveness. They do not have a deep enough understanding about the quality of teaching across the school. Governors have not held school leaders to account for their actions and, as a result, have not sufficiently challenged them about needed improvements.