Myton School

Age group 11–18 Inspection date(s) 1–2 February 2012 Inspection number 384811 Myton School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 136907 Local authority N/A Inspection number 384811 Inspection dates 1–2 February 2012 Lead inspector Michael Smith HMI

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Type of school Academy School category Non-maintained Age range of pupils 11–18 Gender of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils in the sixth form Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 1629 Of which, number on roll in the sixth form 289 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair David Kelham Headteacher Paul MacIntyre Date of previous school inspection 15 November 2006 School address Myton Road Warwick CV34 6PJ Telephone number 01926 493805 Fax number 01926 490380 Email address head@myton.co.uk achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked

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after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when.

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You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. Inspectors spent the majority of their time in school observing lessons. They visited 56 lesson taught by 51 teachers. Many of these visits were accompanied by a member of the senior leadership team. They held meetings with staff, students, and the Chair and Vice- Chair of the governing body. Inspectors took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection, observed the school’s work, and looked at 205 parent and carer questionnaires, 110 staff questionnaires and 150 student questionnaires; assessment records; the minutes of the meetings of the governing body; safeguarding documentation; faculty evaluations; and the school’s monitoring records and action plans.

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Information about the school

Myton School is a larger-than-average specialist science and training school. It converted to an academy in July 2011 and retained the same name. The proportion of students known to be eligible for free school meals is below average, as are the proportions of disabled pupils and those with special educational needs. The proportions of students from minority ethnic backgrounds and those who are learning English as an additional language are both above average. The largest group is students from Indian heritage. The school meets the government’s current floor standards.

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Information about the school

The headteacher was appointed from January 2010. The school has recently gained the International Schools Award and Enhanced Partnership status with Warwick University for Initial Teacher Education. It has been given the Eco Schools Green Flag award for the second time and is an accredited training centre for the National College for School Leadership. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

 This is a good school. It has improved greatly and shows a good capacity for further improvement.  The sixth form is good and prepares students very well for their futures. Students give very good support to younger students to help them improve reading skills.  The headteacher’s highly effective leadership has been instrumental in overcoming weaknesses. Through strong drive and ambition senior leaders hold staff to account so that achievement and the quality of teaching constantly improve. All groups of students achieve well.  Students say they feel safe and that behaviour is very good around school and in the vast majority of lessons, as was observed during the inspection. Responses from most parent and carer questionnaires say that behaviour is good, although a small minority say that at times a few students fail to maintain this high standard.  Teaching is good and often outstanding, especially in the sixth form. The

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Key findings

training school specialism has supported the drive to improve the overall quality of teaching, especially during the induction of new staff.  Many lessons are delivered with good pace and challenge for all abilities. They include opportunities for students to work in groups or individually. Assessment is good and teachers use questions very well to ensure students acquire knowledge through understanding.  Where teaching is weaker, planned work does not consistently stretch higher ability students. At times, in these lessons, assessment fails to identify how well students are achieving and marking does not always advise students what they need to improve and then give them opportunities to respond.  The science specialism has been effective giving students a very good understanding of the moral issues regarding sustainability and instrumental in gaining the Green Flag award.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve further the quality of teaching and learning so that by December 2012 Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

teaching is consistently good or better by ensuring:  work challenges the most able within all classes  assessment, including marking, is used consistently to inform students how well they are achieving, what they can do to improve and then gives them opportunities to respond to the advice.

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Achievement of pupils

Achievement is good and the school has turned around the downward trend of the previous few years. Students enter the school with above average attainment. At the end of Key Stage 4 attainment is well above average. Progress is good, particularly in science where a third of students take the three separate GCSE sciences and the majority of the remainder take a double award. Effective support for disabled students and those with special educational needs has meant that they make good progress, as do students from Indian heritage and those who are learning English as an additional language. Lower attaining students are narrowing the gap on the performance of all students. In the sixth form attainment is above average. The majority of students take A-level examinations and achieve well. The achievement of the small number who take applied A levels is excellent.

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Achievement of pupils

During the inspection, students were observed making mainly good or outstanding progress. Responses from parents and carers show that the very large majority agree that their children make good progress. Learning was best when lessons were highly interactive and generated great enthusiasm and enjoyment. Questioning was used extremely well to challenge students. Answers were then used to further extend the learning. At other times students were set tasks that made them persevere and discover ‘pitfalls’ for themselves. This helped students gain a good understanding of their work as well as acquiring subject knowledge. For example, in mathematics students were given an inequality to solve which gave contradictory answers, they then had to identify for themselves why this occurred.

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Achievement of pupils

Students demonstrate good literacy skills across a range of subjects. They regularly use discussion as a precursor to writing. Numeracy skills are also used well across subjects; the faculty has identified key elements of mathematics so that there is a consistent approach.

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Quality of teaching

The very large majority of parents, carers and students think teaching is good or outstanding, and the inspection confirms this. The impact of the school’s training school status has been pivotal in improving the quality of teaching. A well-planned curriculum ensures the great majority of lessons incorporate a wide variety of activities and are interactive. In many lessons teachers skilfully ensure that the students are working hard. The best lessons get off to a purposeful start and students quickly become involved and engaged in their learning. Well-focused Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Quality of teaching

questioning is used to build upon students’ learning, which develops higher order thinking and reasoning skills. Staff make good use of electronic whiteboards to engage students, including the use of video clips. In these lessons, teachers are very adroit at quickly identifying any students who need additional help or support, so that the pace of learning is very good. The quality and quantity of feedback is effective in letting students know what they need to do to improve. There are then opportunities for students to respond to their teachers’ advice and a learning dialogue ensues. However, in a small number of lessons marking is not as detailed or frequent. Consequently some students do not know how well they are doing or what they specifically need to do to improve.

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Quality of teaching

When teaching is satisfactory, lessons are not so engaging and less interactive. This is often because there is too much input from the teacher at the start of the lesson. The school is supporting a small group of teachers to ensure teaching is well matched to the needs of all ability groups within the class and that higher-attaining students are consistently challenged.

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Quality of teaching

Teaching has a good impact on students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Lessons often allow students to reflect upon spiritual elements, for example considering the speed of light when travelling on a train. In a history lesson students were challenged by the teacher to develop further their understanding of the ‘Final Solution’ and excellent use was made of reflections from students who had recently visited concentration camps in Poland. Students also often debate issues within English or reflect upon the meaning of life during philosophy classes.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Students say they feel safe and are aware of the many dangers that are prevalent in society. These include the health dangers from substance abuse, the physical dangers from aggression and the mental dangers from anxiety. They are confident that the school does all it can to help minimise these risks, including inputs on sexual health from the school nurse. Students are aware of different types of bullying and the school has recently worked with local police to inform parents and carers about the issues of cyber-bullying. The school is working with students, parents and carers to ensure a better understanding of the premeditated and repetitive nature of bullying, rather than falling out with ‘friends’, which can be confused with bullying. Students say they have received good support and advice to help reduce identified incidents, and the school supports both the victim and the bully if these occur. The

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

large majority of parents and carers said the school deals well with any cases. A very small number of individual written responses were mixed; some said their child had received very good support in response to a bullying incident but others were less positive.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Students are courteous and behave very well around school. However, on a very small number of occasions, when lessons are less engaging, some students fail to manage their own behaviour effectively. Consequently it falls below the usual excellent standard. The school has very effective care, guidance and support systems Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

and intervenes with students to improve behaviour and engagement rapidly on the rare occasions it is required. Attendance is high.

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Leadership and management

The strong leadership provided by the headteacher has been critical in holding staff to account and bringing about significant improvements. Staff are committed to carrying on the improvements and share the ambition and drive of the senior leaders. Departmental reviews identify strengths and areas for development and then additional support is provided to bring about the necessary improvements. The school’s self-evaluation is good and is based upon secure evidence from lesson observations, surveys and analysis of students’ work. There is a clear improvement plan, which identifies the areas that are most critical for the school’s development. The school demonstrates a good capacity to improve.

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Leadership and management

The quality of teaching has improved significantly. Performance management is used to identify areas of improvement and then professional development empowers staff to improve. The quality of teaching is closely monitored by leaders at all levels. The school is particularly strong in the support offered to newly and recently qualified teachers in developing their practice.

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Leadership and management

The good curriculum is mainly based around GCSE at Key Stage 4 and A level in the sixth form. For example over half the students successfully study for a GCSE in modern foreign language and three-quarters for one in humanities. School leaders constantly review the curriculum offer in order to meet the changing needs of students. Good cooperation with other education providers allows for increasing opportunities for small numbers of students to follow alternative accreditation, for example hairdressing. The sixth form curriculum is undergoing a thorough review in order to build upon existing strengths and to allow more students, who do not necessarily progress to higher education, to follow courses that better meet their needs. Extra curricular provision is excellent. The curriculum, through its many clubs, sporting activities and educational visits and visitors, supports students to develop good spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding. For example, students gain

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Leadership and management

an insight into different cultures in art and music and through the work the school does with the partner schools in Malawi and Zambia. They consider issues of sustainability when developing a greener car in science.

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Leadership and management

Governance is good and the governing body holds school leaders and departments to account for their examination results and progress. All departments are provided with good quality assessment analysis and this ensures that they, senior leaders and governors are able to ensure good equality of opportunity. This also ensures students whose circumstances may make them more vulnerable achieve appropriate qualifications, and it is very rare for a student to leave school without progressing into employment, education or training. The governing body, along with all staff, ensure all aspects of safeguarding meet current government requirements and that the school is as safe as possible. Safeguarding is exemplary. The school works well with partner primary schools and also has effective links to share expertise in Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well. Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils. Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An inadequate school needs to make significant improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils. Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it improves.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 46 46 8 0 Primary schools 8 47 40 5 Secondary schools 14 38 40 8 Special schools 28 48 20 4 Pupil referral units 15 50 29 5 All schools 11 46 38 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were intr oduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ). The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding schools. Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attainment: the standard of the pupils’ work shown by test and examination results and in lessons.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school’s efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils’ punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and what the school has accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to maintain improvement.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and headteacher, to identifying priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their understanding, learn and practise skills and are developing their competence as learners.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a school’s overall effectiveness based on the findings from their inspection of the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over longer periods of time. It is often measured by comparing the pupils’ attainment at the end of a key stage with their attainment when they started.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils’ freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning.

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carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsted’s

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

When I visited your school recently with my colleagues, we met some of you at lunchtime and talked to others during lessons and at break times. Thank you very much for your help and cooperation. We were impressed with your courtesy and manners, and how well you get on with each other. It was your attitudes to work and positive relationships that enabled us to judge your school as good. Well done!

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

Our observations showed that achievement is good and that you reach well above average standards both at the end of Key Stage 4 and also in the sixth form. The school makes sure that you follow a good curriculum, which helps prepare you for your next phase of education or the world of work. The curriculum has developed recently and it ensures that you have opportunities to think about the spiritual elements of your studies, think about moral issues that are relevant today, work sociably together in groups and learn about a wide variety of cultures. You also told us how much you enjoy your educational visits. We were extremely impressed by the assembly which was prepared by some of you who had recently visited Poland. It was very moving.

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

We observed 56 lessons and saw that you enjoy many interesting lessons. We judged that teaching is good and often outstanding. We have asked the school to make sure that you are always challenged fully and to make sure that marking identifies how well you are doing and gives you advice on how to improve. You can help by making sure you take note of the advice and respond to it in your future work. For a small number of you, you can also help your school and fellow students by ensuring your engagement in your learning is as good as the great majority of your peers.

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

Staff care for you very well which is why a very large majority of you who filled in the student questionnaire said that you enjoy school and feel safe. Your headteacher and other senior leaders are providing strong leadership and have identified what needs to be done. They are very determined to carry on improving and are very well supported by staff and members of the governing body.

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

We wish you well at this good and improving school and hope you carry on helping it to get even better.

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Inspection of Myton School, Warwick, CV34 6PJ

Michael Smith Her Majesty's Inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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