Ellesmere Port Catholic High School

Ellesmere Port Catholic High School Inspection report

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Age group 11–18 Inspection date(s) 23–24 November 2011 Inspection number 378307 Unique Reference Number 111451 Local authority Cheshire West and Chester Inspection number 378307 Inspection dates 23–24 November 2011 Reporting inspector John Peckham 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 Secondary School category Voluntary aided 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 1,054 Of which number on roll in the sixth form 167 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair J Coucill Headteacher P Lee Date of previous school inspection 18 March 2009 School address Capenhurst Lane Ellesmere Port CH65 7AQ Telephone number 0151 355 2373 Fax number 0151 356 9154 Email address admin@email.epchs.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

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other secure establishments. It rates council children's services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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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.

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and four additional inspectors. A total of 36 lessons, taught by 35 teachers and one teaching assistant were observed. Meetings were held with groups of students, staff, senior leaders and members of the governing body. Inspectors looked at the school's work and daily routines, and scrutinised policies, procedures and the latest information on examination results at GCSE and A level. A total of 505 questionnaires were returned from parents and carers and their views, together with those on 235 student questionnaires and 35 staff questionnaires, were also taken into account.

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Introduction

The inspection team reviewed many aspects of the school's work. It looked in detail at a number of key areas.  The progress that students make in the school given their prior attainment and how effectively it is monitored.  The improvement made since the school’s previous inspection.  The extent to which leaders and managers at all levels have a clear, rigorous and accurate picture of the school’s current strengths and weaknesses, which is used to plan appropriate improvement.

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Information about the school

Ellesmere Port Catholic High School is a larger-than-average voluntary-aided secondary school. It has a slightly higher proportion of girls than most schools, while the proportions of students known to be eligible for free school meals and from minority ethnic groups are below average. The proportion of students who speak English as an additional language is about average. The proportions of students with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those with a statement of special educational needs, are much lower than in most schools. Relatively low numbers of students join or leave the school other than at the normal entry and leaving points. The school has specialist status in the humanities, with English, history and religious education as the specialist subjects. The school is a member of the Prince’s Teaching Institute for Geography and the London 2012 ‘Get Set’ network. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory and 4 is inadequate

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Information about the school

Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Main findings

The school provides a safe environment and a satisfactory education both in the main school and the sixth form, and most students enjoy school. Students provide a warm and friendly welcome to visitors. They conduct themselves responsibly around school and behave well in lessons.

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Main findings

The quality of teaching and learning is variable but is satisfactory overall. There is some excellent practice, and lessons where all students participate with enthusiasm, build their skills as independent learners and make good progress. Technology such as interactive whiteboards and tablet computers are often used confidently and appropriately to support learning. Many teachers use carefully constructed and targeted questioning to encourage students to think and check their understanding. Too often, however, lesson planning does not allow for the range of ability within each class or provide different activities that will enable all students to make good progress. The learning objectives in each lesson are not always made clear to students in ways that enable them to understand what they need to do. While opportunities for students to assess their own and others’ work exist, they are relatively rare. Insufficient use is made of assessment information on students’

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Main findings

progress to shape the teaching to build on previous learning.

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Main findings

The school offers a mainly traditional, academic curriculum. There is some good practice in developing literacy skills across the curriculum and the personal, social, health and citizenship education programme has been substantially improved since the previous inspection. There is a good range of additional activities available and many students are keen participants in sporting and other activities outside the normal day. The current subject-choice process for GCSE means that a significant number of students choose to restrict their future career and higher education routes by only studying a single science subject, and there are currently no students following a separate science programme. This is out of step with the majority of schools. There are some students who are unable to benefit in terms of achievement and self-esteem from greater opportunities to follow a more vocational qualification pathway.

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Main findings

The school provides good care, guidance and support to students. There is some excellent practice, especially in the good collaborative arrangements with other agencies to support students and families experiencing challenging circumstances. Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well-supported by the special needs department and some skilled teaching assistants. Their progress in mainstream lessons, however, is restricted by the lack of effective planning. Many students make a positive contribution to the school community, take on roles of responsibility and also participate in the extensive range of charity and other work in which the school is involved. While there are good examples of effective links with parents and carers, there were a significant number of respondents to the questionnaire who believed that the school could do more to listen to their views and support them in aiding their children’s learning.

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Main findings

Leaders and managers have made some progress in broadening the accountability and responsibility of middle leaders for school improvement. There is some very good practice in departmental leadership and in the development of improved teaching and learning. Improvement initiatives across the school, however, are not sufficiently well planned or coordinated to have maximum, rapid impact. The school’s own evaluation of its performance is in a number of cases, overgenerous, lacking both rigour and analytical detail. Staff and parents have confidence in the headteacher, and the relatively recent improvements in leadership mean that the school’s capacity for further improvement is satisfactory.

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Main findings

Up to 40% of schools whose overall effectiveness is judged to be satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Accelerate improvement in teaching and learning across the school, through more robust evaluation of current practice, used effectively to shape priorities to be urgently and consistently implemented, including: - defining clear learning objectives for students of all abilities to know how to make progress - planning to provide a range of different lesson activities, including significantly greater opportunities for students to practise independent learning skills - using assessment more regularly to shape and inform lesson planning and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Refocus the strategic leadership of the school in order to: - sharpen whole-school improvement planning - enable more rapid development and implementation of whole-school improvements - provide better strategic management and overview of key data - link more closely, the academic and pastoral elements of sixth-form leadership - engage more effectively with parents and carers

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Continue to develop the curriculum, both to strengthen the preparation for academic sixth-form study and to provide a broader range of routes that will enable students to achieve in ways alongside the traditional academic subjects.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

Students join this school with prior attainment that is above average. Attainment at the end of Key Stage 4, however, is at least average but only sometimes above. The proportion of students gaining five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C, including English and mathematics, is now higher than three years ago. Some underachievement in specific subjects has been effectively addressed. Improvements remain fragile, however, and there is some variation in the progress of current students, linked to the quality of their teaching. In some lessons, students have a very clear idea of ambitious targets; they know their current achievement and can talk about how they can improve. In many lessons, however, the learning objectives and activities in lessons do not always make clear how students can build upon their existing knowledge and understanding to raise their attainment.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

Behaviour is usually good, especially in lessons. The recently revised system of rewards, introduced after consultation with students, is generally well applied and valued. Students said that there were very few actual incidents of bullying and they feel safe in school. There is scope, however, for the school to communicate more effectively its procedures for dealing with bullying and other misbehaviour so that students and parents and carers understand them better and gain a greater confidence in them. Most students are confident that they could talk to a member of staff if they had particular concerns. Students generally have a good awareness of what constitutes unsafe situations and how to take reasonable precautions. Most students are aware of factors that affect different aspects of their health and either follow school guidelines about packed lunches or choose healthy options from the school’s canteen. Many participate in a range of physical activity, both in and beyond

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

the curriculum. Sex and relationships issues are effectively taught across Key Stages 3 and 4. A high proportion of students and their parents and carers, however, felt that the school could do more to help them be healthy.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

Good attendance, punctuality and students’ positive approach to work, including enterprise activities and work experience, prepare students well for future working life. Students are well supported through key transitions and most make a successful progression after school into work, training or further education, either at 16 or 18. Current overall rates of progress in English and mathematics, together with the low take-up of double and separate science, however, mean that overall, students’ development of skills for their future economic well-being is only satisfactory. Spiritual and moral development is good. Students take good advantage of opportunities to reflect during retreats, weekly mass, assemblies and form periods. The school’s strong ethos effectively supports the work students undertake in citizenship lessons and other events, such as a recent human rights festival. Students’ ability to gain an awareness of other cultures and religions through the

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

curriculum depends upon the subjects they have chosen to study. Currently, only small numbers of students have the opportunity to mix with different socio-economic and ethnic groups.

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Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils 3

These are the grades for pupils' outcomes Pupils' achievement and the extent to which they enjoy their learning Taking into account: Pupils' attainment 1 The quality of pupils' learning and their progress The quality of learning for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and their progress The extent to which pupils feel safe 2 Pupils' behaviour 2 The extent to which pupils adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which pupils contribute to the school and wider community 2 The extent to which pupils develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being Taking into account: Pupils' attendance 1 The extent of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 3

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How effective is the provision?

There is some very good teaching in this school. For example, in a Year 10 English lesson, strong subject knowledge and an excellent relationship between teacher and students were used to generate highly effective, close questioning leading to good understanding. In a Year 11 mathematics lesson, the classroom interactive whiteboard and students’ individual whiteboards were used appropriately to check understanding before guiding students to activities pitched at the right level to enable them to make good progress. There is, however, substantial variation in the quality of teaching. In weaker lessons, questioning was unfocused, there was little or no planning to allow for the needs of different students within the class, pace was slow and activities often not challenging.

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How effective is the provision?

Overall, the use of assessment across the school to identify students who are underachieving and to target intervention programmes is effective. It is not, however, being used to best effect to specify clear learning outcomes for different groups of students in lesson planning, to ensure a close match between learning activities and their needs. Marking, too, is variable, with the best providing clear steps for improvement and the least helpful being irregular and limited in scope.

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How effective is the provision?

The curriculum is adequately matched to the needs and interests of students. The provision for cross-curricular skills is good for literacy, satisfactory for information and communication technology but underdeveloped for numeracy. Shortcomings in the provision of citizenship have been addressed by the school in Key Stage 3. There is a wide range of additional activities to enrich the experience of students and the take-up of these opportunities is high. The school’s approach to mixed-ability teaching in much of Key Stage 3 is not sufficiently well supported by high-quality mixed-ability teaching methods.

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How effective is the provision?

Advice and guidance offered to students at key transition points is good and students generally feel well cared for. There is good coordination of the work of year heads, the chaplain and other staff. The school’s use of data, however, is not sufficiently developed to enable effective tracking of groups to look for trends and patterns.

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How effective is the provision?

1 The grades for attainment and attendance are: 1 is high; 2 is above average; 3 is broadly average; and 4 is low There are good links between the school and some parents and carers, especially in cases where students have been in need of additional support. Some potential improvements to the systems for communicating with parents and carers, including termly reporting and online access to information are too recent to be evaluated.

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How effective is the provision?

These are the grades for the quality of provision The quality of teaching Taking into account: The use of assessment to support learning The extent to which the curriculum meets pupils' needs, including, where relevant, through partnerships The effectiveness of care, guidance and support 2

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How effective are leadership and management?

The school has been largely successful in devolving leadership accountability more widely. Most subject leaders now have a very clear understanding of their responsibility in raising attainment and ensuring quality of provision. A programme of lesson observation and professional development has been carried out and systems to enable the sharing of good practice established. Individual departments have devised programmes for improving teaching and learning. Staff morale is good and there is a good understanding of the need for further improvement. As yet, however, there has been insufficient detailed, strategic analysis of strengths and weaknesses to support focused, whole-school improvement planning. Systems for judging the impact of professional development and improved practice are currently too time- consuming to enable rapid assessment of impact. Leaders and managers do not take best advantage of information systems to ensure that they have an accurate picture

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How effective are leadership and management?

of the attainment, attendance and participation of groups.

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How effective are leadership and management?

The governing body fulfils its statutory and other responsibilities satisfactorily, but the range and quality of systems used to understand and challenge the school are relatively underdeveloped. Safeguarding procedures are effective. Adults working on the school site are properly checked and there are appropriate policies in place. The school is a cohesive community and there are some good links with organisations in the locality but there are weaknesses in planning to promote community cohesion.

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How effective are leadership and management?

These are the grades for the leadership and management The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement Taking into account: The leadership and management of teaching and learning The effectiveness of the governing body in challenging and supporting the school so that weaknesses are tackled decisively and statutory responsibilities met The effectiveness of the school's engagement with parents and carers 3 The effectiveness of partnerships in promoting learning and well-being 3 The effectiveness with which the school promotes equality of opportunity and tackles discrimination The effectiveness of safeguarding procedures 2 The effectiveness with which the school promotes community cohesion 3 The effectiveness with which the school deploys resources to achieve value for money

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Sixth form

The quality of teaching and learning in the sixth form is good. Teachers’ strong subject knowledge is generally supported by well-structured lessons that give opportunities for discussion and collaboration. Some lessons are overly content- 3driven and do not provide sufficient opportunity for students to discuss and reinforce their understanding of complex concepts. There is considerable scope to develop greater independence in learning, by students researching content prior to a lesson in order to give more time to develop understanding. This restricts the progress that students make and as a result, outcomes are satisfactory rather than good. The curriculum provides a core of A-level subjects with a good range of enrichment, such as visits and other activities in which students are able to participate. Many sixth-form students also take on roles of responsibility supporting younger students in the school. There is good guidance available to students, both in

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Sixth form

choosing subjects and in helping them to select and prepare for further and higher education opportunities.

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Sixth form

Leaders in the sixth form have focused effectively on tracking the progress of students so that support can be offered to any who fall behind. Good backing is offered to students experiencing challenging circumstances. Teachers know their students well and relationships are good. The current separation of pastoral and academic management, however, does not support the close analysis of the progress of groups, the development of sixth-form specific learning approaches or a strong vision for the future of sixth-form education at the school.

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Sixth form

These are the grades for the sixth form Overall effectiveness of the sixth Form Taking into account: Outcomes for students in the sixth form The quality of provision in the sixth form Leadership and management of the sixth form

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Views of parents and carers

A very high proportion of parents and carers returned the inspection questionnaire. A number included specific concerns or comments. The largest common theme to these comments was variability in teaching quality, its impact on the progress of students and insufficient allowance being made for individual learning needs. This concern is addressed in the recommendations for improvement made in this report. A second significant theme related to poor communication between the school and parents and carers, particularly in ways that would enable parents and carers to better support their children. There were also a number of replies that expressed concern about bullying and the school’s response to incidents of fighting in school. These concerns have been shared with the school while retaining anonymity.

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questionnaire

Ofsted invited all the registered parents and carers of pupils registered at Ellesmere Port Catholic High School to complete a questionnaire about their views of the school. In the questionnaire, parents and carers were asked to recor d how strongly they agreed with 13 statements about the school. The inspection team received 505 completed questionnaires by the end of the on-site inspection. In total, there are 1,054 pupils registered at the school.

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questionnaire

Statements Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree Total % Total % Total % Total % My child enjoys school 113 23 362 71 23 5 6 1

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questionnaire

The school keeps my child safe 157 32 323 64 12 2 7 1

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questionnaire

The school informs me about my child's progress 121 25 299 61 63 13 3 1

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questionnaire

My child is making enough progress at this school 119 24 335 66 33 7 4 1

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questionnaire

The teaching is good at this school 91 18 366 72 32 7 4 1

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questionnaire

The school helps me to support my child's learning 83 17 316 64 74 15 8 2

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questionnaire

The school helps my child to have a healthy lifestyle 55 11 328 67 84 17 10 2

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questionnaire

The school makes sure that my child is well prepared for the future (for example changing year group, changing school, and for children who are finishing school, entering further or higher education, or entering employment) 107 22 317 64 24 5 4 1

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questionnaire

The school meets my child's particular needs 85 17 359 73 30 6 8 2

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questionnaire

The school deals effectively with unacceptable behaviour 127 26 280 57 50 10 15 3

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questionnaire

The school takes account of my suggestions and concerns 47 9 320 64 79 16 16 3

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questionnaire

The school is led and managed effectively 95 18 356 71 30 6 11 2

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questionnaire

Overall, I am happy with my child's experience at this school 133 27 324 66 22 4 7 1

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questionnaire

The table above summarises the responses that parents and carers made to each statement. The percentages indicate the proportion of parents and carers giving that response out of the total number of completed questionnaires. Where one or more parents and carers chose not to answer a particular question, the percentages will not add up to 100%.

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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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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 43 47 10 0 Primary schools 6 46 42 6 Secondary schools 14 36 41 9 Sixth forms 15 42 41 3 Special schools 30 48 19 3 Pupil referral units 14 50 31 5 All schools 10 44 39 6

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements were introduced on 1 September 2009. This means that inspectors now make some additional judgements that were not made previously.

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 08 April 2011 and are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ).

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Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

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. Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100. Sixth form figures reflect the judgements made for the overall effectiveness of the sixth form in secondary schools, special schools and pupil referral units.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning, development or training.

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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

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving. Inspectors base this judgement on 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 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. The following judgements, in particular, influence what the overall effectiveness judgement will be.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

 The school's capacity for sustained improvement.  Outcomes for individuals and groups of pupils.  The quality of teaching.  The extent to which the curriculum meets pupils’ needs, including, where relevant, through partnerships.  The effectiveness of care, guidance and support.

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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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7AQ

Thank you for the welcome you gave to the inspection team when we visited your school recently. We are particularly grateful to the students who gave up their time to speak to us and to those of you who completed the questionnaire. We found your views especially helpful in getting a full picture of the school and we were impressed with the good behaviour that we saw throughout the inspection.

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7AQ

We judge that your school provides you with a satisfactory education. There is some excellent teaching that enables students to make good progress. In good lessons, teachers use modern technology well and provide a range of activities well adapted to suit the needs of all students. There is, however, too much variability in the quality of teaching and in some lessons, the work does not help everyone to understand or make good progress. Sometimes it is not sufficiently challenging, in other cases some students find it difficult to follow. The care, guidance and support offered to you are good but we found that not all students have faith in the school to deal effectively with bullying or other serious misbehaviour. Most of you appreciate the subjects you are able to choose, but we believe that the school could encourage more students to take double or separate sciences and also provide some vocational

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7AQ

courses. Many of you take good advantage of the wide range of extra-curricular activities offered by the school.

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7AQ

In order to improve further, we have asked the headteacher and teachers to focus on:  improving the proportion of good teaching  giving senior leaders more precise whole-school roles to improve the school faster  making improvements to the curriculum.

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7AQ

My very best wishes for your future success.

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7AQ

John Peckham 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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