The Manor Academy

The Manor Academy Park Hall Road, Mansfield Woodhouse, Mansfield, NG19 8QA

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Inadequate 4 This inspection: Requires improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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This is a school that requires improvement. It is not good because

 Good teaching does not take place consistently across all subjects. Teaching requires improvement in mathematics.  A significant proportion of students who are eligible for additional government funding do not make the progress that is expected. As a result, by the end of Year 11, they do not achieve a grade C or above in GCSE English and mathematics.  The standards students achieve in mathematics by the end of Year 11 are not high enough.  Students do not make enough progress in a small number of subjects in the sixth form.

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The school has the following strengths

 The school has improved significantly since the previous inspection. Senior leaders are very effective in improving the quality of teaching, checking students’ progress and taking swift action when necessary.  Students’ behaviour is good. Improved teaching has led to more students’ enjoying lessons.  There is a good range of courses on offer that meet the needs and interests of students.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 32 part-lessons, of which 22 were joint observations with senior staff.  Meetings were held with: the Chair of the Governing Body; members of the senior leadership team; various heads of subject departments; a group of teachers who act as coaches for other teaching staff; a group of teachers who have recently experienced the coaching programme. There were informal discussions with students during the inspection.  Inspectors looked at a range of documentation including the school development plan, the school’s analysis of student progress, minutes of governing body meetings and the school’s safeguarding documentation.  Inspectors looked at a number of students workbooks, especially in mathematics.  The inspectors looked at the 54 responses from parents and carers to Ofsted’s online questionnaire Parent View.

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Inspection team

Andrew Cook, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Alan Brewerton Additional Inspector Sally Lane Additional Inspector

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Full report

In accordance with section 13 (4) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures.

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Information about this school

 The school is larger than the average secondary school.  Most students are White British. A range of minority ethnic groups make up around 5% of the school population.  The proportion of disabled students and those who have special educational needs supported at school action and school action plus is above average. The proportion with a statement of educational needs is below average.  An average proportion of the students are eligible for the pupil premium, which provides additional government funding for children in local authority care and pupils known to be eligible for free school meals.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for students’ attainment and progress by the end of Key Stage 4.  The school is part of the Mansfield Learning Partnership of local schools. A small number of students access A-level courses at other sixth form provision. No other alternative provision is

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Information about this school

used.  The sixth form site is shared with Yeoman Park Special School.  In October 2011, the school was inspected and was judged to require special measures because it was failing to give its students an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school were not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement.  Since the inspection in October 2011 the school has received three monitoring inspections, the third being this inspection.  While the school has been in special measures, it has commissioned support from the local authority and a headteacher from a local outstanding academy; these are referred to as support partners.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of good and outstanding teaching by:  ensuring that, in lessons, teachers reduce the amount of time spent talking to the whole class so that students have more time to work independently, in pairs or in groups  making regular checks on how successfully teachers are providing work that is suitably challenging for students of different abilities  continuing to use the very effective training and coaching methods developed by senior leaders.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise standards, especially for students eligible for pupil premium, by:  ensuring that teachers give more attention in lessons to students eligible for pupil premium  regularly checking the progress students make in mathematics lessons  scrutinising students’ work in their books and responding to any evidence of underperformance.  Increase the progress that students make in the sixth form by:  improving the quality of teaching in subjects where students do not make enough progress  ensuring that students only start courses in the sixth form if they have achieved high enough standards in relevant subjects  regularly checking to see if teaching is helping students to develop skills that help them to learn independently.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The proportion of students who achieved a GCSE A* to C pass in English and mathematics fell slightly in 2012. Taking into consideration their starting points, the amount of progress students made in English and mathematics requires improvement. More-able students did not make the progress in mathematics that they should have done. The group of students who were eligible for the pupil premium fell short of the target set for the amount of progress they should have made in English and mathematics.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The progress made by disabled students and those who have special educational needs is better than in the past but it requires further improvement. The 2012 examination results showed that, for this group of students, progress accelerated in Year 11 in English and, to a lesser extent, in mathematics. There is convincing evidence that the progress of disabled students and those who have special educational needs is improving in other year groups.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The proportion of students who achieved five A* to C grades at GCSE has risen significantly since the last inspection. Most significant was the rise in the proportion of students eligible for pupil premium who achieved five A* to C GCSE from 49% in 2011 to 71% in 2012. Students are achieving across a range of vocational and academic courses. The school has worked very hard to ensure that students complete coursework and are well prepared for examinations.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In lessons, students are now making much better progress than at the time of the last inspection. In some lessons this has led to students making good progress. This has been helped by the improved way the school ensures that students are building up literacy skills and using them in all of the subjects they study.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The school has a policy to give students the opportunity to sit GCSE English examinations earlier than in Year 11. This does not limit the potential of students, including the most able, in any way as they can take the examination again to try to achieve a higher grade.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The work in students’ books has improved greatly in the last year in terms of the presentation and the amount of work produced in lessons. This is as result of a determined focus on encouraging students to have pride in their work.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 The progress that students make in the sixth form requires improvement. Some students struggle to make enough progress in their first year in the sixth form. This is because their GCSE examination qualifications were not high enough to ensure that they were capable of successfully working at a higher level. The school has now raised the entrance requirement for sixth form to address this problem.

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The achievement of pupils requires improvement

 In some A-level subjects, for example art and history, students’ progress has not been good enough and the grades they achieve have been too low.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Despite significant improvement since the previous inspection, there is still too much teaching that is not consistently good. While there has been a considerable improvement in the teaching of mathematics, these improvements are recent.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Where teaching requires improvement, too much of the lesson is taken up with teachers talking to the whole class. Students are not given enough opportunities to get on with work. This sometimes slows the pace of learning because they are waiting to be told what to do next.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In some lessons, teachers do not pay close enough attention to the progress of students who are eligible for free school meals. Work given to these students does not always ensure that they are appropriately challenged. As a result, the progress these students make is not accelerated so that they can achieve the expected standards for their age.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 While there is some good teaching in the sixth form teachers do not always expect enough of students. In some lessons, teaching does not help students build up the skills to work independently.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 There has been a successful drive to improve the way that teachers explain, at the beginning of lessons, what they expect students to learn. Throughout the lesson, students are reminded of what they have to achieve and, when they find work difficult, teachers provide helpful support. These improvements are ensuring that students are much more engaged in lessons and can understand what is expected of them.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 In lessons, the relationships between staff and students are good. As a result, students are keen to do well and their behaviour is good.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers’ marking has improved. Students receive regular comments on their work and are told how they can improve. Teachers ask students to complete helpful summary evaluations when they have completed a topic of work. These evaluations help students to match their achievements to projected examination grades or expected levels.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers are monitored regularly and the feedback they receive helps them to improve their performance. Bespoke training and support for teachers has been very successful and has resulted in the increase in the proportion of good and outstanding teaching. This training and support has almost eradicated inadequate teaching in mathematics.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teachers are increasingly creating opportunities to promote students’ social, moral, cultural and spiritual development. There are now checks on this when teaching is observed. A particularly effective opportunity was seen in a geography lesson when students discussed opinions and attitudes about the social and moral issues of pollution and global warming.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 There is a growing proportion of lessons where teaching is outstanding. In a drama lesson seen, the students were captivated by the excellent performance of a small group of students. Highly skilful teaching followed when the teacher challenged students to respond to the drama; they were extremely confident in doing this and highlighted the impressive learning that had taken place.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Students’ behaviour is good. They enjoy lessons and are often keen to get on and complete the work they have been given.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 There is a friendly atmosphere in lessons and around the school. Students are considerate towards each other and to adults. In lessons, students work well together in pairs and in groups.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Almost a third of parents and carers that responded to the online questionnaire, Parent View, said that they did not know how effectively the school deals with bullying. Inspection evidence shows that the school is effective in dealing with bullying, including cyber- and homophobic bullying. Students report that bullying happens rarely and is always dealt with quickly.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Students feel safe in school. They appreciate the work that has been done to the perimeter fence to keep the site a safe place. Students are confident that if they approached any member of staff with concerns action would be taken.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is broadly average. The attendance of students who are known to be eligible for free school meals and disabled students and those who have special educational needs is improving. The attendance of girls, while broadly average, is not as good as boys.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 The number of exclusions is very low. Students at risk of exclusion are given appropriate support.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher has shown a determination to deal with the key issues raised at the previous inspection. In doing so, he has been able to lead a culture change within the school which has `recognised that things needed to improve’. He works in partnership with the recently appointed deputy headteacher, who has made a significant contribution to the recent accelerated progress the school has made. She is driven by extremely high expectations and has brought to the school new ideas and ways of working that are achieving success.

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The leadership and management are good

 Ably supporting the work of the headteacher and deputy headteacher, the senior leadership team have successfully passed on the wave of optimism and drive for higher expectations across the school. Individual members have led on the good improvement to the school’s regular checks on student progress and the highly effective coaching programme for teachers.

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The leadership and management are good

 The coaching programme has improved the quality of teaching. Effective teachers have acted as coaches and have worked alongside teachers who need to improve the quality of their teaching to good or better.

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The leadership and management are good

 Teachers’ performance is monitored closely. Regular lesson observations, scrutiny of teachers’ plans and the work that students produce all provide important evidence of a teacher’s effectiveness. This evidence informs the targets that teachers are given, which always include a target to improve the progress of the students they teach.

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The leadership and management are good

 Senior leaders, supported by governors, have not ducked any issues relating to teaching. Underperforming teachers have been challenged and supported. Some teachers who have not performed as well as expected have not been moved up the salary scale.

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The leadership and management are good

 There has been an improvement in the quality of subject leadership. Subject leaders are expected to monitor their departments, making regular checks on the quality of teaching and student progress. This is being done, and subject leaders are acutely aware of the expectations of senior leaders and how they will be held to account by them for the performance of their teams.

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The leadership and management are good

 The support partners have provided the school with good support. They have led several checks on the quality of teaching which have highlighted what the school needed to do to improve further. There have also been helpful opportunities for teachers to see good practice in the supporting academy and to work alongside effective teachers and subject leaders.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has a secure knowledge and understanding of the school’s strengths and areas of development based on the detailed information it receives from senior leaders and the way it interrogates this information in meetings. Governors have received training on raising standards. They are aware of the need to raise further the standards achieved by students eligible for the pupil premium and, more generally, the standards in mathematics and the sixth form. Governors are aware that pupil premium funding has been used in a variety of

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The leadership and management are good

ways to support eligible students including one-to-one tuition, providing a breakfast club and the appointment of a student counsellor. Governors are pleased about the improvement in standards achieved by these students but recognise that there is still some way to go in ensuring that more achieve a GCSE grade C or above in English and mathematics. Governors ensure that procedures for safeguarding meet requirements. In particular, they have instigated the work on securing the site to make it a safe place.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes that provide exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. This ensures that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 2 Good A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well for all its pupils’ needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 3 Requires improvement A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within 24 months from the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors. A school that requires special measures is one where the school is

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Grade Judgement Description

failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.

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School details

Unique reference number 137158 Local authority N/A Inspection number 399174 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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School details

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 1200 Of which, number on roll in sixth form 160 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Margaret Lovell Headteacher Jonathon Hickman Date of previous school inspection 5 October 2011 Telephone number 01623 425100 Fax number 01623 425101 Email address enquiries@themanor.notts.sch.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', 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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School details

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 and as part of the inspection.

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School details

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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School details

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 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

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School details

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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School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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