Dixons Kings Academy

Kings Science Academy Northside Road, Lidget Green, Bradford, BD7 2AN

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected This inspection: Requires Improvement 3 Achievement of pupils Requires Improvement 3 Quality of teaching Requires Improvement 3 Behaviour and safety of pupils Requires Improvement 3 Leadership and management Requires Improvement 3

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This is an academy that requires improvement. It is not good because:

 Not enough teaching is of a quality that promotes consistently good progress for all students in the same class. Some teachers do not check closely on how well students are learning in lessons, so mistakes and misunderstanding are not corrected quickly.  Records of individuals’ progress in acquiring knowledge and understanding are not used well to plan lessons that enable all members of the class to make good gains in their learning.  Senior leaders have high aspirations for achievement but place too much emphasis on what teachers do rather than how well all members of the class are learning.  Senior leaders have not been sufficiently focused on making sure that students make better than expected progress and all groups achieve consistently well.  The governing body is not well enough informed about the achievement of different groups of students or the quality of teaching. The challenge they are able to provide to

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This is an academy that requires improvement. It is not good because:

improve the academy’s effectiveness is therefore limited.  The length of the academy day and intensive academic programme can detract from students’ enjoyment of learning, especially towards the end of the day when their attention wanes.

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The academy has the following strengths

 Students get on well with each other and express their opinions with adults confidently.  Some senior and middle leaders understand what improvements are needed, particularly when coaching teachers to improve the quality of teaching.  The vast majority of parents are very supportive of the opportunities afforded to their children.  The energy, enthusiasm and potential of staff, including those relatively new to teaching and school leadership roles.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors spent the majority of their time observing 21 lessons, three of which were observed jointly with senior leaders.  Visits were made to different morning tutor times and also to reading sessions. An assembly and homework support time, held after school, were also observed.  Meetings were held with the Principal and other leaders and members of the governing body. Groups of students were spoken to formally in meetings, during lessons and at social times.  Inspectors scrutinised students’ work, read documents presented to them, including those related to student progress, self-evaluation, improvement planning, the curriculum and safeguarding.  There were no responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View). Inspectors took account of the paper-based questionnaires returned from staff.

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Inspection team

Marianne Young, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Angela Headon Her Majesty’s Inspector Cathryn Kirby Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Information about this school

 Kings Science Academy opened as a free school in September 2011 and moved to the current site at the end of October 2012. Not all facilities are ready to use and this is limiting the practical parts of some subjects, for example, science. At the time of the inspection only Year 7 and Year 8 students are on roll. The academy is supported by the Hartley Group.  The vast majority of students are of Pakistani heritage.  Forty per cent of students currently on roll are known to be eligible for the pupil premium which provides additional funding for students known to be eligible for free school meals.  Within Year 7 and Year 8, around one fifth of students are identified with special educational needs through school action. A very small number of students are supported at school action plus and there are no students with a statement of special educational needs.  No students are educated off site.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching so that all students make consistently good or better progress in all lessons by: - matching lesson-planning more precisely to individual students’ abilities - using questioning more effectively to check regularly that all students understand the work in lessons and to challenge their thinking - ensuring that all students work independently and do not rely too much on teachers telling them what to do - improving the quality of marking and feedback so that all students know how to improve their work - using the range of information about students’ progress, including that taken from observing lessons, more carefully to gauge how well different groups achieve over time.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Use the internal exclusion system effectively to reduce the need to resort to fixed-term exclusions.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve leadership and management at all levels by: - ensuring that development plans always indicate clearly measurable targets for activities so that all leaders and governors can see if goals have been reached - making sure that lesson observations focus on the progress being made by all students - reviewing the curriculum content and delivery model so that it is balanced to best meet the needs of all students - making sure that tutor time and silent reading sessions are used consistently well by sharing best practice - ensuring that governors urgently receive training to enable them to support and challenge the academy around the quality of provision and outcomes for different groups.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and governance may be improved.

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The achievement of students requires improvement

 The rate of progress made by different groups of students is uneven. Girls do better than boys in English, mathematics and science. Less-able students and those who need extra help because they have special educational needs do better in English than mathematics. Some lower-ability students make less progress than that of their peers in humanities and languages because they have fewer lessons in these subjects as they are receiving extra lessons to help them improve their literacy skills.  When teachers prepare lessons not all of them think about the ability of individual students well enough and this affects the amount of progress all students make in lessons. Some teachers know their students well and plan work that is right for them. Progress falters when teachers plan the same work for all students.  The quality of information provided to teachers about individual students’ knowledge and understanding is very limited. Information reflects only the marks students have got on the day

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The achievement of students requires improvement

when they completed their regular tests and not how they are doing over time. Teachers are also told, by the external markers, what mark students got when completing their homework. This information does not help some teachers to plan lessons effectively.  Inspectors saw that girls are sometimes overlooked in lessons because boys dominate teachers’ attention and are eager to give answers and opinions. Nevertheless, girls overall do better than boys.  The pupil premium funding is used to fund homework support assistants to run a daily after- school homework support club, provide uniforms and breakfast for students known to be eligible for free school meals. The academy data suggest, as seen in their test results, that these students have done better than other groups of students in English and science.

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

 Teaching requires improvement because it is not consistently good throughout the academy. Teachers use the academy’s planning document and include the prescribed elements within lessons. Nevertheless, lessons are not planned well enough so that students’ different abilities are considered properly. Providing the same work for all students in a class, whether it is suitable for them or not, stops some students from making rapid progress.  Inspectors saw teaching that ranged from good to inadequate. The lack of challenge in lessons and teachers telling students what to do without checking that they understand what they are learning are features of weaker lessons. When tasks fail to enthuse and excite students, they become bored and passive in lessons.  Good teaching that results in good learning is not frequent enough. Where lessons are exciting, suitably challenging and teachers confidently adjust plans in response to students’ needs,

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

progress is brisk. For example, in a science lesson, the students’ ability to discuss their understanding of metals, reference to previous learning combined with their teachers’ high expectations ensured that progress was made by all students.  Inspectors looked at students’ books and saw that teachers’ marking and feedback varies too widely. Some books have not been marked for some time or contain nothing more than ticks and positive comments. This type of marking does not help students to know how to improve their work. Where students have been given a numerical level, (for example, L5) in their books, it is often unclear what this means and how it relates to the level expected from the students.  A considerable amount of time is devoted each week to tutor time and silent reading sessions. Some of this time helps to promote aspects of students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well. However, the planning and use of this time varies in its effectiveness with

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The quality of teaching requires improvement

teachers adopting different approaches – some of which are more effective than others.

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The behaviour and safety of students requires improvement

 Students were keen to talk to inspectors and to express their opinions about the academy. They identified the lessons they enjoy and also the type of teaching they like best. This is when they take an active part in lessons and are able to investigate things for themselves; not always being told what to do in lessons and to carry out instructions. Some students told inspectors that they think that the academy day is too long, especially when they choose to, or have to stay for an extra hour to do their homework.  The academy rules and expectations are clearly articulated with students reciting the academy’s motto before each lesson. Discipline is important and exclusions since the academy has opened are high, particularly at the start of each year. The attendance for students in Year 8 is lower than that for students in Year 7 and this difference requires careful monitoring as more students join the academy.

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The behaviour and safety of students requires improvement

 Students mix well and because the external areas have recently been opened, they enjoy using this additional space at break and lunch times. Students know how to keep themselves safe, including knowing about the dangers of Internet use and they report that bullying and other inappropriate behaviour is uncommon. Staff presence around the academy is evident and this enables students and staff to meet socially and discuss topics of general interest. Recent student and parent surveys report that many students and parents are happy with what the academy offers. This view was confirmed by the very small number of staff who responded to their questionnaire.  Assemblies provide opportunities for students to be rewarded for working well, attending regularly and gaining top marks in tests. They also contribute well to aspects of students’ spiritual and social development.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

 The work of senior leaders to evaluate provision and its impact on the learning of all students critically requires improvement.  Collectively leaders and managers demonstrate the capacity to make the necessary improvements to the academy’s effectiveness, although their self-assessment of what works well and what needs refinement is not robust. Some middle leaders are adept at identifying where improvements are needed and where best practice can be found.  All leaders have high aspirations for students. Their vision for the academy has been shared with staff, students, parents and governors and is proving popular. However, some parents were not aware that the inspection was taking place.  Leaders check the quality of teaching regularly. Heads of department are taking more responsibility for judging the quality of teaching in their subjects. Teachers, especially those who are new to the profession, say they value the helpful feedback and support they receive. During

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The leadership and management requires improvement

joint observations, inspectors found that some leaders concentrate too much on the actions of teachers rather than judging whether students are making expected or better progress.  The method for managing the performance of teachers has recently been agreed. All teachers have targets which are linked to their role in the academy and the Teachers’ Standards.  Senior leaders have introduced common systems and structures that are shared and understood; these help the day-to-day life of the academy to run smoothly. A relative weakness is the absence of measurable success criteria in the academy development plan. Therefore judging which actions make the most difference is not easy for leaders or governors.  Since the academy opened, the various changes and challenges cannot be underestimated. Moving to a new site, not having the use of the whole building means that it is not possible to undertake practical work in science at present. Design and technology is not taught because of

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The leadership and management requires improvement

accommodation restrictions. Creative subjects, art and design, music and performing arts are not taught regularly so the curriculum is very narrow and focuses mainly on English, mathematics and science. Consequently, students’ experience of some subjects when they choose their option subjects for GCSE is limited.  The governance of the academy:  Governance is weak and governors are not holding leaders to account for the quality of teaching and the progress students make. They have been concerned with establishing the academy and have not been sufficiently robust when challenging leaders about the quality of education provided. The minutes of their meetings record that governors do not discuss how pupil premium is being used or whether teachers are reaching their performance targets. Recent change to the membership of the governing body is recognition of the need to include governors with an education background. The impact of this change is not yet apparent.

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The leadership and management requires improvement

At the time of the inspection safeguarding arrangements met statutory requirements; some small procedural issues were amended during the inspection.

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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 137277 Local authority Bradford Inspection number 400331

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School details

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

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School details

Type of school Academy Free School School category Non-maintained Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 360 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Mr A Suleman Principal Mr S Raza Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Telephone number 01274 449706 Fax number 01274 925471 Email address shr@kings.ac 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

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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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