Stradbroke High School

Stradbroke High School Wilby Road, Stradbroke, Eye, IP21 5JN

p.1

Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  This is a rapidly improving school. The headteacher has ensured that the achievement of students has risen sharply, and there has been significant improvement in all aspects of the school. He has gained the respect of governors, staff, students and parents.  Results are now above average. Students make good progress throughout the school in English and mathematics.  Most teaching is good and some is outstanding. Teachers are experts in their subjects and training has been used well to improve teaching and equip them to deliver the newly introduced 100-minute lessons.  The school is a friendly place where students feel highly valued as part of the community. Very good behaviour and improved attendance reflect that the school is a happy place.  Through well-targeted spending of the extra money provided, staff are closing the gap that existed between the achievement of students known to be eligible for additional funding from

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

the government (the pupil premium) and that of other students.  Leaders at all levels take responsibility for improving the quality of provision. They use performance information very well to challenge class teachers and monitor students’ progress.

p.1

It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Students do not always make as much progress as they might because the level of challenge in lessons is not always well matched to their abilities.  Teachers’ questioning does not always encourage students to extend their thinking enough.

p.1

Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed parts of 26 lessons, including six joint observations with senior leaders. Brief visits were made to other lessons.  Inspectors observed assemblies, break-times and lunchtimes.  Inspectors met with groups of students across the age and ability range to discuss achievement, teaching, behaviour, safety and improvements in the school.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, senior and middle leaders and groups of teachers and the school’s external adviser. A brief telephone conversation was held with a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors met with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Governing Body and two other governors.  Inspectors took into account the 100 responses to the school’s questionnaire for parents and the 37 responses to the Ofsted questionnaire for staff. The Ofsted online parent questionnaire (Parent View) had too few responses for any to be displayed.  Inspectors checked the school’s records of attainment and progress, the school’s self-evaluation,

p.2

Information about this inspection

lesson monitoring documents and teachers’ performance management records. They also looked at the school’s figures for attendance and exclusion, safeguarding and child protection records, behaviour records and the minutes from governing body meetings. They evaluated the ways in which the school checks the quality of teaching and the plans for improvement.  During this inspection, inspectors asked additional questions designed to ascertain the school’s view of the impact and effectiveness of local authority services to support school improvement. This information will contribute to work being carried out by Ofsted to assess the use, quality and impact of those services.

p.2

Inspection team

Adrian Lyons, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Susan Lewis Additional Inspector Jane Ladner Additional Inspector

p.2

Information about this school

 Stradbroke High School is a smaller-than-average secondary school that serves students from the village of Stradbroke and its surrounding areas. It is a rural community and the vast majority of students come from six local primary schools that form the Stradbroke Pyramid. Approximately 80% of the students come by bus to the school from a wide area.  The proportion of students supported at school action is above the national average. The proportion at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also above average.  The proportion of students known to be eligible for free school meals and supported through the pupil premium is below average. The proportion of students who are in the care of the local authority is comparatively high.  The overwhelming majority of students are of White British heritage. The proportion from other ethnic groups is low.  The proportion of pupils who speak a first language other than English is low.

p.3

Information about this school

 More students join the school after the start of the academic year than is the case in most schools.  In March 2012 the school became an academy. When the predecessor school, Stradbroke Business and Enterprise College, was last inspected by Ofsted in September 2010 it was judged to be good.  The school has a formal partnership with Worlingworth CEVC Primary School, which has 47 pupils and is located approximately seven miles from the high school. The headteacher is executive headteacher at Worlingworth. Senior staff visit each week and work alongside the newly appointed head of school.  Six Key Stage 4 students follow work-related courses on one day a week at the North Suffolk Skills Academy and Otley College.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for students’ attainment and progress.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Ensure that students of all abilities make even more progress by:  setting work that always challenges students and moves their learning forward quickly  using more questions that make students think deeply and explore one another’s ideas.

p.3

The achievement of pupils is good

 GCSE results have risen sharply this year. Students arrive at the school with attainment that is on average below that in other schools. The proportion of students gaining five GCSE passes at grade C or above including English and mathematics is now above the national average. Students in all year groups, and nearly all ability groups, including the most able students, those with a disability or special educational need and children looked after by the local authority, make better progress from their starting points than students in most other schools, particularly in English and mathematics.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 Students make good progress in the large majority of lessons because teachers are knowledgeable and confident, and lessons proceed at a brisk pace. In a few lessons the most able students are insufficiently challenged.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupil premium funding is used effectively to support students who are known to be eligible for additional help. Students supported by the funding in 2012 gained on average more than one grade lower than other students in GCSE English. The gap was smaller in mathematics and by 2013 the gap in English had reduced sharply.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 Leaders have rightly recognised that good examination results depend on good attendance and have worked hard to improve attendance for all students. This is having a significantly positive impact on students’ achievement.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 There is a policy of entering some students early for GCSE mathematics. This is treated as a practise run, and unless students are unable to improve further, they take the examination again at the normal time.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 Nearly all groups of students, including more able-students and those students with special educational needs supported at school action plus, make equally good progress. However, school leaders recognise that students supported by extra funding through the pupil premium have not done as well as other students in the past. They have identified this as a top priority and have taken successful steps to improve progress for these students.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 The very few students who attend courses on other sites make good progress.

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

 The Year 7 catch-up premium has been used for small group work for low prior attainers in Year 7. For students who had special educational needs, literacy and numeracy programmes were used including Units of Sound, Sound Discovery, Catch up Numeracy and Catch up Literacy. The school’s monitoring records show that low attainers make progress largely in line with their classmates and some make accelerated progress.

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching is good; the school’s own evaluation of the quality of teaching over time agrees with this. Parents, carers and students concur. Most of the teaching seen by inspectors was judged as at least good. Students are very positive about the newly introduced 100-minute lessons. Teachers use the time well to ensure that students make good progress in each subject through varied and well-planned activities.

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

 In the best lessons, teachers are skilled at tailoring their questions and comments to groups and individuals, so that students’ learning is accelerated through working things out for themselves. Excellent examples were seen in some history, English and music lessons. In a few lessons, questioning is not used well enough to check the understanding of different groups of students, nor are different tasks set or different resources made available to make good progress. In some Year 7 lessons work did not build on the skills and knowledge that students brought with them from primary school.

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

 In many lessons observed across a range of subjects, basic skills such as literacy and numeracy were extended and applied, as well as students making very strong progress in their subject- specific understanding. An excellent example was seen in a Year 11 music lesson where students played a ‘musical maths’ game, using the number of beats represented by musical notation to do mathematical calculations.

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching assistants generally make a good contribution to the learning of students they support in lessons, particularly in group work and where the learning planned for different groups of students is clear in teachers’ plans.

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

 Very positive relationships between teachers and students enable learning to proceed at a good pace.

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

 Students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is generally promoted well by teachers. Examples include skills of empathy being developed well in history; cultural awareness of different art styles developed through excellent art work in lessons and on display; and consideration of different religious and non-religious views of an after-life in religious education lessons.

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

 There is clear evidence that many teachers have developed well as a result of the school’s training. Making the most critical contribution to the improved teaching is that most teachers use the information they have about students’ prior attainment very well to plan their lessons. Teachers are ambitious for their students to exceed their targets.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Behaviour around the school, in corridors, at lunchtime and at the end of the day is very good. Students are friendly, courteous and helpful. While establishing a more rigorous approach to achievement, the highly caring ethos of the school has been maintained by staff and students.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attitudes to learning are positive and any low-level disruption in lessons is rare. Parental questionnaires issued by the school and staff questionnaires issued by Ofsted indicate that parents and staff are overwhelmingly positive about behaviour and safety. However, teachers do not yet give students enough opportunities to demonstrate a thirst for knowledge and do things for themselves.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Students feel safe and free from all forms of bullying, and know which staff to talk to, should incidents occur. They know the staff’s expectations of them and they understand the procedures for using computers and mobile phones safely. Regular personal, social and health education lessons teach students how to keep safe and avoid harm.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Attendance is above the national average, and has improved due to the pastoral leaders working hard with the education welfare officer. Any poor attendance is not linked to specific groups.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 There have been very few exclusions. Disruptive behaviour is rare and any problems are immediately discussed with parents or carers.

p.5

The leadership and management are good

 Exceptionally positive feedback from staff was reflected in comments such as that under the headteacher’s leadership ‘we are swiftly moving from strength to strength.’ Evidence gathered by inspectors supports this view. Governors work closely with senior leaders and departments to initiate and monitor change. Governors and leaders have a firm understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for further development.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 Teaching has improved sharply because of rigorous performance management and high-quality training. Robust action has been taken to confront and deal with ineffective teaching. Teachers’ progress up the salary scale is linked to their performance.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 Senior leaders have adopted an effective system to track progress and improve teaching. The system used to monitor students’ progress is valued by teachers. Senior leaders check teaching and the work of subject leaders. The management structure has changed so that senior leaders help other leaders to bring about improvement. Most middle leaders are effective in ensuring good-quality provision in their subjects. They have taken over responsibility for the effective and regular subject reviews.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 The school’s leadership team contributes towards school improvement in the local area. The headteacher is executive headteacher of a local primary school and the deputy headteacher supports leadership to improve provision in the primary school.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 The curriculum is good. Given the small size of the school, there is a wide range of subjects available to meet the different needs and interests of students. Flexibility is enhanced through the use of additional lessons outside the timetabled school day.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 A very small number of students take work-related courses at specialist centres and their progress is monitored well. Students are given opportunities to explore their spiritual, moral, social and cultural abilities through a wide range of popular activities such as sport, music and humanities clubs. Careers education has not yet fully adapted to new requirements introduced last September. Opportunities for students not wishing to follow a GCE A-level route after the age of 16 are very limited. The school seeks and sometimes gains apprenticeship opportunities with local small employers.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 The impact of the local authority’s support and challenge over time in helping the school to improve has been minimal. Where the school has bought in expertise from the local authority, such as support to improve provision in English and mathematics, clerking or human resources support for governors, it has been of high quality. Requests for such support have been initiated by the school, with little evidence of challenge by the local authority even when, in the past, the school was performing much less well than it is now. The local authority has not done enough to ensure that students have realistic opportunities to participate in education or training beyond the age of 16.

p.6

The leadership and management are good

 The governance of the school: — Governors are well informed and visit the school frequently. They have a very good understanding of its strengths and weaknesses as a result of training in understanding performance information. They regularly and formally monitor the quality of the departments that they are linked with. The governors hold to account the headteacher and senior leaders in their management of resources. They ask pertinent questions about teaching and achievement. Governors are well informed about the achievement of students and demonstrate a good understanding of how to measure students’ attainment and progress. They have a good understanding of issues regarding the safeguarding of students having had training in child protection, and make sure all national safeguarding requirements are met. Governors are very active in ensuring that the school offers good value for money, including the effective use of the pupil premium to secure good progress. The Board of

p.6

The leadership and management are good

Governors could usefully be strengthened by recruiting members currently employed in business leadership to strengthen links with employers.

p.7

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

p.8

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.

p.8

School details

Unique reference number 137901 Local authority Suffolk Inspection number 425436

p.9

School details

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

p.9

School details

Type of school Non-maintained School category Academy converter Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 298 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Andrew Smith Headteacher Andrew Bloom Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Telephone number 01379 384387 Fax number 01379 388270 Email address andrew.bloom@sbec.org.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 .

p.9

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.

p.10

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

p.10

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

p.10

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’.

p.10

School details

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

p.10