Gladesmore Community School

Gladesmore Community School Crowland Road, London, N15 6EB

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Outstanding 1 This inspection: Outstanding 1 Achievement of pupils Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching Outstanding 1 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Outstanding 1

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.  Under the exceptional and enthusiastic leadership of the headteacher, students and staff grow rapidly as part of the Gladesmore family. Governors and all leaders support students to achieve outstanding levels of success in all aspects of their lives.  Results have continued to rise over the past few years and GCSE results now exceed the national average.  Students make outstanding progress in all years. Results in GCSE English, mathematics, modern foreign languages and science have been significantly above average for much of the last three years and are improving.  The majority of teaching is outstanding and across the school is at least consistently good. Teachers have high expectations, plan effectively and are very knowledgeable and enthusiastic.  Teachers provide high-quality feedback to students both in their marking and through the use of effective questioning. In the best

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

lessons teachers involve students in following up and checking their understanding fully.  Attendance is improving and is well above average.  Students are extremely polite, courteous and welcoming. They are very proud of their ‘awesome school’ and readily celebrate its many exceptional achievements. There is a strong sense of community where all feel valued and are treated equally with respect.  Parents and carers, students and staff are full of praise for the school. Students’ behaviour in and around the school is exemplary. They say they are extremely safe and value the significant levels of individual support they receive both in and out of the classroom.  Students are keen to excel. The very positive relationships that have been fostered within the school, combined with the excellent attitudes to learning, enable students to make outstanding progress.  The excellent curriculum meets the needs of all

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

students extremely well. A rich and diverse range of extra-curricular activities helps students excel in areas of need or interest and enhances their learning further.  Governors, leaders and managers are never complacent. They accurately evaluate the school and constantly seeking to improve.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed teaching and learning in 50 lessons. All were joint observations with senior leaders. In addition they made a number of shorter visits to lessons, year assemblies and tutorial sessions.  Inspectors held meetings with the headteacher, members of the school leadership and management team and groups of staff.  Members of the inspection team held meetings with three groups of students representing all age groups in the school. Discussions also took place with students informally.  Meetings were held with members of the governing body, a representative of the local authority and the local Member of Parliament.  The inspection team observed the school’s work and scrutinised documents including the school’s own evaluation of how well it is doing, the school improvement plan and statistical information about students’ achievement, attendance and exclusions.  Inspectors took account of the 36 responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View, and 80

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Information about this inspection

responses to the staff questionnaire. The findings of the school’s own surveys, which represented the views of a significant proportion of families whose children attend the school, were also taken into account. Additional comments were received from parents and carers.

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Inspection team

Robert Ridout, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Brian Lester Additional Inspector Samuel Ofori-Kyereh Additional Inspector David Gutman Additional Inspector Jalil Shaikh Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 Gladesmore Community School is a larger than average-sized secondary school. There are more boys than girls in the school.  The school has specialism’s in mathematics and computing and holds the Queen’s Award and the Princess Diana Award for anti-bullying.  The proportion of students from minority ethnic groups is well above average. Over half of these young people are from African and Caribbean backgrounds. The proportion of students who speak English as an additional language is well above average. A little under one third of the students are from White British or other backgrounds.  The proportion of students eligible for the pupil premium is well above average. This is additional government funding for students known to be eligible for free school meals, looked after by the local authority or from service families.  Over half of the students are disabled or have special educational needs. The proportion of

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Information about this school

students supported through school action is well above average. Similarly the proportion supported by school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also well above average.  Significant numbers of students join the school late.  All provision for students on alternative programmes is arranged by the school in conjunction with First Run, Foot Steps, Focus Training, The Sports Academy and The Haringey and Enfield College of North East London.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for students’ attainment and progress in English and mathematics.  Gladesmore is a Teaching School, Gifted and Talented Lead School, a Schools Direct Lead School and an Outstanding NACE School supporting able children in education. It commonly shares its best practices with other schools both locally and nationally to support all groups of learners

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Refine the quality of teaching even more by ensuring that students are given time to reflect on their answers and develop their understanding through routinely being enabled to respond to their teachers’ comments.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 GCSE examination results have improved significantly and at a faster rate than the national average since 2010 reaching an all-time high of over 60% this year. The school’s own information, based on examination units already taken and accurate assessments of how well students are doing, shows that students are on track to achieve even better results in 2014.  From starting points which are well below average, students make outstanding progress to reach extremely high standards in English, mathematics, modern foreign languages, science and technology.  In subjects where examination results have been slightly lower, such as in geography and history, the school has already tackled the weaknesses identified, provided appropriate support and training for staff and there is strong evidence that results are improving.  All students have excellent equal opportunities to succeed and this is seen in the outstanding

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

progress made by the vast majority of groups of students.  The school is genuinely inclusive and school data clearly show that the significant numbers of students who have joined the school late, particularly those from African and Caribbean backgrounds, have made better than nationally expected progress from the point when they began at the school.  Students who attend courses in work-related subjects at other local providers and with local businesses are making excellent progress. They attend regularly, are kept safe and behave very well. Students appreciate the chance to follow these courses. This is reflected in their levels of enjoyment, enthusiasm and the high success rates. All students continue into further education or employment.  In 2012, a gap between the attainment and progress of students eligible for the pupil premium and other students was quickly identified. Action was taken that meant that the gap was halved

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

in both English and mathematics in 2013 such that these students now achieve about half a grade less well than their peers in the school. The ‘Raising Achievement Team’ tracks the progress of these students.  The school makes excellent use of its pupil premium funding to provide a summer school, after- school support in the ‘Success Lounge’ and booster sessions offered through subject teams to meet the needs of individuals. As a result, the gap in attainment is expected to close further.  Students make outstanding progress in their reading and develop excellent literacy skills from their starting points, . The Year 7 catch-up premium is used well through the use of additional specialist English teachers. An accelerated reading scheme benefits all readers and promotes better reading, while another programme is successful in enabling more vulnerable students to learn effectively in a safe learning environment.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Disabled students and those who have special educational needs and those who speak English as an additional language make exceptional progress when compared to their peers in school because they receive appropriate and timely interventions from both teachers and teaching assistants. The most-able students achieve well. For example, in GCSE science and GCSE Spanish in 2013 the proportion of students achieving A* and A grades was twice the national average.  Where students are entered early for examinations, results indicate that they achieve their full potential.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 The checking of teaching is rigorous and thorough and where it falls short of the school’s exceptionally high expectations appropriate action is taken. This accounts for why the quality of teaching is consistently good and usually outstanding, and as a result students clearly enjoy and engage in their learning, thereby making outstanding progress.  Common features of teaching are the excellent relationships that exist between students and their teachers and the very positive atmosphere that results in the vast majority of lessons.  Teachers have high expectations of themselves and others. They model best behaviour and are very skilled at gaining and maintaining students’ interest. They have established a clear sense of purpose whereby teaching and learning can take place and students can succeed.  Lessons are extremely well planned and work is matched very closely to the needs of all groups of learners. Students think deeply about their learning and are encouraged to apply their

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

knowledge in order to work things out for themselves.  In outstanding lessons, the pace of learning is rapid because teachers are knowledgeable, enthusiastic and communicate a love of their subject and develop a thirst for learning in their students. In a science lesson, the teacher’s high expectations of students resulted in them showing very positive attitudes towards their own learning. They were keen to work together and cooperated to put forward their own ideas and thoughts to explain what was happening in an experiment looking at the effect of light on building up food in plants.  The very best teachers used questioning extremely well to encourage students to think and be creative. For example, students were nominated by the teacher and asked to consider the social issues in Victorian England relating to poverty and describe them through the ideas and storyline of Dicken’s novel, A Christmas Carol.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Disabled students and those who have special educational needs, some of whom have very high levels of additional need, make good and sometimes outstanding progress because teachers work closely with classroom assistants to provide high-quality support.  Teachers offer high-quality marking and feedback both verbally and in the written comments they give. In the best practice, students are shown what they need to do to improve their work and often encouraged to reflect and respond to comments, but this was not typical. In the outstanding examples seen students reviewed each other’s work accurately against known criteria and provided the right guidance to securing better grades. This strongly contributes to the outstanding progress many students make in the school.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Attitudes to learning are exemplary. Students are attentive and self-disciplined learners. Their behaviour in social areas is excellent and they move purposefully around the school between lessons. Students are polite and respectful to each other, staff and visitors.  The very positive, supportive relationships enjoyed and nurtured between staff and students are a critical, crucial and key cornerstone that contribute to the success of the school. These strong bonds support students in their learning and help them to cope in the school and wider community.  Students are very proud of their school and know that their behaviour is excellent. They do not tolerate anything that disrupts their learning but are extremely tolerant of each other and of the differences that exist between them.  Students feel very safe. They are very aware of the different types of bullying that can take place including that experienced on the internet. All consider that bullying is extremely rare and

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

believe the school deals with it quickly and successfully when any incidents take place.  Parents and carers support their children’s views and all believe them to be happy, safe and free from bullying at school. One parent or carer summed things up well when she said, ‘My child never wants to miss a day at the school. The very best thing is that the school inspires her to want to be in the school and to achieve her very best.’ All staff strongly agreed that the behaviour of students is outstanding.  Attendance levels are well above average and continuing to rise because students enjoy and value what the school has to offer them.  Tutor time and the school’s strong programme for personal, social and health education all contribute very well to the students’ extremely strong spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 Students value the dedication of the headteacher, who provides drive and outstanding leadership in a relentless pursuit of excellence to all aspects of school life. This means that staff thrive and students achieve real success. He is extremely well supported by a knowledgeable and challenging governing body, talented leaders and managers at all levels and outstanding teachers, administrators, technicians and support staff. All parents, carers and students are extremely positive about the school which is significantly oversubscribed.  The work of each subject area is checked meticulously. Robust action is taken to improve any weaker areas. Work is continuing to support and challenge the work in history where performance is not yet consistently good or better.  High-quality processes are in place to maintain and improve the quality of teaching. Leaders visit lessons regularly. There is an excellent support programme for any teachers whose teaching is

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The leadership and management are outstanding

not consistently good or better. Senior leaders take further action if their teaching does not improve.  Teachers are held accountable for the progress of the students they teach, and subject and year leaders are held accountable for the areas they oversee. Pay rises and promotion are clearly linked to their performance.  All staff comment positively on the opportunities they have for training to develop their skills. The impact of this training is reflected in the high quality of teaching and support seen in lessons. Staff morale is extremely high.  The curriculum meets the needs of all students exceptionally well. A wealth of courses is offered to meet the individual needs of all students. These are supplemented by additional programmes tailored to support the more vulnerable students, especially in terms of developing their literacy skills. A huge, rich and diverse range of extra-curricular activities is offered to enhance the

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The leadership and management are outstanding

learning experiences of students at the school in extremely positive ways.  Gladesmore does not tolerate any discrimination. It is a harmonious organisation that promotes equal opportunities in all its forms and values the skills and talents of all equally.  All safeguarding arrangements are in place and meet the statutory requirements.  The local authority values the relationship it shares with the school. It describes Gladesmore as a school with extremely high expectations and cites it as a beacon of very best practice. Together the school and local authority work closely to support students from all backgrounds, particularly the most vulnerable and those at the greatest risk of exclusion, to ensure they succeed. The local authority provides a very light touch support for it.  The governance of the school:  Governors are extremely knowledgeable about the school and provide excellent challenge and

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The leadership and management are outstanding

support in exactly the right way. They talk with confidence and in great depth about the strengths of the school and how it is being further improved. They are well informed about performance data, the quality of teaching, the management of all staff and how they are rewarded. Finances are extremely well managed and they are fully aware of the impact of all spending including that of the pupil premium. Monies are used well to support the achievement of these students especially. The school has been extremely successful in raising additional funds to enhance the facilities and the on-site provision at the school and plans are well on track for the development of its new one million pound ‘Out of Hours Learning Centre’.

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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 102157 Local authority Haringey Inspection number 412187

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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 Comprehensive School category Community Age range of pupils 11 − 16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 1,252 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Alex Sweet Headteacher Tony Hartney Date of previous school inspection 8 − 9 October 2008 Telephone number 020 8800 0884 Fax number 020 8809 8500 Email address admin@gladesmore.com 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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