Testwood School

School report Testwood Sports College Testwood Lane, Totton, Southampton, SO40 3ZW

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Not previously inspected This inspection: Inadequate 4 Achievement of pupils Inadequate 4 Quality of teaching Inadequate 4 Behaviour and safety of pupils Requires improvement 3 Leadership and management Inadequate 4

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a school that requires special measures.  Achievement is inadequate. Most students do not make sufficient progress from their starting points to enable them to achieve high enough GCSE results, especially in English.  Disadvantaged students and those with disabilities or special educational needs have made significantly less progress than others on examination courses in the last two years.  The quality of teaching is inadequate. Although teachers are now becoming more effective in helping students to make suitable progress, this has not yet resulted in high enough achievement in examinations.  Behaviour around the college and in lessons is typically cooperative and polite but more consistency is needed in the way in which teachers handle poor behaviour.  The quality of leadership of the college is inadequate. Leaders have not taken swift enough action to improve standards. Strategies now in place to improve the quality of teaching

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

have not yet had sufficient impact.  Although leaders and governors have monitored the work of teachers and the progress of students, this has not been rigorous enough. Evaluation of the work of the college is a weakness.  As a result of insufficient evaluation by college leaders, governors do not have an accurate understanding of how well the college is performing and have therefore been unable to demand sufficient improvement from leaders.

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The school has the following strengths

 Students enjoy coming to college. Both attendance and behaviour have improved.  The college’s sports specialism adds considerable value to its provision and contribution to the community.  Improvements in teaching are beginning to impact on the achievement of current students. Some lessons are outstanding and the best practice is now being shared regularly.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed parts of 40 lessons, where they evaluated the quality of teaching and looked at work in students’ books. Some of these lessons were observed jointly with members of the senior leadership team.  They observed behaviour in lessons and around the college during breaks and after school.  Inspectors met with groups of students of different ages and abilities. They discussed their work and their experience of college life.  Discussions were held with the headteacher, senior and middle leaders, with other staff and a group of governors. The lead inspector also talked to a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors looked at a wide range of college documents including safeguarding records, policies, future plans, information about students’ progress, monitoring records and the minutes of meetings of the governing body.  By the end of the inspection, the views of 34 parents and carers who had responded to the

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Information about this inspection

online Parent View survey were taken into consideration and 36 responses from the staff questionnaire were also collected and analysed.

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Inspection team

Jacqueline Goodall, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Margaret Faull Additional Inspector Joseph Skivington Additional Inspector Richard Butler Additional Inspector Carol Worthington Additional Inspector

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Full report

In accordance with the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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Full report

Newly qualified teachers should not be appointed.

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Information about this school

 Testwood Sports College is smaller than the average-sized secondary school. It converted to academy status in August 2011. When its predecessor school of the same name was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good.  Most students are from White British backgrounds with a very small minority of students speaking English as an additional language.  The proportion of disabled students or those with special educational needs supported through school action is above average. The proportion supported through school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is below average.  The proportion of students eligible for support through the pupil premium (additional government funding for children who are looked after or known to be eligible for free school meals and children of service families) is just below the national average. There are no children of service families known to be on the roll.

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Information about this school

 Around a fifth of all students are eligible for Year 7 catch-up funding, which is for those who did not attain the expected levels in reading and mathematics at the end of primary school.  A few Key Stage 4 students study a construction course through an independent company, or attend work placements. A very small minority attend provision at the Forest Education Centre, either on a full-time or part-time basis.  The college does not meet the government’s current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectation for students’ attainment and progress.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality and effectiveness of teaching so that a high proportion is consistently good or better by ensuring that:  teachers track the progress of students frequently, accurately and in sufficient depth to enable them to plan lessons that ensure students make rapid progress from their starting points  expectations, and consequently achievement targets, are consistently high and teachers provide suitable opportunities for students to challenge themselves and to develop confidence in learning how to make decisions for themselves about how to improve their work  all teachers give detailed written feedback frequently to their students and then ensure that recommended improvements are carried out  teachers prepare students properly for examinations so that all achieve well, including those supported by extra funding and those who are disabled or have special educational needs.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise levels of achievement in GCSE examinations, especially in English, so that standards are at least in line with national averages.  Review, evaluate and improve the provision made to support students eligible for pupil premium funding so that the gaps between their achievement and that of others close.  Ensure that incidents of poor behaviour are dealt with effectively by all members of staff.  Increase the effectiveness of leadership at all levels by ensuring that:  there is rigour and precision in the evaluation of college policies, strategies and initiatives  the results of evaluation are used to improve provision and as a consequence, achievement  assessment data are accurate and are used effectively to promote students’ progress  strategies already in place to improve teaching and learning are embedded and extended.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

An external review of governance should be undertaken, to include a specific focus on the school’s use of the pupil premium, in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and governance may be improved.

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The achievement of pupils is inadequate

 Most year groups joining the college in Year 7 have below average attainment overall. Examination results in the last two years in particular show that most do not make adequate progress and overall attainment at GCSE has declined in many subject areas.  Results for 2013 showed that achievement in English was particularly low. Most students made significantly less progress in the subject than the national average. This was because teachers did not have an accurate knowledge of students’ progress and as a result, did not prepare them well enough for their examinations. Attainment in English literature was much higher however.  Achievement in mathematics has been above that in English but levels of progress in 2013 were lower than in previous years.  As a group, students eligible for support through the pupil premium achieve significantly less well than others within the college. In 2012, they achieved an average of around two grades

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The achievement of pupils is inadequate

below that of others for their GCSE examinations but this gap was slightly less when all qualifications were taken into account. In 2013, they made significantly less progress than others in their English and mathematics GCSEs and the gap between their average grade and that of others remained wide. Annual government data on the school’s performance in 2013 were not yet available to the inspection team at the time of the inspection but the gaps are likely to be greater than those found nationally.  Support for current students through the pupil premium is improving and college leaders are confident that attainment for this group of students is rising. Inspectors saw some evidence of this in lessons, but the impact has yet to be seen in better results.  Disabled students and those who have special educational needs have not made enough progress in examination courses because teachers have not always matched tasks and resources

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The achievement of pupils is inadequate

to their individual needs.  Students with ethnicity other than white British and who speak English as an additional language typically achieve slightly better compared with others in the college.  Some students have been entered early for English and mathematics examinations. While this has motivated them and enabled some more able students to tackle more difficult work, some students have had to re-take their examinations to gain a higher grade.  Scrutiny of current students’ work in lessons showed that achievement is beginning to rise, including in English where some good and sometimes outstanding teaching is starting to have an impact on students’ progress, but it is too early to know whether examination grades will rise.  Provision to support those students coming into the college with lower attainment than that expected for their age is mainly focused on the integrated studies course which allows them to

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The achievement of pupils is inadequate

stay with one teacher for a range of subjects. The college believes that students are benefitting strongly from this provision although outcomes of leaders’ evaluation were unavailable to inspectors. Some good examples of how literacy is being developed through the provision were seen, but support for mathematics is less effective.  Across the college, students’ literacy skills are now being developed more consistently. Most students are articulate and standards are improving in writing. Reading is encouraged and more students are borrowing books from the library.  Students who attend alternative and specialist provision make good progress.

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The quality of teaching is inadequate

 Over the last three years, teaching has not brought about adequate achievement in GCSE examinations.  The quality of teaching now in the college remains variable. Over time, teaching has not been good enough to bring about the significant improvement in achievement required. In the best lessons, pace is appropriate, students are challenged to think and activities, marking and feedback are helping them to make more rapid progress.  Teachers in English have not ensured that all students have been properly prepared for their examinations. In response to the fall in GCSE results in English in 2013, teachers are now beginning to track progress more accurately and prepare students for their examinations more effectively. Inspectors saw evidence of this in the lessons observed.  In mathematics, teachers in Key Stage 4 have a more accurate view of students’ learning than in Key Stage 3 and use that information to help students make progress. Although teaching has

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The quality of teaching is inadequate

enabled more students to achieve well in their GCSE course than in English, their progress remained below the national average in 2013. Support for students joining the college with low attainment in mathematics is not as effective as that for improving literacy.  Teachers do not use assessment information precisely enough to plan activities that will help students to make rapid progress. Assessment information has not always been accurate and targets are not high enough for some students. The college is now using a more comprehensive system that will allow teachers to focus more sharply on students’ progress. Teachers are becoming more confident in using this system but it has yet to impact significantly on raising achievement.  There is now a focus on more systematic and helpful feedback to students and this is beginning to have an impact on their understanding of how to improve their work. However, this impact is

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The quality of teaching is inadequate

diminished when the feedback is not sharply focused on progress or when teachers fail to check that students have made the improvements.  Interventions to help students catch up or improve aspects of their work have not always been timely and effective enough. As a result, students have not been well-prepared for their examinations. Support for students who are eligible for additional funding and for those with special educational needs has been ineffective in enabling them to achieve their potential.  More able students achieve well in some subjects such as physics and chemistry. Except in the most effective lessons, teachers do not provide difficult enough work for them or encourage them to solve problems for themselves so as to develop the mature learning skills needed in preparation for further and higher education.  Relationships between teachers and students are appropriate and respectful and students enjoy

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement, as does the work of the college to keep students safe. Behaviour is improving and little unacceptable behaviour was seen during the inspection. However, some students say that when incidents of unacceptable behaviour do occur, they are not always dealt with well by staff. This is a view that is supported by some teachers and parents.  Around the college, students typically conduct themselves appropriately and are polite, friendly and respectful of all within the community.  College leaders have reduced the number of exclusions, reflecting the more positive attitudes of students. There have been no permanent exclusions in the last year.  The number of reported bullying incidents has decreased and evidence shows that occurrence of discriminatory behaviour or language is rare. Students say that when bullying does happen, it is not always dealt with effectively by some teachers.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 Within lessons, students listen well and follow instructions appropriately but, except in the best lessons, they are not encouraged and helped to maturely take responsibility for their learning. They are too reliant on their teachers to decide what to do next and do not demonstrate an ability to extend their own learning.  The college atmosphere is positive and students say they enjoy coming to school. Attendance has improved to just above the national average due to the increased rigour of college monitoring systems. There is a small amount of persistent absence which remains to be addressed.  There is a range of opportunities for students to take on responsibilities and these too are encouraging students to model good behaviour to their peers. Most notably, the system in which older students support younger ones is particularly successful in reducing bullying incidents and helps students to become more resilient and confident.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils requires improvement

 The college’s safeguarding systems are effective and students say they feel safe. There are many opportunities for them to learn about keeping themselves safe, including through the highly valued partnership with community police officers. Students understand the risks involved in internet use and are taught how to manage them.  When students attend off-site provision their behaviour is usually very good because they enjoy these courses and want to do well.

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The leadership and management are inadequate

 Leadership is inadequate because although college leaders at all levels have been aware that students do not achieve well enough, they have not taken sufficient or rapid enough action to improve achievement in Year 11 examinations.  Following the drop in examination results this year, the headteacher and his teams have focused more intently on improving the quality of teaching. Although better systems have been set up to monitor teachers’ performance, track students’ progress and provide effective interventions, the quality of evaluation within the college is a weakness. Leaders have not formally and comprehensively evaluated the policies and strategies of the college sufficiently well. As a result, they have been unable to make precise and well-targeted improvements to the college’s provision and consequently, to students’ achievement.  Middle leaders are becoming more skilled in implementing improvements to teaching and

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The leadership and management are inadequate

learning. They are increasingly held to account for the performance of their teams. Nevertheless, more needs to be done to ensure that all middle leaders are effective in their roles.  Strategies put in place this year to improve teaching and learning in English include a change of leadership within the department and support from a specialist subject leader from another school, but these have yet to impact upon achievement in examinations.  The systems for holding teachers to account for their performance are new this year. Senior leaders and governors are aware of the need to ensure that standards of teaching rise rapidly and consequently are becoming more robust in their assessments. Training for staff is becoming more precisely focused on improving teaching and helping students to make progress, and is valued by teachers. Professional development also takes the form of regular sharing of the best

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The leadership and management are inadequate

practice in teaching among the staff more widely.  The curriculum provides opportunities for all students to study GCSE and vocational courses and students are guided well to make appropriate decisions. Most students continue their studies at a post-16 college or in sixth forms and only a very small minority do not go on to some form of education, employment or training.  Leaders are aware that provision for music within the college remains an area for further development. Although a few students now learn to play an instrument and the ‘Rock challenge’ continues to attract many students, there is still insufficient focus on music both in terms of lessons and within the college overall.  The college prides itself on offering equal opportunities for all and strives to ensure that students who are disadvantaged are supported academically, socially and financially through pupil premium funding. Most of the funding is spent on extra staffing. Despite these interventions,

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The leadership and management are inadequate

students entitled to additional grants or who are disabled and those with special educational needs have not generally made sufficient progress.  Students attending alternative provision are well supported. There are reliable systems in place to ensure that they attend, are kept safe, behave well and make good progress.  The sports specialism ensures that students have access to a wealth of sports activities within the curriculum and in extra-curricular clubs. Students develop personally and socially through such activities. There is highly effective teaching in physical education and sport.  The focus on literacy is improving students’ reading and writing skills. In addition to the support in Year 7, there is a reading programme for students in Year 10 and also several reading clubs, competitions and activities to promote reading. The ‘talk like a scholar’ theme is helping students to use the most appropriate vocabulary to describe their learning.

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The leadership and management are inadequate

 The college purchases some services from the local authority and works with other academies in the area to provide mutual support in the development of policies and the curriculum. There have been no external evaluations but an external validation of assessment is planned.  The provision for the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of students is a relative strength. There are many opportunities for them to learn about life and how to make a positive contribution. For example, students in Year 8 in history imagine life as a slave. In textiles, students learn to appreciate the beauty of form, shape and texture. In assembly and tutor time, students reflect on racial and other forms of prejudice through learning about Martin Luther King and the civil rights movement. There are motivational and thought-provoking displays around the college.  The statutory requirements for safeguarding are all met.

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The leadership and management are inadequate

 The governance of the school:  Governors monitor key aspects of the college’s performance and routinely ask questions that reflect their general awareness of their responsibilities and their increasing understanding of performance data. Although they have been given a range of helpful information by senior leaders, the lack of evaluation of the impact of college policies, strategies and practices has meant that governors have not been able to make appropriate decisions. As a result, the governing body has not ensured that achievement, in examinations particularly, has been restored to acceptable levels. The governing body quickly took steps to investigate the reasons for the low GCSE results in 2013 and are now aware of the need to gather and scrutinise evidence of improvement in achievement more precisely. Although governors are very familiar with the range of interventions in place to support the achievement of students eligible for

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The leadership and management are inadequate

extra government funding, they have been unable to check the effectiveness of pupil premium expenditure because the provision has not been rigorously evaluated. Arrangements for governors to oversee the awarding of staff pay rises are already in place and they are currently engaged in a staff consultation to prepare for a more rigorous pay policy for next year. They have an increased understanding of why it is important to monitor and evaluate the quality of teaching but need to check that this work is carried out rigorously by college leaders. The governing body ensures that all statutory responsibilities are met.

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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 137315 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 426693

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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 Secondary School category Academy converter Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 724 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair John Lawrence Headteacher Ian Appleton Date of previous school inspection not previously inspected Telephone number 02380 862146 Fax number 02380 666514 Email address information@testwood.hants.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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