Setting

Mrs Caroline Cox Oasis Academy Longmeadow Broadcloth Lane Trowbridge BA14 7HE

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Longmeadow

Following my visit to your academy on 21 May 2015, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and for the time you made available to discuss the actions you are taking to improve the academy since the most recent section 5 inspection.

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Longmeadow

The visit was the first monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require improvement following the section 5 inspection in March 2015. It was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Longmeadow

Senior leaders, the Academy Council and sponsor are taking effective action to tackle the areas requiring improvement identified at the recent section 5 inspection. The school should take further action to:

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Longmeadow

 strengthen the school improvement plan by specifying how and when leaders will check that improvements are accelerating the progress of all pupils.

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Evidence

During the inspection, I held meetings with you, the Regional Academies Director and a member of the Academy Council to discuss the actions taken since the last inspection. I spoke to the Academy Improvement Director by telephone on the day before the inspection. Together, we visited classrooms to observe learning and pupils’ attitudes to learning. I looked at English and mathematics books from each year group. I also scrutinised a range of documents, including the school’s records of Tribal Kings Orchard 1 Queens Street Bristol, BS2 0HQ T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T 0117 311 5269 Email : klara.davies@tribalgroup.com the outcomes of monitoring activities undertaken by leaders. I evaluated the school improvement plan and spoke with a group of pupils during lunch to seek their views on recent improvements.

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Context

The academy is now fully staffed with permanent teachers. There are no supply teachers teaching in any year group.

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Main findings

You have set about improving the academy with urgency and determination. You demonstrate the ambition and commitment to ensure it is at least good at its next inspection. Staff share in your vision to improve the academy quickly and provide the very best education for the pupils. However, you know there is much to do to address the legacy of underachievement and ensure all pupils achieve well.

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Main findings

Rightly, you have prioritised the need to improve the quality of teaching. You have raised expectations of what teachers must deliver and pupils can achieve. Your agreed ‘non-negotiables’ set out your expectations clearly. This is ensuring the quality of teaching is more consistent. For example, you expect them to prepare well so that all pupils make good progress. As a result, pupils are working harder and being challenged to reach higher standards. This is improving their attitudes to learning. Incidents of low-level disruption are less common. Pupils understand that teachers expect them to behave well. During the visit, they were overwhelmingly positive about the changes at the academy and typically say, ‘I am challenged more by the teachers and our behaviour is much better’.

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Main findings

You have made changes to strengthen the leadership team. Together, you are rigorously monitoring the quality of teaching and learning. This is highlighting teachers’ strengths but also some weaker elements of their practice. Leaders give teachers precise feedback to ensure pupils make better progress. You have all but eradicated weak teaching and regularly check that teachers have made the required improvements. This rigour will need to continue as new teachers join the academy in September.

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Main findings

Teachers have developed their classrooms and corridor areas to be high-quality learning environments. This gives pupils a real sense of pride and supports their learning. They are inspired to continue to improve and learn well. In the relatively short space of time since the inspection, leaders and members of the Oasis Multi- Academy Trust have worked together to drive the pace of improvement. Although evidence in books demonstrates pupils are making better progress, levels of attainment in English and mathematics are likely to be below the national average this year. Leaders have put in place a detailed action plan to bring about the urgent improvements needed. This directly focuses on the areas for improvement identified at the last inspection. However, the current plan lacks specific pupil progress targets and explicit and frequent timescales. This makes it difficult for leaders to check regularly and be certain that improvements are happening quickly enough to ensure

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Main findings

The Academy Council have a good understanding of the school’s current performance. They visit the academy to check that planned actions are improving pupil outcomes. In discussions, they are confident that the academy is now ‘on the journey of improvement’ after a long period of instability; they are maintaining appropriate support and challenge. They agree this rigour must continue to drive the pace of change needed to become a good school.

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Main findings

Ofsted may carry out further visits and, where necessary, provide further support and challenge to the school until its next section 5 inspection.

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External support

Since the inspection, the Oasis Multi-Academy Trust has continued to provide high- quality support. Leaders carry out monthly evaluations of the academy’s performance. They then provide well-considered training and expertise, often from other Oasis academies, to support leaders and staff at Longmeadow. This is having a positive impact in driving the pace of improvement at the required speed.

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External support

I am copying this letter to the Chair of the Governing Body, the Director of Children’s Services for Wiltshire.

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