Tibshelf Community School

Tibshelf Community School Doe Hill Lane, Tibshelf, Alfreton, Derby DE55 5LZ

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Overall effectiveness Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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This is a good school

 Pupils are making good progress across a range of subjects and across all year groups.  Leaders and managers have worked with a sense of urgency. School improvement has been rapid.  Teachers with responsibility for subjects show a good understanding of how well students and groups of students are doing. Results are improving.  The gaps between disadvantaged students and other students have narrowed quickly over time.  The school’s Autism Resource Centre is excellent. Pupils who access this provision make excellent progress.  Governors have a good understanding of the school’s strengths and areas for improvement.  Teaching has improved strongly since the last inspection. Good teaching is enabling pupils to make good progress.  Pupils behave well in lessons, around the school site and at break and lunchtime.  Pupils enjoy learning and are keen to do well.  Pupils say that they feel safe at school. They are

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This is a good school

punctual to school and lessons. They attend well.  Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education. The numbers who go on to further education, employment or training are high.  The values of tolerance and respect are a core part of the school’s ethos. Relationships between pupils and staff are good.  The curriculum provides good opportunities for pupils to be successful and progress after they leave school.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Leaders and managers have not ensured that the school’s new data systems are used consistently to set the most challenging targets for pupils.  Leaders have not ensured enough consistency in teachers’ use of assessment to ensure all pupils make strong progress.  The school’s strategies for closing any gaps in the performance of different groups are not yet fully embedded across the school.  Teachers’ expectations are occasionally too low with regard to the quantity and quality of work produced by the boys.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Strengthen further the impact of leaders and managers on the quality of teaching and learning by: – ensuring that the school’s assessment strategies are applied equally well across all subjects and all classes – ensuring that teachers consistently use information about pupils’ progress to set sufficiently challenging targets, particularly for pupils of middle and higher ability – ensuring that teachers’ expectations for boys are as high as those for girls, especially in the work that boys produce in their books.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Continue to reduce the gaps in attainment between different groups of pupils, and especially between boys and girls, by fully embedding the range of successful strategies currently in place to accelerate pupils’ progress across the school.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The headteacher is a determined and dynamic leader. He is tenacious in his drive for school improvement and has made sure that he has developed a team of senior staff around him who are equally determined that the school will be the best that it can be. The high expectations of the senior staff have permeated across the school and, in the relatively short time that the headteacher has been in post, there has been a period of rapid improvement at the school.  The high expectations that leaders set for staff and pupils are clearly communicated in the plans that have been drawn up to further improve the school. Senior leaders have made sure that leaders of subjects are clear about the ambitions for the school. They have been given appropriate training to make sure that they are managing their subjects well and passing on their own high expectations to their teams.  All staff are held to account for their own performance through rigorous performance management

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

systems supported by training and other development activities. This helps explain the clear improvements to the quality of teaching seen since the last inspection. Any underperformance by teachers is quickly addressed and teachers are provided with substantial support to make sure that their teaching improves.  The leadership of teaching is good. Best practice is shared and teachers plan work together and help each other to improve their teaching in the classroom. The best teachers coach others, and teachers are encouraged to take part in external training to ensure that teaching is leading to good and better progress for pupils. Teachers who are new to the profession are appreciative of the high-quality support and training that they receive from the school.  The school is outward-looking and works with a number of other schools to share their own best practice and learn from the best practice of others. The school is part of a collaborative arrangement of four

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

schools who work together to improve aspects of their work. For example, one of the current joint projects is about improving the engagement of parents.  Leaders and managers know the school well. Their own assessment of the school’s strengths and what needs to be improved is accurate and appropriate actions are being taken to address any areas that need improvement. External reviews of the school’s performance reflect the leaders’ and inspectors’ views.  Pupil premium funding (additional funding given to schools for those known to be eligible for free school meals and for children looked after by the local authority) has been used effectively. A wide range of strategies have been put in place to make sure that pupils who are supported through the pupil premium rapidly catch up with their peers. For example, the ‘Aspire’ programme, part of which provides targeted intensive literacy support, has had a striking impact on pupils’ literacy skills, particularly in Key Stage 3.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Senior leaders have used sound judgement to develop a broad and balanced curriculum that offers appropriate challenge and support for pupils of all abilities, including those with additional needs. The three curriculum pathways from Year 9 onwards ensure that pupils are well prepared for the next stages in their education, employment and training. At Key Stage 3, there is now a whole-school focus on improving literacy skills, especially for boys.  The curriculum contributes well to pupils’ personal development through good use of tutor time, a comprehensive programme of assemblies and a wide range of extra-curricular activities.  The school gives a high priority to British values; tolerance and respect are fundamental to its ethos. In citizenship lessons observed, an election was being held to vote for a local representative of the youth council. This was a culmination of work across the school to develop pupils’ understanding of democracy.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The head of the Autism Resource Centre (ARC) shows excellent leadership. He is very knowledgeable, absolutely committed to getting the best possible outcomes for the pupils and knows each pupil very well. He has established a very effective team of support staff who work closely with the pupils when they are in main school lessons. The ARC is seen as a model of good practice within the local authority and the head of the ARC, as well as some teaching assistants, have been involved in training staff at other schools.  Pupils’ moral, social and cultural development is well catered for. They know right from wrong and work together very well, including as part of a peer mentoring scheme. Pupils have access to a range of trips and visits and there is a strong emphasis on pupils learning about life in other countries and significant historical events, such as the Holocaust.  The school is using a new system of collecting data and target-setting which is very comprehensive and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

has been developed in-house. While targets set using this system are ambitious for most pupils, not all targets are ensuring that pupils are aiming for progress at the highest levels, particularly for some of the middle- and higher-attaining pupils.  The school now has a range of strategies in place to close any gaps in the performance of groups, including boys. These strategies are being used successfully by most staff but have yet to be fully embedded. This explains why boys’ attainment overall, although improving, remains lower than for girls.  The governance of the school – The governing body has undergone some restructuring recently in response to an external review of governance. It comprises a group of skilled, experienced people who are highly ambitious for the school and absolutely committed to making sure that it continues to rapidly improve. – The governors know the school well and can articulate its strengths and weaknesses. They are aware of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

what the performance information shows and can analyse and interrogate it. They robustly hold the headteacher and senior leaders to account through a comprehensive committee structure, including a strategic committee which oversees school improvement. – Governors have a thorough working knowledge of how pupil premium funding has been spent and the impact that it has had. They link with subjects and aspects of the school and carry out regular visits to monitor and evaluate progress towards areas identified in the school improvement plan. They make sure that teachers are not rewarded for poor performance and carry out all their statutory duties. They ensure that the school’s finances are managed well.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective and leaders take appropriate action to support vulnerable pupils. Appropriate checks on adults working at the school are carried out. The school is a safe

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

environment and leaders work successfully with parents and other agencies to make sure that pupils are supported and safe. All staff have undertaken ‘Prevent’ training this academic year.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 The quality of teaching, learning and assessment across a range of subjects has improved since the last inspection. Relationships between teachers and pupils are excellent, as are pupils’ attitudes to learning. Teachers create an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust in the classroom and enable pupils to thrive and make good progress. Pupils are keen to do well and are active participants in lessons.  Teachers have good subject knowledge and most teachers plan lessons which have high expectations and interesting learning activities. They are skilled at asking pupils questions which enable them to deepen their understanding and demonstrate their knowledge and skills.  Most teachers use the performance information that they have on pupils and their knowledge of individual pupils to plan lessons which are purposeful and secure good progress over time. They make sure that pupils who are falling behind are supported to catch up and set pupils challenging targets. The most-able

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

pupils make good progress in their learning because they are encouraged to answer challenging questions which make them think deeply about their answers.  The teaching of literacy and numeracy skills is at the heart of the Aspire programme which delivers small- group teaching for pupils who are struggling with these skills. The teaching of literacy is good and is having a marked positive impact on the outcomes for the pupils who are part of the programme. Good support from other adults in the classroom is key to helping pupils make rapid progress in the Aspire programme.  Pupils who are part of the ARC are fully included in main school lessons so that they benefit from good- quality teaching, learning and assessment. They receive high-quality support from other adults who have been well trained in how to ensure that they can support good progress.  Parents receive regular and clear information about how well their child is doing. There are regular parents’

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

evenings and mentoring days when parents are encouraged to come in and discuss their child’s progress with subject specialists or their child’s tutor. Parents feel that they are kept well informed about how well their children are doing at school.  There was no derogatory language heard in or out of lessons during the period of the inspection. Pupils felt, however, that if there was any derogatory language used by a pupil, this would be swiftly and effectively dealt with.  There is a very clear homework policy and homework is designed to help support pupils’ learning within school and deepen their knowledge, skills and understanding.  The school has a very thorough marking and assessment policy and, when it is used well, it has a significant impact on pupils’ progress. Most teachers give pupils good advice, in line with the policy, on how to improve their work, and pupils’ responses to that advice are also checked. Some teachers do not use the

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

policy as well as they could and so pupils in their lessons do not make as much progress as others.  Most teachers use effective strategies to make sure that boys are as fully engaged in their learning as girls. They think carefully about where they seat boys in the classroom and make sure that they target boys for questions, which keeps them focused on their learning. Occasionally, the expectations for the quality and quantity of work produced by boys in their books are lower than for those for girls of similar abilities. This means that some boys are not making progress at the rate that they should.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Staff are effective at spotting any child who is at risk or vulnerable and supporting them, often with the help of outside agencies. Pupils know that there is always an adult that they can talk to if they need any help.  Bullying and the use of derogatory language are extremely rare. Pupils are clear that staff deal effectively with any incidents of bullying. The school has a culture of respect and tolerance permeating throughout and pupils are clear that they are there to work with and support each other. For example, a pupil in a mathematics lesson explained that he was seated in a particular place ‘because I am good at maths and I can help the others and helping them helps me’.  Pupils feel safe at school and are taught how to keep themselves safe. A high priority is given to regularly repeating important messages about the risks of, for example, not using the internet properly. Pupils

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Personal development and welfare

appreciate the information that they frequently receive from school about this and other potential risks to their safety.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability are well supported and receive high-quality care. This is particularly evident for the pupils who are part of the ARC. Many of these pupils find it very difficult to access main school lessons, but, because of the excellent support that they receive, almost all of them are happy, thriving and making excellent progress in lessons alongside their peers. They are supported to do this, but the support is unobtrusive, allows them to be independent and enables them to have relationships with their peers.  Pupils receive good careers education, information, advice and guidance. The school gives a high priority to making sure that pupils have high aspirations. It provides many opportunities for them to have experiences which will help guide their choices for Key Stage 4 and for when they leave school. The numbers of

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Personal development and welfare

students who are not in education, employment or training when they leave school are low.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good. They move around the school calmly and with purpose and behave equally well at break and lunchtimes. They are helpful to each other and unfailingly polite to visitors and staff. Relationships with staff are open, warm and friendly. There is no litter around the school site.  Behaviour in lessons is good. Pupils are keen and interested in their learning. Low-level disruption is rare and only very occasionally do pupils lose their focus on their learning.  Attendance is above the national average and the number of pupils who are absent for long periods of time is reducing. The attendance of pupils who have special educational needs or disability and those on free school meals has improved since the last inspection. The attendance of pupils at the ARC is good.  Pupils are punctual to school and to lessons.  The number of fixed-term exclusions has reduced and there have been no permanent exclusions for two

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Behaviour

years. The school works hard to identify early those pupils at risk of exclusion and supports them in school and with alternative placements out of school which are appropriate for their needs and aspirations. Pupils who access alternative placements attend well and make good progress in their learning and their personal development.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils are making good progress in English and mathematics. In 2015, the proportions of pupils making expected progress in both subjects were above national figures. There has been a rapid rise in the numbers of pupils gaining a grade C or above in both subjects. For a very small number of low-ability pupils, the school has found that entering them early in GCSE mathematics has been useful. Many are able to secure a grade C. This strategy means that the published performance information for 2015 does not reflect the improved results secured by these pupils when they retook their GCSE mathematics examinations at the end of Year 11. The school has continued with this policy for a very few pupils this year.  The gap between the progress of disadvantaged students and their peers in school and nationally is closing rapidly. This is because of the high priority that the school has given to the achievement of pupils

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Outcomes for pupils are good

supported by the pupil premium and the impact of the interventions that the school has spent the funding on, in particular the Aspire programme.  The progress of students in other key subjects, such as science, has also improved. Results in science last year were good; they are set to improve again this year. Strong teaching is ensuring that the progress made by pupils currently in the school is good in languages and geography, and results in these subjects are set to be much better this year than in previous years. The school’s performance information is checked thoroughly externally and internally to ensure that predictions are accurate.  The strongest performing subjects at GCSE are English, English literature, biology, physics, chemistry, additional science, drama and history. Results were above national averages in these subjects in 2015. In the very few subjects where results have not been as strong as they could have been, swift action has

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Outcomes for pupils are good

been taken to ensure that they are set to improve this year.  Progress across a wide range of subjects at Key Stage 3 is being accelerated because of the impact of the Aspire programme. Performance information shows that progress is particularly strong in Year 7 English and mathematics. The Year 7 catch-up funding is used to help fund the Aspire programme.  Pupils who have special educational needs or disability are now making good progress in a range of subjects from their relative starting points. They have also benefited from the impact of the Aspire programme. The pupils in the ARC are making excellent progress from their relative starting points across a range of subjects because they have bespoke timetables designed to maximise their opportunities to be successful. They receive excellent support so that they make the most of these opportunities.  Higher-attaining pupils now make better progress than similar pupils nationally in a wide range of subjects.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

In 2015, they attained higher numbers of A* and A grades and made better progress than similar students nationally in a number of GCSE subjects. This trend is set to continue to improve.  The gaps between boys’ and girls’ attainment and progress are narrowing over time and the percentage of boys achieving five good GCSE grades including English and mathematics was higher than national averages for boys in 2015. Current progress information indicates that there are some boys who are not achieving as well as they should, which means that there are still some gaps between their performance overall and that of girls.  Pupils are keen readers and the library is well used, particularly by boys.  Pupils attending alternative provision make good progress in their courses and benefit from opportunities to take GCSE English and mathematics.  Pupils are very well prepared for each of their next stages of education. The school works well with its

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Outcomes for pupils are good

feeder primary schools to ensure that children coming up to the secondary school are well prepared. Those who are behind in their learning attend a summer school at Tibshelf designed to ensure that they catch up with their peers. Pupils speak highly of the advice that they receive regarding GCSE option choices in Year 9. Careers education, information, advice and guidance is good.

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School details

Unique reference number 112949 Local authority Derbyshire County Council Inspection number 10001853

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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 Community Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 839 Appropriate authority The local authority Chair Ruth Spencer Headteacher Mike Pollard Telephone number 01773 872391 Website www.tibshelf.derbyshire.sch.uk Email address m.pollard@tibshelf.derbyshire.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 21–22 November 2013

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Information about this school

 The school is smaller than the average-sized secondary school.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is similar to the national average.  The very large majority of pupils are White British.  The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is lower than the national average.  The school has a designated specialist provision, the ARC, for up to 15 students with autism. The provision takes pupils from across the county and they are on the main school roll. There are currently 16 pupils accessing the ARC.  There are 12 pupils who receive part of their education at Broomfield College as part of a special programme to meet their particular needs. Seven pupils receive part of their education at Chesterfield College.  The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for the attainment and progress of pupils by the end of year 11.

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Information about this school

 The headteacher took up post in September 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors observed 34 lessons, eight of which were jointly observed with senior leaders. During lesson observations, inspectors sampled pupils’ books and talked to pupils in order to evaluate the quality of their learning. Inspectors also attended assembly and form time and undertook a number of shorter visits to lessons.  Inspectors observed the behaviour of pupils at break and lunchtime and as they moved around the school.  Inspectors held a number of meetings with senior leaders, leaders in charge of subjects, teachers, the leader of the ARC, governors and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors met with pupils from all year groups. These pupils were chosen at random.  Inspectors scrutinised, in detail, a range of pupils’ books in a range of subjects. These scrutinies were carried out jointly with leaders of subjects.  The inspection team looked at a wide range of the school’s documentation, including meeting records,

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Information about this inspection

action plans, records showing how leaders check on teaching, policies, information on pupils’ progress towards their targets, the school’s own evaluation of its performance as well as external evaluations of its performance, reports to parents and records of how the school supports vulnerable students.  Inspectors took account of the 59 responses to Ofsted’s online Parent View questionnaire, the 34 responses to the online questionnaire for staff and the 112 responses to the online pupil questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Denise Newsome, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector David Bennett Ofsted Inspector Matt Sammy Ofsted Inspector Stuart Williams Ofsted Inspector guidance 'Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . 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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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted .

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Inspection team

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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Inspection team

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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

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