Stockley Academy

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Ms Ann Colgan Principal Stockley Academy Park View Road Yiewsley Hillingdon UB8 3GA

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

Following my visit with Janet Hallett, Her Majesty’s Inspector, to your school on 22 and 23 November 2016, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions that have been taken since the school’s previous monitoring inspection.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

The inspection was the third monitoring inspection since the school became subject to special measures following the inspection that took place in June 2015. The full list of the areas for improvement that were identified during that inspection are set out in the annex to this letter. The monitoring inspection report is attached.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

Having considered all the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

Leaders and managers are not taking effective action towards the removal of special measures.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

Having considered all the evidence, I strongly recommend that the school does not seek to appoint newly qualified teachers.

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Special measures monitoring inspection of Stockley Academy

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner, the Education Funding Agency and the director of children’s services for Hillingdon. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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place in June 2015

 Improve leadership and management by: – ensuring that all safeguarding incidents are reported to appropriate parties and recorded immediately – reviewing regularly targets and timescales in the school improvement plan to check that the school is making progress quickly – developing a rigorous approach to monitoring and evaluating the quality of teaching by linking it closely to the progress pupils make over time and how they are improving the quality and presentation of their work – strengthening tracking systems so that the progress and attendance of disadvantaged students and those with special educational needs are monitored systematically to enable staff to close the gaps between them and other pupils – improving the way tutors deliver the spiritual, moral, social and cultural curriculum – ensuring greater consistency in the way staff handle bullying incidents and implement behaviour policies – increasing the rigour in the way attendance for disadvantaged students is

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place in June 2015

monitored.  Improving the quality of teaching and achievement for all students, particularly in Years 7 to 9 by: – ensuring all staff have the highest expectations of the amount, quality and presentation of work that pupils complete – improving feedback so that it clearly identifies what pupils need to do to improve and ensuring that pupils have opportunities to correct their work – providing suitably challenging and interesting work for pupils, especially the most able, to challenge them to think more deeply about their learning – ensuring that teachers’ use of questioning deepens pupils’ understanding – ensuring that pupils’ skills in writing and numeracy are consistently well developed across the curriculum – setting all pupils homework tasks which challenge and extend their learning.  Improve sixth form provision by: – increasing attainment in A-level courses and the GCSE re-take examinations in English and mathematics

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place in June 2015

– improving consistency in the quality of teaching – increasing the proportion of learners who continue from Year 12 into Year 13.

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Evidence

During the visit, inspectors met with the executive principal, the new principal, senior and middle leaders, staff and pupils. The lead inspector spoke to the chair of the governing body. Inspectors visited a number of lessons and some were jointly observed with the school’s leaders. Inspectors spoke to pupils both formally and during break and lunchtimes. A range of documents provided by senior leaders was analysed. These included the unvalidated RAISEonline report for 2016 results, published during the inspection, the single central record (showing the checks made on the suitability of staff to work with pupils), records kept by the school and information on the progress of current pupils. The particular focus of this monitoring visit was on the effectiveness of leadership and management to address the issues identified at the previous inspection and developments within the sixth form.

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Context

A new principal joined the school in September 2016. Since the previous monitoring visit in June 2016, there have been further significant staff changes. Twenty-one teaching staff have left and been replaced.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

The school’s actions, led by the governing body, have not secured improvement in progress for pupils and groups of pupils over time. While they have challenged school leaders and invested in external support, these actions have not ensured rapid school improvement. Frequent staff changes at leadership level over time and recurrent disparity between the views of leaders and the governing body have presented significant barriers to school improvement. Attendance is still poor and pupils’ progress continues to be well below average across all year groups.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

The new principal, though only in post since September 2016, is aware of what has to happen in order to secure improvement. She has quickly established herself within the school community and has gained the respect of both pupils and staff. However, a lack of wider leadership capacity, staffing turbulence and a legacy of significant pupil underachievement over time are proving very challenging.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Middle leaders are enthusiastic and loyal to the school and its pupils. They feel well supported by the new principal and other leaders. However, some are new in post or lack experience and need further development in order to make the significant changes necessary to move the school forward. Equally, some areas, particularly in core subjects such as English and mathematics, do not have substantive middle leaders. Some key administration positions are also vacant. These include the data manager, finance director and business manager. This has put significant pressure on the capacity of the current leadership team.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Leaders are now targeting more precisely funding for disadvantaged pupils on interventions that will support this group to make better progress from their starting points. However, these actions are still in the very early stages of delivery and consequently, progress for this group is still significantly below that of other pupils at the school and pupils nationally.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Leaders are providing effective training for a new coordinator for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. However, though late in the term, leaders are still carrying out baseline assessments for this group. As a result, no progress information was available to inspectors.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Safeguarding arrangements continue to be effective. Checks on the suitability of staff to work at the school are in line with current legislation and new staff have received appropriate child protection training. Older pupils are aware of key staff they can talk to should they have a concern. However, staff fluctuations mean that some pupils, particularly Year 7, are less aware of key people who can offer them support and stability should they need it.

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Leaders have addressed issues to do with the limitations of the previous key stage 4 curriculum. Pupils are now able to study the full range of subjects, which will lead to them making progress across an appropriate number, including English and mathematics (now known as Progress 8).

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The effectiveness of leadership and management

Developments in the sixth form have continued. A revised timetable ensures that students have opportunities to hone their employability skills. Leaders have established strong links with local and regional businesses. Currently, 32 students are on a 10-week, daily placement. Student numbers have risen and all higher education applications in 2016 were successful, with many acquiring a place at their first choice university

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment

The leader responsible for teaching and learning has instigated a number of practical activities that are already having a positive impact on staff morale and the quality of teaching and learning across the school. Opportunities for staff to capitalise on each other’s ideas and best practice in weekly training sessions, regular lesson ‘drop ins’ and checks on the quality of pupils’ work are beginning to have an impact on the progress pupils’ make. The coaching programme continues to be highly valued, particularly by new teachers.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment

Recruitment and retention of teachers continues to be a serious issue across the school and puts significant strain on existing staff. Leaders deploy the best teachers to examination classes in an attempt to accelerate pupils’ progress. They are acutely aware that this situation cannot continue as it is having a detrimental impact on the progress made by pupils in Years 7 to 9. Pupils continue to voice their desire for consistently strong teachers, who will help them achieve well and who do not regularly change.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment

Attitudes to learning remain dependent on the quality of the teacher. Older pupils demonstrate excellent attitudes to learning. They are focused on achieving highly, engage with the set activity and have pride in their work. They receive regular information from their teachers on how they can improve and usually act upon it. This is not consistently true of pupils lower down the school. Persistent teacher changes lead to a lack of consistency and consequently, low-level disruption and silliness is often prevalent. Temporary or new teachers sometimes set activities that lack a learning purpose, are pitched too low or are stand-alone activities that lack relevance.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

The conduct of pupils around the school site continues to improve. While there is still some silly and boisterous behaviour in corridors during lesson changeover and in the extremely busy dining hall, overall the atmosphere in the school is increasingly calm and quiet. High levels of staff and prefect supervision is having a positive impact. Pupils in the lower school say name-calling is an issue. However, the number of serious behaviour incidents has declined and they are now rare. The number of pupils receiving a fixed-term exclusion from school has also reduced.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

Many teachers continue to consistently use the ‘SWAT’, ‘state, warning, action, transfer’, behaviour system to manage poor behaviour in class. However, regular changes in staffing mean that this system is not always routinely applied across the school. This is particularly true in key stage 3 classes.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare

Leaders have increased actions to improve attendance and reduce sporadic attendance; however, to date they have not been effective. Pupils’ attendance continues to be below the national average and is not showing signs of improving.

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Outcomes for pupils

The unvalidated 2016 outcome data provided by school leaders indicates very low progress over time for all pupils, but particularly those who are disadvantaged, those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and the most able. Leaders identified in the summer term issues to do with the scarce number of subjects pupils were studying at GCSE and this had a negative impact on the school’s overall Progress 8 score. However, progress in English and mathematics was equally inadequate and far below the national average. Pupils’ achievement at GCSE rose from the previous year. This was expected as the 2016 cohort arrived in Year 7 with attainment in line with the national average. However, had pupils made the expected progress across the full range of subjects, their achievement would have been higher. Consequently, considering their starting points, pupils’ attainment across a range of subjects was significantly below

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Outcomes for pupils

A new assessment system introduced in May 2016 is in the very early stages of development. Staff and pupils have received training on the new national grading system and there has been one assessment point this term. However, the accuracy of these assessments is questionable. Moderation of the assessed work has not been systematic across and within subjects. Some departments have links with other schools and have been able to standardise the assessments. Others have not. Data provided by the school on the progress of current pupils is therefore not robust. Equally, what the data reveals is very limited pupil progress across all year groups and in many subjects. Particularly concerning is the very limited progress made by the large group of disadvantaged pupils, the most able and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities compared to other pupils at the school.

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External support

Leaders have continued to reduce the amount of external support commissioned by the school. However, they have rightly prioritised further external support for mathematics.

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External support

As a matter of urgency, the school must rapidly increase leadership capacity at all levels in order to secure improved attendance and progress for all pupils and groups of pupils.

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