Rossington All Saints Academy

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

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Mr Jamie Lawler Principal Rossington All Saints Academy Bond Street Rossington Doncaster South Yorkshire DN11 0BZ

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

Following my visit to the school on 4 July 2017 with Mary Lanovy-Taylor, Ofsted Inspector, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The visit was the first short inspection carried out since the school was judged to be good in May 2013.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You and your leadership team have sustained ongoing improvement by swiftly identifying areas for development and employing effective strategies to secure success. As a result, the majority of pupils are now making good progress in most subjects and areas that were weaker are now improving.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

You have maintained a consistent focus on robust and regular assessment and improving the quality of teaching and pupils’ progress. You have been successful in improving pupils’ progress by making sure that each pupil receives targeted support which is centred on their needs. This is a particular strength in Years 10 and 11 and you have rightly prioritised developing this approach across other year groups. As a result, teachers are able to modify their planning and support interventions that more effectively meet the differing learning needs of all groups of pupils; an area for development from the previous inspection.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

You have redesigned the curriculum so that it provides a range of subjects and options that better fit pupils’ needs. In addition, you have established clear expectations that ensure that staff implement this curriculum in a highly effective manner. You recognised that your previous curriculum had limited the progress of some pupils, particularly disadvantaged and lower-attaining pupils, in areas such as languages and humanities. This change is having a positive impact on the progress that current pupils are making. The innovative sixth-form curriculum and the strategic links with partner schools are meeting students’ needs effectively. As a result, progress in the sixth form is also improving, particularly in academic subjects.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

Your strong leadership has been further supported by the focused leadership the school receives from Delta Academies Trust. The trust’s systematic approach to deploying directors to support pupils at your school is a strength. The impact of this support can be seen in the progress that pupils are making. The education advisory board recognises the role that the trust has played in bringing about significant improvements.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

Through your vision for the school you have developed an ethos of high expectations. You have implemented a new behaviour policy and this is having a positive effect on the culture of the school. Pupils value and show respect and tolerance for each other, your staff and the building. They are rarely off task in lessons and say that everybody is treated equally. As a result of your higher expectations, the number of fixed-term exclusions has increased, particularly for boys. You recognise that this is something your leadership team needs to address. Leaders have demonstrated strong capacity for improvement, as shown through higher attendance figures for nearly all groups of pupils.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

You ensure that safeguarding at the school is effective through clear processes and procedures that staff and governors understand, including those new to the school. The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and records are detailed and of high quality. Leaders know pupils and their families very well, which results in pupils feeling safe and happy at the school. Pupils are confident that staff will deal effectively with any problems they might have.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

Leaders deal swiftly and effectively with any incidents and concerns. The school has effective referral procedures and communication with external agencies is strong. This means that information is shared effectively and in a timely way. The school has a strong knowledge of particular risks that pupils may face and leaders plan for this. This is effective as pupils say that the school makes them aware of how to keep themselves safe against potential risks such as domestic violence and child sexual exploitation.

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Short inspection of Rossington All Saints Academy

Leaders have worked effectively to increase pupils’ attendance year on year, particularly for the most vulnerable pupils. Staff take attendance seriously and investigate all absences to make sure that pupils are safe.

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Inspection findings

 Current data suggests that outcomes for disadvantaged and lower-attaining pupils in humanities and languages are improving as a result of regular assessment and systematic intervention. You were rightly concerned about these groups of pupils and recognise that improvement in this area is a challenge for the school. The trust provides invaluable support to raise standards in these areas and leaders recognise that the support from trust directors is leading to improvement. Leaders have also made changes to the curriculum and provide more effective advice and guidance to pupils when they are making important choices about the subjects they are going to study. As a result, the progress of current pupils in key stage 4 is improving. However, pupils’ learning and progress is not consistent across all year groups and the quality of work produced over time is also inconsistent. Leaders know that the best practice seen in English and mathematics needs further embedding in

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Inspection findings

humanities and languages.  Leaders and the inclusion team work collectively with each pupil to support them and their families. As a result, attendance is improving and levels of persistent absence are now in line with the national average, particularly for disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. In 2016, the attendance of these groups of pupils was significantly below the national average and levels of persistent absence were high. However, leaders now use a range of strategies, including the ‘Nurture Programme’ and ‘The Base’ to support pupils with their specific behavioural and learning needs. This is having a positive impact on the attendance of these groups of pupils and the progress that they are making.  You have intensified the impact of support by deploying teaching assistants to particular departments. This is leading to more effective planning that addresses the

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Inspection findings

demands of subjects and the needs of pupils. This is having a positive effect in English, mathematics and science but is less developed in areas such as humanities.  The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is strong, particularly in English and mathematics. Leaders have reviewed and redeveloped the English curriculum with a cohesive teaching plan for Years 7 to 11 and you regularly review the texts studied to improve the motivation of boys. Regular use of ‘hinge assessments’ is helping you to identify pupils who require further support and highlight common misconceptions. Teachers in these subjects give pupils the tools to recognise what makes a good piece of work and pupils spend prolonged periods of time reflecting upon and making improvements to their work. As a result, the progress that pupils make in English continues to be strong and there is a much smaller difference between the progress of boys and girls. The leader of mathematics is working

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Inspection findings

closely with you and the Head of English to replicate these successes for all pupils in mathematics.  The leadership of the sixth form is strong and the head of sixth form works relentlessly across the sixth-form partnership to improve standards. In 2016, the progress of students on A-level courses was significantly weaker than those studying applied general courses. Leaders have become more effective in providing the best curriculum for students and in advising students about appropriate courses. This is resulting in significantly stronger progress in A-level subjects. Teachers are using this close partnership to support each other during a time of qualification reform and to improve the quality of teaching and learning in all subjects. Teachers are beginning to ensure that the reflective time given for students to improve the quality of their work is now a larger part of A-level lessons. You are right to prioritise this as

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Inspection findings

students who study vocational courses told inspectors that the time they are given to respond to feedback is a key to their success and to the strong outcomes they achieve.  You recognised that the outcomes achieved by students studying GCSE English and mathematics in the sixth form were historically not good enough. Leaders now prioritise the amount of time students study these subjects and closely monitor the quality of teaching and learning. As a result, students generally improve their grades.

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Next steps for the school

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the school

 they challenge any inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and learning, as shown in the progress that pupils make in their books, particularly in humanities and languages  they replicate the quality of intervention and support provided in the core subjects across the rest of the curriculum  they continue to improve the attendance of groups of pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Next steps for the school

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, chair of the executive board, the director of education for the diocese of Sheffield, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Doncaster. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

During the inspection, I held discussions with you and other senior leaders about your plans for improvement and your evaluation of the school’s effectiveness. I met with a group of middle leaders. I also had a meeting with members of the education advisory board, the local governing body and representatives from the sponsoring trust. I met with a range of pupils from Years 10 and 12.

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Information about the inspection

I conducted learning walks of the school with senior leaders, looking at pupils’ work and observing their learning. I conducted a scrutiny of pupils’ work in a range of subjects, including work produced in the sixth form. I also scrutinised a range of documents related to safeguarding, behaviour and school improvement. I considered 63 responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, including 36 free-text responses.

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