Trumpington Community College

Inspection of Trumpington Community College Lime Avenue, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB2 9FD

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected 27–28 November 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is an increasingly popular school in impressive new buildings.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There have been plenty of changes taking place at the school in the past four months. These are leading to improvements in pupils’ behaviour and to the quality of education. Pupils are noticing the changes that leaders are making. Nevertheless, pupils are not yet accessing a good-quality curriculum. More needs to be done for leaders’ high expectations for the education that pupils receive to be realised.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say that many lessons are enjoyable but, in some subjects, the work is too easy or too hard for them. We saw that this is the case where learning is not suitably well planned and delivered.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils also told us that behaviour is better than it was last year. They said that it varies in different subjects. We saw evidence of pupils working hard and with good humour. Yet, in some classes, a few pupils lose focus too easily and distract their classmates.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say that it is easy to make friends at school. Pupils are confident that the school takes their safety very seriously. Pupils feel safe and they are well looked after. Pupils understand what bullying is. They say that it does not happen often. If it does take place, adults sort it out quickly.

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better?

Curriculum leadership is too variable. There is much unevenness in how learning in several subjects is planned and delivered. This is evident in English, languages, science and, to a lesser extent, mathematics. In these subjects, learning is not consistently well matched to pupils’ needs and abilities. Some teachers do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can achieve. Where this is the case, pupils struggle to recall important information.

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better?

In history and geography, teachers plan and deliver the curriculum effectively. They check that pupils understand what they are learning. Pupils remember and confidently discuss important knowledge. Pupils’ work is of a good quality. We saw evidence of similar strengths in curriculum leadership and learning in physical education and the creative subjects.

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better?

Teachers do not provide consistently well for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders know these pupils’ needs. Leaders provide teachers with information about how to meet these needs. Some teachers’ use of this information is not good enough. So, pupils with SEND do not make enough progress. Yet, where teachers do adapt learning, pupils with SEND respond really well and their work is of a good quality.

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better?

Where learning is not suitably planned and delivered, the attitudes to their learning 27–28 November 2019

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of some pupils, often boys, are weaker. This is also more likely to be the case where adults do not stick to the school’s behaviour policy. Leaders have made changes to how adults manage pupils’ behaviour. Where adults make good use of these new approaches, many pupils respond admirably. Staff and pupils told us that lessons in recent months are now less likely to be interrupted by poor behaviour.

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Most pupils mix happily at breaktimes as they make use of the school’s excellent facilities. But a small number behave too boisterously. This frustrates other pupils. The attendance of a small number of pupils, mainly disadvantaged pupils, is too low.

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Pupils enjoy the chances that they get to debate important issues, such as poverty and animal rights. Pupils develop an understanding of life in modern Britain through the school’s personal, social and health education programme. Pupils also enjoy their leadership responsibilities and have access to a wide range of clubs.

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The school joined the United Learning Trust in September 2019. The trust, the governing body and the senior team have quickly formed a productive partnership. They collectively have a solid grasp of what is working well and what must improve. Leaders have identified the weaknesses in the curriculum. Under the clear leadership of the trust, school leaders are making improvements. The trust is providing curriculum leaders with strong guidance and support. Leaders are changing the curriculum and how it is taught so that it better matches pupils’ abilities and needs. This work is at an early stage.

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Staff welcome the changes that leaders are making. They told us that leaders seek ways to lessen the impact of these changes on staff’s workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and governors take their responsibility for safeguarding pupils very seriously.

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Safeguarding

Staff are well trained. They know that it is an important part of their job to keep pupils safe. Adults know the signs that indicate a pupil may be at risk. When a concern is reported, leaders take the necessary action so that pupils get the help that they need.

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Safeguarding

Leaders carry out the appropriate checks on adults who work at, or are regular visitors to, the school. The record of these checks is carefully maintained.

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Safeguarding

Should they have a concern, pupils are confident about speaking with adults. Pupils are also confident that adults will help them to put things right.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum in some subjects has not been well matched to the needs of different groups of pupils. This has limited pupils’ progress. Leaders need to raise staff’s expectations of what pupils can achieve. Leaders also need to equip all curriculum leaders with the skills and knowledge that they need to design and ensure the effective implementation of a curriculum that is better aligned to pupils’ abilities, interests and needs.  Leaders understand the needs of pupils with SEND. However, teachers do not provide equally well for pupils with SEND. Leaders need to make sure that curriculum leaders and teachers put into place the strategies that will enable pupils with SEND to make the best possible progress.  Some pupils, often boys, do not behave as well as their classmates. Their attitudes to their learning are not as positive as they should be. This slows the pace at which they learn. Leaders have put in place new systems which have

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

improved pupils’ behaviour overall. Leaders now need to raise adults’ expectations of how pupils should behave and make sure that adults consistently and effectively apply the school’s policy and practices.  The attendance of some pupils is too low, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Leaders need to review and make appropriate amendments to strategies to make sure that the pupils’ attendance improves.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you’re not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 27–28 November 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10110175 Type of school Secondary comprehensive

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School details

Website www.trumpingtoncommunitycollege.org. uk/ Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The predecessor school was opened in September 2015 with its first intake. Pupils fully moved into the current building in September 2016.  In March 2018, the school joined the Cambridge Academic Partnership. At this point, the school became a new legal entity.  In September 2019, the school joined the United Learning Trust.  The current Year 11 pupils will be the first to take national assessments at the end of key stage 4. Therefore, there are no published outcomes for this school.  The school makes use of alternative provision at Cambridge Regional College and TBAP Aspire AP Academy.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 We met with the headteacher, several other members of the school’s senior leadership team, the special educational needs coordinator, curriculum leaders, teachers, support staff, governors, a representative from the trust and the 27–28 November 2019

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executive headteacher within the Cambridge Academic Partnership cluster of schools.  We spoke with pupils throughout the course of the inspection – in formal groups and informally around the school site. We also considered the views expressed by a parent in a letter received during the inspection. We took account of the 42 responses to Parent View. There were no responses to the staff or pupil surveys.  We considered the following subjects in depth as part of this inspection: English, geography, history, languages, mathematics and science. In each subject, we visited lessons, met with curriculum leaders, teachers and pupils, and looked at pupils’ work.  We also met with curriculum leaders, visited lessons and scrutinised work in other subjects taught at the school.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, we viewed the school’s website, reviewed school policies, met with the designated safeguarding leader and a

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member of the pastoral team, spoke with pupils, teachers and support staff, checked school records of safeguarding checks carried out on adults working at the school, sampled records of actions leaders take when a pupil needs extra support, took account of responses to Ofsted’s parent survey and spoke with governors and a representative from the trust.

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Inspection team

John Lucas, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

David Piercy Ofsted Inspector 27–28 November 2019

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regulates and inspects to 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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