Moreton School

Inspection of Moreton School Old Fallings Lane, Bushbury, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV10 8BY

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Sixth-form provision Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 4–5 February 2020

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What is it like to attend this school?

This school has a real sense of purpose. All staff go out of their way to ensure that pupils are kept safe, feel cared for and achieve their best. Leaders have created an ethos of high levels of care, while at the same time raising pupils’ academic aspirations. The positive relationships between staff and pupils are a joy to observe. The headteacher summarised this when she said, ‘We care for every one of our pupils, but we do not love them into poverty; they will achieve as well.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and safe. They enjoy coming to school and want to learn. Pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school is good. They get on well with each other. Pupils do not worry about bullying because they are confident that all staff will deal with any that occurs swiftly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Senior leaders understand the community the school serves. They know their pupils and families well. Leaders recognise that some pupils have limited opportunities to take part in additional experiences or activities for various reasons. Leaders make sure that pupils receive a wide range of exciting trips and visits to complement their personal and educational development. Pupils strive at this school.

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better?

Leaders have high expectations of pupils. All staff want pupils to succeed. They now do. Senior leaders, together with teachers, have worked collaboratively to plan a curriculum that is ambitious and tailored to pupils’ needs. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers map out what pupils should learn over time in each subject. Leaders want all pupils to have a broad academic education. Plans for the future include modern foreign language (MFL) lessons at key stage 4 for almost all pupils.

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better?

Subject plans take pupils’ prior knowledge into account and ensure that pupils deepen their learning further. This is successful in the vast majority of subject areas, including English, science, mathematics and history. Pupils’ work is generally of good quality and they learn well. However, in MFL, there remains some work to be done. This is because of historic staffing issues. The MFL department is now fully staffed with expert teachers and leaders who have begun to put a new, more challenging curriculum in place.

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better?

Teachers know their pupils well. They receive specific training about how to support all pupils’ needs. Teachers regularly adapt their lessons so that pupils with SEND receive the support they need to be successful. Additional adults support pupils in lessons effectively. Pupils with SEND do well and make good progress.

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better?

Leaders have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils know what these are and the consequences if they fall short of leaders’ expectations. Consequently, pupils behave very well in lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. Lessons are generally free from disruption and staff create a purposeful learning environment. A very small 4–5 February 2020

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number of pupils need extra help to show positive attitudes. These pupils repeatedly spend time in the school’s isolation room. Here, their learning is not of the same high quality as in lessons. These pupils miss chunks of their learning.

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Students who attend the Amethyst Sixth Form enjoy their studies. An increasing number of students now choose to stay on to continue their studies in the sixth form. Leaders have built a well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum for students. Subject plans build on students’ prior learning and deepen it further. Teachers have strong subject knowledge and share their enthusiasm with students. Students achieve well. They enjoy many trips to universities, colleges and visits from apprenticeship providers. Students are well prepared for their next stage in life. Almost all of them move on to further studies, training or employment.

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Pupils’ personal development is enhanced effectively beyond the school’s well- planned curriculum. Pupils enjoy strong pastoral care, learning about how to manage money effectively. Many have opportunities to learn outside of the classroom. Pupils speak very highly about the numerous things they do beyond lessons.

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Staff are highly supportive of senior leaders. They value the support they get, specifically from the headteacher. Teachers have told us that all decisions at the school are made with pupils’ and staff’s well-being in mind. All staff we have spoken to have commented on the many improvements made at the school in recent times. Staff morale is high.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff receive the training they need to spot any signs that a child may need help. All staff know who to refer any issues on to. They know about potential risks that exist within their local and regional community. Staff refer any concerns on and the safeguarding team deal with them quickly.

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Safeguarding

Leaders work well with outside agencies. Staff seek help and advice to ensure that pupils are safe. Safeguarding staff give extra help to families when they need it. Leaders complete the required employment checks and keep accurate records. There is a strong safeguarding culture at the school.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The current curriculum in MFL is not as well planned or ambitious as it needs to be for pupils to be successful. Senior leaders, together with colleagues from the MFL team across the trust, have begun to plan the new MFL curriculum. Leaders 4–5 February 2020

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need to ensure that the subject plans in MFL are sequenced so that pupils can build up their knowledge and skills over time.  For a very small minority of pupils at the school, the behaviour management system is not fully effective. These pupils repeatedly spend time in the school’s isolation unit where the pace of their learning slows. Leaders need to ensure that the strategies they use to manage these pupils’ behaviour are effective so that pupils do not miss valuable learning time.

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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 are the school and you are 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. 4–5 February 2020

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School details

Inspection number 10122437 Type of school Secondary

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sixth form

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected as an academy

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Information about this school

 Moreton School converted to be part of the Amethyst Multi Academies Trust in March 2017. When its predecessor school, Moreton School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good overall.  Moreton School and one other secondary school opened a shared sixth-form provision, called The Amethyst Sixth Form, where all 48 post-16 students attend.  The school offers full- and part-time alternative provision for pupils at The Switch Project, Midpoint and the Orchard & Nightingale. Some of these provide education for pupils with medical needs.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. 4–5 February 2020

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 We held meetings with the headteacher and executive headteacher, senior leaders, subject and middle leaders, teachers and pupils. We scrutinised school documents, including curriculum plans and school development plans.  We scrutinised the school’s safeguarding arrangements and documentation, including the single central record. The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead and special educational needs coordinator. We spoke with many staff about safeguarding.  We evaluated records about pupils’ attendance and behaviour, as well as records about pupils who have left the school roll.  The lead inspector met with the chair of governors and a trustee.  One inspector visited an alternative provider the school makes use of.  We analysed 26 responses from parents and carers to Ofsted’s Parent View questionnaire, including 12 free-text comments. There were no responses from pupils or staff to their respective Ofsted surveys.

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 We completed various inspection activities to gather evidence on the quality of education. These included lesson visits, scrutiny of pupils’ work and discussions with subject leaders, teachers and pupils about their learning.  We observed pupils’ behaviour during lessons and at breaktimes and lunchtimes. We spoke to many pupils about their experience at school.  We focused on English, science, modern foreign languages and history. Other subjects were considered as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

Bianka Zemke, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Eddie Wilkes Ofsted Inspector 4–5 February 2020

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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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