Setting

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.1

Michelle Newman Principal Kingswood Secondary Academy Gainsborough Road Corby Northamptonshire NN18 9NS

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to Kingswood Secondary Academy

Following my remote visit with Deborah Mosley, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 1 December 2020, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the visit’s findings. Thank you for the time you made available to discuss your actions since September 2020, when the government expected all schools to open fully to all pupils.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to Kingswood Secondary Academy

This visit was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections are temporarily suspended.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to Kingswood Secondary Academy

Ofsted’s visits to schools during the autumn term are not inspections. We are not giving graded judgements. We did not undertake the usual range of inspection activities and were unable to check other sources of evidence, such as visits to lessons or looking at pupils’ work. The content of this letter gives an overview of our discussions about what has happened in your school this term.

p.1

Ofsted remote visit to Kingswood Secondary Academy

During the visit, we spoke to you, members of the senior leadership team and four subject leaders. We did not speak to pupils because of the protective measures in place.

p.1

Context

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills is leading Ofsted’s work into how England’s education system is managing the return to full education for pupils, following an extended break in formal schooling due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

p.1

Context

In undertaking this focused work, HMI are visiting a broad range of schools. HMI will visit a sample of:

p.2

Context

 approximately 1,200 schools across all Ofsted grades (outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate)  maintained schools, academies and free schools, special schools and centres of alternative provision, including those in cities, and coastal, town or rural communities.

p.2

Context

The information from this visit will feed into Ofsted’s national reporting so that the insights can be shared with the government and the education sector. We did not find any significant concerns during the visit. In such a case, an inspection report would be published on our website and available to parents and carers.

p.2

Context

We did not consider your response to COVID-19 during the spring and summer terms 2020, when the school was not open to all pupils.

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 Since the start of term, about a half of all pupils have needed to isolate at home at some point due to COVID-19. At the time of the visit, pupils in the Year 7 ‘bubble’ were isolating.  All pupils in Years 7 and 8 are following the school’s usual range of subjects. Pupils are receiving extra support with reading, writing and mathematics where needed.  Leaders have made changes to the content of some subjects and have prioritised key areas of learning. For example, there has been a greater focus on emotional well-being and mental health in the personal development curriculum.  Teachers have assessed pupils’ learning in all subjects. They are using this information to modify their curriculum plans. For example, in English, Year 11 pupils are currently focusing their learning on Shakespeare’s play, ‘Macbeth’.  Pupils in Years 9 to 13 are studying all of their examination courses.  Leaders have plans to return to the school’s usual curriculum by summer 2021.

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

These include increasing access to specialist teaching rooms for all classes.  Leaders are continuing to develop resources for delivering remote education. These include a mixture of online lessons and resources as well as packs of books and paper-based materials. Leaders are planning to provide equipment for some pupils who do not have access to electronic devices. Pupils who are isolating follow the same curriculum as their peers in school.

p.2

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Thank you again for contributing to this important national work. The views and experiences you have shared will help to inform future policy.

p.3

From this visit, inspectors noted that:

I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of trustees, and the chief executive officer of the Greenwood Academies Trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Northamptonshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

p.3