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

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Duncan Roberts Principal Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport Bury Water Lane Newport, Saffron Walden Essex CB11 3TR

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Ofsted visit to Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport

Following my visit with Kim Pigram, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), to your school on 8 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.

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Ofsted visit to Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport

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.

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Ofsted visit to Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport

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.

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Ofsted visit to Joyce Frankland Academy, Newport

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

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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.

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Context

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

 At the time of the visit, 125 pupils were self-isolating at home, mainly from two ‘bubbles’ in Years 8 and 9. Since the start of the school year, approximately 20% of all pupils have needed to self-isolate at different times due to COVID-19.  All pupils are studying their usual range of subjects. For pupils in Years 7 and 8, leaders have made modifications to the curriculum, which has changed the practical activities that pupils access in subjects such as art, music and design and technology. Leaders plan to return to the usual curriculum by summer term 2021.  Leaders have used their usual assessment methods to check what pupils know and can do in different subjects. In some instances, the timing of assessments has been adjusted to help teachers’ planning. Teachers are using this assessment information to identify and support pupils to catch up on any lost learning.  Leaders have identified that writing and spelling are areas where pupils in

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

Years 7 and 8 have the most gaps in their knowledge and skills. For example, leaders are concerned that pupils in Year 8 are not applying basic skills in spelling, punctuation and grammar to extended written pieces. Teachers are creating more opportunities in English for pupils to practise these skills.  In Years 9, 10 and 11, leaders have identified gaps in pupils’ basic knowledge in mathematics and how they then apply this knowledge to more complex problems. Teachers are using ongoing assessment opportunities to check and improve pupils’ basic knowledge in aspects of number such as addition, multiplication and division.  Leaders have put systems in place to deliver the planned curriculum remotely. An online system is used to provide curriculum resources and feedback when individual pupils or year group bubbles need to self-isolate. In the sixth form, this is supplemented with access to live video lessons. Pupils follow their

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

normal school timetable when being educated remotely.

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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.

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From this visit, inspectors noted that:

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, chair of the board of trustees, and the chief executive officer of the Anglian Learning multi-academy trust, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Essex. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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