Setting

Holly Rigby Headteacher The Telford Park School District Centre Stirchley Telford Shropshire TF3 1FA

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of The Telford Park School

Following my remote inspection with Ian Tustian, Her Majesty’s Inspector (HMI), of your school on 23 March 2021, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions that have been taken to provide education to all pupils during the current circumstances.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of The Telford Park School

This monitoring inspection was conducted under section 8 (2) of the Education Act 2005 (as amended) and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for visiting schools while routine inspections remain temporarily suspended. It was additional to the usual monitoring process for schools that are judged to require improvement.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of The Telford Park School

This monitoring inspection was carried out remotely. As such, the range of evidence available to inspectors was narrower than would normally be the case during an on- site inspection. As a result, this letter provides a more limited level of assurance than our usual monitoring reports.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of The Telford Park School

The inspection took place because the school has received two successive judgements of requires improvement. The school’s most recent section 5 inspection took place in February 2019.

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Additional, remote monitoring inspection of The Telford Park School

Having considered all the evidence and taking into account the impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus) on the school, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

to provide education in the current circumstances. Ofsted

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted Leaders and those responsible for governance should take further action to:

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Leaders and those responsible for governance are taking effective action

 develop further curriculum leaders’ expertise in the use of assessment.

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Context

 Since the last inspection, a new special educational needs coordinator joined the school in November 2020.

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Context

 Due to the current circumstances, the trust board of the Community Academies Trust has made changes to local governance arrangements. Trustees have renamed the school’s local governing body. This group is now known as the Schools Standards Committee. Trustees have directed this group to focus on holding leaders to account for the quality of education.

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Context

 Between the start of January and 5 March 2021, around 15% of pupils were educated on site. Approximately 50% of vulnerable pupils and 60% of pupils with education, health and care plans attended school.

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Context

 At the time of this inspection, 92% of pupils were attending on site.

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Main findings

 You and your team remain focused on improving the quality of education despite the challenges of the last year. At the heart of this work is a determination to develop your staff’s expertise in developing and delivering a high-quality curriculum. Staff, for instance, received training on how to deliver the curriculum remotely. As a result of this training, pupils who were learning at home during the spring term continued to study the school’s planned curriculum.

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Main findings

 Leaders have made supporting pupils to improve their reading the number one priority. You are clear that pupils must read well in order to access the school’s curriculum. Leaders take effective action to ensure that all pupils get the support they need to read confidently and fluently. There are robust systems in place for identifying pupils’ starting points in reading. Consequently, leaders know which pupils need extra help. These pupils get effective support from well-trained adults. This support is helping more and more pupils to catch up.

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Main findings

 Before the pandemic, curriculum leaders continued to develop their subject plans. These plans follow a logical order so that pupils build on what they have learned. The plans identify the essential knowledge that pupils need at each stage in all subjects. As a result, teachers have a clear understanding of what pupils need to know and remember. This is proving useful in the current circumstances. For example, since all pupils returned to school in March 2021, teachers have made checks in lessons to identify gaps in pupils’ essential knowledge. Teachers use the information from these checks well. They adapt their plans to reteach the important learning pupils have forgotten. However, leaders have rightly identified that they need to develop the termly assessments they use to check pupils’ learning. Currently, these assessments do not always give teachers useful information about how best to help pupils.

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Main findings

 In September 2020, leaders took steps to broaden the curriculum. As a result, all pupils now study a wide range of subjects until the end of Year 9. You told us that this additional time allows pupils to learn subjects in more depth. Consequently, pupils will be better prepared for the courses they study in Year 10 and Year 11.

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Main findings

 You and other leaders take effective action to provide support for vulnerable pupils. As part of your plan to support pupils back to school, you identified pupils who would benefit from additional support. Some pupils in Year 7, for instance, are working with a sports mentor. This support is helping these pupils to adapt to the routines of school.

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Main findings

 Pupils in Year 11 continue to receive helpful advice and guidance about their futures. They value this support. All pupils, for example, have met with an independent career’s adviser. As a result, pupils are knowledgeable about the steps they need to take to pursue the careers they are interested in.

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Main findings

 Pupils with the most complex needs are well supported. Leaders ensure that teachers know the needs of these pupils. Leaders also train staff in how to meet pupils’ needs. As a result, teachers are becoming better at making appropriate adaptions to their lessons.

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Main findings

 Governors understand their roles well. Trustees ensure that members of the Schools Standards Committee have the skills and knowledge to carry out their roles effectively. The committee members focus sharply on the quality of education and hold leaders to account well. For example, governors questioned leaders about how they were meeting the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) during the latest lockdown. As a result of governors’ questions, leaders took swift action to strengthen the provision for pupils with SEND.

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Main findings

 The trust provides effective support in the current circumstances. Trust leaders support curriculum leaders in developing their knowledge of the features of a high-quality curriculum. This support is helping curriculum leaders to continue to improve the quality of education.

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Evidence

This inspection was conducted remotely. We spoke to you, other senior leaders, the chief executive officer of the Community Academies Trust, pupils, staff and the chair of the board of trustees to discuss leaders’ actions to provide education to all pupils during a national lockdown. We also scrutinised a range of documents, including curriculum plans and minutes of governors’ meetings. We looked at responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, including 15 free-text responses, and 31 staff questionnaires.

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Evidence

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

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