The Long Eaton School

Inspection of The Long Eaton School Thoresby Road, Long Eaton, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG10 3NP

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Inspection dates: 14 and 15 September 2021

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Sixth-form provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Good 14 and 15 September 2021

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils enjoy coming to school. They know their teachers want them to do well. Many pupils feel well supported. Some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not get the help they need.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils are polite and manage their behaviour well. However, in some lessons, pupils’ learning is disrupted by others. Too many boys and disadvantaged pupils are excluded from school for a short period of time due to poor behaviour. These same groups of pupils do not attend school as well as they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils say they feel safe in school. However, some pupils experience bullying, including incidents of homophobia. They do not always tell someone about it when it happens. They are not confident that all staff will deal with it effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have introduced strategies to improve pupils’ behaviour and promote respect. New curriculum and pastoral leaders are beginning to have a positive impact. The school is going through a period of significant change. These changes are recent, but most pupils think that the school is improving.

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better?

Leaders are reviewing their curriculum plans. They are making sure that these plans focus precisely on what pupils need to know and when. In music, for instance, pupils learn about vocalisation in Year 7 and then build on this knowledge in Year 8 when they study the Blues. In history, leaders have thought carefully about the content of the curriculum and the order in which it is taught. Leaders have planned an ambitious curriculum in English. They have identified the key knowledge and skills that pupils should learn over time.

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better?

Leaders’ work to improve the curriculum is not consistent in every subject. In science, leaders have not thought carefully enough about the order of the curriculum. Leaders have not considered how to identify and plug any gaps in pupils’ knowledge due to the impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus). Some pupils do not have the scientific knowledge they need to move to the next stage.

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better?

In Spanish, teachers have good subject knowledge. However, the curriculum does not identify clearly enough what pupils need to know and when, so that they can build on their prior knowledge and achieve their potential. Some pupils, particularly those with SEND, lack confidence in their ability to learn Spanish. They do not get the help they need to know more and remember more of the curriculum.

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better?

In other subjects too, pupils with SEND do not always get the right support. Leaders do not check how well teachers use information about these pupils’ needs to help them make progress through the curriculum. In the enhanced resource unit, pupils with SEND are well supported by staff. However, the help they get in other lessons is inconsistent. Some parents of children with SEND are positive about the support that 14 and 15 September 2021

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their children get. However, others are frustrated that their children do not gain the knowledge and skills they need to be successful.

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Leaders identify pupils who struggle to read well. Well-trained staff make sure that reading books closely match these pupils’ reading abilities. With the right help, these pupils read with increasing fluency, confidence and understanding.

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Pupils sometimes disrupt other’s learning. Too many pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and boys, are excluded from school for a fixed period due to their poor behaviour. A new approach to managing pupils’ poor behaviour is beginning to have an impact. Pupils settle well in most lessons and the site is calm during social times. Some staff do not have high-enough expectations of how pupils should behave.

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The programme to support pupils’ personal development, including their careers education, is in the early stages of implementation. The school has plans in place to ensure that it will meet the requirements of the Baker Clause. Pupils learn what it means to be British and how to become responsible citizens. However, some pupils experience discrimination from their peers, particularly due to their sexuality.

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Students enjoy their sixth-form experience. They get on well with each other and staff. Students study courses that meet their interests and aspirations. They benefit from their teachers’ strong subject knowledge. Those students who need to gain GCSE qualifications in English and mathematics are not always successful. Year 13 students do not attend as well as those in Year 12.

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Since the school joined Archway Learning Trust, trust and senior leaders have prioritised quickly the most urgent tasks to bring about much-needed improvements. The pastoral team has been restructured to help improve behaviour and attendance. Staff have already benefited from training to improve their practice. However, some new and existing leaders do not have the knowledge and skills necessary to carry out their roles effectively. Staff are very positive about recent changes. They are keen to work with leaders to move the school forward.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff know that safeguarding is the responsibility of everyone. They know the risks that pupils face, including those in the local community from county lines gangs. Staff refer any concerns promptly, knowing that leaders will act.

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Safeguarding

The designated safeguarding lead and other safeguarding team members are well trained. Leaders work closely with local safeguarding partners when necessary so that pupils quickly get the help they need.

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Safeguarding

Some safeguarding records lack precision. The trust has already identified this as an issue and is taking action to improve the quality of record-keeping. 14 and 15 September 2021

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some teachers do not consider the needs of pupils with SEND well enough when planning and delivering the curriculum. These pupils do not achieve well enough because they do not get the right support. Leaders must check that teachers make effective use of information about pupils’ needs so that these pupils experience an ambitious curriculum that allows them to be successful.  Leaders have not ensured that a culture of mutual respect and inclusivity permeates the school. Some pupils experience bullying, including homophobia. Not all pupils feel confident to report concerns to an adult. When concerns are reported, they are not always resolved. Leaders must ensure that there is an open culture of respect, where pupils feel confident to report their concerns, knowing that they will be taken seriously and dealt with effectively.  Leaders have not ensured that the curriculum meets the needs of pupils well

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

enough. Some pupils do not engage well with their learning and behave poorly. Teachers’ expectations of how pupils should behave are not consistent. Too many pupils are excluded from school, particularly boys and disadvantaged pupils. Leaders need to ensure that pupils at risk of exclusion follow an appropriate curriculum and are given the right support, so that exclusions reduce.  In some subjects, such as science, curriculum plans do not take into account the gaps in pupils’ learning. Pupils do not develop sufficient knowledge and skills in science. Leaders need to ensure that ambitious curriculum plans are planned and implemented consistently well in each subject. They should make sure that teachers check what pupils know and modify their plans to fill any gaps identified.  Some new and existing leaders do not have the knowledge and skills necessary to carry out their roles effectively. They do not have a precise-enough understanding

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

of what is working well in their area of responsibility and what needs to improve. Senior leaders and the trust need to provide leaders at all levels with the right training and support to be able to lead their areas of responsibility and be effective in their roles.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View 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 . 14 and 15 September 2021

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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. 14 and 15 September 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10199575 Type of school Secondary comprehensive

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provision

Number of pupils on the school roll 1053

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sixth form

Website http://www.longeaton.derbyshire.sch.uk/

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sixth form

Date of previous inspection 8 December 2015, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 In February 2021, the school joined Archway Learning Trust.  In January 2020, the principal joined the school on a temporary basis. His position became substantive in March 2021.  Since the school joined Archway Learning Trust, there has been a significant restructure of staff. Many leaders have changed roles.  The school has a specially resourced provision for pupils with autism spectrum disorder. At the time of the inspection, 11 pupils were attending this provision. These pupils attend lessons with other pupils in school, as well as receiving specialist support in the provision.  The school uses three registered alternative providers. These are Derby Pride Academy, R.E.A.L. Education, and the Amber Valley and Erewash Support Centre. 14 and 15 September 2021

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Information about this inspection

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

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school leaders, and have taken that into account in their evaluation.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors met with the principal, the special educational needs coordinator, the head of sixth form and other senior leaders.  The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding lead and looked at documentation relating to safeguarding, the school’s system for recruiting staff and the school’s single central record. Inspectors spoke with staff and pupils about safeguarding.  Inspectors did deep dives in five subjects: English, science, history, Spanish and music. For each deep dive, inspectors met with curriculum leaders, visited lessons, looked at pupils’ workbooks, spoke with pupils and met with teachers of the lessons visited. On the second day of the inspection, inspectors visited lessons and reviewed curriculum plans in a wider range of subjects. Inspectors observed pupils reading to members of staff.  Inspectors met with groups of pupils from Years 8, 9, 10 and 11 and with some pupils with SEND. Inspectors spoke with a group of sixth-form students. They

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Information about this inspection

spoke with pupils informally and observed the behaviour of pupils during social times.  Inspectors met with a trustee, the chief executive officer, who is also a trustee, and other trust representatives, including a regional director.  An inspector spoke on the telephone to representatives of two of the school’s alternative providers.  An inspector met with mentors of teachers who are new to the teaching profession.  Inspectors took into account the 134 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, including 106 free-text responses. They also considered the 30 responses to the staff survey and 223 responses to the pupil survey.  The inspection team reviewed a range of documentation, including the school’s self-evaluation curriculum plans and information about pupils’ attendance, behaviour and exclusions.

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Inspection team

Rachel Tordoff, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Alison Davies Ofsted Inspector 14 and 15 September 2021

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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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