Manor Community Academy

Inspection of Manor Community Academy Owton Manor Lane, Hartlepool, Teesside TS25 3PS

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Inspection dates: 22 and 23 September 2021

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 22 and 23 September 2021

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff have high expectations of pupils. The school’s curriculum is increasingly ambitious and enables pupils to achieve well. More pupils are going on to study A levels and attend further education than has been the case in the past.

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What is it like to attend this school?

A number of pupils attend the school’s enrichment programme at the end of the school day. There is a strong reading culture. Many pupils enjoy reading and use the school library well. In subjects, pupils are encouraged to read more widely to enhance their wider knowledge. There is effective support for pupils who struggle with their reading.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils take pride in their work. They are confident to contribute to class discussions. Pupils were very proud to show inspectors their work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Incidents of poor behaviour have declined significantly. Many pupils behave well. However, although reducing, there are still too many incidents of poor behaviour leading to pupils being removed from lessons or receiving suspensions.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There are clear arrangements in place for pupils to report any worries to staff. However, some pupils do not feel confident to talk to staff if they have concerns about bullying or inappropriate language.

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better?

The school’s curriculum is ambitious for all pupils. More pupils now study subjects such as history, geography and modern foreign languages to GCSE level. The curriculum has been designed to build pupils’ knowledge of key concepts. Teachers ensure that what pupils have been taught is revisited regularly. This helps them to remember the most important subject knowledge. Pupils can make links between things they learn in different subjects. Most teachers regularly check that pupils have understood what they have been taught. In some subjects, such as history and religious education (RE), leaders are less clear about how pupils will use their subject knowledge to think and argue well.

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better?

Teachers use a wide range of information to plan the right support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teaching assistants provide effective support to these pupils in lessons.

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better?

Leaders place high importance on raising pupils’ career aspirations. Individual pupils are well supported in deciding their next steps, including pupils with SEND. The school meets the requirements of the Baker Clause. For instance, pupils have access to training providers and visit local employers to see a range of career opportunities.

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better?

The school has a comprehensive personal development programme. Pupils are taught a range of topics, including healthy relationships and the concept of ‘consent’, 22 and 23 September 2021

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in ‘Life’ lessons. Pupils value these lessons and say that they help them to prepare for later life.

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There is a wide range of enrichment opportunities. Leaders review and analyse attendance at enrichment clubs so that they can make sure that different groups of pupils are accessing these opportunities. They take feedback from pupils and consider how to improve access and uptake for all pupils.

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Leaders have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Incidents of poor behaviour, resulting in pupils being suspended or removed from lessons, have declined significantly in recent years. Many pupils behave well. Most pupils show positive attitudes towards their learning. However, a small number of pupils are repeatedly suspended from school and have not had the support they need to help them to improve their behaviour. Behaviour in corridors can be boisterous at times. Some pupils are unsettled by loud arguments between pupils or when staff raise their voices.

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Pupils’ attendance is improving due to the work of leaders. Despite this, a minority of pupils do not attend well and disadvantaged pupils are more likely to be regularly absent from school. Leaders are taking robust action to address this.

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Leaders have put systems in place so that pupils can report any worries or concerns. Even so, some pupils do not feel confident to tell an adult if they are being bullied or subjected to inappropriate racist or homophobic comments. Some pupils do not feel that staff deal with bullying well. Pupils know how to report issues of sexual harassment. However, some pupils told inspectors that they would not be confident to report this if it happened.

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Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the training they receive to develop the curriculum and their subject knowledge. Leaders consider staff’s well-being and workload. Most staff are proud to work at the school and feel well supported by senior leaders.

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Governors understand the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They have challenged leaders to improve the curriculum. They continue to challenge leaders to further improve pupils’ behaviour.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The school’s designated safeguarding leader works proactively with outside agencies to support pupils when they need help. The school’s resource base is used well to support vulnerable pupils. The curriculum helps pupils understand risks and how to keep themselves safe, both offline and online. Leaders understand local safeguarding risks and adapt the school’s ‘Life’ curriculum in response to these. 22 and 23 September 2021

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, such as history and RE, curriculum plans do not set out clearly the disciplinary knowledge that pupils must learn. This means that teachers do not have a consistently secure understanding of how this aspect of the subjects should be taught. Leaders should ensure that plans are reviewed in order that pupils are taught the disciplinary knowledge they need to achieve well.  Too many disadvantaged pupils do not attend school regularly. They miss out on important learning. Leaders should take their planned action to ensure that all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, attend school regularly.  Leaders do not consistently identify those pupils who need support with their behaviour. Some pupils do not get the help that they need to manage their behaviour. These pupils continue to disrupt some lessons. Leaders should ensure that they quickly identify those pupils who need support and help them to

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

improve their behaviour so that the number of pupils being removed from lessons and suspended from school continues to decline.  Some pupils do not feel confident to talk to an adult if they have any worries or concerns. Some pupils do not report bullying or when they are subjected to inappropriate language. Leaders need to ensure that all pupils feel confident to report bullying so that any incidents can be dealt with swiftly.

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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 .

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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. 22 and 23 September 2021

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School details

Inspection number 10200678 Type of school Secondary

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School details

Number of pupils on the school roll 1054

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School details

Date of previous inspection 21 and 22 February 2018

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Information about this school

 The school has specialist resourced provision for pupils with autism spectrum disorder.  The school is part of the Northern Education Trust.  The number of disadvantaged pupils is above the national average.  The school uses one unregistered alternative education provider: Bellvue Sports and Community Youth Centre.  The school uses three registered alternative education providers: ACE, which is part of another school in the trust, The Horizon School and East Durham College.

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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 school leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation. 22 and 23 September 2021

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 Inspectors met with senior leaders, including trust leaders, curriculum leaders and a range of staff. Meetings were held with the school’s designated safeguarding leader and leaders responsible for behaviour and attendance. The lead inspector met with the chair of the academy council, the chief executive officer and a trustee.  Inspectors scrutinised a number of documents relating to the school’s work to safeguard pupils. Inspectors spoke to a number of staff about the training they receive to keep pupils safe. The school’s single central record, which includes the checks made on staff, was reviewed.  Inspectors did deep dives in these subjects: English, history, design and technology, and science. Inspectors talked to pupils about their work, visited lessons, reviewed pupils’ work and talked to their teachers. Inspectors also looked at curriculum plans.  An inspector visited two alternative education providers used by the school.

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 The inspection team took account of the views of 47 members of staff and 83 pupils who responded to Ofsted’s survey. Inspectors also took into account the 33 responses to Ofsted’s parents’ survey, Parent View.

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Inspection team

Michele Costello, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Eleanor Belfield Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Jill Bowe Ofsted Inspector 22 and 23 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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