Brinsworth Academy

Inspection of a good school: Brinsworth Academy Brinsworth Road, Brinsworth, Rotherham, South Yorkshire S60 5EJ

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Outcome

Brinsworth Academy continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

There is a tangible warmth and friendliness at this highly inclusive school. Pupils are supported to ‘achieve excellence’. Teachers care for pupils and have their best interests at heart. Parents agree. They say that this a kind school where staff go the extra mile to help their child. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. Leaders ensure that all pupils can access the broad curriculum that they have developed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders regularly seek the views of pupils, staff, parents and the wider community. They believe that working together brings about a stronger and more tolerant society. The recent ‘Academy Community Together’ (ACT) approach is strengthening these relationships.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Most pupils behave well in lessons. There is little disruption to learning. Pupils enjoy socialising with their friends at lunchtimes. Leaders know that there are still occasions when some pupils hear derogatory language. Leaders have consulted with stakeholders, including parents and pupils, to help strengthen the school’s behaviour strategy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders ensure that pupils have a wide range of enrichment opportunities available. These develop pupils’ respect, responsibility and resilience, which are known in the school as the ‘three Rs’. Pupils value the sports clubs on offer and speak highly of the computing facilities. At the time of the inspection, some pupils were taking part in a nationally sponsored on-site Anne Frank exhibition. Pupil ambassadors spoke confidently to visiting primary pupils and other visitors about her life and the need to challenge all forms of prejudice and discrimination.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Leaders are highly ambitious for all pupils. They have designed a curriculum that considers the interests and aspirations of pupils. Leaders have thought carefully about 2 and 3 February 2022

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what they want pupils to learn. Curriculum planning considers the important subject- specific knowledge that leaders intend pupils to know and remember. This knowledge is carefully sequenced so that it builds over time. There are planned opportunities for pupils to revisit what they have learned before. This helps them to learn the knowledge that leaders have identified. In most subjects, the school’s curriculum matches the breadth and scope of the national curriculum. However, there are a few subjects at key stage 3 where the planned curriculum does not cover some aspects of the subject in sufficient depth.

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Pupils with SEND are well supported. Leaders know pupils well. Plans to support pupils with SEND identify their needs. These plans detail appropriate strategies to support pupils with their behavioural and emotional needs. Teachers and teaching assistants work together to ensure that all pupils can access the curriculum. However, some plans do not have sufficient information about how to help pupils achieve well academically. Some pupils with additional needs attend the additional resource, ‘R-block’. These pupils are well supported to engage fully with their learning and so pupils flourish.

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Leaders quickly identify those pupils who struggle with reading. Pupils are helped to develop their comprehension and reading fluency. Curriculum planning clearly sets out the subject-specific language that leaders want pupils to be able to use. There is a focus on developing pupils’ literacy skills across the school. However, the support for the very few pupils who are at the earliest stages of reading is not as well focused as it could be on cracking the phonics code. This means that those pupils do not learn to read as quickly as they could.

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Pupils at key stage 4 choose from a wide range of subjects. Leaders check that pupils are making suitably ambitious choices. However, only a small proportion of pupils study the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) subjects. Leaders have plans in place to make the EBacc the heart of the curriculum at key stage 4, while continuing to offer the breadth of subjects they have identified for pupils. Careers guidance is embedded into the personal, social, health and economic education curriculum. Pupils are given clear information to help them to choose their next steps. They are given opportunities to meet with a range of employers.

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Leaders provide for pupils’ wider development. There are weekly ethics lessons for all pupils, including those in sixth form. The school’s ACT approach strengthens the wider curriculum offer. Pupils are taught how to keep themselves safe, including online. However, leaders have correctly identified that some pupils do not have sufficient knowledge of different faiths. This is because in the past, this has not been prioritised. A new key stage 3 religious studies and worldviews curriculum is in place to address this ongoing area of development.

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Most pupils behave well at this school. Lessons are calm and purposeful. Pupils focus on learning. They move around the school sensibly. Pupils enjoy talking with their friends at social times. For most pupils, this is a happy school where pupils behave respectfully to each other. However, occasionally, a few pupils hear derogatory language. Leaders are tackling this. They have consulted widely with staff, pupils and parents as well as 2 and 3 February 2022

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governors. This collaborative approach has driven refinements to the behaviour policy, which is in the process of being implemented.

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Leaders are supportive of staff well-being. Leaders regularly seek staff feedback through surveys and wider discussions. They consider staff workload and, where they can, make adjustments. Staff who are new to teaching say that they are well supported. They benefit from the training that they receive. Senior leaders at governance and trust level work together to challenge leaders to drive further school improvement. There is a real sense of partnership working in order to continually improve the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have a good understanding of the local risks that pupils may face. They ensure that staff know the signs that a child may be at risk of harm. Training programmes ensure that staff knowledge is up to date. Staff know how to report concerns. Safeguarding concerns are dealt with thoroughly.

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Safeguarding

Safeguarding records are strong. Leaders work closely with local safeguarding partners and external agencies, such as the police, when necessary. Referrals to the local authority are made promptly. Leaders monitor bullying records carefully. They take decisive action when necessary. Pupils are kept safe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few subjects, the planned curriculum does not detail subject knowledge in sufficient depth to match the scope of the national curriculum. This means pupils miss out on some important knowledge. Leaders should review the curriculum for key stage three in these subjects to ensure that it prepares pupils as well as possible for their next steps.  The support for the very few pupils at the earliest stages of reading is not focused intensively on securing their phonics knowledge. This means that they do not catch up as quickly as they should with their peers. Leaders should ensure that the programme of support enables those pupils to learn to read with fluency and confidence.  Historically, the curriculum has not enabled pupils to develop a strong knowledge of different religious and non-religious world views. A revised curriculum has been recently implemented. Leaders should ensure that they make appropriate checks to

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

ensure that the new curriculum is having the impact they intend in enabling pupils to develop this important area of knowledge. 2 and 3 February 2022

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called a section 8 inspection of a good or outstanding school, because it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on a section 8 inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a section 5 inspection. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the section 8 inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the section 8 inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in June 2012.

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How can I feed back my views?

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. 2 and 3 February 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10211581 Type of school Secondary

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provision

Number of pupils on the school roll 1517

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form

Date of previous inspection 21 March 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the last inspection, in 2017, there have been significant changes to the leadership. Since the principal joined the school in 2019, a new vice-principal and four other senior leaders have also taken up post. Since 2019, 10 new middle leaders have been appointed.  Since the school joined the Learner Engagement and Achievement Partnership multi- academy trust, significant changes to governance arrangements have been implemented. This included a new chair of trustees, additional trustees and a number of new governors appointed. Also, a new chief executive of the trust has been appointed. The current chief executive was previously one of the joint headteachers of Brinsworth Academy, then trust executive principal, before taking up the position of trust chief executive. 2 and 3 February 2022

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 A small number of pupils attend alternative provision. The school uses ASPIRE Pupil Referral Unit (PRU), Rowan PRU and Newman School. These are registered alternative education providers in Rotherham.  The school operates an on-site resourced provision for pupils with moderate learning difficulties. This unit has places for 20 pupils.  The school meets the requirements of the Baker clause, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors spoke with principal, vice-principal and other senior leaders, including the special educational needs coordinator. Inspectors spoke with the chief executive office of the LEAP multi-academy trust.  Inspectors met with representatives from the board of trustees, including the chair of the trust, and representatives from the local governing board, including the chair.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in English, science, history and music and performance. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders and reviewed their curriculum planning. They visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors also looked at wider curriculum documentation from modern foreign languages, mathematics, geography and physical education.  In order to inspect safeguarding, inspectors checked the single central records, scrutinised records relating to safeguarding and spoke to staff about their safeguarding training.  Inspectors spoke with early careers teachers and their mentors.  Inspectors spoke to groups of pupils, including a single-sex group of pupils and observed social times. Inspectors observed behaviour in lessons and visited the ‘consequences room’ and the ‘restorative room’.  Inspectors considered the views of pupils, staff and parents through surveys, including Ofsted Parent View.

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Inspection team

Eleanor Belfield, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Zoe Helman Her Majesty’s Inspector Joe Barton Ofsted Inspector 2 and 3 February 2022

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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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