Shevington High School

Inspection of a good school: Shevington High School Shevington Lane, Shevington, Wigan, Lancashire WN6 8AB

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Outcome

Shevington High School continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud to be part of this welcoming community. Pupils work hard and take advantage of the many opportunities offered to them by the leaders and teachers. Pupils are polite and respectful towards each other and adults. Pupils’ behaviour matches the high expectations of their teachers. In lessons, pupils listen, join in enthusiastically when invited by their teacher and concentrate thoroughly on their work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils told inspectors that they feel safe when they are in school. Pupils respect each other’s differences. They enjoy strong relationships with each other and with staff. Pupils are confident that if any bullying were to happen, teachers would sort it out quickly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders and governors are ambitious for all pupils. They have a clear vision for the school. They have been innovative in how pupils make use of information technology in their learning. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), progress well through the curriculum.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely restricted opportunities to take part in enrichment activities. However, leaders are now encouraging all pupils to enjoy the wide range of team games, clubs, societies and school visits available. Many pupils are responding eagerly.

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

Leaders, including governors, have ensured that all pupils, including those with SEND, have access to a suitably broad and ambitious curriculum. For example, leaders have promoted the study of modern foreign languages by introducing Mandarin into the curriculum, alongside European languages. This enables pupils to achieve well.

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

Subject leaders have designed curriculums well. They have thought carefully about the order in which content should be taught so that pupils can build their knowledge over time. However, the curriculum structure in a small number of subjects in key stage 3 15 and 16 March 2022

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inhibits pupils’ learning. This is because pupils are not able to deepen their understanding of essential concepts sufficiently well.

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Teachers have secure subject knowledge. This helps them to deliver curriculums well across the school. Teachers explain concepts clearly to pupils. Pupils are adept at using technology to access and use the well-designed resources provided by teachers. Teachers make sure that they recap important learning. This helps pupils to remember what they have learned previously.

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Teachers use effective strategies to check that pupils have learned the intended curriculum. Assessment information is used well by teachers to identify misconceptions and to adapt the curriculum to cover any gaps in learning. Pupils value the feedback that they receive, which helps them to improve their work.

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Around the school, pupils are polite and well-mannered. Lessons take place without disruption. Pupils’ positive attitudes support their learning across a range of subjects.

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Leaders identify the needs of pupils with SEND accurately. Teachers use the information that leaders provide to support pupils with SEND to learn well. This effective support helps these pupils to progress through the same ambitious subject curriculums as their peers.

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Leaders have robust systems to identify pupils whose reading knowledge is weak when they join the school. These systems enable leaders to pinpoint and remedy the specific problems that individual pupils face in reading. This support helps most pupils to become more confident and fluent readers. Leaders have introduced several schemes to encourage all pupils to read for pleasure. As a result, a stronger reading culture is developing across the school.

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Leaders have a well-planned personal development curriculum in place. The curriculum provides pupils with opportunities to learn about and discuss a wide range of issues. Pupils told inspectors that they find the topics covered in the curriculum relevant to their present and future needs. For example, pupils learn about relationships, sex and health matters and equality issues. They also find out about more practical issues, such as financial budgeting.

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Pupils receive effective and age-appropriate careers education, information, advice and guidance. They receive independent careers advice. Added to this, former pupils provide useful information about their career paths to current pupils.

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Staff appreciate how leaders and governors protect them from an excessive workload. Governors are well informed and give a lot of their time to support and challenge school leaders and to improve further the quality of education. 15 and 16 March 2022

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong safeguarding culture across the school. Leaders ensure that safeguarding training for staff is thorough. There are frequent updates for staff throughout the school year. As a result, staff know how to spot the signs that may indicate that pupils are at risk. Staff share their concerns in a timely manner. Leaders work well with external agencies to ensure that pupils and their families get the help that they need.

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Safeguarding

Pupils are well informed about the potential dangers that they may encounter either in the community or online. They learn how to keep themselves safe through the personal development curriculum and through assemblies.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The curriculum structure for a small minority of subjects in key stage 3 hampers pupils’ learning. This is because pupils are not able to cover some topics in sufficient depth. As a result, they do not learn essential knowledge as securely as they should. Leaders should review the curriculum structure for these subjects to ensure that pupils gain the same rich body of knowledge in these curriculum areas as they do in others.

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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 first section 8 inspection since we judged the school to be good in January 2017. 15 and 16 March 2022

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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. 15 and 16 March 2022

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School details

Website https://www.shevingtonhigh.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 10 January 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 A small number of pupils attend alternative provision at two alternative providers.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection that 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 held meetings with governors, the headteacher, senior leaders and subject leaders.  The lead inspector spoke with a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors reviewed the school’s records of safeguarding checks and referrals to the local authority. Inspectors spoke with staff about how they keep pupils safe. Inspectors also asked the pupils how they keep themselves safe and what to do if they have concerns.  Inspectors held discussions with staff and considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. 15 and 16 March 2022

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 Inspectors spoke with pupils from all year groups and considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.  Inspectors considered the views of the parents and carers who responded to Ofsted Parent View. This included the free-text responses.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in English, science, history, and design and technology. Inspectors met with subject leaders to discuss curriculums, visited lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also reviewed curriculums and pupils’ work from some other subjects.

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Inspection team

Timothy Gartside, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Philip Wood Ofsted Inspector 15 and 16 March 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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