Carre's Grammar School

Inspection of Carre's Grammar School Northgate, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 7DD

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Inadequate Sixth-form provision Good Previous inspection grade Good 21 and 22 June 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe and happy in the school. However, some of the actions taken by leaders leave some pupils vulnerable and at risk. They have not ensured that safeguarding systems are as robust as they could be.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy coming to school. Attendance is high and pupils are punctual. Most pupils agree that teachers help them and challenge them in lessons. Not all pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) get the precise support they need to help them learn as well as they could.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Expectations of pupils are high. Teachers want pupils to become resilient and independent in their approach to study. This is achieved by most pupils by the time they finish key stage 4.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Students in the sixth form benefit from a well-planned programme of study. There are plenty of opportunities for them to develop leadership skills, including organising and being members of the whole school student council. Students at the sixth form are well prepared for further or higher education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say there are incidents of bullying and name calling. They are confident that teachers deal with this and that it is not tolerated. The behaviour around the school is calm and orderly.

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better?

Trustees and senior leaders have been aware for a while that some of the processes and systems to safeguard pupils are not robust enough. Leaders have not acted quickly enough to remedy identified weaknesses. Leaders have not checked the effectiveness of safeguarding systems. The systems and processes have deteriorated over time leaving some pupils at risk. Staff responsible for safeguarding are over stretched. Leaders have not taken enough responsibility for pupils who are on the school roll but receive education elsewhere.

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better?

Subject leaders have identified ambitious aims that they want pupils to achieve in their subject. In some subjects, the knowledge that allows pupils to achieve these aims is not well enough identified. When this is the case, teachers do not explicitly teach the precise knowledge that would enable pupils to meet these aims. In these subjects, some pupils find it difficult to achieve the ambitious aims that are set out.

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better?

Teachers have good subject knowledge. Many have undertaken relevant professional development and training. This helps some of them develop their teaching, so they can help pupils know and remember more. Teachers often select appropriate activities to support pupils’ learning. There are still occasions when teachers do not use assessment well enough to check what pupils know. Therefore, teachers are not 21 and 22 June 2022

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always identifying accurately the next steps in pupils’ learning. This leaves some pupils with gaps in their knowledge.

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Leaders have developed a ‘nurture pathway’ for some pupils in key stage 4. The pathway provides extra English lessons, which focus on the key knowledge pupils need to access the English curriculum. There is also a reading support programme that helps pupils, who are below their chronological reading age, to become better readers.

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‘Pupil profiles’, which identify needs and targets for pupils with SEND, are in the early stage of development. There has been training to equip staff with an understanding of pupils’ different needs. This has led to pockets of effective practice in some subjects. The support that teachers give to pupils with SEND is too variable. Some pupils with SEND do not use the aids and resources they need to support their learning. This is because they do not want to appear different to their peers.

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Students in the sixth form are extremely positive about the high-quality education they receive. They value the support they get from their teachers. They have positive attitudes to learning and are committed to their studies. There are three types of study rooms for students to choose to work in. These are: the silent room; quiet room and the discussion room. Students use these spaces well for independent study.

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The school has a clear curriculum programme that promotes the wider personal development of pupils. This includes workshops, form time, and assemblies. Year 7 pupils benefit from dedicated lessons in citizenship. This demonstrates leaders have considered opportunities for pupils to develop an understanding of relationships education, British values and careers. Nevertheless, this is not consistently well embedded. Pupils do not have a deep understanding of some aspects of British values and relationships education. Pupils enjoy extra-curricular activities, including sporting clubs. The school council make contributions that lead to positive changes of the experience for pupils within the school.

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Staff feel well supported by leaders. They feel leaders consider their workload and well-being when making decisions. All staff are proud to work at this school. Leaders’ communication with parents is effective. The vast majority of parents would recommend this school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have not ensured that the culture of safeguarding at this school is underpinned by robust processes and systems. Record keeping is not detailed. Safeguarding information is stored in too many places. It is difficult for leaders to quickly identify all the actions that have been taken to safeguard pupils. 21 and 22 June 2022

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The lack of oversight and checks from senior leaders means that some of the actions taken by staff responsible for safeguarding are not appropriate. Leaders do not focus sharply on mitigating identified safeguarding risks.

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Staff have been trained to be vigilant and report any concerns to safeguarding leaders.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Senior leaders have not ensured that safeguarding processes and systems are robust enough. Some of the decisions made to safeguard pupils are not appropriate. There is a lack of oversight and assurance checks from senior leaders. Some pupils are left at risk. Senior leaders must ensure that the culture of safeguarding is underpinned by robust systems and procedures, and that they are checked regularly. They must also ensure staff have the capacity to carry out their safeguarding duties.  Safeguarding records are not as detailed as they could be. Records of incidents are held in too many different places. Chronologies are incomplete and do not give a true picture of the actions taken to safeguard pupils. Leaders must ensure that the safeguarding team can access all the relevant information for vulnerable pupils and that the information is clear, accurate and up to date.  Leaders have identified the aims they want pupils to achieve in each subject. The

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

most important knowledge that builds towards these aims is not always identified. In some subjects, teachers do not teach this knowledge clearly and, as a result, not all pupils achieve these aims. Leaders must ensure that the most important knowledge that builds towards curriculum aims is identified in each subject.  Some teachers in certain subjects do not use assessment meaningfully to check what pupils know or to help pupils embed important knowledge. Leaders must ensure that assessment is used consistently well by all teachers in all subjects. This is so that any gaps that may emerge in pupils’ knowledge can be addressed.  Leaders have not ensured that teachers access and use available information about pupils with SEND precisely enough. As a result, not all teachers support pupils with SEND well enough. Leaders must ensure that all teachers meet the needs of pupils with SEND and they feel confident using aids and resources,

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

which will help them achieve as well as other pupils.  Some aspects of the personal development curriculum, such as fundamental British values and relationships education, are planned but not well embedded. Some pupils do not develop a secure and age-appropriate understanding of these aspects of the curriculum. Leaders must ensure the personal development offer allows pupils to gain an understanding of age-appropriate relationships education and fundamental British values. 21 and 22 June 2022

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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. 21 and 22 June 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10227825 Type of school Grammar (selective)

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sixth form

Date of previous inspection 14 March 2022

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Information about this school

 Carre’s Grammar School is a part of the Robert Carre Trust.  The school’s sixth form curriculum is delivered as part of a partnership arrangement with two other local schools. These schools are Kesteven and Sleaford High School and St George's Academy. This partnership is known as the Sleaford Joint Sixth Form.  The school uses an unregistered alternative provider.  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 qualifications and apprenticeships. 21 and 22 June 2022

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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 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in English, geography, computing and mathematics. For each deep dive, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited lessons, spoke to teachers and pupils and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors visited a range of lessons in other subjects and looked at curriculum plans.  Inspectors met with leaders responsible for behaviour, personal development, the use of the pupil premium, the sixth form, nurture provision, reading, and the provision for pupils with SEND.  Inspectors observed break and lunchtimes and spoke to pupils informally.  Inspectors met with groups of pupils to discuss their experiences in school.  The lead inspector met with the designated safeguarding leaders to discuss the

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Information about this inspection

actions taken to keep pupils safe. He reviewed a range of documents, including the school’s single central record.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation and schools’ development plan.  The lead inspector met with representatives of the trust and members of the local academy board.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, and the responses to the Ofsted staff and pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Rakesh Patel, lead inspector Her Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Karen Hayes Ofsted Inspector 21 and 22 June 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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