Dogsthorpe Academy

Inspection of Dogsthorpe Academy Central Avenue, Dogsthorpe, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE1 4LH

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 February 2023

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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 Previous inspection grade Good 21–22 February 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

At Dogsthorpe Academy, pupils’ horizons are broadened by a range of experiences. Trips and visitors to the school are well considered and enhance the curriculum experience for pupils. Examples are the ‘lift-off’ activities to start a new topic of learning and the ‘let’s connect’ production on mental health. Pupils take part in sport clubs and activities such as gardening club. Trips such as that to an interactive indoor city prepare pupils for the world of work.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils are positive about this school. They usually get on well with each other. Pupils say that they are usually safe in school, although bullying happens. On occasions, pupils choose not to report it because they accept and expect it as a normal part of their lives at school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

While most pupils know how they should behave, a significant minority of pupils disrupt learning for themselves and others. Leaders’ expectations of how pupils should behave are not high enough.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils do not achieve as well as they should. This is because leaders have not ensured that the knowledge that pupils need to learn is delivered well and as they planned.

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better?

Leaders have ensured that clear curriculum plans are in place for all subjects. These overarchingly set out what pupils need to learn over time in every year group.

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better?

In a few areas of the curriculum, leaders have a clear understanding of what pupils need to learn and how it needs to be delivered. Where this is the case, for example in reading and physical education (PE), leaders support teachers to deliver the curriculum well. Teachers plan appropriate activities that enable pupils to build on their knowledge securely. However, in other areas of the curriculum, teachers are less clear about how to deliver the curriculum as leaders intend. Consequently, activities in lessons do not teach the knowledge that pupils need. Therefore, pupils’ knowledge is not routinely secure before they move on to new learning.

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better?

Leaders have made reading a focus for the school, especially since the pandemic. Opportunities for pupils to read are planned throughout the curriculum. Leaders and teachers choose engaging texts, and pupils are enthusiastic about reading. Important words are introduced and frequently revisited, so that pupils widen their range of vocabulary.

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better?

Leaders regularly check how well pupils can read. Leaders use what they find out to identify additional support for pupils who struggle to learn to read. This helps these pupils to become more fluent and accurate readers. 21–22 February 2023

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not achieve as well as they should. Leaders have focused on pupils with education, health and care plans. Provision for these pupils with SEND is clear and assessed regularly. However, the work to identify accurately pupils who need support and to consider how they access the curriculum successfully is in its early stages of being put in place. There is a significant proportion of pupils with SEND who are not supported well enough. Teachers do not routinely consider the changes they need to make to ensure that pupils with SEND access the same learning as others. As a result, the provision for pupils with SEND is variable and less successful.

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Pupils’ learning is too often disrupted by the poor behaviour of others. Leaders have not established high enough expectations for how pupils should behave. Leaders react to pupils’ misbehaviour rather than adopting clear and consistent approaches that teach pupils how to behave. Pupils do not always treat each other and staff with respect. Although leaders are trying to improve the culture of behaviour, this work is in its early stages.

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Leaders have ensured that an appropriately broad and ambitious personal, social and health education (PSHE) curriculum is in place. However, the teaching of this does not secure pupils’ depth of knowledge and understanding about how this should be applied in their day-to-day lives. Pupils do not routinely show respect and empathy for others and for those who are different from themselves. As a result, pupils are not sufficiently well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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The trust monitors progress and provides support. It checks the key aspects of the school, such as the quality of the curriculum and behaviour. It is aware that these are not good enough. It is holding leaders to account in order to secure improvements.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and teachers have strong relationships with families. They have established safeguarding systems that are well understood by all and followed correctly. All staff know how to identify pupils who may need help. Staff receive regular training to help them identify and support pupils at risk. Leaders have appointed a safeguarding team whose members understand what pupils need. They work closely with other professionals, parents and carers and families to support them.

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Safeguarding

The curriculum content ensures that pupils are taught how to stay safe. Pupils know about the dangers of going online and how to reduce risk. 21–22 February 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Subject leaders have not ensured that they have considered how teachers deliver the curriculum as they intend. This results in inconsistencies across the curriculum and pupils not knowing what they need to do in order to remember more. Leaders must ensure that subject leaders receive the appropriate training so they know how to help teachers to deliver the curriculum well enough to ensure that pupils achieve consistently well across the curriculum.  The systems for identifying and adapting the curriculum for pupils with SEND is in its early stages of implementation. These pupils are not routinely well supported and are unable to access the curriculum fully. Teachers do not make sufficient adaptations to ensure that pupils with SEND achieve well. Leaders need to ensure that the knowledge they want pupils to learn is carefully considered, so that teachers know how to adapt the curriculum and deploy the support

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

appropriately, so that pupils with SEND are able to access successfully the same curriculum offer as their peers.  Too many pupils do not behave well enough. There is no shared and understood approach to managing behaviour. This results in disruption that is not dealt with consistently and effectively. Leaders need to establish and implement a consistent and well-understood approach that pupils and staff follow to ensure that pupils understand the expectations of how they should behave.  The PSHE curriculum has not been adapted to meet the needs of pupils at Dogsthorpe Academy. As a result, pupils do not understand the content of this fully and do not routinely apply it to their day-to-day lives as they should. Leaders need to identify the key knowledge that pupils must learn and ensure that this is taught effectively, so that pupils apply this to their own behaviour and conduct.

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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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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school. 21–22 February 2023

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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. 21–22 February 2023

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Date of previous inspection

14 and 15 June 2017, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Dogsthorpe Academy joined Greenwood Academies Trust in 2014.  The school uses three registered alternative provisions.  T he school operates before- and after-school provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded 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 with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with the principal, senior leaders, curriculum leaders, and the SEND coordinator.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, PE and geography. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning 21–22 February 2023

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and looked at samples of pupils’ work. They visited the library and heard pupils read.  Inspectors met with the chief executive officer and education director of the trust and spoke to a member of the board of trustees.  The lead inspector spoke to leaders at the alternative provision used by the school.  Inspectors met with groups of pupils. They observed pupils’ behaviour in lessons and at other times around the school. Inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View and responses to the pupil and staff questionnaires.  Inspectors also considered the views of staff, pupils and parents through discussions during the inspection.  The inspectors met with leaders and reviewed school documents relating to safeguarding, behaviour and attendance. Documents relating to the school’s strategic planning were also sampled.  Inspectors held a series of meetings with leaders and pupils to discuss the school’s safeguarding arrangements. They scrutinised a range of records relating

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to safeguarding, behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

Steve Woodley, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Shan Oswald Ofsted Inspector 21–22 February 2023

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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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