The Turing School

Inspection of The Turing School Larkspur Drive, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN23 8EJ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 6 and 7 June 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, parents and staff talk enthusiastically about significant improvements over the past few years. Leaders are passionately committed to the school’s core values of aspiration, respect, diversity and innovation. The curriculum provides pupils with many opportunities to engage in creativity, expand their cultural awareness and develop their understanding of different religions. However, leaders acknowledge that further work is needed to develop the curriculum and raise attendance.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school sets high expectations of pupil behaviour to ensure a purposeful learning environment. This supports pupils to learn and to achieve. Behaviour in lessons is mostly good, and low-level disruption is addressed quickly and effectively. Behaviour outside of lessons is calm and disciplined. Pupils are kind and supportive. They look after one another. There is a strong emphasis on celebration and praise.

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What is it like to attend this school?

An effective personal development programme supports pupils’ welfare, well-being and mental health. Enrichment and extra-curricular activities are extensive. Provision includes a wide range of clubs and activities, as well as university visits, field trips to Spain and an art trip to Paris. Pupils benefit significantly from the many additional opportunities available to them.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Aspirations are very high. Pupils are actively supported by a strong careers programme. The programme is strengthened by events, fairs and visiting speakers. Strong links with local colleges and universities highlight the advantages of further study. Work experience is valued and valuable. As a result of the provision, significant numbers of pupils continue their education post-16 at other schools and colleges.

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better?

The curriculum is carefully sequenced to be ambitious, developmental and hierarchical. Teachers have a thorough understanding of the sequence of learning in their subject. They can articulate the learning journey that pupils are making. Teachers are now much more focused on helping pupils to remember more through regular revisiting, retrieval starters and focused assessment.

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better?

The school has extremely high expectations for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Strong leadership in this area has ensured that vulnerable pupils are able to access the full range of provision. Pupils with SEND as well as disadvantaged pupils are fully supported in their learning. Higher prior attainers are known and encouraged through classroom activities and extension work.

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better?

Teachers’ subject knowledge is strong. They are passionate about their subjects. Pedagogical knowledge is used well to plan and deliver effective lessons. These lessons allow pupils to make progress given their starting points. Assessment is regular and supported with quality feedback. The school is resolutely focused on improving external examination results. Staffing is much more stable now. 6 and 7 June 2023

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The school has introduced a robust programme of initiatives to improve reading levels for all pupils. Some initiatives are new so not yet fully embedded. The school is working hard to improve pupils’ attitudes to reading, but some pupils say that they rarely read for pleasure. A programme of reading support is being piloted but gaps in reading ages are not always being addressed quickly enough.

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The take up of modern foreign languages is not high. As a result, the number of pupils taking the full English Baccalaureate is below government aspirations. There is insufficient evidence that this is being rigorously addressed. The school has not been quick enough to highlight the benefits and raise the profile of modern foreign languages.

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Overall, attendance remains a significant issue for the school. Leaders have worked with the national attendance strategy team and have adopted all recommendations. However, improvements have been severely hampered by the disproportionate number of pupils being admitted throughout the year. Many of these pupils join the school with previous poor attendance.

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Leaders are committed and determined to improve the quality of teaching and the skills of curriculum leaders. Curriculum leaders are supported through effective line management and well-focused professional development. Staff workload and well- being are carefully considered. Staff are proud to be part of the school and value their contributions to the school’s improvement.

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Governors are passionate and enthusiastic about the school. They know the school’s strengths and areas for improvement. Governors support and challenge the school in equal measures through meetings and visits. Trustees are similarly knowledgeable and actively engaged. They have been a driving force in the turnaround of the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The school has a secure, strong and well-established culture of safeguarding. Staff are suitably inducted, well trained and receive regular updates throughout the year. Staff know how to report safeguarding issues. Leaders have a coherent picture of the safeguarding needs of their local community.

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Safeguarding

Pupils feel safe and secure in the school environment. They all have an adult that they can talk to if they have a problem. Pupils are supported to keep themselves safe online and offline. Pupils have received training on harassment and consent. The safeguarding policy is detailed with all statutory requirements met. 6 and 7 June 2023

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Pupils’ reading skills, as well as their love of reading, are not yet fully developed and embedded across the whole school. This occasionally limits the breadth of their vocabulary and the depth of their writing. Leaders should identify and address any reading gaps quickly. They should ensure that pupils are encouraged to read more widely.  The uptake of modern foreign languages is not high enough. As a result, the number of pupils taking the full EBacc is below government aspirations. Leaders should continue their efforts to highlight the benefits and increase the uptake of modern foreign languages. They should ensure that the EBacc is at the heart of the curriculum in line with the Department for Education’s ambition.  Leaders have made some headway with improving attendance, but absences and persistent absences are still too high. As a result, a significant minority of pupils have missed too much of their learning. Leaders should ensure that strategies to

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

improve attendance are rigorously supported and further developed so attendance improves significantly.

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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.

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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. 6 and 7 June 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10267831 Type of school Secondary Comprehensive

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The Turing School is a well below average-sized 11-to-16 mixed school. The school is part of the Swale Academies Trust.  Eight pupils attend alternative provision, on a full-time or part-time basis, at three registered education providers.  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 educational qualifications and apprenticeships.

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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 had 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 conducted deep dives in English, mathematics, geography, art and modern foreign languages. For each deep dive, inspectors spoke to curriculum 6 and 7 June 2023

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leaders, visited a range of lessons, spoke with subject teachers, talked to pupils, and reviewed samples of their work.  Inspectors held meetings with leaders, teachers and pupils. The lead inspector met with trustees, members of the governing board and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors looked at the policies provided on the school website. They studied curriculum documentation, behaviour logs, attendance records and destination statistics. They looked at the single central record and reviewed safeguarding documentation, practices and procedures.  Inspectors considered responses to Ofsted’s online survey of parents’ views and other written comments provided at the time. They reviewed the responses to the online surveys completed by staff. No responses were received for the pupil survey, so inspectors spoke to a range of additional pupils across all year groups.

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Inspection team

Paul Metcalf, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

James Rouse Ofsted Inspector 6 and 7 June 2023

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