Tregolls Academy

Inspection of Tregolls Academy Chellew Road, Truro, Cornwall TR1 1LH

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Inadequate Behaviour and attitudes Inadequate Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Inadequate Early years provision Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The headteacher of this school is Daisy Drury. This school is part of Aspire Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Vanessa Bragg, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Penny Shilston. 7 and 8 November 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

There has been significant instability in the school since the previous inspection. This, coupled with a weak curriculum, has led to a decline in the quality of education. Pupils leave the school without the knowledge they need for their secondary education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Respect, unity, determination and kindness are key values the school is developing. However, not all pupils live up to these. Some pupils do not behave well. At times, low-level behaviour disrupts learning. On occasion where bullying happens, the school deals with it swiftly but it does not stop completely. This causes some pupils to be unhappy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy after-school clubs such as netball, football and French. Pupils also have opportunities to take part in residential visits to support their learning. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils learn about leadership and helping others, proudly taking on roles such as librarians and members of the pupil parliament.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Over half the parents responding to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online survey, would not recommend the school. A significant number of parents do not have faith in the school’s or trust’s ability to tackle issues and to deal with their concerns quickly and effectively.

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better?

The trust and school have not identified, or sequenced, the important knowledge that pupils need to learn. Frequent staff absences and changes in leadership have further exacerbated the school’s development of the curriculum. The trust’s and school’s actions to improve the quality of education and behaviour have not been swift enough or effective.

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better?

Staff do not use assessment information well enough to resolve pupils’ misconceptions quickly or to adapt future learning. This means that pupils develop large gaps in their knowledge. As a result, pupils’ skills in reading, writing and mathematics have been significantly below that of their peers nationally at the end of key stage 1 and key stage 2.

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better?

A small number of pupils with SEND, who are part of the school’s resource base, receive a curriculum that is meeting their needs. In addition, the school supports those who attend alternative provision well. However, for some pupils with SEND, targets are often broad and lack precision. The school does not adapt learning sufficiently well. As a result, like their classmates, many pupils with SEND do not achieve well.

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better?

While the school has introduced a new behaviour policy, it is very new and has not had enough impact on pupils’ behaviour. Lessons are sometimes disrupted by 7 and 8 November 2023

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persistent low-level misbehaviour. This has a negative impact on pupils’ learning. The school recognises that improving attendance and reducing persistent absence are priorities. Staff work with families with low attendance. While there has been some improvement for individuals, the impact of the work to improve whole-school attendance is at an early stage and is yet to be fully seen.

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In the early years, there are examples of effective curriculum practice. For example, in Reception, children develop their understanding of communication and language through listening to well-chosen texts that relate to their learning.

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Children learn phonics as soon as they start in Reception. They learn how to segment words and blend sounds accurately. Pupils read books that match the sounds they know, which helps them become more fluent and accurate. Pupils who fall behind in their reading are quickly identified and supported effectively to catch up. Older pupils, who are secure in their phonics, continue to develop their reading. However, the books that they use are not always ambitious enough. The reading curriculum is new and has not built on pupils’ learning from the early years and key stage 1.

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Pupils learn about healthy eating and how to keep fit as part of the personal, social, health and economic programme. However, pupils do not understand fundamental British values well.

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The school and the trust have attempted to engage with parents and the wider community. While some parents comment positively about the school, too many parents feel that the school and the trust do not deal with their concerns well. These parents are worried about behaviour, changes in staffing, communication and bullying.

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Staff are happy to work at the school. They feel supported to manage their workload. Staff are positive about the trust and the leadership team.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is not enough capacity to improve the many weaknesses in the curriculum at the speed that is needed. Frequent changes in leadership and the impact of staff absence have hampered attempts to improve provision. The trust should strengthen leadership and management so that their impact is effective.  The reading curriculum is not having the intended impact. As a result, pupils are not able to learn the wider curriculum. Many pupils leave Tregolls Academy lacking the knowledge and skills required for the next stage of their education. 7 and 8 November 2023

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The school and the trust need to strengthen the teaching and monitoring of the reading curriculum, so that pupils can read key knowledge across subjects to know more and remember more of their learning.  The trust and the school have not planned or implemented a well-sequenced curriculum. Pupils do not remember what they have been taught and so are not ready for new learning. The trust and the school should identify, and sequence, the key knowledge they want pupils to learn in each subject.  Assessment is not used effectively. Staff do not check well enough how well pupils remember the knowledge they have been taught. This means that pupils develop gaps in their learning that are not addressed. The trust and school should strengthen how pupils are assessed so that any gaps in knowledge are identified and filled.  Some parents raise concerns about how the school communicates with them. As a result, parents do not know or understand changes in the school. Leaders need

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to ensure that they communicate effectively with all stakeholders.  Some pupils’ behaviour disrupts learning. Bullying is not tackled consistently. This shows the current approaches to managing behaviour do not create a culture where pupils understand the right way to treat each other. The school and trust should develop policies that manage pupils’ behaviour effectively so that low-level disruption is eradicated and bullying is dealt with consistently.  The school does not support pupils with SEND consistently well. Therefore, some pupils do not have their needs met. The trust and school should improve the systems for identifying and meeting the needs of pupils with SEND to ensure they learn the curriculum well.

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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’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 7 and 8 November 2023

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 14 and 15 January 2020, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The head of school joined at the same time as the school joining Aspire Academy Trust in September 2022.  There is an enhanced SEND resource base on the site of the school. It is attended by 11 pupils with complex special educational needs.  The school makes use of one registered alternative provider and four unregistered alternative providers to support a small number of pupils.

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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

In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons 7 and 8 November 2023

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responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the head of school, the assistant head of school, the special educational needs coordinator, the designated safeguarding leads, members of staff, the deputy CEO and the chair of trustees. The inspector also met with a trust director, the trust maths lead, the trust English lead and the trust early years lead.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics, history and music. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited samples of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also discussed the

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curriculum in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments, and the staff and pupil surveys.

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Inspection team

Gavin Summerfield, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Julie Barton Ofsted Inspector 7 and 8 November 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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