Barr's Hill School

Inspection of Barr’s Hill School and Community College Radford Road, Coventry, West Midlands CV1 4BU

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Sixth-form provision Outstanding Previous inspection grade Good

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The executive headteacher of this school is Chris Jupp. This school is part of The Futures Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Stephen Toor and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Anthony Fitzpatrick. 5 and 6 March 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Barr’s Hill School transforms the life chances of pupils. It is wholeheartedly committed to overcoming any barriers to learning. Pupils at this school, irrespective of their background or starting points, achieve exceptionally well. Excellent results, coupled with the superb enrichment opportunities, enable pupils to live up to the school’s ambition of ‘building brighter futures.’ Pupils have the confidence and reassurance needed to overcome stereotypes and believe the sky really is the limit. One pupil summed this up beautifully, ‘the school teaches us that we can transform our lives.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

The ‘7-year journey’ is integral to all aspects of school life, from the school values, to reading, to the curriculum, to enrichment, to careers guidance and character development. As soon as pupils receive a place at the school their journey begins. The summer school helps Year 7 pupils to transition from primary into secondary school and they are nurtured further through their time in ‘The Bridge’. The ‘PRIDE’ values of ‘proactive, responsible, inquisitive, determined, engaged’ are the foundations of school life. These values shape pupils’ learning, their impeccable behaviour, and the rich set of experiences they gain. As a result, pupils rise to the high expectations and live the ‘PRIDE’ values of “doing the right thing, at the time right time, in the right way”.

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better?

Leaders have a clear and ambitious vision to provide an exceptional education experience for all pupils. They fulfil this remarkably well. They work relentlessly, tirelessly and with humility to ensure that pupils feel cared for and supported so they can be the best they can be. Staff are overwhelmingly positive about the school and appreciate all that leaders have done to give them a work-life balance.

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better?

The school has embedded an ambitious curriculum that goes beyond the expectations of the national curriculum. Careful thought has been put into what pupils will learn, when they will learn it and how they will learn it. It is meticulously adapted to meet the needs of all pupils including pupils with special, educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), pupils who are disadvantaged and those who speak English as an additional language. Staff ensure that pupils have the essential knowledge they need before introducing new learning. Each piece of learning has a purpose and is relevant. This means that pupils are able to apply their learning to other subject areas, to life outside of school and to potential career prospects.

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better?

The school has a sharp focus on developing literacy and communication skills. This is done extremely well. During class discussions and debates pupils use ‘talking points’ to ‘add, build, challenge’ their peers. These skills are instilled in pupils. This helps them to articulate the knowledge they have secured, challenge what their peers are saying, and continually deepen their own understanding. As a result, pupils are remembering more over time and achieve outstanding outcomes. 5 and 6 March 2024

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Staff know their pupils extremely well. Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and there are bespoke strategies in place to support them to access the curriculum. Each lesson is inclusive, and the SEND pupil profiles are used very effectively. As a result, pupils with SEND are consistently well-supported in lessons and they make exemplary progress.

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Reading is a fundamental part of the school’s provision. This starts before pupils join in Year 7 to ensure that no time is wasted. Pupils who are learning English for the first time and those who struggle to read receive targeted and personalised intervention. These pupils achieve well above the expected standard by the end of their journey at the school. Pupil leaders of ‘the literature society’ take on board pupil voice and ensure there is a plethora of books that reflect pupils’ interests. Activities such as ‘the book buzz’ and national writing competitions have raised the profile of reading and subsequently has developed a joy of reading across the school.

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The relationships between staff and pupils are exceptionally strong. Pupils feel cared for and know that staff have their best interests at heart. They treat their peers with kindness and respect and the school values permeate throughout. Pupils are rewarded for their efforts and positive behaviours. There are extensive rewards given to pupils for displaying the ‘PRIDE’ values; assemblies celebrate excellent attendance, and there are prizes for pupils who read regularly. Pupils respond with enthusiasm to this recognition.

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The school’s personal development programme which includes ‘the flourishing curriculum’ which develops pupils’ character. It teaches pupils about the importance of empathy and compassion so they can build ‘flourishing relationships’ and how to play an integral role in a ‘flourishing society.’ It is designed to reflect the school’s truly diverse and inclusive community. It has ensured that pupils embrace each other’s uniqueness. Pupils celebrate different cultures, religions, culinary foods and traditional dress on ‘culture day’. The school has worked hard to build a harmonious ethos where all pupils feel respected and cared for.

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The enrichment offer is vast and there is something for everyone. Pupils take part in clubs such as orchestra where they play at school events, ‘future graduate programme’ where they complete residentials at universities to transform their aspirations into a reality, and debate club where they challenge the views of their peers. Students in the sixth form have opportunities to gain paid employment work as ‘subject tutors’ for pupils in the school. These experiences powerfully address social disadvantage and embody aspiration in all pupils.

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Pupils have a clear understanding of how to best use their knowledge, experiences, and resilience to make their dreams a reality. This is done impressively well through the careers programme. The ‘Oxbridge pathway’ gives pupils an insight into future destinations. The ‘aspiration pathway’ ensures the most vulnerable pupils are given the guidance and tools they need to become independent young adults. As a result, students are successful in achieving their first-choice university destinations including medicine at Oxford, English at Edinburgh, and Linguistics at Warwick. 5 and 6 March 2024

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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). 5 and 6 March 2024

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sixth form

Website http://www.barrshill.coventry.sch.uk/

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sixth form

Dates of previous inspection 18 and 19 September 2018

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Information about this school

 The school is one of eight schools in The Futures Trust.  The school uses two unregistered alternative providers for a small number of pupils.  The school uses eight registered alternative providers for a small number of pupils.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information and engagement about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships. 5 and 6 March 2024

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Information about this inspection

 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 held discussions with the executive headteacher, head of school, other senior leaders, the chief executive officer and chair of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, food technology, geography, science and sport. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors held meetings with leaders of these areas: behaviour, attendance, SEND, personal development, careers, reading, alternative provision, CPD, pupil

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Information about this inspection

premium and sixth form.  Inspectors completed a SEND learning walk, a sixth form learning walk, visited the careers fair, met with pupils who had experienced sanctions, met with single sex groups of girls and boys, and met with pupil leaders.  Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  Inspectors also spoke with leaders of alternative provisions.  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.

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Inspection team

Sultanat Yunus, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Mark Howes His Majesty’s Inspector 5 and 6 March 2024

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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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