Saint Gabriel's College

Inspection of a good school: Saint Gabriel’s College Langton Road, London SW9 6UL

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Outcome

Saint Gabriel’s College continues to be a good school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a caring school with an inclusive ethos. Leaders have created a strong community feel. The values of the ‘SGC Way’ underpin all aspects of school life. Pupils spoken to said, ‘this school is very welcoming and open’ and ‘it feels like family’. They behave well during lessons and around the school site.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school acknowledges that many pupils and their families face wider challenges in everyday life. It creates a culture of aspiration, with a broad curriculum that opens pupils’ eyes to the world around them. Staff want pupils to do well. The curriculum has undergone significant improvement in the last few years which is not reflected in the most recently published outcomes.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils speak English as an additional language. The school is determined to support these pupils so that they can achieve well. Pupils’ developing English is not seen as a barrier by the school. Instead, the school celebrates the array of languages in its community. Pupils are patient and kind to their peers, helping each other in lessons and in the wide range of clubs and activities on offer to all, for example Latin American Women’s Aid, who run workshops and outings.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The subject curriculums in the school have undergone significant changes recently. The school has clarity over what pupils should learn and when they should learn it. Leaders have developed a broad and wide-ranging curriculum for all pupils. This is supplemented by many additional opportunities. For example, all pupils in Year 7 learn to play a musical instrument and many pupils perform in the termly music concerts and talent shows.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Outcomes for specific pupil groups in published examinations have previously been low in some subject areas. The school has taken action to address this. Leaders have given careful thought to the substance of the curriculum in each subject. For instance, each new topic is underpinned by ‘big ideas’. Pupils learn the important knowledge related to 17 and 18 April 2024

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the ambition of the curriculum effectively. Teachers support pupils to connect new knowledge with what they have learned before. However, these changes are not fully embedded across all subject areas. In some subjects there are previous gaps in pupils’ learning which remain. This means that some pupils struggle to integrate new content into larger subject-specific ideas.

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Teachers have strong subject knowledge. They ask questions often to check pupils’ learning. On occasion, the checking and addressing of misconceptions of pupils’ understanding is not done with precision. This leads to pupils continuing to have misunderstanding in their knoweldge and skills.

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In most subjects, teachers use pupils’ individual learning plans well to adapt tasks for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders are making reading a priority. For example, every pupil reads as part of the ‘Read to Succeed’ programme. This has improved pupils’ confidence in reading. Leaders have well-thought- out plans for helping pupils to develop their reading further.

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There are high expectations for pupils at St Gabriel’s College. Staff care about their pupils’ education and well-being. Staff know pupils well. Pupils enjoy their lessons. They take pride in their work and are eager to earn ‘GRIP’ badges that reward learning. Teachers welcome pupils into their classrooms and routines are well understood.

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The school’s pastoral work is a strength. Pastoral staff know individual pupils very well. Pupils feel well cared for and they know it is important that they attend well. Attendance is typically positive, but the school is determined to improve it further. The school has a strong oversight of pupils’ attendance and any reasons for absences. It makes sure that it has a range of strategies to promote pupils’ regular attendance.

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Pupils follow a well-constructed personal development curriculum. Staff teach pupils about positive relationships, including consent, and about online safety. The school prepares pupils effectively for their next steps, including through an annual careers fair. Pupils can participate in the wide range of activities available, including basketball, Latin, Leading Ladies and Boys2Men. This helps to build pupils’ confidence and develops their character positively.

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Staff are proud and motivated to work at this school and feel that their well-being and workload are well considered.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 17 and 18 April 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the checking of pupils’ understanding lacks rigour. This means that pupils’ misconceptions or gaps in knowledge are missed, which limits their subject- specific development. The school should ensure that checks of pupils’ learning in all subjects identify and address any misunderstandings in pupils’ knowledge and skills securely.  At times, teaching is not enabling pupils to remember long-term content which they have been taught. This limits pupils’ ability to integrate new knowledge into larger subject-specific ideas. The school should ensure that teaching reviews and embeds pupils’ prior learning securely.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in November 2018.

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How can I feed back my views?

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, 17 and 18 April 2024

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looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 17 and 18 April 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 28 and 29 November 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is a voluntary aided church of England school. The last section 48 inspection was carried out in November 2019.  Leaders make use of one registered alternative provider.  The school runs an off-site provision for small tutoring and therapeutic support at the Edward Brooke Education Centre.  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.

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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. 17 and 18 April 2024

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 Inspectors held meetings with the principal, members of the leadership team and members of staff, as well as a range of pupils.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in science, music and history. 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 also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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 gathered the views of pupils, parents and staff through both discussions and responses to Ofsted’s online surveys.

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Inspection team

Sam Johnson, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Alan Blount Ofsted Inspector 17 and 18 April 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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