de Stafford School

Inspection of de Stafford School Burntwood Lane, Caterham, Surrey CR3 5YX

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Overall effectiveness

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Good

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Overall effectiveness

The executive headteacher of this school is Jeremy Garner and the head of school is Jeff Place. The school is part of the GLF Schools Trust, which means other people in the trust have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Julian Drinkall, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Lynne O’Reilly. 12 and 13 June 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school offers a welcoming environment for pupils. They behave well with each other and staff. Classrooms, corridors and outside spaces are orderly. Staff supervision is vigilant, including from leaders, who are a visible presence around the school. Pupils are kept safe and feel that the little bullying that happens is typically tackled well by staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school aims for high educational standards for its pupils. For those who attend well, these aspirations are met. Teachers work hard to support pupils. Most pupils also work hard in lessons. Relationships between teachers and pupils are positive, leading to a productive atmosphere for learning in classrooms.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is working tenaciously to improve the attendance of the minority of pupils who miss too much time. Overall attendance is below the national average, but is rising. Regular reminders mean that all pupils know good attendance is important. They appreciate the rewards for attending well. Support for individual pupils is a high priority for the school’s leaders and staff.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are well supported in learning to respect each other and to be ready for later life. The school offers a broad curriculum, which pupils enjoy. This goes beyond academic subjects and includes a wide range of enrichment activities.

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better?

The curriculum is well planned. Pupils’ learning is logically sequenced to develop their knowledge over time. Key stage 3 provides a firm foundation, building on learning from primary school and setting pupils up for GCSEs. Two years ago, the school identified that too few pupils were going on to take GCSE subjects making up the English Baccalaureate. Improved guidance about curriculum choices has brought a rapid rise in numbers. Support for pupils who need help to catch up in reading is well planned and delivered, so that they make accelerated progress.

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better?

Teachers usually have strong expertise to teach their subjects. Most explain new learning well. Many select engaging approaches in lessons that keep pupils interested. Teachers have good information about pupils’ needs, usually adapting lessons effectively for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Pupils who attend the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND are included well in mainstream classes. Teachers often check carefully how well pupils have understood learning, giving extra support or explanation where needed. However, this is not always the case. On occasion, teachers move the class on without all pupils having understood, which means new learning is not securely built.

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better?

While many pupils attend well and achieve well, the school is focusing sharply on those who do not. These pupils achieve less well by the time they sit examinations. This explains their low outcomes in the 2023 examinations. Staff use a wide range 12 and 13 June 2024

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of approaches to work with pupils and families where there are attendance concerns. These include skilled support for pupils’ emotional well-being. The school reflects carefully on how well different approaches work so as to adjust what it is doing. Teachers are keen to reintegrate pupils back into learning when they have missed lessons. Some do this well, but this is not consistently effective.

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The school manages pupils’ behaviour well. Leaders monitor it carefully and take action where needed. For example, concerns over pupil punctuality to lessons earlier this year saw swift, effective action. Staff are consistent in praising good behaviour and managing any poor behaviour. As a result, most pupils follow the rules. Pupils who need more help to behave well get the support they need.

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Well-planned personal, social, health and economic education, coupled with relationships and sex education, sees pupils learn to treat each other with respect. Pupils have good opportunities for spiritual and cultural development. They talk enthusiastically about the range of books read in English and their knowledge of world religions gained in religious education. Careers information, advice and guidance are well planned to help pupils to make informed choices about their futures.

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Leaders at trust and school levels work as a cohesive team. They hold themselves to account well and provide effective development for staff. Staff feel well looked after and trained, including on key areas like safeguarding. Parents are very positive about the school’s work, saying in particular that communication with them is good.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 A minority of pupils miss school regularly and therefore do not achieve all they should. The school should pursue vigorously its work with families of regularly absent pupils in order to ensure that pupils’ attendance rises further.  When pupils return to lessons after absences, support is not consistently effective. Pupils do not always understand what to do, which hinders their learning. The trust needs to improve the capacity of teachers to support these pupils by making sure that agreed approaches are implemented consistently well.  Teachers do not always check that pupils have understood new learning before moving on. This means that pupils’ knowledge is not always built securely. The school should ensure that teachers routinely use effective strategies to check that pupils have grasped new material. 12 and 13 June 2024

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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). 12 and 13 June 2024

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School details

Type of school Secondary Comprehensive School category Academy sponsor-led

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School details

Headteacher Jeremy Garner (executive headteacher) Jeff Place (head of school) Website www.destafford.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 23 January 2019 under section 8 of the education act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The executive headteacher delegates aspects of the day-to-day running of the school to the head of school.  The school has a specialist centre for up to nine pupils with SEND who have communication needs. These pupils spend almost all of their time working alongside other pupils in mainstream classes.  The school makes use of six registered and two unregistered providers of alternative provision.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation which requires that pupils in Years 8 to 13 be provided with information and engagement about approved technical qualifications and apprenticeships. 12 and 13 June 2024

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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

 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 executive headteacher, the head of school and other senior staff. They spoke with trustees, the trust representative for secondary education, members of the school’s local governing committee, known as the School Standards Board, and the trust CEO. They carried out a range of other meetings, documentary analysis, and spoke with pupils and staff. They observed the life of the school at breaktimes and lesson changes.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements, the inspectors took account of the views of leaders, spoke with staff and pupils, reviewed the single

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Information about this inspection

central record and considered how well the school has established an open and positive culture within which to put pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, modern foreign languages and science. In each subject, inspectors met the subject leader and other staff, teachers of the subject, pupils with their work, and visited a range of lessons. Inspectors visited a range of classrooms to see other subjects being taught.

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Inspection team

Stephen Long, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Matthew Haynes His Majesty’s Inspector 12 and 13 June 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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