Redhill School

Inspection of Redhill School Junction Road, Stourbridge, West Midlands DY8 1JX

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Overall effectiveness Good

The headteacher of this school is James Clayton. This school is part of Stour Vale 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, Rachel Salter, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Joanne Williams. There is also an executive headteacher, Jamie Fox, who is responsible for this school and one other.

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Overall effectiveness Good

Ofsted has not previously inspected Redhill School as an academy under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 as, until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections. Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last graded inspection of the predecessor school. 25 and 26 June 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has built an ethos that helps all pupils to be the best they can be. The school values of ‘kindness, honesty and respect’ permeate through school life. For example, as soon as pupils start in Year 7, they attend an outdoor retreat so they can develop positive relationships with their peers and staff. As pupils progress through the school, these relationships continue to flourish. Staff invest time to get to know pupils and pupils appreciate this. As a result, staff have high expectations of pupils both academically and personally and pupils live up to these.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and proud to attend this inclusive school, in which differences are celebrated, and everyone is welcome. The school offers a wide range of pupil leadership opportunities. ‘Pupil leaders’ of the ‘culture and diversity’ group organise ‘culture day’, during which pupils are given opportunities to share a variety of world foods and showcase their traditional cultural dress. Pupils from the LGBTQ+ club raise an awareness of the importance of being understanding and compassionate. This contributes to preparing pupils well for life in modern Britain.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school enriches pupils in a variety of ways that extend their learning beyond the classroom. These include trips, visits and after-school clubs such as ‘welcome Wednesday football’, drama club and creative writing club. Many pupils attend these, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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better?

The school has a strategic oversight of what the school is doing well and what they need to do to be better. There has been a recent focus on improving pupils’ behaviour and this has been achieved well. The positive collaboration between staff in the school, and between schools within the trust, is supporting Redhill School to make sustained improvement over time. Staff report they have a good work-life balance and they enjoy working at the school.

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better?

Teachers are experts in the subjects they teach. They use their expertise to develop an ambitious curriculum for all pupils. They have put considerable thought into the key knowledge that pupils should learn and when they will learn it. The curriculum is sequenced to revisit topics over time so that pupils can deepen their knowledge. As a result, pupils on the whole achieve well.

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better?

Teachers know their pupils well and use a range of strategies in lessons to check what pupils know. They effortlessly recap and revisit prior learning, alongside introducing new knowledge. This helps pupils to make links between learning and remember fundamental key concepts well. When pupils do not understand, teachers usually find other ways to support pupils in their learning. However, this is not done consistently well across all subjects. As a result, in some lessons, some staff do not check that pupils have a secure understanding of the key concepts before introducing new learning. This creates some gaps in pupils’ knowledge. 25 and 26 June 2024

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The school promptly identifies pupils who struggle to read. There are a range of strategies to support these pupils to catch up. However, the support in place is not having the desired effect, which is to help these pupils catch up quickly. This means that some of these pupils are not becoming confident and fluent readers swiftly.

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Pupils with SEND are involved in all aspects of school life. They are supported well by staff in lessons. Staff use what they know about the pupils to make adaptations to help pupils access the learning. As a result, pupils with SEND progress well.

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Pupils have positive attitudes to their learning, are keen to learn and take pride in their work. They are polite, courteous and articulate their views well. The atmosphere at social times is happy and friendly. There are a wide range of support packages to help pupils who need it. The ‘thrive’ programme provides support for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs. The ‘hub’ offers pupils the time to reflect on and restore relationships before they are reintegrated into lessons. All of this contributes to a calm and purposeful environment in and around school.

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The personal development programme is planned well. It is taught through personal, social and health education; theology, philosophy and ethics; and the tutor programme. Pupils learn topics such as online safety, healthy relationships and healthy eating. There are opportunities for pupils to engage in discussions about current affairs.

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‘Careers week’ is dedicated time for teachers to make references to various career options in the subjects they teach. The school invites guests from industry to speak to pupils, alongside offering a work experience programme. However, the school recognises that there is more work to be done to enrich pupils’ experiences and raise their aspirations of their future destinations.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some teachers in some lessons are not using assessment effectively. This means that some gaps in pupils’ knowledge are not consistently identified and closed before new knowledge is introduced. The school should ensure that any gaps in pupils’ knowledge are identified and teaching is adapted to suit the needs of all pupils.  Some pupils who struggle to read are not catching up quickly enough. This means they do not progress as well as they could across the curriculum. The school should more closely evaluate and develop the strategies used to support reading so that these pupils become fluent and confident readers. 25 and 26 June 2024

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 Pupils are not yet benefiting from a consistently effective careers programme. This means they are not always prepared as well as they could be for their next steps in education, employment or training. The school should ensure that pupils receive enriching experiences and raise pupil aspirations.

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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 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). 25 and 26 June 2024

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School details

Number of pupils on the school roll 1,203

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The school is one of eleven schools in Stour Vale Academy Trust.  The school uses five unregistered alternative providers for some pupils.  The schools uses three registered alternative providers for some 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.

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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. 25 and 26 June 2024

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 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, headteacher, other senior leaders, the chief executive officer, the chair of governors and other governors, and the chair of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, food technology, mathematics, modern foreign languages, physical education and science. 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, curriculum, SEND, personal development, careers, reading, alternative provision

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and pupil premium.  Inspectors completed a learning walk focusing on pupils with education, health and care plans, a learning walk focusing on pupils who struggle to read, and a learning walk focusing on the progress of disadvantaged pupils.  Inspectors met with pupils who had experienced behaviour sanctions, met with a single-sex group of girls, met with pupil leaders and spoke to pupils informally at social times.  Inspectors also visited lessons in some other subjects.  Inspectors spoke with leaders of alternative provisions.  Inspectors reviewed and analysed responses to the staff, pupil and parent surveys.  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

Graeme Rudland Ofsted Inspector 25 and 26 June 2024

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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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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