Lister Community School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Lister Community School St Mary’s Road, Plaistow, London E13 9AE

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Outcome

Lister Community School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Alice Clay. This school is part of Newham Community Learning 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), Anthony Wilson, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Paul Leslie.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Lister Community School is highly supportive of its pupils. Pupils are benefiting from recent changes that have improved learning and behaviour. Pupils and parents and carers feel listened to and engaged with the school. This helps them feel part of an inclusive, diverse community. Pupils report feeling safe, they learn well in lessons and attend regularly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has raised its expectation of what pupils should achieve. The curriculum is more ambitious. The school is fostering a culture of joy in learning. Pupils are responding well to these new standards. They behave well and work hard. Learning time is not wasted by low-level disruption. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are achieving well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The provision for personal development is well-planned and considered. Music and the performing arts are prominently featured in the school. The orchestra rehearsed ‘Under Pressure’ with great accuracy and energy. Many pupils succeed in external graded music examinations. There are opportunities for pupils to get involved. For example, when the school recently hosted a production of ‘Oliver,’ pupils studying design and technology assisted with the set design and construction. Events, including sports day and cultural day, unite pupils. They help develop pupils’ understanding of key attributes, such as teamwork, respect, and tolerance. 8 and 9 October 2024

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

The curriculum identifies the key information pupils need to know. It sets out a logical order of learning so pupils can build their depth of understanding over time. Teachers have good subject knowledge. They apply key subject content to different situations, which increases pupils’ understanding. For example, in physical education pupils applied different serves and shots in badminton through a competition setting.

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

Teachers explain new concepts clearly. They check carefully that pupils have understood what they have been taught. Generally, pupils engage well in learning. They complete activities enthusiastically and take pride in their work. However, occasionally learning tasks do not help pupils secure the knowledge they have been taught. In these cases, pupils become disengaged from learning and do not learn as well as the school intends.

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

The school accurately identifies the needs of pupils with SEND. It provides information so that teachers can understand how to support pupils to overcome their individual barriers to learning. However, there are inconsistencies in how teachers use this information. Sometimes adaptations are not effective in helping pupils with SEND access the learning as intended. In these isolated cases, pupils with SEND do not learn as well as the school expects. The specialist deaf support provision is strong, and these pupils achieve well. They benefit from accessing the full curriculum, supported ably by specialist staff. These pupils are included and respected by others.

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

The school prioritises identification of and support for pupils at an early stage in reading. Well-planned interventions support these pupils to catch up. Pupils in Years 7 and 8 benefit from effective phonics teaching. As a result, they become confident and fluent readers. These pupils told inspectors how the support they receive has increased their enjoyment of reading. Older pupils appreciate the importance of reading and can discuss different information gleaned from non-fiction and fiction books.

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

Historically, the school has had high levels of suspensions and permanent exclusions. The school is tackling these issues effectively. There is a sense of calm and order during social times and within lessons. The school has focused on positive approaches to rewarding behaviour. The student support unit is successfully run to improve the behaviour and learning of individuals who may find managing their own behaviour more difficult.

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

The curriculum for personal, social, health, relationships and economic education is well structured and ensures pupils are taught effectively. Pupils have a secure understanding of important topics, including age-appropriate relationship education and online safety. In assemblies, Year 8 and 9 pupils led the session on mental health awareness, presenting with confidence. The school has carefully set out many leadership opportunities, including student prefects, year group representatives and anti-bullying ambassadors. Pupils take up the wide range of activities on offer throughout the school day. This includes sports, and other clubs such as humanities and mathematics. 8 and 9 October 2024

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Leaders, including those responsible for governance, have clearly communicated their vision for the school. This has helped staff implement recently changed policies and practices. Staff value how these changes have impacted positively on their workload, while improving their teaching. As a result, everyone is working together to ensure pupils’ experiences are consistently high quality. The teaching and support staff agree that leaders have taken many steps to reduce workload, including allocating departmental time to meet, and reducing the quantity of whole-school assessments.

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Governors and trustees are very knowledgeable about the school and work together to implement the vision and values fully. They hold the school to account through supportive but challenging approaches. The trust provides clear support and ensures that monitoring leads to effective actions.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Occasionally, teachers do not use information about the individual needs of pupils with SEND to adapt their teaching effectively. As a result, sometimes these pupils do not learn as well as they should. The school should ensure teachers understand how to adapt their teaching and do this consistently to enable pupils to learn the curriculum as intended.  Sometimes, the activities teachers choose to help pupils learn are not as effective as they should be. This means that pupils lose enthusiasm for learning and disengage. Leaders should ensure that teachers choose activities, resources, materials, and approaches that support and inspire pupils to learn and know more.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 8 and 9 October 2024

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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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This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the predecessor school, Lister Community School, to be good for overall effectiveness in November 2013.

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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, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 8 and 9 October 2024

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School details

Number of pupils on the school roll 1,513

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The headteacher was appointed in February 2024.  Lister Community School converted to become an academy as part of the Newham Community Trust in December 2021. When its predecessor school, Lister Community School, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be good for overall effectiveness.  The school has a specialist deaf support provision, supporting 17 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.  The school uses one registered alternative provision. 8 and 9 October 2024

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation 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.  The inspection team spoke to the headteacher, deputy headteachers and assistant headteachers.  The inspection team spoke to a range of staff, including curriculum subject leaders, teachers, and support staff. The lead inspector spoke to the CEO, members of the trust and the local governing body.  Inspectors visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  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

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Information about this inspection

the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspectors took account of responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Ofsted Parent View. The inspectors also considered the responses of pupils and staff to Ofsted’s online surveys.  The inspectors spoke with groups of pupils during lessons and social times.

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Inspection team

Ray Lau, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Richard Poddington Ofsted Inspector 8 and 9 October 2024

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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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