Tapton School & Sixth Form

Inspection of Tapton School Darwin Lane, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S10 5RG

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Inspection dates: 26 and 27 November 2024

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

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The headteacher of this school is Kathryn Rhodes. This school is part of the Tapton School 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 (CEO), Lee Barber, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Tom Ashford. 26 and 27 November 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Tapton is a school where pupils and staff are restless in their pursuit of excellence. Staff have high expectations for pupils. Pupils excel at Tapton. They are polite, conscientious and achieve highly.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s sixth-form students are its most mature and aware members. They are well- read, too. They support, guide and mentor younger pupils in the school. This makes school better for the younger pupils. It also boosts the sixth-form students’ confidence.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school sets high standards for pupils’ behaviour. The vast majority of pupils hardly ever fail to meet the standards set. Staff and pupils alike show respect, kindness and tolerance. The school gives pupils time each day to see their form teacher to check and communicate worries.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school enriches pupils’ lives with many opportunities beyond the curriculum. It offers a wealth of experiences beyond the taught subjects. They include an orchestra, sports fixtures, trips abroad and history clubs. Visiting academic speakers enhance school life further. Activities are open to all pupils, as the school ensures that nobody misses out.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils join the school from many diverse backgrounds and have different needs. Support for pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), is consistently planned and reviewed.

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

The curriculum is broad, balanced and rich in content. Staff bring the subjects to life. For example, in music, pupils engage in hands-on tasks with enthusiasm. This gives them the belief that music is for them, regardless of past experiences.

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

A reading book is never far from the hand of a Tapton pupil. All through the school, including in the sixth form, pupils read daily. If a pupil struggles to read, then the support is quick and purposeful. Staff provide help to ensure that all pupils can read and access the texts used in lessons.

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

Teachers’ superb subject knowledge helps to ensure consistently high-quality teaching. The school’s ‘Tapton Seven’ values underpin learning across the school. Kindness, hard work and responsibility are examples of these values. Pupils approach their learning with great enthusiasm. Staff embrace this. They encourage pupils to read the books linked to the subject to satisfy their curiosity.

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

The school provides effective support to meet the needs of all pupils. They engage with wider external bodies to offer help and support to those pupils who need it. The school does not wait for outside help. They mobilise support within the school and across the trust to help pupils. Underpinning this is the sharing of important information. Systems in school keep staff well informed about pupils’ individual needs. This enables adaptations to sweep away potential barriers to learning. For example, pupils use physical resources, 26 and 27 November 2024

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such as counters in mathematics, to help provide a concrete foundation for pupils’ knowledge to build from.

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The school maintains a breadth of options for students to study in the sixth form. Students show enthusiasm and diligence in their studies. They take pride in the work they do in lessons and adopt a professional approach to their learning. The sixth-form students enjoy a wide range of clubs. These include sports, debating and community work.

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The school offers a diverse range of extra-curricular activities. These range from a pupil Pokémon club to a ‘Motor Neuron’ research project with doctors. Some pupils serve on the school council. They take pride in advocating for their peers. The school council shapes the school’s offerings. It does this by securing clubs, improving buildings and adding food at breaktime and lunchtime. When the pupils, including those with SEND, leave Tapton, they are ready for their next step in study or work.

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Pupils’ calm behaviour enhances learning. In lessons, pupils are respectful and focused. At lunchtime, pupils show respect for each other and the environment. When pupils do not reflect the school’s values, the staff support them. Pupils are reflective. With staff support, they realise that unkind behaviour harms others. This has helped the school to remove disruptions to its learning environment.

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Leaders at the school find the time to talk to staff and pupils, and they respect their views. They continue to work with the community. Governors’ initiatives, such as parent clinics in the community, are boosting engagement. Governors at Tapton have a strong understanding of the school. This helps to inform their strategic role and partnership with school and trust leaders.

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The staff at the school enjoy talking with the pupils. Lunchtime supervisors check pupils’ well-being and teachers welcome pupils into the classroom with warmth. These interactions help pupils to feel welcomed and part of the Tapton family.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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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. 26 and 27 November 2024

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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). 26 and 27 November 2024

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provision

Number of pupils on the school roll 1,791

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form

Dates of previous inspection 5 and 6 December 2012, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school uses three registered alternative provisions.  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. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (sixth-form provision). Schools 26 and 27 November 2024

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receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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 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 lead inspector met with members of the trust board, the local governing body and the chief executive officer.  During the inspection, inspectors met with the headteacher. They also met with other senior and middle leaders, including those responsible for safeguarding, personal development, careers, attendance and behaviour.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, art, history and physical education. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’

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work.  Inspectors looked at provision in a range of subjects only studied by students in the sixth form, including meeting with leaders, visiting lessons and speaking with students.  Members of the inspection team looked at a range of documentation regarding the support pupils with SEND receive. Inspectors looked at the quality of the provision for pupils with SEND across all aspects of school.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation, including minutes of governance meetings.  Inspectors looked at a range of information regarding behaviour. Inspectors observed the behaviour of pupils at social times.  Inspectors spoke to pupils and staff formally and informally throughout the inspection. Responses to staff, pupil and parent surveys were considered by the inspection team.  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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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

Richard Jones, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Yvonne Bootman Ofsted Inspector 26 and 27 November 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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