Kemnal Technology College

Inspection of Kemnal Technology College Sevenoaks Way, Sidcup, Kent DA14 5AA

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

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The executive headteacher of the school is Stuart Smith. This school is part of The Kemnal Academies 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), Karen Roberts, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Gaenor Bagley. 4 and 5 February 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils in the school appreciate the pastoral guidance they receive in the ‘ACE’ provision. Mentor sessions support pupils’ well-being and academic progress though the curriculum. Staff know the pupils well and work to build positive relationships. This ensures that pupils are safe in school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils do not routinely achieve well in national outcomes because they do not develop an in-depth understanding of what they learn. The school has raised expectations for what pupils can achieve. There is now an ambitious curriculum in place for pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff do not have routinely high expectations of pupils’ behaviour and attitudes to their learning. As a result, pupils can lose focus in their learning and sometimes demonstrate negative behaviour around the school site. The school has put in place new systems to support behaviour. Although these are starting to have an impact, staff do not consistently apply these.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have access to a range of wider opportunities to develop their talents and interests. This includes a variety of sports, music, and crotchet clubs. The number of pupils choosing to take part in these is increasing.

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

Pupils study a broad curriculum. The school has considered the needs of different pupils when designing the curriculum. It has identified the key knowledge it wants pupils to learn and when. The curriculum is designed to build pupils’ knowledge progressively over time. For instance, in geography, the school has worked positively to develop pupils’ knowledge and skills over time. In science, there are some opportunities for pupils to revisit important knowledge.

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

The school has not ensured that teachers have the expertise to use their strong subject knowledge to identify misconceptions and check if pupils understand what they have been taught. As a result, pupils move on to new subject content before they have secured important knowledge. Pupils sometimes develop gaps in their learning that remain unaddressed. Learning activities do not consistently ensure that pupils practise and master what they are learning in sufficient depth. The school guides staff in how to support individual pupils, depending on their needs. However, staff do not consistently follow this guidance. This means that pupils with SEND do not get the precise support they need. Staff do not ensure that the work produced by pupils with SEND is of a high quality.

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

Staff identify pupils who are weaker readers when they join the school. Support is put in place for the weakest readers who follow an appropriate phonics-based programme, which improves their reading confidence. However, for other readers, there is a lack of structure to support them to increase their reading fluency and vocabulary acquisition. 4 and 5 February 2025

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Pupils do not routinely show positive attitudes to their learning. Sometimes, staff do not manage effectively pupils who distract the learning of others. The number of pupils who receive suspensions is reducing, although these remain high. The school has clear procedures in place and works closely with parents and carers to support pupils to attend school regularly. Although these strategies are beginning to have an impact, pupil absences remain high in the school.

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The school has developed a personal development programme that is designed to teach pupils how to stay safe and healthy. Some pupils do not routinely recognise the importance of these sessions. This means that some pupils do not develop an in-depth understanding of certain aspects of life in modern Britain. The school provides pupils with purposeful careers advice and guidance. Pupils take part in a range of activities including careers interviews and trips to universities.

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The local governing body and trustees bring a range of experience to their roles. They understand the strengths and priorities of the school. Staff appreciate leaders’ considerations for their workload and well-being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Teachers do not securely check how well pupils have understood what they have been taught. This means that gaps in pupils’ learning remain unaddressed, or misconceptions go unattended and become embedded. This includes for pupils with SEND. The school should ensure that staff have the knowledge and expertise to routinely check for and address gaps and misconceptions in pupils’ learning.  The school does not develop pupils’ language, vocabulary, and wider reading consistently well. This limits pupils’ knowledge and understanding of subject-specific vocabulary and reading fluency. The school should ensure that there are well- structured opportunities to develop pupils’ language and reading skills across the curriculum.  Staff do not routinely deliver the school’s expectations in relation to pupils’ behaviour. This results in learning sometimes being disrupted during lessons. The school should ensure that staff understand how to secure the highest standards of behaviour and

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

implement the agreed policies consistently. 4 and 5 February 2025

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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). 4 and 5 February 2025

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School details

Headteacher Stuart Smith (executive headteacher)

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 21 and 22 June 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of The Kemnal Academies Trust.  The school uses one registered and three unregistered providers of alternative provision.  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 (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 4 and 5 February 2025

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the second 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, members of the senior leadership team and a range of staff. They also met with the chair of the local governing body and a representative from the board of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, science, geography, music, and drama. 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 sampled lessons in some other subjects.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: reviewed the single central

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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 considered the views of parents, pupils, and staff, including through responses to Ofsted’s online surveys.

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Inspection team

Simon Conway, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Lucy Bruce Ofsted Inspector 4 and 5 February 2025

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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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