Moreton School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Moreton School Old Fallings Lane, Bushbury, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV10 8BY

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Outcome

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

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Outcome

The interim headteacher of this school is Scott Williams. This school is part of Amethyst 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), Nicola Licata, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Sue Reid.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils and staff are proud to belong to Moreton School. They value highly the positive shift in culture that has been fostered across all areas of school life. Staff know pupils well and always have their best interests at heart.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils. Recent changes have resulted in a renewed ambition for what pupils can achieve. Many pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), respond to this ambition by working hard. As a result, they now produce high-quality work and can talk about their previous learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils, including students in the sixth form, forge positive relationships with their peers and staff. Most pupils are motivated to learn. They display positive conduct in lessons and during social times. This helps the school to promote a calm and purposeful culture for learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a wide range of extra-curricular opportunities, including a variety of sporting and performance activities. They celebrate diversity and learn about different faiths, cultures and perspectives. For example, pupils spoke extremely positively about the school’s ‘culture day’. Sixth-form students gain from a range of purposeful opportunities that fully support their personal development. They value the support that they receive. 11 and 12 March 2025

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

There has been recent and significant change within the school’s leadership team following a period of staffing turbulence. In a short space of time, new leaders have made improvements to the school. This means that the current standard of education is not reflected in the school’s published outcomes in 2024.

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

The school has designed an ambitious curriculum for all pupils. It clearly outlines the essential knowledge that pupils need to learn. Most teachers have strong subject knowledge. Teachers check and reinforce what has been learned before. They know their classes well and make appropriate adaptions to their lessons. The school places a strong emphasis on pupils evaluating their own learning and responding to teachers’ feedback. However, there is still some variation in how well the curriculum is implemented across the school. This means that some pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

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

The school identifies pupils with SEND effectively. Pupils receive bespoke support to ensure they can learn alongside their classmates.

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

Reading is prioritised. Pupils have dedicated tutor time to read a range of well-selected novels. ‘Culture Vulture’ sessions are used to expose pupils to ambitious texts. The school has identified pupils who need support to improve their reading. These pupils receive high-quality interventions and, as a result, pupils’ reading skills are improving.

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

The school has recently reinforced their high expectations for behaviour. However, there are a number of pupils who do not routinely meet these expectations. The number of suspensions for these pupils is high and means they miss too much learning time. The school provides support for these pupils, and the numbers of suspensions are falling.

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

There is a clear and effective procedure to improve pupils’ attendance. However, these approaches are in their early stages. The number of school days missed by some disadvantaged pupils remains high. This means that these pupils miss out on important opportunities for their education and personal development.

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

The school provides for pupils’ personal development effectively. Pupils learn in an age- appropriate way about healthy relationships. They understand concepts such as consent and why this is important. They also learn about protected characteristics and different religions from visiting speakers and assemblies. Year 10 pupils and students in Year 12 take part in work experience. Pupils have access to a number of leadership opportunities, such as the student senior leadership team and sports leaders. Pupils also take part in a variety of extra-curricular clubs and activities. These include culture days, outdoor learning and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Pupils value these opportunities.

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

Students feel a sense of belonging in the sixth form. Published outcomes for 2024 show that pupils in A-level subjects did not achieve as well as they should. The school has reflected on this and put appropriate support plans in place to improve this. Current students remember and can talk about their previous learning. Students value the wide range of student-led extra-curricular and leadership opportunities on offer. 11 and 12 March 2025

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The school is well led and managed. The new leadership team has a clear vision for the school. Staff appreciate leaders’ efforts to reduce workload and improve their well-being. Governors and trustees are suitably informed about the key strengths and areas for development across the school. They support and challenge the school well. This helps the school to ensure that decisive and appropriate improvement work is carried out.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There is some variation in how well the curriculum in some subjects is implemented. Consequently, not all pupils and groups of pupils achieve as highly as they could. The trust, and school leaders, should ensure that the curriculum is implemented consistently and securely by staff so that pupils learn well across the different subjects.  A significant minority of pupils do not attend school as regularly as they should. This means that they miss out on learning the important knowledge they need to succeed. The school should ensure that they accurately identify the barriers to good attendance for all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, and work with pupils and their families to overcome these barriers.  The school’s approach to managing behaviour is not fully embedded. A small number of pupils do not behave well and are suspended too often. The school should ensure that staff consistently implement the new behaviour policy across the school and work

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

with pupils to help them to manage their own behaviours more appropriately.

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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 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 11 and 12 March 2025

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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in March 2020.

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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). 11 and 12 March 2025

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provision

Number of pupils on the school roll 1090

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form

Dates of previous inspection 4 and 5 February 2020, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The interim headteacher was appointed in January 2025.  The school uses one unregistered and four registered alternative provisions to provide education and support for a very small number of pupils.  Moreton School and one other secondary school opened a shared sixth-form provision, called The Amethyst Sixth Form, where all 89 post-16 students attend.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information about approved technical educational qualifications and apprenticeships. 11 and 12 March 2025

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held a wide range of meetings with the headteacher, other senior and curriculum leaders, staff and pupils. The lead inspector met with some of the trustees and representatives of the local governing body, including the chair.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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.  Inspectors considered the responses to the confidential staff survey and spoke to a range of staff about their views of the school.  The inspection team took account of the responses to the Ofsted Parent View

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Information about this inspection

questionnaire, including the free-text responses.  Inspectors met with a range of pupils to discuss their views about the school and talked to pupils informally during social times and in lessons.

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Inspection team

Ed Leighton, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jane Epton Ofsted Inspector 11 and 12 March 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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