St Peter's Collegiate Academy

Inspection of St Peter’s Collegiate Academy Compton Park, Compton Road West, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV3 9DU

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

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The principal of this school is Timothy Mullen-Furness. This school is part of Three Spires 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), Emily Verow, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by David Lee. 25 and 26 March 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils speak positively about the recent improvements in the school’s work. They know that the school’s expectations for their achievement and how they conduct themselves are high and consistent. They also understand how the school lives up to its values of ‘respect, service and aspiration’. As one pupil, typical of many, stated: ‘St Peter’s is a community which supports all pupils and provides a safe environment for us to learn.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils achieve well thanks to the more consistent approaches to teaching and the curriculum which are now in place. This includes students in the sixth form, for whom provision is shared with another school in the trust. Pupils learn and remember the key knowledge that they need to be successful. Pupils understand that this is a school where they are supported to achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the much-improved expectations of their behaviour. They know they can concentrate in lessons without interruption and that social times will be orderly. They are clear that this is an inclusive school where pupils of all backgrounds are valued and welcome. Pupils appreciate the many clubs and visits the school offers, including trips to the theatre, sports clubs and residential trips abroad.

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

The school has undertaken careful adjustments to its curriculum and teaching to continue improving pupils’ education, including their examination results. This has resulted in logical changes to when some key learning is taught and revisited to enable pupils to learn the curriculum with success. In this, the school has reviewed its provision of Spanish to support more pupils taking this subject and hence the EBacc suite of qualifications.

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

The school has extensively developed its approach to teaching to ensure higher levels of consistency in and between subjects. This has had a positive impact as pupils show an effective recall of their previous learning. Staff review if pupils learn the curriculum as intended. However, there remain some inconsistencies in the use of such checks to identify when pupils need more support. In addition, sometimes teaching does not move pupils on to more complex knowledge when they are secure in their learning. All this contributes to some pupils not learning the curriculum as well as they could.

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

The school checks pupils’ reading ages carefully on entry. This helps it to provide effective support to those pupils who need to become more fluent readers. There is further provision in place to develop pupils’ love of reading, including a range of carefully selected texts which pupils read in form time.

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

The school has worked extensively to review its provision in the sixth form following last year’s A-level results. This has included establishing a joint sixth-form provision with another school in the trust. The students in the sixth form benefit from the improved approach to teaching that has been developed throughout the school. All this has contributed to students in the sixth form learning the curriculum in greater depth and being better prepared for their examinations. 25 and 26 March 2025

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The school has carefully reviewed its provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). These pupils’ needs are identified with precision. The school ensures that staff have clear information on these needs to support the pupils’ learning. However, in some subjects, this information is not used as effectively as it should be. This contributes to the learning of these pupils sometimes being less secure.

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The school has worked in a highly effective way to ensure that pupils attend regularly. This contributes to attendance levels being high for the school overall, including for more vulnerable pupils. The school liaises well with parents and carers if there are concerns around attendance. The school’s expectations for pupils’ behaviour are well understood and applied. This means that, typically, pupils focus well during lessons, and social times are calm and orderly. Appropriate action is taken when pupils struggle to meet these high expectations.

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The school is rightly proud of its extensive offer for pupils’ personal development. This includes a range of clubs, visits and residentials, as well as a recently restructured pupil leadership group. At the sixth form, the school has taken care to ensure students are well guided in their choice of courses, and reviews and rapid interventions follow if there are concerns. This, too, has helped to improve outcomes for sixth-form students. Pupils and students benefit from useful guidance to inform and support them to access ambitious destinations.

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Governors and trustees are very well informed about the school and offer supportive challenge. They are ambitious for the school and its pupils. The trust has worked effectively with leaders to review and develop the school’s work. Staff speak highly positively of the changes which have been made and how leaders have consulted and collaborated with them to improve the school. They appreciate that leaders constructively engage with them about staff workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Sometimes, the school does not ensure that teachers use assessment well to identify when pupils have secure curriculum knowledge. This means that, on occasion, teaching does not move pupils on to more complex work when needed, and there are times when pupils who need additional help are not identified as well as they could be. The school should use assessment effectively to identify which pupils need extra support and when to move pupils on to learn more complex subject content.  In some subjects, the school does not make certain that teaching makes effective use of the information it provides to adapt learning activities for the needs of pupils with 25 and 26 March 2025

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SEND. When this happens, these pupils do not learn the curriculum as well as they could. The school should strengthen teachers’ understanding of how to adapt activities for pupils with SEND so pupils learn the curriculum as the school intends.

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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). 25 and 26 March 2025

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provision

Number of pupils on the school roll 1,350

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form

Dates of previous inspection 5 and 6 July 2022, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school is part of Three Spires Trust. There are six schools in the trust.  The principal was appointed in September 2022.  The school is a Church of England school in the Diocese of Lichfield. It was last inspected under section 48 of the Education Act 2005 in November 2024.  The school uses four registered alternative provisions and one unregistered alternative provision.  The school’s sixth form is run collaboratively with another school in the trust.  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 25 and 26 March 2025

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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.

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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.  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.  As part of this inspection, the inspectors met with the chair of the local governing board, governors, the chair of the trust and trustees. They met with senior leaders, subject leaders, teaching staff, the CEO and other employees in the school. Inspectors also talked informally to pupils to gather general information about school life. Governing body minutes were reviewed.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, science, history, sociology and modern foreign languages. For each deep dive, the 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 in these subjects.  The inspectors reviewed the school’s extra-curricular activities, enrichment programme and their careers and personal development programmes with leaders and pupils.  The inspectors reviewed the school’s behaviour and attendance records with school leaders.  A range of documentation was scrutinised, including plans to improve the school.  Two alternative provisions used by the school were contacted by telephone.  The inspectors met with members of staff and spoke to pupils, both formally and informally, at various points in the inspection. They took account of responses to

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Information about this inspection

Ofsted surveys for staff, Ofsted Parent View and the free-text responses, as well as other communication from parents and carers.

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Inspection team

Andrew Madden, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 25 and 26 March 2025

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Patrick Amieli Ofsted Inspector 25 and 26 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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