Walney Academy

Inspection of Walney School Sandy Gap Lane, Walney, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria LA14 3JT

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Inspection dates: 7 and 8 May, and 5 June 2025

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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 acting headteacher of this school is Allison Redshaw. The school is part of Furness Education 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), Simon Laheney, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Jackie Arnold. 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s ambition for pupils has not been high enough in recent years. This is beginning to change. Pupils now benefit from a new and improved curriculum. Historic and longstanding weaknesses are now being addressed. Recent changes are beginning to improve how well pupils learn the new curriculum. However, there remains significant variability in how effectively the curriculum is delivered. Consequently, some pupils do not learn as well as they should.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils say that they feel safe. Most pupils enjoy their learning and have positive attitudes towards school, but a significant minority still do not attend well enough. Sometimes lessons are disrupted by poor behaviour. However, since joining a new multi-academy trust, the school has raised its expectations of pupils’ conduct. More pupils now live up to these expectations. Most follow school routines correctly and behave well in lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils take part in a variety of clubs and activities that broaden their interests. For example, they participate in sports clubs, and some have recently enjoyed a ski trip. Pupils are supported to develop leadership skills through roles such as charity ambassadors, careers leaders and sports leaders. Pupils are keen to prepare for and participate in their upcoming school production.

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

There have been significant changes to the school’s leadership over recent months, including moving to a different trust. The school and the trust recognise that the quality of education, including how well pupils achieve, is not where it should be. Governors have an accurate understanding of the school and what needs to improve. New leaders have quickly and accurately identified the shortcomings of the school. For example, they have ensured that teachers receive clearer information to help them support all pupils in lessons. This will help to overcome the poor outcomes that pupils have achieved in recent years.

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

New leaders have moved swiftly to bring about much-needed change. Although staff, including early career teachers, feel well supported by leaders, there is more to do in gaining the full confidence of parents and the wider community.

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

The school has new processes in place to ensure the work of teachers and leaders is more focused on improving pupils’ outcomes. This is important, as across the curriculum, pupils’ progress and attainment in external assessments have been poor over time. The school, with the support of the trust, has responded to this with raised expectations of pupils’ achievement. Pupils now follow a broader and more ambitious curriculum. Leaders have set out clear expectations for classroom routines and strategies to deliver the curriculum. However, these strategies are used with varying quality and impact.

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

In each subject, the school has organised learning to help pupils build on what they already know and can do. These recent changes to the curriculum are beginning to have a positive impact in some subjects. Where this is most effective, pupils complete tasks 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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that help them to build their knowledge and learn well. However, there are times when teachers do not check pupils’ understanding well enough. They do not correct pupils’ misconceptions quickly or address gaps in their learning in a timely way. When this occurs, work is not matched well to what pupils know and can do. For example, pupils are given too long to complete simple tasks, or they are provided with work which is not sufficiently demanding.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have their needs identified accurately. Teachers have the information they need to adapt their teaching. However, this information is not used consistently well in the classroom. Sometimes pupils with SEND do not learn the curriculum as well as they should.

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Pupils who cannot read well enough are identified. The reading intervention programme for those pupils who require support is having some impact, but this is limited due to a lack of precision. It does not consistently meet the needs of pupils who struggle with reading. This means that pupils do not catch up with their peers quickly enough. Leaders recognise this and are taking steps to address it. Most pupils read regularly in school. Reading time aims to improve pupils’ vocabulary and confidence.

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The school has recently reinforced its high expectations of behaviour. Pupils move around the school in an orderly way. However, not all staff follow the behaviour policy consistently. Leaders know there is still work to do to help some pupils focus positively on their learning. The school is working with parents and carers to ensure that more pupils attend school regularly.

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The programme for personal, social, health and economic education covers suitable content. For example, pupils are taught about healthy relationships, mental health and online safety. On occasions, teaching does not enable pupils to recall important knowledge or develop a deep enough understanding of these issues. Leaders have carefully designed an effective careers advice and guidance curriculum. Pupils benefit from listening to a range of external speakers and attending careers events.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some curriculum areas, teaching and the tasks pupils are set do not enable pupils to apply what they have learned in sufficient depth. This hinders them from progressing through the curriculum. The school should ensure that the curriculum is taught well so that pupils deepen their understanding and achieve well.  Methods for checking pupils’ understanding are not consistently effective. As a result, some gaps in pupils’ knowledge and misconceptions go unnoticed or are not responded 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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to promptly enough. The school should ensure that staff have the curriculum knowledge and skills to assess pupils’ learning and adapt the curriculum so that pupils build a secure knowledge base for future learning.  The inconsistencies in the implementation of the curriculum have resulted in pupils not having the knowledge and understanding needed to achieve highly in external examinations. This impacts how well pupils are prepared for life after school. Leaders should ensure that their work to develop the quality of education leads to improvements in pupils’ performance in external assessments.  In some subjects, staff do not adapt teaching well enough to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. When this occurs, some pupils with SEND do not learn as well as they could. The school must ensure that teachers use the information provided about pupils with SEND to adapt teaching effectively, so pupils learn the intended curriculum

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securely.  The school’s support for struggling readers lacks consistency and rigour. This leads to some pupils falling behind as they do not receive effective support to improve their reading skills. The school should ensure there is timely and systematic implementation of reading support so that pupils make rapid progress and access the curriculum successfully.  The school’s attendance strategy is not reaching some pupils as well as others. Absence rates are high, especially for some pupils who are disadvantaged and pupils with SEND. These pupils miss significant learning, with a negative impact on their academic and social development. The school should strengthen its partnership with families and external services to improve attendance, particularly for the most vulnerable pupils.

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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). 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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School details

Headteacher Allison Redshaw (Acting Headteacher)

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13 December 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 Since the last inspection, the school has become part of Furness Education Trust.  The school uses three unregistered 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 (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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 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.  The inspection started on 7 May 2025. Inspectors returned on 5 June 2025 to gather additional evidence in line with Ofsted inspections and visits: deferring, pausing and gathering additional evidence - GOV.UK .  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.  Inspectors met with the acting headteacher, senior trust leaders, senior school leaders, subject leaders and teachers. The lead inspector also met with those with responsibility

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for governance, including the chair of the local governing board and the chair of the board of trustees.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, history, geography and physical education. 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 discussed the curriculum in some other subjects. They looked at samples of pupils’ work in these subjects.  Inspectors took account of the responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They also considered the responses to the staff survey. Inspectors considered the views of pupils through discussions held with them during the inspection. Inspectors also reviewed the responses to the online Ofsted pupil survey.

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Inspection team

Matthew Vellensworth, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Rebecca Sharples His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

John Cowper Ofsted Inspector 7 and 8 May 2025, and 5 June 2025

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