Westbourne Academy

Westbourne Academy Marlow Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 5JN

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inspection report:

At the most recent graded inspection, the following areas were identified as needing to improve:

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inspection report:

Some pupils, including a significant minority who are persistently disruptive and defiant, do not behave well. Many staff feel unsupported in managing behaviour. Often, pupils’ poor conduct disrupts learning and contributes to some pupils feeling anxious and worried. The school should implement a clear, consistent behaviour policy and ensure that all staff are supported to apply it effectively to establish a safe, respectful environment for all.

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inspection report:

The school does not have a clear understanding of the specific needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The support that they receive is inconsistent, and the separate spaces in which they work are not used well enough to provide targeted help. As a result, many pupils with SEND struggle to access learning. They do not achieve as well as they should. The school should improve its systems for identifying pupils’ need in a timely manner. It should also ensure that staff are equipped to adapt their teaching appropriately so that pupils with SEND achieve well.

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inspection report:

The support for pupils at the earliest stages of reading is not coherently designed or delivered consistently well. The school does not have a sufficiently clear oversight of which pupils need help or how well they are progressing in building their reading knowledge. As a result, some pupils, including those with SEND, do not develop the reading fluency that they need to access the wider curriculum quickly enough. The school should ensure that its early reading support is timely, targeted to pupils’ needs and closely monitored to secure rapid and sustained improvement in pupils’ reading skills.

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inspection report:

Some pupils experience derogatory language from their peers. Often incidents are not reported. The school is not doing enough to challenge discriminatory attitudes or prevent them from happening. The school must take proactive steps to promote a culture of respect, where all pupils feel confident to report concerns and understand and demonstrate inclusion, equality and mutual respect. Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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Pupils’ attendance rates are low and show little sign of sustained improvement. Too many pupils are regularly absent from school, which affects their learning, their personal development and their sense of belonging. The school should develop and implement a clear, strategic approach to improving attendance. It should identify and address the barriers that stop pupils coming to school and ensure that appropriate support is in place where concerns persist.

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Leaders and trustees are taking effective action to improve the school but

continued work is needed to remove the special measures designation.

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Leaders and trustees are taking effective action to improve the school but

HMCI is of the opinion that the school may appoint early career teachers.

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The position regarding the appointment of early career teachers will be

considered again during any further monitoring inspection we carry out.

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The position regarding the appointment of early career teachers will be

During the monitoring inspection, inspectors focused on the following evaluation areas:

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The position regarding the appointment of early career teachers will be

 Leadership and governance  Inclusion  Achievement  Attendance and behaviour  Curriculum and teaching  Personal development and wellbeing

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Leadership and governance

Since the last monitoring inspection, in March 2026, leaders have consolidated their work to improve the school. This is in several key areas, including that of attendance and behaviour. There is still work to do to accelerate the pace of improvement in the areas of curriculum and teaching.

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Leadership and governance

The school is moving to a new trust shortly. The current trust has worked closely with the new trust so there is a smooth handover. They are drafting together, for instance, the next instalment of the school’s rapid improvement plan. The new trust’s central team has started working with different teams in the school. This includes subject leaders. Additionally, the new trust has started delivering training to staff. This is so staff can run the new routines for behaviour and deliver the new trust’s curriculum ready for the next academic year.

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Leadership and governance

During this period of handover, there have been extra workload demands on staff and leaders. They have risen to the challenge admirably. However, it is the case that, for some, workload remains high. That said, staff’s wellbeing is a priority. Trust leaders and the academy improvement board keep a close eye on this.

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Safeguarding

At the previous graded inspection, safeguarding was evaluated as being effective. Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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Inclusion

The trust is steadying the ship with the changing leadership of SEND. On-site support from the trust’s central team is helping with a smooth transition of leadership. Staff continue to receive helpful guidance on how to deliver pupils’ support plans. The plans are clear and explicit. Some staff use the strategies to help pupils learn effectively. However, this is not a consistent picture across the school. Leaders have fulfilled the statutory requirements for pupils with education, health and care plans.

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Inclusion

There is notable improvement with provision for pupils who speak English as an additional language. Assessment of this group of pupils provides a clear picture of how well they are learning English. There is developmental work taking place with key departments, such as history. Staff have undertaken training on how to meet the needs of this group of pupils. This includes staff who run interventions. Staff are starting to model language and rehearsal, so pupils practise language accurately.

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Inclusion

The early reading strategy is reaching more pupils. Leaders are ensuring more pupils have appropriate provision in place. Teachers have a better understanding of pupils’ reading ages and how to ensure pupils can read the texts they use in lessons. However, it is still the case that in some areas of the curriculum, pupils have difficulty accessing the content.

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Achievement

Leaders’ actions are having some impact with pupils who are learning to speak English. This group of pupils receive targeted intervention. While provision is in the early stages of development, pupils benefit from the additional support. They know and understand more language. They are building the confidence they need to express themselves. As yet, these gains are not translating fully into the classroom. This is because, in some lessons, teachers’ pedagogic choices do not help pupils to do this.

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Achievement

The gaps in pupils’ knowledge of the basics, such as mathematics, remain. This is because the blanket approach to learning multiplication in tutor times is weakly delivered and targeted.

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Attendance and behaviour

Attendance remains low and below the national average. However, there are improvements with the attendance of pupils who are persistently absent. Leaders have ensured that tutors understand their role to play in helping to secure daily attendance. Leaders have introduced pupil mentor meetings and personalised one-to-one support. They are forging productive relationships with families. These actions are making a difference. The ‘hot 100’ programme has successfully targeted 100 pupils. The majority have improved their attendance. Almost a quarter of the target group have full attendance since the start of the programme. Improving the attendance of pupils with SEND remains a priority.

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Attendance and behaviour

The site remains a calm and orderly place. Pupils follow the routines for starting the day and for movement between lessons. Staff and leaders are highly visible during social times. They are proactive in making sure expected standards do not slip. While suspensions Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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continue to decrease, there is an increase in permanent exclusions. The academy improvement board has checked that processes and procedures for these are as they should be.

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Leaders have successfully tackled the use of derogatory language and profanity. Staff consistently apply the consequences for such behaviour. Thus, pupils have adjusted how they speak to one another.

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Curriculum and teaching

Leaders continue to ensure that the class environment is conducive to learning. Pupils pay attention to what teachers say and typically do the tasks that they ask of them. However, improvement in the curriculum and its delivery has not been at the same pace as in other areas. This is because the school is adopting a new curriculum when it changes trust. The new trust has run training so that staff understand the expectations of the new curriculum.

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Curriculum and teaching

Staff continue to receive training on how to adapt their teaching for differing pupils’ needs. However, it remains the case that some pedagogic choices that staff make do not help pupils to learn well. For example, pupils disengage when teachers expect them to copy notes for the entirety of the lesson. Where this occurs, staff are not routinely checking that pupils understand what they write down. In some lessons, there is heavy reliance on completing worksheets without much teacher input. As a result, some pupils struggle to understand or complete the work.

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Personal development and wellbeing

The school’s ethos of respect and kindness is developing. Leaders and staff work collaboratively together to reinforce the school’s values. Staff model to pupils the respectful language they want pupils to use. Pupils who speak English as an additional language have help to understand these values. The family liaison team is breaking down barriers through its work with families. Pupils learn how to manage their emotions and behaviour. There is tangible success as pupils have not repeated actions that warrant suspension. Leaders celebrate pupils who make the right choices through the golden ticket reward scheme. This is valued by pupils.

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Personal development and wellbeing

Leaders have strengthened pupil voice. Pupils feel a greater sense of belonging to the school as they now feel heard. They can see how their opinion matters. Pupils who have positions of responsibility, such as academy captain or prefect, are eager to fulfil their roles. School councillors now engage in local community projects. This is so they can see how they have a positive influence on those around them. There are substantially more clubs for pupils to enjoy. This contributes to a more cohesive community.

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Personal development and wellbeing

Leaders and trustees should continue to work to address the priorities for improvement identified in the last graded inspection report. Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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About this inspection

The inspectors carried out this monitoring inspection under section 8(2) of the Education Act 2005, and it was the second monitoring inspection since the school was judged to require special measures following the graded inspection that took place in June 2025.

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About this inspection

The school’s previous inspection and the first monitoring inspection were carried out under the Education Inspection Framework (EIF) at that time. The renewed EIF took effect from 10 November 2025. The areas for improvement identified at the school’s graded inspection have been cross-referenced to the relevant evaluation areas in the inspection toolkit for consideration on this monitoring inspection.

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About this inspection

The purpose of this monitoring inspection was not to determine grades for any of the evaluation areas set out in the school inspection toolkit. The purpose was to identify and report on the school’s progress in addressing priorities for improvement since the school’s previous inspection.

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About this inspection

The school is due to transfer to a new trust in the forthcoming academic year. While this process is underway, the current trust continues to provide support, guidance and challenge. The academy improvement board continues to discharge its function.

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About this inspection

A new special educational needs coordinator joined the school in May 2026.

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About this inspection

During this inspection, meetings were held with the chair of the trust, the chief executive officer, the trust’s school improvement partner and the chair of the academy improvement board. Inspectors also met with the principal, senior leaders, middle leaders, pastoral staff, groups of staff and pupils to discuss the actions that have been taken to improve the school since the most recent graded inspection.

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Team inspector

Michael Williams His Majesty’s Inspector Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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applicable)

Not applicable Monitoring inspection report: Westbourne Academy 14 July 2026

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and inspects to 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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