Setting

Prospects Learning Services Ltd 132-138 High Street Bromley Kent BR1 1EZ T 020 8313 7760 F 020 8464 3393 Ofsted helpline 08456 404045

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Mr Christopher Lee The Headteacher Broadwater School Summers Road Godalming GU7 3BW

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Introduction

Following my visit with Susan Kara HMI to your school on 27 and 28 June 2006, I write on behalf of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector to confirm the inspection findings.

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Introduction

The visit was a first monitoring inspection as part of the programme of visits to schools where the pupils’ behaviour has been identified as a concern by inspection.

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Introduction

This letter will be published on the Ofsted website. Please inform the Regional Inspection Service Provider of any factual inaccuracies within 24 hours of receipt of this letter.

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Evidence

Inspectors observed the school’s work, scrutinised documents and met with the headteacher, various staff with leadership and management responsibilities, the pupil council and a representative from the local authority. During the visit 12 parts of lessons and one assembly were inspected.

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Context

The school’s context has not changed significantly since the last inspection. The remodelling of sports’ facilities is now complete enhancing provision for pupils and extending opportunities for wider community use.

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Context

Staff recruitment remains a key challenge for the school. However, a number of successful appointments have been made and the headteacher reports that recruitment for the new academic year has been less problematic.

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Achievement and standards

School evidence indicates that the pupils’ attainment on entry is broadly average. Test and examination results have been broadly average in recent years but in 2005 they fell at both Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4. The pupils’ progress from Key Stage 2 to 3 fell from being within the top quarter of schools nationally to being in the bottom quarter. The end-of-key-stage test results in English were well below the school’s predictions and were out of line with the mathematics and science results. At the time of the last inspection the writing element of the English paper was being remarked. As a consequence the results were moved up from 46% of pupils gaining the expected Level 5 and above, to 61%. The school believes if the other elements of the test paper had also been remarked the percentage achieving Level 5 would have been even higher.

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Achievement and standards

In 2005, the proportion of pupils achieving five or more, higher grade passes at GCSE fell and the school missed its target. The school recognises that intervention strategies failed to address the underperformance of the year group when it became clear they were likely to miss their targets.

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Achievement and standards

Girls’ achievement has been better than the boys but the gap has continued to narrow and no other particular group of pupils has had unsatisfactory achievement. The school is confidently predicting that results will be better at both Key Stage 3 and 4 in 2006. The system for tracking and analysing assessment data is good and the school anticipates that around half of the pupils will achieve five or more higher grade GCSE’s. The 2006 unvalidated results for Key Stage 3 in mathematics indicate that the school is on target for its predicted outcomes

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Personal development and well-being

The pupils’ personal development and well-being are satisfactory and sometimes good. Most pupils enjoy their lessons and behave well in them. Following the last inspection the school took swift action to tackle the identified behaviour issues. The small number of pupils that were having an adverse effect on their own and others learning were dealt with in a variety of ways including both individual support and changes to their curriculum. Behaviour has improved around school and the pupils recognise this. In the majority of lessons the teachers were using the agreed staged discipline procedure which is clear and well understood by the pupils. The system of rewards has also been revised, and is valued by the pupils. Initially, as teachers raised their expectations and acted more consistently, there was a rise in the use of sanctions such as detention, use of the inclusion room and exclusions. These are all now falling and the trend towards the end of the spring term and over

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Personal development and well-being

the summer term is downward. There has been a significant reduction in the number of exclusions compared to last year. Teachers have received effective professional development in the use of non-confrontational language and greater use of praise. The atmosphere in most lessons is positive and the learning ethos at least satisfactory.

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Quality of provision

The quality of teaching is satisfactory overall with some good features. Teaching was satisfactory in six lessons and good in five. One lesson was inadequate. Where teaching is effective, teacher’s plans include a variety of activities that help pupils to achieve appropriately challenging objectives. Expectations are high and systems for behaviour management are implemented consistently. Positive relationships support learning. Teaching is lively, energetic and engaging with pupils participating confidently. In these lessons teachers sustain a rapid pace by skilful questioning and cleverly planned activities. This good practice is yet to be embedded in all subject areas. Weaknesses remain, even in lessons that are satisfactory overall: work sometimes lacks sufficient pace, teaching is not always responsive to the range of pupils’ learning styles and not all teachers make good use of assessment information to plan for learning. In one lesson, the challenging behaviour of a

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Quality of provision

small number of pupils was ineffectively managed.

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Quality of provision

The quality of learning correlates very closely with that of teaching and is satisfactory overall. In general, pupils make at least satisfactory and often good progress in lessons. In the best lessons pupils make rapid gains. However, there is still variability in the pupils’ rates of progress between lessons.

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Quality of provision

The school is fully aware of the need to continue to improve the quality of teaching. There is an appropriate focus on engaging and supporting learners. Strategies for sharing good practice are beginning to have some impact. For example, some staff have been trained in the skills of coaching and are working with colleagues successfully to extend and strengthen teaching methods. The system for checking homework is set has been strengthened and school policy is being implemented more consistently.

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Quality of provision

The curriculum has been developed to provide pupils with appropriate choices that hold their interest. Increased choice in Key Stage 4 is helping to motivate pupils and raise standards. Specialist college status in mathematics and computing is having a positive impact within the specialist subjects and across the curriculum through the development of ICT as a tool for learning.

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Quality of provision

Progress with areas for improvement identified by the inspection in September 2005: ƒ Ensure that teachers challenge students’ poor behaviour where it occurs, making lessons more engaging and planning fully for the needs of all students – satisfactory progress. ƒ Focus on how the best teaching can be effectively shared across the school’s teaching force – satisfactory progress. ƒ Ensure there is swift and appropriate action taken to address shortfalls in the amount and type of homework set – good progress.

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Leadership and management

The headteacher responded positively to the findings of the last inspection. He has been well supported by the senior leadership team in developing a range of initiatives that have improved pupils’ behaviour to the point where it is satisfactory and sometimes good. Senior leaders have a sound understanding of the link between effective teaching and learning and positive pupil attitudes. This has been the wider context of the work undertaken to strengthen systems for managing behaviour. A clear plan of action outlining appropriate strategies for improvement was put in place quickly.

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Leadership and management

The senior leadership team demonstrates the capacity to bring about further improvement in pupils’ behaviour. Weaknesses in teaching are tackled robustly. An appropriate balance is struck between supporting the development of teachers and making the consequences of unsatisfactory performance clear. The team is correctly focused on developing leadership capacity at every level but there is further work to do in improving the quality of middle management to the level of the best. The monitoring of teaching and learning has largely been carried out by senior leaders and rightly concentrated on strengthening practice that is not consistently satisfactory. It is recognised that there now needs to be a more systematic approach to monitoring teaching and learning that involves all subject leaders.

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Leadership and management

Progress on the areas for improvement identified by the inspection in September 2005: ƒ Continue to target weaknesses in teaching in the lowest performing subjects and improve the quality of middle management to the level of the best – satisfactory progress.

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External support

The effectiveness of support from the local authority has been variable. At its best, it has helped the school to make good progress in some subject areas. The guidance and support received to improve pupils’ behaviour, whilst helpful, has been relatively recent. The school would have benefited from more assistance in managing the impact of staff recruitment difficulties.

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Main Judgements

The school has made satisfactory progress towards improving the pupils’ behaviour.

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Priorities for further improvement

ƒ Ensure that assessment information is used effectively at every level to raise standards. ƒ Establish a more systematic approach to monitoring and evaluating teaching and learning that involves all subject leaders. ƒ Continue to develop the quality of leadership at all levels.

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Priorities for further improvement

I am copying this letter to the Secretary of State, the chair of governors and the Director for Schools for Surrey.

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