Bourne Community College

Inspection Report Bourne Community College

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126069 Unique Reference Number West Sussex Local Authority 293456 Inspection number 27 °28 November 2006 Inspection dates Martyn Rhowbotham HMI Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Park Road School address Secondary Type of school Southbourne Community School category Emsworth PO10 8PJ 11 °16 Age range of pupils 01243 375691 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01243 379286 Fax number 641 Number on roll (school) Vacant Position Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Margaret Eva Headteacher 13 May 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 293456 27 °28 November 2006 11°16 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Bourne Community College serves a very wide catchment area on the West Sussex/Hampshire border. It recruits students from 28 primary schools. Nearly half of the students have learning difficulties and/or disabilities, which is very high. Students joining in Year 7 have standards that are generally lower than average. There are few students from minority ethnic backgrounds. The college works in partnership with a large number of external agencies in the area to improve the range of services it offers to students and the local community. The college benefits from the use of the new leisure centre which is situated on the same site. Bourne Community College is applying to become a specialist languages college in March 2007.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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Grade: 1

Bourne Community College is an outstanding college that provides excellent opportunities for students to achieve to the best of their ability. It has many strengths and very few significant weaknesses and has outstanding capacity to improve even further. The determination to provide the best possible opportunities for students and the community are shared by governors, college leaders and all staff within the college. Students are justifiably proud of their college, their achievements and the part they play in its success. The leadership and management of the college are outstanding. The senior team analyse the circumstances of their students and their community and make provision to meet these very diverse needs. They know their college well and continuously strive to improve. As a result, the college is now very successful. The vast majority of parents are very supportive of the school and the changes made over recent years. As one

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Grade: 1

parent quoted, 'My daughter is doing very well… we are very pleased and proud that she attends Bourne'. Another stated, 'The Bourne is a jewel that is hidden away, but so valuable that the experience will stay with you for the rest of your life'. Students' progress by the end of Year 11 is excellent. The standards they achieve have been rising consistently over the last few years and in 2006 were above average. The college has a very high proportion of students with learning difficulties, who also make excellent progress and achieve extremely well. The college is aware that the progress made by students in Years 7 to 9, though good, is slower than that made in Years 10 and 11 and the actions they have taken to address this are already working. In Years 7 to 9, the progress in mathematics is not as good as in other subjects. Students' literacy skills are developed very well throughout their time at Bourne and this helps

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Grade: 1

them to achieve the above average standards they now reach in most GCSE subjects. There have been tremendous improvements in students' personal development and the standards they achieve over the last few years. Students' growth in confidence and self-esteem is striking. They have excellent attitudes to learning and are keen to do their best. They enjoy college, are proud to belong to it and are outstanding ambassadors for it. They are exceptionally well cared for and are encouraged to be healthy, though not all take advantage of the healthy foods on offer in the canteen. They benefit from outstanding teaching. Lessons have a very purposeful atmosphere and students respond brilliantly to the high, yet inclusive, expectations teachers set for them. The curriculum is extremely well planned and enables students to follow courses that meet their needs. This increases their motivation, improves their behaviour

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Grade: 1

and raises standards. All of this contributes to the atmosphere and ethos of enjoyment and success that many visitors to the college comment on.

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What the school should do to improve further

• improve the rate of progress by students in Years 7 and 8, especially in mathematics, to match the outstanding progress made by students in Years 10 and 11. • increase the take-up of healthy food in the canteen. 2 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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Grade: 1

Students enter the college with standards that are generally below national averages but the progress they make by the time they leave Bourne Community College is outstanding. Progress made by students in English is exceptionally and consistently high and in 2005 was amongst the best in the country. Students also make excellent progress in literacy and this enables them to make very good and outstanding progress in most other subjects. Students make good progress in Years 7 to 9, especially in science and English. Their progress in mathematics, though satisfactory, is slower. In Year 10 and Year 11, students make excellent progress, especially in English. Students with learning difficulties and/or disabilities also make excellent progress. Standards achieved in lessons and in national examinations are now above average although there are still some minor differences in how well students achieve in different subjects.

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Grade: 1

In 2005, the college continued the very marked improvement of the last three years and standards were at the national average at the end of Year 9 and at GCSE. In 2006, however, attainment again rose significantly, especially in science and mathematics and in the achievement of higher grade GCSEs.

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Grade: 1

Students' personal development and well-being are outstanding. Students have outstanding personal qualities and they behave in a mature and sensible manner both in lessons and around the school. They are great ambassadors for Bourne Community College and they enjoy representing the school on a wide range of activities in the local community and further afield, for example in a spectacular weekend dance event at a local university. Students' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. They quickly develop confidence and self-esteem. Students feel safe in school and they adopt safe practices. They care for each other well as shown by the 'Bourne Bites Back' anti-bullying scheme. Bullying is rare. On the few occasions it has happened, it has been dealt with quickly and effectively through a range of innovative systems such as a helpline, website and a text message service. Students place great emphasis on

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Grade: 1

making a positive contribution to the school of which they are very proud. The school council is exceptionally well organised and plays a major role in ensuring students' views are heard and appropriate action is taken where possible, for example with the provision of storage space in the canteen. Members feel they are valued highly. The school council makes a very significant contribution to the school's development, for example in the production of 'Bourne to Succeed', the college and community newsletter. The extremely wide range of trips and visits, all of which have personal development objectives, contribute well to students' enjoyment of learning. There is an excellent range of outdoor activities available, enabling students to develop a wide range of skills. The very good work in PE and outdoor education and the sporting opportunities provided also contribute to students' healthy lifestyles, although too

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Grade: 1

few students choose healthy food in the canteen. The very good development of 3 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006 literacy and numeracy and the skills developed on vocational programmes prepare students extremely well for their future economic well-being. Older students make an outstanding contribution to the school community through their involvement in things such as the book club where they support younger students with their reading. Prefects provide younger students with excellent role models. Students also make a significant contribution to the local community through fundraising events such as 'Inspiration Day'.

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Grade: 1

Teaching and learning across the school are outstanding. Students make excellent or very good progress in nearly all lessons. Their attitude to learning is exemplary. Nearly all lessons contain a good range of interesting and challenging activities that enable students to gain knowledge, skills and understanding at a very fast rate. Students are very enthusiastic about learning and their commitment to achieving the very best is outstanding. They are justifiably proud of their achievements and teachers work hard to help students do even better. Students know how to learn on their own and in groups. They do both very effectively and take responsibility for their own learning. In most lessons, information and communication technology (ICT) is used very effectively to support learning and introduce variety to teaching. Teachers have very high expectations of what students can achieve and lessons have a purposeful and productive ethos. This, combined with careful planning, ensures that

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Grade: 1

students make outstanding progress, especially in Years 10 and 11. Teachers maintain a good pace in lessons and check frequently on students' learning, progress and understanding. In an outstanding English lesson, students worked individually, in pairs and in larger groups to analyse the meanings within a poem that had been introduced to them that day. The discussion and quality of work produced was of the highest standard and students left the lesson discussing what they were going to do in their own time and in the next lesson so as to increase their understanding and enjoyment of the work even further.

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Grade: 1

Curriculum provision is outstanding. Excellent, highly successful partnerships with primary schools and colleges result in students' smooth transition into and from the college. Excellent partnerships help the school to provide an outstanding range of extra-curricular and additional opportunities of many kinds. These help to develop students into exceptionally well rounded young people. Subjects offered cater very well for the needs of students of all abilities, inside and outside lessons. Improving achievement and outstanding progress testifies well to the success of the formal curriculum. Very enthusiastic responses and a high level of take-up demonstrate 4 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006 students' evident enjoyment in enrichment activities. They relish opportunities to prepare for the world of work and for useful leisure activity, often connected with very popular outdoor activities, sports or performances. International aspects are

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Grade: 1

strong, but students value equally the school's excellent focus on involving them with learning opportunities about the cultural diversity of the UK, for example, in disadvantaged areas of London.

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Grade: 1

Care, guidance and support are outstanding. The college works very successfully with parents and a very wide range of agencies to provide an outstanding level of support and care for its students. The Community School Nurse provides well-used access to a very wide range of support services such as sexual health advice, smoking cessation and help with eating disorders. The college is a community college in every sense of the word. It reaches out to the local community to help reduce the barriers to learning, for example by the provision of foreign language and literacy classes for parents and the community as a whole. Students feel very safe in college and are very well cared for. All staff have the care of students at the heart of their thinking. They know that each student is an individual and treat them as such. Students express great confidence in being able to get support if they need it. There is an effective and systematic approach to the identification of

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Grade: 1

students with learning difficulties. This starts through the excellent links with feeder primary schools and is followed through with exemplary support from the "Inco" and the team of inclusion assistants. Child protection and risk assessment procedures are clear and well understood. The arrangements for tracking students' progress and informing them of how well they are doing against their targets are very good and exemplary in English. Students are aware of their current performance, their targets and what they need to do to reach them.

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Grade: 1

Leadership and management are outstanding. The headteacher's inspirational vision for the development of the school is shared by senior leaders, governors and all staff. There is a common sense of purpose, focused relentlessly on improving standards in all aspects of the college's provision. The success of this is shown in the outstanding progress of students and the rapidly and consistently improving standards they achieve. It is also evident in the enjoyment and enthusiasm of students in their learning. The school has a very self-critical culture which permeates from the leadership throughout the college. Expectations are extremely high in all areas of the college and several of its self-evaluation judgments were lower than those of the inspection team. A major strength of the headteacher's leadership is the way in which the skills of staff are developed at all levels. The extended leadership team is a relatively new development

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Grade: 1

5 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006 but already there is better communication and very good spreading of good practice between departments with historically different approaches to learning. Provision for the professional development of staff is outstanding. The programme of coaching is an extremely successful way of improving teaching and learning. It includes cover supervisors who make a very effective contribution to the provision of time for middle managers to monitor and improve provision. The school's strategic planning is extremely well developed and takes into account the views of all staff, governors, parents and students. The college's strengths and weaknesses are very well identified and procedures for improvement are put rapidly into place. The governing body gives outstanding service to the school in monitoring achievements and challenging the school to do better and their high expectations

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Grade: 1

match those of the school leadership. The strength and high quality of leadership and management has already resulted in great improvement since the last inspection and there is outstanding capacity for further improvement. 6 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006 .

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Grade: 1

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 7 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

1 How well do learners achieve? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

1 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 8 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 9 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

As you know, we recently inspected your school. You probably saw us around the school and we may have visited one of your lessons. You were very good at telling us about your work and your progress. Some members of the school council told us what you like about school and what you thought could be improved. You were very polite and helpful during the inspection and were particularly good at giving us directions when we got lost! We were very impressed with your behaviour in lessons and around the school and also your enthusiasm for learning. You are right to be very proud of what you achieve at Bourne. We think it is an outstanding school. Some of your parents or carers filled in confidential questionnaires which we took into account when reaching our judgements. You all made an important contribution to the inspection and we would like to thank you very much for that. • The main strengths of the school are:

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

• the outstanding progress you make especially in Years 10 and 11 • your very good attitude to learning and your enthusiasm for school • your very good behaviour in lessons and around the school • the additional activities such as sports, clubs and trips • the way you support and care for each other • the range of courses you can choose from • really good teaching that helps you make the outstanding progress that you do • how well it is led and managed. • So as to improve further, the school needs to: • make sure you make as much progress lower down the school, especially in mathematics, as you do in Years 10 and 11, where progress is outstanding • encourage you to choose more healthy food in the canteen. Mrs Eva has some really good plans to achieve these things. You can help a great deal by continuing to work as hard as you do. Thank you again for all your help in the inspection. It was a real pleasure to meet you and we

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

wish you every success for the future. 10 Inspection Report: Bourne Community College, 27 °28 November 2006

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