Salvatorian Roman Catholic College Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Senior leaders should ensure that:
  • actions to address any underachievement, particularly for some disadvantaged pupils, are more focused on individual needs
  • the most able pupils are challenged sufficiently so that they make even better progress from their starting points
  • they undertake a risk assessment to tighten access arrangements to the school site
  • they continue to maintain good-quality teaching across all subjects even when frequent staff changes make this more challenging
  • attendance continues to improve, particularly for pupils whose attendance has historically been less than good

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher, senior leaders and governors have made significant improvements since the previous inspection. They have focused their attention on improving the quality of teaching, learning and assessment across the school. They have introduced a number of strategies to support pupils’ learning, which are consistently applied by all staff. These include high expectations around the quality of teachers’ planning linked to their knowledge of pupils’ ability and aptitude.
• Leaders know their school well. They have an accurate understanding of the journey the school has been on and what still needs to be done. Leaders know that the planned new build, starting shortly, poses some challenges to maintaining the high and consistent standards they have achieved thus far. Consequently, they have sought support from the diocese of Westminster to minimise disruption and add leadership capacity.
• Leaders have identified subjects where staff changes have posed a challenge to ensuring consistently high-quality teaching. They have been creative in terms of minimising any ensuing impact on pupils’ progress. The lead practitioner, the weekly ‘butterfly’ sessions where teachers can share ideas with each other, and support from Canons High School, offer beneficial support to new staff. As a result, current pupils make good progress across a range of subjects.
• Leaders have created a supportive environment and planned a curriculum that meets pupils’ interests and aspirations and ensures equality of opportunity. Additional subjects are offered to meet pupils’ varying abilities, for instance, GCSE additional mathematics for the most able. Projects organised via external volunteers support pupils’ employability skills and there are regular opportunities for taster days and visits to sixth-form colleges and universities. Though the majority of Year 11 pupils go to St Dominic’s Sixth Form College, leaders ensure that pupils receive advice about the full range of post-16 options. Consequently, the proportion who go on to further study when leaving school is above the national average.
• The Junior Leadership Team, chaired by the elected head boy, consists of 20 members from across all year groups. Their role is to provide a forum for pupils to express their ideas and concerns, organise events and participate in charity projects such as Christmas hampers for the needy. British values and citizenship are further promoted across the curriculum and during assembly and tutor times. Pupils consistently demonstrate respect and tolerance for different faiths.
• Leaders encourage parents to work with the school and value their opinions at the half- termly parent focus group meetings. The majority of parents who responded to the Ofsted online survey, Parent View, believe that their child makes good progress and that the school is well led and managed.
• Senior and middle leaders regularly check on the quality of teaching and learning to ensure that pupils make good progress. They accurately identify teachers’ strengths and areas for development, providing appropriate professional development. Middle leaders, while not particularly experienced, are strong and offer effective support to teachers.
• Leaders at all levels analyse a wealth of information on pupils’ progress. They carefully check the progress of different groups of pupils by collating pupil assessments, conducting learning walks and by book scrutiny. Leaders share this information with teachers to ensure that potential pupil underachievement is quickly identified and addressed.
• Leadership of the provision for the small number of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is good. Information about individual pupils’ specific needs is recorded in a ‘passport’ and shared with relevant staff. This ensures that teachers plan accordingly and as a result, this group of pupils make good progress from their starting points.
• A small number of pupils attend alternative provision. School leaders carefully check their progress, attendance and behaviour through regular reports and visits to the provider.
• Leaders have identified that some of the most able do not make the substantial progress of which they are capable. This is now a high priority for the school. Each department has rewritten schemes of work to stretch and challenge this group. The designated ‘gifted and talented’ coordinator offers mentoring and organises trips to universities and activities to raise aspirations. The introduction of the Higher Project Qualification (HPQ) has been a popular success with 24 pupils in Years 10 and 11.
• Leaders strive to ensure that all disadvantaged pupils make substantial progress from their starting points. The school’s published pupil premium strategy includes a range of initiatives to support these pupils. Leaders know from experience that some of these initiatives historically did not have the desired effect on some pupils’ progress. Consequently, they have revised their actions this year and have commissioned an external review from another school. Leaders carefully track individuals within this group, many of whom join the school at times other than the start of Year 7. Staff offer individual support to meet pupils’ sometimes complex needs. As a result, disadvantaged pupils are currently making good progress in line with that of their peers.

Governance of the school

• The directors of the Salvatorian Academy Trust have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and what still needs to be done to ensure that high standards are maintained, particularly throughout the new build. They are a committed and experienced group, who have high aspirations for the school.
• In September 2016, under the new chair, directors reviewed their roles and responsibilities to ensure that they provided sufficient challenge and support to the headteacher and senior leaders. They believe in being ‘analytical rather than anecdotal’ and have access to relevant performance information, which enables them to do this effectively. They are clear that more needs to be done to ensure that all pupils make substantial progress from their starting points, including the most able and some disadvantaged pupils. They have worked closely with school leaders to address the school’s deficit financial situation and secured funding for the new build.
• The directors understand their statutory safeguarding responsibilities and ensure that checks done on the suitability of staff to work at the school are kept in line with current guidance. Many have done relevant safeguarding training and all have read the latest guidance.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The leadership team has ensured that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and records are detailed and of high quality. All pre-employment checks meet statutory requirements.
• School leaders ensure that staff refer pupil concerns to external agencies quickly and check regularly that subsequent actions are appropriate. All staff have undergone relevant safeguarding training, and understand their responsibilities around the ‘Prevent’ duty. Pupils receive a range of helpful information about how to keep themselves safe, both online and in the wider community. External agencies run sessions for pupils around issues such as drugs and alcohol, resilience, gender and being a young carer. Pupils know which staff to turn to should they have a concern, and believe that any issues are dealt with quickly. Leaders are clear about the prevalent dangers in the wider community and consequently provide a nurturing and safe community in which pupils can thrive.
• Leaders are aware of the need to tighten the procedures around those who access the school site, including the resident priests and visitors to the priests’ house. They explained to inspectors that they are currently undertaking relevant risk assessments.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• Since the previous inspection, leaders have focused on improving the quality of teaching across the school and it is now good. Teachers use a range of information on pupils’ prior learning to plan interesting and engaging activities. In most lessons, pupils receive a choice of activities. These vary in terms of their level of challenge or support and are designed to stretch all pupils. Pupils enjoy the full range of practical activities on offer, including opportunities to work together, problem solve and use a range of media resources to search for information.
• Pupils are encouraged to check their own and other’s work, suggest improvements and amend if necessary. They enjoy taking control of their learning in this way and are proud of the work they produce. As a result, pupils’ work is well presented, thoughtful and shows progress over time.
• Teachers have good subject knowledge and skilfully question pupils to elicit the desired response. Pupils are known well and teachers create safe environments where pupils are encouraged to take risks with their learning and thus challenge themselves further. Pupils are keen to learn, work hard and produce work of a consistently high quality.
• Pupils’ progress is checked regularly through three-weekly assessments. This ensures that staff can address any potential underachievement swiftly. While swift action is taken to stall any underachievement, sometimes this is too general. Leaders are aware that sometimes actions need to focus more specifically on the needs of individual pupils.
• Leaders have worked tirelessly to eradicate any inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. However, some changes in staffing mean that high-quality teaching is not always sustained consistently. This is particularly true in mathematics. Leaders use a range of strategies to ensure that no pupils or groups of pupils are penalised by not having a substantive teacher.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Leaders have created a nurturing and caring environment in which individual pupils can thrive academically, spiritually and emotionally.
• Leaders work hard to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The Catholic ethos permeates the work of the school and pupils are encouraged to show respect, tolerance and understanding towards each other and adults. Pupils value the opportunities to express themselves through art, photography and drama. Pupils are encouraged to celebrate diversity and treat everyone equally.
• Pupils use a range of technology to access information, including using mobile phones in school. Leaders ensure that they monitor this carefully and that pupils have regular opportunities to discuss how they can keep safe online. Cyber-bullying, as with all other forms of bullying, is extremely rare. Pupils reported that when it does happen, staff deal with it quickly and effectively.
• The majority of parents who responded to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View, felt that their child was safe, happy and well looked after in school.
• Leaders check carefully that the small number of pupils attending local alternative provision behave well, attend regularly and that their personal development is assured.
• Pupils are given a range of information on how to keep safe in the wider community. Visiting speakers, assemblies and tutor time give them opportunities to discuss wider issues such as child sexual exploitation and the impact of gang affiliation.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. Pupils are proud of their school, wear their uniforms with pride and enjoy attending. Their conduct around the school site is consistently calm and mature. During informal times, such as break- and lunchtime, they mix well and enjoy being with their friends, taking part in activities and talking to their teachers. They routinely show respect towards each other and enjoy excellent relationships with school staff.
• Leaders have implemented a range of initiatives to encourage high attendance at school. Positive rewards for attending regularly, including trips and activities, encourage many pupils to aspire for very high attendance. However, a minority of pupils, particularly some who arrive mid-year, attend less regularly. Leaders are working closely with their families to improve attendance for these pupils.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Pupils arrived in Year 7 with attainment that was significantly above the national average and when they left at the end of Year 11 in 2016, the majority of these pupils achieved above the national average across a range of subjects.
• In 2016, across a number of subjects, pupils made progress in line with the national average. In addition, the proportion of pupils achieving grades A*–C in both English and mathematics was above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who achieved grades A*–A at GCSE was significantly above the national average in business studies, English language, English literature, mathematics, statistics and physical education.
• Provision for pupils new to learning English is good. An early morning programme gives bespoke support to individuals, and staff are given detailed information about pupils’ specific needs and aptitudes. As a result, pupils who speak English as an additional language made progress that was much higher than the national average across a range of subjects in 2016.
• In 2016, pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities made better progress than pupils nationally across a range of subjects. The new special educational needs coordinator has created a robust system of regularly assessing pupils’ needs, offering a range of support programmes and giving staff relevant information so that they can further support individuals. As a result, this group of pupils continue to make good progress across the school.
• Leaders have prioritised improving literacy and have appointed a coordinator who is a lead practitioner to ensure that subject teachers receive a range of ideas to promote literacy within their departments. Classrooms have book boxes and pupils are encouraged to read daily for pleasure and participate in a ‘reading challenge’. Leaders regularly organise author visits and workshops for creative writing and oracy, which inspire pupils.
• During the inspection, pupils were keen to read to the inspectors, demonstrating their confidence and diligence when attempting unfamiliar vocabulary. Pupils are given writing frames where necessary to support them to write for different audiences and purposes across the curriculum. Pupils routinely check their work and that of their peers to ensure that it is written in standard English; consequently, their writing is of a consistently good quality.
• The most able pupils made less progress than this group nationally in 2016 in mathematics, and some science and some humanities subjects. Leaders have prioritised supporting this group to achieve the highest grades. In most lessons, complex and challenging activities are offered to bring further depth to pupils’ learning. However, some most-able pupils do not always choose these. This is being addressed and as a result, the most able pupils are currently making better progress.
• Middle- and high-ability disadvantaged pupils in 2016 made better progress in English than pupils nationally. However, the very small number of lower ability disadvantaged pupils made far less progress than pupils nationally and their peers. Disadvantaged pupils from all starting points made less progress in mathematics than pupils nationally. The school’s analysis of this information shows that a disproportionately high number of this group arrived at the school in-year, throughout Years 9–11, having been at other schools. Some continued their education at an alternative provider. Other pupils in this group made very good progress from their starting points.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 138458 Harrow 10023590 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Secondary comprehensive School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Number of pupils on the school roll Appropriate authority Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Academy converter 11 to 16 Boys 596 Academy trust John McAleer Paul Kassapian 0208 8632706 www.salvatoriancollege.com admin@salvatorian.harrow.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 10–11 December 2014

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.
• Salvatorian Roman Catholic College is a smaller than the average-sized 11–16 boys’ secondary school.
• Priests live in accommodation on the school site.
• Less than a quarter of the pupils are known to be eligible for the pupil premium, which is below average.
• 70% of pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds, which is much higher than the national average. The largest groups are those who are Black African, any other White background, any other Asian background and Black Caribbean.
• The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is above average.
• The proportion of pupils who receive special educational needs support is below the national average.
• The proportion of pupils with a statement of special educational needs and/or disabilities or those with an education, health and care plan is above the national average.
• Pupils’ attainment on entry into key stage 3 is generally in line with the national average, with some year groups being above.
• The school met the government’s floor standards in 2015, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed teaching, learning and assessment across a range of year groups and subjects. Inspectors also visited registration time and literacy lessons, and heard pupils read.
• Discussions were held with the directors of the trust, the director of education for the diocese of Westminster, the school improvement partner, the headteacher, senior and middle leaders, a range of staff, including new teachers, and groups of pupils.
• Inspectors took account of the 68 responses to Parent View, 29 responses to the staff survey and the views of current pupils.
• The inspection team scrutinised a wide range of documentation including: records relating to pupils’ behaviour and attendance; minutes of meetings; information on the progress made by pupils; the school’s self-evaluation and the school’s assessment system.
• Inspectors reviewed safeguarding records, policies and procedures.

Inspection team

Helen Matthews, lead inspector Ian Morris Jeff Cole

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector