South Bank Engineering UTC Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Leaders must ensure that they:
  • have the capacity to check the quality of teaching and learning to ensure that it is of a consistently good quality
  • provide timely support and professional development for staff
  • ensure opportunities for strong teachers to develop their leadership skills to increase their capacity still further
  • make sure that their focus on improving attendance gathers momentum so that pupils are punctual and regular attenders
  • ensure that all pupils make at least good progress from their starting points, particularly the most able
  • check which pupils and students access the range of opportunities available to them.
• Improve teaching and learning across key stage 4 and in the sixth form, by ensuring that:
  • teachers routinely check pupils’ and students’ understanding of key concepts and ideas, adapting their teaching accordingly to meet individual needs
  • pupils are able to recall prior learning so that their knowledge is secure, and they can progress confidently
  • teachers give clear advice about how pupils can improve their work
  • teachers use the extensive resources available to them so that pupils can be active and curious learners
  • all teachers support pupils to write accurately and effectively for a range of different audiences and purposes.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Sponsors, governors and leaders have established a unique learning environment which has high aspirations for its young people. There were significant challenges in the early stages of inception, around temporary accommodation, a lack of resources, specialist teachers and leadership capacity. However, leaders have maintained their determination to create a high-quality, specialist, community school.
• Leaders are clear about the strengths of the school and the need to focus on improving the quality of teaching and learning. They have very recently increased senior leadership capacity and are beginning to develop leadership skills among the staff. In this way, leaders are vigilant about offering timely and effective support to teachers, when required.
• Leaders know the urgency of ensuring that Year 11 pupils and Year 13 students achieve their academic targets. They have refined school improvement plans and are looking to work closely with other providers and schools. This is to ensure that the accuracy of their pupil assessments is validated outside of the school.
• Leaders were disappointed by the 2018 academic A-level results. However, they acted swiftly and secured appropriate destinations for all students in employment, on apprenticeships or on suitable courses at university. Leaders have since reviewed the entrance criteria for A-level courses. This ensures that students have good-quality information, advice and guidance and the ability to achieve appropriate outcomes on their chosen courses.
• Leaders have given careful thought to pupils’ social, spiritual, moral, and cultural development. There are regular opportunities for pupils to discuss current affairs, celebrate the diversity of their school and uphold British values. Weekly ‘expert talks’ aim to raise pupils’ aspirations, present information on the range of employment opportunities available and promote key employability skills.
• Leaders are proud of their specialist curriculum. At points during the year, pupils undertake project-based learning to hone skills such as research, self-organisation, teamwork, time management and effective communication. Pupils are presented with problems in the form of ‘big ideas’, designed by the school’s employer partners and the university, for instance designing the ‘hospital ward of the future’. Pupils and students value these opportunities to work with industry professionals and demonstrate their practical skills.
• Leaders carefully track the progress of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) understands the needs of individual pupils on the SEND register, and plans are in place to share this systematically with staff. These pupils benefit from small class sizes, a nurturing environment and positive relationships with staff.
• Leaders have identified some barriers to learning for disadvantaged pupils. They have used pupil premium funding to make class sizes smaller and provide access to technology to aid pupils’ learning. These initiatives are in the early stages and, therefore, the impact on pupils’ progress is not yet clear.
• Few parents responded to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View. However, those that did were positive about their child’s experience since joining the school. Parents are pleased with the professional and caring ethos of the school and the efforts that have been made to enable their child to settle quickly into a new environment.

Governance of the school

• The interim chief executive officer (CEO) and the school advisory board (SAB) offer appropriate support and challenge to school leaders. Working together, sponsors and governors have successfully built a school designed to raise aspirations and produce skilled young people. They are proud of their successes to date but share senior leaders’ acknowledgement that more needs to be done to improve the quality of teaching and learning.
• The local advisory board has recently revised its structure so that it can work more closely with school staff. Consequently, governors have a good understanding of the work of the school and what needs to be improved. They bring their extensive experience and industry connections to the role, providing the school and its pupils with many external opportunities and resources.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Leaders have established a culture of safeguarding at the school. They have introduced a systematic way to record staff concerns and ensure that they track subsequent actions. Leaders work closely with external agencies to ensure that pupils get early help, where appropriate.
• Staff are well trained and know their responsibilities around being vigilant to any signs of concern. They were clear about their responsibility to prevent extremism and radicalisation. They are aware of the pertinent risks to pupils in the wider community, including child sexual exploitation, gang affiliation and knife crime. Checks on the suitability of staff to work at the school are in line with statutory guidance.
• The school site is secure and well maintained, with appropriate risk assessments in place.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• Teachers do not routinely check whether pupils understand what they are learning. Consequently, teachers are not able to adapt their planning to address misconceptions or fill any gaps in pupils’ knowledge and comprehension. Equally, pupils are not always clear about how they can improve their work, and this limits the progress they can make.
• Teachers do not ensure that all pupils understand key knowledge, concepts, ideas or subject-specific language. Some pupils find it difficult to recall prior learning, and this inhibits their ability to attempt new learning confidently. For instance, they struggle sometimes to name and describe the function of particular tools or remember factual knowledge in biology.
• Teachers do not explicitly support pupils to write effectively for different audiences and purposes within their subject area. Written work in some areas is of poor quality and does not enable pupils to demonstrate what they know. Errors in spelling, punctuation and grammar exacerbate this, and are not routinely picked up by teachers.
• The new school building benefits from specialist equipment, laboratories and workshops, some of which have yet to be commissioned for pupils’ use. Consequently, teachers are not able to use these resources regularly enough. Pupils say that they are keen to be active in their learning. They value the project-based learning they undertake with sponsors as it is engaging, hands-on and practical. Pupils would welcome more opportunities to be inquisitive and active learners across all of their subjects.
• Some teachers know their pupils well and plan accordingly. They know that some pupils need an equal measure of reassurance and challenge. These teachers are clear about what they want pupils to learn in the short term, in order to achieve their long-term targets. For instance, in some Year 12 mathematics classes, students are resitting their GCSE examinations to improve their grades. Students make good progress in these areas.
• There is some strong teaching in engineering, and this was reflected in the 2018 outcomes. Pupils are highly motivated and keen to rise to the challenge.
• Leaders have instigated additional weekly sessions where teachers share best practice and learn new skills. Staff were complimentary about the support they receive and the benefit of these sessions on their teaching.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Leaders know that some pupils have had challenges in their previous school or have been erratic attenders. Many need reassurance, care and guidance so that they can settle quickly and focus on their learning. The school runs an effective mentoring programme to ensure that all pupils receive bespoke support. As a result, the school community is harmonious and supportive. Pupils mix across year groups and support each other, irrespective of their backgrounds, ability or aspirations.
• The ‘safer schools’ officer and other external agencies provide briefings for pupils on how they might keep themselves safe in different situations. Pupils and students in the sixth form said that they feel safe in school and know whom they would turn to if they were concerned. They reported that bullying is rare.
• Girls are a minority group at the school. Leaders have started to offer bespoke support and guidance. A school nurse is on site once a week. A local group, which aims to increase girls’ self-esteem, makes visits to the school, and sponsors have arranged similar presentations by women in industry. The girls said that they are well looked after, although would still welcome further opportunities as a distinct group.
• Leaders provide a range of work-related learning, work placements, visits and trips. A careers officer visits the school once a week and gives impartial advice and guidance. Leaders promote university ‘open days’ and information about apprenticeship opportunities. However, leaders do not track carefully enough which pupils access these opportunities. Consequently, they are not able to ensure that all pupils, irrespective of their backgrounds, are being given comprehensive information, advice and guidance to ensure equality.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils are very proud of their school and their experiences. They take pride over their appearance and are well prepared for their lessons. They show respect and tolerance towards each other and to the adults around them. Pupils welcome the opportunities they receive through the sponsors and were quick to explain the many positive aspects of their school.
• Pupils conduct themselves in a mature and polite way around the site. At break and lunchtimes, they socialise with their friends or enjoy playing football or table tennis, often highly competitively.
• During lessons, the majority of pupils are motivated and want to do well. Where teaching is less strong, sometimes, pupils’ attention wanes, and time is lost. A minority of pupils require further support to manage their own behaviour. Teachers are quick to intercede, and do so calmly and appropriately, quickly de-escalating any potential tensions.
• Attendance, while improving slightly, is still too low throughout the school. Leaders are working to address this, although more needs to be done. Punctuality to lessons is erratic. This is exacerbated by the building being on five levels, making movement between lessons too slow sometimes.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Leaders undertake baseline assessments of pupils’ ability on entry and track their progress from this point. Leaders use this information to set examination targets. However, evidence in pupils’ books indicates that progress varies, depending on the teacher. In some subjects, there is demonstrable evidence of pupils acquiring knowledge and deepening their understanding. These pupils are set ‘challenge tasks’ that stretch their problem-solving and reasoning skills.
• There is evidence of teachers giving advice on how pupils can improve their work, and subsequent progress is evident. However, this is not the case across all subjects. In some subjects, work in books and assessment papers indicates large gaps in pupils’ understanding and knowledge. This is exacerbated by some pupils’ inability to express themselves effectively in writing. Leaders’ own records of their analysis of pupils’ work confirm variation in pupils’ progress across the school.
• In English lessons, pupils focus predominantly on reading the set literary texts in preparation for their GCSE English examinations. There are few opportunities for pupils to read other texts, including non-fiction, as models for their own writing.
• In 2018, across a number of subjects, including English and mathematics, pupils overall made progress in line with pupils nationally. However, disadvantaged pupils made less progress across a range of subjects than their peers did, and pupils nationally.
• At the end of Year 11 in 2018, pupils’ attainment was in line with the national average across a range of subjects. The attainment of pupils studying BTEC engineering level 2 was higher than the national average. Equally, the proportion of pupils achieving grade 5 or above in both English and mathematics was just above the national average. These pupils had middle or high attainment when they left primary school at the end of key stage 2. However, fewer disadvantaged pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and mathematics. Leaders have rightly identified some groups of current pupils who need to make stronger progress from their starting points. These include the most able and disadvantaged pupils.

16 to 19 study programmes Requires improvement

• Teaching, learning and assessment on 16 to 19 study programmes, as in key stage 4, require improvement. The quality of teaching in different departments is not good. Consequently, students make variable progress, depending on the subject and their teacher.
• Outcomes on academic A-level courses in 2018 were poor. Many students failed to achieve A-level qualifications. This was due to a range of issues, including inappropriate entrance criteria for specific subjects, poor advice, teaching that required improvement and personal issues. However, leaders ensured that all students went on to find appropriate employment, suitable apprenticeships or university courses.
• Leaders responded quickly to ensure that students now have the academic ability to succeed on their chosen courses, and that teachers have the subject knowledge and skills to ensure that students make better progress. However, the quality of teaching remains inconsistent.
• Retention and attendance in the sixth form continue to require improvement. Too many students do not attend regularly enough, with some leaving school before the end of their course.
• Outcomes in vocational qualifications are stronger, particularly engineering. Students who completed BTEC Level 3 courses in 2018 achieved very highly. Current students look set to do the same.
• Guidance for students resitting GCSE qualifications in English and/or mathematics, and for those taking core mathematics to support their engineering skills, is strong. Consequently, these pupils make appropriate progress.
• University and employer-led projects are a successful feature of the curriculum, benefiting all learners. Some students are successful in acquiring meaningful work experience placements. This supplements their studies in school and prepares them well for the next stage of their education and training. However, while leaders provide information about opportunities, they do not ensure that all students participate in a work experience programme, particularly those on vocational courses.
• Students are mature, hard-working and aspirational for their future success. Many have a clear idea about their future work plans. Leaders and the sponsors have effectively supported those applying for apprenticeships and university placements. Students support each other well and have very positive relationships with the adults who work with them. Students are proud of their school, are pleased that they chose to study there and have enjoyed the experience.
• Safeguarding arrangements, as in the rest of the school, are effective.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 142905 Lambeth 10058831 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Technical School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Gender of pupils in 16 to 19 study programmes Number of pupils on the school roll Of which, number on roll in 16 to 19 study programmes University technical college 14 to 19 Mixed Mixed 221 125 Appropriate authority Board of trustees Chair Headteacher Nicole Louis Dan Cundy Telephone number 020 7738 6115 Website Email address www.southbank-utc.co.uk info@southbank-utc.co.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• South Bank Engineering is a university technical college that opened in September 2016 in temporary accommodation. Last year, it moved into its new building. It educates 14- to 19-year-old pupils and students.
• The UTC’s main sponsor is London South Bank University. Other sponsors include Skanska, King’s College Hospital NHS trust, Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital NHS trust, and Essentia.
• The school is part of the South Bank Academies multi-academy trust.
• Girls represent approximately one fifth of the pupil body.
• Over half of the pupils are known to be eligible for the pupil premium, which is above average.
• The majority of pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds, which is higher than the national average. The largest groups are those who are Black or Black British – African, and Black or Black British – Caribbean.
• The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is above average.
• A quarter of pupils receive special educational needs support, which is above the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan is below the national average.
• The majority of pupils joined their previous school in Year 7 as middle- or high-ability pupils.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed teaching, learning and assessment across the full range of year groups and subjects.
• Inspectors held discussions with representatives from the local advisory board, who represent the sponsors, the principal and vice-principal, and teachers with lead responsibilities. They spoke to a range of staff, pupils and students in the sixth form.
• Inspectors took account of the two responses to Parent View, 18 responses to the staff survey and 13 responses from pupils.
• The inspection team scrutinised a wide range of documentation, including: records relating to student behaviour and attendance, minutes of meetings, information on the progress made by current students, the school’s self-evaluation documentation and the school development plan.
• Inspectors reviewed safeguarding records, policies and procedures. They checked the school’s procedures for ensuring the safer recruitment of staff.

Inspection team

Helen Matthews, lead inspector Steve Lambert Her Majesty’s Inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector