The Queen Katherine School Ofsted Report

Full report

In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve leadership and management by:
  • creating a culture where all pupils, irrespective of background or ability, are valued and are given good opportunities to achieve
  • raising teachers’ expectations of how well pupils can achieve
  • keeping a close check on the progress of pupils who are at alternative provision more precisely so that they make the progress of which they are capable
  • ensuring consistent application of school policies
  • ensuring that pupils in the main school and the sixth form are safe and free from harm while on the school site.
• Raise pupils’ achievement by:
  • setting challenging targets for all pupils within a school culture of high achievement
  • ensuring that all pupils make faster progress, with a particular focus on accelerating the progress made by boys and disadvantaged pupils, including the most able disadvantaged pupils
  • ensuring that all pupils reach the standards of which they are capable.
• Improve pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare by:
  • reducing the number of disadvantaged pupils who are regularly absent from school
  • reducing the number of disadvantaged pupils who are temporarily excluded from school
  • eradicating low-level disruption
  • ensuring that incidents of bullying are dealt with effectively.
• Improve the quality of teaching by:
  • ensuring that teachers use the school’s new assessment system and other information they have about their pupils to plan lessons that stretch and challenge pupils to achieve their potential
  • sharpening teachers’ questioning skills so that pupils can develop a deeper understanding of the concepts being studied and apply that knowledge to a range of contexts
  • ensuring that teachers have consistently high expectations of what pupils can and should achieve. An external review of governance should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved. An external review of the school’s use of the pupil premium should be undertaken in order to assess how this aspect of leadership and management may be improved.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

• Leaders and governors have overseen a sharp decline in the quality of education at The Queen Katherine School. They have been too slow to remedy significant weaknesses in leadership. Leaders and governors have allowed an increasing proportion of pupils to leave the school having made inadequate progress. In 2016, the overall progress made by pupils in the school at the end of Year 11 was below the national average. Other pupils in the school are making slow progress from their starting points. As a result, the overall standard of education is inadequate.
• Leaders and the governing body have not paid sufficient attention to the key findings of an Ofsted visit in 2015. This focused on the poor progress made by disadvantaged pupils at the school. Leaders and governors did not tackle the key areas for improvement. As a result, disadvantaged pupils continue to make extremely slow progress. The impact of the additional pupil premium funding has been negligible. Only since the appointment of the current headteacher has there been a sharper focus to improve the progress made by disadvantaged pupils. There is now a determined drive to increase the expectations of what disadvantaged pupils can achieve. It is, however, too soon to see the impact of those actions on pupils’ progress in key stage 4.
• Over the last few years, leaders and governors have focused on the formation of The Queen Katherine School Multi-Academy Trust. This led to a period of instability in the school’s leadership. As a result, standards have declined and pupils underachieve considerably, particularly boys and disadvantaged pupils. The headteacher is now addressing these shortfalls but improvements have had insufficient time to have an effect on standards throughout the school, and particularly in Year 11.
• In May 2015, the governing body appointed a new headteacher to the school. Standards were so low that the headteacher had to re-establish the basic non-negotiable rules and expectations that allow teaching and learning to take place. That journey to reignite a learning culture in the school is underway. The headteacher has had to rebuild the senior leadership team to drive up standards. This work has not yet had time to have an impact on raising standards.
• Leaders, including governors, have too generous a view of the quality of education provided by the school. As a result, they have not taken effective action to reverse the sharp decline in standards quickly enough. This has resulted in too many pupils leaving the school without achieving the standards of which they are capable.
• In the past, the school has made excessive use of alternative provision to manage some pupils who were not engaged with their learning. The standards reached by those pupils educated off-site have been low. Leaders have not always known how well these pupils were doing because they did not track these pupils’ progress rigorously enough.
• The curriculum has been too narrow for some time, especially for the least-able and disadvantaged pupils. The curriculum provision has not prepared pupils for life in modern Britain. Over the past three years, a significant proportion of pupils in key stage 4 have not studied the breadth of qualifications of which they are capable. This is because aspirations and expectations were too low. The headteacher and other senior leaders have re-evaluated the curriculum to ensure that every pupil has access to high-quality courses to enable them to succeed. Consequently, most pupils in the school are now on an appropriate curriculum pathway.
• The quality of teaching varies considerably throughout the school. The headteacher and other senior leaders have recognised the significant challenge ahead of them and a journey of improvement is underway. That said, policies associated with improving teaching are not yet consistently well applied. As a result, the impact of teaching on pupils’ progress is not yet good.
• Pupils are sometimes taught by supply teachers for extended periods. This restricts their progress and frustrates them because they know they are not achieving as well as they should. As a result, they become disengaged. Pupils say that their behaviour deteriorates when they are taught by temporary teachers.
• Although there has been an increase in the rigour of the systems that leaders use to assess the quality of teaching, they are not yet sharp enough. Leaders do not routinely focus on the impact of teaching on the progress made by individuals and groups of pupils, most notably boys and disadvantaged pupils. As a result, teachers are unsure of their role in raising standards.
• Leaders have produced new plans to tackle weaknesses throughout the school. These plans, however, do not sufficiently link improvements to clear, measureable success criteria. This is particularly the case with plans to strengthen the progress made by disadvantaged pupils. As a result, some middle leaders and teachers do not understand how they should contribute to whole-school improvement priorities.
• Leaders have introduced a new assessment system throughout the school. Because the system has just been rolled out, not all pupils understand how it is used, and it is too early to see the desired impact on pupils’ progress.
• Target-setting for pupils is becoming stronger. The headteacher and other senior leaders have raised the bar across the school. These new aspirations are yet to raise standards. Leaders have not yet had the time to ensure that all teachers use this information to plan lessons that stretch and challenge their pupils.
• The headteacher has introduced a strong programme to support teachers’ ongoing development. The range of activities is closely aligned to the priorities in the school improvement plan, for example, ‘top tips on Tuesdays’. This is already having an impact on the quality of teaching because it reminds teachers of strategies to raise achievement.
• The headteacher has wasted no time appointing new middle leaders to areas that are underperforming. They demonstrate passion and commitment to The Queen Katherine School’s pupils. New leaders are acutely aware of the immediate actions required to drive up standards, for example in technology. It is, however, too soon to see the impact of their actions on pupils’ progress, especially among disadvantaged pupils and boys in Year 11.
• Leaders’ actions are bringing about improvements in the rates of progress pupils make in key stage 3. Their actions have not been sufficient, however, to do the same for disadvantaged pupils and boys in key stage 4.
• The school’s system for performance management of teachers is much stronger this year than previously. There is now a focus on key priorities for improvement, for example the progress made by disadvantaged pupils. It is, however, too early to see the impact of this on the quality of teaching.
• The provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good in many respects but its impact on bullying is not good enough. As a result, too many older pupils say they have experienced bullying in the school. Some pupils do not adequately show respect for one another.

Governance of the school

• The governing body has overseen plummeting standards at The Queen Katherine School. Governors accept that they did not take quick enough action to tackle significant leadership issues. As a result, too many pupils have made poor progress and have underachieved.
• Governors have not effectively challenged leaders about the standards achieved by groups of pupils, for example boys and disadvantaged pupils. They have not sufficiently held leaders to account for the use of additional pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged pupils to make the progress of which they are capable. There have been serious failings in accountability.
• Governors have not fulfilled their statutory safeguarding duties. They have not ensured that risk assessments and safeguarding procedures have been followed with regard to site security. As a result, pupils are not safe.
• Until this year, governors have not ensured that the curriculum promotes equality of opportunity. Too many pupils have studied too few or inappropriate qualifications. Consequently, the governing body has failed the school’s pupils.
• Recently, the governing body has been reconstituted and governors are undergoing additional training.
• Governors have confidence in the ability of the current headteacher.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.
• Pupils are not safe and some do not feel safe. Leaders, including governors, have not ensured that the school’s own risk assessments with regard to site security are implemented fully. They have not acted on the recommendations from the previous inspection to review regularly the school’s risk assessments more rigorously. Consequently, these deficiencies in safeguarding procedures continue to put the welfare of pupils at risk.
• Staff and governors receive regular training about safeguarding procedures. Leaders ensure that all staff know how to recognise the signs and symptoms of abuse. Training is frequent. Leaders have recently revised their approach to dealing with current issues such as ‘sexting’ and radicalisation.
• The school has effective systems to keep pupils safe online. There are regular checks to make sure pupils have safe, age-appropriate access to the internet. Pupils in the sixth form, for example, have a wider access to online materials to ensure that they can complete their studies. Pupils are taught how to stay safe online across the curriculum.
• Leaders and governors work effectively with parents and other agencies to support pupils who are at risk. Work with other agencies is secure and referrals to support agencies are timely. Leaders ensure that early help is available when required and that pupils who are at risk are appropriately supported.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching varies too much. Teachers do not routinely plan work that stretches and challenges pupils to think for themselves, especially the most able. In some subjects, teachers do not use the information they have about pupils’ prior learning to plan activities that will help them to achieve their potential. Sometimes teachers’ expectations of what pupils can and should achieve are low. This results in pupils being underchallenged and leads to some poor behaviour.
• The quality of teaching has not been good enough to ensure that pupils make the faster progress of which they are capable. Too much teaching does not meet the needs of some pupils. School leaders know that teaching is not yet as good as it should be.
• Until recently the targets set for pupils have lacked aspiration. As a result, teachers’ expectations of what pupils should achieve have been limited. In particular, pupils who enter the school without having attained the expected standards at the end of key stage 2 are not challenged enough. Consequently, teachers do not plan sufficiently well to enable these more vulnerable pupils to catch up.
• Pupils’ response to teachers’ feedback varies. Pupils do not always act on the feedback their teachers give them as required by the school’s own policy. As a result, pupils’ progress is slow, especially among disadvantaged pupils and boys.
• In some subjects, the questions teachers ask of their pupils are weak. They do not allow pupils to explain fully their rationale or reasons for a particular response. As a result, pupils’ progress is limited because they do not think deeply and widely about the concepts being taught.
• Teachers do not routinely use their secure subject knowledge to inspire and enthuse pupils to have positive attitudes to learning. Some pupils complain of poor behaviour in their lessons. This frustrates them.
• Teaching in modern foreign languages is not effective. Teachers do not plan learning that sustains the engagement of pupils and there is a lack of challenge. As a result, pupils do not fully engage in their learning and they do not make the progress of which they are capable.
• Teachers and pupils are only just starting to understand how the new assessment system works. As a result, some pupils do not know where they are in their learning because they do not fully understand what they must do to improve their work. This is especially the case in key stage 3.
• Pupils do not always take sufficient pride in their work. In some subjects, low expectations lead to unfinished work. This means that some pupils cannot use their work as a revision guide to help them excel. Disadvantaged pupils and boys are not routinely expected to produce the same quality work as other pupils. This has a detrimental impact on their overall progress and achievement.
• In English and mathematics, pupils are beginning to make stronger progress. Pupils engage more fully in their learning when they are stretched to think for themselves. Activities planned by teachers are much more challenging. As a result, pupils are making faster progress, especially in key stage 3.
• Pupils make excellent progress in religious education because strong leadership insists on the highest standards of teaching, learning and assessment. Teachers know that they have to focus particularly on the progress made by boys and disadvantaged pupils. As a result, all pupils make more rapid progress because lessons are well planned, questioning is strong and pupils are fully engaged.
• Extra-curricular provision is excellent, with approximately 60 clubs on offer to pupils. This wide range of opportunities includes a plethora of musical experiences, art and drama clubs and overseas visits. There is an array of sports, including outward bound activities, in addition to leadership opportunities on the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Pupils value this rich and diverse programme.
• Homework is routinely set and it supports pupils’ progress.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Inadequate

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is inadequate.
• During interviews with inspectors, a number of pupils said that they did not feel safe in their school. They are afraid that intruders can come into school. Pupils recognise that the site is not secure and this makes them afraid. Leaders have not paid enough attention to implementing the control measures in their risk assessments to keep the site secure. As a result, pupils are not safe in their school.
• Too many older pupils feel that bullying is an issue in the school. Just over a quarter of parents who responded to Ofsted’s questionnaire, Parent View, think that bullying is a problem. Some pupils want school leaders to take more effective action to deal with bullying.
• Until recently, some pupils have not understood the importance of their education. Leaders had not given them the tools to be successful and self-confident in their learning. With the support of the headteacher, pupils have embarked on the improvement journey and pupils are now expected to ‘Achieve’ highly in their learning, ‘Enjoy’ the opportunities they have in school, ‘Respect’ one another and show high levels of conduct and ‘Include’ themselves in their school community. It is still, however, too soon to see the full impact of these changes on pupils’ achievement.
• The school has until recently used alternative provision too frequently to deal with pupils’ disengagement in school. Leaders have now reduced the number of pupils attending alternative provision. This is because school systems are stronger and more pupils receive better support in lessons and with their learning. Those pupils who still attend off-site provision are safe. The school ensures that their attendance is monitored and communication between providers and the school is strong. Leaders do not check on pupils’ progress adequately, however.
• Careers information, advice and guidance is good. A full programme helps pupils understand the choices available to them from Year 8. Pupils undertake work placements in Year 10 with local business partnerships. Businesses value this collaboration and are positive about pupils’ engagement. In Year 11, pupils undertake mock interviews and take part in lunchtime subject tasters for sixth-form courses. As a result, almost all pupils move on to further education, employment or training.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is inadequate.
• Although overall attendance is above the national average, there remains a stubborn difference between the attendance of disadvantaged pupils and other pupils in the school. Leaders have not ensured that this group of pupils attend school regularly.
• The overall proportion of pupils who are persistently absent from school is high. The proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are regularly absent from school is unacceptably high. As a result, disadvantaged pupils cannot make the progress they should in their learning.
• The proportion of pupils who have been temporarily excluded from school has been too high for some time. This was particularly the case for disadvantaged pupils, boys and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. This year, although the number of pupils who have been temporarily excluded from school is lower, a disproportionate number of disadvantaged pupils is still being excluded.
• Over time, pupils’ behaviour in lessons has adversely affected their progress. The headteacher is determined to tackle this. Although there are still incidents of low-level disruption, behaviour in lessons is now improving. Leaders have substantially reduced the number of pupils who are removed from lessons, for example.
• Around the school site, inspectors observed pupils who are polite and courteous. Pupils said that there has been a significant improvement in behaviour. Some pupils said that occasionally there are still issues with fights and aggression.
• The headteacher has introduced a new behaviour system, a new uniform and clear expectations of pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around the school site. These changes are positive. Teachers and pupils report a significant shift in behaviour this year. They are pleased that the headteacher has the vision and values to make the significant difference needed to create a purposeful school environment. They welcome his arrival.

Outcomes for pupils Inadequate

• Pupils have underachieved considerably for some time at The Queen Katherine School. The curriculum they have followed has not allowed them to excel. Standards have declined sharply. In 2016, at the end of Year 11, pupils’ progress from their starting points of was well below the national average. Pupils underachieved in English, modern foreign languages, technology and engineering.
• The school’s current pupils are not faring any better. The school’s data and the work in pupils’ books indicate that they are making slow progress. Despite leaders’ work to support faster progress among boys and disadvantaged pupils, both groups are still making slow progress, and particularly so in key stage 4.
• Pupils enter the school with attainment that is broadly average. By the end of key stage 4, pupils do not reach their potential because teachers do not have sufficiently high expectations of what pupils can and should achieve.
• The progress made by disadvantaged pupils is woefully low. This group of pupils has underachieved considerably for some time. In 2016, disadvantaged pupils in Year 11, including the most able disadvantaged pupils, made rates of progress that were some of the lowest in the country. They significantly underachieved in English, mathematics and science. The narrowness of the curriculum offered to them denied them the opportunity to be successful.
• The school’s own information for disadvantaged pupils in the current Year 11 does not convincingly show that the difference between this group of pupils and other pupils nationally will diminish this year. The school’s information does, however, show stronger evidence of better progress in key stage 3. Pupils’ work over time, however, does not always show this to be the case.
• Boys have also underachieved considerably for some time. Boys have made much less progress than other boys nationally. In 2016, boys in Year 11 made lamentable progress from their starting points in a wide range of subjects including English, modern languages, technology and engineering. Their aspirations and the school’s expectations of them were too low.
• Although the most able pupils in Year 11 made progress that was broadly in line with other pupils nationally in 2016, the school is not doing enough to ensure that this group excels. Leaders know that teaching is not rigorous enough and teachers are not providing sufficient challenge in lessons throughout the school.
• Senior leaders have commenced the journey of improvement. The curriculum is now fit for purpose and it is clear that pupils are making stronger progress in key stage 3. A focus on different groups of pupils and regular meetings to discuss pupils’ progress is showing some impact. This is just a start, however; much work remains to do to ensure that pupils make faster progress and reach standards in line with their capabilities.
• The rate of improvement in key stage 4 remains a concern. Leaders, including governors, recognise that much work is needed to accelerate progress in this key stage.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities now make better progress in relation to their starting points. The school does not yet have a complete overview of how well this group is performing, especially those pupils who have social, emotional and mental health issues.
• Attainment is strong in geography, drama, music and religious studies. Pupils achieve extremely well because of good-quality teaching and high expectations. In 2016, over half of pupils achieved a top grade in religious studies.
• Pupils read at school but they are not enthusiastic about reading. Leaders encourage pupils to read through the ‘drop everything and read’ programme. The result is that pupils are able to work out unfamiliar words and read with a degree of confidence. Too little has been done to ensure that pupils read widely across the curriculum.
• Almost all pupils move on to further education, employment or training. Around half stay on to take academic courses in the school’s sixth form. Those who wish to pursue vocational routes seek other providers.

16 to 19 study programmes Inadequate

• The school’s arrangements for safeguarding sixth-form students are not effective because leaders have not had appropriate risk assessments in place to ensure that the students are safe in school.
• The school’s sixth form offers AS-level and A-level courses. Students who enter the sixth form make good progress on their study programmes. They make particularly strong progress in a range of subjects, including history, economics, sociology, general studies, art and design, religious studies and English literature.
• Leadership of the sixth form is very strong. Leaders have an accurate understanding of the strengths and areas for improvement in the sixth form. Its leaders are adamant that students will achieve well and that they will tackle areas of underachievement with rigour. Leaders have good systems to check the effect of teaching, learning and assessment on students’ progress. As a result, standards are good.
• The extremely small proportion of disadvantaged students in the sixth form make good progress overall. They make similar progress when it is compared to that of other students nationally with the same starting points. As a result, they achieve well.
• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment in the sixth form is good. There are high expectations of what students can achieve. Teachers know their students well and they plan lessons that both engage and enthuse students to succeed. Consequently, positive behaviour and high levels of engagement are strong features of the sixth form.
• Very few students enter the sixth form without a good grade in both GCSE English and mathematics. The success rates for those students who need to resit these qualifications are high.
• The proportions of students that complete their courses are high across subjects and in both Year 12 and Year 13. The school’s own analysis of lower retention in AS-level mathematics and AS-level psychology has led to action being taken to improve provision in those subjects.
• A very high proportion of students go on to higher education. The proportion of students who go to a Russell Group university increases year on year. The school also has an increasing number who attain a place at an Oxbridge university. Some students take a gap year and then proceed to higher education.
• Relationships are strong between students and teachers in the sixth form but a small minority of students are very frustrated when staff are occasionally absent and they do not receive adequate teaching. They recognise that this can have a negative effect on their progress. Subsequently, students have to work hard to catch up.
• Students say that they would like further support with personal, social and employability skills when they enter the sixth form. Students think that the school should help them to understand financial matters, for example obtaining a mortgage. They also believe that more help with getting an internship or understanding employment law about contracts and workers’ rights would be of benefit to them.
• Although students get tailored advice and guidance about going to university, they feel they do not have enough opportunities to explore alternative pathways, for example apprenticeships. Students are, however, very grateful to their teachers for the support they receive with university applications.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 136526 Cumbria 10012456 This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act. Type of school Secondary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Gender of pupils in 16 to 19 study programmes Academy converter 11 to 18 Mixed Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 1,212 Of which, number on roll in 16 to 19 study programmes 200 Appropriate authority The academy trust Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Peter Townley Jon Hayes 01539 743900 www.qks.org.uk enquiries@queenkatherine.org Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• The Queen Katherine School is a larger-than-average secondary school. The school converted into an academy in April 2011.
• The school was designated a teaching school in 2012.
• In 2013 the school formed a multi-academy trust. In September 2014, Walney School joined The Queen Katherine Multi-Academy Trust. In September 2015, George Hastwell School joined the trust.
• The overwhelming majority of pupils are of White British heritage. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is much lower than the national average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is lower than the national average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is lower than the national average.
• The school makes use of the South Cumbria Pupil Referral Service and the Hospital and Home Tuition Service to make alternative provision for some pupils.
• In 2015, the school met the government’s floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress at the end of Year 11.
• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with the Department for Education’s guidance on what academies should publish on its website.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed learning in a range of lessons in key stages 3 and 4 and in the sixth form. Several observations were conducted jointly with senior leaders. Inspectors also observed form time.
• Inspectors undertook an in-depth analysis of pupils’ work across a range of subjects throughout the school with leaders. They also looked closely at disadvantaged pupils’ work and that of boys. In addition, inspectors looked at a wide range of pupils’ work in lessons.
• Meetings were held with the headteacher, chief executive officer, senior leaders, members of the governing body, middle leaders and newly qualified teachers. A phone call was made to the school’s improvement partner.
• A range of documentation was scrutinised by the inspection team, including the school’s own self-evaluation, the school improvement plan, records of ongoing teacher training and the school’s own evaluation of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. Attendance, behaviour and exclusion records were scrutinised, in addition to records of meetings of the governing body. Inspectors also considered the school’s information about how well current pupils are making progress in their learning and its analysis of past pupils’ performance.
• Observations of pupils’ behaviour were undertaken in and between lessons, during break times and at lunchtimes. Inspectors met formally with a range of pupils across all key stages. They also spoke informally with many more pupils during lessons and around the school.
• Inspectors took into account 95 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.
• Inspectors were aware of an incident that took place the day before the inspection and put pupils at risk. Inspectors took this into account and examined the school’s risk assessments pertaining to site safety and security.

Inspection team

Jonathan Smart, lead inspector Bernard Robinson Liam Trippier Steven Caldecott Jane Holmes Annette Patterson Dympna Woods Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector