The Canterbury Academy Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Raise standards further through increased attendance by:
  • persevering with the successful actions already in place
  • exploring new ways to get pupils into school in the morning
  • particularly focusing on reducing the high proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are persistent absentees
  • helping parents of persistent absentees to support the school’s work.
• Strengthen further learning and progress by:
  • consistently checking that all staff know and respond to the particular needs of pupils they teach, especially those who are disadvantaged or who need extra support and encouragement to achieve their full potential
  • sharing the very good practice in subject leadership which skilfully identifies and remedies weaknesses in pupils’ understanding, knowledge and/or confidence to tackle examinations successfully.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Leaders and board members would agree that it is difficult to encapsulate the school and its philosophy in a few words. One headline statement, ‘As much as possible, as often as possible, for as many as possible’ is a good starting point. However, it does not include the school’s key values of ‘courtesy, responsibility, honesty, equality, respect and morality’ or the belief that, ‘Every child is good at something’.
• What is clear is that board members, leaders and staff passionately believe in the statements above. They oversee a unique, large, vibrant and increasingly popular school, with a quite exceptional curriculum delivered in outstanding facilities. They never sway from doing what they believe is right for a pupil, regardless of any reduction to their headline measures.
• Many staff wrote comments about how leaders seek their views on any changes before they are introduced or make sure their work–life balance is well aligned. One teacher wrote that ‘the school cares about its pupils and staff as individuals’. Staff morale is high. The pride they show in belonging to the school community explains why some of them have been loyal to its work for many years.
• Teaching and support staff also praise the professional development organised for them. They feel confident it improves their practice and that they learn from each other and from teachers in different schools. The executive principals reflected that the school was less outward looking in the past but now welcomes ideas and support.
• Senior leaders’ skills have developed well since the previous inspection. Many are now highly competent teachers who also know how to help others to develop their skills. They understand how to explore information about pupils’ progress to identify underachievement early. Nevertheless, a few subject leaders are not sharp enough at analysing assessment information and using it to plan precise actions to move things forward.
• The directors for teaching and learning (faculty leaders) have a very good insight into past and present weaknesses and strengths, so know which teachers may need some support to raise their effectiveness. The directors assess the quality of teaching and learning more accurately than in the past and hence tailor their guidance and training astutely.
• The curriculum is kept under review and adjusted when board members and executive leaders feel it is right for the pupils. Until recently, history and geography were taught as integrated humanities, and computer science was only taught in key stage 4. GCSE results in these subjects were not good but are now moving in the right direction as they are all taught from Year 7.
• Following an external review, additional funds for disadvantaged pupils are now spent with care and evaluated realistically, but the school has yet to solve the problem of these pupils’ poor attendance. Identifying a lack of aspiration, leaders have widened and intensified the extra activities offered, especially in Year 7. They hope to strengthen pupils’ self-esteem and resilience so they are motivated to attend regularly. Sixth-form mentors are also helping pupils to achieve these goals.
• The sports academies involve pupils from Year 7 up to the sixth form. After a period of varied, enjoyable activities, with an element of coaching, leaders identify pupils who have the potential to achieve at county or national standard. Specialist provision swings into action with a careful eye on the balance between work and training. In key stage 4, vertical tutor groups bring sports together, gym or tennis pupils specialising early for 15 to 20 hours a week.
• Sixth formers and pupils of all ages are regularly involved in the numerous theatre productions, musicals and concerts within the performing arts academy. Keen dancers experience ballet, jazz and tap within the four dance studios, and vocalists, instrumentalists and songwriters all enjoy the music facilities, including a state-of-the-art recording studio.
• It is difficult to separate extra-curricular provision from the wonderful range of subjects that permeate the curriculum. Several classes, not just for sixth formers, are delivered after school hours. These might involve an external specialist teaching a modern foreign language that a small number of pupils want to study, or extension activities for the most able pupils. The bulk of after-school activities are related to the performing arts, sports or practical subjects such as cooking.
• Religious education lessons, focus days on different cultures and a ‘Hope not hate’ programme contribute to the pupils’ appreciation of different faiths, cultures and spiritual issues. However, these are also very much part of the school’s ethos. In weekly ‘core’ lessons in key stages 3 and 4, often taught by senior leaders, pupils learn about and discuss a range of important issues and themes. These range from ‘Why do some people not want to give to charity?’ to consideration of British values in the light of Brexit, or diversity, homelessness and current affairs. The latter clearly inspired a pupil to write words about the US president when performing a blues song in music!
• With excellent careers guidance and advice and other core sessions covering practical skills, such as how to iron and sew, the school could not do more to prepare pupils for their futures. The board of directors and all staff rightly pride themselves on the well below average number of pupils who do not move on into education, employment or training if they do not stay on into the school’s sixth form. They are equally delighted that Phoenix House or Riverside pupils who needed help to stay on the rails in key stage 4 are practically always ready to enter the sixth form.
• The school welcomes external support. The link with Simon Langton Grammar for Boys has certainly helped to strengthen the provision for the most able pupils and students. The local authority and outside consultants also contribute advice and guidance which leaders find helpful and practical.

Governance of the school

• The chair of the board of directors describes the ‘moral imperative’ of giving all pupils, whatever their backgrounds, the best possible education so they will leave ‘able to live a safe, healthy and fulfilling life’. The focus of all the board’s deliberations and dedication mirrors these statements. Members are realistic about what needs to improve.
• The board accepted the previous inspection comments, underwent a review and implemented its recommendation. Clarity is now in place between the different parts of the multi-academy trust, with new boards established to cope with its components’ growth. Directors with expertise in safeguarding and finance oversee all the trust’s work. The new structure is successful.
• Minutes of meetings reveal members’ determined, probing questions about Year 11 and 13’s results, for example. They check that all additional funds, for disadvantaged pupils, those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, and Year 7 pupils eligible for catch-up, are used effectively. They therefore know that subscriptions to tried and tested online programmes will continue to help improve literacy and numeracy.
• The board members are proud that the school is now oversubscribed and increasingly the first choice for parents of high-attaining pupils. They are equally delighted that the specialist sports and performing arts attract so many pupils and students.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. All directors receive training and information about safeguarding and are aware of issues, such as sharing the site with the wider community, that require constant attention. Regular staff training includes the many strands of potential concerns, including female genital mutilation, extremism and radicalisation, and racial abuse. Staff are trained to identify the signs of risk and know who to contact if necessary. The number of safeguarding incidents is low.
• Safeguarding leaders and support staff are quick to contact the local authority if necessary and appreciate that they must be vigilant about long periods of absence in case a child is missing. They do as much as possible to welcome parents and carers into school and keep in contact with them, especially those whose children receive extra support in school or whose attendance is a concern. Teachers are made aware of any children in their classes who have left care or who are looked after.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• In response to the previous inspection, leaders sought external advice and support, and the quality of teaching and learning improved. Changes in staffing since the previous inspection have also contributed to more effective teaching in the last and current academic years. This has seen boys doing as well as, or even better than, girls in far more subjects than in the past, which was not the case two years ago.
• The grammar stream is not just for pupils who enter the school as high attainers but for others identified as having the potential to tackle and enjoy studying all the academic subjects required for the EBacc. The quality of teaching for these most-able pupils has become more effective as the link with Simon Langton Grammar has matured over the last few years, and standards have risen in some, but not all, subjects.
• All teachers now have folders containing simple sheets with details about pupils’ particular learning needs or issues. Many use them well to guide their planning and most have good insight into how to help such pupils.
• A few teachers still cover work at too easy or difficult a level or do not appreciate pupils’ different starting points. Occasionally, they do not keep an attentive eye on disadvantaged pupils’ progress. All the English teachers visited the on-site primary school and were impressed by the high standards they saw. They reflected that they would certainly have these standards in mind when teaching Year 7 pupils.
• Most middle leaders now have a thorough insight into the clearest way to assess pupils’ work and progress, and so identify those who struggle over time and need some extra input. A few subject leaders are not as thorough in their analysis and so, occasionally, they lack the information they need to identify underachieving pupils.
• In several successful lessons, teachers posed questions to boys and girls equally and, consequently, those who did not volunteer responses were encouraged to have a go. In a small minority of lessons, a few pupils slipped under the radar and were not really paying attention. Inspectors saw some strong examples of questions at the start of lessons which reminded pupils of previous knowledge and spring-boarded them into new work.
• Another step forward has been improving the quality of marking and feedback following a revision of the school’s policy. The majority of teachers give pupils useful, practical feedback that makes pupils reflect. The majority of pupils respond and correct their work or complete whatever is needed. Improved progress is clearly evident where teachers follow the policy and pupils read what teachers have written.
• Whether being supported in the specialist-resource-based provision for pupils with education, health and care plans or for those who need extra support with their literacy and numeracy, the quality of teaching in small groups or on a one-to-one basis is effective. Some pupils’ reading age improves by well over a year by the end of Year 7. An increasing number of teachers remember to emphasise subject-specific vocabulary and make sure pupils know what such words mean.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. The quality of care and nurture for all pupils is outstanding. A parent wrote that her Year 7 child ‘Had never seemed happier’, and another parent noted that ‘Any concerns have been addressed promptly’.
• Experienced and wise support staff and pastoral leaders get to know the pupils and their families as well as possible. Over 80% of staff who responded to the questionnaire ‘strongly agreed’ that they enjoy working at the school; this contributes to pupils’ enjoyment of lessons and school life.
• Leaders make teaching the pupils about the risks and issues they face in society a major component of their core lessons, and include it in related lessons when appropriate. They discuss important topics such as mental health, healthy lifestyles and homophobia, and pupils referred to having the potential dangers of online activities and social media ‘drummed into them’.
• Pupils’ physical and emotional well-being is considered through the core lessons and by having specialist counsellors and advisers available if pupils wish to share any concerns. Support managers know pupils well and keep an eye out for vulnerable pupils. The special educational needs coordinator does the same for all the pupils under her care, especially the children who are looked after.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good. They are attentive in the great majority of lessons and describe the behaviour policy as clear, simple and effective. A pupil observed that one short detention for interrupting the flow of a lesson is usually the only one that a pupil experiences.
• Pupils are calm when moving around the large site between lessons, and lunchtimes are peaceful because pupils behave sensibly. They appreciate all the school has to offer and respect the environment. They value the excellent facilities and know how lucky they are to have access both to the facilities and to so many different activities.
• The school does not permanently exclude pupils and very rarely has to apply fixed-term exclusions because it uses its own staff and facilities. These include the main school, along with Phoenix House and Riverside Youth Centre, off-site but part of the multi-academy trust. Here, pupils who cannot cope with mainstream lessons receive excellent education and support to improve their behaviour, develop the personal skills they need for their futures, and cope with any issues they have. Many of those in Years 10 and 11 return to the main school to follow sixth-form courses.
• The main issue with pupils’ behaviour is the poor attendance of disadvantaged pupils, several of whom also have special educational needs. Leaders, welfare officers, teachers and support staff work together to try and get these pupils into school, and realise they have yet to find the right formula for success.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• In 2017, the proportion of pupils attaining GCSE ‘standard’ (equating to a grade 4 on the new scale) in both English and mathematics increased to over 50%. It was below 40% in 2015. Almost 100% of the 79 pupils in the ‘Langton’ grammar stream attained the same qualifications – a very strong outcome. The proportion of the top grades (7 to 9) also went up.
• Progress improved in several subjects in 2017, including Spanish, chemistry, law, music, art and physical education. Directors of learning and individual subject leaders are determined to keep raising standards, for example to ensure that pupils achieve equally well in all the separate and combined science qualifications. Current pupils are making good progress in both key stages, and the volume of work covered shows that an increasing number of teachers have high expectations.
• However, despite overall progress rising since the previous inspection, the 66 disadvantaged pupils’ progress still trailed behind others in the school and others nationally. Too many of them, one third of whom were persistent absentees, continued to attend school irregularly. Leaders know they will not achieve their full potential until their attendance is better.
• The allocation of additional funds for these pupils is sharper and the difference between their progress and others has diminished since the previous inspection, but not enough. Effective interventions during the academic year 2016/17 included holiday and after-school revision sessions and providing teachers with specific guidance on how to support these pupils’ learning.
• Around 20% of pupils, several of whom are disadvantaged or have special educational needs and/or disabilities, follow a combination of subjects which match their abilities and interests rather than those required to attain the EBacc. They may therefore not take a modern foreign language, or history or geography in key stage 4, to give them time to improve their basic skills or access vocational courses leading to worthwhile qualifications. This means that their progress outcomes reduce the headline progress outcomes for the school as a whole.

16 to 19 study programmes Good

• Close to two thirds of the school’s Year 11 pupils stay on into the sixth form and make up about half the total number in the sixth form. The other sixth formers come from over 50 different schools.
• A parent of a Year 12 student, new to the school, wrote that ‘the change has been great and we are very optimistic’. Some students travel many miles to experience the flexibility, breadth and quality of the unusually rich choice of subjects and courses. They are taught and trained well, nurtured into adulthood and, if needed, are welcomed to stay on for a third year to gain the qualifications they need for the future.
• The proportion of students who proceed to education, employment or training after leaving is well above average. This is testament to the success of all the sixth-form staff’s and students’ hard work. It also reflects the well above average success rate for students who retake GCSEs in English or mathematics, some choosing to do so to attain a higher grade. Since the previous inspection, the number of students opting for university has almost doubled to over 100.
• Some students are attracted by the academic qualifications, others by the professional teaching and coaching of sports, performing arts and practical skills, and several by being able to pick and mix these options. For example, students have combined intensive basketball coaching with a course at the chefs’ academy or with a health and social care qualification leading to university. If students cannot combine their options, the school often provides twilight sessions; their timetables are genuinely bespoke.
• Work experience is a vital and successful part of many courses, including academic ones, but all students are offered this if they feel it will support their future education and career plans. In addition, there are numerous ways for students to work with younger pupils, particularly in productions, musical events and sports. One student described the ‘fantastic careers advice and guidance’. Students from one health and social care course last year moved on to study courses including midwifery, primary teaching, including for special educational needs, adult nursing, and paramedic science.
• Overall results have improved in the last two years but, in a few, progress is less than expected based on starting points and/or because boys do not do as well as girls. Vocational results in 2017 were particularly strong, and above average progress increased in A-level English, mathematics, dance and drama, to name but a few. Sixth-form leaders are fully aware of subjects which do not do as well as the best in 2017.
• There are many similarities in the qualities of teaching and learning in the main school and the sixth form. A student thought that teachers went ‘above and beyond’. It is evident that sixth-form teachers are particularly good at involving all students, even in large classes, bouncing questions around which delve into the subject in depth. Carefully steered by teachers, students learn, particularly in the performing arts and sports, by sharing and discussing their work with each other.
• Nevertheless, as in the main school, a few teachers do not always consider the wide range of abilities when introducing new work so that the most able and those with lower starting points do not all make good progress.
• The pastoral support, care and advice on offer is rated highly by students. One student described the mental health programme as ‘outstanding’. Students appreciate that staff are there to guide and support them whatever their background or personal issues.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 136302 Kent 10036945 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Modern (non-selective) School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Gender of pupils in 16 to 19 study programmes Academy converter 11 to 19 Mixed Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 1,765 Of which, number on roll in 16 to 19 study programmes 596 Appropriate authority Board of directors Chair Richard Field Executive Principal from January 2018 Jon Watson Executive Principal (going part-time) Philip Karnavas Telephone number 01227 463 971 Website Email address www.canterbury.kent.sch.uk/ admin@canterbury.kent.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 12–13 October 2015

Information about this school

• The board of directors and the executive principal of the Canterbury Multi-Academy Trust oversee the Canterbury High School and the Canterbury Primary School on the same site. The latter is inspected separately. The board also oversees the area-wide alternative curriculum provision and youth commission. An on-site pre-school and nursery facility is indirectly linked with the multi-academy trust but is inspected separately.
• The executive principal, who retires from his full-time position in December 2017, has gradually been handing over his role during the last two years to ensure a smooth transfer of leadership. At the same time, other leaders have been moving up into their new roles.
• The Canterbury High School uses three off-site facilities:
  • Phoenix House (Herne Bay), where a very small number of pupils at risk of permanent exclusion study life skills programmes and are supported to return to mainstream school.
  • Riverside Youth Centre, for pupils in Years 9 to 11 whose learning needs, in addition to English and mathematics, are best suited by taking practical, work-related subjects.
  • The Chaucer site, which temporarily houses some of the studio space for sixth-form students in the performing arts college, and physical education lessons for Phoenix House pupils.
• The school’s off-site alternative provision is under the auspices of the Canterbury Multi-Academy Trust. However, the majority of pupils attending Phoenix House are enrolled at other schools. They access this alternative curriculum provision as the Canterbury Multi-Academy Trust provides it for all schools in the area on behalf of the local authority. The school also shares some of its on-site facilities with pupils in a local special school.
• Several on-site, separate buildings have industry-standard facilities and equipment, used, for example, by performing arts, sports, construction, and hair and beauty courses. The Enterprise and Employability College houses several of these facilities, as does a new, as yet unnamed, building. There are extensive outdoor facilities for sports, including a multi-million pound, purpose-built sports centre with an integrated fitness suite and a tennis centre.
• The academy is open for pupils and students from 8am to 6pm and many of its facilities, including the Riverside Youth Centre, are shared with the community, largely, but not exclusively, outside of school hours.
• The school’s partnership with the Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys contributes to ‘A grammar school band for boys and girls’. The partnership, in its sixth year, is well-embedded with groups of high-attaining pupils from both schools learning together in some subjects. The senior vice-principal of Langton continues to work full-time at Canterbury Academy.
• The school has continued to grow in the last two years and is now much larger than the average-sized secondary school. The sixth form, one of the largest in Kent, increased to over 700 in 2016, but is just under 600 this year.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is average overall, and the proportion of pupils who have an education, health and care plan is well above average. This is due to the school having a specialist-resource-based provision for up to 30 pupils needing support for speech, language and communication needs. They are integrated into mainstream lessons for much of the time.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is well above that seen nationally.
• Each year, around 40 pupils in Year 7 are eligible for catch-up funding, which is for pupils who did not attain the expected standards (scaled score below 100) in English and/or mathematics at the end of primary school.
• The number of children looked after is higher than that seen in most secondary schools.
• The majority of pupils and students are White British, with very small proportions from a wide range of different minority ethnic backgrounds. Just under 10% of pupils speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils who enter or leave the school during Years 7 to 11 is well above that seen nationally.
• 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.
• The school met the 2016 government floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for pupils’ attainment and progress.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed teaching and learning in about 60 lessons. Most of the visits took place jointly with senior leaders, with whom inspectors also toured the school and dropped into lessons for a few minutes. This was so inspectors could sample most of the wide range of courses and subjects on offer. Inspectors looked at pupils’ books in lessons.
• A member of the inspection team observed pupils and sixth-form students working in the off-site Riverside Youth Centre, and saw performing arts students in the Chaucer site. An inspector visited the special educational needs resource base for pupils receiving support for speech, language and communication difficulties. All other parts of the site, particularly the Enterprise and Employability College, were visited by at least one inspector.
• Inspectors met pupils and students informally as they visited parts of the school during breaktimes. They held meetings with groups of pupils from several year groups and met with a few disadvantaged pupils, most-able pupils, those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, and children looked after.
• Discussions were held with staff, including the retiring and current executive principals and many senior and middle leaders. The lead inspector met the chair of the board of directors (governors) and eight other board members. She met the head of Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys and the local authority school improvement adviser. She held a telephone conversation with a consultant supporting the leaders’ work.
• Inspectors took into account 114 staff and 95 parents’ responses to questionnaires. With no pupils’ responses to their questionnaire, inspectors considered one that the school had carried out at the end of the previous academic year. Of the parents who contributed to the free-text option, about 45 of them wrote detailed comments.

Inspection team

Clare Gillies, lead inspector Ann Fearon Philip Storey Gerard Strong Frederick Valletta

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector