The Telford Park School Ofsted Report

Full report

In accordance with section 13(4) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires special measures.

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve outcomes more rapidly for pupils by the end of key stage 4 including for disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities by:
  • ensuring teaching is consistently good across subjects so that pupils make better rates of progress by the end of year 11
  • improving the organisation of support for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities with particular attention to the high numbers currently identified on the school’s register
  • reducing further the high levels of absence and persistent absence (especially in Year 11) and fixed term exclusions to ensure that more pupils are regularly engaged in their learning in school.
• Ensure that the improvements in behaviour are secured for all groups of pupils by:
  • checking that the school’s behaviour policy is applied consistently and fairly by teachers and additional adults
  • ensuring that teaching across subjects consistently stimulates and engages pupils in their learning.
• Strengthen leadership and management further by enhancing the roles of middle leaders so that they can take additional responsibility for monitoring and evaluating teaching and analysing outcomes for pupils where they have a subject or specific pupil group responsibility.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The trust has set high aspirations for the school and has seen a transformation in culture, especially around pupil behaviour. The head of school and other senior leaders know the school’s strengths and areas for further development well. Their effective monitoring, support and challenge have led to improvements in teaching and learning. Much of the previous weak teaching has been eradicated.
• Monitoring of teaching by senior leaders and effective arrangements for the performance management of teachers have ensured that teachers’ and additional adults’ adherence to school policies (for example in marking, feedback and behaviour) has improved.
• The capacity of the senior leadership team has been enhanced by the creation of an additional senior leadership post. Links with other academy schools, especially Telford Langley, where there are joint governance and leadership arrangements, are providing additional capacity for leadership and the exchange of staff.
• Bespoke training and support for individual teachers have led to improvements in teaching. Where it has not, this has led to changes in staffing.
• Systems for assessing pupils’ progress have been enhanced through greater use of validation across the trust in order to prevent a repeat of previous over-optimistic forecasts of GCSE results.
• The school is increasing in popularity as its improvements are seen in the wider community. The number of pupils on roll is now rising after previously declining. Leaders respond well to the high mobility rate of pupils and they ensure that new arrivals are quickly settled into school routines.
• Pupil premium funding has not so far led to a diminishing of differences in outcomes for disadvantaged pupils compared to other pupils nationally by the end of Year 11. However, the school’s pupil premium strategy is now leading to rapidly improving outcomes for pupils in Years 7 to 10 as teachers are required to focus more closely on the progress of these pupils in lessons.
• Through improved teaching and changes to the curriculum, outcomes for pupils in Years 7 to 10 are now improving. Since leaders revised and broadened the curriculum offer, these pupils are benefiting from the changes, which were introduced too late for the current Year 11. Courses are now suited to a wider range of aspiration and need. The curriculum has been revised for current Year 10 pupils along three distinct pathways including one which is a more vocational route. A wider range of vocational courses is on offer for pupils to develop work-related skills relevant to their intended future career.
• Pupils spoken to also appreciated the impact on their learning of the wide range of after-school clubs and activities on offer, for example the school’s production of the stage show ‘Grease’, the photography competition, language of the month and the sports teams, including football, handball and rugby.
• Leaders promote British values and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development well through a series of themed assemblies and religious education (RE) lessons. Older pupils learn about British values through general studies, which is preparing pupils well for life in modern Britain. Pupils had the chance to vote for candidates for the ‘youth parliament’ and for the school council. Topical issues such as Brexit are debated in tutorial time.
• Leaders conduct bi-annual surveys of subjects to establish the extent to which spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is covered in each subject. A wide range of religions are studied and role models from diverse backgrounds are carefully chosen so that pupils experience cultural diversity. Key staff are available for pupils to talk in confidence about issues around identity and health.
• A ‘Prevent’ programme is delivered in personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education lessons. Pupils are aware of the threats of extremism, for example through discussion in response to the recent Britain First march held in Telford.
• Careers advice is strong for pupils in key stage 4 as the school works successfully with an external service. It has plans in place for later this year to ensure that pupils in key stage 3 will also benefit from guidance on their next steps through assemblies and the PSHE programme.
• The school’s system called ‘The Bridge’ provides an excellent facility for pupils who, for various reasons are on part-time timetables, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Teaching in ‘The Bridge’ enables pupils to reintegrate back into mainstream lessons.
• The school’s own information shows an improving position of behaviour, outcomes and attendance for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities from low starting points. While funding for special educational needs is in the main being spent well on those pupils with significant needs, the school’s organisation of support for some of those with less significant needs is not as effective as it could be. The overall number of pupils on the special educational needs register is very high. With such high numbers, the school struggles to provide skilful support to help these pupils make rapid progress. A new leader for this area has good plans to improve the organisation of provision for these pupils.
• Leaders make effective use of Year 7 catch up funding. Low outcomes and a legacy of weak teaching have also led to the school providing a significant range of effective additional support from teachers and additional adults for older pupils as well. These take place during and outside of lessons to enable pupil to catch up with their literacy and numeracy. As teaching improves throughout the school and pupils make rapid gains in their learning, the school is seeking to reduce the extent of these interventions over time so that pupils do not miss out on more of their other subjects. There is now a change of culture in the school as teachers are now taking more responsibility for these pupils.
• Leaders know that results will be below national expectations for the current Year 11 where the mobility rate is exceptionally high. There remains a legacy for these pupils of previous weak teaching and the narrow curriculum they are following. Although their rate of progress is improving from a very low starting point, they are still set to achieve low outcomes, including in English and mathematics.
• Monitoring of teaching and pupil outcomes by subject leaders and other middle leaders is less well developed and is a key priority for the school.

Governance of the school

• The education advisory board (EAB) is rigorous in evaluating the work of senior leaders. In particular it:
  • provides strong support and challenge to the school’s leaders
  • has ensured that it is fulfilling its duty to hold leaders to account for safeguarding and is clear on the procedures and processes to follow
  • is well informed about the quality of teaching in school and outcomes for different groups of pupils is scrupulous in its performance management systems ensuring that any proposed pay awards are supported by evidence provided by leaders.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders referred to a ‘golden thread’, which is the culture that runs through the school. All staff are well trained and induction procedures are rigorous. Staff are aware of the procedures they need to follow if an incident occurs. The recent safeguarding audit commissioned by the EAB has ensured that the school is meeting its requirements and is fully up to date with the latest guidance. Pupils are positive about safeguarding in school. They know who to talk to if they feel unsafe, and posters around school remind them of this. Parents are well informed through regular newsletters.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• There are still subject areas where some teaching over time requires improvement, including science, modern languages, technology and history.
• Teachers are not yet consistent enough in applying the school’s behaviour policy. There are still occasions when, in the view of pupils spoken to, some teachers are not fair in how they apply sanctions and where behaviour is not well managed.
• There are also occasions when pupils are not clear from feedback what they need to do to improve. For example, where teachers do not apply the school’s marking and feedback policy consistently, pupils’ mistakes are marked as correct or overlooked. There are also times where they are not, as required by leaders, providing or checking extension activities where pupils have completed all their previous work successfully.
• Not all teachers are skilled at providing the support to pupils of lower ability or those who have special educational needs so that they learn at a good rate.
• There is a large number of pupils identified on the special educational needs register and not all of them are receiving the support they need. Where teaching is not yet good these pupils do not make enough progress.
• Rigorous performance management procedures have led to improved teaching in a range of subjects including English, mathematics, art, physical education (PE) and in some languages, science and technology. Improvements in mathematics teaching, for example, have led to teachers taking account of pupils’ different abilities and needs within sets in their planning. Most lessons engage the interest and enthusiasm of pupils.
• Teachers are more consistent in the use of assessment criteria. They involve pupils in reflecting on their own work and assessing that of their peers. This is particularly well-established, for example, in art and English, where pupils are consistently challenged to do well.
• A daily silent reading session, including for teachers, is engaging pupils with reading regularly and often. Pupils reported a wide choice of suitable books in the library.
• Teachers are successful in developing strategies for integrating new arrivals, including older ones, even where they may not have previously been studying their subject. These pupils may be either from overseas as learners of English as an additional language, or from other schools locally or elsewhere in the UK where they may have taken a different set of courses at key stage 4.
• The quality of teaching in ‘The Bridge’ is high where each pupil’s needs are identified and preparation and planning is meticulous.
• Pupils spoken to were satisfied with the quality of lessons in most, but not all, subjects. Older pupils said that teaching has improved over time and that the quality of marking and feedback was better now.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement. Some pupils are heavily dependent on additional support because they have fallen behind in their literacy and numeracy as a legacy of previous weak teaching and a narrow curriculum.
• Pupils’ books are not consistently well maintained in their appearance and presentation.
• Pupils spoken to by inspectors said that careers and next steps advice was limited in key stage 3. This was acknowledged by leaders who have good plans to address this.
• The use of tutor time seen by inspectors varied depending on the extent to which tutors engaged pupils’ interests. Pupils responded well to discussions around government benefits and the use of social media. They were able to express their views maturely and consider both sides of the argument concerning whether benefits were a good thing, supporting families and individuals in need, or a bad thing, encouraging dependency and abuse.
• Pupils reported that they felt safe in school. Most pupils spoken to were confident that they could speak to an adult if they had worries, secure in the knowledge that they would be listened to and that their concerns would be investigated and dealt with effectively.
• The number of recorded incidents of bullying has reduced. Pupils spoken to said there was little bullying. They reported that the school is ‘no longer a scary place to be’. They said there was no part of the building or grounds where they did not feel safe.
• Relationships between adults and pupils and between different groups of pupils are good.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.
• There remain some instances of low-level disruptive behaviour in lessons, for example pupils chattering while the teacher is speaking or fussing about their equipment when they should be listening to others. These incidents invariably occur in the small number of lessons that do not engage their interest or where the behaviour policy is not consistently applied. Pupils reported that although behaviour had improved, there were still some lessons in history, technology and science where this was not the case. This was confirmed by inspectors during lesson observations.
• The proportion of pupils who are absent and persistently absent is still high, including for disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, especially in Year 11. Figures for current attendance in all year groups are showing signs of improvement compared to this time last year. The school is taking action to improve attendance and punctuality through personal action plans which are beginning to take effect. Pupils reported that they liked the rewards which they said promote regular attendance.
• The number of fixed term exclusions remains high. The main reason is where pupils fail to comply with teachers’ instructions. However the rate is falling. There had been no permanent exclusions this academic year at the time of the inspection, and no pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities were permanently excluded in the previous academic year.
• Pupils behaved well and showed positive attitudes to their learning in the large majority of lessons seen during the inspection. They moved sensibly around the building, before and after lessons, and conducted themselves well during lunchtimes and breaktimes. They were polite and courteous to visitors.
• Improvements in behaviour have led to fewer pupils attending ‘The Bridge’ aimed at reintegrating pupils, some of whom were excluded or at risk of exclusion, into mainstream lessons.

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

• Outcomes at GCSE in the most recent examinations in 2016 were very low for pupils, especially for the high number of disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. No pupil gained the EBacc qualification (a good GCSE in all of English, mathematics, science, humanities and a modern foreign language). Low outcomes meant that these pupils were not well prepared for the next stage of their education or employment.
• Outcomes are set to be low as well for the current Year 11 in 2017, although they are improving. This is the legacy of the previous weak teaching and the constraints of the previously narrow curriculum which has now been revised for pupils in Year 10.
• The very small number of pupils identified as most able, including those who are disadvantaged, made more rapid progress than other groups in the school although few went on to achieve the highest A* and A grades.
• There is limited evidence so far of the pupil premium funding diminishing the difference in outcomes between disadvantaged pupils and other pupils nationally over time by the end of Year 11. However, according to information provided by the school, there are signs of improvement for disadvantaged pupils currently in Years 7 to 10.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, or who need to catch up, comprise almost one third of the pupils in the school. Many are benefiting from a range of additional support activities enabling them to make rapid gains in literacy and numeracy. However, they are missing lessons in other curriculum subjects where they will need to catch up when they are reintegrated.
• Pupils in Years 7 to 10 are making more rapid progress overall in a wide range of subjects as they benefit from more teaching that is good and the new broad and balanced curriculum.
• Pupils for whom English is an additional language quickly settle into classes and routines and are making rapid progress from their low starting points.
• All pupils who left Year 11 in 2016 went on to education, employment or training. Through close ongoing tracking, the school knows that almost all pupils are still actively engaged except for a very small number who have dropped out of courses. Careers advice remains stronger in key stage 4 than in key stage 3, where pupils described it as ‘patchy’.

School details

Unique reference number 139536 Local authority Telford and Wrekin Inspection number 10018080 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 Academy converter 11 to 16 Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 390 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Head of school Telephone number Website Email address Bill McClements Holly Rigby 01952 387 400 www.telfordparkschool.co.uk info@telfordparkschool.co.uk Date of previous inspection 3–4 February 2015

Information about this school

• Telford Park is much smaller than the average-sized secondary school. The number on roll has grown by about 5% since the last inspection monitoring visit in December 2016. The proportion of pupils who join or leave the school midway through a key stage is very high.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is about one in three, which is significantly above the national average. The percentage of pupils identified for special educational needs support is very high and has more than doubled since 2015. Conversely, although the proportion of pupils with a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is also above average, there has been a sharp declining trend in the number of these pupils over the last three years.
• An onsite provision entitled ‘The Bridge’ is in place, aimed at reintegrating pupils into mainstream lessons, who have either been excluded, are at risk from exclusion, or who have social, emotional or health needs. At the time of the inspection, 12 pupils were on part-time timetables.
• The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups is below average, as is the percentage who speak English as an additional language, but both are on a rising trend.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils is well above the national average. Over half of the pupils on roll are known to be eligible for free school meals.
• The school is part of the Communities Academies Trust. It converted to academy status in September 2015. At the time of the last inspection, Telford Park was called Lakeside Academy. It re-opened with a new building, uniform and name.
• The head of school has been in post since May 2016. An additional deputy head of school post was created in September 2016.
• The governance of the school is devolved to an education advisory board which oversees the work of three local schools in Telford as part of the academy trust.
• The school does not meet the government’s floor standards. These are the minimum standards expected for pupils’ learning and progress in English and mathematics.
• 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.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed 16 lessons or parts of lessons and tutor group sessions, of which 14 were jointly observed with either the head of school or a member of the senior leadership team. In addition, inspectors made a number of other short visits to lessons and other activities, for example to look at pupils’ books or to talk to pupils.
• Inspectors heard pupils read during lessons.
• Inspectors held meetings with the head of school, executive headteacher, other leaders, other members of staff and a group of pupils. Inspectors also spoke to the chief executive officer of the academy trust and the member of the education advisory board with responsibility for safeguarding. The chair of the education advisory board was not available during the inspection.
• There were no responses to the online questionnaire, Parent View. Inspectors took account of an email from one parent.
• Inspectors observed the school’s work and scrutinised a number of documents, including the school’s self-evaluation, improvement plans and school information on pupils’ recent attainment and progress.
• Inspectors also considered behaviour and attendance information, policies and procedures including special educational needs, pupil premium, and Year 7 catch up funding, safeguarding, child protection and behaviour.

Inspection team

Mark Sims, lead inspector Paul Elliott

Her Majesty’s Inspector Ofsted Inspector