Etone College Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Spread the most effective practice in teaching, learning and assessment across all subject areas, including in the sixth form. In particular:
  • ensure that teachers set work that consistently challenges all groups of pupils
  • promote further the development of literacy across the curriculum so that pupils improve their written and oral communication skills.
• Develop the quality of subject leadership so that it has as much positive impact on the quality of teaching and learning, and outcomes, in all subjects as it has in the strongest subjects.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• Since his appointment, the headteacher has had a significant impact on the improvement of the school. He has raised expectations of what staff and pupils can achieve and has been unwavering in his drive to improve the quality of teaching and learning. Actions taken have ensured that standards at Etone College are rising and have the capacity to rise further.
• Leaders have devised detailed and relevant plans based on their in-depth knowledge of the school and accurate evaluation of its performance. These plans allow them to address effectively the issues that were preventing pupils from making good progress in the past, including weak teaching.
• Leaders carry out regular checks on the quality of teaching in order to monitor teachers’ performance and hold them to account. Teachers have clear targets relating to the school improvement priorities set by leaders, and pay progression is linked to the achievement of these targets.
• Senior leaders, with the active support of governors, have developed strategies for sustainable improvements of standards at Etone College. They maximise opportunities for the school to be involved in initial teacher training and leadership development, which are available within the multi-academy trust of which the school is part, to ensure both effective recruitment and succession planning. As a result, the school is fully staffed with specialist teachers who have access to well-structured career pathways.
• Initially, the school received support from the lead school when it joined the multi-academy trust, but now it plays a full part in the development of teaching, learning and assessment across the trust as an equal partner. The school has its own lead practitioners, for example in mathematics, who deliver training sessions. Arrangements within the trust also include the moderation of teacher assessments to ensure the accuracy of results.
• Leaders provide high-quality training to improve the quality of teaching. They draw on best practice in partner schools as well as on the expertise of the school’s most effective teachers. Staff, all at various points in their career, acknowledge the positive impact these training opportunities have on the quality of their practice. However, variations in the quality of teaching across the curriculum, within different subject areas and stages have not yet been eliminated.
• Middle leaders play an increasingly important role in the continuous improvement of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment in the school. They form a cohesive group and are starting to have a significant impact. However, they are still to establish and coordinate their leadership fully to effectively address the variations that still exist in teaching and outcomes across subject areas.
• Leaders systematically track the progress of pupils in order to identify those who are at risk of underperforming, and have effective intervention strategies in place to support those pupils. They also use information on progress from primary schools, for pupils who join the school in Year 7, to target the use of the additional catch-up funding, to support those who need extra help in English and mathematics.
• Senior leaders and governors pay close attention to the use and impact of the pupil premium funding the school receives to support disadvantaged pupils. They analyse barriers to personal development and learning that may affect those pupils and ensure that strategies are in place to overcome these barriers. As a result, disadvantaged pupils have access to a wide range of opportunities and their progress is increasingly in line with that of other pupils in the school and nationally.
• Leaders make effective use of the funding that the school receives for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Well-trained learning support assistants work alongside these pupils and provide support and guidance that is accurately adjusted to individual needs. The school also organises and runs a good range of extra-curricular activities, including a dyslexia club and a self-esteem club. These additional activities enhance learning for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and help them to make good progress.
• The curriculum the school offers is suitably broad and balanced. Leaders have reviewed the curriculum at key stage 4 and post-16 so that it is better adapted to the needs of pupils and students. There is a clear focus on ensuring that pupils at key stage 4, and students following 16 to 19 study programmes, are well prepared for the next stage of their education, employment or training. Leaders’ priority is to ensure that subject choices, both academic and vocational, support higher aspirations and allow access to as wide a range of learning and training opportunities as possible. Leaders are now overhauling the key stage 3 curriculum in order to bring it more in line with pupils’ learning in primary schools.
• Pupils have a wide range of extra-curricular activities to choose from. The school provides opportunities to take part in competitive sport, music or drama as well as trips abroad, visits to the theatre or to the Manchester BBC studios. Participation in these activities is high and pupils talk with enthusiasm about the variety of extra-curricular activities they enjoy throughout their school career. Pupils also enjoy their visits to universities, including Oxford, Cambridge and Warwick, and clearly view them as an inspiring experience.
• The school supports the development of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding and appreciation effectively through a range of subjects. These are supplemented well with a comprehensive programme of assemblies, talks from external speakers and tutor time activities.

Governance of the school

• Governors know the school well and demonstrate a good understanding of their role and responsibilities. They have devised a scheme of delegation which spells out the accountability of leaders.
• Governors have a good grasp of the school’s strengths and weaknesses. This allows them to ask searching questions about pupils’ achievement, the quality of teaching in the school, standards of behaviour, and the impact of the pupil premium, the use of special educational needs funding and the Year 7 additional catch-up funding. They also monitor carefully the ways in which the performance of staff and pay progression are managed by the headteacher. As a result, they have a strong input into the strategic direction of the school and hold leaders to account effectively for the school’s performance.
• Governors are very proactive in ensuring that safeguarding is effective. They regularly check that staff training, policies and procedures are up to date and fit for purpose.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• The school has up-to-date records and policies in place to ensure that pupils are safe. Staff training is thorough and includes the recent changes to statutory safeguarding guidance for schools. Staff know what their duties are and are confident they can identify and intervene to protect vulnerable pupils.
• The headteacher and a designated safeguarding lead ensure that appropriate actions are taken, in collaboration with external agencies, parents and carers, to follow up and resolve cases of pupils who are found to be at risk.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment in the school is improving steadily. Teachers have good relationships with pupils and the atmosphere in classrooms is overwhelmingly positive.
• Teachers have good subject knowledge and, in many cases, a genuine enthusiasm for what they teach. They introduce new concepts and knowledge in a clear, well-structured manner. In Year 11, they often clarify the links between what is taught in class and how pupils can obtain the best marks in their examinations.
• The most effective teaching is successful in encouraging pupils to deepen their knowledge and understanding and to think for themselves. For example, in geography, Year 10 pupils are creating their own revision materials. In Year 11 mathematics, pupils use feedback from their mock examination to answer questions about vectors that they failed to complete successfully.
• The large majority of pupils take pride in their work and complete activities to the best of their ability. In most lessons, pupils work well together and listen attentively to teachers’ instructions. As a result, there is very little time that is not used productively and the positive atmosphere that prevails is conducive to effective learning and progress.
• Teachers mostly follow the school’s assessment policy and mark pupils’ work accordingly. The school’s marking policy has a focus on supporting the development of literacy across the curriculum. This applies to all subjects where written answers are required. This is followed effectively by a majority of teachers.
• Developing oral communication across the curriculum is also part of the school’s policies and drive to improve literacy. While it is obvious, in some classes, that teachers are insisting on pupils using appropriate language and are encouraging them to develop their answers, this practice is still not sufficiently widespread to have a significant impact on the way pupils express themselves in lessons.
• In the majority of lessons, teachers plan activities that are designed to address the needs of pupils of different abilities in their class. As pupils are grouped by ability, the range is comparatively small and teachers are successful in targeting work and levels of challenge effectively. However, on occasions, work is too easy for some members of the class and does not provide sufficient challenge.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.
• Pupils feel safe in school and express a high level of confidence in the ability of teachers and other adults in the school to protect and support them. The vast majority of parents who expressed their views through the online Ofsted questionnaire, Parent View, were equally positive.
• There are very few incidents of bullying. Pupils are clear about how devastating the effects of bullying can be and why it is the responsibility of every member of the school’s community to prevent it from happening. They trust their teachers to intervene swiftly if it happens. They are also clear about who they can talk to in case they feel distressed or want to report incidents.
• Pupils are taught how they should behave to avoid risks, including those related to the use of social media. They are grateful for the thoughtful and open way in which issues related to relationships and sexual exploitation are discussed at tutor time, or in personal, social and health education lessons.
• Older pupils are aware of key issues that dominate current affairs, such as the debate about Brexit, and say they often have the opportunity to discuss and learn about values, tolerance, the rule of law, and world issues. This ensures they are well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Pupils are actively encouraged to take on responsibilities such as prefect duties or lead students to play a full part in the school life. Many are keen to take part in team sport and represent the school in competitions.
• Pupils receive impartial careers advice delivered by the school.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is good.
• Pupils’ conduct around the school and in lessons is overwhelmingly positive. They take pride in their appearance and in the presentation of their work. They show respect to their teachers and to each other.
• The vast majority of pupils have a positive attitude to learning. They work well together and are attentive when teachers give instructions or explanations. On the rare occasions when they lose concentration or become distracted, they respond positively to teachers’ requests to refocus their attention.
• Leaders have a strong focus on sustaining and improving high standards of behaviour. Staff apply the school’s behaviour policy consistently and the school keeps meticulous records of behaviour incidents. These records show that there is still a high level of fixed-term exclusions, but this is due to higher expectations and a more rigorous implementation of policies.
• Attendance is improving and is, overall, in line with the national average. The attendance of some groups of pupils, especially disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, is still below the national average. However, the school is taking strong action to ensure that all pupils attend regularly, not only in making clear to parents the consequences of their children not attending school regularly, but also by positively encouraging attendance through rewards. As a result, the proportion of disadvantaged pupils who are persistently absent is reducing substantially.
• Pupils in Year 11 commented in discussions with inspectors on the marked improvements in behaviour in the school over the last two years. They approve strongly of the system of rewards and sanctions that was introduced by the headteacher and feel that ‘Even pupils who misbehave know what they should be doing.’

Outcomes for pupils Good

• Outcomes for pupils have improved significantly since the time of the last inspection. Provisional results for Year 11 pupils in 2016 show that they made more progress overall than pupils nationally. As a result, there was a marked improvement in GCSE results in 2016.
• Evidence from pupils’ work and the school’s own assessment information show that the improving trend, in terms of the attainment and progress of pupils at key stage 4, is being sustained. As a result, pupils are better prepared for the next stage of their education or training.
• At key stage 3, current assessment information also shows that a large majority of pupils are making good progress from their starting points across the curriculum. The school’s system to track pupils’ progress, as well as evidence in pupils’ books, provides reliable evidence to support leaders’ analysis of progress.
• The 2016 provisional GCSE results show that disadvantaged pupils made generally less progress than other pupils nationally, especially in science and humanities. Some of these pupils left school with, on average, half a grade or more below other pupils in these subjects. Leaders analysed the reasons for these differences in attainment and progress and targeted their efforts and funding to ensure that improved teaching would reduce these differences in the future. From assessment information for both key stages 3 and 4, it is clear that disadvantaged pupils are now making at least as much progress as their peers from their respective starting points across the curriculum.
• Pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported by the school to make progress which is at least in line with that of other pupils from similar starting points. The school has effective systems in place to support the transition of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities from key stage 2 to key stage 3 and from key stage 4 to post-16.
• The most able pupils make good progress. Pupils are set by ability in most subjects from Year 7 onwards. Leaders have systems in place to monitor the progress of pupils of different abilities and ensure that the most able pupils, especially those who are disadvantaged, are clearly identified and supported in each subject. Work in pupils’ books, as well as activities observed in lessons and assessment records, show that in a large majority of subjects, the most able pupils are supported to fulfil their potential.
• The evidence gathered during the inspection shows that progress overall is improving and is above the national average. However, some variations between subjects, while they have been identified and addressed by leaders, still remain.

16 to 19 study programmes Good

• The sixth form is well led. The sixth form leader has changed the culture of the sixth form, raising aspirations and establishing clear boundaries in terms of dress code and attendance. There is a purposeful atmosphere in the sixth form area, from which students benefit greatly, both in terms of the progress they make and in their personal development. As a result, they are well prepared for the next stage of their education, employment or training.
• Historically, progress in the sixth form was higher in vocational than in academic subjects. The leadership team is taking strong action to ensure that students in all subjects are provided with the quality of teaching and support they need to make at least expected progress from their starting points. To this end, regular meetings with subject leaders are organised to track progress and identify where intervention is required to address underperformance.
• Current assessment information shows that a large majority of students are on track to meet their targets. Strong support is provided by sixth form tutors for those who are falling behind. However, students’ progress still varies a lot across subjects for academic courses because teaching is not yet as effective as it should be in all subjects.
• Although the sixth form is small, the school aims to meet the needs of the students and offers a wide range of courses. As a result, a large majority of students who start courses at Etone College stay on to complete them and gain the qualifications they need.
• Students benefit from a wide range of opportunities to develop their personal, social and employability skills. They are actively encouraged to take on responsibilities and participate fully in the school life. For example, many students act as mentors to support Year 7 pupils in English and mathematics. Many are involved in charity work on behalf of the school and in the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme. They also receive personalised careers advice and support for their applications to universities or training courses. They spoke positively about how they benefit from those opportunities.
• All students who left the school in 2016 gained a university place or an apprenticeship, or found employment.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 137771 Warwickshire 10025185 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Secondary comprehensive School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils 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 Academy converter 11 to 18 Mixed Mixed 707 94 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Jeremy Bench Ian Smith 024 7675 7300 http://www.etonecollege.co.uk/ postbox@etonecollege.co.uk Date of previous inspection 11–12 February 2015

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• The school complies with Department for Education guidance on what academies should publish.
• Etone College is a smaller than average secondary school and has a sixth form.
• The school is a sponsored academy of the Matrix Academy Trust. The school has received support from other schools in the trust and also provides support to other schools in the trust.
• The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is average. The proportion who speak English as an additional language is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is below average.
• The proportion of pupils who are eligible for support through the pupil premium is above the national average.
• The school does not make use of alternative off-site provision for any of its pupils.
• The school meets the current government floor standards.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed teaching in 35 lessons, some of which were jointly observed with senior leaders.
• Inspectors looked at a range of pupils’ work in different subjects in key stages 3 and 4 and the sixth form.
• Meetings took place with the headteacher, senior leaders, middle leaders and groups of pupils from across all year groups. The lead inspector met with three members of the governing body and the chief executive officer of the multi-academy trust of which the school is part.
• Inspectors observed pupils’ behaviour at breaktime, lunchtime, between lessons and after school and talked to pupils and sixth form students about their experiences at the school.
• Inspectors took into account 70 parental responses to the Ofsted online questionnaire, Parent View.
• Inspectors took into account the views of the 89 members of staff who responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire and those of the 11 pupils who responded.
• Inspectors looked at a variety of documentation, including the school’s own self-evaluation of its provision and its development plan. Inspectors also considered information relating to achievement, teaching and learning, behaviour and attendance, safeguarding and governance.

Inspection team

Patrick Amieli, lead inspector Bernice Astling Michelle Newman Sukhbir Farar Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector