St Bede's and St Joseph's Catholic College Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Improve the consistency and quality of teaching, learning and assessment, and thereby outcomes, by ensuring that teachers:
  • set work that challenges all pupils, especially disadvantaged pupils and those with average and above-average starting points
  • have consistently high expectations of their pupils, so that they always produce their best work and behave well in lessons.
• Improve pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare by ensuring that pupils:
  • attend school more regularly
  • improve their attitudes to learning in lessons where behaviour is not good.
• Improve outcomes for pupils by accelerating the work to ensure that pupils, including those who are disadvantaged, make more rapid progress, in particular in mathematics.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher, who is leading the school through a school merger, leads with ambition and resolve. There is a clear desire to improve the school. As a result, pupils’ progress is improving, although it still needs to improve further. Clear accountability is now in place so that senior leaders challenge subject leaders who, in turn, hold their staff to account for pupils’ progress. The headteacher has high expectations of his staff.
• Senior leaders have established a strong culture of developing the skills of teachers and staff. Systems for managing the performance of staff are thorough. These systems ensure that all teachers are held to account for developing the quality of their teaching as well as making sure that the pupils they teach make good progress. Although these systems have not yet secured good enough teaching or secured pupils’ good progress in all areas, there is clear evidence that teaching is improving.
• Initiatives to assist teachers in planning learning, such as the ‘bell task’ at the start of lessons, are starting to reduce the variations evident in the effectiveness of the teaching. Other techniques to improve the impact of the feedback given to the pupils are also having an impact, but are not fully established. As a result, pupils’ responses to teachers’ feedback are varied.
• Subject leaders and senior leaders are effective in their work and share the headteacher’s determination to bring about improvements. The ‘Laser’ group that meets to monitor and review pupils’ progress are trusted and empowered to challenge and support teachers. This is helping pupils to make even more rapid progress.
• Teachers appreciate the coaching they receive from senior leaders and the opportunities that exist to share good practice across the school. Teachers value the training they receive with its clear focus on improving teaching. They talk positively about the ‘teach meets’ they have been involved with and how these have supported their professional development.
• Pupils follow a broad and balanced curriculum. Leaders have made improvements to the curriculum to challenge pupils of all abilities and to provide a curriculum journey from Year 7 to the sixth form. The new Year 7 ‘Diploma’ requires pupils to achieve academic targets, participate in extra-curricular activities and contribute to the spiritual, community and charity life of the school. This is having a positive impact on participation rates and engagement.
• Leaders ensure that the Year 7 catch-up funding and pupil premium are used effectively to support pupils in the classroom, support pupils’ progress and enable them to participate in additional activities. Additional support offered to boost pupils’ performance in English and mathematics is having a beneficial impact on the progress of current pupils. As a result, the progress of disadvantaged pupils is improving for current pupils at the school.
• In the past, leaders have recognised that standards of behaviour were not high enough. Consequently, leaders took direct action to improve this aspect of their work. This has resulted in improved working systems that have successfully reduced pupil exclusion from school.
• The close focus by teachers on the care and support of all pupils strongly influences the values and culture of the school. Pupils develop a clear understanding of British values and find out about diversity, equality and democracy through assemblies and citizenship lessons. Positive relationships exist between pupils and staff at all levels. Pupils told inspectors that the school is good at ‘making people feel welcome’.
• Leaders’ focus on the benefits of good attendance and the development of effective strategies to address persistent absenteeism have, more recently, begun to contribute to reducing persistent absenteeism for disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• There is a wide range of extra-curricular activities which provide many opportunities for pupils to participate in, for example, a range of sports teams, including water polo, additional after- and before-school classes to support their learning, performing arts and school productions. The majority of pupils say that they appreciate these additional opportunities and the help they receive from their teachers.
• The identification of and support for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are robust and ensure that they make good progress. The additional funding for special educational needs is spent well.

Governance of the school

• Governors bring a wealth of knowledge and experience from education and business to the school. They have worked effectively to guide the school’s strategic direction and secure its long-term future.
• Inspection evidence demonstrates that governors ask pertinent questions from the detailed information that leaders provide. Governors visit the school to assure themselves of the quality of education being provided. They have an accurate understanding of what is going on in school and support the headteacher well. They ensure that safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Governors know the school’s context well and fully understand the needs of the school’s wider community. They want the school to be the very best so that all pupils are successful and achieve well.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
• Pupils told inspectors that they were happy and safe in their school. They know what bullying is and explained that were it to occur it would be dealt with by their teachers and staff in school.
• The school has rigorous checking procedures in place for child protection. All staff have been trained in safeguarding and child protection and they know what to do if they feel that a pupil is at risk. Referrals to outside agencies meet requirements and are followed up by school staff. All staff have had training in the ‘Prevent’ duty and are clear of their responsibilities in this area.
• Processes and procedures for the recruitment of staff are compliant with current legislation.
• The school’s work makes a major contribution to the pupils feeling cared for and safe.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

• The quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inconsistent. This variability is evident across year groups and within subjects such as mathematics, science and modern foreign languages. For example, the carefully planned learning and skilful questioning seen in some French lessons were not seen in others. As a result, pupils’ progress is not consistently good.
• Teachers do not have high enough expectations of what pupils are capable of achieving. This holds back pupils’ progress, particularly the disadvantaged pupils and the most able boys, who do not always show good attitudes to learning as a result. Pupils make slower progress when teachers do not deal with misbehaviour effectively.
• Expectations are not always high enough. Work in some pupils’ books is often poorly presented. In many pupils’ books, often those of middle and higher ability, inspectors saw carefully crafted and well-presented work. Where teachers do insist that work is presented to a high standard, pupils respond well, demonstrating pride in what they do.
• School approaches to challenge negative attitudes towards learning are not applied consistently. In some lessons visited by inspectors, pupils did not always engage with their learning. Often this was as a result of pupils being given work that did not meet their learning needs. Some tasks, such as copying and revision exercises, are far too easy. These weaknesses hold back pupils’ progress.
• Teachers are not using the school’s assessment system consistently well. Some pupils do not respond to teachers’ feedback. However, when effective feedback is given, pupils respond to the teacher’s advice and this improves their work.
• Teachers use a range of techniques to actively engage pupils and check their understanding. For example, in English, the teacher provided every pupil with ‘next steps’ learning notes that enabled the pupils to further develop their knowledge and understanding independently, leading to a thirst for knowledge.
• Pupils are taught consistently well in religious education lessons and this is having a positive impact on their progress. In the lessons seen, pupils worked well in groups and were positively engaged in their learning.
• Leaders are ensuring that the very good practice in teaching is now being shared to encourage more rapid improvement in teaching overall.
• Teachers benefit from opportunities to visit and work with teachers from other schools to further develop how they plan and deliver learning to pupils.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

Personal development and welfare

• The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. Pupils feel well cared for and safe. This is confirmed in the views of the majority of parents who responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View. Pupils know who to speak to if they have any concerns.
• In lessons, pupils work well together and are eager to offer their views. They are confident and self-assured when sharing opinions. Across the school there is a strong sense of mutual respect between staff and pupils. Pupils are tolerant and respectful of others. All pupils are seen as important at this school by pupils and staff.
• Leaders ensure that pupils are equipped and knowledgeable, with an age-appropriate understanding of the potential risks they may face. Pupils learn to keep themselves safe from bullying and other risks through the curriculum and assemblies. Pupils trust their teachers to keep them safe.
• The school’s records show that when incidents of bullying do occur, these are dealt with swiftly and effectively. Pupils support this view.
• Pupils receive detailed information, advice and guidance about the work and study choices that are available to them after they leave school. The school ensures that all pupils understand their options at age 16, and at age 18 for those who stay in the sixth form.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.
• There are some instances of low-level disruption in lessons, for example pupils talking while the teacher is speaking or not paying attention when they should be listening to others. This small minority of pupils disrupts the learning of others. When learning is engaging, pupils respond well and are keen to learn.
• The standards of presentation in the pupils’ work are mixed and do not always show a consistent sense of pride in what they are producing.
• The use of derogatory language is rare in lessons and around the school. At breaktime, pupils are respectful to staff and their peers.
• Uniform standards are high. Pupils look smart and are polite and friendly.
• The school environment is calm and purposeful. Pupils congregate together in friendship groups around the school. The movement between lessons around the school is prompt and orderly.
• Leaders carefully track pupils’ attendance, including that of those attending alternative provision. This has had a significant impact this year. Attendance remains below the national average but is improving for all pupils, including the most vulnerable groups. Leaders are taking appropriate action to improve attendance, especially that of disadvantaged pupils. While the strategies have improved the attendance of these pupils, leaders are aware that it still remains low.

Outcomes for pupils

Requires improvement

• The progress made by pupils in mathematics on leaving school in Year 11 last year was below average. Most groups, including low- and middle-ability disadvantaged pupils, high-ability pupils and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, did not make good progress.
• Current pupils do not make enough progress in mathematics, and leaders have more work to do to ensure that pupils in Year 11 achieve well. Inspectors found that pupils gain a secure understanding of the key skills and concepts in mathematics but are not developing sufficient mastery of topics studied because the quality of teaching is variable across the subject.
• Outcomes for pupils in mathematics require improvement. Disadvantaged pupils do not all make good progress.
• School leaders have made the outcomes of disadvantaged pupils a clear priority for improvement. Staff are now aware of this. As a result, the progress of disadvantaged pupils has improved, especially in English, to become similar to that of other pupils in the school. It still needs to improve more in mathematics.
• The pupils make good progress in science, geography and history, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• School information and inspection evidence, including the quality of work seen in pupils’ books, show that pupils are now making much better progress and standards are improving, particularly in English. Improvement is evident in the performance of groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and the most able. Despite this, pupils’ achievement still requires further improvement. Variations in the quality of teaching, especially in mathematics, continue to impact on pupils’ progress.
• In Years 7 and 8, most pupils, including the most able, are making good progress in a range of subjects, regardless of their starting points. In key stage 3, most disadvantaged pupils are working at the standard expected of their age, while pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities are making stronger progress than previously.
• Last year, effective spending of the pupil premium ensured that the attainment of disadvantaged pupils improved. This year, leaders are more closely monitoring the progress and welfare of disadvantaged pupils. This increased attention has secured improved outcomes and attendance for disadvantaged pupils.
• In Year 11, the combinations of qualifications that pupils study prepare them sufficiently well for their next steps in education or training.
• Pupils’ reading skills are good. Teachers provide pupils with many opportunities to read, and there is a positive culture of reading across the school. The books that pupils choose challenge them to improve their reading. As a result, pupils from all starting points, including those who receive the catch-up premium in Year 7 and the best readers, enjoy and make good progress in reading.

16 to 19 study programmes Good

• As a result of strong leadership and consistently good teaching, achievement in the sixth form is good. Leaders know the priorities for improvement and take effective action to further improve students’ opportunities, for example supporting students who have complex learning needs.
• Teaching and learning are effective and provide for students’ needs overall so that they make good progress in their study programmes. Teachers use skilful questioning to address misconceptions, and this supports good progress to enable students to meet or exceed targets. Teachers have strong subject knowledge and teaching meets students’ needs well.
• Relationships between teachers and students are positive and purposeful. There is a culture of ambition in the sixth form, and teachers and support staff help students who are falling behind to catch up. A wide-ranging offer of extra-curricular opportunities is available to students.
• Students who have not passed GCSE English or mathematics with at least a grade C have the opportunity to sit the examination again following significant coaching. In 2016, results in English were a lot better than in mathematics overall.
• Work-experience opportunities are relevant and well planned, and the school is looking at how to further extend and make available opportunities for students to access industrial placements.
• Sixth-form leaders support students very well with careers advice and guidance throughout their time in the sixth form. School leaders pay particular attention to times of transition across the school and ensure that students enrol on the most appropriate courses from the outset. As a result, retention rates are high and the proportion of students making a successful progression to university is impressive.
• Students are proud of their school and they say that they feel safe and are safe in the sixth form. They know how to live safe and healthy lifestyles because they understand the risks they might otherwise face and how to deal with them. Strong provision for spiritual, moral, social and cultural development helps to underpin students’ positive outlook on life and its opportunities.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• The school meets the requirements of the 16 to 19 study programmes.

School details

Unique reference number Local authority Inspection number 140569 Bradford 10031006 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Secondary School category Age range of pupils Gender of pupils Gender of pupils in 16 to 19 study programmes Voluntary aided 11 to 18 Mixed Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 1,930 Of which, number on roll in 16 to 19 study programmes 400 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Headteacher Telephone number Website Email address Peter May Lawrence Bentley 01274 941941 http://sbsj.co.uk/ info@sbsj.co.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• This school is larger than the average-sized secondary school. The school is based on two separate sites. The school has a large sixth form.
• Pupils enter the school with starting points significantly below the national average.
• The proportion of disadvantaged pupils for whom the school receives the pupil premium is higher than the national average.
• The percentage of pupils from minority ethnic groups is well above the national average. Around a third of all pupils speak English as an additional language.
• The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is well above average.
• The alternative provision at ‘Tracks’ is used for a very small number of pupils.
• The school meets the government’s current floor standards, which set the minimum expectations for attainment and progress in English and mathematics by the end of Year 11.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors observed 65 lessons across a broad range of subjects. These included 13 lessons observed jointly with senior leaders. Inspectors also carried out a scrutiny of pupils’ work.
• Inspectors held discussions with four groups of pupils and with many other pupils informally around the school. Inspectors listened to a number of pupils read.
• Meetings were held with staff, including senior and middle leaders, teachers and newly qualified teachers. A meeting was held with three members of the governing body.
• Inspectors took account of the 122 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, and the 78 questionnaires completed by staff.
• Inspectors looked at the school’s website and a range of documentation provided by the school. This included information on pupils’ achievement, attendance and behaviour, school policies, the school’s self-evaluation of its work, school improvement plans and information about attendance and safeguarding.
• Inspectors looked at behaviour records and reviewed safeguarding documentation and how this related to daily practice, as well as speaking with staff and children.

Inspection team

Tudor Griffiths, lead inspector Judith Gooding Natasha Greenough Sean McClafferty John McNally

Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector Ofsted Inspector