Colchester Royal Grammar School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

A significant number of pupils feel uncomfortable or unsafe in school and report being the subject of insulting and damaging comments regarding their gender, appearance, race or sexual orientation.

Pupils are too often reluctant to pass their concerns on to staff. Systems for dealing with safeguarding matters do not work properly. Consequently, leaders are largely unaware of the difficulties some pupils face.

Leaders provide a wide range of clubs and activities for pupils. Some pupil-led societies actively promote a culture of mutual respect and understanding. However, leaders do not do enough to support these activities by ensuring that pupils are taught how to respe...ct and interact appropriately with people who are different to them.

Leaders want and expect pupils to achieve academic success. Teachers inspire pupils' interest in the academic subjects they teach. Pupils excel and many go on to study at a very high level after leaving the sixth form.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Leaders have failed to recognise or address a pervading culture in the school which does not promote equality and respect. Leaders have not considered carefully how girls in the sixth form will be integrated into the school and what challenges they might face. This is the first point at which girls are admitted to the school.

The school does not prepare boys well enough for this.

Leaders have not ensured that boys understand how to interact appropriately with girls. Consequently, some boys are rude about girls, judge them by their appearance and make inappropriate remarks.

Parts of the school have become a hostile environment for some pupils.

While many pupils enjoy being at the school, many also feel people are treated badly because of their protected characteristics, such as their gender, race or sexual orientation. Discriminatory remarks are too common among some pupils.

Leaders do not do enough to prevent or combat this.

Many pupils, of both sexes, dislike and disapprove of the negative culture. However, they often do not report their concerns or experiences.

There are several reasons for this. Pupils lack confidence in the skills of adults to deal with their concerns well. Pupils are worried that they might be picked on by other pupils as a result.

Some pupils feel the problem should be tackled as a cultural issue, not as individual incidents of poor behaviour. Not all pupils know who to report concerns to.

Leaders have started to work on making sure that everyone is treated with respect.

However, this has not driven the change which is needed.

Personal, social and health education (PSHE) is weak. Leaders have not planned the curriculum well.

Staff are not trained well enough to teach the subject. Leaders do not do enough to check on the quality of what is taught, or how well pupils have learned. This leaves some pupils insufficiently prepared for aspects of life in modern Britain.

Most of the academic education pupils receive is of a very high standard. Leaders make sure pupils have access to a broad and exciting curriculum. During key stage 3, pupils learn well beyond the requirements of the national curriculum studying, for example Latin and Classical Greek.

This rich curriculum leads to a high proportion of pupils undertaking the qualifications which make up the English Baccalaureate at GCSE. Pupils move on to ambitious programmes of study in the sixth form.

Teachers go beyond exam board specifications in their teaching.

They are highly knowledgeable and passionate about their subjects. Mathematics, for example is promoted as a beautiful discipline at the heart of all things. Teaching is underpinned by well-considered plans, which set out when pupils will learn what.

Teachers make sure pupils understand the concepts they will need to progress. As a result, pupils' understanding advances to a high level. Pupils work with interest and enthusiasm They achieve extremely well in external examinations at the end of key stages 4 and 5.

Teachers adapt how they teach to provide the support identified in the education plans for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, leaders do not identify some pupils' special educational needs early enough. This delays the provision of the support which would benefit these pupils.

Leaders make sure pupils have access to a wide range of societies and clubs. They help sixth form students to develop leadership skills by allowing students to create and run societies, and to act as subject mentors. Leaders provide effective careers guidance and support to pupils in older year groups.

This helps pupils move onto apprenticeships and university courses.

Governors' systems for monitoring pupils' behaviour and well-being have not worked well. Governors were unaware of the significant weaknesses in these aspects of provision.

Governors have recently become aware of some concerns about safeguarding systems and are in the process of addressing these. However, during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, governors have not ensured sufficient checks have taken place. The single central record of pre-employment checks was inaccurate when checked by inspectors.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

Some pupils do not feel safe in school because of a culture which allows them to be victimised for being themselves. Too many pupils would not share their concerns with an adult in school.

When issues are reported to adults, they are not recorded properly. The system for staff to report concerns is not rigorous. Incidents are only added to safeguarding records if a member of the safeguarding team determines that they should be.

This makes it too easy to miss patterns which might indicate a pupil is at risk of harm.

Records lack sufficient detail. They do not include the dates on which things take place.

There is a separate system for recording concerns in the sixth form. This contains matters which should be considered safeguarding concerns but are not progressed as such. Some of those responsible for safeguarding are unprepared to undertake their role.

The single central record of pre-employment vetting checks is not completed or checked well enough. As a result, inspectors found that information was missing.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school does not prepare pupils well enough for life in modern Britain.

Some pupils do not know how to behave around others. Some pupils treat others badly because of their protected characteristics. Leaders need to ensure all pupils learn how to interact well with people different from themselves and value each other equally.

• Pupils are too reluctant to report behaviours which upset or worry them. Leaders do not know the extent to which a negative culture has become prevalent among some pupils. Leaders need to make sure pupils feel confident in passing on their concerns to adults in school.

• Leaders have not established effective systems for reporting and recording safeguarding concerns. Leaders do not have the information they need to keep pupils safe. Leaders need to improve their approach to reporting and recording concerns.

• Leaders do not do enough to make sure pre-employment checks are recorded appropriately. Information is not always recorded where it needs to be. Leaders should establish processes to make sure the single central record of pre-employment checks is consistently accurate.

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