Greensward Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Greensward Academy continues to be a good school.

The principal of this school is Katie Scarnell. This school is part of the Academies Enterprise Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school.

The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Rebecca Boomer-Clark, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by David Hall.

What is it like to attend this school?

At Greensward Academy everyone is valued highly in line with its motto: respect, equity, dignity. Pupils enjoy attending this school.

They appreciate the quality and quantity of support they receive with their well-being, including their mental health. Pupils ar...e adamant that this is a school where it is safe and normal to be different.

Pupils behave well here.

Almost all pupils are keen to learn. There is little disruption to lessons. Pupils get on well and look out for each other.

They treat adults and fellow pupils with respect.

There are many opportunities for pupils to develop their self-confidence and broaden their interests. There can take part in a range of clubs, including sports, and there are many subject-based competitions.

They can take part in musical productions and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme.

The school has high expectations of all pupils. They follow a broad curriculum, with a wide range of subjects to choose from, including vocational qualifications.

Pupils learn about careers and develop the skills they need for employment or higher education. They achieve well and are well prepared for the next stage in their lives.

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

The school has developed a well thought out and ambitious curriculum.

Subject leaders identify what pupils have learned in primary school as well as what pupils need to know by the time they leave school. They use this information to plan learning carefully so that pupils build up a body of knowledge securely over time. The school has a consistent focus on building pupils' range and use of important vocabulary.

This strengthens pupils' written work and their oracy. Teachers regularly check pupils' knowledge of what they have learned. They increasingly use these checks to adjust the curriculum and how they deliver it.

Pupils receive clear and useful feedback; they use this to improve their work.

As a result of a well-designed and delivered curriculum, most pupils achieve very highly. Teachers know the needs of their pupils well.

In most cases they adapt their teaching so pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), can access the curriculum. At times, support for these pupils in and out of lessons is not precisely matched to their needs. This means sometimes pupils with SEND do not always achieve as well as they should.

Pupils read enthusiastically and often, including in form time, when they regularly discuss a diverse range of texts. The school uses checks to quickly identify weaker readers. These pupils receive high-quality support.

As a result, they make swift progress, becoming increasingly fluent, accurate readers.

The school has high and well-understood expectations of behaviour. Teachers apply school systems consistently and fairly.

Consequently, pupils can focus on their learning with little interruption. A small number of pupils find it hard to meet expectations. The school supports these pupils well to improve their behaviour.

Most pupils attend well. However, disadvantaged pupils sometimes attend less well than their peers. The school uses a wide range of approaches, including the use of alternative provision.

This helps pupils who find it harder to attend school to do so.

Students in the sixth form make important contributions to the school and local community, for example by mentoring younger pupils. They know how to study and use their time effectively.

This builds on the high quality of teaching in lessons. As a result, students achieve highly. Almost all successfully go on to higher education or employment.

The school's personal, social and health education curriculum is well designed for pupils in all key stages. It builds pupils' knowledge of how to keep themselves safe and healthy and how to be good citizens. They learn about topics such as the importance of consent, the dangers of gambling and safety on the roads.

The school's careers programme is exceptional. All pupils in Year 10 and students in Year 12 do work experience. Pupils in each year group meet a variety of employers, including apprenticeship providers.

Pupils are, therefore, well-informed about their next steps and understand the options available to them.

The school supports staff with their well-being and workload. Staff enjoy working here, and many stay here for a long time.

This builds strong relationships between staff, pupils and parents. The school and trust provide professional development for staff, including early career teachers, that develops their skills and knowledge.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Disadvantaged pupils do not always attend as well or achieve as highly as their peers. The school should ensure that adaptations to the curriculum, and the specific support provided for these pupils, is always precisely matched to their needs, to ensure that they attend as well and achieve as highly as they should.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good on 10 and 11 June 2014.