Harrytown Catholic High School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Most pupils relish the positive relationships that they have with their peers and staff.

They appreciate the school's friendly and safe atmosphere. In recent times, the school has renewed its behaviour management systems. This is beginning to help some pupils to improve their behaviour choices.

Even so, some staff do not address the poor behaviour of a small number of pupils effectively enough. As a result, some pupils disrupt the learning experiences of others.

The school has raised its expectations of pupils' achievement.

To this end, it is developing the curriculum so that it is broader and more ambitious. Nonetheless, this improvement work is les...s well developed in some subjects than it is in others. Furthermore, older pupils do not receive effective support to remedy the gaps in their reading knowledge.

Such weaknesses result in pupils' variable achievement across the curriculum. Some pupils do not gain the knowledge that they need to achieve well.

Many pupils benefit from the school's 'HarrytownExtra' enrichment programme.

For instance, pupils enjoy taking part in clubs, such as animation, trampolining, eco council and choir. Pupils appreciate getting actively involved in charitable work, such as fundraising for homeless shelters. Through these opportunities, pupils are encouraged to become resilient and well-rounded individuals.

Older pupils value their roles as members of the peace council and sport ambassadors. Such positions of responsibility help pupils to build their confidence in leading events and supporting their peers.

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

The school has begun to reshape its curriculum so that pupils can access a broad range of subjects.

In those subjects where the curriculum is less developed, the school has not identified the essential knowledge that pupils should learn. This limits how well pupils build on their prior knowledge as they progress through the curriculum.

Many staff have strong subject knowledge.

They design activities that engage pupils in their learning. In some subjects, content is clearly presented. However, in other subjects, staff do not check well enough that pupils have understood the subject content before they move on to new learning.

This means that gaps and misconceptions in pupils' knowledge are not identified and addressed quickly enough. As a result, some pupils do not achieve well.

The school is quick to identify the additional needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

The school liaises with external specialists to ensure that pupils receive the support that they need. Even so, limitations in the curriculum design and delivery hinders some pupils with SEND from achieving as well as they should.

In recent times, the school has prioritised reading.

Pupils in key stage 3 who have difficulty with reading receive the support that they need to develop their reading fluency and confidence. However, pupils in Year 10 and 11 do not benefit from the same level of help. As a result, they do not develop the reading expertise that they need to access the curriculum sufficiently well.

The school has recently strengthened its strategies to support pupils to manage their behaviour. For instance, it has developed calming spaces and behaviour correction areas to meet pupils' behavioural and emotional needs. Despite these improvements, some staff do not apply the new behaviour management policy consistently well.

As a result, a small proportion of pupils do not behave well enough. This interrupts the learning of others. At times, this hampers some pupils' enjoyment of school.

The school supports pupils and their families to promote regular attendance. Most pupils' attendance rates are high.

The school has refreshed its personal, social, health and economic education curriculum so that it is comprehensive and age-appropriate.

Pupils learn about keeping safe, such as around fireworks, online or in the community. Some pupils benefit from various trips, such as skiing, visiting landmarks, watching theatre productions and exploring museums. These activities help pupils to expand their understanding of the wider world.

Pupils learn about different career pathways and receive impartial careers guidance. As a result, most pupils are typically well prepared to make decisions about their next stage in education.

Most staff value the support that they receive to help them to manage their workload and well-being.

Governors routinely review policies and practices to ensure that changes are carefully implemented. Recent changes to leadership have accelerated the pace of the school's improvement work. However, some staff do not have high enough expectations of pupils' behaviour and achievement.

At times, this hampers the school's efforts to address weaknesses in behaviour and the quality of education.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In some subjects, the school has not identified the essential knowledge that pupils should learn.

At times, this means that pupils do not learn what they need to achieve well. The school should ensure that the curriculum in all subjects is fully developed so that pupils can make successful progress through the curriculum. ? The school has not fully developed its programme of support for older pupils who struggle to read.

This means that some pupils do not develop fluency or confidence. This hinders these pupils from accessing the wider curriculum with ease. The school should ensure that pupils who find reading difficult receive the support that they need to overcome the gaps in their reading knowledge.

• Some staff do not check and remedy gaps in pupils' knowledge sufficiently well. As a result, some pupils do not have the prior knowledge that they need to build on their learning successfully over time. The school should ensure that staff routinely check that pupils have learned and understood what they have been taught so that they are ready to learn new content.

• Some staff do not address the poor behaviour of some pupils as well as they should. As a result, some pupils disrupt the learning experiences of other pupils due to their poor conduct. The school should ensure that staff apply the behaviour management systems consistently well so that learning is not disrupted by poor behaviour.

• Some staff do not have high enough expectations for pupils' conduct and academic achievement. This means that they do not make sure that new initiatives to improve pupils' achievement and behaviour are implemented as well as intended. The school should ensure that all staff understand the importance of maintaining high expectations of pupils' conduct and academic success so that they are better supported to achieve the best that they can.