Hazelwick School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at Hazelwick School.

Staff have extremely high expectations and pupils happily live up to these. Pupils behave impeccably and embody the school values, becoming academically, socially, morally and culturally successful. Pupils' high attendance reflects their positive attitudes to their education.

Pupils achieve exceptionally well in national examinations and produce high-quality work within their subjects. This is because the ambitious curriculum and expert teaching inspire pupils to learn. Those in the sixth form also achieve highly in national examinations and are incredibly well prepared for their next steps.

Pupils flourish, benefiting from ...the extensive range of enrichment activities available to them. They play basketball, football and join the athletics club after school. Others get involved in the debate club, join the eco group or sing in the lunchtime choir.

The school's annual charity fundraiser in aid of a local hospice is a highlight of the year for pupils and staff. Older pupils organise themselves into planning committees and bid for the right to organise the event. Sixth formers are excellent role models for younger pupils, playing a vital part in the life of the school and learning about the best ways to help younger pupils get the most out of their education.

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

The school has implemented an extremely well-designed curriculum across all key stages. Pupils study an appropriately broad range of subjects in key stage 3. English baccalaureate subjects form a central part of the curriculum in key stage 4 and students in the sixth form study a rich range of A levels or vocational subjects.

The school has arranged the curriculum around its core values and the importance of diversity and inclusivity. Consequently, pupils are imbued with a sense of right and wrong, respect and acceptance from the start.

Teachers are experts in their subjects.

They design learning that enthuses and motivates pupils. Teachers set highly demanding work, including in the sixth form, which encourages pupils to revisit past learning and build on this with new knowledge. Teachers identify gaps in pupils' knowledge and provide timely support where needed, strongly embedding key concepts in pupils' long-term memory.

Consequently, pupils deepen their understanding in all subjects extremely well. Published examination outcomes show that pupils in key stage 4 and 5 achieve highly and disadvantaged pupils perform as well as non-disadvantaged pupils do nationally. Similarly, pupils who speak English as an additional language quickly settle into the school and excel by the time they reach the end of key stage 4.

Staff identify the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) swiftly and accurately, ensuring that their needs are met fully. The specialist resource provision provides expertly tailored care and support for deaf pupils. Staff know pupils, particularly pupils with SEND, extremely well.

Teachers adapt the curriculum sensibly when needed so that pupils with SEND achieve their best.

Across the school, staff prioritise pupils' reading development. Weaker readers are supported very well by knowledgeable and committed staff.

This ensures that pupils who struggle to read catch up quickly. Those who speak English as an additional language receive highly impactful support. A central purpose of the school's approach to the curriculum is improving pupils' literacy and understanding of key subject vocabulary.

This is especially the case in English, where teachers choose a rich array of literature to excite and interest pupils in reading.

Personal development is extremely well organised. The personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) curriculum in key stages 3 and 4 is designed carefully.

Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe and healthy. The astutely planned relationships and sex education programme teaches pupils about healthy and unhealthy relationships, and key concepts such as permission-seeking and giving, appropriate and inappropriate contact, kindness and commitment. In the sixth form, PSHE addresses the issues of respect, consent, sexual harassment and healthy relationships appropriately and thoroughly.

Students appreciate this and the wide range of enrichment activities open to them.

There are plenty of opportunities for pupils to find out about future careers from external speakers, visiting alumni who talk about their professions and trips to universities. Students get a lot out of the mock interviews that staff organise.

This contributes to students' confidence when thinking about their next steps. Involvement in democratic processes, for example the UK youth parliament, gives pupils in all key stages the chance to participate in rich debates and develop their understanding of democracy.

Staff enjoy working here and believe that they are supported well in managing their workload.

Staff feel that leaders are approachable and always willing to support them. Trustees know the school's strengths and hold leaders to account well, ensuring that they fulfil their statutory duties.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.