Heath Park

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.

Students achieve exceptionally well in this school, and make outstanding progress in English and in mathematics. Students' exceptional achievement is greatly enhanced by the highly creative way in which students' literacy, and other, skills are developed through the Key Stage 3 curriculum. The sixth form is outstanding.

Students' attainment and progress in work-related courses is a particular strength. Teaching is consistently at least good and much is outstanding. Together with the exceptional quality of care that students receive, this ensures that all students are very well supported.

The behaviour and safety of stude...nts are outstanding. Students are proud to attend the school and are highly motivated to achieve their very best. Students' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding and this is encompassed in the school's vision statement: 'Every Pupil: Always in Focus'.

The headteacher brings about an improvement in the life chances of the young people in the local community, and beyond through other schools in the Trust. Exceptionally strong leadership is shown by the headteacher, senior leaders and the trustees. Through this, the school is in a strong position to continue to improve, whilst at the same time supporting other schools to become outstanding.

School leaders rigorously check the quality of teaching and use this information to reward outstanding teachers, or to provide support to improve teaching where this is needed. This has maintained the outstanding teaching and achievement in school.

Information about this school

Heath Park converted to an academy in December 2011.

The predecessor school, Heath Park Business and Enterprise College, was judged to be outstanding at its previous inspection. The school formed a multi-academy trust, known as the Central Learning Partnership Trust. In this role, the school became the sponsor for Moseley Park, a neighbouring secondary school.

Three primary schools have since joined the Trust. One is a local school in Wolverhampton, with the other two being schools in Rotherham. The school has its own headteacher, in addition to the executive headteacher who works across other schools in the Trust.

Both are National Leaders of Education and the school is a National Support School and part of a Teaching School Alliance. Strategic oversight of the school is led by trustees of the board formed through the multi-academy trust. The school also has a group of governors, but their role is limited to oversight of the school at an operational level.

Heath Park is a larger-than-average secondary school and has a large sixth form. The post-16 centre is shared with Moseley Park and operates as a consortium with four other schools. There are currently five students who attend alternative or off-site provision, all on a full-time basis.

Three students attend the Orchard Centre (Home and Hospital Pupil Referral Unit), one student attends The Braybrook Centre (Key Stage 3 Pupil Referral Unit) and another student attends The Midpoint Centre (Key Stage 4 Pupil Referral Unit). One additional student attends a work placement on a part-time basis in addition to other school support programmes. Just over half of the school population are from minority ethnic backgrounds.

The largest ethnic group is Indian, followed by Caribbean and White and Black Caribbean, which together make up about a third of the school population. Almost a quarter of students in the school speak English as an additional language. Just over half of the students in the school are supported by pupil premium funding, which provides additional government funding for students in local authority care and those known to be eligible for free school meals.

There is an average proportion of disabled students and those who have special educational needs who are supported at school action. The proportion supported at school action plus or with a statement of special educational needs is also average. The academy meets the government's current floor standard, which sets the minimum expectations for students' attainment and progress by the end of Key Stage 4.

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