Idsall School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a rapidly improving school.

Pupils, and students in the sixth form, are happy here. Adults take the time to get to know pupils and their families really well. Pupils appreciate this and build increasingly strong and positive relationships with their teachers.

This helps pupils to feel safe. Pupils are comfortable turning to staff for support if needed. They have growing confidence that any concerns will be dealt with swiftly and effectively.

Behaviour at the school has improved considerably in recent months. The school has put a great deal of effort into shifting this culture. Increasingly, pupils embody the values of kindness, integrity and empathy f...or others in all that they do.

The school has developed an ambitious curriculum. In the main, pupils enjoy their learning. However, the curriculum is not always delivered well, and some pupils do not achieve as well as they should.

In addition, some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) do not get the support they need in lessons to do well.

Pupils gain a sound understanding of their social and moral responsibilities during their time here. For example, many pupils frequently lead fundraising drives for a local food bank and refugee centre.

Students in the sixth form also act as mentors, providing targeted support and guidance to younger pupils.

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

Leaders have successfully steered the school through a period of significant challenge. Throughout this journey, they have consistently acted with the best interests of pupils at the heart of what they do.

The school has been careful to take the right steps in the right order to secure sustainable improvement.

Recently, the school has revitalised the academic curriculum. Careful thought has been given to make sure that the knowledge pupils are expected to learn is laid out in detail.

This work is well developed across all subjects, and the knowledge pupils encounter builds successfully on the things they already know. This helps pupils to remember what they have been taught. Sometimes, teachers use this information smartly and set challenging work for pupils.

Where this happens, pupils, including students in the sixth form, make sound progress. However, too often, the activities chosen by teachers do not support pupils in learning the intended knowledge and, at times, lack ambition. In addition, when pupils do not produce their best work, this is not always challenged.

Consequently, some pupils do not demonstrate positive attitudes to learning in lessons and do not achieve as well as they should.

Sometimes, teachers check on pupils' learning well, including in the sixth form. They are quick to spot gaps in knowledge and adapt their teaching skilfully to make sure any misconceptions are addressed.

However, this is not consistent across most lessons; teachers do not always spot when pupils have failed to understand something they have been taught. As a result, misconceptions and gaps in pupils' knowledge persist. This hinders learning.

Until recently, pupils' individual needs were not well understood here. The school has worked smartly to refresh its approach to supporting pupils with SEND. It works in close partnership with external agencies, pupils and their families to build a comprehensive picture of pupils' individual needs.

This information is shared with staff. However, despite this, teachers do not consistently use this information to adapt their teaching to take account of pupils' needs. When this happens, pupils struggle to make sense of their classwork and fall behind their peers.

Sixth-form students with SEND are well supported.

The school is working to promote a culture of reading. Pupils with gaps in their reading knowledge are quickly identified and effective interventions are put in place to support them.

This work is helping these pupils develop their ability and confidence to read.

There has been a significant shift in pupils' behaviour across the school in recent months.When pupils struggle to behave, targeted support and carefully planned interventions help them manage their behaviour and emotions more appropriately.

Lessons are generally calm and, in the main, teachers apply the school's behaviour policy well. They have high expectations of pupils' behaviour and challenge any misbehaviour skilfully. Occasionally, poor behaviour in lessons goes unchallenged.

This slows learning.

The school's work to develop pupils' personal development is a growing strength. Since the last inspection, staff have worked diligently to better understand pupils' day-to-day experiences, both in and out of school.

As a result of this work, increasingly, pupils feel empowered to share concerns about important issues such as sexual harassment and racism. There are a broad range of opportunities for pupils to develop their passions outside of the classroom. A growing number of pupils, including those with SEND, benefit from these opportunities.

The school has made sure that pupils, including those in the sixth form, receive helpful information about the world of work.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some staff do not use the information they have about pupils' individual needs well enough in lessons.

Consequently, some pupils' SEND are not being sufficiently met, and they struggle to access the learning. The school should ensure that all staff routinely make use of the information they have about pupils' needs in order to implement effective strategies to meet these needs within lessons. ? Sometimes, teachers do not check carefully pupils' learning.

This means teachers do not know when pupils are stuck and do not accurately identify the next steps pupils need to take in their learning. The school should ensure that the best practice across the school is shared and implemented across all lessons. Across some lessons, the work given to pupils does not support them to gain the knowledge they need and does not move them on in their learning.

This limits the progress pupils make. The school should ensure that all staff provide pupils with challenging work that is well matched to the aims of the curriculum, as well as encourage all pupils to produce their best work. ? At times, pupils' behaviour distracts from the intended learning.

This is not always challenged consistently well. This disrupts learning for others. The school should ensure that all staff consistently apply the new behaviour approach and challenge any misbehaviour in lessons.