JFS

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

New leaders have worked successfully to ensure that safeguarding is effective. They have increased the school's caring culture so that pupils are safe.

Pupils respond maturely to leaders' promotion of respectful and positive behaviour.

Leaders have raised the importance of mental health and looking after the emotional well-being of the whole school community. Pupils know to whom and where they can turn if they have any worries. Pupils felt confident to report any concerns because staff help them.

Staff are vigilant to any incidents of bullying and act swiftly to resolve any bullying issues.

Pupils are keen to share their views with leaders about diff...erent aspects of life in school. They respond with enthusiasm and commitment to take on responsibilities, including joining curriculum working groups and training to become peer mentors.

Older and younger pupils get on well together.

Leaders have high expectations for pupils' learning, commitment to their studies and engagement with the wider curriculum. Opportunities for pupils to go on overseas trips have recently been restored following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pupils are encouraged to pursue a broad range of activities and interests beyond their academic studies, including cookery, photography and sports clubs.

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

Senior leaders have well-established and clear expectations for the content and delivery of the school's curriculum. They ensure that subject leaders think carefully about the sequence in which pupils learn new knowledge and skills.

Teachers use their strong subject knowledge to help pupils resolve any misconceptions and to deepen their thinking. They ensure that pupils have regular opportunities to revisit and strengthen prior learning and achieve well.

Teachers typically use a variety of effective strategies to check how well pupils recall, understand and apply what they have learned.

In a few cases, assessment does not focus explicitly enough on what pupils have been taught and does not identify gaps in pupils' learning. Leaders have recently designed a new approach to assessing pupils' learning that they plan to launch later in the summer term.

Pupils in all year groups access a broad and ambitious range of curriculum subjects.

In the sixth form, leaders review and change annually the courses on offer to match students' interests and aspirations.

Staff training, well-organised identification approaches and communication with parents and carers ensure that teachers know how to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Teachers provide the support that pupils with SEND need to enable pupils with SEND to access the same curriculum as their peers.

Leaders place a high priority on developing pupils' reading skills. They organise a range of initiatives to support pupils' literacy. For example, sixth-form students work with Year 7 pupils in paired reading sessions to develop their fluency.

Teachers promote the use of subject-specific and technical vocabulary across all subjects.

Leaders have introduced recent revisions to the school's behaviour policy that are understood and respected by all. Expectations of pupils' conduct around the school are clear and applied routinely by staff.

At breaktimes, although busy, social spaces are calm and orderly. Pupils conduct themselves positively in class so that learning proceeds uninterrupted.

Leaders have given serious consideration to the school's chosen programmes of personal, social and health education and relationships and sex education.

Dedicated sessions for all year groups are delivered by trained staff. These sessions are supplemented with specially organised workshops in response to identified and specific risks to pupils' well-being or requests and suggestions from pupils, including the school's LGBTQ+ group. Specialist support is available to pupils, particularly when sensitive themes are covered, such as domestic violence, drugs awareness and harmful sexual behaviour.

Leaders have responded to pupils' views by developing the careers programme, increasing training for staff and providing additional resources. Students in the sixth form benefit from extensive careers advice and guidance, including independent advice and information on apprenticeships. Pupils with SEND receive targeted support to help them to identify and fulfil their career aspirations.

However, pupils in Years 8 to 11 have more varied experiences of careers education and are not as well informed to make option choices. Careers events, and work-placement opportunities for pupils in Year 10 and Year 12, that were paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic are now resuming.

Leaders, including members of the governing body, have acted swiftly and effectively to address weaknesses identified at the time of the school's previous inspection.

They have commissioned and responded to external reviews of the school's work, including safeguarding and provision for pupils with SEND. Members of the governing body are knowledgeable about leaders' work and the school's priorities for further development. There are clear processes for holding leaders to account to maintain and drive further improvements.

Most staff working in the school feel well supported and are generally positive that leaders take workload into account when developing new policies.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have developed a fully trained and competent safeguarding team.

Staff awareness of safeguarding concerns is heightened because of their training and leaders' high expectations. All staff understand their safeguarding responsibilities. Leaders have ensured that staff and pupils are alert to any incidents of harmful sexual behaviour and all know the correct procedures to follow should they have any concerns.

Staff across the school are familiar with and confident in using the school's reporting systems.

Leaders communicate promptly and regularly with parents. They work effectively with outside agencies to help pupils to overcome barriers to learning, including when their attendance needs to improve.

There is a well-organised process in place so that all required pre-employment checks are completed and recorded.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a few subjects, assessment is not closely linked with the content of the taught curriculum. This means that sometimes gaps in pupils' knowledge and understanding are not identified accurately.

Leaders should ensure that their new assessment strategies are implemented across all subjects so that pupils' progression is checked accurately and any gaps are identified and addressed quickly. ? Some pupils in Years 8 to 11 have not felt confident to make decisions about their GCSE and A-level subject choices because they have not received detailed information about different career pathways. Leaders should swiftly implement their revised and extended careers programme to ensure that all pupils receive the guidance they need to support their future ambitions and aspirations and meet the requirements of the Baker Clause, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.