Katherine Warington School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are proud of their school. They flourish in the school's ethos of achievement and learning.

Throughout the school day, pupils strive to live up to the school's expectations. They know that learning is important and approach their studies with genuine determination to do their best. When faced with challenge, pupils support each other well within this strong learning community.

Pupils have high aspirations for themselves and their peers. They take pleasure in each other's success.

Pupils benefit from the school's impressive character development programme.

They take up the extensive opportunities to learn about 'mind, body and soul' with great ...enthusiasm. Pupils demonstrate exceptional sensitivity when discussing people's different lifestyles and beliefs. They understand complex social issues within contemporary society, including the challenge of 'micro-aggressions' in everyday language.

Pupils have also learned the importance of honouring difference in others. This ensures that pupils learn to work and play harmoniously.

Positive relationships are in place between pupils and their peers, as well as with staff.

Pupils feel safe at school and are taught how to make safe choices in their lives. They work hard and concentrate on learning in lessons. They are kind and look out for each other during social times.

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

The school's innovative and ambitious curriculum is well designed to ensure pupils learn knowledge in clearly measured steps. The curriculum provides teachers with clarity about the exact knowledge pupils know. Teachers deliver the curriculum effectively.

They routinely check what pupils have learned. When pupils have not learned something, teachers provide timely support so that pupils do not fall behind.

The school has in place a range of effective strategies to encourage pupils to enjoy reading.

Many pupils enjoy the range of texts available at the school, including in the well-stocked library. The school quickly identifies pupils who are at an early stage of reading. Staff provide effective support, which helps these pupils to learn what they need to read confidently and fluently.

Overall, staff provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to learn and achieve. Leaders provide helpful guidance about the needs of these pupils and how teachers can support them. However, in some areas of the curriculum, some teachers do not provide support within lessons that addresses the exact challenges some pupils with SEND face.

When this happens, these pupils do not learn as well as they could. Similarly, for some pupils with SEND, staff provide small-group support out of lessons. While these small groups are effective in helping pupils learn to read, pupils who have these interventions occasionally miss out on key areas of the curriculum.

The school has established expectations and routines to support positive behaviour. When a pupil demonstrates unacceptable behaviour, teachers consistently use the behaviour policy, and it stops.

The school's exceptional provision for personal development ensures that pupils leave school ready for life in modern Britain.

It is successfully woven into everyday life at the school and across the curriculum. As a result, pupils develop sophisticated understanding about how to stay physically and mentally healthy. They thrive in the many high-quality opportunities for them to develop artistically and musically.

Pupils show impressive understanding of the richness of human cultures. They also benefit from exploring career opportunities across the curriculum. Pupils develop their career ideas and build networks of opportunities through careers lessons, work experience, career-oriented trips and external speakers visiting the school.

Leaders show a firm commitment towards providing high-quality education. They have collaborated effectively with local schools and partner organisations to create a successful school. Trustees have high expectations of the school.

They support and challenge leaders effectively.

Staff and parents have confidence in leaders' work and are positive about the school. Staff appreciate leaders' support in maintaining reasonable workload, even during the school's current period of substantial growth.

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 areas of the curriculum, some teachers do not provide the exact support that some pupils with SEND need. Alongside this, some pupils with SEND are removed from certain lessons to receive small-group support.

After these small groups, there is no systematic support to help these pupils catch up on what they missed in class. The school needs to ensure that teachers are supported so they are confident to provide the exact support these pupils need within lessons. Where pupils come out of lessons to work in small groups, the school must develop effective means to enable these pupils to keep up with any learning missed.

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