Melbourn Village College

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils' learning experience is spoiled by poor behaviour.

This detracts from how happy they feel. Leaders intervene to keep pupils safe from serious risks and incidents, including bullying. However, the attitudes of a minority around the school make many feel uncomfortable.

Derogatory, offensive vocabulary is commonplace in some pupils' everyday language. Staff are inconsistent in the way that they challenge these behaviours. This, in turn, damages pupils' confidence in how some adults deal with issues.

Leaders expect pupils to achieve well in their GCSEs. Teaching prepares them for their examinations, including regular testing as they move through the school.... However, expectations are not as high for the quality of pupils' everyday work.

Pupils are guided in their personal development through 'drop-down days', which are informative and well planned. However, morning form tutor-group time is not used effectively and means that the day does not get off to the best start.

The range of extra-curricular clubs available to pupils was reduced by the pandemic.

Some opportunities are given in sport, drama and music, and after-school booster classes are offered in GCSE subjects. Trips abroad have resumed recently, such as the Year 8 trip to Spain and the Year 10 trip to Poland.

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

Pupils study a broad and balanced curriculum from Year 7 to Year 11.

Schemes of work are planned and taught in a logical order. The requirements of the national curriculum are met, and all required content is covered. From Year 7 onwards, pupils take regular tests to track their progress against target grades for GCSE.

While this approach helps them achieve adequately in Year 11 examinations, less attention is paid to addressing weaknesses in the depth and breadth of their knowledge and the quality of their everyday work.

Pupils with education, health and care plans, including those under the care of 'The Cabin', have their needs clearly identified. However, some pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are not routinely given enough support to ensure they access the curriculum that others do.

Adaptations to learning are not implemented effectively by all staff, including both teachers and teaching assistants. As a result, pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they might. Provision is not managed consistently well across all aspects of the school's provision for SEND pupils.

Leaders have identified that a small number of pupils join from primary schools with lower-than-expected reading ages. A new programme has been introduced to support them, but it is too early to see the impact of this. For some of these weaker readers, distractions in class make it difficult for them to concentrate.

Lessons are frequently disrupted because of pupils' behaviour. Some pupils are compliant and willingly get on with their work. However, too many do not behave well and are frequently removed from class.

When this happens, pupils miss out on important learning. Staff do not have the skills they need to apply the school's behaviour policy consistently and manage behaviour well. Some are overly dependent on additional support.

Follow-up action is not effective enough and too many wrongdoings are often repeated.

The programme of personal, social and health education (PSHE) has recently been revised. The 'drop-down days' are well structured and delivered confidently by staff.

They include an appropriate focus on relationships and sex education, including matters of consent and respect. However, these are also marred by poor behaviour. Tutor-group time is not effective.

These sessions are not managed or delivered consistently well. The school do not set high enough expectations at the start of the school day.

School leaders, including within the trust, have an accurate understanding of what needs to be improved.

A thorough review of important policies and procedures has been undertaken. Some new subject leaders have been appointed. This has brought about improvements in curriculum provision.

Frank conversations have been held with staff around expectations and responsibilities. While some have risen to the challenge and others have moved on, others are reluctant to change.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Leaders have ensured that all necessary recruitment checks are made on staff. A small number of administrative matters were corrected during the inspection.

Serious safeguarding concerns are identified, reported, recorded and followed up in a timely manner.

This includes appropriate referrals to and support from external agencies such as mental health professionals and the police. However, because separate recording systems are used, there is sometimes a delay in safeguarding leaders becoming aware of low-level misbehaviour by vulnerable pupils.

Staff receive regular safeguarding training.

They are clear about their wider responsibilities to remain vigilant and report concerns. Pupils learn about potential risk through the PSHE programme, including extremism and online danger.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Too many lessons are interrupted because of poor conduct.

The application of behaviour management strategies by staff is not consistent. Misbehaviour in class or around the school is not addressed effectively enough and is repeated too often. Leaders and trustees should undertake a comprehensive review of the school's behaviour policy and practice.

They should ensure that all staff consistently uphold the highest expectations, and that wrongdoing is stopped quickly and without reoccurrence so that learning for pupils is not disrupted. ? For too many pupils, derogatory or offensive vocabulary is part of their everyday language. Leaders should continue to reinforce their message that this is unacceptable but also ensure that all staff challenge and report it when it happens.

This is so that no member of the school community is made to feel uncomfortable. ? More emphasis is placed on assessing pupils through tests than on the quality of content in their books or practical work. While preparing them for examination techniques, it does not help to improve pupils' learning and understanding.

Leaders, including heads of subject, should review assessment strategies to ensure that these effectively promote improvements in the quality of pupils' work and the depth of knowledge and understanding pupils have in all areas of the curriculum. ? Pupils with SEND do not consistently receive the adaptations to learning they require. This prevents them from fully accessing the curriculum and achieving well.

Leaders need to ensure that staff are trained to make and implement these adaptations effectively. This is so that the needs of all pupils with SEND are met, that they are fully included in learning and that they achieve well. ? Opportunities to establish high expectations are not used effectively, for example, during daily tutor time across the school.

This limits the effectiveness of provision for pupils' personal development. Leaders should provide training and support for form tutors so that all provision for pupils' personal development and the setting of high expectations is of consistently high quality. This will ensure all pupils know what is expected of them and every day will get off to a good, positive start.