Moulsham High School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a school of opportunity.

Leaders and teachers have very high expectations.

They work with great enthusiasm and skill to secure exceptional achievements for pupils. The school values of 'enjoy, enrich and achieve' make sure that the strong academic successes secured by pupils over time fit into a bigger picture. The school helps pupils to becomes inspired and well-rounded individuals.

Pupils experience a rich and expansive education. From the day they join to the day they leave, pupils learn in depth about a wide range of subjects. They respond extremely well to leaders' and teachers' ambitions for them.

Year after year, very high outcomes ref...lect the superb education pupils in all year groups receive.

Pupils are safe from bullying and they respect others' differences. The LGBTQ club, for instance, was suggested by students.

It is a well-known club and respected. Most pupils take part in the clubs and activities on offer. They are well supported to choose future pathways for when they leave the school.

Pupils take on leadership roles and support charities. There is a wealth of opportunities for pupils to take part in things that reflect their skills and interests, which help to prepare them for later life.

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

Underlying the exceptional quality of education is the depth with which the curriculum has been thought through.

Topics are linked, revisited, checked and built upon to ensure that pupils learn extremely well. Any gaps in pupils' understanding are quickly picked up and addressed.

The curriculum has been developed and embedded over time.

Staff have a strong shared understanding of what they are trying to achieve. They teach with skill and commitment to pupils' success. The national curriculum is only the starting point.

Leaders and teachers want pupils to be engrossed by their subjects.

The quality of education is a joy to see. Examples of very strong practice are easy to find.

Teachers' enthusiasm for English is infectious. Pupils have pride and fluency in Spanish. Art work is of a very high standard.

High expectations and outcomes are evident across the curriculum in all year groups. Pupils with special educational needs and/or abilities (SEND) receive high-quality teaching. Leaders understand pupils' needs and share effective strategies with teachers and teaching assistants.

As a result, pupils with SEND learn very well.

Pupils behave in a positive manner. They listen attentively and are keen to complete their work to a high standard.

They are often eager and driven to learn. Lessons generally proceed free from interruption. Behaviour around the school is calm and pupils are polite.

The atmosphere in the school is productive and positive, making the school a nice place to be. There are some occasions when pupils' behaviour falls short of leaders' high expectations. This has led to an increase in exclusions and to some dissatisfaction from a small number of parents and carers.

Pupils agree that behaviour is good with scope to be better still.

Time for pupils to consider different aspects of their world is mapped out in a joined-up programme. The programme includes tutor time, assemblies, dedicated lessons and learning across the curriculum.

It includes a wide range of important themes, including different religions, how to stay safe and different aspects of being a citizen. This already very strong provision is being further enhanced by a new well-designed programme to specifically develop pupils' character.

Beyond lessons, sixth-form students benefit from inspirational speakers in weekly 'cultural capital' sessions.

Across the school, the 'matching selfie with shelfie' competition is part of a wider push to promote reading for pleasure, and subject areas set themselves challenging targets to encourage ever-greater participation in the enrichment activities they offer. There are lots of clubs and trips, with high levels of pupil participation.

The strengths seen elsewhere in the school are equally evident in the sixth form.

Expectations are high, and students' next steps well catered for. Advice and guidance for students takes into account their aptitudes and interests. Academic and vocational educational routes are appropriately considered for all pupils at the end of key stage 4 and key stage 5.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Pupils feel safe. They are taught to keep safe and know they have adults to talk to in the school if they are worried about something.

Leaders maintain an accurate record of pre-employment checks on adults who work in the school. They ensure that staff have up-to-date training. They follow up concerns about pupils' welfare in a timely fashion, including with external agencies where appropriate.

Some aspects of the system for staff to share concerns with leaders are not straightforward. Information is being passed on in different ways by different people, which leads to too much inconsistency.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Leaders' systems for sharing information in the school about pupils' welfare are not as clear cut as they should be.

There is some inconsistency between staff in the methods they use to pass information on. Leaders should establish clear systems that are always used by all staff to record and pass on information about pupils' welfare. .

Some pupils' behaviour falls short of leaders' high expectations. Exclusions have risen, and a few parents are dissatisfied with pupils' behaviour. Leaders should ensure that pupils consistently manage their own behaviour well.