Nailsea School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Nailsea School is a welcoming and inclusive community. Pupils are proud of their school and behave well in lessons and around the school site.

Pupils enjoy working together in mixed-age tutor groups. Older pupils are excellent role models. They are positive about their learning and value the warm relationships they have with staff.

Pupils learn from a broad curriculum and the school's examination results are strong in most areas. Pupils enjoy their lessons. They appreciate the wide range of subjects on offer in all key stages.

Pupils choosing subjects in key stage 4, and students in the sixth from, value this choice and are well-informed about their next step...s.

There is a broad extra-curricular offer. Sports are particularly popular and highly inclusive.

The school's house system helps to create a strong sense of belonging and provides opportunities for all pupils to take on positions of responsibility. Students in the sixth form develop confidence and independence. They have exemplary attitudes to their work and contribute meaningfully to the life of the school and wider society.

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

The school's curriculum is designed well in all areas. The school has identified precisely what pupils should know and in which order. This includes important subject vocabulary.

Teachers are experts in their subjects. They benefit from continuous professional development. They present information clearly.

Activities enable pupils to build on prior learning and apply their knowledge in new contexts. As a result, most pupils achieve well and the school's published outcomes have improved over time. This is particularly evident in the sixth form.

Occasionally, pupils do not have sufficient opportunity to deepen their understanding. However, the school has effective systems in place to ensure that the delivery of the school's curriculum continues to improve.

Reading is a priority for the school.

Pupils who are at the early stages of reading are accurately identified and effectively supported to catch up. Work has taken place to ensure that pupils read widely and often. However, this is not always done consistently, so not all pupils are benefiting from this.

Students in the sixth form are encouraged to read widely and are provided with many activities to enrich their learning. The vast majority of students complete these, reflecting their motivation to learn.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are accurately identified.

The school effectively supports a high number of pupils with educational, health and care plans, including pupils who attend the specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND. Additional adults support pupils well in lessons. The school monitors these pupils' progress and ensures that all pupils are included in the wider life of the school.

There are high expectations of pupils' behaviour and most pupils meet these. There are effective processes in place to support good behaviour. The relationships that exist between staff and pupils underpin the culture of respect that is evident in classrooms and corridors.

Low level disruption and bullying are rare. Pupils attend well because they feel safe and well cared for. Pastoral care is a strength of the school in all key stages.

Sixth-form students demonstrate high levels of self-control and commitment to their learning. The school is rightly proud of the support it offers to pupils arriving to the school from other countries, sometimes with a limited grasp of English.

There is a clear and detailed curriculum for the delivery of personal, social and health education (PSHE), including opportunities for pupils to develop an understanding of fundamental British values and the protected characteristics.

However, the oversight of this work is not as secure as it is in other areas of the school's work. The quality of delivery is variable, so pupils' understanding varies. In the sixth form, there is a more strategic approach to students' personal development.

As a result, students develop a confident understanding of healthy relationships. They develop strong study skills. All pupils receive age-appropriate careers information, advice and guidance.

The school ensures that work experience opportunities in Years 10 and 12 are matched to pupils' interests and talents.

The school is effectively supported by local governors and the trust. This is particularly evident in the way in which the school has responded to staffing challenges.

The school has taken effective action to ensure that the negative impact on pupils and the delivery of the curriculum is mitigated as far as possible. Collaboration within the trust, as well as support with professional development, has had a positive impact on the quality of education the school provides.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The implementation of a few areas of the curriculum is not as effective as it is in others. As a result, pupils do not always have opportunities to deepen their understanding of curriculum content, or to read widely and often. The trust must ensure that areas of less effective practice are addressed so that all pupils learn effectively from a well-designed curriculum.

• The school's oversight and evaluation of its personal development provision is less robust than other areas of its work. As a result, pupils' experiences are varied and some pupils are not developing a secure enough understanding of the PSHE curriculum, including fundamental British values. The trust must ensure that there is precise monitoring and evaluation of the personal development curriculum, so that all pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.