Northfleet School for Girls

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.

Students achieve well throughout the school, including those in the sixth form. Although many students arrive at the school with standards that are below national expectations for their age group, they make good progress. By the end of Key Stages 4 and 5, they achieve broadly average standards.

The sixth form is good. Students' achievement is improving steadily and those following work-related courses make good progress. Teaching is good overall and, in some lessons, it is outstanding.

The best teaching makes good links with real-life situations to make the lessons interesting for students. Support for students who are disabled ...or have special educational needs is good. Regular checks of students' work, personal support and encouragement when needed ensure they make more progress than expected.

Students behave well, have good attitudes to learning and feel safe. The majority of parents agree. Fixed term exclusions and absence have reduced significantly since the last inspection.

The school has effective procedures, including rewards for punctuality and good attendance. Significant improvement in students' attendance in the sixth form is due to careful revision of the curriculum to make sure it meets their needs. A strong feature of the school is the high quality support and guidance provided by the headteacher and her team for all students.

There are also sensitive structures in place for those who are at risk of underperforming. It is not yet an outstanding school because : The teaching in a minority of lessons does not provide all students, particularly the more able, with opportunities to initiate their own learning, ask questions and develop their thinking skills. The use of progress information to inform teachers' planning is not always sufficiently robust in every lesson to ensure that the needs of all students are met.

There are missed opportunities to share good practice amongst all colleagues.

Information about this school

This school is larger than the average-sized secondary school and is a specialist college for business and enterprise. In July 2011, it became part of a Cooperative Learning Trust and its partners include, among others, the Co-op, Age Concern, North-West Kent College and the University of Greenwich.

The largest group of students come from a White British background and the proportion of students from minority ethnic groups is slightly higher than the national average. The proportion of students eligible for the pupil premium is average. The proportion of students who are disabled or have special educational needs or who receive support at school action/school action plus is above average.

The school has recently undergone an extensive rebuilding programme. The senior leadership team has been recently restructured. The school meets the current government's floor target which sets minimum expectations for students' attainment and progress.