Oasis Academy Lister Park

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Oasis Academy Lister Park continues to be a good school.

The principal of this school is Jules Millar. This school is part of Oasis Community Learning, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, John Barneby, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Caroline Taylor.

There is also a regional director, Heidi Stennett, who is responsible for this school and two others.

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a caring school. Leaders have created a culture where positive relationships are important.

Pupils say that they feel safe and that staff care about their w...ell-being. Leaders are providing pupils, including students in the sixth form, with a high-quality education. Pupils are rewarded for good effort.

They are encouraged to follow the Oasis nine habits of a good citizen, which leaders have created to support pupils to succeed in their life. The curriculum is delivered well and pupils say that they are encouraged to work hard. As a result, pupils flourish in their learning.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact on the school. Leaders have created a highly inclusive environment to support pupils and families.

There are high expectations for pupils at Oasis Academy Lister Park.

Behaviour is good. Teachers manage behaviour well, and the school is calm and orderly. Pupils say that staff know them well and that they enjoy their lessons.

Leaders have created a strong community feel. The use of 'POWER' time is helping pupils to read often and to understand the world around them and the importance of tolerance and respect. This can be seen in the positive way that staff and pupils treat each another.

Staff work collaboratively to ensure that pupils' needs are met. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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

Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum, based on the trust's national offer.

This goes beyond the expectations of the national curriculum. Leaders ensure that pupils' knowledge over time is developed effectively. Lessons are set out in a well-organised manner and sequenced so that pupils understand key topics.

These topics are revisited regularly. This helps pupils to prepare themselves to be ready for the next stage of education, employment or training. There is a small amount of variability, where aspects of the curriculum are still being refined and are not yet fully embedded.

For example, in science, leaders are revisiting the adaptations needed for pupils who have gaps in their learning.

Teachers have strong subject knowledge. They present information very clearly to pupils and create positive learning environments.

The use of the `Oasis Lesson' by all teachers means that there is a consistent approach to lesson delivery. Pupils are benefiting from this. The use of 'do now' tasks at the start of lessons is helping teachers to identify common misconceptions and to check pupils' understanding of key concepts.

This allows teachers to plan lessons that meet the needs of most learners. Pupils are able to demonstrate that they remember more of the curriculum.

Pupils with SEND are supported through the use of 'pupil passports'.

Leaders accept that this is not yet fully embedded and that some of the approaches are not tailored enough towards the needs of individual pupils. As a result, pupils with SEND are not always benefiting from the specific support that they need to fill gaps in their learning. Pupils with SEND achieve less well than their peers.

Pupils benefit from a range of enrichment experiences, which leaders have increased considerably recently. Pupils attend clubs that develop their interests in a range of areas. They are offered the opportunity to take part in The Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme as well as creating opportunities to participate in external visits.

For example, a group of pupils in Year 10 are taking part in an engineering project with a local company. This allows pupils to develop their teamwork skills. The school provides a number of leadership opportunities for pupils, including a new student leadership team.

Leaders have made reading a priority. Staff are good at identifying pupils who are struggling to read. The school's recent work on prioritising the teaching of key vocabulary is starting to have a positive impact.

Leaders use nationally recognised tests to measure progress in this area.

The school works very well with families and the local community. An on-site Safer Schools Police Officer and a large pastoral team work closely with parents and local agencies to encourage pupils' high attendance.

At the moment, this is proving difficult and attendance remains too low. While there is a determination among leaders to improve attendance, the school's current approach to tracking and analysing pupils' attendance lacks precision and so is not fully effective.

Leaders, including those who support from the trust, have a clear and shared vision to ensure that pupils receive an inclusive and high-quality education.

Leaders are supportive of staff with their well-being and workload. Staff say that they enjoy working at the school. The trust executive team provides appropriate support and challenge to leaders.

The trust believes strongly in shared responsibility and this is helping leaders flourish.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Attendance for some pupils is too low.

As a result, not all pupils are receiving the good education that others are. The school should sharpen its approach to the tracking of absence to secure improvements in pupils' attendance. ? The strategic approaches to support pupils with SEND are quite new.

As a result, gaps in learning still exist. The school should accelerate its work in closing gaps in learning so that pupils with SEND achieve as well as their peers.

Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in February 2019.