Paignton Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Paignton Academy learn on one of two sites for their journey through school.

Leaders create a strong feeling of community, despite being physically separated. Pupils make use of sporting facilities on both sites, take part in shared school productions and attend trips and visits together.

Pupils have mixed views on their enjoyment of school.

Although the school, with the support of the trust, has established high expectations of pupils, weaknesses remain in the quality of education that the school provides. The published data shows that, typically, pupils' attainment is below the national average.

Most pupils show positive attitudes towards... their learning in lessons.

If low-level disruption occurs, staff apply the behaviour policy well. However, there is more work to be done to improve how pupils treat each other outside of lessons. Some pupils use derogatory language or show unkind behaviour towards their peers.

This is not consistently challenged by staff. Despite this, most pupils say they feel safe in school.

Pupils benefit from a range of enrichment opportunities.

An increasing number of pupils take part in The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, developing their experience of outdoor adventure. Pupils enjoy taking on leadership responsibilities such as being sports leaders, mental health ambassadors or translators supporting pupils who speak English as an additional language.

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

The school has redesigned its curriculum to be broad and ambitious.

The knowledge pupils will learn is organised in a logical order. This allows pupils to develop a deeper understanding over time. The impact of these improvements is evident in key stage 3, where pupils demonstrate they know and remember more of what they have been taught.

Older pupils still have some significant gaps in their learning.

Staff participate in an extensive professional development and coaching programme. They are becoming more confident in using the trust's chosen teaching approaches.

Where practice is strongest, pupils benefit from clear instruction and careful checking of their understanding. However, this is inconsistent so hinders how well some pupils learn the curriculum.

Since the previous inspection, the quality of provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) has improved.

Pupils' needs are identified quickly, and appropriate support is put in place. Teachers have a growing understanding of how to adapt their teaching successfully for the benefit of these pupils. The school ensures that pupils with SEND are included in the wider life of the school.

For example, they take part in school productions and attend sports clubs. The school's specially resourced provision for pupils with SEND (specially resourced provision) is now central to the Borough Road site. Pupils feel part of the school community and are accessing their education more regularly.

The school identifies pupils who are at the early stages of learning to read. However, the programme of support for these pupils is in its infancy. The school has prioritised addressing this.

In addition, it knows that there is more to be done to establish a culture of reading for pleasure.

Pupils' behaviour has improved. Lessons are calm and purposeful.

The 'speak up, speak out' campaign has led to more pupils feeling confident to report concerns. However, a minority of pupils do not conduct themselves well outside of the classroom.

In the main, pupils who attend school frequently are beginning to benefit from the improvements that are being made to the school.

However, too many pupils miss a significant amount of learning time due to being absent from school. This includes absence due to suspension. Disadvantaged pupils, and those that join the school at different times of the year, make up a high number of these absences.

The personal development programme is a strength of the school. Pupils learn about important issues such as maintaining healthy relationships, keeping safe online and in the community, and managing emotions such as grief. Careers education is an important part of the school's offer.

Pupils are well informed about their potential next steps. They benefit from careers advice and visits from local colleges and employers.

Most staff support the leadership of the school.

They are positive about the trust-led improvements. However, a minority raise concerns about the amount of change and the impact on their workload. Until recently, the pace of school improvement has been slow.

The trust and the school have begun to evaluate the impact of new initiatives. However, their oversight of some areas remains less secure.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some staff do not use the school's agreed learning strategies effectively. As a result, pupils do not learn as well as they should and are not as positive about their learning in these subjects. The trust should ensure that staff are supported to implement the curriculum successfully.

• Some pupils show disrespectful behaviours and use derogatory language around the school site. This means that other pupils can experience a negative and uncomfortable atmosphere at social times. The trust should work with leaders and staff to ensure that pupils are taught to contribute to, and value, a positive and respectful school culture.

• Some pupils do not attend school frequently enough, particularly disadvantaged pupils. Consequently, a significant number of pupils do not learn the full curriculum and are therefore not well prepared for their next steps. The trust should embed the approaches that are starting to show some success so that pupils' attendance improves rapidly.

• Until recently, the school has not had a clear enough oversight of the impact of initiatives. As a result, the speed of school improvement has been too slow. The trust should ensure that recent improvements are embedded and that they continue to drive the improvement of the school.