Redhill School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

The school has built an ethos that helps all pupils to be the best they can be. The school values of 'kindness, honesty and respect' permeate through school life.

For example, as soon as pupils start in Year 7, they attend an outdoor retreat so they can develop positive relationships with their peers and staff. As pupils progress through the school, these relationships continue to flourish. Staff invest time to get to know pupils and pupils appreciate this.

As a result, staff have high expectations of pupils both academically and personally and pupils live up to these.

Pupils are happy and proud to attend this inclusive school, in which differences are celebr...ated, and everyone is welcome. The school offers a wide range of pupil leadership opportunities.'

Pupil leaders' of the 'culture and diversity' group organise 'culture day', during which pupils are given opportunities to share a variety of world foods and showcase their traditional cultural dress. Pupils from the LGBTQ+ club raise an awareness of the importance of being understanding and compassionate. This contributes to preparing pupils well for life in modern Britain.

The school enriches pupils in a variety of ways that extend their learning beyond the classroom. These include trips, visits and after-school clubs such as 'welcome Wednesday football', drama club and creative writing club. Many pupils attend these, including those pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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

The school has a strategic oversight of what the school is doing well and what they need to do to be better. There has been a recent focus on improving pupils' behaviour and this has been achieved well. The positive collaboration between staff in the school, and between schools within the trust, is supporting Redhill School to make sustained improvement over time.

Staff report they have a good work-life balance and they enjoy working at the school.

Teachers are experts in the subjects they teach. They use their expertise to develop an ambitious curriculum for all pupils.

They have put considerable thought into the key knowledge that pupils should learn and when they will learn it. The curriculum is sequenced to revisit topics over time so that pupils can deepen their knowledge. As a result, pupils on the whole achieve well.

Teachers know their pupils well and use a range of strategies in lessons to check what pupils know. They effortlessly recap and revisit prior learning, alongside introducing new knowledge. This helps pupils to make links between learning and remember fundamental key concepts well.

When pupils do not understand, teachers usually find other ways to support pupils in their learning. However, this is not done consistently well across all subjects. As a result, in some lessons, some staff do not check that pupils have a secure understanding of the key concepts before introducing new learning.

This creates some gaps in pupils' knowledge.

The school promptly identifies pupils who struggle to read. There are a range of strategies to support these pupils to catch up.

However, the support in place is not having the desired effect, which is to help these pupils catch up quickly. This means that some of these pupils are not becoming confident and fluent readers swiftly.

Pupils with SEND are involved in all aspects of school life.

They are supported well by staff in lessons. Staff use what they know about the pupils to make adaptations to help pupils access the learning. As a result, pupils with SEND progress well.

Pupils have positive attitudes to their learning, are keen to learn and take pride in their work. They are polite, courteous and articulate their views well. The atmosphere at social times is happy and friendly.

There are a wide range of support packages to help pupils who need it. The 'thrive' programme provides support for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs. The 'hub' offers pupils the time to reflect on and restore relationships before they are reintegrated into lessons.

All of this contributes to a calm and purposeful environment in and around school.

The personal development programme is planned well. It is taught through personal, social and health education; theology, philosophy and ethics; and the tutor programme.

Pupils learn topics such as online safety, healthy relationships and healthy eating. There are opportunities for pupils to engage in discussions about current affairs.'

Careers week' is dedicated time for teachers to make references to various career options in the subjects they teach.

The school invites guests from industry to speak to pupils, alongside offering a work experience programme. However, the school recognises that there is more work to be done to enrich pupils' experiences and raise their aspirations of their future destinations.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some teachers in some lessons are not using assessment effectively. This means that some gaps in pupils' knowledge are not consistently identified and closed before new knowledge is introduced. The school should ensure that any gaps in pupils' knowledge are identified and teaching is adapted to suit the needs of all pupils.

• Some pupils who struggle to read are not catching up quickly enough. This means they do not progress as well as they could across the curriculum. The school should more closely evaluate and develop the strategies used to support reading so that these pupils become fluent and confident readers.

Pupils are not yet benefiting from a consistently effective careers programme. This means they are not always prepared as well as they could be for their next steps in education, employment or training. The school should ensure that pupils receive enriching experiences and raise pupil aspirations.