Signhills Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending Signhills Academy.

They are safe and well cared for. Pupils are confident to raise any concerns they have with adults. Pupils trust adults to help them.

Pupils value the inclusive school environment that leaders have created.

The school has high expectations of pupils' conduct. Most pupils routinely meet these expectations.

Staff explicitly teach pupils how to behave well. When pupils' behaviour falls below the school's expectations, adults help pupils to understand what went wrong and how to correct this in the future. Bullying and other unkind behaviours are rare.

Adults resolve these issues effectively.

Pup...ils benefit from a wide range of opportunities that enhance their personal development. Well-considered residential visits in each year group, such as the Year 4 trip to York, link with what pupils learn in the curriculum.

Many pupils, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), access the school's diverse range of extra-curricular clubs. Opportunities for pupils' wider development are carefully planned to be inclusive and remove barriers to participation. They are a strength of the school.

Pupils study a broad curriculum. They achieve well, particularly in English and mathematics. Pupils are well prepared for their transition to secondary school.

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

Many subjects, especially core subjects such as mathematics, are well established. Teachers use schemes that they are well trained in how to deliver. These subjects are taught with consistency.

The school has recently revised the curriculum in some foundation subjects, such as history and physical education. These new curriculums are more ambitious for what pupils need to know. Leaders ensure staff receive appropriate training in how to teach these new schemes.

Most pupils join the school able to read well. The school provides effective support for pupils who need additional help to catch up.

In a small number of foundation subjects, what the school intends pupils to know is not sufficiently broken down or clearly defined.

In these subjects, checks on what pupils know are not well matched to the planned curriculum. Consequently, teachers do not adapt future lessons to fill these gaps as effectively as they could.

Pupils with SEND play a full part in school life.

Teachers receive detailed information on how to meet the needs of these pupils. They use this information to provide effective support in lessons. Leaders work well with external agencies, such as educational psychologists, to access additional support for pupils when required.

The school uses personal, social and health education lessons, as well as assemblies, to teach pupils about important issues, such as democracy and other fundamental British values. Pupils' knowledge of some parts of the curriculum is strong. For example, they know how to keep themselves safe in real life and online.

Staff teach pupils about risks linked to the location of the school. For example, the Coastguard have spoken with pupils about keeping themselves safe near the coast. Other aspects of pupils' understanding are less sophisticated.

In particular, pupils' knowledge of other faiths and beliefs is less detailed.

Leaders prioritise pupils' personal development and well-being. They fund external mental health support to help pupils keep mentally healthy.

Pupils make use of a variety of opportunities to engage in charitable work or to contribute to the local community. They hold a range of leadership roles, such as play leaders, office junior or as a member of the student council. Pupils see these as meaningful ways they can improve the school.

Leaders take pupil feedback seriously. They have used this to make changes to some areas of the school.

Staff are positive about the approach that leaders take to managing their workload.

Trustees are well trained for their roles. Trustees and school leaders work together effectively to make sustainable improvements to the school. Leaders check the impact of these changes on the quality of education that pupils receive.

In some cases, these checks are not as timely or effective as they could be. Some actions to make further improvements are not taken as quickly as a consequence.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• In a small number of subjects, including the taught personal development curriculum, the knowledge that pupils need to learn and remember is not sufficiently broken down and clearly defined. Teachers are less clear what knowledge to prioritise, including when checking pupils' understanding. The school should ensure that the knowledge and skills that pupils need to know and remember are consistently identified.

• In some aspects of its improvement work, the checks the school makes are not frequent or do not provide the detailed information needed. Some actions to improve the quality of education pupils receive are not as swift as they could be. The school should ensure that the programme of monitoring effectively supports the timely ongoing review and refinement of initiatives.

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