Sir James Smith’s School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The work of the headteacher, senior leadership team and governing body has been effective in raising the achievement of pupils throughout the school.

Senior leaders have promoted a culture of collaborative improvement that continues to have a positive impact on teaching, behaviour and pupils' progress. Middle leaders are becoming increasingly effective in their contribution to school improvement. Teaching is well planned and improving.

Teachers are keen to learn from one another and to try new approaches to help pupils succeed. The results that pupils achieved in GCSE examinations in 2015 show that, overall, their progress exceeded that o...f their peers nationally. Evidence shows that all groups of pupils are on track to sustain this trend of improvement.

The school cares well for its pupils; staff know the academic and pastoral needs of each child very well. Pupils' safety is central to the school's ethos. Staff have high expectations of pupils' behaviour; pupils behave well both in social time and in lessons.

It is not yet an outstanding school because : Not all teachers are equally skilled in checking that pupils are keeping up during lessons or over time; some act more quickly than others to close any gaps in learning. Good practice in improving teaching has not yet had an equally strong impact in all areas, so differences in achievement between subjects remain. The overall attendance figure remains too low, and the attendance of disadvantaged pupils is lower than the national figure for this group.

Information about this school

Sir James Smith's Community School is a smaller-than-average secondary school. Most pupils are from White British backgrounds. A very small proportion of pupils are from ethnic minority backgrounds and a small number speak English as an additional language.

The proportion of disadvantaged pupils eligible for the pupil premium funding is slightly above average. This is additional government funding to support pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are in the care of the local authority. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is well above average.

An average proportion has a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan. The school met the current government floor standards in 2015. A small number of pupils are currently educated off-site at Acorn Academy Cornwall.