Stockport Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy and feel safe in this caring school.

Strong relationship between pupils and staff are built on a foundation of mutual respect. Pupils benefit from high-quality pastoral support. They appreciate and value this.

Pupils are kind to one another. They value each other's uniqueness.

Pupils understand and follow the school's clear 'chance, choice, consequence' behaviour policy.

They behave extremely well. Pupils learn free from distraction. They are engaged in their learning and keen to take part in lessons.

For example, pupils gladly volunteer to read aloud. There is a calmness in the corridors and around the school.

Aspi...ration runs high and pupils know that there is no ceiling put on their success.

The school's house system, named after four of the world's highest mountains, reflects the school's ambition for pupils to climb high and achieve well. Most pupils do.

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), enthusiastically take up a myriad of leadership roles such as sitting on the 'prefectural board', or becoming 'respect leaders' and 'language ambassadors'.

They are proud to wear the ties and badges that represent these roles.

Pupils enjoy the sense of community when they participate in 'Funday Friday' activities. They also enjoy celebrating their successes at 'WOW' (work of the week).

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

Pupils benefit from a strengthened curriculum. The school has prioritised identifying the essential knowledge that pupils should learn. This helps teachers to be clear about what they should teach and when they should teach it.

The published outcomes for pupils who finished Year 11 in 2024 are much improved. Most pupils are learning better than in the recent past.

Passionate teachers with secure subject knowledge explain ideas clearly.

In most lessons, they check for misconceptions and address them swiftly. However, in some cases, these checks are not used consistently well to help pupils embed knowledge. At times, some teachers do not use the information about what pupils know and remember well enough to design activities that help pupils to apply and to practise what they have learned.

This hampers some pupils from developing a secure understanding in that subject.

The school accurately identifies any additional needs that pupils may have. Staff are given helpful information to support these pupils.

That said, in some subjects, this information is not used as effectively as it could be to adapt learning for some pupils with SEND. This hinders how well these pupils can access the learning and achieve.

High priority is given to the reading culture in school.

Pupils who struggle with reading are given effective support that helps them to build their reading fluency and confidence.The school has employed some successful strategies to improve attendance rates. Most pupils attend school frequently although there is a small group of disadvantaged pupils who attend less frequently.

Pupils understand and embrace the school's values of 'ambition, respect and community'. Routines around behaviour are firmly embedded and help pupils to behave appropriately.

The school places strong emphasis on ensuring that pupils are fully prepared for life in modern Britain.

The school's programme for pupils' personal development provides pupils with a variety of rich experiences that equip them with the skills and knowledge that they need to thrive in their future steps. The school broadens pupils' awareness of potential pathways. For instance, Year 9 pupils visit universities.

A carefully constructed careers programme helps pupils to make informed choices.

Those responsible for governance are highly skilled and use their expertise well to challenge the school. They have clear oversight of the quality of education in the school and have relentlessly held the school to account.

Along with the trust, they recognise the improvements that have been made. Nevertheless, there is a fervent ambition to improve the school further.

Staff say that amidst lots of change, the school has been mindful of their workload.

For example, they were given additional time to develop the curriculum. In addition, the trust's support has helped to sharpen staff's understanding of what constitutes a high-quality curriculum. The school has taken effective steps to engage more with the local community.

For example, the Christmas market and Stock Fest were well attended.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Sometimes, teachers do not use the information and strategies given to them to make suitable adaptations to learning.

This hinders how well disadvantaged pupils, including some pupils with SEND, learn the curriculum. The school should ensure that teachers are equipped to successfully apply strategies to adapt learning so that these pupils achieve well. ? In some subjects, teachers do not check pupils' understanding and application of knowledge as well as they could.

At times, pupils are not given the opportunity to consolidate their learning. This hampers some pupils from developing a secure understanding in that subject. The school should ensure that teachers use assessment strategies consistently well to identify where pupils need to practise and embed key knowledge and skills.