The Hayling College

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from the warm relationships they build with caring staff.

They feel safe. Pupils receive thoughtful support that builds their confidence and raises aspiration. Very recent changes to the curriculum mean that pupils are now learning a wide range of subjects in greater depth.

Pupils typically enjoy learning and most follow the instructions of teachers. In some lessons, learning is not matched to pupils' needs. Pupils do not spend enough time practising new ideas independently or linking concepts together.

Some pupils are not suitably challenged to develop their thinking. This limits how well pupils remember learning.

Staff know pupils we...ll.

They are aware of the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), but plans that set out the strategies identified to support these pupils to learn are not always reviewed precisely enough. This means that staff are not suitably aware of the most effective help that supports some pupils to learn well. Therefore, some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could.

Clear routines mean that pupils know what staff expect of them. Some pupils express frustration that some staff do not sufficiently address disruption in lessons effectively enough. In these lessons, they find it harder to concentrate and learn.

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

The school has taken recent important steps to ensure that pupils will learn an ambitiously designed curriculum. The important knowledge and skills that pupils need have been carefully identified and ordered. Topics explore concepts in sufficient depth, enabling pupils to make connections between ideas.

However, some pupils have not had the benefit of the new curriculum, still under development in some subjects. Therefore, many have significant gaps in their learning. Teachers routinely check for gaps but are not always effective in addressing them.

Teaching in some lessons moves on before pupils sufficiently understand. This means that pupils are not well prepared for future learning.

Staff receive regular training on how to make learning accessible for all pupils.

Teachers teach in a clear and concise way. However, lesson approaches do not always help pupils to think deeply. Opportunities for pupils to verbalise thinking and apply what they know are not as well developed.

This means pupils struggle to commit learning to long-term memory.

A small number of pupils with complex behaviour needs experience disrupted education due to regular internal and external suspensions. Staff do not systematically check that support is effective in improving pupils' behaviour.

Recent improvements to review this process are not yet well developed. The school does use alternative education in a thoughtful way to help pupils re-engage positively with education.

Most pupils do treat each other with kindness and respect.

They report that this is an inclusive school where all are welcome. A rich offer of clubs and trips are well attended by all. The school takes careful steps to make sure disadvantaged pupils benefit fully from this offer.

A well-developed careers curriculum helps pupils make informed decisions about their future. Work experience and regular encounters with employers and further education raise pupils' aspirations.

A lack of sharp focus in the past has meant that pupils have a limited awareness of different faiths, cultures and perspectives.

Pupils are not confident to debate meaningfully about current affairs. Student leadership opportunities are well-intended. However, pupils are not clear how to have their voice heard.

The school's work on anti-bullying has raised pupils' awareness of the impact of 'banter' and bullying. Pupils feel incidents of bullying are decreasing as staff are more effective when dealing with it.

More pupils are now attending well.

Staff continue to provide appropriate attendance support for those who need help. The school has implemented a number of other important changes to improve provision for pupils. However, governors recognise that there is a need to evaluate the effectiveness of the school's work more strategically.

For example, to check if the recent actions taken to alleviate staff's workload are having the desired effect. This would then enable them to assess if the measures taken are understood and beneficial for all.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Teaching is not sufficiently designed to address gaps in some pupils' knowledge and extend pupils' thinking. This means that some pupils do not learn as well as they could. The school should continue to ensure that staff have the training and expertise they need to adapt learning so pupils master concepts, enabling them to form more complex ideas.

• The school does not consistently check that the support in place for pupils with SEND is meeting pupils' needs effectively. This means that pupils do not receive the appropriate help they need to learn well. The school should continue to develop how it reviews the impact of in-class support and interventions to ensure that pupils with SEND learn as well as they can.

• Processes to re-integrate pupils successfully back into school are not systematic. This means that some pupils do not get the effective support that they need to manage their behaviour and reduce the risk of further suspensions. Leaders should review how they re-integrate pupils back into school, providing them with the right support, which is regularly evaluated, so that repeat suspensions are reduced.

Much of the school's work is new and processes to review the impact of actions are not yet well formed. The school is not sufficiently clear on the effectiveness of some aspects of its work and its impact on staff workload. The school should ensure that there are robust and strategic processes in place to fully assure itself about the indicators of school improvement.