The Quest Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

The school strives to support pupils through its 'LEARN' values.

These include being aspirational, resilient and nice to others. Pupils know these values and are taught about how they are important to their lives, both in school and more widely.

The school has built an ambitious curriculum.

It expects all pupils to build up and remember knowledge, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). In the classroom, this ambitious curriculum is not realised well enough for pupils in Years 7 to 11. This means that, in these year groups, pupils do not achieve highly across subjects.

In the sixth form, students experience a well-t...aught curriculum. They work hard and are well supported to achieve the school's ambitious goals for their achievements.

Overall, pupils understand and follow the rules and expectations for behaviour.

Pupils very rarely disrupt the learning of others in lessons. However, in a few instances, teaching does not encourage pupils to expect the most of themselves in their learning, leading to some pupils opting out of tasks set in class. This holds pupils back from achieving highly.

Leaders think carefully about the enrichment opportunities that the school provides. They have ensured that pupils experience a rotation of activities that include some things that they would not otherwise take part in. These include, for example, cycling, gardening and theatre club.

Leaders also make educational trips available each half term. These are planned to promote pupils' cultural development and understanding of wider society.

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

Leaders have designed a rich curriculum for all pupils, including students in the sixth form.

It is based on the national curriculum and exceeds it for many curriculum areas. However, often, the curriculum that pupils experience in class does not match the school's aims. Teaching does not consistently make sure that pupils understand and remember curriculum content well.

Sometimes, teaching does not expect enough of pupils, despite the aims for pupils' learning being clearly defined. This means that pupils do not achieve highly and, at times, switch off from their learning. This is reflected in pupils' 2023 GCSE outcomes, where pupils' attainment and progress were low overall.

In contrast, sixth-form students learn the curriculum well. Teachers have expert knowledge of their subject and present information clearly. Students are set demanding tasks that are effective in developing and consolidating their knowledge and skills.

Teaching incorporates a purposeful focus on making sure that students' use of subject-specific words is accurate. Teachers assess students' understanding, for example, by using questioning to identify and respond to misconceptions. In Years 7 to 11, approaches to checking for misconceptions are not as developed.

For example, while some teaching includes well-chosen questions to find out about pupils' understanding of concepts, this is not consistently the case. The school prioritises the training and development of staff, but this work is not sufficiently focused on developing staff expertise in teaching the curriculum.

Leaders aim to encourage pupils to develop their reading throughout their time at the school.

However, currently, this is not being done in a systematic way. For instance, as part of the English curriculum, pupils receive additional whole-class reading sessions. For some pupils, these sessions are not effective in helping them to get better at reading.

This is because the books that they are reading are not suitable to build up their fluency and confidence.

The quality of support for pupils with SEND is variable. Pupils' additional needs are understood and they have clear learning plans which are reviewed with parents and carers, teachers and pupils.

However, in lessons, these plans are not used consistently well to support pupils to access and be successful in their learning.

The school's high expectations for behaviour are typically understood by pupils. Pupils who need additional support spoke positively about how the school has helped them to improve their conduct and attitudes.

Leaders and staff ensure that any issues with behaviour are dealt with effectively. Nevertheless, there are occasions, where pupils' behaviour, including their use of language, falls short of the school's expectations.

Ensuring that pupils attend regularly is a key priority following the pandemic.

Because of leaders' understanding of the reasons why pupils may be absent from school, the school's actions are well targeted and are securing clear improvements.

Leaders have thought carefully about how they develop pupils' understanding of society, and in turn prepare pupils to respond to the opportunities and challenges that they may face. The personal, social and health education curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that pupils learn about themes related to relationships, consent and keeping safe.

The school has suitable arrangements to provide pupils with timely careers advice and guidance. Pupils generally feel well supported with making decisions about their next steps.

The governing body's oversight of the school is not informed by a clear understanding of its role and responsibilities.

This has diluted the effectiveness of its work to hold the school to account and ensure that priorities for improvement are addressed consistently.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some teaching, mostly in Years 7 to 11, does not have sufficiently high aspirations for all pupils' achievement.

This means that pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The school should address this through training for staff to help them to implement the ambitious curriculum. ? In some teaching, not enough emphasis is placed on checking pupils' understanding and how well they can remember knowledge over time.

This means that some of pupils' misconceptions are not tackled, which in turn hinders them progressing through the curriculum. The school should address this by providing staff with training and guidance on how to assess pupils' learning and use these assessments to support all pupils to build up their knowledge step by step. ? On occasion, the school's approach to promoting high standards of behaviour is not being applied with rigour.

This means that, while pupils' behaviour is positive overall, there are instances where their conduct does not match what the school expects of them. This can include their use of language when talking to their peers. The school should make sure that its high expectations for behaviour are fully embedded, including tackling any use of inappropriate language between pupils.

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