The Thomas Aveling School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school The executive headteacher and his senior leadership team are determinedly improving the quality of education. Governors and staff across the school are committed to the school's continued improvement. Senior and middle leaders are driving forward initiatives to build on the most effective teaching and learning in the school.

Pupils enter the school with below-average levels of achievement and by the end of Year 11, pupils' outcomes are above national averages. Pupils are making good progress across most subjects, including English and mathematics. In areas where outcomes have not been as strong in the past, such as science, progress is improving b...ecause of more effective leadership and teaching.

Teaching is good and teachers plan interesting and enjoyable lessons. Teachers' secure subject knowledge contributes to high levels of engagement by pupils. Pupils enjoy school, have a positive attitude to learning and behave well in classrooms and around the school.

Strong relationships between staff and pupils help to keep pupils safe, promote personal development and raise their achievement. The promotion of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is a successful feature of the school. It is not yet an outstanding school because : The quality of teaching is not consistently outstanding across the school.

Occasionally, work set by teachers does not take account of pupils' understanding and feedback does not consistently have enough impact on pupils' achievement. Leaders do not incisively evaluate the impact of actions taken to improve pupils' progress. Improvement plans are not sharp enough.

Students in the sixth form achieve less well in academic subjects than they do in work-related courses.

Information about this school

The Thomas Aveling School is a larger than average-sized, non-selective 11–18 school in an area with selective education. In September 2015, the school became joint lead school with Fort Pitt Grammar School in the Fort Pitt Thomas Aveling Academy Trust.

There are two sponsored academies in the trust: Robert Napier School and Phoenix Junior Academy. The school is led by an executive headteacher, who is also executive headteacher of the other three schools in the trust. The proportion of pupils who are disadvantaged and supported by the pupil premium (funding for those pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and for children looked after) is the same as the national average.

A lower than average number of pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds. The proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language is lower than average. The proportion of pupils who have special educational needs or disability is just above average but the proportion who have a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan is lower than average.

The school meets the government's current floor standard, which set the minimum expectation for pupils' attainment and progress in English and mathematics. No pupils attend alternative provision. The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.