School Validation report of 2010
VALIDATION REPORT - SUMMARY OF REPORT FOR PARENTS AND LEARNERS
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Introduction
The validation was carried out by a team of seven validators, who spent three days in the school and sixth form observing lessons, talking with students and looking at their work, engaging in discussions with staff and parents, looking at school records and other documentation, and scrutinising returns to the parental questionnaire.
Main findings
The validation confirmed the school’s own judgements of its performance in most respects. The school and the sixth form have a strong record of academic achievement and students make excellent progress in their personal development. Many aspects of the quality of education and leadership and management are excellent. The school is well aware of the areas where improvement is needed, for example in making the quality of teaching and students’ progress more consistent between subjects.
The great majority of parents approve strongly of the way the school and sixth form cater for their children. This was aptly summarised by one parent, who wrote: ‘Without the educational and pastoral support the Grammar School has provided our son, he would not be in the strong academic position he now finds himself, neither would he be the well-rounded individual we have the pleasure to live with.’
Outcomes for learners
In the lower school, standards are high, with a sustained improvement in GCSE results over the past three years. Students make good progress through all years but progress varies between subjects. Their personal development is excellent and students rapidly develop as confident and responsible individuals, who make a strong contribution to their own and the wider community. By age 16, they have the skills and attitudes to succeed very well in the next stages of their lives, although certain skills, such as thinking critically and working independently, could be stronger.
Standards in the sixth form are above average for a sixth form with this breadth of intake, despite the dip in results in 2010. Students make good progress but, as in the lower school, this varies between subjects. They finish the sixth form as very well-rounded young people with excellent personal qualities and well-developed skills, although the higher-order skills of creativity, critical thinking and problem solving are not quite so strong.
The quality of provision
In both the lower school and the sixth form, the teachers’ mastery of, and lively interest in, their subjects normally ensure that students engage well in their studies and make good progress. Relationships and behaviour in lessons are excellent. The quality of teaching is stronger in some subjects than in others, and in some areas the students do not have enough opportunities to develop their higher-order skills and assessment is not sharp enough to help them improve.
The curriculum in both the lower school and sixth form offers an excellent range of subject choices and enrichment activities that enthuse the students and meet their aspirations. The need to plan more coherently for the development of students’ skills in Key Stage 3 is well recognised by the school.
The caring ethos of the school and sixth form centre is evident in the relationships seen between adults and students. Students are well known as individuals and as a result they feel safe, supported and well cared for. Students also show a high level of support for each other, from Year 7 students who show empathy and care for vulnerable students to the excellent support provided by sixth form students for younger ones.
Leadership and management
The quality of self-evaluation has improved in both the lower school and sixth form, and now involves a wide range of stakeholders including staff, parents and students. The process involves an increasingly effective use of the school’s excellent data system and a developing programme of classroom visits, although leaders recognise that further growth is necessary in both these areas. The school accurately evaluates its strengths and areas for development in almost all respects, and has identified well-judged priorities that form the basis of its improvement planning.
The headteacher, together with the school’s senior leaders, has a clear vision for the school and provides a strong sense of direction. In the sixth form, an extended and restructured management team is giving renewed impetus to improvement. Underpinning everything is a passionate and successful commitment to providing equal opportunity for all within a very harmonious community. The extent and quality of professional development for staff sustains and improves the school’s quality. Resources are well deployed and partnerships with external organisations are strong. The quality of subject leadership varies too much, and this affects outcomes for students in both the lower school and the sixth form. Nevertheless, the school’s impressive track record in recent years is testimony to its well-developed capacity for further improvement.
Main areas for school improvement
The school’s and the sixth form’s accurate self-evaluations have identified the correct priorities for improvement and these have been incorporated into their improvement plans. The validation endorses these areas for improvement and summarises them in the following way. In most respects, they apply to both the lower school and the sixth form.
· Improve the quality of teaching by eliminating inconsistencies between subjects, improving the quality and use of assessment to accelerate learning, and organising learning activities that will develop students’ higher-order skills.
· Modify the curriculum so that students in all years learn more about the range of beliefs and cultures in modern societies.
· In Key Stage 3, improve the development of students’ skills, especially those that require them to think deeply and creatively.
· Improve the quality of leadership and management, particularly by a substantial extension in the programme of classroom visiting and securing more consistency in subject leadership.