6 days ago
Ofsted inspects North Staffordshire school rocked by 'turbulence in leadership'
Improvements are being seen at a North Staffordshire school which has gone through "turbulence in leadership" over the past few years, Ofsted inspectors have said. Knutton St Mary's Church of England Academy was rated good at its previous inspection in June 2019, but following the latest visit "suggests that aspects of the school's work may not be as strong", an Ofsted report said.
The latest report said: "Knutton St Mary's has experienced turbulence in leadership over the past few years. This is now stable. The school has begun to raise its expectations of what pupils can achieve. Improvements have been identified, and while work to achieve this has begun, it is in the early stages.
"Governors and trustees were slow to act when standards started to decline. They now have clear oversight of the school's work (and) there is more rigour in these checks now. Governors and trustees know that standards need to improve and are ambitious for all pupils; they hold leaders to account. Staff report that their well-being is very well supported.
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"Over the past few years, due to staffing changes, staff's workload increased. The trust has put extra staff into the school (and) staff workload is now managed effectively.
The school, part of St Bart's Multi-Academy Trust, was described as "warm and friendly" in the report. It highlighted support in place for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), as well as new extra-curricular activities such as dodgeball, dance and karaoke.
The report said: "Outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics have been too low over time, but they are slowly beginning to improve. The school has started to address most of the areas in need of development.
"Staff expertise has recently improved, however, some staff do not possess sufficient knowledge to teach all subjects effectively. In addition, some staff do not use the school's recently introduced checks on pupils' learning as effectively as they should; this means that pupils develop gaps in their knowledge that are not swiftly identified and addressed.
"Attendance rates are slowly improving (and) staff make regular checks on pupils' attendance. They support families to ensure that pupils attend school regularly, however, there remain too many pupils who are regularly absent - these pupils miss out on important learning, which leads to gaps in their knowledge.
"The school has recently improved its management of pupils' behaviour. Staff set high expectations for how pupils should behave (and) vulnerable pupils receive support to help them to stay calm so that they can learn.
"Pupils behave well at playtimes. During lessons, most pupils listen and work hard."
The school's next inspection will be a graded one, Ofsted has said.
Principal Carly Wright said: "As a newly formed Senior Leadership Team, we are extremely proud of the many positives identified in our Ofsted report which builds on the strengths identified in our recent SIAMS inspection.
"We have worked hard to embed our Christian values and are pleased that Ofsted recognised that staff and pupils live these out, creating a warm and friendly school community where everyone is treated equally.
"We now look forward to continuing our journey to improve outcomes for every child and family. I would like to thank our dedicated staff and amazing children for making Knutton St Mary's a wonderful place to be."
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