School has ‘not achieved well for far too long...’

INSPECTORS RATE ACADEMY AS ‘INADEQUATE’

AN academy in Wythenshawe has been rated inadequate by Ofsted due to poor GCSE results and student absence.

Inspectors said pupils at Manchester Health Academy have “not achieved well for far too long,” after they visited the school in March this year.

In a report published on June 29, assessors said disadvantaged pupils or those with special educational needs (SEND) were worst affected.

The school had previously been rated ‘good’ during an inspection in 2015, but inspectors said students had not performed well enough in their GCSE’s since.

Ofsted rated the academy as ‘inadequate’ for quality of education and its sixth form provision.

Personal development was rated ‘good.’

Behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management were rated as ‘requiring improvement.’

The author of the report said: “Pupils are beginning to learn more than they have in the past and teachers are starting to raise the expectations of pupils.

“However, pupils and students at this school have not achieved well for far too long.

“This is especially the case for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.

“Far too many pupils have not gained the qualifications that they need to be successful.”

Ofsted said school leaders do not routinely provide teachers with information about pupils with SEND, meaning teachers don’t have the right information to adapt the curriculum.

They said some teachers do not have high enough expectations for what disadvantaged pupils can achieve. “As a result, many of these pupils submit work that is incomplete or poor in quality,” the report stated.

Inspectors said school leaders had failed to routinely address pupils’ errors or address gaps in pupils’ knowledge.

Too many pupils are regularly absent from the school, particularly disadvantaged students, inspectors found.

“This means that they miss out on important learning,” the report said. “Leaders must act to ensure that pupils and students attend school regularly.”

The academy was opened in 2009 and teaches just under 1,000 students between the ages of 11 and 19.