OFSTED: ST CHAD’S ‘MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION’

ARUNCORN high school plunged into special measures in 2014 is moving in the right direction according to the latest report from the watchdog.

Three Ofsted inspectors visited St Chad’s Catholic And Church Of England High School on June 21, publishing their findings on July 12.

They said headteacher Michael Paziuk’s arrival in February has had a ‘positive impact on the whole school’ with staff reporting that ‘morale has improved’.

St Chad’s was placed in special measures in December 2014 after three years of deteriorating GCSE results and inspectors damned its performance as ‘inadequate’.

The report said heads of maths and science have been appointed this year and inspectors said they saw evidence that the quality of senior and middle management is ‘much’ better.

The core subjects English, maths and science are ‘benefiting from strong leadership’, the report said, adding that pupils were receiving more ‘high quality’ teaching and that more pupils have applied for and been awarded places at university this year. The report said all Year 13 students are expected to proceed to higher education, apprenticeships or employment.

Anne Seneviratne, Her Majesty’s inspector, said pupils who were spoken to said they thought behaviour was good and bullying was rare.

She said the number of fixed-term exclusions has reduced and attendance was improving, albeit remaining just below the national average.

Mrs Seneviratne said that support from All Hallows Catholic College in Macclesfield, which was introduced after the school was placed in special measures, has been reduced.

St Chad’s can appoint newly-qualified teachers.

The inspection team highlighted some areas that still need to be improved, including effective use of feedback procedures, attendance among pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds or with special educational needs or a disability, and the gap in progress between more deprived pupils and other students nationally.

In addition only 60% of Year 10 pupils are expected to achieve their target grades at the end of Year 11.

The report said improvements in standards varied among subjects.

It said: “The proportion of pupils making expected progress in English is set to rise significantly as a result of the positive changes in this department introduced by the new leader at the start of the academic year.

“In contrast, progress in mathematics has not risen at the rapid pace required and the proportion of pupils predicted to make expected progress in mathematics is set to increase by only a few percentage points.”