Ofsted inspectors say school must do better
Staff at Farringdon Community Academy have been told the school requires improvement after Ofsted inspectors highlighted inconsistencies in both the behaviour of pupils and expectations of staff.
The school was judged by Ofsted as requiring improvement in all areas.
While inspectors said the majority of pupils behave well, they also highlighted there are a minority who “do not behave as well as they should” and cause disruption to some lessons.
The report identified a lack of consistency in expectations of teaching staff and application of the school’s behaviour policy as a contributory factor.
Inspectors said: “Not all staff have the same high expectations for how pupils should behave.
"Teachers do not apply the behaviour policy consistently. This leads to perceptions of unfairness from pupils .” consistently applied.”
The report did highlight that school leaders have designed a curriculum which is “broad and ambitious” and commended some subject leaders for having “thought carefully about what pupils will learn” and praised some teachers for delivering the content clearly and checking on understanding.
However lead inspector Katie Spurr said this“is not the case in all subjects”.
She added: “Some teachers deliver the curriculum more effectively than others. In some lessons, the activities pupils complete are not well matched to what teachers want them to learn.
"Sometimes teachers are not checking pupils’ understanding before moving on. This means gaps in knowledge are sometimes not identified. Leaders should ensure teaching is of consistently high quality across the school .”
Ms Spurr also highlighted that pupils, and in particular disadvantaged students, are not “achieving well enough”.
She said: “In some subject areas, the curriculum is not ambitious or precise enough about what pupils will learn. This means pupils are not achieving well enough. Disadvantagedpupils do not achieve as well as their peers.”
However, the report did praise the provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and prioritisation of literacy.
Inspectors also praised the school for its extra-curricular opportunitiesand careers guidance.
The new leadership team was praised for its ambitions.