Troubled school is given bottom marks once more
Pupils’ behaviour and attendance major concerns
AHIGH school put in special measures almost four years ago has been given the lowest Ofsted grade again.
An overall ‘inadequate’ rating has been given to Werneth School, in Romiley, Stockport, which became an academy school in January 2021 when it joined the Education Learning Trust.
But inspectors, who visited the site in October, say ‘the school, together with the local governing body and the trust, has not demonstrated the capacity to improve pupils’ behaviour and attendance in a sustainable way.’
They say ‘many pupils, parents, carers and staff are concerned about pupils’ behaviour’ and despite some changes to behaviour management policies, ‘some pupils continue to have their learning disrupted by the poor behaviour of others.’
The report adds: “During breaktimes and between lessons, some pupils do not regulate their behaviour.
“Often, they show a lack of respect for their peers and staff.
“For example, some pupils use rude and offensive language to others.
“Poor behaviour is not dealt with well enough. The school has not ensured that there is a consistent and successful approach to promoting positive behaviour.
“This means that unacceptable behaviour continues to hinder the enjoyment and achievement of other pupils at school.”
Attendance was highlighted as another problem at the 1,080-pupil school, with high rates of absence and persistent absence, especially for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.
One mum with children at the school, claims there has been ‘little communication’ from the school and criticised the way parents were told of headteacher Andrew Conroy’s sudden departure in an email on the final day of term before the Christmas break.
It told them he was ‘leaving today to take up a new role in Manchester’ and that, after the holidays, Pam Foy would be acting headteacher.
The mum, who asked not to be named, said: “We’ve had little communication since an email that was sent on the last day of term after school had closed for Christmas, informing us the report wasn’t great and that the Dean Trust was being brought in to help the Educational Learning Trust.
“We were told we would have parent meetings, but we’ve had no meetings.
“We’ve had an email here or there, but no detailed information about what is going to happen with the school going forward and what the Dean Trust is actually doing for the school.
“The Ofsted report was finally published on January 16 and it’s a huge worry that we are sending our children in knowing what is written in the report. It’s not us having to deal with the bad behaviour day-in dayout, it’s our children.”
The mum said certain measures are now being put in place – such as uniform checks and a focus on behaviour and attendance – but says these ‘surely should be the minimum focus and standards at all times’ and should have been a priority when the school was rated Inadequate the first time round.
“It’s such shame for the pupils that are wanting to learn and the brilliant teachers that are wanting to educate the willing students,” she added. “Children that do well are overshadowed, while the badly behaved, low-attendance children are treated to chip shop lunches and walks.”
As well as being rated ‘inadequate’ overall, the school was also found to be inadequate in two of Ofsted’s four assessment categories - ‘behaviour and attitudes’ and ‘leadership and management.’ The ‘quality of education’ and ‘personal development’ were graded ‘requires improvement.’
There are some positives in the report, including the fact it ‘has improved some aspects of the quality of education that pupils receive.’
It adds: “For example, current pupils in key stage 4 study a wider range of subjects, including vocational subjects, than they have done in the past.
“More pupils are studying a language at GCSE.
“Consequently, an increasing proportion of pupils are studying the suite of subjects that make up the English Baccalaureate.”
It adds that ‘the trust has supported the school to improve its curriculum design’ and ‘the school has raised the profile of reading’ and ‘improved its strategies to identify the needs of pupils with SEND.’
The Education and Learning Trust said it was ‘identified by the Department of Education to sponsor and support Werneth School’ when it was first graded Inadequate and says that ‘despite significant challenge, the school has brought about improvements.’
In a statement, it said: “During the Inspection in October 2023, the behaviour of some children was reported upon in a negative way and inspectors felt that improvements to behaviour were not happening as quickly as they could.
“As such, the Education Learning Trust has chosen to make links with a highly successful Trust to support Werneth and its work on improving behaviour.
“This means that the school and families will have to make firm changes that will allow the school to focus on building a partnership with parents and carers to improve behaviour at a quicker pace.
“This refreshed partnership with parents will be key to improving behaviour because, during the pandemic, this was very difficult to strengthen and have impact. The school requires its parents and carers to support with this so that it may concentrate on ensuring that the children receive a good education and achieve the best possible GCSE grades, going on to secure places in excellent colleges or on high quality apprenticeships.”
The Trust says a letter was sent to parents in December, ‘informing them of next steps to improve behaviour and attendance’ and ‘explained that there would be regular communication from the school over the coming months as they clarified expectations about behaviour.’
It said the final Ofsted report was published on January 22 and the school ‘is now in a position to begin consultation with parents.’
The statement adds: “Parents also received a notification prior to the Christmas break that the headteacher was leaving and the Education Learning Trust has moved swiftly to appoint an acting head.
“Additionally, the leaders in the school are supported by a consultant who is a very experienced former secondary headteacher with an excellent track record and reputation.
“Having worked in similar schools to Werneth, he will add strength to the school. In addition, there will be a further senior appointment at the school.
“The views of parents and carers who have concerns are taken seriously and the school always welcomes direct conversations with them.”