Headteacher insists improvement plan already underway as The Deepings School rated as 'Requires Improvement'

The Deepings School Headteacher Kirstie Johnson has insisted that a program of improvements is already underway as an Ofsted report confirmed that the school had received a rating of Requires Improvement.

Ms Johnson only assumed the role of Headteacher in September- prior to that she has Head of School- and has said that she wished to have had more time before the inspection but has stressed that the school has already have put in place a new curriculum, a new timetable model, increased attendance, and “placed teaching and learning at the heart of all we do” under her leadership.

She said: “Having only begun my role as substantive Headteacher at the start of this term, I had hoped for a little more time before Ofsted came calling, as I wanted some of the measures I have introduced to ensure the school improves to take effect.

“However, the Ofsted report is what we expected and I, and Anthem Schools Trust, were already working on an improvement plan. We have put in place a new curriculum, a new timetable model, increased attendance, and placed teaching and learning at the heart of all we do.

"I am pleased that the inspectors recognised our improvement strategy demonstrates high expectations for what we, as a school, can achieve.

“We want every child to feel happy about coming to school and all staff will be working hard to make sure the school environment is a positive one, where every child feels safe, happy and included.

"I look forward to working closely with staff, Deepings students and the wider community as we strive to make sure that The Deepings is a school everyone can be proud of.”

Ofsted inspected the school in September and published its report this week, the result was the school being rated as Requires Improvement for the third consecutive inspection, a run beginning in 2017. Prior to that, a 2013 report rated the school as Outstanding.

Ofsted found that the Deepings School- which is part of the Anthem Schools Trust- required improvement in all areas (Overall effectiveness, quality of education, Behaviour and attitudes, Personal development, Leadership and management) apart from Sixth-form provision, which was found the be Good.

The report noted that: “The school has gone through a significant period of change in staffing over the last academic year. This means that pupils have experienced many changes.

"As a result, some pupils are not happy at school. The school has high expectations of what pupils can achieve. These expectations are not yet realised as the plans to improve the school are at an early stage.

"The school’s actions to improve the quality of education and the behaviour of pupils is at an early stage. This means that inconsistencies remain in these areas.

“Trustees and governors know the school well. They know what still needs to improve. Trust leaders provide effective support and challenge. Some staff raised concerns about workload. Leaders are aware of their concerns and have developed a staff working group to address them.”

The report also raised concerns about how busy the corridors are between lessons and some pupils have said they get pushed by older children and that bullying happens sometimes. It did, however, state that most pupils feel confident that the school would deal with any bullying issues.

Concerns were also raised that although staff identify the requirements of pupils with special educational needs well, not all teachers use this information well to help them adapt their teaching.

The full report can be found on the Ofsted website.

Schools that are judged as requires improvement for two successive inspections become subject to monitoring from inspectors to check its progress and will be inspected again within a period of two and a half years.