INSPECTORS have praised the ambition, curriculum and sense of belonging being created at Yate’s Brimsham Green School.
Ofsted visited the school, which has 1,057 pupils aged 11 to 19 on its roll, in November – its first inspection for more than five years.
The regulator no longer routinely grades state schools, but said Brimsham Green maintains the standards from its previous inspection in 2019, when it was rated ‘good’ in all areas.
However, more work needs to be done to improve attendance.
‘Highly ambitious’
The inspectors said: “Staff are highly ambitious for all pupils at Brimsham Green School.
“The school’s recent deliberate focus on creating a sense of ‘belonging’ is having an impact. Most of the time, the school is calm, and pupils are respectful towards one another.”
The report praised the “breadth” of the curriculum, which is well-designed and delivered.
It said pupils value the wide range of subjects, including the arts and sports curriculums and vocational subjects. An increasing number study the full range of ‘English Baccalaureate’ GCSE subjects – English language and literature, maths, sciences, geography or history and a language. “Carefully considered” changes to the curriculum meant more pupils choose a modern foreign language GCSE.
The inspectors said: “Teachers’ subject knowledge is strong. Teachers explain concepts clearly and use high quality resources to enhance learning.”
Pupils pupils with special educational needs or disabilities are accurately identified and well supported, and “support for struggling readers is also a strength”.
The inspectors said the majority of pupils achieve and behave well, and their leadership is another strength of the school.
The report also highlighted that the school had listened to concerns among some pupils that “unkind language” is not consistently dealt with.
‘Too many pupils’ persistently absent
To improve further Ofsted said the school needed to ensure parents “share the school’s high expectations” on attendance.
The inspectors said: “The school’s work to tackle poor attendance has not yet had a positive impact on all groups of pupils. Too many pupils are severely or persistently absent.”
Head teacher’s pride
Head teacher Kim Garland said: “We are delighted that Ofsted have recognised the ambition and care that staff have for all of our students.
“Moreover, we are proud to be judged by how we support our most vulnerable learners, and indeed this is a marker of the ethical-leadership approach we take; fostering relationships, creating a sense of belonging, promoting student leadership – all of these matter to us.
“Students’ strong academic outcomes have been celebrated, and this reflects the skilful teaching at Brimsham.
“There has been much to celebrate this year with our best ever GCSE results and an Ofsted inspection that reflects the hard work and dedication of our staff and students.
“As the report makes clear, students must attend regularly in order not to miss out on our high-quality curriculum, and although attendance rates reflect the national trends, we know that there is more we need to do, post-COVID, to sustain the expectation with all families that attending school every day should be the norm.”
Picture: Head teacher Kim Garland with Brimsham Green School students