Inadequate school told to improve

EDUCATION watchdogs have ruled that a Warrington high school is, overall, inadequate and requires “significant improvement.”
Inspectors from Ofsted, the Office for Standards in Education, say Lysander High School, at Padgate, is performing significantly less well than, in all the circumstances, it could reasonably be expected to perform.
The Insall Road school was inspected in November and has been given notice to improve.
Ofsted’s report states: “Significant improvement is required in relation to students’ achievement, particularly in mathematics.”
The school was last inspected in November 2008, when mathematics was identified as an area for improvement.
“However, performance in mathematics has remained significantly below the national average and continues to have a detrimental impact on outcomes for students.
“Attainment overall is, therefore, low. Turbulence in staffing, poor teaching and weak leadership in mathematics in the past have presented a substantial impediment to improvement in this subject.
“There is little evidence to suggest that learning and progress in mathematics are improving securely and quickly. Therefore, the overall achievement of students is inadequate.”
However, the report highlights some positive issues. The school’s capacity for sustained improvement is satisfactory.
Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities make satisfactory progress as they move up through the school.
Learning and progress for all students, as observed in lessons during the inspection, were satisfactory overall.
However, lessons often lack sufficient challenge to ensure that all students make good or better progress.
The report adds: “The school provides a supportive environment in which all students are valued. The care, guidance and support students receive are good. This has contributed highly effectively to improving their attendance, which is now above the national average.
“Students feel safe in the school and procedures for safeguarding students are satisfactory. Behaviour is good. School leaders have worked highly effectively in substantially reducing the number of exclusions. Students are courteous, welcoming and friendly. They make a good contribution to the school and the wider community.”
Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is also good.
Leadership and management are satisfactory overall, the report says. There is a discernible drive at all levels of leadership to secure improvements and good progress has been made in tackling underperformance in some areas such as in English, attendance and behaviour. Therefore, the school’s capacity for sustained improvement is satisfactory.
The recently appointed head of mathematics demonstrates passion and ambition to improve outcomes for students, although initiatives to achieve this are at the early stages of development. The overall effectiveness of the sixth form is satisfactory.
Progress in tackling this area for development has been steady and the new leader of the sixth form has a clear vision for further improvement.
Head teacher Alison Sherman said: “We are committed to making changes and improvements and will be working hard with our staff and the local authority to address the issues Ofsted raise in this report.”
Pinaki Ghoshal, assistant director for children and young people’s services at Warrington Borough Council said: “We have already begun working in partnership with the school to bring about swift improvements. It will be closely monitored by Ofsted and the local authority to ensure the school moves forward.”
Ironically, when education chiefs had to decide which school to close, Lysander – then known as Padgate High School – or Woolston High, they chose Woolston, which will close later this year.
Last year, Woolston received an outstanding Ofsted report. The full Ofsted report can be read at www.ofsted.gov.uk