Telford school improving but more needs to be done, says Ofsted
A Telford school which pulled itself out of special measures two years ago has made improvements but still needs to do more, education inspectors have said.
The Telford Park School in Stirchley has maintained its overall 'requires improvement' rating from Ofsted following its latest inspection last month.
In a newly published report, inspectors said many elements of the school have improved since the last inspection, but pupils’ behaviour, outcomes and the quality of teaching are not yet good.
It says that sometimes pupils do not work to the best of their abilities because their teachers do not consistently challenge them, but leaders were addressing the issue.
Since the last inspection, inspectors noted that the overall outcomes of pupils leaving the school have been very weak across many subjects.
They said it was the result of previous weak teaching and the high numbers of pupils who join the school having had a turbulent education in the past.
Leadership at the school was rated 'good' and leaders were said to be very well supported by the multi-academy trust.
They were praised for working to improve the curriculum.
The report said: "The curriculum is strong and improving.
"Pupils have experiences of a wide range of subjects during key stage three and plenty of courses to choose from at key stage four.
Positive
"In the wider curriculum, pupils have sex and relationships education, access to the arts, technical subjects and sport.
"Where pupils are behind in mathematics or English, leaders have built-in flexibility for them to do extra study in these subjects while still allowing them to do other exciting subjects that they enjoy."
Inspectors also said the school is a 'calm and positive place' where pupils feel safe and the arrangements for safeguarding are 'effective'.
Head of school Holly Rigby said: "On a recent visit to The Telford Park School Ofsted recognised that many elements of the school have improved since the last inspection in 2017.
"They stated that leaders are effectively improving the school over time and that they put pupils first.
"Inspectors also acknowledged that leaders have not opted for ‘quick fixes’ but have diligently improved teaching practice, the curriculum, the culture and ethos of the school.
"Leadership continues to be judged by Ofsted as good.
"We are very pleased with the outcome of this report and remain firmly committed to securing further rapid improvements to ensure the best possible outcomes academically, personally and socially for all of our pupils."
The inspection at the school, which has 420 pupils on roll, was carried out over two days in February.
Telford Park Academy is sponsored by the Community Academies Trust.
