It has been announced this afternoon that yet another Isle of Wight secondary school has been placed in Special Measures by Ofsted.
Readers may remember back in March an Ofsted inspection took place at Carisbrooke and Medina Colleges.
Carisbrooke College have today (24th April) announced that Ofsted have placed the College in Special Measures after being judged ‘Inadequate’ in all areas.
Shaw: “Not unexpected”
Headteacher, Mr Peter Shaw said, “Although a grade 4 judgement is disappointing, it was not unexpected and is an accurate reflection of where the school currently is. We are improving on a number of fronts and I am pleased that inspectors acknowledged our direction of travel. However, I understand fully that we need time to fully embed improvements and bring about the necessary changes in ethos, expectations and performance.”
Terence Hart, Chair of Governors said, “We have to acknowledge that there are a range of issues at Carisbrooke which need to be tackled with support and at speed. It is heartening to see the Governing Body and the recently appointed Headteacher, Peter Shaw, recognised as strengths by Ofsted. We will do our utmost to reassure students and parents by supporting the Headteacher and his staff to implement a clear plan to remedy the issues highlighted in the report, drawing on expertise and experience from within the Federation, Ofsted and our school improvement partner.”
Other schools
Medina College, who are also managed by Island Innovation Trust, announced the results of their inspection on 28th March, namely that Ofsted reported the College as ‘requiring improvement’. The official report was then published on 18th April.
Sandown Academy were placed in Special Measures on 3rd March and Cowes Enterprise College was placed in Special Measures in January.
Christ The King College received a ‘Good’ rating September 2012 and Ryde Academy sees its first Ofsted inspection this week since becoming and Academy.
Release by Carisbrooke College
Following an Ofsted Inspection on March 12th and 13th, Carisbrooke College has been judged to be Grade 4 overall. What this means for Carisbrooke is that Ofsted view the school as one requiring special measures and we will now receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors to ascertain how quickly we are improving.
The inspection report acknowledges that since his appointment, the Headteacher has introduced clear strategies for improving the quality of teaching, achievement and behaviour and worked to establish clear accountabilities for all staff. However, as these changes are recent, they have yet to have a full impact.
The inspectors observed a large number of lessons across all Key Stages. Although examples of good and outstanding practice were seen in certain subjects, overall too much teaching was judged to be inadequate or requiring improvement.Teaching in the joint Carisbrooke/Medina sixth form is described as stronger than that in the rest of the school.
The inspection team also noted that attendance is improving, exclusions are reducing in number and that termly themed PSHE days offer opportunities for promoting and developing students’ spiritual, moral social and cultural awareness.
In terms of student achievement, attainment at GCSE in 2012 was well below national average. However, inspectors acknowledge that recently introduced procedures to check students’ progress and improve the quality of teaching are beginning to lead to improvements in some subjects. In addition, whilst the gaps in the performance of certain groups of students are still too wide, use of pupil premium funding indicates that achievement for eligible students is slowly improving as a consequence of more personalised and specific interventions.
Headteacher, Mr Peter Shaw said,” Although a grade 4 judgement is disappointing, it was not unexpected and is an accurate reflection of where the school currently is. We are improving on a number of fronts and I am pleased that inspectors acknowledged our direction of travel. However, I understand fully that we need time to fully embed improvements and bring about the necessary changes in ethos, expectations and performance. ”
Terence Hart, Chair of Governors said” We have to acknowledge that there are a range of issues at Carisbrooke which need to be tackled with support and at speed. It is heartening to see the Governing Body and the recently appointed Headteacher, Peter Shaw, recognised as strengths by Ofsted. We will do our utmost to reassure students and parents by supporting the Headteacher and his staff to implement a clear plan to remedy the issues highlighted in the report, drawing on expertise and experience from within the Federation, Ofsted and our school improvement partner”
