Claremont High School Academy has achieved the Inclusive School Award with Flagship status.
Outcomes Exceptionally Good
Our Assessor said it is always a pleasure to make a return visit to Claremont High School. They have been a regular visitor since first assessing the school four years ago. They were given the opportunity to meet with many members of staff and students to have meaningful discussions about the work they have been doing since the last visit.
The Assessor met with the Headteacher and the Deputy Headteacher who explained that outcomes for the school were exceptionally good this year. The EBAC figures (80% of students taking EBAC subjects) were extremely good and Progress data was very positive for all groups. Furthermore, A-level results were up again and the majority of students applying, got their first choice of university placement. Figures for students taking EBAC subjects vary from year-to-year and depend on the cohort. There is something for everyone in terms of qualifications and not every student will want to study a language.
One of the previous targets of the school was to increase participation in Co-Curriculum activities and this was a real drive from the school led by a very enthusiastic colleague. This has been a great success, and the data shows that more Pupil Premium (PP) students are involved than others. They were a target group, and the school is very proud of this achievement. Attendance at extra-curricular activities remains a priority and it is carefully monitored so they have the data to show them what is happening.
Increasing the number and types of trips and visits was also part of the Co-Curriculum project and remains an important part of the school’s bid to increase students’ cultural capital and give them access to important experiences. The cost of providing these trips is a growing issue and whilst there may be funds to subsidise PP students often the subsidy is not enough, and it does not cover those who just missed out on PP funding because their family income is slightly above the threshold. This is something the school is very aware of, and they do their best to support students and families with this. They know their students well and can take steps to support individuals. However, the school is also looking generally at trips and visits to see what is appropriate and affordable for the majority of students and families.
Staff Recruitment
Since the last IQM visit, the school has lost one member of its Senior Leadership Team (SLT) who has gone on to a promoted post and has recruited a new member of the team. Otherwise, staffing remains fairly stable although there were some gaps in the science department, but they have managed to recruit to these roles. It was acknowledged that recruitment is getting more and more difficult. With this in mind, the school is looking to set up its own SKITT across the Trust as this can only help with recruitment of teachers in the future.
The Trust is looking to expand and is currently in discussions with another school. Currently, the school finances are sound as they have good reserves. However, last year the decision was made to start to spend some of the reserves to revamp the Sixth Form area and do other works across the school.
Our Assessor was able to have a short meeting with two colleagues who are part of the Safeguarding Team. Currently, the team is made up of four colleagues who are trained as Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs), and their names and photos are displayed on posters around the school so students know who they can approach if they have a safeguarding concern. They are looking to expand the team with someone from the pastoral team.
Our Assessor suggested they could increase the team by two or three as this is a big school and the number of safeguarding issues and concerns is rising. The DSL has also done the Mental Health training provided for senior leaders and she sees the two go hand-in-hand in terms of the support needs of vulnerable students. She has produced a Mental Health Action Plan that is 17 pages long. She shared this plan with our Assessor and is going to make sure the plan is discussed and actioned with all stakeholders (including students).
Attendance
Our Assessor asked if persistent non-attenders were included in My Concern and treated as a safeguarding case. However, they were told that attendance is good (95%) and seems to have almost recovered from the Covid dip. Of course, Claremont High School does have some school refusers and students who are persistent non-attenders and they are dealt with on an individual basis. Some students will be added to the safeguarding register so that actions taken can be followed through. However, our Assessor was reassured that there are regular meetings to discuss the provisions, interventions, attendance, and outcomes for vulnerable students.
The outcomes from the Covid pandemic that are just being felt now were next up for discussion. It was agreed that many students had gone through a traumatic period in their lives (some more than others) this is something the school needed to be aware of. Our Assessor was told the EP had come in and did training on Trauma Informed Practice and communication which was very useful and the school made some changes to the Behaviour Policy with more emphasis on restorative approaches. Students and parents/carers have noticed this and have been very positive about it.
A great deal of work has gone on to address online safety and this work is ongoing. The school subscribes to the National On-line Safety system and parents can sign up for this as well.
SEND Department
The next meeting was with the SENCo and his Deputy who wanted to speak about the work that the SEND department has been doing since IQM’s last visit.
There are currently 31 students with Education and Health Care Plans (EHCPs) across the school and they still have many consultations coming in. This included six, which came from feeder primary schools. One change is that there are a few more with visual impairment.
The SENCo decides on the response to the consultation and if the school can meet the child’s needs. He makes the decision but keeps the Headteacher and SLT fully informed and there may be a discussion around his decision. Ultimately, the final decision is left with SLT. The number of students coming through with EHCPs is increasing and the current Year 8 cohort has nine. There are 100 students across the school receiving SEN support.
There is a Deputy SENCo who is not qualified but instead is doing a Level 7 Dyslexia Assessment which will allow her to organize Access Arrangements. There are 13 Teaching Assistants (TAs). Increasingly, it becomes more difficult to recruit committed long-term TAs although they did manage to recruit in the last round.
The Deputy SENCo has been going to the IQM Cluster Group days and has enjoyed working with other schools. She explained about implementing the whole School Reading Test that is done in Year 7 and she picks up those that fall well below average are retested and she tests them again to see what progress they have made. They are now looking at students in KS4 and setting up small intervention groups. There are a few students with very low reading ages who can’t possibly access the curriculum.
Lexonik is now being used across the school and our Assessor was to hear more about this later in the day.
Our Assessor asked what the main SEN needs are, including Speech and Language and Autism. Speech and Language Therapist (SALT) works with about 18 students, and they only work with students who have an EHCP which leaves a large number of students in need of additional support. However, the school is now training Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HLTAs) to run interventions for these students. They have been trained to carry out this role.
There are regular multi-agency meetings where the team looks at the whole picture and looks at students’ academic and pastoral needs. Different representatives from across the school attend the meetings and clear records are kept so the group can check to see who is highlighted and what actions have been put in place.
The SENCo looks at the lists of students who have been suspended and who are put in isolation and so on to see if these behaviors are repeated. He looks in more detail at individual students who may need an intervention from the SEND department or external agencies or professionals.
Our Assessor asked about the way teachers and TAs are trained and where strategies for meeting the needs of SEN students are met in the classroom. There have been SEND twilight training sessions throughout the academic year and the last session was on ADHD. Teachers were invited if their classes included students with this condition. Our Assessor suggested this might be useful for all teachers and TAs. The session before that was on supporting Year 7 students with SEN. The SENCo said there has also been some training for teachers on how to make effective use of a TA in the classroom.
SEND Passports
A new development which was discussed last year was the introduction of SEND Passports and these are now in place and centralized on Go4Schools.
Our Assessor was able to see an example of one such live document on Go4Schools. These include information about exam access arrangement and about the student (written by students) and strategies, strengths, and difficulties they encounter in lessons. The feedback has been positive but is ad hoc and it might be an idea to collect more robust data on the SEND Passport effectiveness by running some focus groups of students, teachers, and TAs. In addition, it would be helpful to do the same with a group of parents whose children had such a document.
The SENCo and his Deputy have done some Learning Walks to establish if the SEND Passport is being used by teachers. The feedback was mostly positive, and they want to find out if it is working for the students. Currently, they do this by informally looking at students’ books.
The SEND Team intends to review the passports regularly and will update them in the Summer Term and update their end-of-year grades.
The SENCo and Deputy SENCo meet the 13 TAs every morning and make sure they cover each other. The SENCo has the overview and has a priority list of students who must have TA support.
The SEND Department and team have developed their practice and are reaching out across the school to ensure student SEN needs are met in the classroom and during planned interventions. Our Assessor found a SENCo who had grown in confidence and was secure in their role as team leader. The department is growing in strength and influence.
Attendance
The next meeting was with the Head of Sixth Form who is also responsible for attendance strategies across the school. This is a whole school responsibility that gives him experience in developing and implementing strategies to improve attendance figures and particularly to address issues with persistent absentees.
The Head of the Sixth Form has been teaching for eight years and started as a main-scale Science Teacher. He then joined the Teaching and Learning Team and picked up lots of different responsibilities eventually applying for the Sixth Form post. He has now been in post for a year and is enjoying his role as Assistant Headteacher and having a wider school view. He has been lucky to have been involved in Challenge Partners visits and is doing his NPHQ and he has completed his Level 3 Safeguarding Course.
Attendance is currently good (above the National Average) and they achieved their whole school target of 95% which is almost back at pre-pandemic figures. However, he explained that this has been hard won and a lot of work has gone on to make the target a reality. He (and others) have done a lot of analysis on attendance data to try. To make sense of the figures and to spot students who are in danger of becoming persistent non-attenders.
The Assistant Headteacher talked through the Five Stage Attendance system which he had revised and refined:
Form Tutors are Stage 1. The tutors have a lot of responsibility for spotting and reporting patterns of poor attendance and for following up. When attendance is running at 94% a Stage 1 letter is sent to parents to express concern.
A Stage 2 letter is sent when attendance reaches 92% and parents are informed and asked to work with the school to get the student into school. The student’s concern is then monitored closely for two weeks.
Stage 3 letters are sent when attendance falls below 90% and the student is monitored for a further two weeks. If there is no improvement a phone call is made to the home and the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) is informed. Close monitoring continues for a further two weeks.
Stage 4 letters are sent when attendance is below 90% and not improving despite Stages 1,2 and 3. A meeting is organized between the parents/carers, the Pastoral Manager, and the student. Monitoring continues for two weeks.
Stage 5 letters are sent when attendance is below 90% but is still not improving. Another meeting is set up with the parent/carer, the Pastoral Manager, the EWO, and the student.
There are lots of different strategies used to contact and communicate with parents and there are several rewards and praise provided for students when attendance improves.
The number of persistent absentees is relatively small but needs specific targeted action and intervention. The Pastoral Manager/Head of Year puts interventions in place. The EWO comes into school once a week and meets with parents and students as well as with the Head of Year. She provides a very good service and is easily accessible. She often makes phone calls to parents and tries to get them on board.
Her role is to support difficult issues/cases. She supports PPMs where parents are covering up absences and she has helped with template letters. Potentially she can do home visits if required and she is kept aware of any Mental Health issues and other medical issues. Each student is treated as an individual and action is only taken when the context of the non-attendance is clear. The school leads the way in this approach and is sensitive to individual circumstances.
Parental fines are used but only after discussion with EWO. It is about balance and getting the intervention right. They want to empower parents/carers rather than punish them if at all possible. Attendance correlates with achievement and the school wants to support parents/carers and get them to sign an agreement contract around attendance.
There has been a change in the attitude of parents, and holidays during term time are now very popular. These are not authorised by the school, but they go anyway. It is acknowledged that some parents find it very hard to get their children up and out for school. The school tries to support them with this.
Monitoring System
There is joined-up work with other teams and briefing for all Pastoral Teams Leads on attendance. The Deputy Headteacher chairs this meeting and Key Stage leads chairs their teams including the SENCo. The attendance figures are shared with staff at all levels and are broken down into different groups of attendance – different tutor groups, different ethnic groups, SEND students, and so on. They evaluate the attendance of different groups to compare and contrast attendance figures and reasons for low attendance. They then discuss what the evaluation is showing them.
Attendance data is recorded on Go4Schools, and this is live data that parents have access to. There is a monitoring system to see which parents are checking it.
There is an Attendance Officer who gathers the data, she makes the daily contact if students don’t arrive in the morning and she logs the contact made to parents. Furthermore, she keeps the records and keeps lists updated.
Internal truancy is rare as it is difficult for students to exit the building – gates are closed and locked. Teachers take electronic registers every lesson and inform the Head of Year and attendance officer. They find out if there is a reason for the absence and apply the appropriate code.
Our Assessor asked about suspensions. There were 104 instances involving 60 students, but it was unclear how many days were lost. In addition, there were two permanent exclusions. The school has decided to add Persistent Non-Attenders to the CPOMS Safeguarding list.
Diversity
Next, was a meeting with a group of students who were part of the school’s Diversity and LGBT+ Groups. One of the school’s targets was to set up a Student Diversity Board and these students were involved in this new group. They meet once a term and in theory, the group is open to anybody interested in being involved.
A teacher chairs the meetings, and the aim is to produce appropriate action plans. The PRIDE Group was set up by a teacher as a club where students could speak openly in a safe space. It was about giving LBGT+ students and allies to effect change and policies. They can report issues and the school takes them seriously.
Our Assessor had a brief chat with the Chair of Governors (on the phone) who has been part of the Diversity Group since it started. She is very committed to the aims and objectives of the diversity board and wants to contribute. She was generally supportive of the substance of the discussion about involving a wider group of staff and approaching the topic through the curriculum. She also agreed that there needs to be more joined-up working between the different groups. She felt sure that diversity remains a priority for the school
Support
The final meeting (on the phone) was with one parent as the other planned conversations did not happen. She said her child joined the school in Year 9 and their sibling joined in September 2023.
The younger child has special needs and the school is giving them some support. The child was diagnosed with ADHD in July and the parents don’t think the child is getting all the support that they need. She is not sure her child has an EHCP. They have met with the Deputy SENCo and she outlined what support the child is being given.
The parent explained they are going through Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) but are at the end of a very long list. She said her child does not speak and does not communicate, and they will be having a meeting soon to find out the next step. She said the diagnosis helped the parents understand what was wrong. Their child has been described as naughty in primary school but this is because they could not focus. However, they are now taking hormones and medication to help. This she hopes will help the child to settle down and complete the many tests he has to do.
Reading Culture
The next topic for discussion was the issue that will make up the IQM Flagship Project which has to do with Embedding a Reading Culture across the school.
A full detailed action plan was provided by the two members of SLT who were delivering the project. The Deputy Head (Curriculum) and Assistant Headteacher talked through what had been done so far and what was planned.
They decided reading needed more of a focus, although it had always been on the school’s agenda. They identified that they needed a more strategic approach to reading particularly to phonics and making it work in a secondary school. This was because phonics and comprehension are key to closing the skills gap. They believe the Covid years have widened the gaps.
Lexonik has been introduced on two levels and tests (standardized reading tests) are done with all years and all reading ages for all students across the school are recorded and shared with staff. There were a lot of diagnostic reading tests run in the past for a small number of students. They were not surprised by the results and students that were thrown up as having problems with their reading. However, they are now seeing the correlation between behavior and poor reading skills.
The two senior leaders did the Lexonik training so they fully understood how it works. Lexonik teaches learners the methods to develop essential literacy skills to improve their reading, spelling, grammar, and comprehension.
They did not do a lot of work with primary schools as they felt their practice missed the mark for introducing phonics in a secondary school. It’s an entirely different context.
They then ensured that all members of SLT completed the training in Lexonik (the Deputy Headteacher and Assistant Headteacher are advanced Lexonik trained) and have used this to drive this across the school. Staff are on board because they have shared the vision and rationale so are not resisting it.
Some students are provided with a Lexonik Pupil Passport and it’s on the central data platform and they need to refer to it in lesson plans and explicit teaching. The Pupil Passport is bespoke to the individual student.
The Lexonik programme is heavily resourced and is very costly but SLT and Governors are very positive and informed about it and have agreed to fund it. The Headteacher agreed to employ a dedicated TA to work on Lexonik with individual students. She has proved to be a real asset.
The second strand in Embedding a Reading Culture has to do with the library and reading lessons. Our Assessor was told the library is the real hub of the school and lots of reading lessons take place there.
Students have a Reading Log and paired reading is going on with some of the older pupils who are trained to be paired readers. They meet with Year 8 pupils and are given important reading texts to read with them. They were about to launch the Reciprocal Reading programme and are upskilling the teachers and staff and preparing students for the launch.
Many other reading activities are happening now and many more are planned. Parents are generally supportive of the project. They don’t object to them coming out of lessons for Lexonik interventions and the school is collecting hard evidence about its effectiveness.
It’s a very exciting project that they will track over three years and share their findings with other schools.
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