All Saints Catholic High School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 20 June 2023

Leaders have created a safe environment for pupils in this school. The school's ethos and the '5 Ps', such as being peaceful and polite, run through all the work that leaders do. Through this approach, leaders and staff foster an environment that is inclusive and celebrates the diversity of pupils' backgrounds. Boys are welcomed into the school in the sixth form, and they settle in very quickly. Overall, pupils are happy here. Staff have high expectations for all pupils. Pupils study a broad range of subjects. They achieve well, and this is reflected in their examination outcomes at the end of their time in school. Many pupils choose to stay on at the school in the sixth form, where they also have a breadth of academic and vocational courses to select from. Leaders have introduced a new behaviour policy this year. This policy is easy for pupils to understand. Pupils are motivated by the rewards they receive for their good behaviour. If pupils do not meet leaders' high expectations for their conduct and attitudes, they are given time to reflect, and then further time is taken to restore relationships. This may be between pupils or between pupils and staff. Pupils do not consider bullying to be a big issue in the school. If it happens, they know who to tell, and they trust staff to deal with it swiftly.

What the school should improve

• Leaders' guidance to support teachers to adapt their teaching to meet individual pupil's needs is not used consistently. This means that some pupils with SEND are not supported as well as they could be to progress through the curriculum. Leaders should ensure that teachers routinely use the information and guidance they receive to adapt their teaching to meet the needs of pupils.
• A small number of pupils are not confident in their phonics when they arrive at the school. Staff teach these pupils phonics, but it is not delivered in a systematic way. This reduces how well these pupils are supported to catch up in their reading. Leaders should provide these staff with training so that they deliver well- sequenced phonics sessions focused on helping these pupils to catch up quickly.
• Leaders are embedding new assessment approaches in the school. While teachers understand and use these new assessment approaches, there are times when they do not check that pupils have understood the identified knowledge and skills before moving on. This means that some pupils are not ready to take the next step in their learning. Leaders need to ensure that teachers consistently check for understanding before moving pupils through the curriculum.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)