Ark St Alban's Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 14 May 2024

Many pupils and staff are proud of their school and the way in which it respects and reflects the diversity of their community. Most pupils work hard in lessons as they want to fulfil the school's high aspirations the school has for them. They achieve well and successfully move onto the next stage in their education. These high standards and outcomes are the same in the sixth form, where students demonstrate an impressive level of personal motivation. Pupils know that the school has high expectations of their behaviour and most meet this standard. The 'homeroom' model means pupils spend many of their lessons in the same room within their year 'hub' but also get to use specialist spaces for practical and creative subjects. This means pupils do not have to move around the school as often between lessons. This contributes to the calm and orderly environment. Pupils value the real-life scenarios used in their 'character' lessons and how these help them learn about how to stay safe, value difference and have healthy relationships. Many pupils attend the range of extra-curricular clubs on offer. Pupils and sixth form students contribute positively to the school community through leadership roles that include anti-bullying ambassadors and peer mentors.

What the school should improve

• There are not enough planned opportunities for sustained and meaningful discussion in lessons. This means that pupils do not always get the chance to deepen their understanding or rehearse their thinking before writing. The school should ensure that there is an effective strategy to support all pupils developing their oracy skills to support their learning across the curriculum.
• Although there is strong, consistent practice in checking pupils' learning at the mid and end points of units, checking that pupils have secured their learning 'in the moment' is less secure. As a result, some misconceptions or gaps in knowledge go unnoticed or pupils do not move on to the next step in their learning when they are ready to. The school should ensure that the best practice is shared so that all staff are confident in checking pupils' understanding at the point of learning and adapting learning accordingly.
• A small group of pupils use disrespectful language towards their peers. The comments they make mean that some pupils do not feel valued for who they are. The school should ensure that there are effective processes in place for all groups of pupils to share these experiences so that the school can take appropriate action in response.

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