Canons High School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 17 January 2023

Leaders aspire to provide all pupils with a broad education within an inclusive environment. Pupils enjoy being part of a diverse school community, where they all feel valued. Pupils know that their teachers care about their education and want them to succeed. They said that teachers go out of their way to support them, even outside of lesson time, for example, if they seek extra help to understand the work. This is indicative of the strong working relationships that pupils and sixth-form students enjoy with adults in this school. The vast majority of pupils behave well. Pupils are safe. There is a large team of pastoral and pupil welfare staff. Pupils thus have many adults they can turn to should they have any worries or concerns. Staff investigate and deal with any allegations of bullying or sexual harassment, for example, in an effective manner. Pupils are taught a wide range of topics aimed at supporting them in leading meaningful and successful lives. For example, as they progress through school, they are taught about how to form healthy relationships and consent. In the sixth form, students are taught about managing their finances and how to identify online scams.

What the school should improve

• In a few subjects, leaders have not identified precisely what key knowledge they want pupils to know and remember. This means that pupils do not build up secure subject knowledge over time. Leaders should ensure that, across the subjects, they identify precisely what they want pupils to know and remember and make sure that teaching supports pupils to recall this knowledge confidently.
• In a few instances, leaders and teachers do not make suitable enough adaptations to teaching and resources to support pupils with SEND or EAL. As a result, those pupils do not learn as successfully as they could because their needs are not being met fully. Leaders should ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills to provide effective adaptive support for pupils with SEND or EAL.
• A very small group of pupils display extremely challenging behaviours, especially during social times. This sometimes results in fights and makes some other pupils feel uncomfortable. Leaders should refine and ensure greater implementation of their strategies to help these pupils modify and manage their behaviour.

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