Knole Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 22 November 2022

Pupils and students enjoy coming to this inclusive school. Staff set, and share, high expectations of pupils' behaviour and achievement. Leaders are determined to help pupils achieve their best. Pupils are pleased to have a wide range of academic and vocational subjects to study at GCSE and different pathways to choose from in the sixth form. Staff know the pupils well. Relationships are strong between staff and pupils. Pupils feel safe and feel that staff care about their welfare. They enjoy making use of the well-being room or interacting with the well-being dog. Bullying rarely happens. If it does, it is swiftly and effectively dealt with by leaders. Behaviour in lessons is good. Leaders know that, occasionally, behaviour in corridors needs improving and they are taking the right actions to deal with this. There are a wide variety of clubs and activities on offer at school. Pupils are encouraged to participate in trips and visits, with the 'culture voucher' given to every pupil. Students in the sixth form talked enthusiastically about their recent trip to Iceland. Parents are mainly very positive about the school. As one parent wrote, 'My child has flourished at this school and loves going to school and learning.'

What the school should improve

• Leaders are fully aware that further refinements are needed in the implementation of the curriculum in a small number of subjects. This means that pupils do not learn consistently well across the whole curriculum. Leaders must continue to embed the curriculum securely across every subject.
• Some teachers are not as confident as they could be in making adaptations to meet the needs of pupils with SEND fully. This means that some pupils do not achieve as highly as they could. Leaders should ensure that all staff implement the curriculum for pupils with SEND effectively, utilising examples of best practice in the school.

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