Sir Thomas Boteler Church of England High School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 3 February 2026

Pupils are proud to be part of the 'Boteler family'. They work well with each other and form positive relationships with staff. They benefit from a broad range of wider opportunities. For example, they relish taking part in the school’s ‘Inspire’ programme and local charity events. These activities help pupils to build resilience and develop new interests. Pupils’ behaviour is mostly calm and respectful. They know they have trusted adults to turn to for support. This helps pupils to feel safe. Bullying is rare and dealt with quickly. Most pupils attend school regularly. Staff work closely and effectively with families to ensure that any barriers to attendance are reduced. Pupils understand the importance of being in school every day. Most pupils achieve well, including disadvantaged pupils currently at the school. Pupils' overall results in examinations show steady improvement over time. Pupils enjoy learning and speak with pride about their work. They engage in lessons and value the embedded routines. Teachers typically build pupils’ knowledge effectively. This helps pupils to understand new ideas and remember important subject content. Pupils who face barriers to learning often get the right support, including those in the specially resourced provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The school prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain. Pupils develop a secure understanding of respect, equality and online safety. They enjoy taking part in community projects and understand how their actions affect others. For example, the school’s extensive pupil leadership councils relish opportunities to shape and improve pupils’ experiences across the school. These roles encourage pupils to lead and to serve their community diligently. Older pupils talk with confidence about their aspirations. They know what qualifications they need for their career choices, and they are well informed about their stages of learning.

What the school should improve

• Leaders should ensure that teaching is highly effective across the curriculum, including in citizenship, by supporting teachers to use learning activities that deepen pupils' learning fully and extend pupils' verbal and written vocabulary.
• Leaders should ensure that they sharpen their evaluations of their improvement work further so that their actions have as much impact as possible, including for disadvantaged pupils' attendance and achievement.
• Leaders should ensure that behaviour expectations are applied consistently well, particularly at social times, to help pupils to remain settled and to self-regulate.

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