St John Fisher Catholic College

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 13 December 2023

Many pupils are happy at St John Fisher Catholic College. That said, for too many pupils, their educational experience is variable, and they find this frustrating. This variability includes the quality of education and how leaders ensure consistent standards of good behaviour. The sixth form is a strength of the school, where the curriculum is delivered to a more consistently high standard. Students in the sixth form appreciate this, as well as the advice and guidance they receive. Leaders have worked on improving behaviour. However, pupils are clear that there are inconsistencies, and too often lessons are disrupted by poor behaviour. Leaders recognise that there is more to do to ensure consistency in the application of the behaviour policy. Pupils say they feel safe in school and are clear that there is a trusted adult they could talk to if they had concerns. In social times, pupils generally behave well. Leaders are working on improving pupils' punctuality, but this remains variable for some pupils. Pupils can access a wide range of opportunities, such as The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, an ethos team, a dance group, a robotics group for the sixth form and an eco-stewardship team. There are also residential trips. Pupils value these opportunities.

What the school should improve

• Pupils' understanding is not checked systematically, which means that learning is not adapted well enough to meet pupils' needs, including for some pupils with SEND. This means that some pupils do not successfully build their learning on what they already know, and gaps in their knowledge persist. The school should ensure that all teachers use assessment effectively to identify gaps in pupils' knowledge and then adapt the curriculum to ensure pupils learn the key knowledge they need to build successfully on future learning.
• The school has not provided sufficient support to all pupils who struggle with their reading. As a result, some pupils do not develop fluency in reading well enough. The school should accelerate its programme of support for reading, including phonics, and ensure it is provided for all pupils who need it.
• Leaders do not consistently check how effectively improvements have been embedded in their areas of responsibility. As a result, some development areas that are less effective are not identified and addressed. Leaders need to ensure that leaders at all levels know how to monitor the impact of their work, so that improvements in education in all aspects of the school lead to better pupil outcomes.
• Some staff do not apply the new behaviour policy consistently. As a result, some pupils do not meet the school's expectations or do not focus on the learning. The school needs to ensure that all teachers apply the behaviour policy as intended, so that behaviour across the school is of a consistently high standard.
• Governors and the board of directors have not supported and challenged leaders effectively enough to improve the quality of education. As a consequence, weaknesses in the quality of provision have persisted. Those responsible for governance need to ensure that they support leaders and hold them to account effectively to ensure that the quality of provision is consistently high across the school.

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