The Archbishop Lanfranc Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 4 March 2025

Pupils enjoy attending this friendly and welcoming school. They strive to achieve the academy values of teamwork, accountability, leadership and aspiration. Caring relationships with staff encourage pupils to try their best. Staff listen to pupils and take their views seriously. This helps pupils to feel happy and safe. The school has improved the curriculum on offer for pupils since it was last inspected. Leaders want pupils to achieve well and drive this ambition forward through their focus on developing teaching and learning. As a result, many pupils achieve well and secure meaningful qualifications by the time they leave school. The school provides strong pastoral and academic support. Staff make sure that help is available if pupils need it. For example, the school offers mental health support and counselling as well as academic mentoring. Year 11 pupils value the additional revision classes provided. The school provides many opportunities for pupils to develop their talents and interests. All pupils undertake a weekly enrichment lesson on topics such as philosophy, debating, first aid and team building. Many pupils take on leadership roles including prefects, student council members, house representatives or reading champions. Pupils also take part in music, sports and drama events. Recently, a group of pupils performed Shakespeare at a London theatre.

What the school should improve

• On occasion, teaching does not present information to pupils clearly and ensures that checks on pupils' understanding are precise. As a result, some pupils have gaps in their learning and develop misconceptions. The school should ensure that it checks pupils' learning systematically and responds to any gaps or misconceptions swiftly, so pupils are fully ready for new learning.
• Clear oversight of some aspects of the school's work is not fully established. This means that the school does not have a sharp understanding of the effectiveness of its actions or the impact on the quality of pupils' education. The school should ensure that leadership at all levels, including those responsible for governance, has appropriate information about all areas of the provision offered to pupils and uses this information to ensure and assure the quality of this provision improves over time.

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