The Marches School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 26 September 2023

Most pupils and all students in the school's sixth form, enjoy coming to school. Relationships with staff are respectful and trusting. Pupils feel safe and are well cared for. They are enthusiastic about the many experiences and opportunities that the school provides. These opportunities help to prepare pupils well for their next steps. Teachers have high expectations of how and what pupils and students will learn. Most classrooms are calm spaces that support learning, where pupils work hard and try their very best. The school has established high expectations of behaviour that pupils understand and are keen to meet. The few pupils who do not meet those expectations are actively supported to understand why they need to modify their behaviour. Pupils and students are polite and respectful to adults and to each other. They are very confident that if they have a problem, there will always be someone to help. However, a small number of pupils feel that they are not always kept informed about the actions leaders take when they report a bullying incident. Pupils recognise assemblies and daily tutor sessions as a vital part of the curriculum. As part of these sessions, pupils learn about becoming responsible citizens.

What the school should improve

• Very occasionally, curriculum plans are not implemented well enough. In these cases, pupils do not learn and remember what they should. Leaders should ensure that all teachers have the training and support they need to develop the subject and pedagogical expertise to successfully deliver the planned curriculum.
• Pupils do not always know what action has been taken when they report a low- level incident of bullying. As a result, pupils can lose confidence in the anti- bullying process. Leaders should ensure that actions taken are always shared with and understood by pupils.
• The school does not routinely analyse information from the many support structures and interventions that leaders make available to pupils at whole-school level. As a result, leaders are not able to quickly identify patterns in what is working well and what is less successful. The school should ensure that monitoring systems enable them to take this information into account to inform their school development priorities.

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