UTC Swindon

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 8 May 2024

Pupils apply to the school to specialise in studying engineering and/or digital technologies. High-quality resources and strong relationships with industry support them in their learning. Pupils enjoy learning the specialist subjects. Some students joining the sixth form complete their specialist studies with a core offer of A levels. Most pupils have respectful relationships with staff. When this happens, attitudes to learning are positive. However, some pupils in key stage 4 do not behave well. The school has re-set the expectations for behaviour. It has put clear systems in place to address unacceptable behaviour. This has brought about a reduction in some behaviours and so fewer pupils attend the reflection room. However, the systems are not applied consistently across the school and so some poor behaviour still goes unchallenged. The school provides a strong and well-developed career education provision for all pupils. Pupils relish the many opportunities to engage with employers, visit industry and learn about apprenticeships in local and national companies. Sixth-form students move to a range of destinations, such as university or apprenticeships, at the end of their studies. They follow routes that put them on-track towards the careers they aspire to, such as engineering.

What the school should improve

• Too many pupils do not attend school regularly. This means these pupils do not learn the curriculum and achieve well. While the school is taking action to address this, some pupils continue to miss too much of their education. The school and the trust should ensure they understand why pupils do not attend and remove barriers to improve attendance.
• Some pupils do not behave well. This is frustrating for other pupils. It impacts on their learning and their experience of school. The school has recently made changes to how behaviour is managed. This has started to have some impact. However, the school and the trust need to ensure behaviour systems are consistently implemented so that pupils can learn effectively.
• The school has introduced a pedagogical approach to help pupils know and remember their learning. However, some staff do not routinely check how well pupils have understood. As a result, some pupils do not have a secure understanding of their work. The school and the trust should ensure the pedagogy to check for understanding is used precisely and consistently, so staff can adapt and amend teaching accordingly.

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