CELEBRATIONS are underway after an inspection at a York school.
Following a two-day inspection, Millthorpe School, which has 1078 pupils and is part of South Bank Multi Academy Trust, has been given a 'good' grading by inspectors, maintaining the grade it got in when last inspected in 2018.
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The report says 'the school has designed an ambitious curriculum that is taught well by teachers with secure subject knowledge'.
The school’s approach to the personal development of its students is also praised, with inspectors noting that Millthorpe students are 'well prepared for life in modern Britain'.
Head Gemma Greenhalgh, said: “I am delighted that Ofsted has judged Millthorpe to be ‘good’ across all areas. Not only has our ambitious curriculum, reading culture, inclusive ethos and quality personal development programme been recognised, but the inspectors also recognised the work that we have done on significantly restructuring and improving our SEND provision over the past two years. The school SEND team, supported by colleagues from the Trust’s central team, have worked incredibly hard to improve the support for many pupils with SEND.
“We agree with inspectors that prior to this improvement work and reshaping our SEND provision, some pupils may not have received support quickly enough. However, as a result of our work, this is no longer the case, and pupils now receive timely support which effectively meets their needs. Our SEND provision is now the best that it’s ever been and was also recognised in our recent Inclusion Quality Mark Award where we were identified as a Centre of Excellence for inclusion.”
When it came to what the school needs to improve, inspectors said some pupils are absent from school too often and that these pupils miss out on learning and have gaps in their knowledge.
They said: "The school should continue to understand the causes of poor attendance and be even more robust in its approach to securing improved attendance across the school.
"Some pupils with SEND have previously not received the support that they need quickly enough. This has led to frustration for some parents and has meant that pupils with SEND have not been consistently well supported.
"The school should embed recent improvements to ensure pupils with SEND receive the support that they need promptly.
"Some parents feel disconnected from the changes happening at the school. This has led to the school’s relationship with some stakeholders not being as strong as they could be. The school should continue to engage with the views of parents and build stronger relationships with all members of the school community."
In a letter to parents, the school asked for their continued support to help make further progress with attendance, SEND provision and engagement with the small number of parents who feel disconnected from the school.
Inspectors noted that Millthorpe’s 'tenacious approach to tackling poor attendance” is working and has resulted in an “improvement in overall attendance'.
CEO of South Bank Multi Academy Trust, Mark Hassack, said: “We’re pleased that the areas for improvement identified by Ofsted align with what the school is already working on, with the support of the Trust’s central team.”
Millthorpe School’s full Ofsted report can be found here: https://millthorpeschool.co.uk/ofsted/
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