Wey Valley Academy achieves good status in Ofsted report

Wey Valley Academy has received a good rating from Ofsted inspectors which has highlighted the school's good progress since joining Ambitions Academies Trust in 2019.

The report said the school has improved significantly with the support of the trust. It achieved a good mark for quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management.

It also states that pupils feel happy and safe, and have a strong sense of belonging.  Bullying is considered to be rare by both parents and students alike.

Wey Valley principal Thomas Neill said:  “I am especially proud that the students played such a major role in this fantastic inspection result. Their excellent behaviour, tolerance and respect for each other and the staff was clear for the inspection team to see.

"I’m also pleased that the efforts of the staff in building a strong curriculum and offering a wide range of extra-curricular activities was fully recognised. Inspectors were impressed by the ambition and rigour in our curriculum.

“Since joining the Ambitions Academies Trust, we have significantly enhanced the standard of teaching and learning across the school which is having a positive impact on student achievement.

“Last year, we achieved significantly improved progress scores, meaning that students are maximising their learning potential whilst at Wey Valley. We remain focussed on driving improvement further to ensure our students benefit from an excellent school experience.

“Alongside the focus on the quality of education that we provide for students, I am also pleased that inspectors were able to see our focus on personal development. Our students are leaders, and we give them opportunities to develop attributes such as teamwork and communication on a daily basis.

"Whether taking part in the school’s drama productions, sports fixtures or Duke of Edinburgh programme, our students develop into confident, articulate and ambitious individuals.  It is heartening that our students told the inspectors how much they value these opportunities.”

Although the report is very complimentary towards the school, it did highlight a couple of areas that require improvement.

The inspectors say a sharp focus on developing all teachers’ subject and pedagogical knowledge is needed as in subjects they are less familiar with is having an impact on some children’s ability to learn effectively.

Also, too many pupils are persistently absent from school and that improving attendance remains a priority.

Mr Neill added: “Our simple focus on providing great learning opportunities for students every day is unchanged by this result. We are highly ambitious for our future, and we are committed to driving improvements further in order to provide our students with the very best start in life.”