Sponsored by
Back on the way up
A Leeds school is emerging from some troubled times. Education reporter Ian Rosser found an air of optimism at Crawshaw School in Pudsey.
WHEN exams results started to sink at Crawshaw School, events took a dramatic turn.
While it was heading down the slippery standards slope, Ofsted inspectors paid a routine visit and decided enough was enough.
In a report littered with criticism, the Pudsey school was given a formal Notice to Improve in January 2006 and teetered on the brink of special measures – the ultimate Ofsted penalty for failing schools which could in theory lead to closure.
The harshest criticism had been reserved for the quality of teaching and leadership and for the overall standards.
On top of that, exam pass rates, particularly for GCSEs, were deemed to be unacceptable, with the proportion of pupils gaining five or more good grades having fallen from 49 per cent in 2004, to 43 per cent in 2005 and then to 38 per cent last year.
In an attempt to stop the rot, executive headteacher Neil Clephan was brought in last September by Education Leeds on secondment from his permanent job as head of high-achieving Roundhay School, and out went the existing head Nigel Turner.
A return visit by Ofsted in March noted that significant improvements had been made in most areas of the school during the previous school year.
Encouragingly, teaching was judged to be back on track, leadership at all levels had improved throughout the school, and support and guidance for pupils was now judged to be good.
Having steadied the ship and set it back on course, Mr Clephan last month handed the reigns on to Crawshaw's new head teacher, Joanna Ruse.
"I came here to lead Crawshaw School over the next phase of its development," said Mrs Ruse, who took over in mid-April, having previously been deputy head at Guiseley School.
"This is a very exciting time for the school. We are going to have new buildings in the next few years, and there is no doubt that standards are improving.
"There will also be curriculum changes as we introduce the new, vocational diplomas as part of the national changes to the 14 to 19-year-old learning agenda.
"I had a brilliant job at Guiseley and I was sorry to leave. When I first looked around Crawshaw I felt there was a real buzz about the place. To be honest, I'm surprised it was given a notice to improve because it really is a good school and the pupils like coming here.
"The staff were very up for it, and they still are. I think they were upset for the school and for the students and for themselves. They deserve praise for the way they have helped make the changes possible at the school."
The Ofsted team had returned to the 1,041-pupil school for two days on March 14 as part of statutory monitoring visits to any school previously given a "notice to improve" or "special measures".
The inspectors left with a vastly different impression of the place: "The school has worked hard to improve since it was given a Notice to Improve," said their report this week.
"At that time, achievements and standards, teaching and learning, and leadership and management were all judged to be inadequate. This is no longer the case.
"Teaching is now satisfactory with more good teaching evident than previously. Senior leaders and middle managers have developed well and are effective in their leadership and management roles.
"Leadership and management are now satisfactory and self-evaluation reflects the school's better understanding of its work. As a result, the school provision has improved and students' learning is better."
The role played by Mr Clephan in turning around the school's fortunes was highlighted.
Paying dividends
"In a short time he has enabled his senior leaders to develop effectively as a team," said the report. "Together they have energised staff to secure improvement and this is now paying dividends."
Unlike their previous visit, inspectors this time found no inadequate teaching. However, recent history had left its mark.
"The legacy of weaknesses in teaching and learning in the past means that students have a lot of lost time and need to catch up," said Ofsted. "This has contributed significantly to students' underachievements in Key Stages 3 and 4."
While the school had focused successfully on core subjects such as English, maths and science, there was continued concern in history, geography and drama – the three areas which should be a particular strength of a school which specialises in humanities subjects
Another area of notable strength was the sixth form, which was given the second best grade of two. Business education was said to be outstanding.
Other areas singled out for praise included the personal development and well-being of pupils, care guidance and support, and the new leadership team.
"Overall, much has been achieved at Crawshaw since the executive headteacher joined the school," said Ofsted. "The improvements and impact made in a relatively short time demonstrate that the school now has good capacity to improve further."
But there was still one fly in the ointment – those exam results. Despite all the other improvements, the poor pass marks of the last two years still feature highly in the report.
As a result, the school was unable to slip its shackles of "notice to improve", despite encouraging words elsewhere.
Mrs Ruse said despite remaining in the Ofsted category, spirits were high and the school was moving the right direction.
"The achievements of the past year have been massive," she said.
"The new report is a very positive one overall. It is unusual for Ofsted to extend a notice to improve – they normally put you in special measures of take you out of the category altogether.
"Because of our recent exam results, we were not going to be taken out of a category completely, so we view it from a positive point of view that Ofsted are happy that we are heading in the right direction and they recognise the improvements the school has made.
"You can never be absolutely sure until you see them in black and white, but we have rigorous assessment in place and we believe our results are going to be much better this year."
The secondment of Mr Clephan to Crawshaw is the latest in a line of similar intervention schemes overseen by Education Leeds in both the secondary and primary sectors.
Track record
Other notable examples include Intake High in Bramley, where Otley Prince Henry's head John Steel led the school out of special measures, and at Bramham Primary, where Pam Edwards, head of Lady Elizabeth Hastings CoE in Thorp Arch, helped the school shed its notice to improve.
Coun Richard Harker, Leeds City Council's support executive member for children's services, said: "We have an excellent track record of giving schools the support they need to quickly raise standards.
"Significant improvements have been made thanks to Neil's fantastic leadership and the hard work and talent of all his colleagues.
"With the appointment of Joanna I am confident that the school will continue its impressive progress, giving all its young people the chance to achieve their potential."
His comments were echoed by Chris Edwards, chief executive of Education Leeds.
"Education Leeds gives a full package of additional support – from the governing body to the classroom – to turn schools around," he said.
"The addition of an inspiring, experienced leader like Neil has vastly increased the school's capacity and led to rapid and effective improvements.
"It is just one example of how the enormous amount of talent in our schools can be shared across the city and what can be achieved when schools work together.
"We encourage all our schools to share their good practice and expertise to help make their children and young people happy, healthy, safe and increasingly successful."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Leeds
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: East
