19 Jan 2024
Marlborough Science Academy was just shy of achieving a full house of ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted grades in its latest inspection.
The secondary school, which is based in Watling Street and has Annie Thomson as headteacher, received its first routine inspection since the Covid pandemic on November 29 and 30. A previous inspection at the start of the month was postponed due to an incident which required a pupil to be airlifted to hospital.
In a report released this week, MSA was awarded Outstanding for behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth-form provision, and Good for the quality of education. It maintained its previous overall grade of Good as a result.
Inspectors carried out deep dives into English, maths, science, humanities, modern foreign languages and art, holding discussions about the curriculum, visiting a sample of lessons and speaking to teachers and pupils about their learning.
They found pupils to be polite, respectful and well-behaved, with excellent relationships with staff.
“Behaviour and attitudes to learning are very positive. Breaktimes are calm and lessons are proactive… Pupils feel safe, cared for and happy in school.”
The inspectors said pupils engaged with their learning and achieve well, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and have many opportunities to build important leadership skills and take on positions of responsibility.
“Pupils have a strong voice throughout their school community,” they said, highlighting the production of “the exceptional” school magazine.
“Pupils are diligent, present work to a high standard and are proud of their achievements… The school’s commitment to supporting pupils’ personal development and well-being is exemplary…
“The school provides valuable support to pupils, fostering a safe space for discussions on a wide range of topics. The leadership has delivered life-change and invaluable support for extremely vulnerable pupils and families.”
One of the only criticisms was focused on pupils’ learning: “In a few instances, a small number of teachers do not always check well enough what pupils have learned before presenting new knowledge. This means, at times, a minority of pupils do not achieve as highly as they should.”
To improve, the inspectors said, the school should ensure that staff requiring support are sufficiently supported and trained to deliver lessons that enable all pupils to make strong progress throughout the curriculum.
In response to the report, Mrs Thomson told parents: “Our ‘Outstandings’ in the four categories reflect a school that always puts your child at the heart of all it does. In an age whereby students have so much to contend with, to read that ‘pupils feel safe, cared for and happy in school’ is most re-assuring. It has always been our mission to offer a warm and nurturing learning community and this report reflects this.
“Behaviour is described as exemplary with pupils being diligent, presenting their work well and to a high standard this being a direct result of teachers having strong subject knowledge.… I could go on. I hope you will feel proud of your children and know that Ofsted has reflected, very clearly, in our report the values we hold dear.
“Marlborough does not rest on its laurels; it never has, and whilst celebrating such a warm and positive report we will continue to teach and care for your children so that they are ready for their next steps.
“It is a report to be very proud of and now we continue to focus on exam preparation, option choices and of course looking out for each other. I am really looking forward to sharing this report with the students and of course our new intake, and with another new build on the way, we continue to play a major role within our community.”
