Ofsted Inspection Results
Her Majesty's, Inspectors visited St Joseph’s Catholic College on 9th January 2018. In their letter to the Principal the inspectors stated:
"This school continues to be good”
The inspection team looked at the progress made on the action points from the last inspection in 2014 and decided that “The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection”.
In the inspection findings Ofsted noted “Strong leadership has led to improvements in teaching and learning in different areas of the school. This, in turn, has led to sustained strong achievement in subjects such as mathematics, English, religious education and languages since the previous inspection. In different year groups and subjects, pupils apply themselves to their studies. They behave well and share positive relationships with staff. This is because leaders have created an orderly school environment, underpinned by the Catholic faith that forms a key part of the school’s identity. This is a school where pupils respect others and, in large part, work harmoniously with each other in a purposeful way. “
As well as visiting lessons the team talked with a range of students whom they selected and looked at a range of exercise books. They found “As a result of good teaching, pupils, including those of middle ability, learn well in most of their subjects. The work in pupils’ books shows that most teachers have high expectations of what they can achieve. The majority of pupils take pride in their work and present it to a high standard. Pupils of different abilities are set challenging tasks which enable them to acquire skills and knowledge appropriate for their ages”.
Safeguarding was judged as effective." Pupils who spoke with inspectors reported that they feel safe in school. One reason for this is that they feel open and comfortable speaking to staff should they have any worries. They are highly positive about the pastoral support they receive. The school’s culture promotes this openness”.
The Principal, Mr Hughes congratulated his staff team and students saying:
"I am delighted that the college has once again been recognised as good. This report reflects the hard work done by so many people and is a credit to all those individuals who work tirelessly to support our students. It is important that the Ofsted report agrees with our own self- evaluation of the college. We were very open about our strengths and weaknesses, this self-awareness is crucial for a good judgement because it shows we are not complacent about what we want to improve"
