What We Value

The fact that the students are central to the life of the

Improvement Plan
2015-2016

Our Aim For

This Year

Building upon the improvements made over

the past three years, and as we take our
place in the Alston Moor Federation, we aim
to accelerate our progress to the point where
every area of our performance is good by
December 2015 and acquires outstanding
features as the academic year progresses.

school and its development.

A welcoming & friendly atmosphere in which people
can focus and learn and that nurtures peoples pride
in their achievements and sense of self-worth.
Peoples differences and individual qualities and the
value of what they can bring to the school.
Our commitment to hard work and determination to
improve and to achieve our best in everything we do,
especially in the classroom.
Knowing what individual students are capable of and
focusing resources to help them to make good or
better progress towards their targets.
Maintaining the open door policy that underlines our
appreciation of the contribution that parents make to
their childrens success in school and facilitates good
working relationships between staff and our
community.
Working in partnership with other secondary schools
and 16+ providers.
Links with local primary schools and Cumbria County
Council.
Developing partnerships with local businesses and the
voluntary sector.
Providing the high quality leadership needed to drive
the school forward.

Overall Aim / Target:

Area
Personal Development, Behaviour & Welfare

For this area of the Schools work to be good in every aspect by December 2015 and
to be outstanding in some respects by the end of the academic year.

Current Situation / Critical Analysis

Supporting Evidence

Required Changes

Behaviour & Safety judged RI at the last Inspection.

Changes have been made since then, including the
introduction of staff duties and Incident Sheets, but more
needs to be done to achieve the overall aim / target.

Actions / Objectives

Led By

Time Scale

IPJ

In place from
th
7 Sept. 2015

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.
7.

Ensure that school leaders are always on hand to help

resolve issues by instituting an out & about schedule
and holding weekly school detentions.
Monitoring the incident sheets completed each week,
producing a short report each half term outlining
patterns / trends and actions to be taken.
Promote Vivos, Tutor Group awards and Pink Slips in
Monday morning assemblies, ensuring that all staff are
consistent in their use and that students are fully
aware of what is being awarded and why.
Take a strategic approach to staff training by:
a. including behaviour management and
safeguarding in the Sept. INSET with follow up
sessions as appropriate;
b. and ensuring everyone needing Level 2 or 3
Safeguarding training is in date with their
qualification and recorded in the central log.
Include PSHE / Pupil Safety sessions in every third
week of the rotating Tutorial Programme. Reinforce
the topics covered by Tutors in lessons and assemblies.
Continue to develop the Student Voice through the
introduction of a fortnightly School Council.
To complete a review of all policies and procedures
within this area so that a Personal Development,
Behaviour and Welfare Strategy can be presented to
th
staff on Monday 4 January and then implemented.

March 2015 Ofsted

Report

ST

ST

ST / MT

ST / All
ST / LC

ST

Procedures for Monitoring Actions

INSET Day programmes.

Half termly behaviour reports.
Out and about schedule

First report
discussed at
Sept. INSET
Weekly from
th
7 September
2015

Success Criteria/ Intended Outcomes

Progress

Sept. INSET
programme.

Safeguarding
training
completed by
st
Dec. 31

First week to
st
th
be 21 -25
Sept.
From
Week 3

Monday 4
January
onwards

th

Continue to improve behaviour in and out of lessons.

Build upon current rewards and sanctions and increase their impact.
Ensure people are appropriately trained and can work consistently.
Take a more strategic approach to students Personal Development.

By October half term, less than five students to be in

the weekly detention.
This figure to be <3 by January 2016.
By October half term, less than five incident sheets
to be completed each week.
This figure to be <3 by January 2016.
Student Council to report positively on the rewards
on offer in November, March and June.
350 of Vivos to be awarded in each of the first two
terms. 1,000 to have been allocated by July.
Governor feedback from monitoring weeks to report
student behaviour in lessons and around the site is
good or better.
Numbers of exclusions to be <75% of those the
previous two years and to be clearly decreasing.
Central log shows that colleagues have the right
safeguarding qualifications and that they are in date.
Completed PSHE / Pupil Safety schedule filed with
other programmes of study.
Evidence of reinforcement in lessons & assemblies.
Minutes of meetings reflect good attendance and
engagement on the part of the students.
th
Strategy document presented to staff on 4 January.
Implementation timetable included with the
strategy document, incorporated into revised
Improvement Plan and acted upon.

Procedures for Monitoring Impact

Tutorial programmes
School Council minutes

Weekly tally of incident sheets

School detention lists
Safeguarding qualifications list

School Council feedback

Governor monitoring week feedback
Feedback from teacher meetings

Intended Impact (see overall target)

The Ofsted Inspection in the second half of this year should identify this as an area of good practice with some features of outstanding practice. Behaviour around the site and in
lessons should be calm and purposeful. Students should feel safe and positive about their futures. Safeguarding issues should be dealt with promptly and effectively.

Overall Aim / Target:

Area
Teaching, Learning & Assessment

For this area of the Schools work to be good in every aspect by December 2015 and
to be outstanding in some respects by the end of the academic year.

Current Situation / Critical Analysis

Supporting Evidence

Required Changes

Students are sometimes not moved on quickly enough to

more challenging tasks as soon as they are ready. In some
students books, work is unfinished and poorly presented.
Teachers marking does not give students consistently clear
advice about how to improve their work. Ofsted.

Changes have been made since the last Inspection including staffing, timetables and
the introduction of five key areas of focus for each teacher to follow. But, more needs
to be done to achieve the overall aim / target. We need to achieve a consistent
approach within our teaching team. We need to improve the delivery of cross
curricular literacy and numeracy. Assessment needs to better inform teaching.

Actions / Objectives

Led By

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Use a combination of academic research, INSET

activities, teacher meetings and one to one support to
create a consistent approach to delivering high quality
teaching, learning and assessment.
Introduce Student Planners for the 2015/16 academic
year, ensuring that students know how to make best
use of them and do so.
Introduce Teacher Files for the 2015/16 academic year,
ensuring that colleagues know what needs to be
included within them and keep them up to date.
Review existing policies and procedures and
incorporate best practice into a new Teaching,
Learning and Assessment Policy for use with staff and
nd
students from 2 September 2015.
Schedule Numeracy and Literacy sessions every first
and second week in the rotating Tutorial Programme.
Reinforce the topics covered in lessons to create a
truly cross curricular approach.
Ensure that every teacher reviews their half termly
Assessment Checkpoint grades and uses them to adapt
their strategy for the coming half term to boost rates
of progress for individual students and specific groups.

March 2015 Ofsted

Report
SEF and other
evaluations

Time Scale

Success Criteria/ Intended Outcomes

Progress

nd

LC

2 Sept. 2015
onwards

LC / ST

7 Sept. 2015

LC

2 Sept. 2015
onwards

th

nd

IPJ / LC

LC / DB

LC

nd

2 Sept. 2015
onwards
Numeracy
from 7/9/15.
Literacy from
th
14 Sept.
First review to
be completed
by Monday
nd
2 November

Effective questioning, the development of

independent learning skills and consistent classroom
expectations and management all to be identified as
rd
th
strengths from 23 - 27 Nov. monitoring week.
Planners to be in use and on every students desk
rd
th
during the 23 27 November monitoring week.
Every student to have evidence of good homework.
th
Teacher files in place and in use from Monday 7
September. Files to become each teachers key
planning tool.
90% or more of teaching, learning and assessment
rd
th
judged to be good or better during the 23 27
November monitoring week. This figure to rise to
100% by January 2016.
th
nd
28 Sept. 2 Oct. monitoring week to find
evidence of numeracy in >50% of lessons visited.
rd
th
During the 23 27 November monitoring week
literacy should be evident in >75% of lessons.
th
Teachers meeting of 9 November 2015 to provide
evidence that every teacher has adapted their
strategies appropriately.
December AC grades to demonstrate good progress.

Procedures for Monitoring Actions

Procedures for Monitoring Impact

INSET programmes.
Student Planner checks
Teacher meeting agendas.
Teacher File checks
Completed Teaching, Learning & Assessment Policy
Tutor Group and Lesson monitoring
Assessment Checkpoint reviews

Governor / leader learning walks during monitoring weeks.

Half termly reviews of Assessment Checkpoint grades.
Work Scrutinies.
Exam results analysis.
Pupil Premium monitoring.
Student feedback.

Intended Impact (see overall target)

We want to push the RI Quality of Teaching at the last Inspection in March 2015 to the point where it is securely good by December 2015 and then good with outstanding
features from January onwards. This means a focus and sense of purpose in lessons with students clearly engaged in their learning. It means well-presented exercise books,
with student clearly following up on the pink box work designed to move their learning on. It means regular and relevant homework done and progress being made.

Overall Aim / Target

Area
Outcomes for Students
Current Situation / Critical Analysis
Rates of progress have picked up during the past three
years, but need to accelerate further. While the gaps have
been closing for PPM students and in-school data suggests
that it has narrowed significantly in the younger years, the
2015 GCSE results will indicate that much remains to be
done in terms of PPM and boys achievement.

Actions / Objectives
1.

2.

3.

Ensure that every teacher reviews their half termly

Assessment Checkpoint grades and uses them to adapt
their strategy for the coming half term to boost rates
of progress for individual students and specific groups.
Ensure that every Tutor fulfils their academic mentor
role fully by:
a. reviewing Assessment Checkpoint results with
each student individually by praising strengths,
identifying issues & agreeing remedial actions;
b. communicating effectively with parents;
c. and leading quality tutorial sessions to help
develop students literacy & numeracy skills and to
support their personal development and safety.
Produce a half termly report for Governors identifying:
a. on-going trends in the progress being made by
SEN, PPM & G&T students;
b. the effectiveness of the interventions carried out
the previous half term for SEN, PPM, G&T and
others falling behind with targeted grades;
c. and the issues raised through the latest
Assessment Checkpoint analysis along with the
interventions planned to address them.

For this area of the Schools work to be good in every aspect by December 2015 and
to be outstanding in some respects by the end of the academic year.

Supporting Evidence

Required Changes

GCSE exam results

2012-2015.
Ofsted feedback.
School data.

Led By

Time Scale

LC

First review to
be completed
by Monday
nd
2 November

Teacher Meetings
Governor Committee Meetings

Success Criteria/ Intended Outcomes

Progress

ST

On-going
from Monday
th
7 Sept.

ST

Procedures for Monitoring Actions

A school wide focus is required to develop students literacy and numeracy skills.
The Deputy Head needs to adopt a systematic approach to ensure that
appropriate interventions are implemented to address issues of slow progress
with their effectiveness is later evaluated.
Teachers and Form Tutors must also make full use of assessment checkpoint data,
sharing it with students and amending their plans to address identified issues.

On-going
from Monday
th
7 Sept.

th

9 November 2015 Teachers Meeting shows every

teacher has adapted their strategies appropriately.
Dec. Assessment Checkpoint grades to demonstrate
students on track to make good progress.
Monitoring of tutorial sessions during Weeks 5 & 12
demonstrates consistently good practice.
>50% of students aware of Assessment Checkpoint
grades and their progress towards their targets
th
when questioned in week beginning 9 Nov. 2015.
>90% of students aware of their grades and what
they need to do to improve when questioned during
Week 12 monitoring.
Completed reports ready for Governors by:
nd
- Monday 2 November 2015
th
- Tuesday 4 January 2016
nd
- Monday 22 February 2016
th
- Monday 11 April 2016
th
- Monday 6 June 2016
Gaps between different student groups eradicated
th
by Monday 4 January 2016.

Procedures for Monitoring Impact

Tutor Meetings
Monitoring Weeks

LT Learning Walks
Student Council feedback

Assessment Checkpoint Analysis

Monitoring week activities

Intended Impact (see overall target)

We want teachers, students and parents to be fully aware of the targets set for the end of the 2015/16 academic year and the progress being made towards them. Where the
on-going collection of data suggests that there are issues, we want to be far quicker and more effective in deciding and implementing particular interventions. Fay Birtwistles
SEN and Tracy Norriss PPM input must be targeted, effective and evaluated. The curriculum presented to our G&T students and their progress within it must also be monitored,
evaluated and extended as appropriate. We aim to achieve >65% 5 GCSE E/M in the summer of 2016 with >80% of grades demonstrating expected progress or better.

Overall Aim / Target

Area
Effectiveness of Leadership & Management
Current Situation / Critical Analysis

Supporting Evidence

Judged RI at the March 2015 Inspection, the School only

had one leader in the Headteacher, Ian Johnson, for the
2015/15 academic year. With Sally Timmons joining as
Deputy Head and Lindsey Chapman taking on a role as
Teaching Team Leader, the capacity is there to make the
rapid and sustained progress required in this area.

Actions / Objectives
1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

March 2015 Ofsted

Inspection.
Governor minutes.
LA minutes.

Led By

For Teaching, Learning and Assessment to be good in

every aspect by December 2015 and push on to
acquire outstanding features.
For students Personal Development, Behaviour and
Safety to be good in every aspect by December 2015
and push on to acquire outstanding features.
For Student Outcomes to be good in every aspect by
December 2015 and then push on to acquire some
outstanding features.
For the work of the Leadership Team to be focused in
such a way that actions taken to improve one area
enhance what is being done to improve standards
elsewhere and that there is a relentless drive to push
up standards and achieve goals.
Maintain and strengthen current good practice in
governance while ensuring that the new Federation
Governing Body is given all the information it needs
to challenge school leaders and to hold them to
account.

LT minutes
Improvement Plan review

Required Changes

Time Scale
st

LC

ST

ST

IPJ

From 1
Sept.
onwards
st
From 1
Sept.
onwards
st
From 1
Sept.
onwards

On-going

IPJ /
Governors

We need to better provide the leadership and direction required to Teaching,

Learning & Assessment, Personal Development, Behaviour & Safety and Student
Outcomes so that our performance in these areas is at least good by December
2015 and can be outstanding in some respects by the end of the academic year.
We must better provide governors with the information they need to fully
challenge school leaders and hold them to account.

Success Criteria/ Intended Outcomes

Progress

Procedures for Monitoring Actions

For this area of the Schools work to be good in every aspect by December 2015 and
to be outstanding in some respects by the end of the academic year.

On-going

90% or more of teaching, learning and assessment

rd
th
good or better during the 23 27 November
monitoring week. Must be 100% by January 2016.
rd
Student behaviour to be judged good during 23
th
27 Nov. monitoring week.
Positive external feedback on PPM in Nov. 2015.
2016 5 GCSE E/M >65%. >80% of GCSE grades to
show expected progress or better.
Good lit./num. provision in Nov. monitoring week.
LT meetings take an issue-addressing approach.
Learning Walks linked to out & about schedule.
Improvement Plan progress columns evidence
achievement of intended outcomes.
Improvement Plan updated for January 2016.
Governor involvement in Monitoring Weeks
maintained. Findings from each of these weeks in
terms of teaching, learning, assessment & behaviour
included in reports to all Governors.
Half termly reports to Governors on student
outcomes to be strengthened by details of the
success of interventions put in place for SEN, PPM,
G&T and other students falling behind their targets.

Procedures for Monitoring Impact

LT Learning Walks

Governor involvement in Monitoring Weeks

Feedback from external PPM review.
Exams results analysis

Intended Impact (see overall target)

We expect to see a far greater LT presence across the school and have invested in two new leadership roles to achieve just this. That presence should translate to an increasing
sense of purpose and focus in lessons. Behaviour both in and out of lessons should also improve. We expect to see student progress throughout the year and the outcomes
achieved in Summer 2016 to accelerate markedly. We expect Federation Governors to receive the information required to know the school well and this to continue to be
backed up by the on the ground knowledge provided through taking part in classroom observations and other activities during monitoring weeks.