Breda Academy

Overview

This Baseline Monitoring Inspection report highlights that the school’s capacity to demonstrate improvement was severely limited by widespread industrial action, with most teachers refusing to cooperate with inspectors. Consequently, the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) states it is “unable to assure parents/carers... of the quality of the education being provided for the pupils.” The report notes that while some development work has occurred, the ongoing dispute continues to impact the school’s ability to effect required changes.

Strengths

• The school has “broadened appropriately the curricular offer at key stage 4,” including access to vocational subjects.
• “Good work has been undertaken to monitor closely the targets set for pupil attainment” and develop intervention strategies for at-risk pupils.
• Following a return visit, the school provided evidence that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education.”
• Most pupils reported during the follow-up that they “feel safe and are aware of what to do if they have any concerns.”

Areas to improve

• The curriculum at post-16 is “narrow” and collaboration with other providers is “underdeveloped,” with “insufficient provision for careers education.”
• Pastoral care structures do not “support sufficiently the achievement and progression of the pupils,” and pupils have “limited awareness of how to take responsibility for their work and behaviour.”
• The school must plan more coherently for the personal development curriculum and establish “more systematic processes for monitoring” behaviour policies.

Safeguarding

While the school provided evidence that arrangements broadly reflect Departmental guidance, the ETI was unable to fully evaluate their outworking due to industrial action, and pupils raised concerns regarding corridor supervision and post-16 study facilities.