Christ's College

Overview

Christ’s College is described as a school where pupils benefit from a "caring and nurturing environment" with "caring, warm and courteous" relationships between staff and pupils. The report highlights "significant improvements" since the previous inspection, noting a "calm and purposeful atmosphere" and an ambitious curriculum that has increased access to the English Baccalaureate for disadvantaged pupils.

Strengths

• The curriculum is "ambitious for all pupils," with learning carefully sequenced to build on prior knowledge, ensuring pupils are "well prepared to transition to their secondary education."
• Provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is effective, with staff using consistent strategies and ‘Teacher files’ to ensure these pupils "access the curriculum with success."
• Early years provision is "effective," with a "sharp focus on stories and number" that fosters enjoyment and prepares children well for Year 1.
• Reading is a high priority, with teachers delivering phonics well and providing effective interventions for those who struggle, helping pupils become "confident and fluent readers."
• Leaders and governors are praised for acting with "determination to improve the school" and providing a "well-thought-out professional development programme" for staff.

Areas to improve

• Leaders should "accelerate their plans to improve the attendance" of disadvantaged pupils, as too many miss school and "miss out on essential learning."
• The school should ensure checks on pupils’ knowledge are used "purposefully so that pupils can move on to new content," as some teachers do not use this information swiftly enough.
• Leaders must implement "robust, analytical systems" to analyse behavioural patterns and trends, as current monitoring does not fully reveal which groups are involved in incidents.

Safeguarding

The report states that "the arrangements for safeguarding are effective."