East Point Academy

Overview

East Point Academy continues to be a good school, offering an ambitious curriculum that pupils value. Leaders have designed a well-sequenced education that supports pupils of all backgrounds, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, though variability remains in some subjects.

Strengths

• The curriculum is "well sequenced" to ensure pupils build knowledge incrementally, with teachers using effective strategies to help pupils remember and understand challenging texts.
• Behaviour in lessons is "calm" with pupils’ attention focused on learning, supported by clear routines and high expectations.
• Personal development is strong, with pupils taught how to stay safe from online risks and benefiting from a "wide-ranging programme of careers education".
• Staff feel leaders are "considerate of their workload," particularly regarding recent changes to assessment policies that have reduced marking.

Areas to improve

• Leaders should continue to develop and embed curriculum plans in subjects where they are not yet fully established, as this variability means pupils do not achieve as well in these areas as elsewhere.
• Leaders must refine their use of analysis and strategies to tackle high levels of persistent absence, which prevents some pupils from benefiting fully from the education provided.
• Safeguarding systems need improvement to ensure they capture the full detail of concerns, so that incident information is accessible to all relevant staff rather than just a few.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with thorough recruitment checks and regular staff training, although some recorded information is not immediately accessible, which could slow responses if key staff were absent.