Five schools in Bristol have the worst rating from Ofsted inspections carried out over the last two years, a new map shows. Parents of pre-school children will find out on April 16 which primary school their kids will be attending, when local authorities notify families, while places for secondary schools are allocated in a fortnight, on March 1.
Ahead of the announcements, the Reach Data Unit has compiled a map of the schools which have received the lowest ratings from school inspectors, Ofsted. This comes after Bristol Live's guide to the best-rated schools in and around Bristol, which shows all the schools rated 'good' or 'outstanding'.
The watchdog carries out inspections of schools and childcare providers around the country every week on a rolling basis. Schools in England are regularly inspected by Ofsted and receive an overall rating based on their inspection:
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- Grade 1 - Outstanding
- Grade 2 - Good
- Grade 3 - Requires improvement
- Grade 4 - Inadequate
Schools deemed to be “inadequate” will then be given one of two additional categories - 'serious weaknesses' or 'special measures', with the latter being the most serious. However, independent schools do not receive these classifications.
A total of five Bristol schools had an “inadequate” rating as of January 31 this year, as a result of inspections completed after May 2021. One is an independent school, one is a nursery, two are primaries and one is a secondary. Both primaries and the nursery are flagged for special measures.
Independent school, Andalusia Academy in Bristol has closed down since Ofsted visited. It had been open for 17 years but struggled with standards and finances.
Hartcliffe Nursery and Children's Centre was flagged by Ofsted inspectors as somewhere “children [are] being let down", with further findings that the children were not learning the things they needed to be ready to start primary school. The report said: “For much of their day, children choose what to do, many wander aimlessly” and “others flit between activities. Fighting over toys is commonplace".
The inspectors also found the school was not helping the children to learn how to manage their feelings and were not being taught how to behave properly. The report also said children were learning unhelpful habits, such as not co-operating or responding to instructions.
Following the review, Bristol City Council said its early years team was working closely with the school’s governors and senior leadership team to implement required improvements. The council also said the early years sector was facing staffing concerns and increasing costs which was putting unprecedented pressure on nurseries.
St Nicholas of Tolentine Primary School was rated as ‘inadequate’ for a second time and was warned government funding would be withdrawn unless it improves. The Ofsted inspectors found the curriculum was “poorly planned” and “did not enable pupils to communicate, read, write or apply mathematics sufficiently well for their age”. Attendance was also an issue with some pupils not attending regularly enough, with a minority of pupils not arriving on time.
The inspectors also found that the school’s governors have not held the leadership accountable for the quality of education. The school has to prove that overall improvements be made in the flagged areas in order to continue with funding from the Department of Education (DoE).
Lansdown Park Academy was given one of the worst Ofsted’s reports in Bristol’s history, but the arrival of new head Paul Todd in February 2022 has turned things around for the school. Following an Ofsted inspection in December, it was found that there had been “considerable changes to staffing.”
The latest report stated: “There is now a substantive leadership team in place who demonstrate a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities”, while it also highlighted that the new head had “acted swiftly to ensure there are clear plans in place to improve the curriculum for all pupils. Leaders have designed a curriculum which is now aligned with the length of the placement for the majority of pupils on roll.”
Montpelier High School was at one time considered to be the best school in Bristol. After the 'inadequate' report, the school apologised to parents after the inspector said they were not doing enough to address “serious weaknesses”.
The school was rated as ‘outstanding’ in 2010, so inspectors did not return to the school until March 2022, when they found issues such as children not feeling safe and unable to go to staff about safeguarding. When they returned on December 6, they found that the school’s leaders had made “insufficient progress to improve the school.”
This week Montpelier principal, Brendan Hesketh, said: "Montpelier High School has undergone fundamental changes since our Ofsted Inspection. This was recognised very recently by the Bristol City Council Safeguarding in Education Team.
"One of the areas we have invested heavily in is the mental health and well-being of our students. This has included the strengthening of our Personal Social Health Education curriculum and additional staff to support the needs of all of our students.
"Feedback from students and supportive parents has been critical in helping us to significantly improve our provision. We believe that every child in our care must feel secure so they can learn and thrive, and we are delighted that we remain oversubscribed for September 2023," he said.
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