Ofsted conducted a monitoring inspection at Greenfield Community College on June 29, 2021, following two successive judgments of requires improvement. The inspection aimed to evaluate the actions taken by the school to improve since the last section 5 inspection. The findings indicate that leaders and governors are taking effective action to enhance the school’s performance. However, further steps are needed to ensure that the curriculum at key stage 3 allows sufficient time for pupils to learn the planned content fully.
The school has faced challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has slowed down the implementation of improvement plans. Since the previous inspection, there have been significant changes in leadership, including the appointment of a new deputy headteacher and assistant headteacher, as well as new subject leaders in history and science. Additionally, new faculty leaders are set to take on roles in various subjects in September 2021, while eleven teachers have left the school.
The governance structure has also seen changes, with a new chair of the governing body appointed. Year 11 pupils completed their studies on June 18, 2021, and the school is providing bridging courses and master classes to support their transition to further education.
The leadership team has made considerable efforts to secure improvement, restructuring the leadership team to focus on school priorities and providing subject leaders with more time to concentrate on curriculum development. Funding from the ONE Vision programme has been utilized to enhance staff training, and departments are collaborating to strengthen curriculum planning. New strategies have been introduced to help teachers assess pupils' retention of key content, contributing to a broader drive to raise expectations.
The school is also refreshing its approach to reading, implementing new schemes to support weaker readers and enhance vocabulary knowledge. Regular reading sessions are being incorporated into the curriculum to foster a love for reading beyond the English classroom. While it is too early to measure the impact of these initiatives, they reflect a renewed commitment to improving literacy.
The curriculum has been reviewed, showing signs of breadth and variety, with over 80 percent of pupils participating in arts courses at key stage 4. Subject leaders are tasked with ensuring that curriculum plans align with national requirements, although the disruptions caused by the pandemic have limited opportunities to fully assess the effectiveness of these plans.
Support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities has been enhanced, with an increased capacity and expertise within the SEND team. The team meets weekly to review provisions, and the special educational needs coordinator is more actively involved in classrooms to monitor how teachers are addressing pupils' needs.
Governance has improved, with the new chair demonstrating a strong understanding of school performance and closely monitoring progress. The local authority has reduced the intensity of its monitoring due to the positive progress observed.
While pupil behavior and attitudes were previously judged as good, attendance remains a challenge. An attendance officer has been appointed to address barriers to attendance, and there are early signs of improvement.
Pupils report feeling safe and confident in sharing concerns with teachers, noting increased visibility of senior leaders around the school, which supports positive behavior. Overall, the inspection findings indicate that while there are areas for further development, the school is making significant strides toward improvement.
