The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Since you took up post in April 2016, you have raised the expectations of staff and pupils. You are ably supported by other senior leaders, who share your ambition to improve outcomes for all pupils. Consequently, leaders have implemented successful strategies to improve behaviour and the quality of teaching. As part of this work, you have successfully tackled the areas for improvement identified at the time of the previous inspection. Pupils’ progress in mathematics is now in line with the national average and comparable with other subjects in the school. The quality of teaching in the sixth form has also improved and is enabling students to make progress that is in line with the national average. Pupils in different subjects across the school are more consistently acting on advice from teachers to improve their work. Leaders at all levels are aware of the school’s strengths and areas for development. Middle leaders, governors and representatives of the multi-academy trust (MAT), to which the school belongs, are united by a common purpose. They ‘pull together’ to implement whole-school strategies for improvement. Nearly all staff who responded to the survey issued during the inspection agreed that they feel proud to work at the school. They also agreed that leaders do all they can to ensure the school has a motivated, well-respected and effective workforce. The school has benefited from the support provided by the MAT. Staff now work closely with colleagues from other trust schools to improve the transition from primary to secondary school. This partnership has helped staff to raise their expectations of what pupils can achieve when they join the school in Year 7. Moderation activities across trust schools are also helping staff to become more accurate in their assessment. Furthermore, the trust provides invaluable financial and human resource (HR) support to the school. This enables leaders to concentrate on raising standards. Governors have adjusted well to changes in their roles and responsibilities following the school becoming part of the MAT. They continue to raise the level of challenge directed at leaders and take full advantage of training that helps them become more effective in their work. Now that the MAT takes responsibility for finance, HR and the estate, governors focus their efforts on teaching, pupils’ welfare and achievement. The school is a welcoming, inclusive place where pupils learn to become tolerant, accepting young people. They are polite, articulate and personable. Pupils are well behaved and move in an orderly way around the school. Leaders’ implementation of the ‘disruption-free learning’ system has significantly improved behaviour. This is notable in lessons and during social time. Pupils who spoke with inspectors reported that they valued their school experience, in large part because of the positive relationships that they share with staff. One pupil in key stage 4 said, ‘All pupils are treated equally.’ Another pupil told the lead inspector, ‘I respect [staff] because they respect me.’ At the beginning of the inspection, we agreed on the key lines of enquiry to be considered during the day. These included establishing the effectiveness of safeguarding and leaders’ actions to raise the achievement of disadvantaged pupils. We also considered the suitability of the curriculum and whether absence and exclusions were reducing. These lines of enquiry are considered below, under ‘Safeguarding’ and ‘Inspection findings’, where they have not already been referred to. Safeguarding is effective. The designated safeguarding lead has clear oversight of the systems and processes in place to protect children. She coordinates a wider team which understands its roles and responsibilities well. All members of the wider safeguarding team have received enhanced training, reflecting their responsibilities, and they communicate frequently to discuss any concerns that arise. All staff have been trained in child-protection matters and understand the need to be vigilant. They know who to speak to and what to do should they have concerns about a child. Referrals are passed to the designated safeguarding team, which acts swiftly to resolve issues. Referral files are well organised and contain the necessary information. They record chronologies of events, external agency involvement and actions taken to resolve issues. Checks to ensure that staff are suitable to work with pupils are up to date, comprehensive and rigorous.