The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Many aspects of school life have moved into a higher gear, from achievement to behaviour, and pastoral care to the curriculum. As a member of staff wrote, ‘It has come on an incredible journey since the last inspection.’ Initiatives that started a few years ago have blossomed, and over 90% of staff are proud to work at the school. Since the last inspection, you have strengthened the quality of teaching in the school. This has resulted in improved progress for pupils in all years and in better GCSE examination results. Pupils now feel confident about how to improve their work, and typically behave well and work hard in lessons. The percentage of pupils attaining good grades in GCSE English and mathematics examinations in 2016 was just above average. Results were convincingly above average in several curriculum areas, such as technology and computer subjects, Spanish, sports and media studies. You and senior leaders are fully aware that a few subjects and groups had disappointing results. Tackling the underlying factors started early this year. Under your leadership, your deputy headteachers and other members of the senior leadership team have become increasingly effective. You insist on high standards of teaching throughout the school. You make sure that teachers’ skills are constantly improved by providing relevant and useful training sessions and by visiting and working with other schools to share best practice. You have appointed non-teaching staff and teaching assistants who contribute much to pupils’ well-being and progress. You welcome probing and challenging questions from your experienced and wise governors and regularly seek external advice to verify procedures and standards. A contributory factor to pupils feeling safe, happy and belonging is the successful establishment of four ‘small schools’. In these, teaching and non-teaching staff know each pupil really well, so that small and large concerns are dealt with swiftly. Many parents complimented the school, writing, for example, ‘I love the fact that Varndean is a caring, inclusive and friendly school.’ Pupils are extremely well prepared for their transition towards sixth-form studies and beyond through activities such as ‘learning for life’ and philosophy lessons. Pupils discuss many aspects of British values and often focus on the news in form time. They answer questions, written by a member of staff, which require them to reflect and learn much about what is happening in the world. One parent summed up exactly the atmosphere and strengths that the inspectors noticed, writing that there is ‘a strong ethos of developing the whole person, encouraging kindness, pupils valuing themselves and others and being socially aware and connected to their local community’. Pupils confirmed that behaviour has improved since the previous inspection. This has generated a reduction in exclusions and improved attendance – an aspect for improvement in the previous report. Your school has the best attendance in the local authority, but you are not complacent and staff continue to work hard to raise attendance further. The school’s website, rightly, describes your curriculum as ‘modern and diverse’. You and governors continue to offer a very wide range of subjects. This means that pupils in all years enjoy experiencing creative and artistic subjects. An aboveaverage proportion of them enter such subjects at GCSE and achieve very well. Year 7 pupils all learn a musical instrument. In addition, after taster sessions of 16 options, including creative writing and outdoor leadership, they choose one which they study for an afternoon a week. When I visited some of these sessions, it was clear that pupils were thoroughly absorbed and confident to work independently. This was an aspect of learning requiring improvement in the previous inspection. Many parents, rightly, complimented the considerable breadth of extra-curricular activities and trips, particularly the Duke of Edinburgh Awards. The school has the largest number of pupils achieving these awards in the South East. Parents also referred to the ‘brilliant music’, ‘fantastic drama’, ‘amazing library staff’, ‘energetic sport’ and ‘thought-provoking philosophy’. It is not surprising that the ethos of the school reflects its excellent provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Pupils contribute much to the local community and generously raise funds for charities.