Ofsted is carrying out focused inspections at 28 Norfolk schools to find out why so many in the county are underperforming
Focused Ofsted inspections at 28 Norfolk schools
Victoria Leggett, Education correspondent
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
10:11 AM
Teams of Ofsted inspectors have today begun a week of co-ordinated inspections in Norfolk to find out why the county has a disproportionate number of under-performing schools.
It is part of a wave of focused school visits taking place during the current term in local authority areas where the proportion of children attending a good or outstanding school is currently well below the national average.
The most recent data shows that only 54pc of secondary school children in Norfolk attend a good or better school. For primary school children, the figure is 63pc.
Sean Harford, Ofsted regional director for the East of England, said: “Every parent wants their child to go to a good or better school. However, in Norfolk a little over half of secondary school age children and only 63% of primary school children currently do so.
“It cannot be right that local authority areas with similar demographics - such as the size of the population and the levels of deprivation - have such varying levels of provision in schools.”
Together this will give a powerful snapshot of not only how well schools are doing in Norfolk since the Annual Report data was collected, but also a strong indication of the quality of external support and direction given to the schools by the local authority.
Ofsted believes the inspections will offer “a powerful snapshot” of how well schools are doing in Norfolk, and whether situation is improving, and a strong indication of the quality of external support and direction given to the schools by Nofolk County Council.
Other News Articles
- Major blow to North Walsham family’s dream of providing water for Ugandan orphans
- Britvic cutbacks will not affect Norfolk operation
- Military Revival at Old Buckenham Airfield
- Terror returns to Britain after man butchered in London street
- Mustard video: Martial arts expert sees off two burglars in Lakenham described as Lord of the Rings lookalikes
- Cows escape into road after holes cut in fence
- Who will pay for the infrastructure in Greater Norwich’s growth ambitions?
- Exhibition celebrates Norwich Cathedral’s role in Hollywood film
- Major new Norfolk attraction, Davenport’s Magic Kingdom, opens this Saturday in North Walsham
- Missing Norwich woman Emma Belka came home at 6am today
ADVERTISEMENT
15 comments
BigX's summary is spot on. I see that a number of regular commenters continue to carp on about rubbish teachers and governors. I wonder when they last stepped inside a school and saw the reality of what happens on a daily basis. As a governor, I do not have a vested interest in anything other than being passionate about supporting our local school to be the best it can be to ensure the children do as well as they can, and I resent the accusations regularly made by some on these forums that we are involved for any other personal vested interests. I also see things from another perspective, in that as someone who works in industry, I want to see our young people leaving school adequately equipped with the skills and education to enter the work place, so if that counts as a vested interest, then so be it. It is a fact that Norfolk schools receive less per pupil than areas and despite headlines about education budgets being protected, the reality is they are cut to the bone so there is very little opportunity to be able to provide some of the resources we would like in order to really enhance and support the efforts being made by the staff in our classrooms. There is another aspect to underperformance in Norfolk which has not been picked up on and that is the importance of parental support for children's learning and also parental aspiration for their children. I am surprised at the number of parents I come across who don't seem particularly concerned about their children having ambition to do well. Some seem to have the attitude that as long as the children are 'happy' it doesn't matter if they aren't quite where they should be with their education. Of course, I realise that this is not applicable to all parents, but nevertheless it is an issue. Parents have an important role to play in encouraging their children to aim high. I am really proud that at our school, the governors, staff and parents all work really hard TOGETHER, to ensure the school does the best it can for the children, who are achieving as a result, which has subsequently been recognised by Ofsted. A school's success cannot just be down to teachers alone, it really does need to be a team effort.
Report this comment
N
Thursday, March 14, 2013
How will the LEA be able to affect and influence secondary schools, now that the majority of secondary schools are academies and no longer under LEA control?
Report this comment
pablo
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Once again, the usual suspects choose to carp from the sidelines with very entrenched views about the education system, teachers and governors. I wonder how many have actually stepped inside a school recently and seen for themselves exactly what goes on and what schools have to contend with, particularly with ever changing goalposts. II am a school governor with no vested interest other than I am passionate about wanting to help my local school do the best it can for its pupils. I also see the other end of the system by working in industry and want to see children leaving school with the right level of education and skills ready to enter the work place. Yes, teachers and governors are responsible for the quality of education and if a governing body is worth it's salt it will be providing strong challenge and support to their school to help it develop and improve. I am fortunate to be part of a strong governing body with an exceptional skills set, and based on what we do in our day jobs, if we were paid there is no way the school could afford us, so trust me, its not something you do just to enhance your CV or make yourself look good; being a good governor takes time and commitment. Our school has recently been rated Good and this is due in no small part to the true team effort between the staff and governors working together to inspire everyone to be the best they can be. However, funding is a massive issue, despite what central government may say about education funding not being cut, it is a fact that Norfolk receives proportionately less per pupil than other areas. Looking at our budget going forward, everything has been cut to the bone, and I simply cannot see how we are supposed to maintain some of the really innovative and effective programmes which have contributed to our success with the funding we will receive. Our staff are really creative but they can't don't it all just on imagination and cobbling freebies together where they can, money does come into it as well. What schools need is quality support so if some of the naysayers in this forum actually put their money where their mouth is and volunteered to be a governor, they might realise that the reality is very different from their perceptions..
Report this comment
N
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Currently Norfolk is 118th out of 146 LEAs on a meausre of 5 or more GCSE passes. Based on our socioeconomics we should be nearer 73rd. This is not a sucess story! We have been mid table in the past and that is about as good as we can expect, but for some reason we have slipped into the bottom fifth. Argue all you like but it is the children who are being failed by the current system.
Report this comment
Police Commissioner ???
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Norfolk schools have never been excellent in comparison with many other regions. They have always not come up to scratch for our kids and have not been up with the best in terms of exam results nor kids going to university. If I remember correctly we had fewer grammar school places than some counties and we were definitely underfunded in comparison with other counties. I am not talking about cuts now, but what the schools we have now have worked up from-if they have poor buildings, poor facilities and were under resourced then they were always running to catch up with the rest of the country. Isn't Norfolk underfunded? Doesn't East Anglia come out as a net contributor to the national budget? Maybe our schools are failing because we are shortchanged relative to the subsidised regions of the UK
Report this comment
Daisy Roots
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
No, poor performance is not the result of immigrants or supposed spending cuts.
Report this comment
Bruce87
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Could it be that Norfolk has a large migrant population and the schools don't get enough help with teaching children from non English speaking housholds? The children will eventually learn English and catch up with their class mates but it must have an impact on the grades they achieve and affect the schools rating.
Report this comment
caroline jacobs
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
12 inch should read half inch or 1.25cm :o), should have proof read it before posting.
Report this comment
ggj666
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Maybe the under-performing is something to do with the fact that schools in Norfolk seem to close for the slightest little reasons. 12 inch of snow they close for week. At a guess i would say most schools have lost about 7 days this year all ready due to so called bad weather.
Report this comment
ggj666
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
But it's not the schools that are under-performing, is it? It's the children. They're all thick.
Report this comment
GoneAway
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
I see, so Norfolk's once excellent schools have in recent years gone down the pan purely as a result of bad governors, useless heads, and poor teachers, and the timing coincidental with Government spending cuts and the cumulative effect of a decade of misrule by County Hall is exactly that, a coincidence?
Report this comment
Mr Cameron Isaliar
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
It's nothing to do with spending or funding cuts. There is more than enough money for education and there are many examples of schools in Norfolk who are performing well and improving their results. The responsibility for performance lies directly with the governors, head teacher and teaching staff.
Report this comment
Bruce87
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Look no further than central Government funding cuts and crass incompetence from County Hall. The sharp decline in standards is secretly welcomed by the ruling party in both camps, whose electoral success in the county has a direct correlation to the proportion of uneducated turnip-munchers.
Report this comment
Mr Cameron Isaliar
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Thought you were smarter than that V. I would put consistent underfunding over the last forty years at the top of the list and the EDP might like to prove me wrong or right by finding the figures for places like Berkshire and inner city schools to compare the per head spending Norfolk and Suffolk have had to work with. I would also cite lack lustre leadership-too many under qualified deputy heads from non academic disciplines-and heads with very little teaching experience for that matter. Too many thickos and vested interests on boards of governors responsible for managing schools and appointing staff, too many staff who think they are getting a cushy ride in "tractor driver" Norfolk with low academic expectations for their pupils.Too many 11-16 high schools where they are not accountable for the success of their pupils at A level ( not that they should have VIth forms-just be accountable for how well equipped their pupils are to take any A level they want) And at the other end of the scale, a steady erosion of the quality of infant schools and the ability of infant school teachers to give kids a good grounding. This is down to a combination of the national curriculum, poor PGCE training,accepting below par candidates on early years PGCE courses and the training on the job option, the state of kids moving on from nursery schools and a general run before they can walk approach. This can't be changed overnight because the failures in infant schools are caused by the policies of successive governments.
Report this comment
Daisy Roots
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
"V" It is true that there are a small percentage of underperfoming teachers which is the case in any professions. The real problem is the ever shifting 'sands' of rules & regulations implemented by by central government. This combined with reduced funding is a very significant reason why there is a problem. For example I know of one local primary school which has had its budget for special educational needs cut by over £60,000. How is this helping children with specific disabilitieslearning difficulties (of which there are quite a few). It doesn't take a genious to then work out why they might have recently received an inadequate rating from Ofsted. Finally, I would also say that in relation to Ofsted and league tables - Nothing ever grows by just being measured.
Report this comment
BigX
Tuesday, March 12, 2013