The four city schools that Ofsted says need to improve

ALL HAVE NATIONAL EDUCATION WATCHDOG'S SECOND-LOWEST RATING

- By RUCSANDRA MOLDOVEANU

(JOSEPH RAYNOR)

OFSTED rankings are just one of many criteria parents consider when choosing which school for their children.

The education watchdog the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills inspects services providing education and skills for learners of all ages.

There are four possible ratings that educational establishments can receive: “inadequate”, “requires improvement”, “good” and “outstanding”.

Inspectors look at four categories to decide overall ratings, including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

No Nottingham or Nottinghamshire schools currently fall into the lowest ranking but there are some the watchdog thinks could do better.

The four Nottingham schools which “require improvement”:

■Nottingham Academy, on Greenwood Road, Bakersfield, was rated “requires improvement” during its last full Ofsted inspection in November 2023.

The Greenwood Academies Trust school has almost 2,200 pupils on roll, aged three to 19, and has made progress in a number of areas since 2023, according to a monitoring inspection in September.

The watchdog previously said the school's curriculum was still being developed, leading to pupils struggling to “secure a strong foundation of knowledge”.

Now, however, the curriculum is “well designed and sequenced from the early years to the sixth form”.

Teachers have also been trained how to meet the needs of pupils with SEND, as inspectors had previously identified inconsistencies.

Another significant issue was that some pupils did not attend school enough, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds or with SEND.

Attendance at the academy is now in line with national averages, however, following “decisive and strategic” actions.

Additional senior leaders have also been appointed in the meantime to help implement improvements.