Longcroft School and Sixth Form are celebrating the outcome of their recent Section 5 Ofsted Inspection, which has further validated the school’s exceptional progress over recent years. Inspectors were hugely complimentary about the school and effusive in their recognition of the journey it has travelled since previous inspections.
They acknowledged the hard work of the dedicated staff, and the profound impact that the Wonder Learning Partnership (WLP) Trust has had in supporting rapid improvements, having been commissioned by the local authority to oversee the school in 2019.
The inspection team described how ‘pupils enjoy coming to school and are happy and safe.’ They recognised the school’s commitment to a holistic education, with inspectors highlighting how ‘pupils have access to a wide range of extra-curricular activities and enrichment,’ are engaged in those opportunities and ‘feel a sense of pride in their achievements.’ Behaviour and attendance at the school were celebrated as particular strengths, underlining the positive attitudes to school demonstrated by pupils and students. Mr David Perry, Headteacher, noted how the feedback “captures how our young people respond to our mission statement and how they demonstrate the values that we work hard to instill through all that we do. We are incredibly proud of each and every one of them.”
Mr Perry went on to state, “It was fantastic to hear the strong evaluation of our curriculum, which has been described as ‘ambitious, broad and well-sequenced’.” Inspectors were impressed by the school’s ‘work with primary schools’ to ensure a robust understanding of what children learn before they arrive at Longcroft, and how this enables the school to effectively ‘build pupils’ knowledge from key stage 2’.
Longcroft School has achieved ‘increasingly strong outcomes as a result of the quality of its curriculum’ which they were able to celebrate on a national platform this summer, including a visit from Good Morning Britain to broadcast live on GCSE Results Day. The school has enjoyed much positive attention of late, having already been recognised as ‘one of the most improved schools in the country’ by the Department for Education in 2022.
This latest judgement is an important milestone for the school community and a recognition of the incredible young people and their many achievements. Mr Perry expressed how It would ‘provide a platform for further growth and development’ and was keen to articulate how ‘the focus remains on providing a truly exceptional, world-class coeducational offer for the children of Beverley, North Hull and the surrounding areas’.
Inspectors were impressed by the ‘increasing number of students choosing to attend the school’ and notably ‘the sixth form’ which is one of the most rapidly growing in the region. They report how ‘students enjoy the provision and value the positive relationships that they have with teachers,’ noting that ‘students receive a personalised experience in the sixth form’ and that they are ‘known and supported as individuals’. The report also describes how ‘students are ambitious for their futures’ with many moving on to prestigious Universities and study programmes, as well as a range of employment and further training.
The CEO of the Wonder Learning Partnership (WLP) Trust, Mr Jonathan Britton, expressed his delight at the outcome, commenting that ‘Longcroft is an excellent demonstration of the power of partnership working’. The growing Trust has an excellent track record of school improvement and Longcroft now provides a further example of their continued success in this regard.
Mr Perry has described this as ‘an incredibly exciting time for the school’. Inspectors expressed how ‘leaders at all levels demonstrate the vision and capacity to further drive the school forward’ and continue its impressive trajectory.
