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2006 GCSEs:We achieved the best results in the school's history with 57% of pupils gaining 5+ A*-C, together with trebling the number of A* and doubling the number of A*/A grades.
6th Form:Very succesful HMI Inspection in March and record pass rates this summer (see 6th form section).
Sport:Our Sports Science Suite opened which contains the latest fitness gear together with state-of the PCs. BTEC Sport awards gained 100% pass rate at both KS4 and KS5.Our teams were again successful in a wide variety of sports.
The Arts:Awarded Artsmark Silver in May and we put on our acclaimed production of Fiddler on the Roof in November.
SEN:Our Student Support Centre has been completely upgraded and caters for pupils who require support, help or re-integration. We have also reduced our exclusions.
Ethos:Blazers were introduced and we appointed Head Girls/Boys for the first time.
High attendance at Parent Tutor meetings as well as at sessions designed to help parents to help with their child's learning.
Standards: Improve even more the achievements of all our students.
Rewards & Sanctions: We are implementing a new high profile Merits system called "High Five" to complement our current one in order to get even more students involved.
Parental & Community Links: We are looking to further involve our stakeholders. For example, we are becoming an Eco School and are developing links with the Nature Reserve that borders our grounds. Our 6th formers are looking to go out into our community to support residents.
Curriculum: We are broadening our curriculum offering at the end of Year 9 to provide more personalised pathways for our students.
Sporting Facilities: We are very anxious to improve these for our community by trying to provide it with a new Sportshall. We are working hard to make this a reality!
Student Voice:We have an active School Council but we plan to empower it even further to help in the running of our school.
Enterprise:We plan to offer all our Y10 students a GCSE in this subject.
The current Headteacher began in September 2004.
Since this point the number of students gaining 5+ A*-C grades has gone from 32% to 41% and then to 57% in the summer of 2006. The average GCSE points score has gone from 34 pts to 36.9 and reached the record value of 44.5 pts in 2006. The number of students gaining at least 1 GCSE has risen to a 5 year high (97%).This summer 12 depts had their best ever results with 10 having a 100% pass rate.
Mathematics has been a flagship at KS3, most notably increasing its percentage of students gaining level 6+ to 55% (from 52% in 2004).
Science has gradually improved from 58% level 5+ and 25 % level 6+ to 66% 5+ and 33% 6+ in 2006.
English has consistently achieved high results though underperformed slightly in 2006.
The 6th form results have also improved over this time both in terms of the pass rate and the number of high grades achieved (see later section).
We have a vertical tutor group system. This means that each student will remain with the same tutor for all their time in school and be in a group with 5 or 6 students from each year. Their tutor is also their academic mentor. They monitor the progress of each of their students.
Students who have a Statement of Special Educational Needs or who are on School Action/Plus have an Individual Education Plan. These are used by all subject staff and are reviewed on a regular basis.
Schemes of Work in each subject include differentiation and have a variety of different assessment methods to recognise different learning styles.
Assesment for Learning is an integral part of all lessons and has been our key focus from the National Stategy Programme.
We have a Gifted & Talented Register in order that students are identifed and their needs in lessons (and extra-curricular activities) can be met.
Lessons are regularly observed both by heads of dept and members of the Senior Leadership Team in order to maintain standards and provide development for class teachers.Book scrutinies are also undertaken.
Students are regularly assessed,and in those subjects where setting occurs,students can move up & down.
We have a vertical house tutor system (as mentioned above). The tutor is the first point of contact and also has the support of a senior member of staff who is the Head of House.
Our Student Support Centre, as well as helping specific students, is also a place for students to seek help or advice. It is adjacent to our drop-in-centre which houses our School Counsellor, School Nurse, Careers Advisor and the local PCSO (at various times in the week).
We are a Healthy Eating School and also ensure each student receives at least 2hrs of quality PE each week.
Our PSHE/Citizenship programme and PE lessons educate and inform students on all aspects of life development and becoming a part of our society.
We have a zero-tolerence policy on bullying and will seek to re-educate anyone behaving this way.
Actively encouraging participation in learning, through parent teacher meetings, learning workshops for pupils and parents at key times in a pupil's school life.
We actively encourage parents to take accredited courses alongside their children in order to help foster lifelong learning. We celebrate pupils and parents achievement at Presentation Evenings and through our academic and sporting newsletters.
Our new fitness suite is now an integral part of Dudley's GP referral system, catering for pupils with their parents to tackle obesity and ill health in the local community.
Taking on board the healthy schools initiative with input from all school stakeholders.
We are developing our strong links with the community and parents and are seeking to have this recognised through the LPPA.
It is impossible to describe all the activities on offer but here is a flavour of what students can take part in:
- Sports (football,rugby,cricket,netball,basketball,hockey,swimming, athletics,etc.)
- Music (Choirs, Samba band, Rock bands)
- Dance Clubs
- Productions (eg Les Mis, Oliver)
- Twilight GCSE Drama
- Twilight GCSE Dance
- Twilight GCSE ICT
- AS Critical Thinking
- Breakfast Clubs (Literacy and Numeracy)
- Homework Clubs (Lunchtimes)
- Debating Club
- History Club
- Chess Club
- Green Power Racing Club
- Book Club (meeting monthly,discussing a new book each time)
- Residential Experiences & foreign trips(eg France, Germany, USA)
- Lifesaving / JSLA awards
- Musical instrument tuition
- Cheerleading Club
- Skateboarding
We also have an Opportunities Week each summer with a whole range of activities both based in school and elsewhere.
We have an active School Council, interview students and undertake whole school surveys.
Merits System: Students told us (via School Council) that more students should be rewarded for doing what is expected as well as for exceptional work-and be rewarded in a more visible way. We are introducing such a system with merit badges and a Rewards Shop to "cash in" their merits.
Toilets: Yr7 students told us (via interviews) that they wanted to use the toilets but thought they weren't too inviting. We spent a considerable sum upgrading them.
Sporting Facilities: This was found to be the main priority in our last whole school survey. We are co-ordinating a campaign (including using students) to try to bring a sportshall to the school and its local community. Other survey results are discussed at SC.
Lesson Registrations: Arriving on time,being prepared,working hard and respecting others are an integral part of Rewards system. These are recorded for each lesson.Students do not gain merits if they fall short of any of these.
Strike Card: All students carry a Strike card. If they are out of uniform they receive a "strike".3 strikes result in a long Friday pm detention!
On-call System: A senior member of staff is always on-call if a student is misbehaving in class. If necessary a student can be asked to work in our supervised isolation unit.
Behaviour Policy: We have strict rules and will exclude both internally and externally if appropriate.
The destination of our students from 2005 were as follows:
Continued Learning in Full Time Education: 61% - with 21% in our 6th form and 40% at other FE colleges.
Continued Learning in the Labour Market: 18% - 10% on apprenticeships and 8% on Emplyment with training.
Not in Learning: 18% - 11% in employment without training and 7% unemployed.
Unknown: 2% had either moved away or could not be contacted.
The Ellowes Hall School provides a satisfactory standard of education. It has halted the decline which was seen in the last two years and there are clear signs of improvement. It supports satisfactory achievement and personal development, and provides satisfactory value for money. Pupils come to the school with knowledge and skills which are below average. The secure and supportive school environment, together with recent developments in behaviour management and teaching, is now promoting average standards in a majority of subjects. The sixth form is inadequate because it does not provide a suitable curriculum for all of the students who are recruited.
Date of last inspection: 22-Nov-2004
Ofsted graded our school as Satisfactory
Inspectors made judgements on a scale: excellent (grade 1); very good (2); good (3); satisfactory (4); unsatisfactory (5); poor (6); very poor (7).
Following the last OFSTED Inspection we wrote a new School Improvement Plan including an OFSTED action plan. These are the main areas:
- Leadership & Management (new SIP,Governor involvement,Self-Evaluation Schedule,Performance Management,Finance,Staffing,6th Form focus).
- Standards at Key Stages 3,4 (G&T,Subject standards,Monitoring & Intervention, Homework,Rewards,IEPs,Learning & Teaching,Citizenship and Careers).
- Post 16 - See 6th form section.
- Pupil Development (Behaviour,Independent Learning,Student Voice,SMSC,Attendance and Exclusion,Healthy Eating)
- Parents & Community (Primary Links,Parental awareness, Partnerships, Communication and feedback).
Our results this year
This summer we achieved our highest ever A2 pass rate of 94% with 15 out of 17 subjects having a 100% pass rate. Half of these passes were at grades A-C, up 30% on last year. The average points score was also up and was the highest in the last six years.Subject results are listed:
- English Literature(Pass rate = 84.6%, Grade C or higher = 23.1%, Av Pts Score = 3.8)
- Mathematics (100%,100%,8)
- Physics (100%,100%,8)
- Chemistry (100%,100%,6)
- Media (100%,25%,4)
- History (100%.0%,2)
- Geography (100%,50%,5)
- PE (100%,0%,4)
- RE (100%,100%,6)
- Business (100%,0,3)
- Art (100%,75%,5.3)
- Dance (100%,100%,6)
- Music Tech (50%,0%,1)
- Health (100%,100%,6)
- Sociology (100%,100%,6)
- BTEC PE (100%,100%,6.8)
- Graphics (100%,0,2)
Our students taking BTEC level 2 courses achieved 100% pass rate.
Since 2004, our results in the 6th form have increased year on year.
The overall pass rate has gone from 77.3% in 2004 to 90.2 % in 2005 to the record figure of 93.6% in 2006.
The number of A-C passes has jumped from 17.7% in 2005 to 46% in 2006 (the second highest in the history of the 6th form).
The average points score has risen form 8.07 in 2004 to 9.4 in 2005 and then to 11.9 in 2006.
In 2004 only 4 subjects had a 100% pass rate at A2. This increased to 10 subjects in 2005 and reached 15 subjects in 2006.
A similar trend has been shown in AS subjects.
The main success for the Sixth Form this year is being removed from an "inadequate category" following the Ofsted inspection of November 2004.
The 6th form underwent 3 HMI inspections following the above OFSTED in 2004. The report from the final one in March 2006 can also be found on the OSFTED Reports website.
The Report stated that the way the Sixth Form "is led and managed has improved markedly" since the previous inspection. The "standard of work is rising". Some of the teaching, notably in Art and Business Studies is "outstanding" and standards in English are "significantly above national figures". Care, guidance and support were also deemed to be above average. Managers and students were congratulated for their hard work and enthusiasm.
We are working to further improve recruitment into the 6th form. We have inccreased the number of courses, particularly at level 2 and have collaborated with Dudley College to widen the choice available.
We are striving to enhance the 6th form students' involvement in the whole school, both in terms of organising events, helping in subject areas and mentoring students in "their" house.
The 6th formers want to play a greater role in the local community and are looking to become involved with the local Nature Reserve (Cotwall End - which borders our site) as well as going into the community to help serve those who need help (eg. gardening for those who are no longer able to manage).
We are about to introduce a dress code for 6th formers.
After leaving the Sixth Form the majority of students pass into Higher Education. During the previous two years, all students who have applied to HE have gained a place. A few students who choose to leave at the end of Year 12 do so in order to take up employment or, in the case of those who have taken Level 2 courses, to progress into training or to take up employment. This year all students from Year 13 have applied through UCAS for HE places.
In 2005, 50% of Y13 students went on to University, 12.5% went on to another course of Further education and 37.5% went into employment. Of those students in Year 12, 2 students decided to go into employment and 1 went on a training course leading to employment. |