Below is our inspection report from 2008. The school was inspected in April 2012 and this report will appear here shortly.

ARCHDIOCESE OF SOUTHWARK COMMISSION FOR SCHOOLS & COLLEGES SECTION 48 INSPECTION REPORT

Canonical Inspection under Canon 806 on behalf of the Archbishop of Southwark and inspection of Denominational Education under Section 48

URN 101821

Chair of Governors Mr Denis O’Donnell

Headteacher: Mr John Casey

Inspectors: Mr David Scott / Mrs Maureen Rebbitt

Inspection date 3 December 2008

ARCHDIOCESE OF SOUTHWARK COMMISSION FOR SCHOOLS & COLLEGES

St Edward’s House, St Paul’s Wood Hill, Orpington BR5 2SR

Tel 01689 829331 Fax 01689 829255

Director of Education: Dr Dilys Wadman

Introduction

Description of the school

The school is a voluntary aided 11-16 mixed comprehensive school. It is situated in the Croydon Deanery of the Archdiocese of Southwark and is maintained by Croydon LA. The principal parishes which the school serves are Our Lady of Reparation, West Croydon; St Gertrudes, South Croydon; St Andrews, Thornton Heath; St Elpheges, Wallington; St Chads, South Norwood, St John the Baptist, Purley. The proportion of pupils who are baptised Catholics is 50%. The average weekly proportion of curriculum time given to religious education is 7.4% in Key Stage 3 and 8.3% in Key Stage 4.

The school takes pupils from 7 to 11 years. The number of pupils currently on roll is 735.

The attainment of pupils on entering the school is broadly average.

The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is slightly above average. Around 25% of pupils receive extra support in class, with 1.9% having statements of educational needs. A significant number of pupils, almost 70% (which is over three times the national average), come from ethnic minority backgrounds, of mainly African, Asian and Caribbean heritage. The proportion of pupils from homes where English is an additional language (33.3%) is well above average.

Key for inspection grades

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 3 Satisfactory

Grade 2 Good Grade 4 Inadequate

Overall effectiveness as a Catholic school

Thomas More is a good Catholic school. The school’s self- evaluation proclaims its Catholic identity and values which permeates all aspects of school life through its central mission, is encapsulated in the school motto ‘To care, To learn, To Achieve’. It is a school where great efforts have been made to ensure that there is a culture of high standards of achievement, care and behaviour. The school is well led by the headteacher, who with the senior team and Governors work together to turn the school’s mission into a living faith. As a Catholic community it promotes the growth of faith through prayer, liturgy and religious education. Catholic values are very evident in lessons and there are many opportunities to promote equality and justice. Staff provide good role models for pupils and there is a tangible spiritual atmosphere which provides a purposeful and calm learning environment.

The school’s mission states that ‘pupils should learn about themselves, as they prepare for the challenges of the 21st Century, within a firm and secure Catholic faith foundation’. The school has successfully addressed most of the issues raised in the previous report. Although standards dipped last year at GCSE, current checks on pupils’ progress suggest a return to previous years’ results. The issue surrounding the enhancement of the Chaplaincy has not yet been fully resolved though robust plans are in place to address this. The school has good capacity to improve further.

Grade 2

What steps need to be taken to improve further?

• • Improve standards and achievement in religious education
• • Appoint a Chaplain
• • Introduce a general RE course in the sixth form
• • Review the percentage of curriculum time allocated for religious education to ensure that it meets the requirements laid down by the Bishops’ Conference

The Catholic life of the school

Leadership and management

The headteacher communicates a strong sense of spiritual purpose with a focus on promoting high standards and the fullest personal development of all pupils. His energy, determination and drive to move things forward is impressive. He is well supported by the leadership team who are confident about their roles within the school. Governors are fully involved in the life of the school and support it well. They share their talents and expertise freely and wisely and are good at challenging and holding the school to account.

The school’s self-evaluation has accurately identified its strengths and areas for development and drawn up plans for improvement. Here, responsibilities and lines of accountability are clear and designed to enable middle and senior leaders to monitor and evaluate the work of the school with increased rigour.

There is a strong sense of order and self-discipline together with a conducive atmosphere for learning which pervades all aspects of school life at the school. As a group of pupils commented, ‘We love our school and our teachers’.

Grade 2

Quality of provision for personal and collective worship

The provision for prayer and collective worship is good. Much of the provision is led by staff but pupils are involved and are attentive. Assemblies are orderly and provide good challenge for pupils. Classroom prayers are an integral part of religious education lessons. Mass is celebrated regularly in school and there is a well established liturgical calendar for the school year. The use of music supports liturgy and provides greater opportunities for spiritual development. There is a programme of Retreats for all year groups and these provide good opportunities for reflection, prayer for deepening pupils’ understanding of their faith. The production of the Thomas More Catholic School prayer book is commendable. The Chaplain, who is seconded to the school for two days a week, works well with the Subject Leader for RE and the Diocesan and Liturgies Co-ordinator to plan celebrations and Masses. He is readily available to all staff and pupils and takes an active lead in prayer and

worship as well as providing invaluable counsel and strengthening reconciliation where it is needed. Pupils’ welfare is a high priority and there is good evidence of quality personal development in both curricular and extra curricular provision. A particular strength of the school is the valuable work it does with pupils who may be ‘furthest from the Faith’ and only experience the Catholic faith at school. The annual Mission week is designed to help children find time for Jesus Christ in their lives through actively engaging in moral and religious issues. Pupils recognise the strong emphasis on Catholic identity and the Christian ideals which set out the work of the school. There are great opportunities given and taken for personal, moral and spiritual development. This is seen in the school’s values of care and respect, tolerance and forgiveness.

Grade 2 

Community Cohesion

The headteacher, Governors and staff work together towards a vision which promotes outstanding community cohesion. Pupils display remarkable sensitivity to those less privileged than themselves and high levels of personal commitment to working together for the common good. Examples include raising money to support Great Ormond Street Hospital and hosting the annual Old Folks Christmas party. Sixth formers help younger pupils at two local primary schools to improve their reading and there are excellent relationships throughout the school at every level. Vulnerable pupils are well cared for and those from a range of backgrounds, difficulties and challenge are able to integrate successfully. There is a strong Catholic theme of prayer and liturgy in the school which together with the school’s philosophy on inclusion allows suitable opportunities for the sharing and celebration of other faiths and cultures. Many pupils have been able to travel abroad with the school and this has been invaluable in developing an understanding of cultural differences and provides an enriching experience of belonging to Community of Faith.

Grade 1

Religious education

Achievement and standards

Achievements and standards in Religious Education are satisfactory. Despite a dip last year, there is a rising trend at both Key Stages 3 and 4 to the attainment levels of the previous year. These were broadly comparable to the English results which were approaching national averages. Pupils across all key stages are well motivated, display exemplary behaviour and take an active interest in lessons. The spiritual and moral development of the pupils is outstanding; the culture of the school and the close collaboration between the Chaplaincy and the Religious Education Department has made a substantial contribution in this area. Pupils welcome opportunities to extend and deepen their religious learning and their Bible skills are good. However, their religious literacy is not yet fully developed and as a result they are not confident in their use of specialist vocabulary. More able pupils and those who find learning difficult are clearly identified and well supported.

Grade 3

Teaching and learning in Religious Education

Inspectors agree with the RE Department’s own self evaluation that the quality of teaching and learning in RE is satisfactory overall. In the best lessons seen during the inspection, pupils were encouraged to think spiritually and ethically and to become aware of the challenges of being a Christian in everyday life. Teachers display a strong commitment to and enthusiasm for teaching Catholic belief. Relationships between staff and pupils are excellent and, as a result, this leads to positive attitudes to learning. Where teaching is good, the pace is fast, activities are challenging and varied and pupils’ enjoyment is evident. In less successful lessons, the pace was too slow and there was an over-reliance on teacher-led activities which inhibits opportunities for independent learning and pupil progress. Assessment for learning is effective and improving. Most pupils could describe their targets in some way but were less clear as to what was needed in order to reach the next level. Similarly, teacher’s modelling in lessons and marking in books did not always ‘sign-post’ the ‘next steps’.

Grade 3

The religious education curriculum

The quality of the curriculum is good and meets the needs and aspirations of all learners and the liturgical year is well integrated into the life of the school. However, the Religious Education curriculum does not, at present, meet the Diocesan requirements of 10% of the curriculum time. With the increased flexibility at Key Stage 3 a Curriculum Review is currently underway to seek ways to address this issue, the shortfall currently being met through innovative events and activities. Schemes of Work for all key stages follow the Curriculum Directory and provide a systematic programme of study. This is organised around the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, the Church, its beliefs, celebrations and way of life of Catholics who follow that teaching. Valuable opportunities are given for pupils to reflect on contemporary moral and ethical issues. All pupils are taught to respect other faiths and cultures in order that they can live in a harmonious community where everybody matters. At GCSE both Catholic papers are taught and in the sixth form AS RE has recently been introduced. General RE is currently not offered in the sixth form but is under consideration pending the outcome of Post 16 consortium negotiations. Teachers make satisfactory use of ICT resources. However, the interactive nature of the whiteboards in RE Classrooms is not yet fully exploited.

Grade 2

Leadership and management

The leadership and management of the subject are good. The subject leader has developed a good team ethos amongst departmental staff that is clear about their roles and purpose. Colleagues are supportive of one another and create and share resources freely. Non-catholic staff are well supported and encouraged to gain accreditation in Catholic education. The inclusion of such staff adds a further rich dimension to the teaching of religious education which reflects the diversity of beliefs and cultures of the pupil population. The availability and enthusiasm of experienced specialist teachers forms a good foundation for future development. Teaching and learning are now monitored regularly and there are clear priorities for development in religious education.

The curriculum for Year 7 has been re-written and is proving popular with pupils. However, a greater degree of rigour needs to be applied to self evaluation in order to ensure new initiatives and developments are fully realised. Similarly, more formal systems need to be introduced to ensure greater consistency for the sharing of good practice and peer observation.

There are good links with other areas of the school including English, science and music. The link governor is very supportive and makes regular visits to the department and acts as a ‘critical friend’. The recently appointed subject leader for RE is rising to the challenge of leading the department, which is beginning to make a significant impact on raising standards in religious education.

Grade 2