Outstanding Ofsted result!

Torquay Girls’ Grammar School students, staff and Trustees are celebrating after being graded ‘Outstanding’ in the recent Ofsted Inspection in November, lasting two days.

The news comes hard on the heels of the school being ranked 2nd in Devon and 6th in the South West by the Sunday Times Parent Power Schools Guide 2023.

The school achieved ‘Outstanding’ across the five main elements of the inspection – quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management and Sixth Form provision. 

This places Torquay Girls’ Grammar currently as the only secondary school to have an Outstanding judgement in the whole of Torbay, Teignbridge. South Hams, Plymouth, West Devon and beyond, up to Exeter.

Not previously inspected since the old Ofsted framework in 2011, the report from an inspection in November 2023, summarises that "Pupils fulfil their potential at this school. In each subject, ambitious content is carefully selected for pupils to learn".  The report also states that "The school continually strives for excellence" and "The school takes a deliberate approach to pupils' moral development and character.  Opportunities for pupils to lead and volunteer are exceptional."  Important recognition was also given to "At all levels, leaders are driven to provide the highest possible standards, including for disadvantaged pupils . The trust board is committed to widening access to the aspirational culture that the school provides".

Commenting on the school’s work with children with special educational needs, the inspectors commented "The needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are rapidly identified. The curriculum is adapted to meet pupils’ needs from the outset. Therefore pupils with SEND learn successfully."

The full report can be be read here.

In order for the quality of education judgement to be outstanding, the school must meet all of the good criteria securely and consistently and it must also meet the additional outstanding criteria:

Quality of Education

• The school’s curriculum intent and implementation are embedded securely and consistently across the school. It is evident from what teachers do that they have a firm and common understanding of the school’s curriculum intent and what it means for their practice. Across all parts of the school, series of lessons contribute well to delivering the curriculum intent.

• The work given enables pupils, over time and across the school, to consistently achieve the aims of the curriculum, which is coherently planned and sequenced towards cumulatively sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and employment.

• Pupils’ work across the curriculum is consistently of a high quality.

• Pupils consistently achieve highly, particularly the most disadvantaged. Pupils with SEND achieve exceptionally well.

Behaviour and Attitudes

• Pupils behave with consistently high levels of respect for others. They play a highly positive role in creating a school environment in which commonalities are identified and celebrated, difference is valued and nurtured, and bullying, harassment and violence are never tolerated.

• Pupils consistently have highly positive attitudes and commitment to their education. They are highly motivated and persistent in the face of difficulties. Pupils make a highly positive, tangible contribution to the life of the school and/or the wider community. Pupils actively support the well-being of other pupils.

• Pupils behave consistently well, demonstrating high levels of self-control and consistently positive attitudes to their education. If pupils struggle with this, the school takes intelligent, fair and highly effective action to support them to succeed in their education.

Personal Development

• The school consistently promotes the extensive personal development of pupils. The school goes beyond the expected, so that pupils have access to a wide, rich set of experiences. Opportunities for pupils to develop their talents and interests are of exceptional quality.

• There is strong take-up by pupils of the opportunities provided by the school. Disadvantaged pupils( including those with SEND), consistently benefit from this excellent work.

• The school provides these rich experiences in a coherently planned way, in the curriculum and through extra-curricular activities, and they considerably strengthen the school’s offer.

• The way the school goes about developing pupils’ character is exemplary and is worthy of being shared with others.

Leadership and Management

• Leaders ensure that teachers receive focused and highly effective professional development. Teachers’ subject, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge consistently build and develop over time. This consistently translates into improvements in the teaching of the curriculum.

• Leaders ensure that highly effective and meaningful engagement takes place with staff at all levels and that issues are identified. When issues are identified, in particular about workload, they are consistently dealt with appropriately and quickly.

• Staff consistently report high levels of support for well-being issues.

Sixth Form Provision

• The work that sixth-form students do over time embodies consistently demanding curriculum goals. It matches the aims of the curriculum in being coherently planned and sequenced towards building sufficient knowledge and skills for future learning and destinations.

• The impact of the taught curriculum is strong. Students acquire and develop high-quality skills and produce work of a consistently high standard.

• Sixth-form students demonstrate consistently highly positive attitudes and commitment to their education. They have consistently high levels of respect for others.

• The sixth form consistently and extensively promotes learners’ personal development. The sixth form goes beyond the expected, so that learners have access to a wide, rich set of experiences that teach learners why it is important to contribute actively to society. This is achieved through activities that strengthen considerably the sixth form’s offe