A city high school requires improvement, Ofsted has ruled.

The finding follows a two-day visit by inspectors to Blacon High on Melbourne Road, Blacon.

The specialist sports college, said to be a much smaller than average secondary school, has 395 pupils on roll aged 12-16 according to their report.

Although standards and progress at the school are improving, not enough students are doing as well as they could especially the most able, says inspectors.

Not enough teaching is consistently good or outstanding.

Some lessons do not ensure that the needs of all students are taken into  consideration and students are not given  enough opportunities to find things out  for themselves.

Action being taken by the school to improve teaching and progress has not yet resulted in consistently good achievement for all students.

The attendance of students from a small number of families is said to be not good enough.

On the plus side, the head teacher Sue Yates and the governors, chaired by David Peachey, are said to be determined to improve the school further.

They are ambitious and have high expectations.

The progress students are making is improving as a result of better teaching and consistent policies which have been introduced by school leaders, especially the head teacher.

There is some outstanding teaching, notably in PE, history, ICT and Spanish.

Students’ behaviour is good, they have a positive attitude to their lessons and disruptions are rare.

The curriculum ensures all students are on appropriate courses, and receive help to develop skills to enable them to  progress and make the right choices.

Teaching assistants at the school are said to be effective, ensuring the progress of the students they support.

The report discloses inspectors were unable to take into account the views of parents as insufficient responses were made to an online questionnaire.

One parent contacted the inspectors to express their opinions.

The proportion of the most able students making very good progress is described as ‘well below’ the national average and even lower in 2013.

The gap between boys and girls, who do better, is greater than that seen in most schools.

The inspectors believe teaching requires improvement as not enough lessons are good or better.

In the best lessons, where sometimes outstanding teaching was seen, teachers have high expectations of what they want students to achieve. 

The headteacher has already secured significant improvements due to her ‘resolute determination’ for the school to be successful.

“She is highly effective and, regardless of her uncompromising standards, has  ensured staff, students and key partners  work together to achieve her ambitions  for the school,” say the inspectors. 

They made three suggestions to help the school improve further.