The hard work of leaders and staff at The Grange School in Christchurch is recognised in the publication of their recent visit from Ofsted.

The visit, on February 3 and 4, was conducted under Section 8 of the Education Act which allows for additional remote inspections whilst routine inspections are temporarily suspended.

The Grange School was judged to have “serious weaknesses” in March 2018 but, in the last 3 years a series of positive monitoring visits have culminated in this report which points to significant strengths and improvements that have been made.

As part of Twynham Learning, the multi-academy trust that also includes highly regarded Twynham School, Twynham Primary School, Christchurch Juniors, Stourfield Juniors and Stourfield Infants, leaders’ work during the pandemic is celebrated noting “the remote learning offer, developed with Twynham School, is well-structured and provides experiences consistent with those in school”.

The report itself highlights the fact that the school is “taking effective action to provide education in the current circumstances.”

More widely it recognises the positive impact of working closely with Twynham School. Subject leaders are said to be “working effectively with those at Twynham School with both schools intending to have a joint-revised curriculum ready for September 2021”.

 In addition, the report states “the work on curriculum, with Twynham School, is providing the capacity to improve more quickly. The strong links between subjects and teachers are aiding professional development.”

On belonging to Twynham Learning, the report notes that “the CEO and the Director of Standards in the MAT work closely with the leadership team. This provides you with strong support and challenge.”

Head of School, Liz Garman said: “Colleagues have worked relentlessly to make significant improvements to all aspects of our provision for students at TGS. This has been supported by our joint work with Twynham School and the backing of our Trust, Twynham Learning. I am immensely proud of our students who work hard, strive always to be the best version of themselves they can be, make the most of every opportunity we provide and take pride in our school and their achievements.”

Jy Taylor, Headteacher of Twynham School, was equally delighted with the report. “Liz and the team at TGS have worked tirelessly over the last few years and it is pleasing to see the impact it is having for the students at TGS. Our joint-working is something that benefits students at both schools, bringing not just a greater capacity to improve but offering our students a broader set of experiences in a range of subjects and extra-curricular activities. It is a partnership that we are proud of and will continue to develop.”

CEO of Twynham Learning, Gareth Morris added: “we are delighted with the rapid progress being made at The Grange School to return it to becoming ‘good and beyond’. The increasingly close partnership between Twynham School and The Grange School will see the same outstanding provision offer for all of our young people across Christchurch and Southbourne and we are pleased that Her Majesty’s Inspectorate have recognised the rapid improvements based around the partnership between the two schools, support from the Trust and the fantastic potential of a closely aligned model for the future of the secondary schools within Twynham Learning Multi-Academy Trust.”