Honley High School has been told it must improve – despite achieving its best-ever academic results.
The school has posted the best set of GCSE results in its 81-year history.
This is the fifth consecutive year of improved results, which are well above the national average.
However, Ofsted inspectors have now downgraded their rating of the school from 2-Good to 3-Requires Improvement.
Inspectors highlighted “pockets of under-achievement” at the 1,222-pupil secondary school.
They felt that some pupils were capable of more, stating: “More able students are not attaining consistently the highest grades at GCSE.
“Too much teaching is not consistently good enough to eradicate the pockets of underachievement which exist.
“Teachers do not always plan lessons so that work is set at the right level. As a result, they do not consistently challenge and engage all students so that they achieve the highest grades of which they are capable.
“Teachers do not always check how well students are learning in lessons and so are unable to adjust their teaching to meet students’ needs.”
They added that sharing of good teaching techniques could be extended, monitoring and tracking needed to be more consistent and some subjects needed more teaching time.
Inspectors did, however, have words of praise for senior leaders’ and governors’ clear focus on priorities and for the progress of students with disabilities and special needs.
They acknowledged that students enjoy school, have good reading and writing skills and achieve good GCSE results.
Acting headteacher Heather Rogers said: “The report identified areas for school improvement that we were working to address before the inspection took place.
“This approach is already having a major impact.
“Although attainment is high overall, Ofsted identified ‘pockets of under-achievement’. They also highlighted many qualities across the school and noted that much of the teaching was good or better.
“Whilst the headline of our report is disappointing, our aim is to ensure that standards in all areas become more consistent and we are very confident that the action being taken will bring real benefits, both in the short and long terms.
“This summer we celebrated a fifth consecutive year of best-ever GCSE results at Honley High School and our results are well above the national average.
“We look forward to Ofsted’s next visit so that we can demonstrate the progress we have continued to make.
“Our commitment as a school is to aim high, helping local children to achieve well and fulfil their potential.”
