Bannockburn High School
Stirling Council
3 May 2011
We published a report on Bannockburn High School in
March 2010. That report set out key strengths of the school and
areas for improvement.
This follow-through report is based on an inspection visit which
was carried out in March 2011. It tells you about improvements
since the original inspection in the quality of education which the
school provides. It also comments on how the school is getting
on with the main points for action. First we focus on changes in
the core work of the school. We explain how the school has got
better at helping children to learn and benefit from being at the
school. Next we look at the key processes which enable this to
happen, including the involvement of parents1. Our report also
describes developments in the ‘ethos’ of the school, by which we
mean how well young people are cared for and how much is
expected of them in all aspects of school life. Finally we
comment on improvements in leadership to help the school
achieve its aims.
A copy of this report has been placed on the HMIE website
www.hmie.gov.uk. Where applicable, you will also find analyses
of questionnaire returns.
1
Throughout this report, the term ‘parents’ should be taken to include foster carers,
residential care staff and carers who are relatives or friends.
Contents
1. The school
2. Particular strengths of the school
3. How well do young people learn and achieve?
4. How well do staff work with others to support young people’s
learning?
5. Are staff and young people actively involved in improving their
school community?
6. Does the school have high expectations of all young people?
7. Does the school have a clear sense of direction?
8. What happens next?
1. The school
Bannockburn High School is a non-denominational school which
serves the eastern part of Stirling, the villages of Cowie and Plean and
the surrounding area. Young people’s attendance was below the
national average in 2009/2010. Since the original inspection, there
have been significant changes to the senior management team and
the refurbishment of the school building has been completed.
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2. Particular strengths of the school
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Polite, confident young people who engage well in their learning.
The friendly and welcoming ethos of the school.
Staff teamwork in leading developments to improve learning,
teaching and achievement.
3. How well do young people learn and achieve?
Young people continue to be well motivated, confident and focused on
their learning. They contribute effectively in lessons and interact well
with each other and their teachers. Across the school, teachers are
using a wider range of teaching approaches. Young people evaluate
their own work and the work of others more frequently. At S2, the
majority of young people achieve appropriate national levels in
reading, writing and mathematics. Standards of young people’s writing
skills are improving. The school is not yet able to provide a clear and
accurate picture of young people’s progress across all aspects of
learning at S1/S2. Overall, at S4 to S6, the school performs less well
than schools which serve young people with similar needs and
backgrounds. The school has introduced important strategies to
improve attainment but these have not yet had time to impact fully on
performance. Increasing numbers of young people leaving school are
successful in finding places at university or college. Young people
continue to develop new skills, and achieve considerable success, in a
wide range of activities which enhance their learning.
Staff are improving the curriculum in line with Curriculum for
Excellence. Teachers provide a good range of tasks and activities to
meet the needs of learners. They plan learning effectively across
subject areas and this is helping young people make connections in
their learning. The school does not yet provide all young people with
the required two hours of good quality physical education each week.
The school continues to improve its approaches to identifying and
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monitoring young people who require additional support in their
learning. Specialist staff now work more closely with staff across the
school to maintain effective support for these young people.
4. How well do staff work with others to support young people’s
learning?
The school continues to explore new ways of working in partnership
with parents and the wider community. The development of the school
website, including the use of blogs, helps parents gain a better
understanding of the life and work of the school.
5. Are staff and young people actively involved in improving
their school community?
The school has taken very positive steps to improve the quality of
education for young people. There is a clear and focused plan for
raising attainment. The headteacher, deputy headteachers and
principal teachers lead and monitor the work of the school more
effectively. Staff now use better ways of finding out how well the
school is performing. They are beginning to use this information to
improve the quality of young people’s learning and achievements
across the school. Staff meet more frequently to plan for school
improvement. They continue to contribute to working groups which
develop their professional skills and focus on improving learning and
teaching. Young people do not feel that the work of the pupil council
has a positive impact on life in school. Overall, young people would
like a greater say in school improvement
6. Does the school have high expectations of all young people?
The school has a very caring ethos. Staff continue to have positive
relationships with young people and have started to set higher
expectations for standards of work and achievement. There is scope
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to improve further the presentation and quality of young people’s work.
School staff have raised their expectations of young people’s
attendance and punctuality.
7. Does the school have a clear sense of direction?
The headteacher and deputy headteachers have introduced a more
appropriate and sustained focus on improving the quality of learning
and teaching and raising attainment. Staff at all levels are more
accountable and take greater responsibility for improving their practice.
Across the school, leadership roles and responsibilities are clearer.
The senior management team and staff now work together more
effectively. Together, they have developed clearer strategies to
improve learning and teaching and raise attainment across the school.
Leaders at all levels now need to ensure that strategies to support
school improvement are carried out consistently and more rigorously
across the school.
8. What happens next?
There is clear evidence of a number of improvements in the school’s
work since the original inspection. Approaches to self-evaluation are
better, leading to improvements in aspects of learning and teaching.
More remains to be done to ensure consistent improvements in young
people’s attainment. We will carry out a further follow-through visit to
the school within one year of publication of this report. We will report
to parents on the extent of improvement that has been made.
HM Inspector: Fiona Robertson
3 May 2011
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When we write reports, we use the following word scale so that our
readers can see clearly what our judgments mean.
excellent
very good
good
means
means
means
satisfactory
weak
unsatisfactory
means
means
means
outstanding, sector leading
major strengths
important strengths with some areas
for improvement
strengths just outweigh weaknesses
important weaknesses
major weaknesses
If you would like to find out more about our inspections or get an
electronic copy of this report, please go to www.hmie.gov.uk.
Please contact us if you want to know how to get the report in a
different format, for example, in a translation, or if you wish to
comment about any aspect of our inspections. You can contact us
at HMIEenquiries@hmie.gsi.gov.uk or write to us at BMCT,
HM Inspectorate of Education, Denholm House, Almondvale Business
Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA.
Text phone users can contact us on 01506 600 236. This is a service
for deaf users. Please do not use this number for voice calls as the
line will not connect you to a member of staff.
You can find our complaints procedure on our website
www.hmie.gov.uk or alternatively you can contact our Complaints
Manager, at the address above or by telephoning 01506 600259.
Crown Copyright 2011
HM Inspectorate of Education