Diss High School has been praised for its teaching and in instilling the right values in its students.
The school was rated as good in its latest assessment by Ofsted, the government watchdog, matching the outcome of its previous inspection in 2014.
Headteacher Sam Stopps, who took over at the Walcot Road school in September, said the rating was a fair reflection on a lot of hard work.
In a letter to parents and carers, Mr Stopps said: “We are delighted to inform you that Diss High School has retained its good judgement.
“There has been a lot of hard work behind the scenes to maintain this judgement and we are thrilled that the hard work of our staff has been recognised in what was a thorough, but fair, inspection.”
Praising the school’s positive approach, inspectors highlighted:
♦ The happiness of pupils.
♦ That sixth-form students were positive role models and supported younger students well.
♦ Most pupils lived up to the school’s motto of work hard, be kind.
♦ Effective teaching enabled most pupils and students to learn well across the curriculum.
Inspectors did find, however, that some pupils with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) did not get the precise help they needed to access the curriculum, particularly in Years 7 and 8.
The report said: “While pupils’ needs are identified, the curriculum is not always broken down into small enough steps for them.
“When this occurs, pupils with SEND cannot build new learning on what they already know. This is not the case for the pupils who attend the school’s nurture provision, The Hive, where the curriculum is adapted appropriately and pupils learn well.”
In response, Mr Stopps said that, regardless of its Ofsted grade, every school has strengths and areas for development.
“While we are pleased that our many strengths have been recognised, we know that we have specific areas on which we need to focus on,” he said.
“We will continue to do this with commitment and determination. Ofsted will return in approximately four years’ time and we hope to be in an even stronger position by then.”
