Thomas Clarkson Academy in Wisbech is ‘maintaining standards’ says Ofsted

A Fenland school is doing the right thing to maintain its ‘good’ standards, according to the education watchdog Ofsted, which visited earlier this year.

The inspectors who visited the Thomas Clarkson Academy in Wisbech over two days in January found that pupils are proud to attend the secondary school, which has a “warm and inclusive” environment.

A report published this week of the inspectors’ findings also said the school has taken effective action to maintain standards identified at the previous inspection in 2020, when it was rated ‘good’ overall.

Since September 2024, Ofsted no longer gives schools an overall grade instead, the inspectors determine whether the school is doing what is necessary to maintain standards, so the January visit was an ungraded inspection.

If they had found the school had improved significantly or that it was not as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next visit will be a graded inspection. If the inspectors had serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education then the ungraded inspection would have become graded immediately.

The inspectors’ report said: “Despite a decline in the school’s published outcomes in 2024, pupils know that leaders and staff want them to achieve the highest levels of success. The majority of pupils respond well to this.”

The report said pupils now benefit from a more stable staffing with subject expertise.

As a result, students produce work that is “generally of a high standard and does not reflect this drop in performance”.

The inspectors found that most pupils behave well and understand what the school expects of their conduct.

“Learning is rarely disrupted by pupils’ behaviour. However, sometimes around school, some pupils find it difficult to consistently meet the school’s high expectations,” said the report.

Inspectors said the school offers a broad range of sports and other clubs, which the pupils enjoy. But as many run at the same time some students are frustrated because they cannot access all the ones they would like to attend.

The inspectors said: “The school has forensically considered why pupils’ outcomes were lower in 2024 than in previous years. This has led to improvements in how the curriculum is taught. Consequently, pupils are once again learning as intended.

“The school has ensured that reading is a priority. It has identified the specific barriers to reading for younger pupils who struggle to read. This information is used to develop programmes to help these pupils catch-up.”

However, the support for older students is not so good and this means they do not catch-up with their peers as quickly as they could – but the school has begun to deal with this.]

The majority of pupils enjoy “high quality teaching” thanks to the work the school has put in to ensure all teachers have the expertise to teach the curriculum as expected.

However, the inspectors found that sometimes teachers do not ask questions that will enable to have an insight into what pupils know.

The report said: “Sometimes, necessary adaptations to teaching are not made, or do not effectively address gaps or misconceptions. Consequently, pupils do not learn some aspects of the curriculum in the depth the school expects.”

The school has introduced strategies to tackle student attendance and these have had a positive impact in improving attendance.

To improve the inspectors said the academy needs to ensure teacher have the knowledge to routinely check what their students understand so they can make any necessary adaptations to fill in gaps in their knowledge or any misconceptions they might have.

The report said: “The school should ensure that staff have the expertise to identify weaknesses in learning accurately and adapt their teaching accordingly.”

The school also needs to ensure that teachers consistently apply and enact on the agreed behaviour policies to avoid classroom disruptions, and to ensure pupils meet the high standards set.

Principal Matthew Dobbing said: “Thomas Clarkson Academy is a wonderful school, and we are extremely proud of our young people. This Ofsted report reflects the dedication and ambition of our learning community of students, staff, and families. We truly believe in our school motto: ‘Transform, Challenge, Aspire.’ We will work hard to ensure that every student has the best opportunities to achieve academic success and develop the skills needed to progress to university or the career of their choice.

“We are proud to be heavily oversubscribed in our lower school with our open evenings for September 2026 set to take place in September 2025. Applications for our Sixth Form’s September 2025 cohort are still open and details on how to apply can be found on our website.

“The report highlights the strong relationships, inclusive culture, and high expectations that define our academy. We recognise there is still work to do and we are fully committed to continuous improvement and providing an enriching, ambitious curriculum that allows every student to thrive. I want to thank our incredible staff and supportive community for their unwavering commitment to our students’ success.”

Andrew Campbell, CEO of Brooke Weston Trust, which runs the school, said: "This Ofsted report is a testament to the dedication and hard work of Mr Dobbing and the entire Thomas Clarkson Academy community. Their commitment to nurturing an inclusive, ambitious, and high-achieving environment is clear, and we are proud to see the strong relationships, academic focus, and enrichment opportunities that support every student’s success.

“At Brooke Weston Trust, our mission is to transform educational performance and remove barriers to learning, and it is evident that Thomas Clarkson Academy is making great strides in fulfilling this vision. While there is always more to do, we are confident in the academy’s ongoing progress and the positive impact it continues to have on its students and the Wisbech community."