On 1st and 2nd February this year, The Littlehampton Academy received a full Section 5 inspection from Ofsted. This week, the report from that visit was published and can now be placed in the public domain.
The report has confirmed that The Littlehampton Academy is now officially a ‘Good’ school. Ofsted reports give a judgement on five critical areas and also for Overall effectiveness. The academy was judged as follows:
- Overall effectiveness: Good
- Quality of education: Good
- Behaviour and attitudes: Good
- Personal development: Good
- Leadership and management: Good
- Sixth Form provision: Good
The academy opened in 2009 and this is the first time that it has been judged good in all areas. This is a fantastic achievement and is a real boost for the whole town.
Principal, Morgan Thomas, said: “The whole community is absolutely delighted with the outcome of this inspection. This report is the culmination of many years of hard work, commitment and dedication from staff and students alike. The inspection has finally given this community the recognition that it deserves.
It is the concerted efforts of students, staff and parents that has made TLA the very good school that it is today. I would like to pay tribute to our young people, in particular, who are the very best ambassadors for our school: we are proud of them and I hope that this judgement will ensure that they can hold their heads up high and be proud of themselves.”
CEO of the Woodard Academies Trust, Hardip Begol CBE, said: “I’m so impressed by what the school leadership, staff and pupils have achieved. The Littlehampton Academy was the first school in the Woodard Academies Trust. The school has improved rapidly over the past few years, despite the challenges with covid, to be judged as Good for the first time. I’m so pleased the Trust has been able to support the academy’s improvement so Littlehampton has a Good school to serve the community.”
Chase Goff, Head Prefect said: “As a student from TLA for almost five years, I am delighted with the excellence of the academy’s Ofsted report. Our embracement of our key values at TLA has been recognised, along with the standards of morality at the academy. I have extraordinary pride in our school and how well we educate our pupils. Our subjects have been described as a broad and rich curriculum with a wide range of subjects and give a sense of real ambition to students. As a pupil of this academy taking subjects such as sociology, it has made me a more thoroughly perspicuous individual. My gratitude goes out to TLA for not only educating me but elevating the platform from which to strive and better myself for the future. This school represents the joy and great coherence of our community.”
Alice-Joan Smallbone, Head Prefect, said:“This is amazing news! It is great that the staff and the students get the recognition of all their hard work, moving from special measures to good in a relatively short space of time. Students strive to succeed and the staff empower them; this is proven from our improvement in results over the past few years. The decline in behaviour issues shows students can step up and be active members of the community. This is a badge we have worked towards for a long time and now we can celebrate. Overall this is an excellent achievement this academy has been rewarded with and it proves that The Littlehampton Academy is a good school to be in.”
Abigail Pendleton, Sixth Form President and Sheleigh Erasmus, Sixth Form Vice President, said: “We are incredibly proud to receive this report from Ofsted and in particular we are thrilled at the excellent recognition of how brilliant the Sixth Form is. The whole experience with the inspectors was very positive and it gave us a chance to say exactly how we feel about the school and especially life in the Sixth Form. We are so proud to be part of this school and community and we are humbled by the overwhelmingly positive words written in this report.”
Henry Powell, Chairman of the Coastal West Sussex Partnership, said: “Our schools are the foundations on which we build both our children’s lives and our community’s future prosperity.
“The Littlehampton Academy has been transformed by the extraordinary leadership of its principal, Morgan Thomas, and its chairman, Christopher Honeyman Brown.
“Over the last six years they have worked tirelessly to improve the fortunes of the school’s pupils and the town, despite considerable headwinds in very challenging times, with funding cuts to social services and the impact of Covid-19.
“Morgan and Christopher’s hard work demonstrates that strong leadership is the key to the future of our coastal region.
“On behalf of the business community, I would like to thank them and their staff and wish Christopher a happy retirement.
“The future is bright for Littlehampton.”