The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Over time, you have created a senior leadership team that shares your determination and ambition for the pupils to do extremely well. You have gained the support of staff by allowing them to use their individual skills, to be creative and innovative in ways they feel are right for the pupils. New leaders in mathematics and English successfully introduced new approaches that led to GSCE results in 2017 being well above the national averages and a quarter of the pupils achieving the highest grades. You, together with the senior leaders and governors, have an accurate view of the school’s strengths and weaknesses and strive to make improvements where needed. Leaders work relentlessly to improve the outcomes for pupils and you are rightly encouraged by the improved progress disadvantaged pupils are making in Years 7 to 10. You know that there is still more to do, particularly to sustain the improvements in the progress made by disadvantaged pupils and boys. Leaders are yet to fully evaluate the actions that have had the most significant impact on improving the progress of pupils who attract additional funding. Despite these successes, parents and carers expressed mixed views about some aspects of the school. A number of parents recognise the sensitivity with which you have managed the unavoidable staffing difficulties in science. However, a significant proportion of parents who contacted us during the inspection are not fully aware of your efforts to provide pupils with the best opportunities available in science. You have successfully recruited new teachers across the school by using innovative strategies to attract, develop and retain staff at all levels. Pupils in Years 10 and 11 told us that the school has improved significantly over their time at Winston Churchill in terms of facilities and equipment, teaching, behaviour and extra-curricular activities. Pupils appreciate the wide range of opportunities available and told us that they are ‘glad that we chose this school and are lucky to be here’. You are passionate about enhancing the pupils’ learning experience by providing them with the best possible facilities. As a result of your tireless efforts, all members of the school community are excited about the impending opening of the school’s new library and planetarium. Leaders have continued to focus on the areas identified for improvement at the previous inspection. Governors judiciously hold leaders to account and provide effective support where needed. Through governors’ own rigorous monitoring of improvements since the previous inspection, they have an accurate view of the continuing priorities. Teachers have stepped up to the challenge of improving the outcomes of the most able pupils. Leaders have embarked on a programme, with the support of a national charity, to increase the progress of pupils who may be disadvantaged. Consequently, teachers have implemented a range of strategies that are having a positive impact on accelerating the progress of disadvantaged pupils. In Years 7 to 10, across a wide range of subjects, the standards of work achieved by pupils who are disadvantaged are now equal to or above those of other pupils from similar starting points. Leaders are aware that pupils in Year 11 have not gained as much from recent changes as have other year groups. Safeguarding is effective. Senior leaders and governors are vigilant in ensuring that all safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose. You closely follow guidelines when appointing staff and thoroughly complete the necessary checks. Staff are frequently trained to recognise risks quickly and keep pupils safe. You are tenacious in liaising with external agencies and challenge them, where necessary, to organise the level of support your vulnerable pupils need. Pupils told us they feel safe because of the nurturing relationships they have with staff. Staff and parents agree that pupils are safe at school. Leaders maintain a caring school ethos, where pupils are actively involved in keeping one another safe through their engagement with bodies such as, for example, the ‘Anti-Bullying Committee’, or the ‘Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender group’. Pupils share the expectation that bullying will never be ignored. Pupils are expertly taught to keep themselves safe through a programme of personal, social and health education, some of which involves external professionals and parents. Pupils are fully aware of even the most up-to-date risks to their security, aided by your engaging assembly on the General Data Protection Regulation during the inspection.