The school was inspected by five inspectors, led by David Potter. This is a summary of the inspection report, which is available from the school.

Number of full-time students: 1362 larger than average

Students with English as an additional language 1.5% below the national average (7.8%)

Students entitled to free school meals 5.3% below the national average (18%)

Students on the register of special educational 14.6% broadly in line with the national

needs (SEN) average (19.3%)

The school serves a mixture of urban and rural communities, including Theale, surrounding villages and the western fringe of Reading. The area served is mostly socially advantaged but contains some areas of disadvantage. The school has been stable in size for some years, with a significant intake from outside its catchment area. Student mobility is low. The school is over-subscribed. Students’ attainment on entry is broadly average. The school is fully staffed with specialist teachers.

Theale Green Community School is a very good school with many outstanding features. Excellent leadership, care for students, consistently good teaching and exceptional resource management combine to enable students to learn well, make good progress and achieve high standards. The school is successful in including all students. Taking into account the large range of activities it provides for students and the community, many of them out of normal hours, the school provides excellent value for money.

The school has improved very well since its last inspection in November 1996. The strengths have been maintained. Results in tests and examinations at ages 14, 16 and 18 have improved. Both teaching and learning have improved significantly, with a much higher proportion that is good and very good. The key issues raised in the last inspection have all been met. The time for teaching art, music and religious education (RE) in Key Stage 3 has been increased: all statutory requirements for the curriculum are now met. The school has a high-quality performance management system that fully meets requirements for appraisal. Students’ achievement in information and communications technology (ICT) in Key Stage 4 is much improved, as is the provision for students with SEN; following the recent appointment of the new head of learning development, the pace of improvement in this area has increased still further.

Since the time of the last inspection, results in all tests and examinations have been consistently above national averages (except for A-level in 2000, when they were average) and at least in line with the averages of similar schools, and often above them.

Results in the national tests at age 14 have been above, and in some years well above, the national average since 1996, and generally been in line with or better than those of similar schools. The gap between boys’ and girls’ results is generally less than the national gap. Standards are high at GCSE; results have improved faster than the national rate, and both boys’ and girls’ results have been above the national average for several years. Very few students, well below the national average, leave Year 11 without qualifications. Students achieve a high average GCSE points score because the broad curriculum means that they are entered for an above-average number of subjects. GCSE results are at least satisfactory in all subjects, and very good in many.

Pass rates and the quality of grades achieved in sixth form courses have been well above national averages for several years. A-level results dipped to the national average in 2000, but the 2001 results restore the quality of earlier years. Results in the first year of the new AS-level examination are very good. Very good pass rates are consistently achieved in all GNVQ subjects, with a high proportion of merits and distinctions.

Students of all abilities achieve well; those with SEN achieve success at GCSE, and very able students achieve outstanding results. Gifted and talented students achieve excellence in examinations, sporting honours, artistic performances, design awards and public-speaking and business-enterprise competitions. Standards of literacy and ICT are high, but not enough is done to use ICT skills to extend learning in AS/A-level courses. Students’ skills in problem-solving and working in groups are excellent. Numeracy is good, except on vocational courses.

Students’ current work confirms these results; it is above average overall, and improves and becomes more consistent higher up the school, which therefore adds value. The progress made by students is steady in Key Stage 3, and accelerates thereafter.

These areas are great strengths of the school. Students’ attitudes to school are unusually strong: they delight in the range of opportunities offered and the teaching provided, and are very proud of their school. Thus the school’s commitment to equal value, personal development and good relationships has excellent results. The house system provides a very strong structure to encourage good behaviour, and students respond well. Attendance levels, although good, have slipped in recent years; because current attendance is above the national average with a very low level of unauthorised absence, attendance gives no cause for concern.

The consistently good teaching means that students learn well and make good progress. Three-quarters of teaching is at least good and almost a third very good or excellent; none is less than satisfactory. Eighty per cent of sixth form teaching is good or better. All these figures are improve-ments on the 1996 inspection. Good teaching was seen in all subjects inspected. Good management of students in Key Stage 3 improves their learning skills so that teaching and learning can proceed at a brisk pace in Key Stage 4 and in the sixth form: this explains the rapid progress made by older students. Teaching has many strengths. Teachers know their subjects very well, and plan well. Many show real passion for teaching their subject, and this invariably motivates students. Students and their behaviour are very well managed. Teaching meets the needs of students of all abilities: those with SEN are taught well and, as a result, make good progress, and gifted students achieve excellence. Literacy and numeracy are generally well taught, but the use of computers to aid learning is patchy. Students try to produce work of high quality and concentrate well; their attitudes to work are excellent. Older students understand the strengths and weaknesses of their work and try to improve.

Students are provided with a very broad, balanced and rich curriculum. Extra-curricular provision, both in school and in conjunction with the community, is excellent. The opportunities offered by arts college status have been embraced with vigour and imagination, as an opportunity to enhance not only provision for the arts, but also creativity across the curriculum. The school has introduced the Curriculum 2000 changes with care and enthusiasm. The sixth form curriculum contains a good range of advanced-level courses, but a small range of intermediate-level vocational courses. Students of all abilities are offered a curriculum that encourages achievement and personal development. The school has improved its provision for students with SEN through improved annual review procedures and individual education plans (IEPs), and increased in-service training for all staff. In line with the school ethos of care and value for individuals, provision for students’ social and moral development is excellent, with regular co-operation between students, a strong tradition of support by older for younger students and guidance for students to develop their own sets of values. Provision for spiritual and cultural development is very good.

The excellent care and support promote an ethos of consideration for others. The school provides many services to support students, many of them run by students themselves, such as ‘listening ear’, ‘guardian angel’ and drug awareness. The school includes all students.

The recently-introduced academic tutoring programme, when fully implemented, will assist in setting targets and will form a sound basis for students to achieve even higher standards.

Leadership and management are both excellent. Vision and values are clear and are reflected throughout all aspects of the school’s life. Great care is taken over the recruitment and retention of staff and their continuous professional development, as a result of which teaching is good and the support provided by administrative, technical and site staff is of the highest quality. Planning for improvement is carefully and expertly done, and will be improved still further by the newly-established monitoring systems.

The twin principles of equal value and best value lie at the heart of all school planning, and ensure that the procurement and deployment of resources are targeted at enhancing the learning opportunities for all students. The high standards, good teaching and learning and broad curriculum, enriched by, for example the extensive extra-curricular provision, the arts college, the support unit and the community dimension, all mean that the school provides excellent value for money for its students and the wider community it serves.

Inspectors are in full agreement with parents’ very positive views. The way the school keeps parents informed about their children’s progress has recently been changed: the school should invite parents’ comments on the new system to ensure that it brings about the desired improvement.