The Crypt School Strategic Plan 2024-29

THE CRYPT SCHOOL

Strategic Plan 2024–29

Pupils receive an exceptional quality of education and benefit from a rich offer to develop their talents and interests. Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

Enabling every student to flourish

THE CRYPT SCHOOL

Introduction

Remaining true to the ambitious vision of our School’s Founders, this strategic plan sets out how we intend to further strengthen our school, its mission and values over the next five years and in doing so, sets out an ambitious plan for the future.

Thinking about what the future holds for education, for our young people and for our staff, we have carefully considered what our main strategic priorities should be that will ensure the continued success of our distinctive educational offer.

Preparing students for the future, offering a rigorous knowledge-rich curriculum through which they can themselves make informed judgments about our world, about their lives and through that find out who they are, underpinned by an inclusive and supportive school culture , remains our educational priority and challenge. It is one we embrace, as we look to the future with confidence in our vision, mission and school values.

Nicholas Dyer Headmaster

Our Vision

...rooted in history, right for the

twenty first century

Pupils make exceptionally good use of the extensive range of extra-curricular activities on offer.

Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

The School remains committed to the outstanding grammar school vision, ethos and aspirations which were established upon the School’s founding in 1539, and which enable all the students who attend, and staff who contribute to the nourishing and further development of the School, to flourish in all that they seek to do.

The School will work to strengthen further the quality of education offered to students through an academically focussed and knowledge rich curriculum, which aims to offer academic challenge and support to all students, and which enables them all to achieve outstanding academic outcomes.

The School will further develop its supportive and inclusive environment, which enables all students to develop a strong sense of belonging and identity, as well as values, key skills and personal qualities, which thoroughly prepares them for their future adult lives.

Our work in school will be based around a clear and ambitious set of values, and through those values, we will extend our work and role into our local community.

Our Values

We are a values-based school, and build our culture around a shared set of whole-school values, that also give our students a framework through which they can develop into the young person they wish to become.

Pupils gain an exceptional depth of understanding in all the subjects they study.

Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

Integrity Kindness Pride Respect Responsibility

Our Mission

Our whole-school values also underpin and inform our mission.

To provide an exceptional educational experience which enables all students to flourish in their school and adult lives, whilst supporting and guiding them to lead happy and fulfilling lives, to develop a strong sense of belonging, of identity and purpose through which they can become active, and engaged citizens, able to demonstrate leadership attributes and through which they demonstrate a strong sense of personal integrity and social responsibility.

The school’s personal development curriculum is exceptionally well conceived and organised. Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

To lead happy and fulfilling lives students will be:

• Nurtured and cared for in an inclusive, safe, happy and supportive school community that promotes positive mental and physical wellbeing and through which students show kindness and are encouraged to develop into caring young people

• Supported to be ambitious, to take pride in and excel in their academic work; to develop their knowledge and understanding, to be curious, creative and develop the skills of critical analysis to enable them to become independent thinkers

• Given opportunities to participate in a wide ranging programme of enrichment and extracurricular activities which promote friendship, key skills and personal qualities

• Be educated about the world of work and further learning and which enable each student to flourish in their adult lives

To develop a sense of belonging, of identity and of purpose the School will:

• Encourage students to take pride in belonging to their school and House

• Promote equity, diversity and inclusion, encouraging our students to be accepting, empathic, understanding and compassionate young people

• Ensure through their school lives that they become resilient leaders, who commit themselves to both support and inspire others showing integrity in all that they do

To become active and engaged citizens the School will:

• Help students to develop a sense of personal and social responsibility, for themselves and for others

• Educate students to respect themselves, others and their environment, and their role in nurturing and sustaining it

• Ensure students develop a strong appreciation of our shared and inclusive British values, and an appreciation of individual rights and liberties, as well as their responsibilities as citizens showing personal integrity in all that they do

Our Educational Priorities

...underpinned by our shared Crypt values, will deliver our mission of excellence in the following five key areas.

Pupils receive high-quality pastoral care. They are comfortable sharing concerns about themselves or others with staff. Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

1

Outstanding pastoral care and support

That there is a strong culture of safeguarding shared by all and that all members of the school community work together to ensure the school is calm, orderly and purposeful. That students and staff develop a strong sense of pride and belonging to the school, that they build positive relationships based on mutual respect and shared responsibility. That we actively promote positive mental health and wellbeing, that students engage fully in their school lives, show integrity in all that they do and that students with additional needs have no barriers in place to their education and full participation in school life. That student behaviours are defined and articulated.

2

An outstanding knowledge-rich curriculum, implemented by outstanding teaching & learning

Specialist teachers, supported by other colleagues and an evidence-based CPDL programme, will deliver a well sequenced, coherent and ambitious curriculum that is tailored to meet the needs of highly able students, and which delivers both the knowledge and key skills which prepare all students for their exams and for each key stage of their school lives, while preparing them for their lives as lifelong learners. Assessment supports progress, and enables teachers to ensure that students enjoy their learning and achieve outcomes that are outstanding. The curriculum is supported by a focus on literacy, digital learning and a strong focus on students’ personal development. The curriculum will also reinforce and strengthen the School values.

Disadvantaged pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve highly.

Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

3

Personal growth and development

That the school’s strong focus on the development of an all-round Cryptian continues and that all students engage and participate in an exceptional programme of extracurricular and enrichment activities. The programme will be inclusive and diverse in offer, ensuring everyone can get involved and develop the key skills and personal qualities that mark out a Cryptian. Through this programme all students will be able to lead fulfilling lives and also develop, participate and be guided and supported to achieve highly and understand the Crypt values such as respect, responsibility and personal integrity. The programme will also enhance each student’s sense of pride and belonging to the wider school community and promote the development of leadership skills

4

Community outreach and support

Whilst committed to remaining as a single academy trust, the School will connect with its communities and support the work and progress of other local schools and their children. Crypt students will be asked to play a role in supporting the education of children in our local community; acting with responsibility, with kindness and with integrity they will work as guides and mentors to help support the emotional, social and academic development of these children. Our work will have a particular focus on disadvantaged local children who often face barriers when attempting to access excellent educational providers.

5

Equality, diversity and inclusion

The school will ensure that every Cryptian is included in all aspects of school life, will celebrate and promote the diversity of its student and staffing body and guide students to celebrate both differences, as well as our common values and experiences as a school and wider national community. Students will be educated about rights and responsibilities, about our inclusive British values, equality and the challenges there are to achieving societal equality. They will be educated also to seek to embrace the many opportunities that exist for them to make a real difference to both their own and to the lives of others, becoming young people who exhibit a strong sense of personal responsibility, integrity and kindness

Our Enabling Priorities

Teachers have high levels of subject knowledge. They understand what pupils need to know and when. Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

Investing, developing and supporting our people

To ensure that the recruitment, training, professional development and welfare of school staff enables those in leadership, teaching and professional support roles to provide the best possible educational experience to all students. That workforce planning and CPDL supports the priority of staff recruitment, professional development, retention, welfare and which also enables career development and succession planning into key staffing roles.

Strategic Governance

Governors will work to ensure the School remains as a Single Academy Trust, providing its students with an outstanding educational experience, whilst maintaining a strong understanding and willingness to engage with wider educational developments, most importantly the development of multiacademy trusts.

Finance and development

To ensure the alignment of the school budget and estate planning, with our school improvement priorities to meet the School’s strategic priorities, ensuring the effective management and use of school reserves, endowments and other sources of income.

Developing our curriculum, and enabling high quality teaching and learning

To ensure that the design and implementation of the curriculum is based on best practice, and informed by educational research; that it is ambitious for the cohort of students at the school, and that it serves to enable outstanding academic outcomes, whilst also facilitating student personal development and progression.

Sixth Form

To continue to raise the academic standards in the sixth form. To achieve this, the School will raise entry grades for the sixth form, create an enhanced and strengthened academic enrichment programme and work strongly to ensure that sixth form teaching, enrichment opportunities, careers advice and guidance, as well as facilities meet the needs of all students who attend and aspire to do so. In doing so, this will also contribute to the raising of academic standards, aspirations and outcomes further within the school itself, and in other 11-16 schools whose students may wish to study at The Crypt.

Strengthening our community

To work to strengthen further its community engagement programme to encourage and facilitate the entry of more local Gloucester city children, and disadvantaged children from the city and surrounding areas, into the school in Year 7. To achieve this, the School will establish stronger links with local primary schools, mentor and support children in those schools, help prepare them for the entrance test and set a different pass mark for entry into Year 7 for pupil premium pupils from Gloucestershire postcodes, consulting on raising the PAN to enable more local children to attend.

Students in the sixth form are well prepared to move into their adult lives. Ofsted Report March 2024 - ‘Outstanding’.

The Crypt School Podsmead Rd, Gloucester, GL2 5AE

Tel: 01452 530291

Main School Email: enquiries@crypt.gloucs.sch.uk

Sixth Form Email: sixthformenquiries@crypt.gloucs.sch.uk

I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.

William Ernest Henley The Crypt Alumni, 1861 - 1867