Rosewood School

Age group 11-16 Inspection date(s) 11–12 January 2012 Inspection number 376988 Rosewood School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 103882 Local authority Dudley Inspection number 376988 Inspection dates 11–12 January 2012 Lead inspector Janet Thompson HMI

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Type of school Special School category Community Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 65 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Helen Edwards Headteacher David Kirk Date of previous school inspection 16 September 2008 School address Bell Street Coseley Bilston WV14 8XJ Telephone number 01384 816800 Fax number 01384 816801 Email address dkirk@rosewood.dudley.sch.uk achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked

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after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when.

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You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days’ notice. Inspectors observed 12 teachers teaching 15 lessons; this included observing some full lessons and some parts of lessons. Five were joint observations with the headteacher. The lead inspector also carried out short observations across five lessons with a member of the senior team to look at levels of engagement and behaviour. Inspectors observed some interventions for specific students and heard a few students read. They met formally with two groups of students and spoke to many more students during the inspection. Meetings were also held with three representatives from the governing body and school staff, including middle and senior managers. The inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a number of documents, including progress and behaviour data, the school improvement plan, safeguarding and equalities policies. There were no responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View)

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Introduction

available to help plan the inspection. Inspectors took account of 14 parental questionnaires returned during the inspection, as well as questionnaires completed by students at the school and staff.

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Information about the school

This is a small school which provides education for students with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. All students attending the school have a statement of special educational needs. Most students are from White British backgrounds and the proportion of students from minority ethnic groups is lower than average. A very high proportion of students are known to be eligible for free school meals and one fifth are looked after by the local authority. The school is designated as a mixed school; however, during the inspection and in the previous year only boys were on roll at the school. Students start at the school at a variety of times during Key Stages 3 and 4; many have had previously disrupted education experiences.

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Key findings

 This is a satisfactory school. Within the core subjects at the school, students make most progress in science, mathematics and information and communication technology. Progress is weaker in English. Changes to the curriculum have enabled more students than in the past to gain higher GCSE qualifications at the end of Key Stage 4. Most students make faster progress the longer they are on roll at the school. Some students make good progress, particularly those who have attended the school in both key stages and children who are looked after.

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Key findings

 Teaching is satisfactory. Stronger teaching, where good ongoing assessment leads to teachers making adaptations within lessons, is more frequent in the more successful subjects. Additional support for reading has helped students make better progress than in the past. The strategies to help improve specific skills are too dependent on additional help outside usual lessons and are not used frequently enough by all staff across the curriculum.

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Key findings

 Students’ behaviour in school improves over time as they respond to the rewards and sanctions used by staff. All parents and carers who returned questionnaires and most students think that the school deals with any forms of bullying effectively. Within school students are well supervised and most usually behave in accordance with the rules so that they can learn and are safe. There are too few opportunities for students to apply their social skills in a range of social and vocational situations once their behaviour has improved within the structures of the school.

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Key findings

 School leaders including members of the governing body have a good understanding of priorities for improvement. There have been improvements in teaching and action is being taken where it remains weak. Improvements in the teaching of literacy and English across the key stages are still not fast enough and more urgency is required to help students make better progress.

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Key findings

Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged satisfactory may receive a monitoring visit by an Ofsted inspector before their next section 5 inspection.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Raise attainment and improve progress relative to students’ starting points, particularly in literacy and English, by ensuring that:  literacy skills are taught more consistently across the curriculum and all teachers offer interesting opportunities to develop oracy, reading and writing skills, including using information and communication technology  strategies used to support students’ specific needs during intervention sessions and those outlined in individual education plans are regularly informing the teaching of all subjects  leaders in English accurately evaluate literacy used across the curriculum to ensure that challenge is always appropriate.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Create more vocational and social opportunities within and outside the school for students to apply and practise their improving social skills in a wide range of contexts.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve teaching by making sure that:  staff use the wealth of assessment information available to refine planning and identify appropriate resources relevant to the students’ interests across the curriculum  active participation by students nurtures a deeper understanding of concepts and helps to refine skills  leaders challenge and support staff to identify where and how they can offer more challenge within lessons and in the amount and levels of work expected over time.

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Achievement of pupils

Students’ progress is satisfactory relative to their starting points and time at the school. Students who start at the school early in Key Stage 3 and who attend regularly often make good and accelerated gains so that their attainment moves closer to that expected for their age. There are other students who start and leave the school with attainment below that expected for their age. More students are gaining higher levels at GCSE than in the past. In mathematics and information and communication technology, many Year 9 students gain entry level qualifications. This gives them the confidence to focus on gaining higher GCSE grades in Key Stage 4. Nearly all Year 11 students who left last year have, so far, continued successfully in their college placement or employment.

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Achievement of pupils

Students make satisfactory progress during lessons. They are usually attentive and most are willing to work, although the level of challenge from staff is not always high enough. Students make better than satisfactory progress in lessons where teachers are confident to encourage active engagement and allow some independent exploration or investigation, as well as ensuring this is recorded by the students. This helps students to practise skills, explore concepts and deepen their understanding. The progress targets set by the school are at a good level of challenge for each individual and students are aware of the levels they have achieved. Work in books shows satisfactory progress. There are missed opportunities to ensure that the successful level of challenge evident in one or two subjects, where progress is better, is present in other curriculum areas.

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Achievement of pupils

Progress is weaker in English. Most students make expected progress, relative to their time at the school, but few are doing better than this. The school has established a good assessment system to identify where students have additional difficulties in specific aspects of literacy, with a particular focus on reading. Additional support given to these students is helping most to progress faster. The information about the students’ needs is shared but is used inconsistently by teachers. Additional support has also helped increase the confidence some students have in their own reading skills. In some lessons, students are given a range of opportunities to practise their reading. One group of students made a good contribution to the whole school assembly, reading out extracts from their science investigations about endangered animals.

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Quality of teaching

The quality of teaching is satisfactory. Nearly all staff have high aspirations and share a passion for helping students to make the best possible progress. The most imaginative lessons help students to develop an enjoyment of learning and appreciation of new experiences. The curriculum for religious education, art and history makes a good contribution to providing students with a better understanding of different cultural influences.

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Quality of teaching

In all lessons, staff treat students with respect and relationships are often good. Most parents and carers believe their child is taught well and, while this is the case in some subjects, it is more variable in others. Students respond well when resources are interesting and are appropriate for their age. In the more successful subjects, teachers ensure that well-structured activities take account of students’ literacy levels and prior understanding of the subject. Changes to the curriculum, to include options for practical-based subjects, have enabled more students to gain better understanding.

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Quality of teaching

Students usually understand the levels at which they are working. Reference to these and how students can improve their current work is evident in marking and increasingly becoming embedded across the curriculum. Many students think teaching is variable. They gain a better, deeper understanding of what is being taught when they actively participate and complete some aspects of work independently. Teachers check students’ understanding throughout lessons but not all adapt their questions carefully enough so that there is enough challenge for all students. Sometimes, adapting teaching to the responses given by a few students slows the pace of learning for others. High expectations and challenge are not consistent across all lessons and, at times, students are too passive or are not given enough time to contribute.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Nearly all students say they feel safe at the school. Students feel able to talk to one or more of the adults when they have concerns. Issues of bullying are infrequent and any inappropriate behaviour between students is managed well. Students respond well to being treated with respect. They develop a growing understanding of right and wrong, and of how their behaviour affects themselves and others.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Students usually respond well to staff supervision, clear rules and the behaviour policy of the school. The need for higher levels of intervention and the use of repeated fixed-term exclusions has declined. The students’ social skills and ability to engage in learning improve over the time they attend the school and there are many examples where students make good progress in this aspect of learning. A few students have some concerns about the level of intervention given by staff when they are struggling to behave. The responses observed and the detail in documents suggests that intervention is used in a timely and appropriate manner, relative to the level of aggression being shown by a student. If a student is having difficulty in meeting the expectations for behaviour in a lesson, staff usually implement effective strategies so that the disruption to others learning is kept to a minimum. There are a

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

few occasions where learning is more disrupted than in other similar situations. Students and parents and carers recognise that this can be the case. When lessons are active and motivating, students usually respond well but there are still too many lessons where students are passive and, although not causing any disruption, they do not fully engage with their learning.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Many students who join the school later than Year 7 have had disrupted education with long periods where they have not attended any school regularly prior to being on roll at Rosewood. The school provides a high level of successful support helping most students attend more regularly. Many reach average or above average levels of attendance, but there remains a small minority who do not attend frequently enough. The school has successfully supported and encouraged a small group of students from across the year groups to travel independently to school and many students are also very positive about the school camp. Access to a range of environments, including vocational opportunities, is more limited.

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Leadership and management

Senior leaders and the governing body have a clear understanding of the strengths of the school and where improvements are required. They analyse progress in behaviour and academic subjects to ensure that students have equal opportunity to make good progress. Additional support for students who are looked after by the local authority is particularly effective and these students achieve well at the school. Information about students has recently been collated in one central system but is not yet used sufficiently in all aspects of the schools work, including all teachers’ planning.

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Leadership and management

Staff are usually positive and generally offer a cohesive approach so that students feel well cared for and supported most of the time. Inappropriate behaviour and bullying is carefully analysed and any discriminatory behaviour is effectively tackled using sanctions and support to challenge attitudes. Most weaknesses in teaching have been addressed successfully although action to improve students’ progress in literacy and English has been slower. Safeguarding arrangements are robust and risk assessments are thorough. The school works very effectively with a range of partners to help keep students safe.

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Leadership and management

There has been a suitable and successful shift away from concentrating on behaviour management to ensuring better learning is supported across the curriculum. Levels of accreditation gained by students when they leave school are very dependent on the needs of the cohort and the time they have been on roll at the school. This makes year-on-year comparisons of attainment difficult. However, the number of students making expected and more accelerated progress has increased over the last few years.

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Leadership and management

Students have access to a suitably broad curriculum in Key Stage 3 and, although the breadth of subjects studied in Key Stage 4 has been reduced, students are gaining higher and more useful qualifications. The curriculum is enhanced by out-of-school visits and the popular annual school camps. Topics covered in humanities and personal, social and health education help students make suitable gains in understanding and celebrating a diverse society. This, alongside the general ethos of the school, contributes well to the students’ spiritual, moral and social development. The school communicates effectively with parents and carers so that they hear as much about students’ success as their difficulties, although there are a few who would like to be more involved in helping their child to learn.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding These features are highly effective. An outstanding school provides exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. Grade 2 Good These are very positive features of a school. A school that is good is serving its pupils well. Grade 3 Satisfactory These features are of reasonable quality. A satisfactory school is providing adequately for its pupils. Grade 4 Inadequate These features are not of an acceptable standard. An inadequate school needs to make significant improvement in order to meet the needs of its pupils. Ofsted inspectors will make further visits until it improves.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Nursery schools 46 46 8 0 Primary schools 8 47 40 5 Secondary schools 14 38 40 8 Special schools 28 48 20 4 Pupil referral units 15 50 29 5 All schools 11 46 38 6

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

New school inspection arrangements have been introduced from 1 January 2012. This means that inspectors make judgements that were not made previously. The data in the table above are for the period 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011 and represent judgements that were made under the school inspection arrangements that were introduced on 1 September 2009. These data are consistent with the latest published official statistics about maintained school inspection outcomes (see www.ofsted.gov.uk ). The sample of schools inspected during 2010/11 was not representative of all schools nationally, as weaker schools are inspected more frequently than good or outstanding schools. Primary schools include primary academy converters. Secondary schools include secondary academy converters, sponsor-led academies and city technology colleges. Special schools include special academy converters and non-maintained special schools.

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Type of school Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

Percentages are rounded and do not always add exactly to 100.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Achievement: the progress and success of a pupil in their learning and development taking account of their attainment.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attainment: the standard of the pupils’ work shown by test and examination results and in lessons.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Attendance the regular attendance of pupils at school and in lessons, taking into account the school’s efforts to encourage good attendance.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Behaviour how well pupils behave in lessons, with emphasis on their attitude to learning. Pupils’ punctuality to lessons and their conduct around the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Capacity to improve: the proven ability of the school to continue improving based on its self-evaluation and what the school has accomplished so far and on the quality of its systems to maintain improvement.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Leadership and management: the contribution of all the staff with responsibilities, not just the governors and headteacher, to identifying priorities, directing and motivating staff and running the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Learning: how well pupils acquire knowledge, develop their understanding, learn and practise skills and are developing their competence as learners.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Overall effectiveness: inspectors form a judgement on a school’s overall effectiveness based on the findings from their inspection of the school.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Progress: the rate at which pupils are learning in lessons and over longer periods of time. It is often measured by comparing the pupils’ attainment at the end of a key stage with their attainment when they started.

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Common terminology used by inspectors

Safety how safe pupils are in school, including in lessons; and their understanding of risks. Pupils’ freedom from bullying and harassment. How well the school promotes safety, for example e-learning.

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carers to share with their children. It describes Ofsted’s

main findings from the inspection of their school.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

Thank you for welcoming me and my colleague to your school. Rosewood is a satisfactory school and this means another inspector may visit to see if improvements are being made. I have summarised our findings below.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

 Most of you make satisfactory progress during your time at the school. More of you make good progress in science, mathematics and information and communication technology than you do in English. The school has successfully introduced new accreditation courses so that more of you can gain higher qualifications before you leave.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

 Those of you that attend regularly and have been at the school some time often make big improvements in behaviour. There are some of you who need to attend more regularly so that you benefit more from the support and teaching that is offered.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

 Many of you explained that you thought some lessons were better than others and we found this to be the case. Teaching is usually satisfactory and sometimes it is good. You learn more when you are encouraged to be active and to do some of the work on your own. We have asked more teachers to help you do this and you can help by being more willing to take part.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

 We were pleased to see that some of you receive additional support so that you get better at reading. I would like to thank those of you who read to me; it was good to see how your skills are improving. We have asked that more teachers create interesting ways to help you improve your reading and writing.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

 The headteacher, staff and the governing body have worked successfully to make improvements at the school and we have asked that they speed up actions to improve English. We have also asked that staff give you more opportunities to benefit from a wider range of social and vocational experiences.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

We enjoyed meeting you and would like to thank those of you who took the opportunity to talk to us. We wish you all the best for your futures.

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Inspection of Rosewood School, Coseley, Bilston, WV14 8XJ

Janet Thompson Her Majesty's Inspector procedures set out in the guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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