Woodside School

Age group 7–16 Inspection date(s) 11–12 January 2012 Inspection number 376571 Woodside School Inspection report

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Unique reference number 101485 Local authority Bexley Inspection number 376571 Inspection dates 11–12 January 2012 Lead inspector Robert Ellis 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 7–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 187 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Brad Smith Headteacher Audrey Chamberlain Date of previous school inspection 16–17 November 2010 School address Halt Robin Road Belvedere Kent DA17 6DW Telephone number 01322 433494 Fax number 01322 433080 Email address office@woodside.bexley.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

Hilary Macdonald Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out with two days' notice. Inspectors observed 26 lessons taught by 24 different teachers, and held discussions with groups of learners, staff, a representative from the local authority and the Chair of the Governing Body. Inspectors took account of the responses to the on-line questionnaire (Parent View) in planning the inspection, observed the school’s work, and looked at development plans, the school’s tracking data showing learners’ progress, teachers’ lesson plans and pupils’ work. Joint observations of lessons were conducted with senior staff. In addition, inspectors analysed the questionnaire responses of 64 parents and carers, 85 staff and 115 learners, and took their views into account. .

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Information about the school

Woodside is a small school that provides for learners who have a statement of special educational needs relating to cognitive learning difficulties and/or autistic spectrum disorders. Many pupils have complex additional needs, including speech and language difficulties and medical needs. There are approximately three times more boys than girls. Most pupils are White British and very few pupils speak English as an additional language. The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals is around 32%, which is above average. The school has achieved Sports College status and has been awarded the Activemark, Sportsmark and Healthy School status.

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Information about the school

The school was inspected in November 2010 and given a notice to improve. Significant improvement was required in relation to the outcomes for learners, the quality of teaching and learning and the effectiveness with which the school promotes equality of opportunity. A monitoring inspection in June 2011 identified that the school was making satisfactory progress in addressing the issues for improvement and in raising the pupils’ achievement. Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

 In accordance with section 13 (5) of the Education Act 2005, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that the school no longer requires significant improvement.  This is a satisfactory school that has improved significantly since the last inspection. Learners make satisfactory progress in relation to their starting points and abilities. They enjoy learning and have productive relationships with the adults they work with.  Teaching is typically satisfactory and the proportion that is good or outstanding is increasing rapidly. The school provides good-quality individual support for learners who have additional or complex needs. Lessons are sometimes too sedentary and learners are not sufficiently actively engaged in their learning and evaluating their own progress. Feedback provided by adults does not always inform learners about how they can improve or develop their work.  Behaviour in lessons and around the school is generally good so that there is a

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Key findings

calm and orderly atmosphere for learning. Learners say that they feel safe and the school has effective arrangements for ensuring learners are safe and are able to recognise unsafe situations and act accordingly.  The headteacher, supported effectively by the senior team, knows the school well and has an accurate view of strengths and areas for development. The headteacher and senior team have responded with appropriate urgency to the concerns identified by the previous inspection and have been effective in bringing about significant improvement, particularly in the quality of teaching and learning. Systems and procedures to evaluate the overall impact of specialist learning support activities for individual learners are not efficient. The governing body provides a good balance of challenge and support. Despite some improvements, the site imposes significant barriers to good learning and personal development because classrooms are spread out between several

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Key findings

buildings and a number of classrooms are some distance from the main building.

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Key findings

Schools whose overall effectiveness is judged to be satisfactory may receive a Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Key findings

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?

 Engage learners more actively in their learning by:  providing more opportunities for learners to collaborate and participate in practical activities  providing more opportunities for learners to evaluate their own progress and that of others  providing consistent and accessible advice and guidance that informs learners of exactly what they need to do to achieve their targets.  Improve the management and recording of the different learning support activities to ensure that the impact of this support can be evaluated more easily and used to inform planning to maximise learning and progress.  Work with the local authority to improve the suitability of the site as a matter of urgency or to find a suitable alternative.

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Achievement of pupils

Admission arrangements mean that because of the nature of learners’ special educational needs their attainment is always likely to be significantly below the average for all pupils nationally. Therefore, inspectors’ judgement for achievement is based on an evaluation of learning and progress in relation to learners’ starting points and abilities.

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Achievement of pupils

Achievement is satisfactory because learners are now making faster progress than they were when the school was last inspected and some groups are now making better progress than similar groups nationally. Progress is particularly strong at Key Stage 2 and in Year 11. There are no groups that are underperforming and pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those who are looked after are making at least satisfactory progress. Learners at the end of Key Stage 2 develop appropriate skills and confidence in their reading abilities.

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Achievement of pupils

Learners were observed to enjoy school and have recently begun to make accelerated progress in a majority of lessons, due to good relationships with their teachers, their positive attitudes and the personalised approach to learning and care adopted by the school. Most parents and carers agreed and felt that their children make good progress.

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Quality of teaching

Teaching has improved since the last inspection and is typically satisfactory. All teaching seen during the inspection was at least satisfactory and just over half was good, with a small proportion that was outstanding. Past work and discussion with learners indicate that, although teaching was previously weaker, the teaching seen Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Quality of teaching

during the inspection is typical of the quality of teaching this academic year. Teachers have suitably high expectations of what the children in their classes can achieve and know them well. The good lessons are delivered at a brisk pace and teachers question skilfully to identify what children understand and whether they are ready to move on or need more help. Homework is set to help learners develop a deeper understanding of the topics being studied and to consolidate their learning. Language development and communication skills are promoted well, but opportunities for learners to collaborate and discuss their learning are sometimes missed. In most lessons, learners are provided with a good range of interesting activities that engage and interest them. However, there are not enough opportunities for learners to use and apply their skills through practical activities. Most lessons provide good opportunities for learners to develop their personal and

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Quality of teaching

social skills and discuss current issues. This makes a positive contribution to learners’ good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Quality of teaching

Regular marking of learners’ work and other assessment activities, including a limited amount of self and peer assessment, ensure that teachers can accurately measure the progress that learners make. Skilful use of assessment information ensures that tasks and activities are pitched at the right level. Scrutiny of learners’ books across a range of subjects and year groups shows that although teachers provide helpful comments in books, these are sometimes phrased in language that is too difficult for learners to understand and consequently they do not aid improvement.

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Quality of teaching

Assessment information is analysed rigorously to identify which learners may need additional specialist support, for example learners who have poor reading skills or those who need speech and language support. As a result of the extra support and guidance they receive, those pupils, particularly those with reading difficulties, make good progress and start to make up lost ground in basic skills. Most parents and carers agreed and felt that their children are taught well.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Behaviour in lessons and around the school is good and learners generally require little more than gentle prompting from staff to adhere to the expected code of conduct. Effective safeguarding arrangements and care, combined with strong relationships and mutual respect, ensure that children feel safe in school and know that there are adults that they can turn to if they have a problem.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Most learners attend school regularly and are punctual. The school has worked hard to challenge and support learners who do not attend as regularly as they should and the school can identify examples of significant improvement in attendance for targeted children.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Lessons are seldom disrupted by inappropriate behaviour and learners who have behaviour difficulties respond well to the school’s individualised strategies to improve behaviour. Learners report that bullying is rare and that if it is reported it will be dealt with effectively. The school council has been active in promoting anti-bullying Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

strategies and it provides learners with an opportunity to be heard on issues that affect their learning and well-being.

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Behaviour and safety of pupils

Most learners demonstrate a good understanding of how avoid the main risks that they might face. For example, learners were clear about potential hazards from cyber-bullying and the misuse of computers. A group of Year 6 pupils, who were going off site to use play equipment at a local park to explore forces as part of a science lesson, knew exactly what to do when crossing the road and encountering traffic. Most parents and carers who responded to the inspection questionnaire expressed the view that their children were looked after well and felt safe in school.

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Leadership and management

Those responsible for leading and managing the school have been successful since the last inspection in bringing about significant improvement in the school’s overall effectiveness and they demonstrate a good capacity for improvement. Leaders and managers have been particularly successful in tackling and remedying significant weaknesses in teaching and almost all staff value the professional development opportunities and support they receive.

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Leadership and management

The senior leadership team has an ambitious vision for the school. Rigorous and systematic monitoring of all aspects of the school’s work ensures that the team is well informed about strengths and areas for development. Self-evaluation is accurate and used to inform planning and to identify priorities for improvement. The governing body is effective in supporting the school and challenging it to improve. Regular monthly monitoring meetings ensure that the governing body keeps a close eye on the progress that the school is making.

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Leadership and management

The school has developed a good curriculum that meets the needs and interests of learners. Good use is made of local resources and older learners have good opportunities to participate in work experience. There are increasing opportunities for learners to follow a range of academic and vocational courses that lead to external accreditation. The curriculum promotes learners’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development particularly well.

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Leadership and management

The school provides a very broad range of additional support that is effective in helping learners to overcome barriers to learning. However, the way that the support is recorded makes it a laborious and time-consuming activity to analyse and evaluate the overall impact of the actions taken.

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Leadership and management

The school’s safeguarding arrangements exceed statutory requirements and adults who work with children receive regular training in safeguarding. The school has developed good productive partnerships with other schools and education, care and health professionals to support learners’ learning and personal development.

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Leadership and management

A very large majority of parents and carers who responded to the inspection questionnaire expressed very positive views about the work the school does to Inspection grades: 1 is outstanding, 2 is good, 3 is satisfactory, and 4 is inadequate Please turn to the glossary for a description of the grades and inspection terms

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Leadership and management

support them and their children. The school has good procedures to ensure that parents and carers are kept informed about their children’s progress and how they can support their learning.

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Leadership and management

Senior leaders have worked closely with the local authority to address the challenges posed by the inadequate accommodation. Although some progress has been made, the difficult nature of the site means the number of different levels, steep slopes and separated buildings continue to impose limitations on opportunities for learning and development.

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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 Woodside School, Belvedere DA17 6DW

Thank you for being so welcoming and helpful when we visited your school. My particular thanks go to all of you who took time to fill out our questionnaire or to talk to us about your school. We found that yours is a satisfactory school. You work hard in lessons and make satisfactory progress in your learning and development. We were pleased to see that you enjoy school and you told us you feel very safe. The school is particularly good at making sure you are well cared for. It was good to hear about all the different activities you are involved in and about the work of the school council. I enjoyed the science lesson in the park particularly. Your teachers and the other adults who help you know you very well and they work very hard to make your lessons interesting and relevant.

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Inspection of Woodside School, Belvedere DA17 6DW

We have asked the school to do some things to help you learn even better.

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Inspection of Woodside School, Belvedere DA17 6DW

 We would like teachers to give your more opportunities to practise your skills by doing more practical activities together and having opportunities to discuss what you are doing with each other.  We would also like them to make sure that they check carefully and regularly so they know what is working best and what needs to be improved in the extra help and support that some of you get.  We have asked the headteacher and governing body to work with the local authority to make sure you have an environment that is just right to help your learning and development because the school buildings and grounds are still not entirely suitable.

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Inspection of Woodside School, Belvedere DA17 6DW

We are sure that you will want to help make your school an even better place for learning.

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Inspection of Woodside School, Belvedere DA17 6DW

Robert Ellis Her Majesty’s Inspector (on behalf of the inspection team) 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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