Ashley College

Brent Education Tuition Service Annex 3, Centre for Staff Development, 240−250 Brentfield Road, NW10 8HE

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Parents and carers are very positive about the way the service has helped their children get back on track. As one parent or carer commented, ‘Staff understand where my son is coming from and because of their help he is now thriving.’  Pupils achieve well from their low starting points because teaching is good at all key stages. They make good progress and reach average standards in basic skills.  The atmosphere is calm and welcoming and adults provide good care and support for all pupils.  Through the skilful work of staff, attendance has improved and exclusions are low.  The behaviour and safety of pupils are good because staff help pupils develop their own ways to manage their behaviour. The culture of safety ensures pupils feel safe and secure.  The quality of leadership and management is good. Leaders, including members of the management committee, have successfully addressed the issues from the last inspection.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This means pupils’ achievement is now better.  The headteacher and senior team work together to guide and support staff. They know the strengths of the service and there is a real determination to make a difference to the lives of the pupils in their charge.  The service has introduced new systems for capturing information on pupils’ progress that is providing an increasingly clear picture of learners’ achievement.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Although teaching is generally good, sometimes teachers’ feedback does not show pupils how they can improve their work, or how they can improve grammatical accuracy and presentation.  Not all subject leaders are fully involved in the monitoring of teaching and learning which means they do not have first-hand evidence of what needs to be improved in their areas.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector visited 10 lessons, all of which were observed jointly with the headteacher.  Informal discussions were held with groups of learners from each key stage, which included hearing pupils read.  There were no recorded submissions to the online questionnaire (Parent View) but the inspector took account of the service’s own surveys of parents and carers and held discussions with three parents/carers. Returns from 19 questionnaires completed by staff were also considered.  Meetings were held with the Chair of the Management Committee and a representative from the local authority, the headteacher, senior staff and middle leaders.  The inspector evaluated documentation including information on the pupils’ current progress, the curriculum and development plans, as well as procedures and records on safeguarding, behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

David Scott, Lead inspector Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 Brent Education Tuition Service, known as BETS, caters for up to 45 full-time places for pupils from Years 1 to 11 who are unable to attend school for a variety of reasons, including medical, social, behaviour or attendance related issues.  BETS operates on two sites and provides off-site tuition. During the course of the last academic year just over 140 pupils were taught throughout the service.  The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic groups is well above average. The largest groups of pupils are of Black Caribbean, Black African and White British heritages, most of whom are boys.  An above average proportion of pupils are supported at school action plus and a similar proportion have a statement of special educational need.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium is well above average. The local authority looks after one of the pupils.  Over half the pupils across the service are involved with the local Child and Adolescent Mental

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Information about this school

Health Services (CAHMS), as a result of their mental health difficulties.  The future of the service is currently under review.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of outstanding teaching by: ensuring that pupils receive consistently effective advice through marking and feedback so that they are clear about their targets and what is required to improve their work ensuring that lesson introductions are not too long so that pupils always have sufficient opportunities to work on their own reinforcing good literacy skills by picking up on spelling, punctuation and presentation across the curriculum.  Strengthen the impact of leaders at all levels in driving improvement by: ensuring the school’s new system for checking and analysing information on pupils’ progress is understood and used by all staff to accelerate progress still further providing further coaching for middle managers to monitor the quality of teaching effectively in order to develop clear lines of accountability.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils begin their time at BETS with basic skills that are at below the levels expected for their age. This is mostly due to patterns of erratic attendance and interruptions to their school life. As a result of this and their different starting times at the service, academic standards vary significantly from year to year.  Information on pupils’ progress shows that achievement is steadily rising, with most pupils reaching average standards in English and mathematics. Almost all gain accredited qualifications which give them a meaningful ‘passport’ in life beyond the service.  Pupils make good progress in reading and literacy, with further opportunities to accelerate their skills through guided reading and one-to-one support. This means by the time they leave the service their levels of attainment in reading and literacy are average. Similar progress was observed in a Key Stage 2 numeracy lesson when pupils were thoroughly engaged in working

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The achievement of pupils is good

out the angles of different shapes by making right angles with their thumb and fore finger.  The longer the pupils attend the service, the faster their progress accelerates. Academic success and big gains in their personal development provide a secure pathway preparing pupils well for returning to mainstream education or moving on to further education, training or employment.  Achievement information on individual pupils shows that there is no significant variation between different groups. The service has been particularly successful in narrowing the gap between disabled pupils and those with special educational needs and their peers nationally, by focusing on their individual requirements to meet age- and ability-related needs. A small minority of pupils are entered for GCSE examinations early and if they do not get an A or A* grade they are allowed to continue to work to improve their grades until the end of Year 11.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils supported by the additional funds derived from the pupil premium grant achieve well. This is as a result of careful targeting of this additional resource towards improving performance in English, mathematics and literacy development. At GCSE, the average points score (APS) for this group rose at a faster rate than that for all pupils nationally.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Overall, teaching is good and its impact is seen in the good progress most pupils make during their time in the service. Teachers have good knowledge of their subjects.  Teachers’ and other adults’ modelling of respectful relationships contributes well to pupils’ increasingly positive attitudes to learning. Behaviour is consistently well managed and all staff receive regular training and as a result are very skilled at defusing tense situations.  The most effective teachers get the pupils working quickly and thinking for themselves, but sometimes teachers talk too much in lessons, instead of allowing pupils to work on their own or with other pupils.  The service sets individual targets for all pupils in literacy and numeracy but not all teachers emphasise them sufficiently throughout the day in their marking and feedback. This means that some pupils do not always know how to improve their work.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Support for pupils who previously found learning difficult has been carefully arranged to bolster their confidence in literacy skills. This was well illustrated in a Key Stage 4 English lesson, where, after watching an extract of a speech about the death penalty, pupils enthusiastically used technical language to analyse the ingredients that make a successful speech. However, some teaching does not always model good practice in presenting work or picking up on spelling and punctuation.  The promotion of pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness is woven into pupils’ daily lives. There are many opportunities for pupils to speak about their learning, listen carefully to each other and reflect on the lives of people who have different cultures and beliefs. For example, the planned link to promote personal development resulted in pupils discussing their forthcoming visit to the science and natural history museums and clarifying which areas they

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Almost all pupils behave well both in lessons and around the two sites. Those who previously had difficulty managing their behaviour are helped to maintain more positive attitudes because of the high levels of individual support and attention they receive when they arrive at the service.  The consistent use of the rewards and sanctions system makes a good contribution to the effective management of behaviour so that teachers can focus almost exclusively on pupils’ learning.  Pupils are generally courteous and polite, even offering visitors hot buttered toast freshly made during their breakfast club session. Pupils’ moral, social and cultural awareness is well promoted by the high expectations of all staff as role models. This enables them to overcome their difficulties and make significant changes in their attitudes.  Fixed-term exclusions continue to decline which reflects pupils’ increasing enjoyment of

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

education. This has been in part as a result of changes to allow pupils to study diverse subjects such as business studies, child development, expressive arts, horticulture and personal finance.  Pupils understand about different types of bullying such as cyber bullying, racist or homophobic name calling and know how to respond to such difficulties. Pupils feel very safe and secure within the service and parents and carers agree. They are well protected from the pressures outside the service and are confident that if anything arises, adults are there to help them.  The service’s attendance is affected by pupils’ states of mental health. On occasion this can mean they need to stay in the psychiatric unit rather than attend the service. Where it is evident that a pupil is absent when they are fit to attend, the service works assiduously to ensure they do so. Despite this, and as a result of timely and swift actions by staff, pupils make vast

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

improvements in their levels of attendance when compared to those at their previous schools.

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The leadership and management are good

 The headteacher’s determination, personal warmth and vision for the service have created a welcoming and calm environment. She is well supported by the senior team and despite a period of uncertainty the service has overcome a number staffing difficulties in order to maintain the good practice seen at the last inspection.  Upon arrival at the service all pupils are assessed in order to check their particular needs and arrange appropriate support, so that all learners are afforded an equal chance to learn. Senior leaders are careful to ensure all pupils are able to participate in all activities and that there is no discrimination.  New systems for recording and analysing information about pupils’ progress are enabling leaders to build a clear picture of how well different groups are achieving in each class. This, in turn, allows leaders to keep a close eye on pupils who show signs of underachievement so that

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The leadership and management are good

additional support can be planned. However, not all staff are confident in analysing information on pupils’ progress.  A most notable feature of the service is the partnerships with local schools and external agencies, which make a strong contribution to pupils’ progress and well-being.  As a result of robust arrangements for managing teachers’ performance, only those teachers who meet the required high standards, as judged by the headteacher, are able to move up the salary scale. Where teaching requires improvement, teachers receive additional coaching and this has contributed well to improvements in teaching.  The school’s monitoring arrangements involve informal classroom visits and formal lesson observations. The senior team currently leads this process but while such events are more frequent than previously, they do not currently involve all subject leaders.  The governance of the school: − Members of the management committee provide good support and challenge for the

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The leadership and management are good

headteacher who ensures that the performance of staff is monitored effectively and takes well-considered action when interventions are necessary. They receive reports from the headteacher and the local authority’s link adviser and ask searching questions so that they fully understand the issues. They are well informed about the strategic direction of the service together with pupils’ progress, as well as behaviour and exclusions. A member of the management committee was a former headteacher and is extremely knowledgeable about how to ensure high-quality teaching is maintained. They have a good overview of the services’ resources to drive its priorities forward. This includes directing appropriate funds for pupils attracting the pupil premium to make sure that individual learners are supported and helped in lessons. Full regard is given to the well-being and safety of pupils, who are very vulnerable at this time of their lives; the Chair of the Management Committee has

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The leadership and management are good

undergone suitable training that has put her in a good position to be the safeguarding representative.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes that provide exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. This ensures that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 2 Good A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well for all its pupils’ needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 3 Requires improvement A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within 24 months from the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors. A school that requires special measures is one where the school is

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Grade Judgement Description

failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.

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School details

Unique reference number 134846 Local authority Brent Inspection number 402642

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School details

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

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School details

Type of school Pupil referral unit School category Pupil referral unit Age range of pupils 5−16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 45 Appropriate authority The local authority Chair Narinder Nathan Headteacher Ann Luth Date of previous school inspection 18−19 November 2009 Telephone number 020 8937 3330 Fax number 020 8937 3332 Email address ann.luth@brent.gov.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', 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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School details

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 and as part of the inspection.

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School details

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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School details

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 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

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School details

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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School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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