Cambian New Elizabethan School

New Elizabethan School The Village, Hartlebury, Kidderminster, Worcestershire, DY11 7TE

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Overall effectiveness Good 2

Pupils’ achievement Good 2 Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Quality of curriculum Good 2 Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

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This school is good because:

 Teaching is good. Pupils’ needs are effectively met through thorough assessment of their specific requirements.  Pupils are happy and settled in school after a period of interruption in their schooling. Pupils behave well and confirm that they feel safe at school.  Pupils, parents and carers feel that they are listened to, well supported by the school and their needs are addressed.  The new leadership of the school has had a positive impact through making checks on the quality of teaching and raising pupils’ achievement. This has brought about improvements since the last inspection.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 Occasionally, marking of pupils’ work does not give them sufficiently clear feedback on how to improve their written work.  Occasionally, older pupils do not get enough support in developing their writing skills and tasks are too challenging for some of them.  One aspect of the premises and accommodation needs improvement.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

Compliance with regulatory requirements.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 The school requires improvement and must take action to meet schedule 1 of The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2010, as amended by The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (‘the independent school standards’) and associated requirements. The details are listed in the full report.

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Information about this inspection

 This inspection was carried out with half a day’s notice.  The inspector observed 13 lessons taught by six teachers, looked at pupils' work, and held meetings with the proprietor, staff and groups of pupils.  The schools’ documentation was examined, including schemes of work, teachers’ planning, records of pupils' progress, monitoring reports of teaching and learning and staff training records.  The views of pupils, staff and 20 parents and carers resulting from online and other surveys were taken into account.  The inspection also considered an application for a material change to the age range of the pupils. The school also wishes to be designated as a special school. At the request of the Department for Education, a separate advice note on the material change has been written and forwarded to the Department for Education.

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Inspection team

Jill Bainton, Lead inspector Additional inspector

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Information about this school

 The New Elizabethan School is a co-educational independent day school, which, prior to 2007, was under different management. It has been open for around 30 years. It provides education for pupils aged from four to 16 years. The school is situated in the village of Hartlebury in Worcestershire.  It caters for pupils who have experienced difficulties in learning and attendance in other settings. There are currently 21 pupils on roll. Three attend part time and are taught at home. There are 17 pupils who have a statement of special educational needs. The school aims to ‘provide an educational and social experience to meet the learning and emotional needs of the pupils’.  A new headteacher was appointed in September 2012.  The last full inspection of the school was in June 2010. An unannounced inspection visit took place in November 2011. At this inspection the school failed to meet a number of regulations. A

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Information about this school

progress monitoring inspection took place in April 2012 to check the progress the school had made in implementing its action plan and on this inspection all regulations were met.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Encourage older pupils to write at greater length.  Make sure that writing tasks are suitably matched to pupils' levels of ability  Improve the way that all teachers mark pupils' work so that pupils know how to improve.  The school must meet the following independent school standards.  Provide suitable accommodation for the medical examination and treatment of pupils (paragraph 23B(1)(a))  Provide suitable accommodation for the short-term care of sick and injured pupils, which includes a washing facility and is near to a toilet facility (paragraph 23B(1)(b)).

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Pupils’ achievement Good

Pupils’ achievement is good due to the high-quality teaching and a good new curriculum. The majority of the pupils, including disabled pupils, those with special educational needs and the large number of pupils with a statement of special educational needs, make good progress over time given their starting points. The standards the pupils achieve are generally below average because most pupils join the school after a period of absence from school or have gaps in their learning due to poor attendance. Pupils gain knowledge and understanding in a broad range of subjects and develop their literacy and numeracy skills well. Most have made considerable improvements in their reading, which is given a high priority. The majority of pupils have found writing challenging in the past, but most have made significant progress in improving their writing skills. Pupils are beginning to write more accurately for a range of purposes, for example, the younger pupils have learnt

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Pupils’ achievement Good

about ‘power’, including writing acrostic poems. However, a few older pupils still find it difficult to write at length. Standards in mathematics are good with practical activities being used well to extend pupils' understanding.

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Pupils’ achievement Good

Pupils’ progress in other areas of the curriculum is also good with pupils often achieving standards that are at least average. Thematic approaches to teaching and learning with younger pupils, which centre on particular topics, are particularly successful in encouraging pupils to achieve more. Older pupils achieve a range of qualifications, for example, last year’s group achieved a commendable number of GCSE passes and all on went to further education college.

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Good

Pupils’ behaviour is good. Teachers have high expectations for behaviour and the pupils respond by behaving well. This helps the pupils to make good progress in their social skills and their attitude to school. The nurturing school community helps the pupils to settle well and they learn to manage their own behaviour better through the effective behaviour management techniques and reward system used. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive in their support of the school in this area of its work and commend the extremely beneficial effect it has had for their child after they had difficulties at previous schools. Many made written comments such as, ‘This is the most amazing place… a unique environment.’ The school works very closely with parents and carers.

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Good

The promotion of the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. The pupils confirm that they enjoy their school life, making comments such as, ‘It’s brilliant, I love it… I get the support I need… we all understand that everyone is different.’ Assemblies consider a range of issues which help to extend pupils’ understanding of different faiths and cultures and help prepare them for life in British society. Moral issues are considered in personal, social and cultural education and in everyday discussions with staff and peers. Many activities are conducted in groups, thus supporting pupils’ social development well. Pupils have gained significantly in confidence and self-esteem since joining the school, often because of their academic success that previously was lacking. Attitudes to learning are good and account for pupils’ improved academic performance. Pupils report that they feel safe at school and there is always someone they can talk

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The quality of teaching Good

The quality of the teaching is good and results in pupils making good progress. Staff work very well together as a team, have well-developed subject knowledge, know the pupils very well and provide well-planned lessons to meet their needs. The teachers’ planning identifies assessment opportunities and staff make regular written observations on the pupils during lessons, identifying the progress they are making. The calm, supportive environment is conducive to the needs of all pupils but especially those with communication difficulties. Staff give them clear directions, speaking clearly and checking they have understood what they need to do. Almost all teaching extends pupils' knowledge and understanding and allows them to develop a range of skills. Expectations are high and lessons move at a pace appropriate to the pupils’ needs. Literacy and numeracy skills are mostly well promoted but occasionally, writing tasks are too demanding for

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The quality of teaching Good

some older pupils. Teachers’ marking is mostly thorough but there is some variation in quality and occasionally pupils are not clear enough on how to improve. These two factors are the main reasons why teaching is not outstanding. The regular and well-documented assessments of the pupils’ learning are shared frequently with parents, carers and local authorities. They are detailed, showing a very good understanding of how well pupils are doing, their strengths and their needs. The information in them is used well to support teaching. Assessment information is also shared with pupils who have a very clear idea of their targets and how to improve. Resources are good and are used well to support learning.

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Quality of curriculum Good

The curriculum is good and supports the pupils’ achievement. It offers an appropriate range of subjects for the age, ability and the different special educational needs of all the pupils. The recently revised curriculum, using National Curriculum guidance, is well documented and based on a very secure knowledge of the specific learning needs of these pupils. There are good schemes of work and the curriculum covers all the required areas of learning. The topic-based approach used in the primary curriculum helps to develop the pupils’ communication skills and aims to overcome their previous negative attitude to learning. This is very successful. Older pupils take a range of appropriate examinations leading to nationally recognised qualifications. They are carefully selected to suit the interests of pupils and to provide them with knowledge and skills that will serve them well in future employment or study. Careers advice is good The school has good links with

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Quality of curriculum Good

neighbouring colleges and Connexions which provides an extensive range of services linked to the training and employment of young people. The effective personal, social, health and citizenship education is also focused primarily on ensuring that the pupils are equipped with a range of life skills to support their future needs. The extra-curricular opportunities are varied and range from clubs after school such as drama, to locally based life skills opportunities and visits related to subjects being studied. They are very successful and enjoyed by the pupils.

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Good

The provision for the pupils’ welfare, health and safety is good. The school has correctly checked the suitability of staff and others to work with children and the information is held on the required single central register of staff appointments. The designated person responsible for safeguarding has been trained to the required level as have all the other staff. The school has devised and implemented the required range of policies, which meet the latest guidance and these include those for child protection, anti-bullying, behaviour and health and safety. Pupils are adamant that there is no bullying. Risk assessments are robust. Procedures to prevent fire are rigorously implemented. All the necessary checks are regularly undertaken including those for fire and electrical equipment. Checks are properly recorded and action is taken when appropriate. There are suitable checks which ensure the safety of pupils on off-site visits. Pupils are very well

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Leadership and management Good

Leadership and management are good. The leadership of teaching has had a significant impact on the pupils’ achievement and in improving the quality of teaching. The proprietor has demonstrated her commitment to the school through her continual efforts to make the school better and has now ensured that all but one regulation is met. The premises and accommodation are well maintained and welcoming but recent alterations to install shower facilities have resulted in the medical room not having running hot and cold water, which means it does not now meet the regulations. Parents and carers are provided with all the required information about the school and are aware of the complaints procedure, which meets requirements. Parents, carers and local authorities receive a good amount of information about the progress of their children.

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Leadership and management Good

Self-evaluation is good. The headteacher and proprietor are aware of the school’s significant strengths and areas for improvement and have begun to create plans for bringing about further improvements. There is an effective staff appraisal scheme. The headteacher has implemented a detailed training programme to meet identified staff needs. She has begun to make checks on the quality of teaching and learning and has plans to extend this programme during the forthcoming year. The assessment systems have been revised and are used effectively to show the amount of progress the pupils are making. Parents and carers of part-time pupils now have a home-school contract which involves them in supporting their children at home and in helping to reintegrate them back into school life. This is working very well.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding A school which provides an exceptional quality of education and significantly exceeds minimum requirements. Grade 2 Good A school which provides a high quality of education that exceeds minimum requirements. Grade 3 Adequate A school which meets minimum requirements but needs to improve the quality of education it provides. Grade 4 Inadequate A school where minimum requirements are not met and the quality of education has serious weaknesses.

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School details

Unique reference number 117030 Inspection number 411692 DfE registration number 885/6021 This inspection was carried out under section 162A of the Education Act 2002, as amended by schedule 8 of the Education Act 2005, the purpose of which is to advise the Secretary of State for Education about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school. Type of school All-age day school School status Independent school Age range of pupils 4–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 18 Number of part time pupils 3 Proprietor Annabel Goodman Chair None Headteacher Caron Round Date of previous school inspection 29–30 June 2010 Annual fees (day pupils) £7,050-£11,100 Telephone number 01299 250258 Fax number 01299 250379 Email address Thebursar@newelizabethanschool.co.uk guidance 'Complaining about inspections', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If

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School details

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School details

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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

inspects to 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,

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School details

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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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