Grateley House School

Grateley House School Pond Lane, Andover, Hampshire, SP11 8TA

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding 1

Pupils’ achievement Outstanding 1 Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Outstanding 1 Quality of teaching Outstanding 1 Quality of curriculum Outstanding 1 Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Outstanding 1 Overall effectiveness of the residential experience Outstanding 1

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This school is outstanding because

 The outstanding curriculum offered by the education, therapy and care teams is the key driver in students’ outstanding academic achievement and personal development. In particular they make outstanding progress in developing their self-esteem and social skills.  Teaching is outstanding in most subject areas and never less than consistently good in Key Stages 3 and 4 and in the sixth form. Teachers use their excellent knowledge of students to plan activities to meet the needs of individuals so their achievement is outstanding. However, teachers in a few subjects do not always provide students with sufficient detail on how to improve their work.  Personal development and behaviour of pupils are outstanding because of the high expectations set by staff. Students thoroughly enjoy school and say they feel safe.  The sixth form is outstanding. Consequently students are exceptionally well prepared for life beyond school.

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This school is outstanding because

 The school is exceptionally well led and managed. The experienced leaders work with determination to ensure the highest quality of education and care provision to support the best possible outcomes for students. Arrangements for students’ welfare, health and safety have been improved since the last inspection and are now outstanding.  The school’s outstanding residential provision makes a remarkable contribution to students’ well-being and excellent personal, social and educational development. Residential staff, known as learning support workers, enhance students’ development exceptionally well, although their role in lessons to promote learning on occasions lacks clarity.

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residential special schools

 The school meets 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 school meets the national minimum standards for residential special schools.

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Information about this inspection

 This inspection was carried out with one day’s notice. The education and residential provision were inspected at the same time by one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and two Social Care Inspectors.  Ten lessons were observed, four of which were joint observations with the headteacher and deputy headteacher. Several short visits were also made to other lessons.  Meetings took place with the headteacher, senior leaders, education and residential staff, students and one parent or carer. Telephone discussions were held with the operations director, representing the proprietorial body, representatives from three different placing authorities and the vice-principal of Sparsholt and Andover College.  Inspectors visited the residential houses, examined students’ work and a range of documentation including policies, student progress information and examination results, schemes of work, risk assessments, and information on how the school keeps pupils safe.

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Information about this inspection

 The team considered 30 staff questionnaires, 25 responses to Ofsted’s online parental questionnaire, Parent View, and 23 student responses to Ofsted’s online Point-in-Time survey for boarding.

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Inspection team

Angela Corbett, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Brian Mcquoid Social Care Inspector David Coulter Social Care Inspector

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Information about this school

 Grateley House School, located in the heart of the village of Grateley in Hampshire, is an independent, residential special school registered for students aged nine to 19 years who have Asperger’s syndrome and related autism spectrum disorders.  The school opened in 1986 and is owned and managed by Cambiangroup Asperger Syndrome Services Ltd, which is part of Cambiangroup Education Serves Ltd, a national company that specialises in providing residential care and education for young people on the autistic spectrum.  The school is registered for 61 students which includes 10 day placements. It has 42 term- time residential places at Grateley House and nine sixth form students at Stratford Lodge, which is located in Salisbury and is inspected by the Care Quality Commission. Currently there are 59 students on roll, aged between 11 and 19 years, of whom 40 are resident at Grateley House and nine at Stratford Lodge.

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Information about this school

 Students are currently placed at the school by 31 different local authorities.  All students have a statement of special educational needs and none is learning to speak English as an additional language.  Most students in Key Stage 4 and the sixth form also follow courses at Sparsholt and Andover College; for a few this is on a full-time basis.  The school’s aims may be summarised as ‘to provide students who have Asperger syndrome with a high-quality therapeutic education and residential provision that have a strong focus on learning. As a result of this, students are challenged to achieve high standards and develop self-esteem and skills in self-advocacy which result in the confidence to enjoy mature and positive relationships’.  The last full inspection of education and the residential provision took place in December 2012 when the quality of education was judged outstanding, with the overall welfare, health

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Information about this school

and safety of pupils and the overall effectiveness of the residential experience judged good.  Since the last inspection a clinical psychologist has been appointed.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Continue to build on the outstanding teaching and learning across the school to sustain students’ excellent academic achievement by:  implementing the new marking policy so that students in all subjects are clear about the next steps in their learning and have more opportunities to reflect on their progress  improving the effectiveness of learning support workers in lessons by clarifying their roles and developing their skills in supporting students’ learning.

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Pupils’ achievement Outstanding

Students’ achievement is outstanding. Most students join Grateley House having experienced difficulties and often unhappy experiences of school life. Many have gaps in their knowledge and are working at levels below national expectations for their age. The mix of carefully chosen subjects, therapies and experiences outside of the classroom support students’ learning exceptionally well, enabling their self-confidence and engagement in learning to improve. In turn, the outstanding teaching over time motivates and supports students to consistently make very secure steps in their learning and so achieve exceptionally well across all curriculum subjects such as in art, science and English.

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Pupils’ achievement Outstanding

Well-considered induction procedures, including careful assessments of students’ educational levels and needs, ensure they settle in quickly and rapidly begin to make progress. Development of literacy and numeracy is paramount, with almost all students achieving accreditation in English and mathematics functional skills or at GCSE level. All Key Stage 4 students take a range of external qualifications, ranging from Entry Level to GCSE. In 2012 almost half the grades achieved in GCSE examinations were A* to C, with achievement in science particularly notable. Students are set challenging targets based on the highest band of national progress expectations. Their progress towards these is carefully tracked. School data show there is little difference in achievement between students and that progress rates at both Key Stages 3 and 4 compare very favourably with national expectations for both similar and all students. Consequently the gap between these

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Pupils’ achievement Outstanding

students and that found nationally is narrowing, representing outstanding achievement from their starting points. Similarly achievement in the sixth form is also outstanding, with school and college success rates high across a wide range of qualifications, including those at Level 3. Consequently, students are able to secure places on further and higher education courses or in training or employment when they leave.

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Outstanding

Students’ behaviour and personal development are outstanding. Students thrive because the school staff and the residential teams are exceptionally successful at promoting their personal development and in preparing them for the next stage of their lives. This is evident in both the school and residential setting where harmonious and positive relationships result in a relaxed, safe and inclusive atmosphere. Students’ behaviour and attitudes to learning are exemplary, both at school and at the off-site college provision, a view supported by all parents, carers and staff. As a result, attendance is high and students make the most of the opportunities offered to them both during the school day and in the evenings and weekends. Education and residential staff have an excellent understanding of the difficulties these students experience in living their daily lives and how to support their development. Consequently students’ self-esteem, self-confidence and social

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Outstanding

skills improve significantly and they develop into mature young people who show respect, understanding and care for each other with personal aspirations for their futures. The positive and collaborative approach to behaviour management, underpinned by effective training, means that staff are well equipped to manage students’ behaviour extremely well both in school and in the residential houses. When a challenging behaviour incident occurs, there is always an adult around to ensure learning or other activities are not disturbed.

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Outstanding

Students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and knowledge of public institutions are promoted exceptionally well. Students speak knowledgeably about different cultures as a result of learning in personal, social, health and citizenship education (PSHCE), religious education, food technology, art and English lessons. A wide range of learning experiences, including extensive charity fund raising, visits and work in the local community, such as the conservation project, support their clear and unbiased understanding of the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen in modern multicultural Britain. The individual interests of students are encouraged and fostered both on the school campus and in the wider community. Many join local community groups such as army cadets, a local brass band and sports teams. Students are consulted and involved as much as possible in all aspects of their care and the work of the school, helping them to develop

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Pupils’ behaviour and personal development Outstanding

independence and confidence to reflect on their personal development and express their views about their personal needs and choices.

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Quality of teaching Outstanding

The quality of teaching is outstanding. Teachers have strong specialist subject knowledge. They are exceptionally skilled at planning lessons to engage and meet the needs of individual students based on their excellent knowledge of each individual, and also exceptionally skilled in class assessment of learning and understanding of how to teach students with Asperger’s syndrome and autistic spectrum disorders. As a result students’ progress overtime is outstanding. Collaborative learning is a common feature of teaching, as seen in music, information and communication technology (ICT) and English lessons, for example. This enables students to participate with enthusiasm, sharing their ideas in safe learning environments, developing their speaking, listening and social skills and building their confidence and self-esteem. Excellent behaviour management and high-quality relationships pervade classrooms, enabling learning to

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Quality of teaching Outstanding

progress at pace. Assessment information is detailed and used well to track students’ progress and inform learning targets in their termly reviewed individual education plans. Students are given individual learning targets in all lessons, based on their abilities and prior learning. They all have opportunities to reflect on their learning and in the best lessons this is undertaken with greater frequency and effectiveness. Teaching assistants are effectively deployed according to their knowledge and experiences. They are skilled at supporting students while promoting independence and high expectations. All teachers use a wide range of approaches and high-quality resources, including the use of computers and interactive whiteboards to make learning interesting and promote independence. Teachers pose well-considered questions to check, reshape and extend students’ learning. Students’ work is marked very regularly and all teachers provide students with

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Quality of teaching Outstanding

good written or verbal guidance on how to improve their work. However, the outstanding practice seen in some subjects such as English is not consistent across all subjects. The school had already identified this as part of its routine monitoring of the quality of teaching and staff development and is in the process of introducing a new marking policy. Exceptionally strong links between teachers and residential staff support students at the start and end of each day. Learning support workers also support students’ behaviour and learning in lessons, although at times their role is not always sufficiently well clarified, nor are the skills needed for them to best support students’ learning identified and developed.

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Quality of curriculum Outstanding

The curriculum is outstanding. It underpins the school’s high ambition for every student and their outstanding academic and personal development because it is so carefully tailored to their learning needs and interests. The collaborative approach between the education, therapeutic and residential teams ensures that the ‘waking curriculum’ provides students, whether day or resident, with wide- ranging opportunities to develop both academically and personally. As a result, students are exceptionally well prepared for life and education beyond school.

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Quality of curriculum Outstanding

Curriculum policies and schemes of work are detailed and comprehensive, reflect current national guidance and make clear how students’ learning will progress over time. Short-term planning is of the highest quality with excellent links to students’ statements of special educational needs. High priority is given to developing students’ speaking, reading, writing and numeracy skills in all subject areas. An increasingly wider range of academic and vocational qualifications and accreditations is offered. These include Entry Level, ASDAN (Award Scheme Development and Accreditation Network), GSCE, awards in functional skills and AQA projects for sixth form students who need the support that the school provides rather than attending the off-site college provision. Through the local college, Key Stage 4 and sixth form students have access to a wide range of courses including A-level and BTEC awards.

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Quality of curriculum Outstanding

Physical education is promoted well by both education and residential staff, with extensive use made of the school’s own and local facilities to explore and pursue sporting and leisure interests. Students’ personal development is exceptionally well supported through the well-planned PSHCE programme which covers a wide range of topics including how to stay safe and live healthy lifestyles. Careers guidance starts in Year 9 and students are given exceptional support in making choices as they move across the school into Key Stage 4, the sixth form and life beyond school. Excellent links with the local community provide access to work experience, groups and activities helping students to develop independence and social skills. The extensive programme of extra- curricular activities includes special days and events, visiting speakers, visits to places of interest and trips such as to the Normandy battlefields.

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding

The provision for the students’ welfare, health and safety is outstanding. Promoting students’ well- being and personal and academic development while protecting their welfare is central to how the school operates and involves close collaboration between the education, in-house multi-disciplinary therapeutic and care teams. Consequently their academic, emotional, psychological, therapeutic and medical needs are exceptionally well provided for with the school’s new assessment tool very effectively helping staff to track the impact of this work.

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding

Safeguarding arrangements, including for the recruitment of staff, are excellent. There is thorough checking of any agency staff, with the most recent teacher added to the very well-maintained single central register during the inspection. Staff receive appropriate training at a frequency over and above that required so they have an acute awareness of their safeguarding responsibilities and take appropriate action to address any concerns that arise. There are established links with the local safeguarding children board, other external agencies and the college to support the safety of students at all times.

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding

High-quality and robust policies and procedures for supporting all aspects of students’ welfare, health and safety are in place and implemented very effectively, including all aspects of fire safety. These are routinely reviewed and amended in the school’s efforts to strive for the best possible practice. The school has customised many of the Cambiangroup corporate policies and procedures, for example the positive behaviour management policy, to promote the best practice and better support the needs of staff and students. The rigorous tracking and analysis of behaviour information help staff to provide individualised support for students; for example the number of physical interventions have reduced to a very low level. Risk assessments are comprehensive and address all aspects of health and safety associated with the premises and activities undertaken by staff and students both on and off site. The first-aid policy meets requirements with an appropriate

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding

number of staff trained at the required level. A full-time nurse helps to ensure that students’ medical needs are fully met. Systems for recording sanctions and the maintenance of attendance and admission registers meet requirements.

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Pupils’ welfare, health and safety Outstanding

Excellent attention is given to teaching students how to stay safe, particularly when they are out in the community, and in the prevention of bullying, for example recent work has raised students’ awareness of cyber-bullying. Students say that bullying is rare. Staff, parents and carers all support the view that students are safe. Students are encouraged at all times to adopt healthy lifestyles, including involvement in physical exercise. Catering arrangements for students are remarkably good. The central kitchen provides high-quality home cooked meals, students learn to cook for themselves in the house-bases and the school is creative in getting individual students to try new and healthy foods.

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Leadership and management Outstanding

The quality of leadership and management is outstanding in both the educational and residential provisions. The headteacher and proprietors have ensured that all regulatory requirements are met. The education and residential accommodation is of exceptional quality and provides students with a stable, homely and nurturing environment to help them make the most of their time at the school. Staff at all levels are dedicated and overwhelmingly positive about the school. They share the headteacher’s and senior leaders’ passion and drive to ensure outstanding education and care for students by meeting their special educational and developmental needs. Consequently, all aspects of school life, including the residential provision, operate extremely smoothly on a day-to- day basis.

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Leadership and management Outstanding

Rigorous external and internal monitoring of all aspects of school life includes unannounced half- termly night-time visits to all house-bases by senior leaders and performance management of teaching. As a result, development planning at all levels is well informed and closely tracked so that high-quality provision is sustained and built on. Records of regular lesson observations by senior leaders show that teaching over time in most subjects is outstanding. Carefully planned training enables both education and residential staff to meet the diverse and complex needs of the students they work with. Since the last inspection the school has rectified the identified minor administrative shortfalls in safeguarding.

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Leadership and management Outstanding

Every effort is made to ensure that students’ outcomes are the best possible starting with highly effective transition arrangements into school based on careful assessment of pre-admission information. Leaders have developed outstanding partnerships with parents and carers, placing authorities, external agencies and the local college to ensure that the school meets the individual needs of students. The information provided to placing authorities for the annual review of each student’s statement of special educational needs is exemplary. All students contribute their views together with the school’s detailed information on their progress in education, emotional, social and personal development. Parents and carers are kept fully up to date with their children’s progress through regular communications and weekly and termly written reports. They also receive a wide range of information, including details about the curriculum, school policies and how to

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Leadership and management Outstanding

complain. The school complaints policy meets requirements and any complaints or concerns are thoroughly addressed. Parents and carers, placing authorities and the local further education college all report positively about the impact of the school’s work, summed up by one parent who described the progress their child had made since being at the school as 'phenomenal'.

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Grade Judgement Description

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

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School details

Unique reference number 116588 Social care unique reference number SC012450 Inspection number 422667 DfE registration number 850/6058 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. The inspection of residential provision was carried out under the Children Act 1989, as amended by the Care Standards Act 2000, having regard to the national minimum standards for residential special schools. Type of school Residential special school for students with Asperger syndrome and autism spectrum disorders School status Independent residential special school Age range of pupils 9–19 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 59 Number of part time pupils 0 Number of boarders on roll 49

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School details

Proprietor Cambiangroup Asperger Syndrome Services Ltd Chair Mike J McQuaid Headteacher Sue King Date of previous school inspection 5–6 December 2012 Annual fees (day pupils) £65,146 Annual fees (boarders) £130,291 Telephone number 01264 889751 Fax number 01264 889212 Email address sue.king@cambiangroup.com 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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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.

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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

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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School details

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

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