Tuition, Medical and Behaviour Support Service

Tuition, Medical and Behaviour Support Service Shropshire Councill TMBSS, The Lantern, Shrewsbury, SY1 4NG

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Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Outstanding 1 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Outstanding 1 Leadership and management Good 2

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Excellent relationships, immense understanding of, and highly consistent approaches to, pupils’ social needs contribute to outstanding behaviour and safety.  Pupils successfully develop confidence and strategies to cope with volatile behaviour and anxiety. This often transforms the lives of individuals and their families.  Teaching is good. It focuses on engagement, attitudes and social skills and helps all groups to achieve well.  Achievement in reading is particularly good. All adults and pupils read daily, and pupils develop very positive attitudes to a wide range of books and literature.  The headteacher is innovative, and ambitious for what all pupils can achieve. His commitment to high-quality education, the value of all individuals and very broad opportunities and experiences contributes extremely well to pupils’ very good spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Leaders and managers have a generally good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

understanding the school’s strengths and weaknesses. They observe lessons regularly, and their positive advice and praise help to ensure that teaching is effective.

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It is not an outstanding school because

 Teaching does not focus enough on academic progress to make achievement outstanding.  Activities are not always sufficiently varied to help all pupils make outstanding progress.  Written comments in marking do not always show pupils clearly how to improve their work.  Teaching assistants’ skills are not always used effectively throughout lessons.  Leaders do not always monitor the centre’s performance, including the quality of teaching and achievement, sufficiently accurately or use the resulting information well enough to drive improvements.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors observed 20 lessons and part lessons, taught by 13 teachers. Fifteen of these observations were carried out jointly with the headteacher or one of the heads of the six education centres.  Inspectors visited both hospitals and all six education centres.  Discussions were held with pupils, members of the management committee, a representative from the local authority, teachers, including those who teach in pupils’ homes, and other staff.  Although there were too few responses to the online Parent View questionnaire to show results, inspectors considered the views of parents and carers expressed in a recent school survey and informal discussions.  They considered eight responses to the staff questionnaire, and the views of pupils through informal discussions.  The inspectors observed the school’s work and looked at a number of documents, including: the school’s information on pupils’ current progress, pupils’ work, leaders’ reports on lesson

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Information about this inspection

observations, other planning and monitoring documents, documents relating to safeguarding, and records of behaviour and attendance.

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Inspection team

Jo Curd, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Sarah Mascall Additional Inspector Joseph Skivington Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The tuition, medical and behavioural service provides education at home, in hospital or in one of six education centres for up to 110 pupils who are unable to attend a mainstream or special school for medical, emotional or behavioural reasons.  Some of these centres are almost 30 miles apart.  The centre aims to reintegrate its pupils into mainstream or special schools within a year. The timing of this depends on pupils’ choice, development and needs.  Almost all pupils in Key Stages 1 and 2 attend the service for five half-days a week and their ‘home’ school or a new school for the other five half-days. Almost all of the students in Key Stage 4 are registered at the service full time.  Most pupils taught at home receive individual teaching for five hours per week, increasing to ten hours as part of their re-integration into an Education Centre.  The proportion of pupils known to be eligible for the pupil premium – additional funding for

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Information about this school

specific pupils, in this case those who are known to be eligible for free school meals or looked after by the local authority – is higher than in most schools. The service only receives this additional funding for pupils who are registered full time.  All the pupils have special educational, physical, emotional or medical needs. The proportion of pupils who have a statement of special educational needs is higher than in most mainstream schools.  At the time of the inspection Year 11 pupils had finished their courses and been taken off the school roll.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching and achievement by making sure that:  all lesson activities and learning objectives are matched closely to individual pupils’ ability and previous levels of academic learning  marking and recorded feedback show pupils the next steps they need to take to improve their learning and work  teachers make full use of the skills of teaching assistants throughout lessons to support learning.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the impact of leadership and management by ensuring that:  all aspects of the school, including the quality of teaching and achievement of all pupils, are reviewed accurately and analysed in detail  the results are used effectively to drive improvements, especially in teaching.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 The work seen in lessons and pupils’ books show that pupils achieve well. The service leaders feel that academic achievement is outstanding, but they do not have clearly analysed or summarised data to support this view and some aspects of learning are not quite as effective as they could be.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 All groups of pupils achieve well because teaching is good, pupils’ attitudes to learning are excellent, and the support provided to help pupils overcome their difficulties is effective. Successful strategies to address pupils’ medical, behavioural or emotional needs enable them to learn and achieve well. As a parent said, ‘My son is calmer and better able to listen to instructions from adults.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Parents and carers are very positive about, and extremely thankful for, pupils’ achievement. As one said, ‘I previously despaired of my daughter ever being able to achieve and have a life of her own but I now feel that she will have a great future.’ Parents and cares recognise that barriers are overcome and discrimination is combatted so that these pupils, whose needs or circumstances make them more vulnerable than others, have an equal opportunity to succeed.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils develop their basic skills well in writing, mathematics and communication because they are taught well and frequently use them in a range of activities and lessons. Achievement in reading is particularly good because staff use a consistently successfully teaching approach that helps pupils develop positive attitudes and skills, and give pupils plenty of opportunities to practise reading.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils whose anxieties or health difficulties prevent them from leaving home achieve well because they are taught there and, if possible, gradually integrated into a centre and then back into mainstream or special school. While at home, or in one of the centres, they are taught well and can study a very wide range of courses.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils in hospital achieve well because teachers are effective and have good links with the pupils’ schools, communicating closely to make sure that little work at school is missed.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils whose behaviour is challenging or volatile achieve well. They are quickly engaged in very relevant, practical activities and learn effective strategies to overcome their barriers to learning.

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The achievement of pupils is good

 Pupils who are known to be eligible for pupil premium generally make good progress in line with their classmates. Along with other pupils, their attainment varies according to their starting points and individual needs. The number of pupils eligible for this funding in any year group is too small to comment on specific attainment and progress without identifying individuals.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Effective teaching helps all pupils to achieve well and develop extremely positive attitudes to learning. The quality of teaching is typically good. In some lessons it is outstanding. A few aspects occasionally require improvement.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers present pupils with very wide opportunities and experiences. Pupils in Key Stage 4 developed skills and understanding in science and technology well as they investigated the advantages of different types of portable stove and learned to put a tent up in preparation for a camping trip. Other pupils developed their language and economic skills well through preparing, advertising and running a coffee morning for charity.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers successfully promote pupils’ independence and confidence. This builds their attitudes, self-esteem and confidence. Pupils in Key Stage 1 calmly and purposefully practised handwriting skills while the teacher and teaching assistant heard others read. Pupils in Key Stage 2 made excellent progress and were engrossed in their work as they created stories using individual laptop computers.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers make clear to pupils that they have high expectations for their learning. Pupils are proud of their work and develop excellent attitudes. Most try hard to improve the presentation and quality of work in their books.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teachers plan interesting, relevant activities such as games that effectively develop pupils’ achievement and enjoyment. Pupils in Key Stage 3, for example, successfully learned about mathematical probability and chance through a game with counters and dice. Lesson objectives are not always sufficiently varied to meet individual learning levels or help each pupil to make outstanding progress.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Marking is generally up to date and sometimes used to create individual targets for learning. Teachers successfully guide pupils through discussions in lessons and as they carry out tasks. Some marking is quite difficult to read, and it does not always show pupils what to do next or how to improve their learning.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Teamwork between adults is strong. Teaching assistants support pupils well in practical tasks and activities. Occasionally they do slightly too much for some pupils rather than encouraging their independence, and their skills are not always used productively in the introductions to lessons.

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The quality of teaching is good

 Parents and carers are positive about teaching. One summed up the feelings of most when they said, ‘My son copes very well at the centre because the classes are small, the teachers have firm boundaries and give clear and defined instructions’.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils’ behaviour, confidence and attitudes are transformed by the service. The headteacher visits each individual at home before they start at a centre and makes sure that pupils, parents and carers are very clear of the service’s expectations and programmes before pupils join. Almost all pupils, parents and carers are extremely grateful for the consistency, commitment and skill of staff and respond extremely positively to them.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Parents and carers are exceedingly relieved about the way their children’s and families’ lives are improved. One, expressing the views of most, said, ‘My son has become a totally different boy since he started here, he is happy and I’ve seen a complete turn around in his behaviour.’ Another said, ‘My son has developed some excellent coping techniques which he uses in all walks of life.’

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils develop extremely positive attitudes to learning. Their attendance improves and they are keen to come. One, who had previously had very low self-esteem, very volatile behaviour and been on the brink of permanent exclusion from a mainstream school, asked if he could read his writing aloud to the class, and suggested that the class print their stories and sell them to parents and carers.  Pupils feel extremely safe. They know right and wrong and are aware of the various forms bullying can take, such as verbal, physical and cyber bullying. They all report that there is no bullying at the service. There have only been 14 incidents of inappropriate behaviour within the whole service over the past year. This is extremely good, given the challenging difficulties of some of the pupils.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils learn effective strategies to identify and manage their own behaviour in and out of school. One pupil in Key Stage 2 reported that he now goes quickly to the quiet room in his mainstream school if he is feeling anxious or agitated, whereas previously he would have become angry and violent.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 Pupils successfully develop creative skills through very broad and high-quality art lessons and a range of craft activities. These effectively help them reflect on, express and explore their emotions and experiences. This benefits their learning, attitudes and spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 There is a very high level of success in reintegrating pupils into their previous or new mainstream or special schools. Pupils in Years 10 and 11 remain at the centre to minimise disruption and maximise achievement. All who are medically able go on to work, further education or apprenticeships when they leave.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders at all levels are encouraged to use their initiative to develop the quality of teaching and opportunities for pupils. This has helped them improve activities for learning and maintain highly positive approaches and attitudes. Many, including the members of the management committee, carry out practical research. The results are used excellently to improve their understanding of pupils’ needs and improve the way they are catered for, including the way their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is promoted.

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The leadership and management are good

 The heads of the education centres have not had enough training or support to ensure that their checks, including those on teaching and achievement, are sufficiently accurate and rigorous. Monitoring of teaching has tended to focus more on behaviour and keeping pupils involved than academic progress. Although this maintains excellent behaviour and safety, the leaders’ overgenerous views of teaching to promote academic progress undermine their drive and focus to improve teaching further.

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The leadership and management are good

 Leaders have improved the use of assessments since the previous inspection and they are now carried out frequently and extensively, but not used or analysed sufficiently to improve teaching or show just how much progress individuals and groups make.

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The leadership and management are good

 All staff, including leaders, have a strong focus on preparing pupils for later life. They provide a wide range of activities, which help learning and spiritual, moral social and cultural development. Basic skills, including reading, writing and mathematics are promoted well through these even though the quality of teaching, and focus on academic progress, is not quite enough to help them all achieve outstandingly.

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The leadership and management are good

 The local authority’s improvement adviser visits the school each term. These visits are used to discuss the school’s analysis of its own performance, to briefly observe teaching and to challenge leaders about the presentation of information and evidence. Largely because the service has been so positive about its own performance, the adviser has not carried out joint observations with the leaders of education centres to check that these are sufficiently accurate and rigorous.  The governance of the school:  The management committee is effective. Most of its members have extensive experience and understanding of the education of pupils whose circumstances make them vulnerable. They have used this well to ensure that the pupils’ safety and well-being are excellent and the achievement of all pupils is good. Their understanding about the quality of teaching and academic achievement is broadly accurate but slightly too positive because the information

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The leadership and management are good

they receive from the service is itself too generous. Their fulfil their statutory duties well, including those for safeguarding. They have only had financial responsibility for the service since April 2013 but are managing this well. They know how pupil premium funding is used and its overall impact on the achievement of eligible pupils. They are making a good start on implementing their new responsibilities for managing staff performance, including that of the headteacher.

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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 134390 Local authority Shropshire Inspection number 403659

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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 62 Appropriate authority The local authority Headteacher Jamie Skeldon Date of previous school inspection 28 January 2008 Telephone number 01743 210861 Fax number 01743 210864 Email address jamie.skeldon@shropshire.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

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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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