Goldwyn School

School report Goldwyn School Godinton Lane, Ashford, Kent, TN23 3BT

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Overall effectiveness

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

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school.  The senior leadership team work very closely together. They set very high standards in pursuit of the best possible outcomes for students.  The headteacher is a highly regarded leader. This is both within the school and externally, for the work he does to the benefit of staff and students at Goldwyn and other schools.  The staff team provide consistently high- quality personal support and teaching as a result of many years of dedicated hard work. This enables all students to make excellent progress.  Most students make outstanding progress in English and mathematics. Due to recent developments, progress in English is now even better than in mathematics.  Teaching is outstanding. Teachers have very good knowledge of what they are teaching. They plan their lessons extremely carefully to ensure that students are interested and engaged.  Behaviour in lessons and during break times is

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

outstanding. Soon after arriving at the school students learn that the school is a safe place where they can relax and enjoy learning.  The school has highly effective procedures for keeping students safe. Staff work very closely with parents, carers and other agencies when they have any concerns.  Students benefit greatly from the wide range of opportunities there are for learning. Most of these lead to formal qualifications. As well as academic subjects, the school provides excellent arts-based and work-related courses. There are also opportunities to learn about different cultures and countries.  Governors are extremely knowledgeable about the work of the school. They have a good understanding of their responsibilities, and carry these out extremely well.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors and members of the senior management team jointly visited nine lessons, observing most of the school’s teachers. Samples of students’ work were looked at during these times.  Meetings were held with senior leaders and teachers, an adviser from the local authority, and representatives from the governing body.  Inspectors talked to students during break times and in lessons.  A number of school policies and documents were read. This included policies and procedures for keeping students safe, information about students’ behaviour and academic progress, the school’s own evaluation of its work, and plans for how the school will continue to improve. Information from the school’s website was also taken into account.  The views of 16 parents and carers who completed Ofsted’s online questionnaire (Parent View) and 40 staff who completed questionnaires were also taken into account..

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Inspection team

Andy Lole, Lead inspector Additional Inspector Lynda Walker Additional Inspector

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Information about this school

 The school caters for secondary-age students who have autistic spectrum conditions, or behavioural, social or emotional needs. All have a statement of special educational needs.  Almost all students are from a White British background, and the vast majority are boys. About 40% have joined the school later than the start of Year 7.  The proportion of students for whom the school receives additional pupil premium government funding is above average. This is for pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals and those in the care of the local authority.  Additional funding is also received for a small number of Year 7 students to catch up in their English and mathematics.  The school enters students early to sit French GCSE so that they are then able to take Spanish GSCE two years later.  The school coordinates the work of an outreach team who provide a range of special educational needs support services to local mainstream and special schools.

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Information about this school

 Goldwyn has a vocational centre on site which runs courses for its own students and about 60 students from mainstream schools.  The school’s Global Dimensions programme links students and staff to other schools in Europe, Africa and Asia using funding from the British Council.  The school achieved an Arts Award in 2012.  To extend their learning opportunities, some students spend part of each week with the following alternative providers: The Brook, Baked Boutique, Seal of Approval, Catch 22 Charity, Write Trak, Cycle Circle and Challenger Troop.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

Ensure that marking is carried out to the highest standard in all subjects so that all students understand exactly what they are doing well and what they can do to improve their work.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Most students start at the school with low levels of academic ability for their age, and a negative view of themselves as learners. Students achieve exceptionally well while at the school.  The school looks carefully at the particular needs of each student and predicts the rate of progress that is likely to be achieved. As soon as students fall behind, staff notice this and take action. When this happens, students often exceed what was originally expected for them.  All groups make similar rates of progress. This includes students for whom the school receives additional funding. The school uses this extra funding to purchase resources for reading, and to make sure that there are enough staff members to give students individual or small-group tuition when they need it.  Students do very well in both English and mathematics. As a result of adaptations to teaching made over the last year, rates of progress in English have increased significantly.

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The achievement of pupils is outstanding

 Teachers across all departments make the most of opportunities to develop and consolidate students’ reading, writing, speaking and listening, and numbers skills. Students use these skills confidently in all lessons.  Students take a wide variety of courses that lead to a qualification. In the last two years at GCSE level, four students have achieved A* passes and five had A passes.  Students make impressive progress in their personal and social development. This is evident from the way they interact with one another and with visitors. They build strong relationships with staff. Confident teaching contributes significantly to their understanding. For example, when Year 9 students were given detailed information in a sex and relationships lesson, they showed a good understanding of the subject, and engaged in a mature and helpful discussion about risks and treatment approaches.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Teachers make sure that students know what it is that they have to do in each lesson to be successful. Teachers then keep a close eye on all students, and if one needs extra help, it is provided straight away.  Teachers use their accurate knowledge of each student’s academic ability, and social and emotional capability, to provide high levels of challenge. For example, in a drama lesson, rather than telling a group of Year 8 students where to position themselves for the next scene, the teacher showed them a plan of the hall and explained what else would be on the stage at the time. From this, the students were able to work out together how much space to use in choreographing their scene.  Teachers carefully check students’ learning throughout lessons using a range of strategies, such as memory tests. These approaches enable teachers to adapt their teaching, leading to improved progress by students.

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

 Work in students’ books is generally of a high standard and is marked regularly. Comments from teachers suggest how to further improve the work. Very occasionally, in some subject areas, marking is not always of such a high standard and is not so useful to students.  Teaching assistants are used highly effectively to provide an excellent level of individual support to students who need this. Where learning is most effective, teaching assistants anticipate where problems might occur and provide support before things become difficult for the student.  Students expect lessons to give them a positive experience. As a result, they generally turn up on time in a calm and relaxed mood, ready to learn. Rarely is time lost to poor behaviour.  Students receive an excellent balance of academic, practical, creative and work-based learning. Resources are of a high standard and are well matched to the learning task. Students are well

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The quality of teaching is outstanding

trained in using them, with good routines around safety when required.  Teaching in creative arts subjects is extremely strong. Music, art and drama are all taught to a very high standard. End-of-year concerts and musical plays bring together the work of many departments in the school. They enable students to demonstrate their abilities in these areas to a wider audience.  The school’s Global Dimensions programme effectively aids students to develop positive attitudes towards, and awareness of, global issues. This combines elements of religious education, environment study and foreign languages. Links have been established in many different countries, resulting in groups of students visiting Poland, Latvia and Romania in the last couple of years.

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

 The behaviour of students is outstanding. There are few occasions when behavioural difficulties have an impact on learning. Students speak very highly of how well staff support them, and that rare examples of bullying are dealt with effectively.  The school has been extremely successful in reducing the number of times physical management of students is required. There has also been a marked decrease in the use of temporary exclusions from the school.  Each student belongs to one of the school’s Learning Community units. They remain in these groups throughout their time at the school. Staff in these units keep a close eye on their groups during the day, providing additional support when needed. This contributes exceptionally well to students’ sense of belonging and being cared for.  A small group of students find it hard to regularly attend school. Staff try extremely hard to increase the engagement of these students in learning. A full-time manager has been employed

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The behaviour and safety of pupils are outstanding

to coordinate this work, which brings together support from different external agencies and a variety of courses taught at different locations. Not including this group, attendance levels at the school are now in line with similar schools.  The school’s work in keeping students safe and secure is outstanding. Procedures for following up any concerns are extremely thorough and always properly recorded. Staff have regular contact with parents and carers.

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The leadership and management are outstanding

 The school has made excellent progress addressing all issues identified in the last inspection. Senior leaders have put in place strong systems to support the continuous improvement of the work of all staff. They have made exceptionally good appointments, bringing in new staff with the skills needed to further develop particular areas. As a result, there has been a significant improvement in the overall quality of provision.  The headteacher has become increasingly involved in planning for a broader range of provision for Goldwyn students and developing services to support other schools. As a result of this, other senior leaders and heads of departments have developed their skills and abilities ensuring that standards of work within the school continue to improve.  Leadership and management are now very strong in all areas of the school. Middle managers take responsibility for leading development in their own areas, and look for opportunities to

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The leadership and management are outstanding

share ideas between departments, and with other schools.  Exceptional whole-school procedures are in place to support teachers to improve the quality of their work, for example teachers receive regular feedback on the quality of students’ workbooks. Teachers are observed regularly, and are set clear targets for improvement. Teachers are encouraged to try new approaches, and attend a wide range of training.  There are outstanding partnerships with local organisations, which provide part of some students’ learning programmes. The school monitor these very well, making sure that the students are making progress and are being properly looked after.  Students’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is extremely well catered for. Much of the work of the school has been carefully developed to promote this.  The school has a good working relationship with the local authority. Support is provided to the

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The leadership and management are outstanding

school via termly visits from an adviser, and then on request. The local authority regularly asks for the involvement of the headteacher to support other local services.  The school is highly involved in initiatives to promote research and training for teachers. It coordinates the Specialist Teaching and Learning outreach service, previously run by the local authority, and hosts the offices of a national organisation that promotes research into effective work with students with behavioural, emotional and social needs.  The governance of the school:  The governing body has a good understanding of the work of the school. Governors stay informed about key issues so that they can provide support and challenge when needed. They are helped to do this by participating in regular training events. They maintain a good oversight of finances, ensuring that money is well spent to support students’ learning,

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The leadership and management are outstanding

including additional government funding. Governors are fully involved in ensuring that there is a clear match between how well teachers perform and rewards from promotion. They work with the senior leaders to make sure that any underperformance is tackled effectively.

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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 119042 Local authority Kent Inspection number 439821

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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 Special School category Foundation School Age range of pupils 11–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 81 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Tim O’Connor Headteacher Bob Law Date of previous school inspection 9 February 2011 Telephone number 01233 622958 Fax number 01233 662177 Email address bob.law@goldwyn.kent.sch.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 and 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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