One In A Million Alternative Education

School report One In A Million Alternative Education Cliffe Terrace, Bradford BD8 7DX

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Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Good

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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This is a good school

 Governors have a strong commitment and ambition to ensure that pupils achieve well and develop the personal skills needed to be well prepared for the next steps in their education and training.  The Principal and staff are determined to deliver the governors’ vision. They pursue it with vigour and enthusiasm. As a result, the school is improving.  Governors and leaders ensure that all the independent school standards are met. They work with determination to promote pupils’ welfare.  Positive modelling and high expectations from all staff lead to pupils’ good behaviour. Attendance improves rapidly, as pupils settle into the school’s routines.  Teachers make good use of information about pupils’ needs, to plan learning that engages them. As a result, pupils increase in knowledge and skills, and make good progress.  Governors keep a careful eye on the impact of teaching on pupils’ progress. They challenge school

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This is a good school

leaders to maintain and improve provision so that pupils can flourish.  Governors and staff use effective systems to ensure that pupils are safeguarded and kept safe. They make good use of external agencies to help pupils learn how to recognise and deal with risks they face. Pupils say they feel safe and are cared for well.  The governors and the Principal ensure that professional development helps staff acquire and develop the skills needed to meet the particular needs of pupils.

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It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers miss opportunities, occasionally, to ask probing questions that make pupils think hard and deepen their understanding, particularly the most able.  Governors and leaders do not check with enough precision that teachers use all the information available to plan challenging learning activities.  A small number of pupils do not continue to improve their attendance following rapid improvement from their previously poor attendance on entry into the school.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

 The school meets the requirements of the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 (‘the independent school standards’) and associated requirements.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Governors and school leaders should ensure that their sytems for checking the impact of teaching are sharpened further, so that teachers use information about pupils’ progress fully.  Further improve the quality of teaching by asking questions of pupils, especially of the most able, that deepen understanding and improve knowledge and skills.  Develop further a bespoke programme of intervention to support increasingly high levels of attendance, especially for those few pupils whose attendance plateaus after a period of initial rapid improvement.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Governors and leaders ensure that all the independent school standards are met. Governors convey a well-articulated vision for the school, based on a set of core values, which promotes pupils’ achievement and well-being. Their determination and enthusiasm is infectious. Staff are motivated by this and work positively with pupils. As a consequence, pupils come to value their education, in many cases for the first time in several years.  The Principal and governors check the effectiveness of teaching on pupils’ achievement. They use this information to provide continuing professional development to improve teaching and pupils’ progress. For example, they saw that teachers’ work to plan learning with precision, so pupils’ individual needs were taken into account, needed to be sharper. They put in place training and sharper planning is now paying dividends.  Leaders have not been sufficiently attentive in ensuring that staff recognise all the opportunities that arise

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

during lessons to accelerate pupils’ progress. Teachers sometimes miss the chance to ask probing questions that deepen understanding, especially for the most-able pupils.  The Principal and governors use appraisal information to set challenging targets for staff and hold them to account for the progress pupils make. As a result, good-quality teaching leads to good progress overall.  Governors and leaders ensure that the curriculum covers all the required areas of the independent school standards. The curriculum provides ample opportunities for pupils to develop essential skills in English and mathematics and to learn about institutions and public services, such as health and police services.  The curriculum provides well-integrated opportunities for pupils to learn about other faiths, cultures and lifestyles. Consequently, pupils are well informed, understand right from wrong and are prepared well for

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

life in modern Britain. Pupils learn about different careers and are given increasingly personalised support, so as to make well-informed decisions about their next steps as they prepare to leave the school.  Leaders and staff keep a constant watch to ensure that pupils are safe. They make sure, for example, that all risk assessments for educational visits are thoroughly prepared before departure. Staff actively involve pupils in discussing the risks they might face. In this way, teachers help pupils develop a sense of risk and the skills needed to think through sensible steps to minimise it.  School leaders work carefully with a range of partners and other agencies in order to provide the right support for pupils in all aspects of their welfare and personal development. For example, a range of carefully selected visitors and speakers to the school help pupils develop healthy lifestyles by learning

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

about sex and relationships and the dangers of substance misuse.  Leaders check attendance promptly and confirm any absences with parents. This reinforces the value of good attendance for pupils and ensures that pupils are accounted for and safe. Leaders have reviewed the school’s work to improve pupils’ attendance. They recognise that more personalised approaches to secure continued improvement for some pupils are required, following the initial successes at entry. Leaders ensure that the arrangements to manage behaviour are carried out consistently. Staff persist, from the moment a pupil enters the school, in sharing, modelling and insisting on good behaviour. As a consequence, there have been no exclusions since the school opened and very few serious incidences of poor behaviour.  The governance of the school – The proprietor and governors have detailed knowledge of the performance of the school. They work in

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

the school frequently, to find out about what is working well and what could be improved further. As a consequence, they are well placed to challenge school leaders and hold them to account for improvements in outcomes for pupils. Governors ensure that only suitable staff work with pupils by carefully carrying out all the required checks on staff before they begin working in the school. Governors ensure that a single central register to record these checks and confirm staff members’ identity is kept meticulously. The appointments panel always includes a governor who has completed safer recruitment training. The proprietor and governing body ensure that all the required training to safeguard pupils and keep them safe is carried out and is up to date. Governors ensure that all the safety checks required to help keep pupils and staff safe are carried out properly. Logs of checks and services, for example of the fire alarm and emergency lighting systems,

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

are kept carefully and are up to date. The proprietor and governors ensure that the premises are kept in good order, are well maintained, safe and suitable for pupils to learn in. The premises are of a high quality and pupils have opportunities for socialising outside in pleasant surroundings. This helps pupils value their education. Governors keep a close eye on pupils’ achievements and find out for themselves how well pupils attend and make progress from their starting points. By doing so, governors can evaluate the effectiveness of teaching and the planned curriculum, and so set targets for improvement. Governors use their good knowledge of the school to conduct the Principal’s performance management and set challenging targets, which are linked to the school’s priorities that have been identified in the school’s self-evaluation. Governors oversee the arrangements for the performance management of other staff. Governors facilitate additional professional development opportunities that

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

link to staff members’ performance targets.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. The proprietor and governors make sure that policies and practices to safeguard pupils and keep them safe are up to date. They review how effective the arrangements are though regular reporting, fortnightly checks and annual updates to the policy. Like all staff, they attend appropriate training so that they keep abreast of current concerns with regard to safeguarding nationally and in the context of the city. Similarly, leaders and staff are well trained and know what to do if they have a concern about a pupil. Staff take time to talk with pupils about how to keep themselves safe.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Staff use their knowledge of pupils and their own good subject knowledge to plan engaging learning activities with small steps for success towards longer-term achievement targets. As a result, pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, make good progress.  Irrespective of pupils’ barriers to learning, teachers model positive attitudes and have high expectations of behaviour. Staff manage behaviour effectively. Almost always, pupils respond positively and quickly to staff instructions and guidance. This helps pupils focus on their learning and participate in the activities planned for them.  The consistent encouragement, support and intervention provided by all staff help pupils persevere in their learning, even when they get stuck. When there are instances of inappropriate behaviour or language, staff challenge them consistently and pupils respond positively.  Staff are adept at using questions to recognise when pupils are struggling or have misunderstood. Staff

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

quickly provide support to move pupils’ learning forward. However, staff occasionally miss opportunities to pose more challenging questions that deepen pupils’ understanding, especially for the most able. On occasion, this hinders a few pupils from making very rapid progress.  Overall, well-judged learning tasks ensure that pupils make good progress over time. From very low starting points, some pupils rapidly acquire important skills in reading, writing and mathematics that help them quickly fill significant gaps in their learning. This successful learning prepares pupils well for the next stages in their studies.  Carefully planned work, resulting from weekly reviews of learning, is used by staff to identify key points for improvement with individual pupils and to work together to address them. This personalised approach to incremental improvement is effective. Pupils know what they have to do to improve and their work

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

shows consistently good progress over time as a result.  Staff provide constant feedback during lessons and mark pupils’ work regularly. Teachers prompt pupils to make step-by-step improvements during lessons, and, over time, this leads to significant improvements in the quality of work seen in pupils’ books and in the outcomes of periodic checks on their progress.  The positive response to staff feedback of all kinds demonstrates a growing commitment to improvement, as pupils settle into the school and beyond. Pupils readily report how much they have improved their learning behaviours and that this is helping them progress across the range of their subjects.  The strong focus on reading, writing and communication is a hallmark of pupils’ work across the curriculum. For example, significant importance is given to the quality of writing in science, so that students can record their observations and accounts of experiments with clarity. In another example,

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

pupils became animatedly involved in discussing the rights and wrongs of taking ‘selfie’ photographs with a dolphin, based on a newspaper article they had read. Pupils showed increasing confidence in expressing their emotions about this and in justifying their points of view to others. Pupils’ readiness to participate in such activities shows they apply themselves well to their studies.  Staff ensure that parents are well informed about the progress pupils make. Regular termly reports enable parents to see how well pupils are learning and behaving. The school also makes regular contact with parents by telephone to recognise particularly good achievement or commitment to work and good behaviour. Equally, the school is prompt to contact parents, if they have any concerns, when it is appropriate to do so.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils, all of whom have disrupted histories of education, establish routines for learning and behaviour quickly. Pupils grow in self-confidence. This is because staff demonstrate high levels of support and commitment to pupils’ well-being, and align this to high expectations and a common approach to behaviour management.  Pupils develop increasing resilience to overcome barriers to their learning by applying themselves in lessons and trying to improve their work. As a consequence, pupils’ attitudes to learning are positive and this contributes well to the progress they make.  Pupils are punctual to lessons, during which they show respect for each other’s viewpoints in the many debates and discussions they hold across a range of subjects.  Pupils learn about and understand the negative effects of bullying. They say that it is rare, and staff are

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Personal development and welfare

always on hand to deal with any concerns they have. School records show no incidents of bullying, but staff are nevertheless aware of what to do should it occur. Pupils learn how to keep themselves safe when they use the internet and social networking sites.  Pupils are helped to learn how to keep themselves safe, for example, by discussing risks to safety when travelling to a nearby town for their visit to a mosque.  Pupils enjoy learning and the key messages about prejudice, For example, they were keen to tell the inspector about their learning around prejudice towards immigrants. Similarly, pupils learn about the dangers and risks of illegal practices such as female genital mutilation. Pupils find learning opportunities like these thought provoking. They say it helps them reflect on the world around them. Leaders have planned an extended cross-curricular project for pupils to produce materials on how to be safe for young

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Personal development and welfare

people aged eight to 18, who are supported by a local charity.  The skilled discussions and open culture, led by staff, ensure that pupils learn about right and wrong and the diverse society in which they live. As a consequence, they are prepared well for life in modern Britain, are open and respectful of others and act as ambassadors for other young people in their wider community.  Leaders have developed a range of partnerships with other agencies, such as social services, to ensure that pupils are well supported when specific needs arise.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils is good.  Pupils’ behaviour improves quickly as they settle into the routines and become accustomed to the high expectations of the school. As a consequence, there have been only two instances of serious misbehaviour this year. There have been no exclusions since the school opened.  Attendance improves rapidly from very low starting points before entering the school. For many, attendance is above the national average, while, for a small number, the strong initial improvements do not continue to accelerate.  At times, pupils are dependent on staff to help them moderate their behaviours. However, behaviour intervention records show that that pupils become more skilled in managing their own behaviour and recognising one another’s differences.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils in each year group make good progress from their often very low starting points across a range of subjects.  Pupils quickly develop the knowledge and skills they did not acquire in earlier key stages before entering the school, particularly in English, mathematics and science. Staff use frequent checks on progress and learning to identify where pupils need to catch up and pupils respond positively to this.  The personalised intervention programme for learning and behaviour support pupils’ progress effectively. As a consequence, disadvantaged pupils make the same good progress as others.  While there are no disabled pupils or those with a statement of special educational needs, staff are nevertheless keenly aware of the learning needs of individuals in different subjects. Staff tailor support to ensure that good progress is the minimum. Occasionally, the most-able pupils do not make consistently

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Outcomes for pupils are good

rapid progress because they are not sufficiently well challenged.  Overall, careful planning by staff and the good positive relationships contribute to pupils’ good achievement. As a consequence, all pupils make and exceed expected progress in English and mathematics. Following a slower start at entry into the school, current pupils have now quickly increased their progress rates and all are now making good progress.  The progress made by a small number of pupils in English and mathematics is outstanding because staff have very successfully helped them close the gaps in knowledge and skills that were hindering progress to the next steps in their learning.  Frequent opportunities for pupils to read both silently and aloud increase their fluency in reading and their readiness to express their own ideas verbally and in writing. By honing these skills, pupils improve how well they can evidence their progress.

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Outcomes for pupils are good

 Pupils are making the good progress required to ensure that they will achieve appropriate and useful qualifications that will enable them to enter the next stages of their education or training with confidence.  Part-time pupils following the BTEC qualification in sport are making good progress towards the award.

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School details

Unique reference number 141604 Inspection number 10006314 DfE registration number 380/6012 This inspection was carried out under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, 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 Independent day, alternative education School status Independent school Age range of pupils 13–16 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 17 Number of part-time pupils 10 Proprietor One In A Million Alternative Education Chair Mark Hughes Principal Paddy Gallagher Annual fees (day pupils) £14,625 Telephone number 01274306745 Website Not applicable Email address info@oneinamillion.org.uk Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 The One In A Million Alternative Education provision helps children excluded, or at risk of exclusion, to harness their interests and re-engage them in learning. The school does not make use of any other alternative provisions.  It is a separate legal entity within the wider remit of the One In A Million charity, which provides support for disadvantaged young people in the community.  The Free School, operating under the same name, is co-located with the school. Some key policies, such as child protection and safer recruitment, are shared.  Some aspects of the arrangements for health and safety are shared, because this school is housed within the Free School building. For example, there are common fire alarm and emergency lighting systems.  The school opened in November 2014 and offers full-time education to boys and girls between 13 and 16 years old. Pupils attending the school come from various districts across the city of Bradford.

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Information about this school

 Currently, there are 17 students on roll, including 10 students who attend part time for their BTEC sport studies for three days per week. They attend the City of Bradford pupil referral unit for the other two days each week.

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Information about this inspection

 Discussions were held with the proprietor and governors to find out how well they know the school and hold leaders to account for the welfare and achievement of pupils. Discussions were also held with leaders in the school to examine how effectively the policies agreed with governors are put into practice; for example, how well staff manage pupils’ behaviour and work to keep pupils safe.  The inspector observed lessons, on three occasions jointly with the Principal, to see how well pupils are taught and how well pupils apply themselves to their learning. The inspector also talked with pupils about their learning and looked at their work in books to see how well they are making progress. A visit was made to a nearby sports centre to observe learning during a practical physical education and sports lesson.  A wide range of documents was examined to make sure that the building is suitable and well maintained,

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Information about this inspection

so that risks to safety are minimised and opportunities for learning are maximised. The inspector also reviewed the records of pupils’ progress and leaders’ checks on the quality of teaching.  The inspector considered the questionnaire returns from staff and took into account the views of pupils through informal and formal discussions.  While no parents responded to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, called Parent View, the inspector considered the views of 11 parents who had responded to the schools’ own survey or through telephone conversations. The inspector spoke directly with a small number of parents.

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Inspection team

Chris Campbell, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . 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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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

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Inspection team

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, further education and skills, 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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Inspection team

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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

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