Hampden House PRU

Hampden House PRU Cats Lane, Great Cornard, Sudbury CO10 2SF

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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This is a school that requires improvement

 From their starting points, some of the youngest pupils do not make enough academic progress. Because their needs are not managed well, the same pupils struggle to improve their behaviour and engage in lessons.  The work of school leaders to improve teaching and assessment has led to a greater focus on learning but has not led to good teaching in all classes. Teaching is not effective in the lessons for some of the youngest pupils.  In lessons, some adults do not quickly help pupils manage their own behaviour so they do not stay on task and behave sensibly.  Far too many pupils are excluded for short fixed- term periods. The management committee has not held leaders to account well enough for reducing exclusions.

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The school has the following strengths

 The acting headteacher has worked with staff to successfully bring about improvements to the way pupils are kept safe, to the curriculum and to how teachers’ performance is checked and improved.  When pupils join Hampden House, detailed checks are made about what they have already learned and how they behave. This means that support to help them is well targeted.  From their starting points, the oldest pupils and those who get extra support for English and mathematics make good academic progress.  Pupils in ‘The Bridge’ class receive good support to manage their behaviour.  The school is successful in preparing pupils to move back to a mainstream school or on to another appropriate educational setting.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality of teaching and learning so pupils make better progress by: ensuring that teaching in key stage 2 meets pupils’ learning and behaviour needs ensuring that all staff receive the training they need to confidently intervene in lessons to keep pupils focused on their learning providing pupils with feedback that helps move their learning on quickly raising the standard of teaching where staff do not have the specific subject expertise necessary to ensure that teaching is good.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Improve the quality and impact of leadership and management by: increasing the amount of challenge made to senior leaders, by the management committee, so that the quality of teaching and pupil outcomes improve quickly implementing strategies to better manage pupils’ behaviour so that the use of short-term exclusions is reduced dramatically.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 The acting headteacher has brought a sense of calm and purpose to the work of the school, which has led to a greater focus on keeping pupils safe and making sure that they learn in lessons.  Following the previous inspection, senior leaders did not keep safeguarding policies up to date. The acting headteacher quickly took action to revise and improve safeguarding policies and procedures. Regular detailed checks are made on safeguarding processes and staff training is in place.  Staff speak very positively about the leadership team and particularly the acting headteacher. They are confident that the changes made in the last year have led to good improvements in how well pupils are taught and how they are kept safe. Inspectors found evidence that proves this to be the case.  The acting headteacher has set targets for staff performance because there were none when he took up his post. These targets are appropriately focused on pupil outcomes and the most important elements of

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

teaching that need to improve.  Work to improve the quality of teaching has, in part, been successful because the acting headteacher has changed the way the classes are organised. Staff are effectively deployed to teach small groups. ‘The Bridge’ class has been established to support the most vulnerable pupils.  The acting headteacher has been successful in improving the curriculum. There is an appropriate focus on English and mathematics alongside a focus on improving pupils’ social skills and behaviour. Pupils experience a broad and balanced curriculum. Some subjects are not taught well enough because staff do not have the necessary specific subject expertise  The work of the school to prepare pupils for life in modern Britain is good. Pupils have the opportunity to learn about different faiths and cultures and about what it means to be British. The opportunities they have to participate in raising funds for charities help them to understand the lives of others. For example,

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

they sprayed their hair pink when they joined the ‘Wear it Pink’ campaign for Breast Cancer Support.  Good use is made of the extra funding received to support disadvantaged pupils. All pupils, for example, have access to a school counsellor to address historical barriers to learning and their attitudes to school. This money is also used to help pupils experience outdoor pursuits such as swimming or fishing to build up their confidence and resilience.  The physical education and sport premium funding, received to support primary-aged pupils, is used to purchase extra resources to enhance teaching. It has also been used to employ a qualified sports coach to work alongside staff teaching physical education. While the quality of provision is improving, the use of this funding has not led to pupils experiencing any extra opportunities to participate or excel in sport.  The governance of the school The size of the management committee has been increased and new members bring appropriate

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

educational experience to their work. This has led to more challenging questions being asked about how well the school is doing. Increasingly detailed information about the academic achievement of pupils is shared with the management committee. This is being used to track the impact of the changes and improvements in provision and of the use of additional funding, for example the pupil premium. The management committee does not hold the acting headteacher to account about the number of exclusions so these remain too high. The management committee is well aware of the inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. While it holds the acting headteacher to account, this has not been effective enough to ensure consistently good teaching in all lessons.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Policies and procedures are appropriate and checks are made to ensure that staff are suitable to work with children and young people. Staff pay particular

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

attention to managing the welfare of pupils and work effectively with wider agencies, where necessary, to support pupils at risk. Training in the ‘Prevent’ duty, to make sure staff can identify the risks of radicalisation to vulnerable pupils, is in place.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

 There is a marked difference in the quality of teaching across the different teaching groups. Teaching in lessons for the oldest pupils is often good. This is not the case in some lessons for the youngest pupils, where teaching is not good enough.  Teaching is best when all teachers and support staff understand when they should step in and support or challenge pupils. Sometimes, the timing of intervention is too slow and pupils become upset and off task. There are also occasions when support from adults is too confrontational, so pupils stop learning and their behaviour deteriorates.  Teaching across different subjects varies. While it is stronger in English and mathematics, teachers do not always have the level of expertise they need to teach some other subjects well enough.  The school’s marking policy has not been updated for some time. Senior leaders recognise that some teachers’ marking, and the feedback it gives pupils about their learning, is not effective and needs to

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment requires improvement

improve.  Some of the most effective teaching takes place in small groups. In these, thorough checks on what pupils know and understand regularly take place. Teaching is then skilfully tailored to ensure that pupils are given just enough challenge so that they feel confident to have a go and make progress in their learning.  Pupils in ‘The Bridge’ class experience good teaching. They are given a programme of lessons that help them to build their self-confidence and manage their behaviour so that they are more ready to learn.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare requires improvement because strategies to engage pupils in learning and in improving their behaviour are not effective in all classes.  Pupils know how to keep safe and understand what bullying is. They are not always effectively supported to manage their own behaviour so that they avoid being involved in instances of bullying.  The school’s work to support pupils’ emotional well-being in ‘The Bridge’ class is successful. It is a strength of the school’s work because it enables pupils to manage their difficulties and re-engage with learning.  Staff work effectively with wider agencies to ensure that pupils at risk are supported to keep safe and overcome their difficulties.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. Behaviour in lessons can quickly change. Pupils can be calm and focused on their work and then suddenly feel under pressure or become upset. When this happens, pupils’ behaviour very quickly deteriorates. They only get back on track with their learning when adults notice and effectively intervene to support and challenge them. This timely intervention from adults does not always happen well or quickly enough.  Following his arrival at the school, the acting headteacher used exclusions to demonstrate that he would not accept pupils’ poor behaviour. This use of exclusions continues, is not always appropriate and is used far too regularly.  Overall attendance rates fluctuate significantly because of the small numbers of pupils. Inspectors found that while attendance is often not good enough, for many pupils it shows sustained improvement.  When pupils arrive at Hampden House they often have a history of poor behaviour. From this starting

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Behaviour

point their behaviour improves. Currently some of the best behaviour is seen in lessons for the oldest pupils.  Pupils who are taught in ‘The Bridge’ class make good progress in improving both their attitudes and behaviour.

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

 Pupils have very low starting points when they join Hampden House, often because they have had periods of time when they have not attended school or have struggled to engage with learning because of poor behaviour. Many of the pupils have previously attended another pupil referral unit.  Detailed checks are made about what pupils have already learned when they join the school. Pupils’ skills and particular strengths are identified so that learning activities can be planned to meet their needs. Where this information is used well, for example with the older pupils, they are increasingly engaged in their learning.  From very low starting points, pupils make at least satisfactory progress. Older pupils are currently making good progress in many of their lessons. Some of the youngest pupils are not making progress that is good enough.  A focus on English and mathematics is helping pupils to make at least satisfactory progress in these two

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

subjects. Some of the oldest pupils make good progress. In a mathematics lesson, for example, older pupils were given challenging work on algebra which they enjoyed and were determined to get right.  The progress pupils make in other subjects is not recorded in detail. Inspectors looked through pupils’ work and found evidence to show that progress across a range of subjects is very mixed. There is little to show that expectations are high or that pupils make good progress.  The current progress being made by disadvantaged pupils is being enhanced by the use of the pupil premium because it is used to extend their experiences and help them build resilience, as well as to work better with others. They make similar progress to other pupils. However, this is still too dependent on the quality of teaching in the key stage they are working in.  Support for pupils who have special educational needs or disability is equally patchy. In line with their

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Outcomes for pupils require improvement

peers, the oldest pupils make good progress while some of the younger pupils are not well enough supported to make the progress they are capable of.  During the last academic year, 2014/15, half of the pupils that left Hampden House returned to a mainstream school and the rest progressed to other educational provision suited to their needs. This is clear evidence that pupils are being well prepared for their next stage of education.

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School details

Unique reference number 124530 Local authority Suffolk Inspection number 10003789

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. The inspection was also deemed a section 5 inspection under the same Act.

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School details

Type of school Pupil referral unit School category Pupil referral unit Age range of pupils 8–14 Gender of pupils Boys Number of pupils on the school roll 16 Appropriate authority The local authority Chair Jane Sharp Acting headteacher Graham Alcock Telephone number 01787 373583 Website www.hampdenhouse.net Email address admin@hampdenhouse.net Date of previous inspection 6 March 2013

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, an acting headteacher has been appointed. There are three new members on the management committee.  Hampden House Hostel is a pupil referral unit (PRU) providing short-stay, full-time education and residential care for up to 24 pupils aged eight to 14 years old. They may have been permanently excluded from a mainstream school or may have moved from another PRU. Not all pupils are resident.  Most pupils are White British.  The proportion of pupils known to be entitled to free school meals is well above the national average.  The proportion of pupils identified for special educational needs support, with a statement of special educational needs or with an education, health and care plan is above the national average.  The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors met with school leaders, members of the management committee and groups of pupils.  Inspectors scrutinised school documents, including improvement plans, monitoring of teaching and pupil progress, self-evaluation and minutes of management committee meetings. They also looked at records of behaviour management and safeguarding documentation, including staff training records.  Inspectors spent time in all classes, observed lessons, looked at pupils’ books and spoke to them about their learning and behaviour. They spent time with pupils at break and lunchtime.  There were insufficient responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View, for them to be taken into account.

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Inspection team

Andrew Cook, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Sharon Wilson Ofsted 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.gov.uk/ofsted

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