Northstar New School

Youth Empowerment Education Programme (YEEP) Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence (CEME), Marsh Way, Rainham, Essex RM13 8EU

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Inspection dates 30 November–1 December 2016

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Overall effectiveness Insufficient evidence

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Insufficient evidence

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Insufficient evidence

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Insufficient evidence

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Outcomes for pupils Insufficient evidence

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The proprietor, who is also the headteacher, has worked effectively to ensure that all the independent school standards are likely to be met when pupils are admitted to the school. However, as there have never been any pupils on the school’s roll, there is insufficient evidence to make judgements according to the common inspection framework.  Safeguarding is likely to be effective. The proprietor has completed an appropriate level of training and the school’s policy and proposed procedures meet statutory requirements. The planned training for staff and systems for identifying and referring concerns are likely to ensure that pupils are kept safe.  The curriculum is appropriately planned and resourced. Once staff are formally contracted and trained to work in the school, it will be ready to educate up to 12 pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.  There are preliminary plans to form a governing

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

body to support and challenge the proprietor when pupils are admitted to the school.  The school’s request to make a material change to its registration is acceptable. The recommended age range is 7 to 14 years.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

Compliance with regulatory requirements  The school is likely to meet 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?

 Improve the quality of leadership and management by: − realising as quickly as possible the existing plans to form a governing body to support and challenge the proprietor.

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amnesty granted

 Following the school’s pre-registration inspection last year, the proprietor, who is also the school’s headteacher, decided not to admit pupils and to request a change to the school’s registration. This is because the local demand for placements has changed. The inspector spoke with a representative from a potential placing local authority who confirmed this to be the case.  The school’s curriculum is designed to meet the needs of a small number of pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities in key stages 2 and 3. It is carefully planned with scope for personalised programmes, ensuring coverage of the national curriculum but with a special focus on developing pupils’ social, moral and personal skills, and their behaviour.  The proprietor has appropriately prepared the curriculum to facilitate pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, their understanding of fundamental British values

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amnesty granted

and respect for other people.  The monitoring of the quality of teaching, learning and assessment has been considered, as have arrangements for performance management and reporting pupils’ progress to parents and placing local authorities.  The premises meet all the requirements of the independent school standards, comprising two large classrooms within a learning and training centre. Lighting, acoustics and the standards of health and safety, cleanliness and maintenance are all acceptable. Pupils have access to their own toilet, shower and changing room. The private medical room space is appropriate and near to the toilet facility. Appropriate, safe outdoor space is available and physical education will be taught at the nearby sports centre. Arrangements for drinking water, water temperature and outdoor lighting all meet requirements.  The proprietor has ensured that arrangements for health, safety, maintenance and fire

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amnesty granted

safety are effective. The proprietor is a trained first aider and will train new staff in accordance with the school’s appropriate first aid policy. The school’s risk assessment policy meets requirements and the sampled risk assessments, of the premises and an exemplar school trip, are thorough and suitable in considering and reducing risks. The school intends to provide a one-to-one level of supervision for pupils.  Appropriate templates and systems are ready for use to keep accurate attendance and admission registers to meet the requirements of the pupil registration regulations.  The school’s complaints policy meets all the requirements of the independent school standards. The school has not received any complaints to date.  An appropriate accessibility plan is in place and meets the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.  This inspection included a formal commission to consider the school’s application to make

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amnesty granted

a material change to its registration. The only requested change was in relation to the age range, amending it from 11 to 16 to 7 to 14. The material change is recommended.  All the independent school standards are likely to be met when pupils are admitted to the school, including those relating to leadership and management. Once staff are formally contracted and trained, the school will be ready to educate and safeguard pupils.  However, as no pupil is currently being educated, there is insufficient evidence to make an inspection judgement on the effectiveness of leadership and management.

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Governance

 The proprietor is currently in discussions with those interested in contributing to the school as governors. His view to date has been that there is nothing to govern until pupils are on roll but he acknowledged the benefits of having a governing body in place to support and challenge him as the school makes plans to admit pupils.  The inspector spoke with a consultant headteacher who has supported the proprietor in setting up the school. She will continue to support the school by externally validating its effectiveness when it admits pupils.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are likely to be effective.  The school’s safeguarding policy reflects the most recent statutory guidance, ‘Keeping children safe in education’ (September 2016). It is published on the school’s website alongside all other policies and information required by the independent school standards.  The proprietor has completed safer recruitment training and ensured that all the appropriate vetting checks are in place for the recruitment of staff. A single central register of vetting checks is in place and meets requirements. A teacher and therapist and a teaching assistant are ready to be contracted as the first members of staff once pupils are referred.  Plans for staff training and internal processes for the identification and referral of safeguarding concerns have been well prepared and are clear and appropriate.  The proprietor is suitably trained in de-escalation and physical intervention. Staff will be

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amnesty granted

 There is an appropriate curriculum policy and schemes of work in place to meet the needs of up to 12 pupils aged 7 to 14 who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. The policy and plans cover the full national curriculum and therefore all the required areas of learning. Planning is sufficiently detailed and takes into account the varying ages, aptitudes and needs of individual pupils. Designed as cross-curricular topics, learning is planned to specially focus on the development of pupils’ speaking, listening, literacy, numeracy, personal and social skills. Careers education is appropriately planned for pupils in key stage 3.  A strong focus of the curriculum and the school’s work in general will be the moral and social development of pupils. Spiritual and cultural development is also cohesively planned through religious education and personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE).

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amnesty granted

Appropriate plans for PSHE ensure that pupils are explicitly taught about fundamental British values and to respect other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010.  The school will identify pupils’ starting points in all areas of learning and social and emotional wellbeing, using a mixture of tests and assessment tools. Progress will then be measured on a termly basis. The ultimate focus of the school is to re-engage pupils in learning, raise their self-esteem and prepare them for a phased return to mainstream education.  Appropriate templates and resources are in place to support teachers when they are appointed to ensure teaching at the school is based on well-planned lessons and effective teaching methods.  All the relevant independent school standards are likely to be met when pupils are admitted to the school. However, as teaching has not started to take place in the school,

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amnesty granted

the inspection was unable to judge some of the independent school standards. There is insufficient evidence to make a judgement on the quality of teaching, learning and assessment.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s behaviour and anti-bullying policies meet all the requirements of the independent school standards. However, their implementation was unable to be seen.  All the relevant independent school standards are likely to be met when pupils are admitted to the school. However, there is insufficient evidence to make a judgement on personal development, behaviour and welfare.

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Behaviour

 There is insufficient evidence to judge behaviour as there have not been pupils on roll.

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amnesty granted

 There is insufficient evidence to judge outcomes for pupils as there have not been pupils on roll.

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School details

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.

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School details

Type of school Other independent special school

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School details

Email address euan.macdonald@yeep.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Youth Empowerment Education Programme (YEEP) is an independent special school registered for up to 12 pupils aged 11 to 16 years with social, emotional and mental health difficulties (SEMH) and autistic spectrum disorders (ASD).  There are no pupils on roll, and never have been. The proprietor intends to admit pupils in the next 12 months.  There are currently no staff employed by the school.  The school’s premises are located within one of the buildings at the Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence (CEME) in Rainham, Essex.  This is the school’s first standard inspection and includes consideration of a material change to the school’s registration.  Following the pre-registration inspection in August 2015, all the independent school standards were judged as likely to be met. Since this time, the proprietor has decided not to admit pupils due to the change in local demand for placements. As a result, he has

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Information about this school

requested a material change to the school’s registration, amending the age range to 7 to 14 years.  The school does not intend to use any alternative provision.  The school’s website meets the requirements of the independent school standards.

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Information about this inspection

 This is the school’s first standard inspection which took place with one day’s notice.  The inspection was commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE) to check the school’s compliance with the independent school standards required for continued registration. The inspector was asked to consider the extent to which the school is ready to educate and safeguard pupils, and whether the school’s application for a material change to its age range is recommended.  The inspector reviewed all available documentation, including school policies, evidence of the proprietor’s training and information related to safeguarding and health and safety. The inspector also toured the premises and considered all available evidence in relation to the independent school standards.  The inspector spoke with a representative from a potential placing local authority and a consultant headteacher who has supported the setting up of the school.

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Information about this inspection

 There were no responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View.  There were no staff to speak to or questionnaires to consider.

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Inspection team

James Waite, lead inspector 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

Parent View 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

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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection team

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 .

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Inspection team

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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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