Hillingdon Manor School

Hillingdon Manor School Moorcroft Complex, Harlington Road, Hillingdon, Uxbridge UB8 3HD

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Main inspection findings

Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils Paragraphs 7, 7(a), 7(b) and 32(1)(c)  The school’s safeguarding policy refers to the latest guidance issued by the Secretary of State and is available on the school’s website. However, at the time of the inspection, many associated safeguarding policy documents, including those relating to female genital mutilation, domestic violence, e-safety and whistleblowing, were all due for review in July 2016. Leaders have not made sure they were updated. The website also, unhelpfully, included downloadable statutory guidance from July 2015. This lack of attention to detail may confuse parents and undermines the credibility of the overarching safeguarding policy.  Although two of the school’s leaders have completed safer recruitment training, the school’s approach to safer recruitment is not sufficiently robust. At the time of the inspection, two safer recruitment policies were available to parents: one referring to

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Main inspection findings

outdated statutory guidance and one marked as due for review in July 2016. The school has employed staff with references that are not completed on their own templates. Leaders have also accepted references from applicants’ friends and letters from agencies. These do not explicitly and reliably identify whether or not they have been subject to disciplinary action or if there are any concerns about them working with children.  All staff have recently completed relevant safeguarding training at the required level, as well as additional training on radicalisation and extremism. The school’s system for identifying, responding to and referring concerns is fit for purpose.

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Main inspection findings

Paragraphs 9, 9(a), 9(b), 9(c) and 14  The school’s detailed behaviour policy is clear in its approach to the management of the behaviour of pupils who have autism spectrum disorders. It references appropriate rewards and sanctions.  The school keeps an electronic record of all behavioural incidents, including sanctions imposed on pupils.  The inspector visited both sites and all classrooms. He observed pupils coming into school at the start of the day and at lunchtime. The school is a safe and secure learning environment and pupils behave well. There are high ratios of staff to pupils and leaders have ensured that staff members are deployed effectively. As a result, pupils are well supervised throughout the school day. Where the supervision of specific pupils has been a concern in the past, lessons have been learned and leaders have made improvements.

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Main inspection findings

Paragraph 11  At the time of the inspection, the health and safety policy available on the school’s website was identified as due for review in July 2016. Although a hard copy was available at the school and marked as reviewed in September 2016, its content remained unchanged. The policy makes references to the responsibilities of the deputy headteacher when there is no such role in the school. It referred to the ‘new government’ of 2010 and to a previous proprietor. The policy is very sparse and lacks any tangible detail about how the school aims to comply with the relevant health and safety laws.

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Main inspection findings

Paragraph 16, 16(a) and (16)(b)  While the school takes appropriate action to reduce risks, it does not have a written risk assessment policy. The inspector sampled a range of appropriate risk assessments, including for the premises, specific pupils and school trips. Lessons learned as a result of previous incidents have seen improvements in staff’s awareness of risk assessments, especially for pupils who are most at risk.  The school does not meet the following standards in this part: 7, 7(a), 7(b), 11 and 16, 16(a).

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Main inspection findings

Part 4. Suitability of staff, supply staff, and proprietors Paragraphs 18(2), 18(2)(b), 21(3), 21(3)(a), 21(3)(a)(ii), 21(3)(a)(iii)  Although the inspector was not asked specifically to consider this part during the emergency inspection, the single central register of vetting checks on staff was checked, as were some staff files.  Leaders have not carried out checks under section 128 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 to make sure that those involved in managing the school are not prohibited from doing so. This is because the school’s leaders were not aware that they needed to make these checks.  Although leaders have made checks to establish whether staff have been barred from regulated activity with children as part of the enhanced criminal record checks, they are not identified on the single central register.  The school does not meet the following standards in this part: 18(2), 18(2)(b), 21(3),

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Main inspection findings

21(3)(a), 21(3)(a)(ii) and 21(3)(a)(iii).

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Main inspection findings

Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools Paragraph 34(1), 34(1)(a), 34(1)(b), 34(1)(c)  The school’s leaders have not paid enough attention to ensuring that they fully know and check that they are compliant with all the independent school standards. As a result, they have not ensured that these standards are met consistently or that the well-being of pupils is actively promoted.  The school does not meet the standards in this part.  The inspector was also asked to consider the school’s request to make a material change to its registration as part of this emergency inspection. The proposed change was to increase the maximum number of pupils from 170 to 195. The school is currently already operating with five additional pupils over its registered capacity.  In light of the findings of this emergency inspection, the material change is not recommended.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school does not meet the requirements of the schedule to The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 (‘the independent school standards’) and associated requirements that were checked during this inspection. Not all of the standards and associated requirements were checked during this inspection.

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The school does not meet the following independent school standards

 Ensure that arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of pupils at the school and that these arrangements have regard to guidance issued by the Secretary of State (paragraph 7, 7(a), 7(b)).  Ensure that relevant health and safety laws are complied with by drawing up and effectively implementing a written health and safety policy (paragraph 11).  Ensure that the welfare of pupils is safeguarded and promoted by the drawing up and effective implementation of a written risk assessment policy (paragraph 16, 16(a)).  Ensure that no person carries out work, or intends to carry out work, at the school in contravention of a prohibition order, an interim prohibition order, or any direction made under section 128 of the 2008 Act or section 142 of the 2002 Act, or any disqualification, prohibition or restriction which takes effect as if contained in either such direction (paragraph 18(2), 18(2)(b)).

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The school does not meet the following independent school standards

 Ensure that the single central register of vetting checks contains the information about all the checks that are required to make sure that staff members are suitable to work with children (paragraph 21(1), 21(3), 21(3)(a), 21(3)(a)(ii), 21(3)(a)(iii)).  Ensure that those with leadership and management responsibilities demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; that they fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently; and that they actively promote the well-being of pupils (paragraph 34(1), 34(1)(a), 34(1)(b), 34(1)(c)).

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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 Independent special day school for pupils with autism spectrum disorders School status Independent school

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School details

Gender of pupils in the sixth form Mixed

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School details

Of which, number on roll in sixth form 43

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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) £37,025 to £41,870

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School details

Website www.hillingdonmanorschool.org.uk

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School details

Email address enquiries@hillingdonmanorschool.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous standard inspection 3–5 March 2015

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Information about this school

 Hillingdon Manor School is an independent special day school for pupils with autism spectrum disorder, catering for up to 170 boys and girls aged three to 19 years.  All pupils have statements of special educational needs or an education, health and care (EHC) plan. Currently, 17 local authorities fund pupils’ placements.  The number of pupils at the school has increased and there are now 175 pupils on roll, five more than the school’s maximum capacity.  The school is located on two sites in the London borough of Hillingdon. Yiewsley Grange is the school’s primary site and is located about two miles from the main secondary site.  Contrary to the information held by the Department for Education, the school’s proprietor is the Outcomes First Group.  The school was last inspected in March 2015, when its overall effectiveness was judged to be good.  There were two responses to the Ofsted online survey (Parent View).

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Information about this school

 Off-site training is made available to older pupils and includes sports training at Abbotsfield School, motor vehicle maintenance sessions at Youth Skills Development Team’s ‘Gearz Project’ and physical education at Uxbridge Leisure Centre.

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Information about this inspection

 This emergency 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.  The inspection was commissioned by the Department for Education following an anonymous complaint which raised concerns about safeguarding, staff deployment, risk assessment and the safety of pupils.  The inspection was conducted without notice.  The inspector was asked to report against some of the regulations contained within Parts 3 and 8 of the independent school standards. The inspector was also asked to consider the school’s request to make a material change to its registration by increasing the maximum capacity to 195 pupils.  The inspector reviewed key documents and policies, including those related to safeguarding, behaviour, health and safety and risk assessment. He conducted the

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Information about this inspection

inspection with the school’s headteacher throughout, and met with the office manager and an assistant headteacher. The inspector also toured both premises and briefly observed pupils before school and at lunchtime. He also had a telephone conversation with the local authority’s designated officer (LADO).

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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 visitwww.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.

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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