Ganton School

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Mrs Susan Jones Headteacher Ganton School 294 Anlaby Park Road South Kingston-upon-Hull HU4 7JB

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No formal designation monitoring inspection of Ganton School

Following my visit with Fiona Dixon, Ofsted Inspector, to your school on 25 April 2017, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings.

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No formal designation monitoring inspection of Ganton School

This monitoring inspection was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for inspecting schools with no formal designation. The inspection was carried out because Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector was concerned about the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements, aspects of the effectiveness of leadership and management in the school (including governance) and the personal development, behaviour and welfare of pupils.

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Evidence

Inspectors scrutinised the single central record and other documents relating to safeguarding and child protection arrangements and met with the headteacher, groups of pupils, parents, the chair of the governing body and two other governors, including the newly appointed safeguarding governor.

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Evidence

The inspection team visited classrooms on both the primary and secondary site accompanied by senior leaders. Inspectors talked to pupils about their work as they looked at work in pupils’ folders and met with groups of pupils on both sites during lunchtime. The inspection team also spent time scrutinising a wide range of documents relating to pupils’ personal development and welfare. I also met with a small group of parents at the end of the school day.

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Evidence

Having considered the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Context

Ganton school is currently a stand-alone academy but is in the process of joining a multi-academy trust. There are currently 164 pupils on the roll of the school, all of whom have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or a statement of special educational needs and/or disabilities. The great majority of pupils are from families of White British heritage and very few speak English as an additional language. A much larger than average proportion of pupils are supported by pupil premium funding. The school is divided into primary and secondary phases. The primary unit is co-located alongside Christopher Pickering Primary School and the secondary unit shares a site with Sirius Academy West.

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Inspection findings

The school’s safeguarding arrangements are effective because leaders and governors have ensured that pupils’ safety and welfare are a key priority throughout the school. Staff are well trained and are diligent at recording any concerns they may have for pupils. Leaders at all levels act quickly and decisively when concerns are raised. They work in close partnership with a range of other partner agencies such as health and social care.

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Inspection findings

Safeguarding policies and procedures are updated regularly. School leaders have worked exceptionally hard to increase the range of provision for pupils. For example, many pupils have medical needs and currently there is little support available from the local authority school nursing team. Senior leaders have addressed the problem by training teaching assistants to dispense essential medication and to monitor medicines. The current system is well run and staff have a very good overview of pupils’ needs. Parents appreciate the timely reminders they are given when medication is running low.

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Inspection findings

Staff spoken to during the inspection are very clear about current safeguarding requirements. They have a strong level of understanding of the needs of their pupils and are astute at recognising small changes which may signify concerns. They are knowledgeable about a wide range of safeguarding issues and recognise very clearly that keeping pupils safe is the responsibility of all.

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Inspection findings

Pupils say they feel safe in school. Those spoken to were clear that bullying can take different forms and know what to do if they feel unsafe. All felt they had someone to talk to, including support assistants trained in emotional literacy. There was an insightful suggestion from a group of pupils that if a pupil was worried and shy and had a secret they did not want to tell to an adult, they could always tell the reading dog who regularly visits school with her owner. This demonstrated their understanding of the importance of sharing their concerns. Older pupils are developing very good levels of knowledge of how to keep safe through the school’s programme to develop independence skills. Several pupils explained proudly how they now know how to use a bus using their pass and plan a route. Some now meet up independently with friends at the weekend.

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Inspection findings

Senior leaders and governors have effective oversight of the school’s safeguarding provision. Required checks have been carried out on the suitability of staff to work in the school. The recording of checks in the single central record meets the Department for Education requirements. Safeguarding records are kept appropriately and have a good level of detail. Detailed moving and handling plans are in place for non-ambulant pupils. Staff members are required to sign these to say they have read and understood them. However, there is no signing register, so it is not obvious if all relevant staff have signed.

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Inspection findings

Governors are knowledgeable about current safeguarding requirements. The newly appointed safeguarding governor has previously delivered safeguarding training to the school staff and has detailed knowledge and understanding of current legislation. This has enabled the governing body to be well placed to monitor safeguarding processes within the school and to provide robust support and challenge to senior leaders. The governing body ratify all school policies and ensure they are fit for purpose. Those policies that are relevant are posted on the school website. However, at the time of the inspection an incorrect version of the good behaviour policy had been inadvertently posted on the website. This was changed during the inspection. Senior leaders recognise that they need to monitor documents displayed on the website more closely.

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Inspection findings

Parents spoken to during the inspection were very positive about the care and support their children receive from school staff. Comments such as: ‘Staff never stop caring. They often arrange trips and breaks for our children during the holidays’, ‘Staff support us as well as our children’, ‘I feel the relationship I have with staff at school is second to none’ and, ‘When my child comes to school, I know he is in safe hands’ typified the feelings of others. This clearly demonstrates the strong relationship that school has developed with parents and carers.

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Inspection findings

The school prides itself on its effective communication with both parents and carers and external organisations. Senior leaders meet regularly with representatives from health and social care to discuss pupils and their care. For example, half-termly meetings take place between the headteacher and nurses from the children’s disabilities team. The duty social worker from the local authority respite care provision has recently started to attend these meetings. This has strengthened still further the links between organisations and the provision of care and welfare for pupils at the school.

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Inspection findings

Senior leaders and governors have a clear overview of pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare. They are very aware of the barriers that many pupils face and work hard to provide pupils with the skills and tools to overcome them. Pupils’ development of independence skills reflects the success of their endeavours. Pupils’ behaviour can at times be difficult. However, the number of incidents of difficult behaviour diminishes as pupils learn to manage their own emotions and behaviour with the skilled support of staff at the school.

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External support

The school is a stand-alone academy which is in the process of joining a multi- academy trust. It is expected that this will provide support to the school and leadership team. Currently, school leaders employ an external consultant who continues to support improvement across the school successfully.

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Priorities for further improvement

Leaders and those responsible for governance should make sure that:

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Priorities for further improvement

 policies and safeguarding documents posted on the school website are in a final format  sign-in sheets for safeguarding procedures list which staff are required to sign them, so that omissions can be detected more clearly.

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Priorities for further improvement

I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for the city of Kingston-upon- Hull. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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