Focus School

Focus School Independent school inspection report

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DCSF registration number 821/6744 Unique reference number 135738 Inspection number 342516 Inspection dates 8-9 December 2009 Reporting inspector Julie Winyard HMI

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 162A of the Education Act 2002, as amended. The inspection of boarding was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000

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Age group: 12-16 Published: Reference no: 090070 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 Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates 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 08456 404040, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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T: 08456 404040 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk No. 090070 Independent school inspection report

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Purpose and scope of the inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Section 162A of the Education Act 2002, as amended, the purpose of which is to advise the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school. 1

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Purpose and scope of the inspection

An inspection of the care provision was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 having regard to the national minimum standards for children’s homes. This inspection took place at the same time but the report is published separately on Ofsted’s website and should be read in conjunction with this report which covers the educational registration of the school.

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Information about the school

This Focus Residential Childcare Services School is a children’s home which offers education. It is situated on the outskirts of a large town and is close to a range of shops and amenities. It currently has two pupils between the ages of 12 and 15. One pupil has a statement of special educational needs. There are two other young people living in the children’s home who attend education provision in the local area. The school was registered in November 2008. The headteacher has been in post since September 2009. This is the school’s first published inspection report by Ofsted.

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Information about the school

The school aims to, ‘provide a warm and welcoming environment where pupils feel safe to learn, are confident and well prepared for adult life and where possible, have the confidence to return to mainstream education.’

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Evaluation of the school

The school provides a satisfactory quality of education for its pupils and effectively supports their personal development. The teaching, pupils’ learning and their progress are satisfactory overall and satisfactory provision is made for pupils of all abilities to be given appropriate challenge to improve their learning. The proprietor acknowledges that there is work to be done to ensure that pupils receive continuity of care and that the curriculum and strategies for behaviour management are implemented consistently across both the children’s home and the school to ensure the regular attendance of all pupils, especially those with a history of refusal to engage with formal education. All policies are in place, however those related to education are not yet fully embedded in practice. All safeguarding requirements are fully in place. With one exception, all the regulations for independent schools are

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Evaluation of the school

1 www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2002/ukpga_20020032_en_14#pt10-ch1-pb4-l1g162 Independent school inspection report

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Quality of education

The curriculum is satisfactory overall and meets pupils’ learning needs including those set out in their statements of special educational needs. There is a relevant curriculum policy and the implementation of the policy is satisfactory. There are suitable schemes of work, the content of which is drawn from the National Curriculum for younger pupils and from the GCSE requirements for older pupils. Programmes of study and courses are carefully matched to pupils’ levels of ability and appropriate learning targets are identified so that pupils have suitable challenge to move their learning forward. However, opportunities are limited in some GCSE courses and pupils are not receiving adequate preparation for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life. For example, the school cannot provide a full GCSE science or design technology curriculum due to a lack of specialist facilities. The proprietor is in the process of exploring partnerships with local

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Quality of education

secondary schools to improve this aspect of the school’s provision.

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Quality of education

There is an appropriate focus on developing pupils’ literacy and numeracy skills as pupils often have gaps in their knowledge, skills and understanding due to time away from formal education. Lessons are of reasonable length and take account of pupils’ abilities to concentrate. Information and communication technology is used well to support the curriculum and pupils have good opportunities to use the internet for research, with good supervision and appropriate safety measures in place. Good use is made of visits to support the curriculum and one pupil spoke very enthusiastically about a trip to a museum in London as part of a GCSE project on the history of medicine. The timetable provides a satisfactory balance across the week and subject areas have sufficient time allocated to them. The school has a flexible approach to the curriculum and is able to adapt activities well to meet the needs and interests of

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Quality of education

pupils. Literacy skills are developed well across the curriculum and meaningful links are beginning to be made across subjects so that pupils understand how the skills they learn in literacy and numeracy can be applied in different contexts. Good links are developing between the curriculum offered in school and that provided by the care staff in the children’s home. Most physical education opportunities happen after school and during the inspection one pupil was taken on a religious education visit by the head of care. However, these aspects of the curriculum are not yet perceived by all pupils as part of their ‘school’ education and ensuring continuity of provision is an area for development.

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Quality of education

Teaching and assessment are satisfactory. Good teaching was seen during the inspection in GCSE lessons. In this good teaching questioning is used effectively to probe pupils’ understanding allowing them to do the thinking and give their ideas. Good explanations enable the pupils to understand exactly what they need to learn and work is matched well to each pupil’s ability. There is good structure to the learning so pupils move forward in small steps which builds their confidence. At the end of the lesson, time is allocated well to allow pupils to summarise what has been learnt so that this learning can be developed in the next session. Where teaching is satisfactory, pupils do not engage as well with learning and so their progress is satisfactory. This is particularly the case where pupils find formal education Independent school inspection report challenging. The school and children’s home are beginning to develop strategies that

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Quality of education

provide effective support for these pupils. For example, the care manager and head of care have developed very positive relationships that enable pupils to engage with work provided by the school whilst working in the children’s home environment. Relationships are excellent and pupils want to please the adults they work with. This was evident in a literacy lesson where a pupil, who doubted her own ability, produced a thoughtful and effective poem due to the growth in confidence engendered by the teacher. The pupil was very proud of the poem.

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Quality of education

Overall pupils make satisfactory progress at the school. For example, one pupil who had not engaged in formal education for some time prior to arrival at the school this year has shown satisfactory progress in mathematics and written work. Lessons are planned well and learning is carefully evaluated at the end of each session. Reports are written for monthly progress meetings which give very detailed information on the progress pupils have made including the level they are working at.

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Quality of education

Pupils receive immediate feedback about how well they are doing throughout lessons. The teacher is very sensitive in explaining areas for improvement which means that pupils understand what they need to work on next without losing their enthusiasm for learning. For example, in mathematics where a pupil had made a lot of mistakes in problem solving, in the next lesson the teacher encouraged the pupil to talk through each problem so that they realised that they could readily solve each of the problems.

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Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the pupils

Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are good. They know the difference between right and wrong and behaviour is satisfactory overall because of the good foundations laid and clear boundaries set in the children’s home. However, not all pupils value the rewards offered for attendance at the school and there is not yet a consistent approach so that all pupils understand that attendance at school is mandatory. Pupils demonstrated good behaviour in lessons and around the school and all pupils behave well when they are learning off-site, for example on a recent visit to a nearby park and Buddhist Temple. However, this good behaviour is not maintained throughout all activities, therefore behaviour is satisfactory overall. Pupils’ enjoyment of their learning is evident on visits and also in lessons where attendance is good. The children’s home has recently employed an educational psychologist to work with care staff on a specific ‘parenting’ programme. Targets are

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Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the pupils

set for young people in the context of the children’s home. However, these targets, which often relate to behaviour development, are not yet used within the school context.

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Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the pupils

Pupils learn about other cultures within the curriculum and also about public institutions. The school is very keen that pupils should learn about their own cultural heritage, for example, through the connections that have been made with a local Buddhist temple. Pupils are beginning to understand their rights and have some Independent school inspection report understanding regarding their responsibility for their own behaviour. Pupils’ spiritual development is promoted well through the time they are given to reflect on their learning and their attitudes. This was evident when a pupil returned from visiting the Buddhist Temple and very proudly showed other pupils the Bonsai tree he had bought and was able to say why this was important for his faith.

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Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the pupils

Pupils are prepared well for the next stage of their learning through the good links with the local Connexions service that provides advice to pupils on further training and job opportunities. The school also ensures that when a pupil has a specific career interest this is fully explored. For example, one pupil who is keen to join the police force has been visited by the local careers officer and taster sessions are being set up so that the pupil can find out about different aspects of police work.

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Welfare, health and safety of the pupils

The provision for pupils’ welfare, health and safety is good. Pupils say they feel safe in school and that there is no bullying. Where there are conflicts between pupils these are rapidly resolved with support from the care staff. The children’s home keeps a detailed log of behaviour and sanctions and this is also used by the school. Pupils behave in a safe manner around the school.

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Welfare, health and safety of the pupils

Staff are highly committed to the pupils and care for them very well. For example, very careful risk assessments are made for pupils’ behaviour within the school. There is good communication between the care staff and teaching staff and they work together well. However, further development is needed to ensure the smooth transition from the children’s home environment to the school environment. Care staff support the close supervision of pupils during the school day and join the pupils at break and lunch times. All child protection procedures are in place. Pupils have a good understanding of how to live a healthy lifestyle and they plan the daily menus, supported by the care staff, to ensure there is balance across the week. The school has a three year accessibility plan and fulfils its requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, amended by the Special Educational Needs & Disability Act

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Suitability of the proprietor and staff

Robust systems and procedures for appointing staff are in place in line with the requirements.

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School’s premises and accommodation

The school’s premises and accommodation enable pupils to learn effectively, safely and securely. There are two well-equipped classrooms of reasonable size. There are no specialist rooms for science, music or design technology. However, the school is Independent school inspection report developing partnerships with local schools so that provision would be available if needed. Decoration and furnishings are of good quality.

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Provision of information for parents, carers and others

A comprehensive prospectus includes all the information for parents required by the regulations and informs parents and prospective parents about the work of the school. The care manager makes regular telephone calls to parents with regard to the children’s home and now includes information, where appropriate about their child’s behaviour and progress at school.

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Procedures for handling complaints

There are good procedures for handling complaints and parents are informed about these through the school prospectus.

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Effectiveness of the boarding provision

The care provision was judged to be good, and national minimum standards were met. A full report on the care provision is available on Ofsted’s website and should be viewed in conjunction with this report.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school meets all of the Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2003 as amended (‘the Regulations’), with the exception of those listed below. 2

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school does not meet all requirements in respect of the curriculum (standard 1) and must:

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

 provide access to a suitable range of GCSE courses for pupils in Year 10 and Year 11 so that they receive adequate preparation for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life (paragraph 1(2)(j)).

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

Please see the report on Ofsted’s website relating to the care provision in the children’s home which should be read in conjunction with this report.

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What the school could do to improve further

While not required by regulations, the school might wish to consider the following points for development.

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What the school could do to improve further

2 www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2003/20031910.htm Independent school inspection report  Ensure behaviour management, personal development and education aspects of the children’s home are carried through into the school so that processes, procedures and agreed support and pupil targets are consistently applied in both contexts.  Improve continuity between education and care to help pupils engage in their learning more effectively.  Set up more formal arrangements to enable pupils to participate in GCSE coursework and examinations. Independent school inspection report Inspection judgement recording form outstanding good satisfactory inadequate

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What the school could do to improve further

The quality of education Overall quality of education  How well the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of pupils 

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What the school could do to improve further

How effective teaching and assessment are in meeting the full range of pupils’ needs 

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What the school could do to improve further

How well pupils make progress in their learning 

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What the school could do to improve further

Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

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What the school could do to improve further

Quality of provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 

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What the school could do to improve further

The overall welfare, health and safety of pupils 

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What the school could do to improve further

The quality of boarding provision (leave blank if not applicable)

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What the school could do to improve further

Evaluation of boarding provision  Independent school inspection report

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School details

Name of school Focus School DCSF number 821/6744 Unique reference number 135738 Type of school Other Independent Special School Status Independent Date school opened 31 October 2008 Age range of pupils 11–16 years Gender of pupils Mixed Number on roll (full-time pupils) Boys: 1 Girls: 1 Total: 2 Number of boarders Boys: 1 Girls: 1 Total: 2 Number of pupils with a statement of special educational need Boys: 1 Girls: 0 Total: 1

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School details

Number of pupils who are looked after Boys: 1 Girls: 0 Total: 1 Annual fees (boarders) £20,800 Telephone number 01582 583322 Fax number 01582 583330 Email address information@focusrcs.co.uk Headteacher John Evenett Proprietor Nick Taylor Reporting inspector Julie Winyard HMI Dates of inspection 8–9 December 2009

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