Jus'T'Learn

Jus‟T‟Learn 9–11 Commonside East, Mitcham, Surrey CR4 2QA

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Inadequate

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The proprietor has not prioritised the health, safety and well-being of staff and pupils. Leaders‟ actions are reactive, rather than proactive. They have not ensured that the school meets all of the independent school standards. Safeguarding is ineffective.  The proprietor has not maintained the premises to a high enough standard in order to safeguard those at the school.  The proprietor has not addressed all of the concerns raised following a fire prevention audit. Consequently, the school is not compliant with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.  Toilets and washing facilities are not maintained sufficiently well. Arrangements for providing food and drinking water do not promote healthy lifestyles.  The learning environment is poor in the alternative provision and pupils do not always respect it. Leaders have given little attention to making it an attractive place to learn.  Some teachers‟ expectations of what pupils can

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

achieve are too low. Consequently, pupils do not make enough progress from their starting points.  Attendance for many pupils is too low.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Staff quickly foster strong and trusting relationships, which enable pupils to learn in a nurturing and supportive environment.  The curriculum provides opportunities for pupils to gain accreditation in appropriate qualifications.  Staff promote British values and pupils‟ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. They support individual pupils to manage their emotions and behaviour, and prepare them well for life beyond school.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

 The school must take action to meet the requirements of the schedule to The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 and associated requirements. The details are listed in the full report.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 The proprietor must effectively promote the health, safety and well-being of staff and pupils by ensuring that: – the school is compliant with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 – the site is regularly assessed to ensure that it is risk free – the site is maintained to a high standard in order to mitigate any hazards or risks – the site, including toilet and washing facilities, are consistently clean, well kept, and graffiti- and litter-free – drinking water is readily available for pupils throughout the day – pupils are provided with food that promotes a healthy lifestyle.  Ensure that pupils typically make good progress from their starting points by: – planning for learning that builds on pupils‟ prior knowledge and is consequently challenging – raising expectations about the quality of work that pupils produce and using praise accordingly – creating a learning environment that is attractive and conducive to learning

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

– encouraging pupils to attend regularly and consistently to respect each other, and the school environment.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

 The proprietor and senior leaders have not ensured that the school meets all of the independent school standards. They have not prioritised the health, safety and well-being of staff and pupils or planned their actions accordingly. They deal with issues as they arise sporadically.  The proprietor and leaders do not maintain the premises to a high enough standard. A number of health and safety hazards and risks were identified during the inspection. These included no safety locks on first-floor sash windows and no handrails on stairwells. The outside yard is bleak and unsafe, with broken stone tiles, dilapidated fencing and litter.  The proprietor commissioned a fire prevention audit in October 2017. This raised a number of serious issues, including installing fire doors and a smoke detection system. The proprietor failed to take appropriate action to address all of these concerns. Consequently, during the inspection, some of these issues were still prevalent.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

 The provision has closed-circuit television (CCTV) throughout. However, leaders have not ensured the on-site health and safety of staff and pupils well enough.  Leaders have not ensured that toilet and washing facilities are appropriate. During the inspection, signage depicting male and female toilets was not in place. There were no locks on some cubicle doors. Toilet paper, soap and towels were missing, even though the „check‟ sheet had been signed. Inappropriate graffiti was prevalent.  Leaders do not promote pupils‟ healthy lifestyles. Drinking water is not readily available, and pupils have to request it. Pupils are not encouraged to prepare or purchase healthy food choices. Leaders explained that £2 is the allocated lunchtime allowance, including for pupils receiving free school meals. Staff use this to purchase food from local shops, including fast-food outlets. During the inspection, Year 10 pupils consumed fast food and

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

fizzy drinks, while sitting on a wall outside the school.  Leaders say that they are committed to improving the life chances of pupils in their care, and are proud of their success stories. The school‟s motto, „Building the pathway to your future‟, encapsulates this. However, the inspection found that the school site did not meet a considerable number of the independent school standards. During the inspection, the proprietor began to address many of the concerns raised, including improvements to the toilet facilities and signage. Temporary smoke detectors, a handrail and window locks were installed. Visible electrical equipment in an office was boxed in. The proprietor has subsequently produced an action plan detailing further improvements and appropriate timescales for completion.  The proprietor and senior leaders have an over-generous view of the quality of education they are providing. While systems and processes are in place, they have been reticent

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

about addressing fundamental issues regarding the health, safety and well-being of pupils and staff. Pupils do not make the progress of which they are capable. This is because teaching requires improvement. There is large variation between the quality of education provided in each of the three provisions.  Funding is spent on ensuring that each pupil has key workers who will quickly establish strong and trusting relationships so the pupils‟ needs can be met. This includes funding for pupils who have special educational needs (SEN) and/or disabilities and those for whom the school receives pupil premium funding.  The curriculum offers a range of academic subjects, leading to accredited qualifications. At key stage 3, pupils undertake a programme called „Working Life Skills‟, and at key stage 4 they follow The Prince‟s Trust programme. These support pupils‟ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and promote their understanding of British values.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

Effective careers guidance and opportunities for work experience ensure that pupils are prepared for life when they leave school. Some pupils are reintegrated successfully back into a mainstream school.  Staff are aware of each pupil‟s particular needs and the reason for their placement at the school. Time is devoted daily to working with individuals to overcome barriers to learning and help them to manage their behaviours and emotions. Staff are well trained and experienced. They create opportunities to explore pupils‟ personal, social and emotional experiences and provide them with strategies to cope with adult life.  Leadership of teaching and learning is improving. Leaders support staff well with planning and preparation. Each half term, they check on the quality of teachers‟ planning and teaching, which informs plans for further professional development, support and training.  Leadership of the girls‟ provision is strong. Leaders have established a nurturing and safe

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Inadequate

environment. Staff know the girls well, and offer individualised support, academically, socially and emotionally. Relationships are strong, and girls trust the staff who work with them. Consequently, many attend regularly, enjoy coming to school and progress well.  Leaders across the provisions work closely with the placing schools and authorities. They regularly share information so that schools and authorities are kept up to date on pupils‟ progress, behaviour and attendance. Referral agencies commented on the positive impact the provision has had on pupils‟ self-esteem, engagement in learning and attendance.

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Governance

 The senior leadership team is the governing body. Consequently, there is no external system to hold senior leaders to account or to act as a critical friend.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective. The proprietor has not ensured that potential risks on the premises have been identified and addressed. The proprietor has not met the independent school standards around health and safety and fire regulations. The proprietor has put the well-being of staff and pupils at risk.  Checks on the suitability of staff to work at the school are in line with current statutory guidelines. Records of referrals are organised helpfully, though more could be done to check that external agencies have completed relevant actions. Staff are clear about their statutory responsibilities to ensure that pupils are kept safe and are trained to be vigilant. They quickly establish positive relationships with pupils, which enables them to spot signs of potential issues. Staff are clear about the risks in the local community, including gang affiliation, knives, child sexual exploitation and the potential to be radicalised. Staff attend

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Safeguarding

regular safeguarding training to ensure that their knowledge of current issues is up to date.  Pupils receive guidance and support from staff in order to deal with any safeguarding issues. They are given helpful strategies on how to keep themselves safe in the wider community. External agencies work closely with the provider to ensure that pupils receive the support that they need.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

 Teachers do not always plan activities that challenge pupils sufficiently. Often, tasks set do not extend pupils‟ learning. In some subjects, such as science, superficial tasks such as „word searches‟ are set regularly. In mathematics, few tasks expect pupils to develop their reasoning and problem-solving skills. In English, there are limited opportunities to write extended pieces for different audiences and purposes. Consequently, pupils are not prepared sufficiently well for their GCSE examinations. All too often, teachers expect all pupils to complete the same task, even though their starting points and prior knowledge are very different.  Teachers‟ expectations are sometimes too low and they praise pupils‟ work when it is not good enough. As a result, pupils learn quickly that they do not have to work hard in order to gain praise and, consequently, the quality of their work deteriorates. This was seen

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

during a review of pupils‟ work where, in a number of cases, the quality of work produced diminished over time.  Leaders have instigated a consistent approach to planning and for the routine at the start of each lesson. This involves explaining the learning objective to pupils. While this enables them to understand the aim of the activity, sometimes too much time is wasted copying this from the board instead of starting the task.  Leaders assess pupils on arrival and carefully track their progress while they are at the provision. This is used to inform the placing authority, school, and parents and carers, of pupils‟ progress. It also enables school leaders to intervene should a pupil‟s progress begin to stall. At times, this is due to social, emotional or behavioural difficulties outside the control of the provision. Staff ensure that they are aware of this when tracking pupils‟ progress and offer bespoke support.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

 Although the majority of staff are not qualified teachers, they have appropriate subject knowledge. Pupils are generally keen to learn and show an interest in their work. They appreciate the small group sizes and one-to-one support they receive.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school‟s work to promote pupils‟ personal development and welfare is inadequate. Leaders have not ensured that pupils‟ safety and welfare are a priority. They have not created a learning environment that is conducive to learning or supports pupils‟ well- being. Pupils are not encouraged to adopt healthy lifestyles.  Pupils receive helpful advice and guidance on identifying signs of bullying and strategies to protect themselves. The key workers build positive relationships with pupils so that they can quickly identify any concerns and deal with them promptly. Staff and pupils report that there are very few incidents of bullying at the school.  Staff establish strong, nurturing relationships with pupils and are trusted. Pupils receive bespoke support and guidance to meet their often very complex needs. Pupils were highly complimentary about the support they receive from their teachers and key workers,

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement. Some pupils do not show enough respect towards the learning environment or each other. Graffiti and litter are prevalent in some areas of the school. Damage to the property is an ongoing issue in the alternative provision.  While there is an induction process for pupils on arrival to the school, expectations of behaviour are not high enough. Leaders‟ stance is to remove items, such as hand towels, rather than expect pupils to respect the bathroom areas. Consequently, pupils do not learn how to look after and be proud of their school. This does not prepare them well for life when they leave.  Many pupils‟ attendance and punctuality are still too low.  Some pupils‟ behaviour and attendance have improved markedly since starting at the provision. This is particularly true in the girls‟ provision, where the pupils work together with staff as a close unit. Some pupils successfully return to their school or are re-

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Behaviour

integrated into another mainstream school. Pupils commented that the key workers and teachers have had a significant impact on their ability to self-manage poor behaviour. Many believed that they had become calmer and less angry since arriving at the provision.

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

 The provision‟s initial assessment information indicates that many pupils are capable of achieving age-related national qualifications by the end of Year 11. However, not enough pupils make the progress of which they are capable and achieve GCSE levels commensurate with their academic ability. This is particularly true in the alternative provision.  Pupils arrive at different times throughout the year, and from a variety of schools and provisions. Many have significant gaps in their knowledge and understanding. Pupils study a range of subjects, including English, mathematics, sociology, health and social care, history and The Prince‟s Trust programme. Leaders acknowledge that the quality of what pupils are studying is more important than the breadth of qualifications they are trying to achieve. In many cases, pupils study a wide range of subjects, but only take examinations in a small minority, usually mathematics, English and science. Attainment in these

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

subjects is often below what pupils are capable of achieving.  Pupils who are tutored in the provision for those new to learning English and those in the girls‟ provision make better progress. They are keen to learn, and demonstrate positive attitudes. Consequently, their outcomes are usually better.  Leaders are piloting independent learning plans for pupils, encouraging staff to prioritise the academic needs of each pupil rather than expecting everyone to complete the same work.  Pupils are encouraged to practise their teamwork, listening and speaking skills. For many, this has enabled them to grow in confidence and to trust their peers and staff. Pupils said that they feel welcomed into the provision, and safe.  Each year, many pupils are found appropriate placements at college or go on to apprenticeships. However, there are still some who do not manage to find sustained employment, education or training when they leave the school.

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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

Date of previous inspection 19 November 2014

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Information about this school

 Jus‟T‟Learn is an independent school and private tuition centre for pupils aged between 13 and 16. The school operates a number of sites, including one dedicated to educating girls, one that is a pupil referral unit and one that is for pupils who speak English as an additional language. The school accepts pupils from several London boroughs.  The majority of pupils remain on their placing school‟s roll. During the inspection, many pupils had joined the school in the last few weeks. The majority are in Year 10. However, some have been there for a number of years.  The proprietor is also the chair of governors. The governing body is the senior leadership team.  The school aims to „provide personalised learning experiences in order for students to achieve and work towards “Building the pathway to your future”.‟

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector observed teaching, learning and assessment in a number of lessons. She watched pupils interact with staff and key workers.  The inspector held discussions with senior leaders, staff and pupils. She spoke to the head of the virtual school for children looked after in Bexley and the inclusion lead for Lambeth local authority. She spoke to an external SEN consultant commissioned by the school.  The inspector took account of the 12 responses to the Ofsted staff survey. No parents or pupils responded to the surveys.  The inspector scrutinised a wide range of documentation, including records relating to pupils‟ behaviour and attendance, minutes of governors‟ meetings, information on pupils‟ progress and the school‟s own self-evaluation.  The inspector reviewed safeguarding records, policies and procedures, including incident logs. She undertook a detailed site inspection of the main site and the separate provision

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Information about this inspection

for pupils who speak English as an additional language.

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Inspection team

Helen Matthews, lead inspector Her Majesty‟s Inspector

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 7 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that–

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

– 7(a) arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of pupils at the school; and

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

– 7(b) such arrangements have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State.

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 11 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that relevant health and safety laws are complied with by the drawing up and effective implementation of a written health and safety policy.

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 12 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures compliance with the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 16 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that–

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

– 16(a) the welfare of pupils at the school is safeguarded and promoted by the drawing up and effective implementation of a written risk assessment policy; and

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

– 16(b) appropriate action is taken to reduce risks that are identified.

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 23(1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2), the standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that–

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

– 23(1)(c) suitable changing accommodation and showers are provided for pupils aged 11 years or over at the start of the school year who receive physical education.

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 25 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the school premises and the accommodation and facilities provided therein are maintained to a standard such that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of pupils are ensured.

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 27 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that–

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

– 27(b) external lighting is provided in order to ensure that people can safely enter and leave the school premises.

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 28(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that– – 28(1)(a) suitable drinking water facilities are provided; – 28(1)(c) cold water supplies that are suitable for drinking are clearly marked as such;

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 28(2) The facilities provided under sub-paragraph (1)(a) will be suitable only if–

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

– 28(2)(a) they are readily accessible at all times when the premises are in use

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

 34(1) The standard about the quality of leadership and management is met if the proprietor ensures that persons with leadership and management responsibilities at the school–

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

– 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently;

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

– 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently; and

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

– 34(1)(c) actively promote the well-being of pupils. 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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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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