OA - Havering

Olive Ap Academy - Havering Inskip Drive, Hornchurch, Essex RM11 3UR

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a school that requires improvement

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 The quality of teaching is not yet strong enough to bring about consistently strong progress across the curriculum.  Pupils do not make as much progress across the curriculum from their starting points as they are capable of.  Despite improvements in pupils’ attendance, it remains too low. Too many pupils do not access full-time provision.  Where teaching does not engage or challenge pupils, their behaviour deteriorates.

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

 Leaders have a clear picture of the strengths and weaknesses of the school.  Governance is strong. The implementation of clear and effective systems ensure that the Olive Academy Trust has a clear picture of the school’s performance.  The academy advisory board (AAB) provides the right balance of challenge and support for school leaders.  Teaching in some subjects is highly effective with teachers’ skilled approaches resulting in pupils engaging positively and productively in their learning.  Parents have confidence in leaders’ ability to provide a safe environment for their children. They understand the systems used by leaders and value the regular communication they have with the school.  The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good. This results in pupils’ increased resilience and self- confidence.  Safeguarding is effective. Pupils feel safe in school. Parents value the close relationship

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Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

they have with the school and have confidence in leaders’ work.

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What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Increase the proportion of good or better teaching, learning and assessment in order to increase the rate of pupils’ progress by: – developing and building on the effective practice within the academy and ensuring that it is followed by all staff – ensuring that teachers’ planning takes account of pupils’ differing needs – ensuring that pupils know what they need to do to improve.  Ensure that attendance continues to rise and that a greater number of pupils receive full-time provision through capitalising on opportunities and facilities presented by the new building.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

 This is an improving school. Strong and determined leadership has led to significant improvement since the school was sponsored in September 2016. Leaders and governors have taken a strategic approach to school improvement, and successfully increased the capacity for further development.  Since the school’s sponsorship by the trust, leaders have worked hard to raise the school’s profile among the community of schools in the area. They have engaged successfully with a range of organisations, including the local authority, to re-establish the school’s position in the educational community.  Leaders have established effective procedures to monitor the school’s work. A thorough approach to checking the school’s effectiveness results in leaders and governors having a detailed understanding of what the school does well and what needs to be improved.  Leaders’ clear evaluation of all aspects of the school’s work supports detailed and clear

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

development planning. This enables governors and trustees to track the school’s improvement carefully, holding leaders to account for improvement in provision, including its impact on pupils.  Leaders are clear about what constitutes high-quality teaching, learning and assessment. They have adopted an uncompromising and robust approach to challenging underperformance. This has led to a significant turnover of staff. Leaders adopt a thorough and judicious approach to staff recruitment.  Leaders have not been diverted from their priority to improve provision by the significant amount of building work which has been underway for some time. Pupils experience a broad and balanced curriculum, often through off-site provision. The building work is near to completion and high-quality facilities designed for the teaching of cooking, art and science were seen during the inspection.  Leaders have capitalised on support from another school in the trust through

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

establishing leadership roles across both schools. This has enabled leaders to draw successfully on good practice elsewhere.  Communication with parents is effective. They say they feel well informed and that their children are doing well. Reponses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, indicate that parents have confidence in leaders’ response to any concerns they raise. Parents spoken to during the inspection commented on the regular communication between school and home. They value the school’s work to prepare pupils for life beyond school and the clear systems for rewarding positive behaviour.  Staff value the improved systems and procedures and clarity that leaders have introduced. The vast majority of the responses to the staff questionnaire indicate that staff morale is high. This view was echoed by staff spoken to during the inspection.  Staff training is thorough and promotes individuals’ personal development, enabling the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

development of specialist skills in many cases. Roles are clearly outlined, resulting in a well-organised team, in which staff are clear about their responsibilities.  Pupil premium is spent effectively. Leaders have identified the main barriers pupils experience resulting in the need, for example, for them to improve their attendance and to develop their literacy communication skills. Mentoring and counselling services, for example, provide well-judged support to address the barriers identified.

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Governance of the school

 Trustees hold leaders to account effectively. They have a clear understanding of the contextual challenges faced by the school and of the needs of the pupils on roll. Trustees have an accurate picture of the academy’s improvements secured to date.  The academy advisory board provides a good balance of challenge and support. Members challenge leaders about key aspects of the school’s work, including the effectiveness of pupil premium spending. They also challenge the impact of leaders’ work to improve pupils’ outcomes through improving the quality of teaching. Board members are well qualified to carry out their roles and capitalise on the expertise they have to provide high-quality support to school leaders.

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Safeguarding

 The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.  Safeguarding has a high priority in the school. Leaders understand that pupils’ previous experiences increase the need for them to prioritise this area of their work.  Leaders recognise the purpose and importance of carrying out pre-appointment checks. The school’s single central record of these checks is detailed and thorough.  Safeguarding training is provided promptly for all staff. Staff are confident in the use of the school’s procedures for raising and recording any concerns they may have about pupils’ welfare.  Leaders have created a safe environment on-site and established effective arrangements to check pupils’ safety when attending off-site provision. Leaders take site security very seriously, with pupils’ and visitors’ entry and exit supervised closely. Staff are highly vigilant, noting, and responding quickly to, changes in pupils’ behaviour.

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Safeguarding

 Records of any concerns reported, and the actions taken subsequently, are detailed. Criteria to categorise safeguarding concerns have been refined so that more tailored support can be provided. Records provide leaders with a clear oversight of cases. This enables them to check that cases are followed up appropriately and in a timely manner.  Leaders liaise effectively with a wide range of external agencies. They are aware of the local priorities and the associated implications, for example engaging with other professionals about knife crime and gangs.  Leaders have established a systematic approach to checking the effectiveness of safeguarding. A series of thorough termly checks, carried out by members of the trust, the academy advisory board and external agencies, provides leaders with a clear picture of how well systems are working.  Parents spoken to during the inspection explained their confidence in the school’s

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Safeguarding

systems to keep their children safe. For example, one commented that they were now able to go to work in the knowledge that their child was safe.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

 The quality of teaching is not consistently strong enough throughout the school. While teaching is highly effective in art, for example, it is less effective in other subjects. In many cases, this is related to leaders’ difficulty in recruiting well-qualified permanent teaching staff. Teaching is least effective in subjects where staff mobility is high.  Where teaching is weaker teachers’ expectations of what pupils can achieve are too low. Teachers do not create sufficient opportunities for pupils to reinforce what they have learned previously so that they can build on their existing knowledge and understanding. In some cases, there is not enough clarity about the intended learning. Pupils do not always get enough clear guidance about how to complete tasks or receive the right level of support to do so. This results in them not being engaged in their learning.  In some cases pupils’ responses are guided too closely by the teacher, and in others

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

pupils do not receive enough support for the task in hand.  Where teaching is most effective, teachers use their detailed knowledge of the subject highly effectively to skilfully develop pupils’ understanding. They quickly identify and address any misconceptions they identify through pupils’ comments or responses to questions. Skilful questioning and productive dialogue with pupils deepen pupils’ learning.  Where teachers are clear about the intended learning for the lesson, pupils make strong progress. At its best, teaching is tailored very closely to pupils’ needs. This is because, in these cases, teachers use what they know about pupils’ prior attainment well, setting challenging tasks which bring about strong progress. It also results in pupils concentrating well throughout lessons.  Leaders have introduced a structure to support teachers’ planning of lessons. This is now used throughout the school and has improved the consistency of teachers’

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Requires improvement

approach. It is used effectively in the best teaching, for example to incorporate interesting and well-chosen resources, but implemented less well in other cases.  ‘Pupil passports’ provide teachers with a full picture of what pupils know, understand and can do. They enable staff to plan for pupils’ learning and behavioural needs from the outset. Where this information is used well, it contributes to teaching being well matched to pupils’ needs.  Each pupil’s achievement is recorded at five points during the year. This allows leaders to capture information about pupils’ starting points, including when they are admitted to the school mid-year.

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Personal development and welfare

 The school’s work to promote pupils’ personal development and welfare is good.  Pupils say they are safe at school and are supported to manage their behaviour through clear systems. They enjoy and respond positively to the school’s reward systems.  The ‘pupil passport’ collates entry information which enables staff to support pupils’ emotional, behavioural and social development as well as their academic needs. At its most effective, teaching is highly responsive to pupils’ personal development and welfare needs, incorporating relevant discussion during lessons.  Leaders model their high expectations of the care and attention that pupils receive. A parent commented that, ‘the headteacher cares about what goes on’. From the time pupils arrive at school in the morning, staff capitalise on opportunities for informal discussions with pupils on topical subjects, for example road safety and animal cruelty.

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Personal development and welfare

 Pupils explain that while in mainstream education their needs were not fully understood, but that staff in this school help them to develop their emotional literacy and to learn strategies to manage their behaviour effectively. They value their relationship with staff highly and feel supported, respected and listened to. Pupils value the availability of the school’s counsellor who is ready to provide support from the time pupils arrive in the morning and during the day.  Daily coaching sessions allow pupils to explore topics from the personal, social, health education curriculum. For example, they consider their local context through the ‘product of a postcode’ unit, exploring knife crime and gangs.  Speaking about leaders’ work to restore pupils’ self-esteem after often negative experiences in mainstream education, a parent commended staff for rebuilding pupils’ confidence and restoring their sense of self-worth. As a result of the school’s work, a

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Personal development and welfare

parent explained that their child now feels as if they ‘mean something’ again.  Daily ‘reflect, restore and acknowledge’ sessions are used well to build pupils’ resilience and to reward good choices made during the day. The sessions, held at the end of the school day, promote reflection on a range of topics and events including national mental health week.  Leaders promote the importance of pupils being reintegrated to mainstream education wherever possible. Some pupils are reluctant to do so. However, others understand the importance of demonstrating the impact of what they have learned about regulating their behaviour in order to increase the chance of successfully reintegrating in mainstream education.

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Behaviour

 The behaviour of pupils requires improvement.  Leaders work effectively with a range of external agencies resulting in improved attendance for those who have historically high absence. However, overall, attendance is below the national average and too few pupils attend full time.  Thorough systems and procedures result in leaders being well informed about attendance and behavioural matters. Absence is tracked and addressed thoroughly including through home visits, where necessary, to check that pupils are safe. Attendance has risen significantly over the past year.  Staff are well trained to recognise the reasons underlying pupils’ behaviour. Protocols for intervening when pupils’ behaviour deteriorates are well known among staff. Staff throughout the school are highly effective in de-escalating potentially challenging situations.  When teaching is less engaging, and when pupils are not sufficiently challenged, their

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Behaviour

behaviour deteriorates. Although behavioural incidents continue to occur, pupils say they are now given the skills to resolve conflict and restore relationships.  Teachers’ expectations of the presentation of pupils’ work varies. In the best cases, pupils demonstrate great pride in their work. Where expectations are lower, work is messy and indicates that pupils’ attitudes to learning are less positive.  Behavioural procedures have been refined so that lower- level incidents are now given more consideration. This represents a rise in expectations and has led to leaders addressing pupils’ behaviour at an earlier stage. As a consequence, this has led to the number of exclusions increasing. However, the average length of exclusions has decreased, indicating an appropriate use of exclusion as a consequence for poor behaviour.  Pupils follow well-considered and clearly laid out routines at the beginning of the school

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Behaviour

day. Positive relationships with adults contribute to pupils, typically, experiencing a happy and engaging start to the day.

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

 The progress pupils make is linked closely to the quality of teaching. Pupils make expected or better progress in subjects where teaching is strong. The school’s own assessment information and the work seen in pupils’ books show that pupils make less progress when teaching is weaker.  Similarly, where teaching is strong, pupils’ learning is in greater depth.  When pupils arrive, many are not on target to achieve what they are capable of. Leaders work hard to ensure that all pupils are set challenging targets to achieve well by the end of Year 11.  Pupils’ attainment is above the national average for similar schools. The proportion of pupils achieving five GCSEs has increased over the last three years and was above the national average in 2018.  The current Year 11 cohort have all secured places in further education, employment or training. Effective careers guidance has contributed to an increase in the proportion

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

of pupils entering further education, employment or training over the past three years. Mentoring initiatives are used effectively as vehicles for broadening pupils’ experience of the world of work.  The school works well with other providers to make sure that pupils are offered the widest possible range of further qualifications including, for example, business studies which is offered at a local college.  Disadvantaged pupils make similar progress to, and sometimes better progress than, their peers. This is because of the precise approach to identifying and addressing individuals’ barriers to learning.  Identification of pupils’ additional needs leads to the right level of support to enable them to access learning alongside their peers and to manage their behaviour appropriately.  All pupils’ reading skills are assessed on entry to the school. Pupils have regular opportunities to read in lessons and all staff provide one-to-one reading sessions three

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Outcomes for pupils Requires improvement

times a week. Reading is an essential component in all lesson planning. Pupils are well supported to develop their reading skills, with those who find reading difficult receiving additional support.

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School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School details

School category Academy alternative provision sponsor-led

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School details

Website www.aphavering.oliveacademies.org.uk

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School details

Email address info.havering@oliveacademies.org.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Since September 2016, the school has been sponsored by the Olive Academies Trust. The executive headteacher is also the chief executive officer of the trust. The predecessor school was a maintained provision under the authority of the local authority.  The school provides short-term education and support to pupils who are vulnerable to exclusion, and longer-term placements for those permanently excluded from their mainstream schools.  The school has capacity for up to 64 pupils aged between 11 and 16. The final phase of a major building project is nearing completion.  The school currently uses two alternative providers. These are Future Gateways and Lambourne End.  The school receives pupil premium funding for approximately half of its pupils. This is well above the national average.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors, accompanied by senior leaders, made short visits to lessons in each subject and year group.  Meetings were held with trustees and with members of the academy advisory board. An inspector held a telephone conversation with two representatives of the local authority.  Inspectors considered the 17 responses to the online staff survey and the 14 responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire, Parent View. Inspectors also met with two parents.  Inspectors held individual discussions with pupils, as well as discussing their learning during visits to lessons. They also considered the two responses to the online pupil questionnaire.  Inspectors reviewed documentation relating to safeguarding, governance, self- evaluation and school improvement planning.

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Inspection team

Jeremy Loukes, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Angela Tempany Her Majesty’s 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

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. www.gov.uk/pupil-premium-information-for-schools-and- alternative-provision-settings .

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Inspection team

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

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 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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