Sheffield Inclusion Centre

Inspection of Sheffield Inclusion Centre Spring Lane, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S2 2JQ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement 19–20 November 2019

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What is it like to attend this school?

The quality of education is not good enough at Sheffield Inclusion Centre. The new headteacher is tackling the school’s weaknesses head on but there is still work to do. She has recently altered the range of subjects that pupils can study. What pupils learn in different subjects has also changed. This includes personal, social and health education (PSHE). Pupils in Year 11 have not always been offered qualifications that meet their needs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Teachers know the needs of the pupils at school. They care for them. Leaders do their best to keep pupils safe. Teachers know what upsets pupils and they plan to avoid any potential flashpoints. Some pupils do not behave well. However, the longer pupils spend at school, the calmer they become. Leaders make sure that pupils receive the extra support that they need. For primary pupils, this includes drama therapy, for example.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Many pupils are absent too often. Leaders are developing imaginative ways of encouraging pupils back to school. Leaders focus on preparing pupils for life after school. Pupils leave Year 11 with sensible and ambitious plans for the future.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are beginning to develop strong links with the local community. Pupils have some opportunities to get involved in sporting and cultural activities. Leaders want to develop these further. Few pupils raise any concerns about bullying.

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better?

The new headteacher knows what is working well and what needs to improve at the school. She has had a good look at what pupils are learning. She has changed the range of subjects that pupils study to spark their interests. She has changed the content of other subjects. Plans are in place for pupils to sit a wider range of qualifications this summer. Many of these positive changes are new, however. They need time to bed in. The headteacher knows that pupils sometimes have gaps in their learning that are not currently being addressed well enough.

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better?

Too many pupils do not attend school often enough. Leaders have started to work even harder to help these pupils to return to their education. Pupils are taught in different sites across Sheffield. Sometimes, tutors work one-to-one with individuals to help them with their English and mathematics. Other pupils access online learning with members of staff. Leaders have introduced the ‘stepping stones’ programme to encourage pupils to come to school at different places across Sheffield.

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better?

Teachers are working hard to help pupils to get the best out of their education. Many pupils go back to mainstream schools. Most pupils in Year 11 move on to college or work when they leave. However, the overview of what pupils are learning, step by step across different sites, is not clear. This means that, when pupils change site or are absent from school, it is more difficult for them to catch up. 19–20 November 2019

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Primary-aged pupils are well supported. Staff know their needs. They make sure that additional therapies help pupils to be kind to one another and to behave well. Pupils come from a wide range of schools to attend Sheffield Inclusion Centre. Teachers identify any gaps in pupils’ reading ability and help pupils to become better readers.

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Many pupils benefit from studying courses at different providers across the city. Leaders have a hands-on approach and ensure that pupils behave well and are safe in these settings. The school also runs its own provision. Here, pupils study horticulture and conservation at the farm. Others develop construction skills on this site.

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When pupils join the school, the special educational needs coordinator identifies any additional needs that they have. She then ensures that teachers are aware of these. Teachers adapt their lessons to make sure that individuals’ needs are met.

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Leaders make sure that pupils have opportunities for personal development. Staff focus on building pupils’ self-confidence and resilience. They want pupils to aim high. There are some opportunities for pupils to develop wider interests and talents. Plans are in place for primary pupils to visit London, for example. Leaders accept that more needs to be done to widen pupils’ experiences.

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The management committee (those responsible for the school) is strong. Members of the committee are working hard to ensure that pupils get the best deal possible.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders put the well-being of pupils at the heart of all that they do. Safeguarding runs like a rod of iron through the school. Staff make regular checks on pupils who are absent to make sure that they are safe. Staff are on the front foot when working with other professionals. They make sure that pupils and families get the support that they need.

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Safeguarding

Staff keep their ear to the ground. They spot any tensions there are between pupils across the city. They are proactive in dealing with these. Their detailed knowledge helps to keep pupils safe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Leaders know that pupils do not do as well as they could. This is because many pupils do not come to school regularly. In some subjects, teachers are good at helping pupils to catch up on any work that they have missed due to absence. In others, such as mathematics, this is less successful. Some pupils have wide gaps in their knowledge in different subjects. Leaders need to make sure that teachers 19–20 November 2019

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plug any gaps in pupils’ knowledge caused by absence more effectively.  Some pupils have very low attendance and rarely come to school. Leaders have introduced initiatives such as ‘stepping stones’ to help to re-engage pupils into education. Leaders need to monitor and develop these strategies. They need to ensure that pupils attend school or alternative provision more regularly.  Leaders have recently added new subjects to the curriculum. Food technology is an example of this. Leaders have also changed the content of some subjects, including construction and PSHE. These changes have only been in place for a few weeks. Leaders need to make sure that these changes have a positive impact on the standards that pupils reach and the qualifications with which they leave school. Leaders should ensure that pupils leave school with a wide range of appropriate qualifications to equip them even more effectively for their next

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steps.  Pupils on roll are taught at different sites across Sheffield. Subject leaders know how well pupils are doing in their subject and what they are learning on the main site. Leaders need to make sure that subject leaders have an overview of how well all of the pupils on roll at the school are doing in their subject across the different sites where pupils are taught.  Many teachers are experts in their subjects. Leaders should ensure that teachers in all subjects are helped to develop their knowledge and expertise so that what pupils need to learn and in what order are understood by everyone.  Leaders offer some opportunities to support pupils’ personal development. They have identified that more needs to be done to develop and stretch pupils’ wider talents and interests. Leaders should ensure that their plans are strategic. They need to plan a comprehensive programme for spiritual, moral, social and cultural

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experiences for their pupils in advance of its delivery.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use Ofsted Parent View information when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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How can I feed back my views?

If you’re not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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You can search for published performance information about the school.

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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. 19–20 November 2019

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School details

Inspection number 10110610 Type of school Pupil referral unit

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6–7 June 2017

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Information about this school

 Sheffield Inclusion Centre is a pupil referral unit which meets the needs of pupils from five to 16 from the Sheffield area who have been permanently excluded from school or are in danger of permanent exclusion.  Around 30% of pupils on roll at school speak English as an additional language. Many of them are from Slovak Roma families. Nearly half of the pupils at school have identified additional needs, such as social, emotional and mental health needs or autism spectrum disorder.  Since the last full inspection, a new headteacher has been appointed.  The school operates on different sites across Sheffield. There is an outreach service for pupils who rarely attend school who are on the roll of this school. The school works with a wide range of outside providers as part of the curriculum on offer for pupils. At the time of inspection, these included: A Mind Apart, Embrace, Endeavour, In2Change, MyLife, NARCO, Onboard, Pastways, Recycle, SaltEd and

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this inspection

 We met with the headteacher and members of the senior leadership team. We spoke to members of the management committee, including the chair. We spoke with three officers from the local authority.  We met with those responsible for safeguarding, attendance and behaviour. We looked at a range of documentation relating to safeguarding, including: child protection policies and procedures; absence data; documentation about the use of restrictive physical intervention; and exclusions data. We spoke with pupils across the course of the inspection and asked them about aspects of behaviour and safety.  We held meetings with those responsible for pupils’ personal development.  We visited the different sites on which the school operates and visited a sample of alternative provision placements, including the school’s own alternative provision. We met with leaders responsible for the organisation of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 We looked in detail at English (and reading), mathematics, food technology, art and construction. We talked to leaders and teachers about their curriculum plans. We also talked to pupils about what they knew and remembered in these subjects. We also looked at pupils’ work in these subjects.

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Inspection team

Michael Wardle, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

David Penny Ofsted Inspector 19–20 November 2019

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regulates and inspects to 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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