Aurora Beeches School

Inspection of Aurora Boveridge College – The Beeches School The Beeches, Cranborne, Wimborne, Dorset BH21 5RT

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff cherish pupils in this little school. There are warm and caring relationships, which ensure a calm learning environment. Pupils enjoy their lessons. They like spending time relaxing in the abundant gardens of the college. Pupils improve their physical and emotional health through working with the school dogs and playing with Dave, the hamster. These activities are particularly effective for supporting the pupils who have complex medical and special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel happy and safe. They are not afraid to share their worries with adults. Bullying is very rare. If an incident causes any distress, pupils are confident that it will be dealt with swiftly. Staff handle issues sensitively and with pupils’ dignity in mind.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have good attitudes in lessons. They are motivated and make strong progress in most subjects. However, the reading programme has not been implemented fully. As a result, some pupils do not enjoy reading, which impedes their progress in other subjects at times.

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better?

Since the school opened in September 2019, leaders have quickly implemented their vision to provide high-quality care and education. Leaders have achieved this due to the close consideration that they give to the needs of each pupil. The proprietor ensures that all independent school standards are fully met and that the school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010.

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better?

Leaders have clear intentions for their work with pupils. Every pupil has an individual plan that is tailor-made for them. Leaders ensure that communication, reading, writing and mathematics are at the heart of the pupils’ curriculum. This is supplemented by other subjects for physical, personal and social development. Leaders also ensure that each pupil’s interests and career ambitions are fully considered in planning sequences of work. Consequently, pupils achieve well and are highly motivated.

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better?

Teachers and support workers have strong subject knowledge to support and challenge pupils effectively. Work is well matched to pupils’ needs. Lessons captivate pupils. For example, in computing, pupils strip down computers to explore how they work, and use this knowledge to build their own computer. Other pupils are supported to reach their academic goals, for example taking A-level sciences towards a career in medicine.

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better?

The school’s reading programme has not been implemented with the same rigour as the programmes for other subjects. Leaders have not provided pupils with a breadth of reading texts. Despite opportunities to read in lessons and an expectation of daily reading, pupils do not always enjoy reading. Teachers do not check what pupils know well enough to provide more effective support. Similarly, teachers do not have 21–23 January 2020

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high-enough expectations of pupils’ writing. As a result, pupils lack the will to write for an extended period of time, and written work is not of the highest standard. Leaders and staff have not established consistent approaches to the teaching of writing and reading across the curriculum. Consequently, while pupils do develop their literacy, they do not make as strong progress as they could.

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Leaders ensure that the curriculum builds pupils’ confidence and self-esteem. There are many well-planned activities, such as visits to local law courts and presenting at an Amnesty International conference, that teach pupils about the world around them. Pupils are keen to express their thoughts and feelings. For example, they like to represent the school through the college parliament. Lessons also provide opportunities for pupils to think deeply about the lives of others, such as the experiences of Holocaust survivors in history. The school’s emphasis on providing rich social and moral development stands the pupils in good stead for life in modern Britain.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The proprietor ensures that the health, safety and well-being of pupils are the highest priority. Strong systems check the suitability of staff, visitors and governors to work with pupils. These include staff who work between the college and school.

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Safeguarding

Pupils feel safe. The ready involvement of on-site specialists and psychologists provides high-quality support for pupils’ mental health and medical needs.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The school’s reading programme has not been implemented robustly. As a result, some pupils do not want to read, which can hinder their progress. Leaders need to introduce a higher-quality reading strategy to inspire pupils and give them a love of reading.  Teachers’ expectations of pupils’ writing are not consistently high. This leads to some weak writing that holds some pupils back in different subjects, such as history. Leaders need to ensure that they improve the quality of pupils’ writing, including expectations of spelling, punctuation and grammar.

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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. 21–23 January 2020

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

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If you are the provider and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted . 21–23 January 2020

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School details

Unique reference number 146790 DfE registration number 838/6042

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School details

Inspection number 10111172 Type of school Other Independent Special School

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School details

Email address boveridgecollege@the-aurora-group.com

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected 21–23 January 2020

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Information about this school

 The Beeches School is a small school set within the grounds of the Aurora Boveridge College.  The school opened in September 2019. The pre-registration visit was in April 2019.  The school uses Queen Elizabeth’s School, Wimborne and Aurora Boveridge College as alternative provision. These provide additional resources to extend the curricular offer and range of subjects for pupils.  The school caters for pupils with diagnoses of autistic spectrum disorder, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorders. There is on-site professional support through occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, psychologists, and clinical psychiatrists to provide help for a range of social, emotional and mental health needs.

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Information about this inspection

We carried out this inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008. The purpose of the inspection 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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Information about this inspection

 This was the first standard inspection carried out since the school opened.  We focused on the following subjects: reading, mathematics, history, science, and information and communication technology. We spoke with leaders, staff and pupils. We visited lessons and looked at pupils’ books.  During the inspection, we worked with the principal and head of school. We met with a range of leaders and teachers, including newly qualified teachers. The lead inspector also interviewed the executive principal and chair of the proprietary board.  We conducted visits to see lessons and heard some pupils read. We spoke to pupils about their learning.  We also met with staff to evaluate their workload and how they are being supported by senior leaders and the proprietor.  We also scrutinised safeguarding information, including the single central record. We made further evaluations of the implementation of health and safety policies,

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Information about this inspection

including the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. We also checked these during an inspection of the site and premises. 21–23 January 2020

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Inspection team

Stewart Gale, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Susan Aykin Her Majesty’s Inspector 21–23 January 2020

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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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