All Saints School

Inspection of All Saints School School Road, Lessingham, Stalham, Norwich, Norfolk NR12 0DJ

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

This inclusive school provides a safe, caring and supportive environment for pupils to re-engage in learning and enjoy school life. Pupils’ individual needs are known well. Staff go out of their way to ensure that these needs are met. Parents enthuse about the provision made for their children.

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What is it like to attend this school?

School leaders, the advisory board and the local authority have worked together to make significant improvements. Most of the weaknesses noted during the previous full inspection have been resolved. Safeguarding is prioritised and arrangements to keep pupils safe are robust. Behaviour is good. Pupils are polite, respectful and well- mannered.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils experience a broad curriculum. This includes learning vocational skills at local colleges. A wide range of activities, visits and events enrich pupils’ learning. Improved curriculum planning for all subjects is in place. Much of this is new. Not all staff have had sufficient training to give them the knowledge they need to implement these plans fully.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Younger pupils are taught how to manage their behaviour, learn to work together and socialise with others. They have good opportunities to develop their speaking and listening skills. Reading is taught daily but not enough is done to develop pupils’ reading and understanding of phonics.

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better?

Since the previous full inspection, the school has grown in size and many more staff have joined the school. A new headteacher, her team of senior leaders and members of the advisory board have demonstrated the capacity to secure a range of improvements. Expectations of pupils and staff are higher. Leaders and staff are held to account for making improvements. Better procedures to manage the safety and welfare of pupils have been established. Detailed curriculum plans are in place for all subjects.

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better?

Most pupils arrive in school having missed long periods of their schooling. Staff work with each of them and their families to identify the personal needs of all individual pupils and put in place plans to meet them. The school’s caring ethos is underpinned by the belief that ‘no one is the same, but everyone is equal’.

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better?

Pupils’ respect for one another and good relations with staff contribute well to the school’s calm, purposeful environment. Pupils are taught how to self-regulate their own behaviour when they feel stressed or have concerns. They know how to take time-out to calm themselves, and when they are ready to return to learning. Staff are suitably trained in managing the most challenging behaviour. Pupils told inspectors that behaviour is generally good and that they feel free from all forms of bullying. Leaders’ records show that very few incidents of poor behaviour occur. Exclusions from school are rare and are only used as a last resort. 23–25 June 2021

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Pupils’ personal development is good. Leaders provide pupils with a rich, nurturing environment in which to learn. Pupils arrive in school each day by taxi. Staff use their expertise well to meet and greet them and check that they are calm, focused and ready to learn. Pupils feel listened to and say that staff will follow up any concerns they have. Pupils volunteer to be prefects, breakfast monitors, play leaders and school councillors. These duties are taken seriously. At breaks and lunchtimes, pupils make the most of the good quality equipment and facilities. They play well together or gather in friendship groups. Pupils are well-supervised by staff.

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Weekly lessons in personal, social and health education, and philosophy and ethics add significantly to pupils’ personal development and their social, moral, spiritual and cultural development. Pupils feel that learning in these lessons gives them a much broader understanding of important issues such as sex and relationships, human and animal rights, crime and punishment and the lives of people with different backgrounds and beliefs. Younger pupils show a limited understanding of British values. However, they could explain the importance of tolerance and respect for others and felt that ‘it’s important to treat everyone as you wish to be treated yourself’.

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The broad curriculum is enriched by a wide range of special activities and events. On the day of the inspection, pupils had just returned from their annual residential visit to an outdoor activity centre. Other events include a production at the local theatre, regular swimming lessons and celebrations of pupils’ work. Careers education is a strength of the school. This year, all Year 11 pupils have a placement in local colleges to continue their further education. Leaders ensure that pupils have regular therapeutic support. A school counsellor is in school each week to provide specialist support for pupils and for staff. An occupational therapist helps pupils to self- manage their behaviour. A speech and language therapist works with staff in school to ensure that pupils receive the support they need.

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The overall quality of education has improved significantly since the previous inspection. Staff have retained the use of personal computers in lessons developed during lockdown. Better-quality planning is in place for all subjects. However, the implementation of the curriculum varies widely. Not all staff have had sufficient training to give them the knowledge they need to plan and teach learning in a coherent way.

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In English, staff demonstrate the knowledge needed to teach the subject effectively in key stages 3 and 4. In GCSE English pupils showed a broad understanding of poetry. This is not the case in key stage 2. Early reading and writing are taught daily, but this is not done systematically so that pupils gain a thorough understanding of letters and sounds. Some pupils lack the phonetic understanding to decode unfamiliar words or blend sounds together. Most older pupils read with confidence. However, some of these pupils also lack the phonic knowledge they need to tackle unfamiliar or difficult words. 23–25 June 2021

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Changes in staffing have slowed developments in mathematics. However, new curriculum resources are used effectively to ensure that pupils build on their prior learning and gain a thorough understanding of mathematical concepts. Time is taken in lessons to recap previous learning and to help pupils gain fluency in their times-tables. Not all younger pupils secure a good understanding of mathematics that helps them to remember more. Some of them do not have the reading skills to follow more-complex instructions on worksheets and become too dependent on adults to help them learn.

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Pupils show a well-developed understanding of science. The curriculum in all key stages is planned so that pupils gain a secure understanding over time and can recall what they have learned previously. Pupils build scientific knowledge in a structured, coherent way. Pupils engage in regular practical tasks and experiments. They are taught how to record results so that their scientific findings make sense and can be used to inform further work.

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Almost all pupils have an education, health and care plan. The leader responsible for coordinating special educational needs and/or disabilities shares this information with staff so that they know the individual needs of each pupil. Personalised plans also include strategies to help pupils learn. Staff monitor the best ways of planning learning suited to each pupils’ needs. Personal targets are set for pupils, but these are not matched well to promote the development of pupils’ early reading and writing.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a strong culture of safeguarding in the school. Policy and procedures to safeguard pupils are suitably prioritised. A detailed record is maintained of the required checks needed when appointing adults to work with children. Records of the actions taken to protect the most vulnerable pupils from harm are regularly updated. Child protection procedures are understood and applied fully by staff. Procedures are overseen by a team of designated leaders of safeguarding. A senior manager has responsibility for liaising with the parents and carers of pupils so that they remain safe in school and at home. Trained staff go out of their way to ensure that pupils attend school regularly, and remain fully engaged in learning. Pupils are taught about the dangers of being online and what to do if they have concerns.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 Leaders should strengthen the teaching of early reading by adopting a recognised, proven scheme to teach phonics, and ensuring that all staff are trained in using this approach to help pupils of all ages with their reading. 23–25 June 2021

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 Leaders should provide staff with regular training to give them the up-to-date knowledge they need to interpret new planning and teach their subjects effectively.

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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 are the provider and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted . 23–25 June 2021

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School details

Unique reference number 121250 DfE registration number 926/6140

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School details

Inspection number 10193487 Type of school Other independent school

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School details

Chair Dr Coralie Murray and Heather Duxbury (Co-Chairs) Headteacher Samantha Dangerfield

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School details

Email address office@allsaintslessingham.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 25–27 September 2018 23–25 June 2021

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Information about this school

 All Saints School is a privately owned day school. It opened on the same premises in 1987. The school is registered with the Department for Education (DfE) to admit 85 pupils.  At the time of the inspection, a temporary arrangement was in place to extend the age range of pupils to include pupils aged 17 years.  The school’s proprietor is also the managing director.  All of the pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Almost all pupils have an education, health and care plan.  Almost all pupils are placed in school by Norfolk County Council. A small minority of pupils are looked after by the local authority.  A new headteacher has led the school since September 2019.  The school makes use of the following providers: Great Yarmouth College, Easton and Otley College and Paston College.  The previous standard inspection of the school was in September 2018. At that time, the school was judged to be inadequate. Four of the independent school

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Information about this school

standards were not met and the associated requirements of The Equality Act 2010 were not met.  The DfE issued the proprietor with a notice to improve on 8 November 2018.  Ofsted conducted an evaluation of the school’s action plan for meeting the unmet standards. This was deemed to be unacceptable in December 2018.  Ofsted carried out a progress monitoring inspection in March 2019. This inspection focused on the unmet standards identified in September 2018. Inspectors found that the school met all of the independent school standards that were checked at this time.  The school’s inspection history is as follows: – Ofsted conducted a standard inspection of the school in March 2007. At that time, the quality of education was judged to be good. Four of the independent school standards were not met and the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 2002 were not met. – Ofsted conducted a standard inspection of the school in October 2009. At that

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Information about this school

time, the quality of education was judged to be good and all of the independent school standards were met. – Ofsted conducted a standard inspection of the school in November 2016. At that time, the school was judged to be inadequate. Thirteen of the independent school standards were not met and the associated requirements of The Equality Act 2010 were not met. – The DfE issued the school with a notice on 12 January 2017.  Following the 2016 standard inspection, Ofsted conducted two monitoring inspections and an evaluation of an action plan, as follows: 23–25 June 2021

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– February 2017: an evaluation of the school’s action plan for the unmet standards was deemed not acceptable – 17 May 2017: there was a progress monitoring inspection when independent school standards were not met – 2 May 2018: there was a progress monitoring inspection when independent school standards were not met.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school, and have taken that into account in their evaluation.

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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 standard inspection was carried out at the request of the DfE.  Inspectors carried out deep dives into English, including early reading, mathematics, science and philosophy and ethics. This included meetings with leaders, staff and pupils, visits to lessons and scrutiny of pupils’ work.  Inspectors met with the proprietor, school leaders, subject leaders, teachers, and two groups of pupils. They attended the Year 11 leavers’ celebration. They held online meetings with two members of the advisory board, and a representative of the local authority.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents shared by school leaders, including child protection and safeguarding policy and procedures, self-evaluation and improvement planning, minutes of meetings of the advisory board, documents relating to health and safety checks, the complaints procedures and the school’s attendance and admissions register.  Inspectors considered 37 responses to the online survey, Ofsted Parent View, 34

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Information about this inspection

free-texts sent during the inspection, 28 responses to Ofsted’s survey for staff and two responses to the survey of pupils’ views.

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Inspection team

John Mitcheson, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Steve Mellors Her Majesty’s Inspector 23–25 June 2021

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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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