Flourish With Us

Inspection of Flourish With Us King Street, Winterton, North Lincs DN15 9TP

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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 Not previously inspected

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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?

The Flourish With Us mission statement underpins what this school does. Leaders and staff have high expectations about what pupils can achieve. Every pupil is valued and respected. Staff are determined that pupils will have a successful future.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Still, leaders have work to do to improve the quality of education that pupils receive and how pupils’ knowledge is assessed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff are caring. This makes pupils feel nurtured and safe. Pupils trust adults and they are confident to share their thoughts and feelings with them. Pupils told inspectors that if there is any bullying, staff deal with it effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff know the pupils well. They are quick to spot when pupils get into difficulties with managing their feelings. Staff are patient and kind. They know how to diffuse potentially challenging situations. They help pupils to regulate their own behaviour.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Overwhelmingly, parents are supportive of the school. They describe the positive effect that this school has on their children’s desire to go to school. One parent said, ‘the school is fantastic’ and another, ‘it gets five stars from me’. Parents say that they are well informed about their child’s progress and well-being.

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better?

Before attending Flourish With Us, many pupils have missed significant elements of their education. The proprietors are experienced in working with pupils with complex needs. They quickly get pupils re-engaged in learning. The proprietors and staff are determined to improve pupils’ lives and prepare them to move successfully into the next phase of their education.

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better?

All pupils are taught a broad range of subjects which are based on the national curriculum programmes of study. This includes English, mathematics, reading, art, science, history, geography, music, personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), physical education and relationships and sex education. This fulfils the requirements of the independent school standards.

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better?

The quality of the curriculum is not good enough. Leaders have devised a topic- based approach across the curriculum. However, plans are in their early stages of development. Curriculum plans are not sequenced over time to gradually build on previous knowledge. Leaders have not carefully considered what knowledge should be taught in each topic and how it should be ordered across most subjects. The mathematics and PSHE curriculums are well sequenced. In these subjects, the knowledge and skills that pupils should know are more clearly identified.

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better?

When pupils start at the school, staff find out information from previous settings about what pupils can do. Leaders have introduced an assessment system to check the progress that pupils make. Currently, the school’s baseline assessments do not 7 to 9 December 2021 identify sufficiently the gaps that pupils have in their knowledge. This means that teachers do not consistently plan work to address these gaps.

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better?

Leaders have prioritised reading. On entry, many pupils have gaps in their understanding of the sounds that letters represent. An age-appropriate phonics scheme has been introduced. Pupils read every day and learn letter sounds. English lessons encourage pupils’ love of reading. Lessons focus on high-quality stories, such as ‘The Gruffalo’. This helps to extend pupils’ vocabulary and encourages discussion. The library provides a wide range of books that are right for pupils’ age and ability. Books by authors such as J.K. Rowling, Jill Murphy and Michael Morpurgo are available for pupils to choose.

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better?

Leaders have created a nurturing culture in this school. As a result, pupils and staff have strong relationships. Generally, pupils’ behaviour is positive. Pupils sit for short periods, listen to the teacher and get on with their work. Staff know the pupils well and they understand the challenges that pupils face with their emotions. Staff know how to diffuse low-level disruption and how to support pupils to self-regulate their behaviour. Teachers do a lot of work with pupils on how to repair what has gone wrong and what they can do differently next time. On occasions, there are discrepancies in the staff’s approach to behaviour management strategies. The recording of some incidents is not accurate.

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better?

The provision for pupils’ personal development is strong. This is an inclusive community. Pupils learn about fundamental British values. They understand the rule of law and why rules are needed, by following the school rules. They know that they need rules to keep them safe. Pupils understand that people are different. They share their own languages, culture and food with each other. Building pupils’ self- confidence and self-esteem are priorities at this school. Pupils are given many opportunities to develop these qualities. They proudly share their good work in assemblies. Pupils enjoy collecting points and certificates in recognition of their achievements.

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better?

Proprietors make sure that school policies are available for parents on the school’s website, including the safeguarding policy. Fire evacuations take place to ensure that pupils and staff can leave the building safely in an emergency. Fire equipment is checked regularly and all staff are appropriately trained as fire wardens. Staff are trained to administer first aid and there are adequate first-aid boxes situated around the school. There are separate toilets for girls and boys, with hot and cold running water.

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better?

The proprietors are committed and determined to provide a high-quality education for the pupils. They are keen to ensure that all the independent school standards are met. The proprietors do not currently gather enough information about the school’s work to clearly identify the strengths and weaknesses of the provision.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 7 to 9 December 2021 Staff are aware of the individual needs of the pupils and the potential risks to their safety. Staff are vigilant. They receive regular safeguarding training. They know what to do if they have any concerns about the welfare and safety of pupils.

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Safeguarding

Leaders do all the required pre-employment checks to make sure that new staff are suitable to work at the school.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 Curriculum planning does not identify what pupils should learn and in what order. Because of this, pupils do not learn as well as they could in these subjects. Leaders should ensure that all curriculum plans precisely identify what knowledge pupils should know and in what order, so that pupils can achieve as well as they should in these subjects.  Assessment is in its early stages of development. Leaders should ensure that the new assessment system is established and implemented. This will help teachers to understand what pupils know and what to plan for their future learning. Leaders should ensure that teachers receive appropriate training and guidance on how to accurately assess what pupils have learned.  On occasions, there are discrepancies in the school’s approach to behaviour management strategies. This leads to inconsistencies in the implementation of the school’s behaviour policy. Leaders should closely check and agree advice on

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

behaviour strategies and ensure that incidents are recorded accurately.  Proprietors do not have an accurate view of the school’s priorities for improvement. This is because they do not conduct sufficient self-evaluation activities. Leaders should ensure that they establish a means by which they can monitor and evaluate the school’s strengths and weaknesses effectively.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View 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 . 7 to 9 December 2021

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School details

Unique reference number 148028 DfE registration number 813/6008

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School details

Inspection number 10202209 Type of school Other independent special school

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School details

Website https://www.flourishwithusltd.co.uk/

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School details

Email address admin@flourishwithusltd.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 22 July 2020 7 to 9 December 2021

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Information about this school

 Flourish With Us is an independent day school for boys and girls aged between five and 11 years. There are two proprietors. Both work at the school.  This is the first standard inspection of Flourish With Us. The school was registered with the Department for Education on 26 August 2020.  The school’s vision is, ‘Creating better futures for children and young people. Building resilience, developing self-esteem and well-being.’  The school does not use an alternative education provision or have any off-site units.  The school caters for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Pupils have autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and social, emotional and mental health needs. Most pupils have an education, health and care plan.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors 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

The school has failed to meet the independent school standards. These are the requirements of the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.

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Information about this inspection

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

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Information about this inspection

 As part of the inspection, inspectors carried out detailed reviews known as ‘deep dives’ in English, mathematics, history and PSHE.  Inspectors talked to proprietors about the curriculum. They visited lessons and talked to pupils and staff about the lessons that they had seen.  Inspectors looked at a wide range of documentation in relation to the independent school standards. This included the safeguarding policy, the behaviour policy, health and safety documentation and curriculum plans.  The inspection was conducted with no notice. This was because the school was closed, due to the pandemic, the previous day. 7 to 9 December 2021

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Inspection team

Suzette Garland-Grimes, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Marian Thomas Ofsted Inspector 7 to 9 December 2021

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 9 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor promotes good behaviour amongst pupils by ensuring that– – 9(c) a record is kept of the sanctions imposed upon pupils for serious misbehaviour.

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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– – 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; – 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently. 7 to 9 December 2021 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

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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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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