Setting

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Christopher Anders Headteacher Park Community School Middle Park Way Leigh Park Havant Hampshire PO9 4BU

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No formal designation inspection of Park Community School

Following my visit to your school on 5 May 2022, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave me and the time you took to discuss your school.

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No formal designation inspection of Park Community School

This inspection was conducted under section 8 of the Education Act 2005 and in accordance with Ofsted’s published procedures for no formal designation (NFD) inspections. The inspection was carried out because Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector wished to determine the effectiveness of safeguarding arrangements at the school as concerns had been raised with Ofsted following your recent section 8 inspection but before the report was published on our website.

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No formal designation inspection of Park Community School

We do not give graded judgements on NFD inspections. However, if we find some evidence that overall standards may be declining, but where no serious concerns have been identified, then the next inspection will normally be a section 5 inspection and will be brought forward. If we have serious concerns, we will deem the NFD inspection as a section 5 inspection immediately.

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Evidence

I scrutinised the single central record and other documents relating to safeguarding and child protection arrangements. I met with the headteacher, senior leaders, groups of pupils and staff as well as the nominated governor for safeguarding. I also sampled records of safeguarding concerns and looked at the actions taken to support pupils in these cases. Having considered the evidence, I am of the opinion that at this time:

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Context

There are 910 pupils on roll. The school is in an area of high deprivation: 49% of pupils are eligible for free school meals. The number of pupils receiving support for special educational needs and/or disabilities is well above the national average. A small number of pupils attend alternative provision at The Key and Rowhill School, both of which are approved by the local authority. Some pupils with particular needs attend lessons on a different site where they are taught by teachers from the school.

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Main Findings

Safeguarding is effective and this matches the findings of the school’s recent section 8 inspection.

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Main Findings

Leaders have expert knowledge of safeguarding and make sure it is a top priority. Policies and procedures are strong and leaders implement them well. These include robust procedures for managing allegations against members of staff, which leaders follow closely. Staff receive regular and effective training. They are knowledgeable about the risks posed to children and how to identify concerns. Pupils rightly feel safe talking to staff about their worries because they trust them to provide the help and advice they need. Leaders have trained staff on how to recognise and challenge peer-on-peer sexual harassment and abuse. Some pupils are developing their confidence to come forward and talk to adults if they feel concerned about these issues.

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Main Findings

Leaders act quickly to provide additional help for pupils who need it. They monitor open cases related to safeguarding to make sure that nothing is missed. Whenever necessary, leaders make prompt referrals to external agencies. They follow up on these as appropriate in order to make sure that pupils and families get the support required.

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Main Findings

The school’s approach to personal, social, health and economic education has a very positive impact on the safeguarding culture. Pupils learn about a range of topics that help them to keep themselves safe and understand potential risks. There is particular focus on those topics that leaders have identified as most relevant to the pupils in their school. These include staying safe online, healthy relationships and mental health. Pupils value these lessons and say they enable them to make better choices in their daily lives.

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Main Findings

Governors’ expertise about safeguarding is strong. They receive regular training and information about safeguarding. They use their knowledge to check that procedures in school are effective. Governors discuss safeguarding regularly as part of their meetings and ensure that policies are up to date. They pose questions about the effectiveness of safeguarding and ask for evidence that the systems work. Some governors have safer recruitment training and use this when taking part in interviews of new staff. I am copying this letter to the chair of the governing body, the regional schools commissioner and the director of children’s services for Hampshire. This letter will be published on the Ofsted reports website.

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