The Compass Academy

Inspection of The Compass Academy Snowdon Way, Bransholme, Hull, East Yorkshire HU7 5DS

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Requires improvement 4 and 5 May 2022

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What is it like to attend this school?

The Compass Academy is a school where leaders want pupils to feel safe and ready to learn. Pupils are polite and well-mannered. Relationships between staff and pupils are secure. Staff respond to pupils’ needs well. This helps pupils to feel calm.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are visible and supportive. They have high expectations for pupils’ academic progress. Teachers have training on supporting pupils’ individual needs. They are committed to approaches that restore relationships. These strategies support the positive environment in the school and promote good learning attitudes. Pupils are challenged to behave well. This means that pupils learn to manage their behaviour. Pupils speak positively about their school. One group of pupils told an inspector, ‘Teachers go out of their way to support us and make us happy.’

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What is it like to attend this school?

An engagement programme is in place for pupils who are currently facing increased challenges with their behaviour. School staff are also proud of the nurture provision. This work is new and responds to pupils’ needs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have robust systems for monitoring behaviour. The majority of staff, parents and pupils who communicated with inspectors believe that bullying is not an issue. Pupils who felt bullying could be an issue in school said that school staff dealt with it effectively.

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better?

The principal has worked to build a staff team that meets the needs of pupils. All teaching staff are qualified. The principal is developing the school leadership team and has the confidence to let the team lead.

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better?

Staff have been given the freedom to shape a well-planned curriculum. They are given specific training to equip them to carry out their role through trust networks and in school. Sequences of lessons in English and mathematics match the ambitions of the national curriculum. They build in a way that makes sense. Leaders were able to demonstrate the breadth of the wider curriculum. Leaders presented detailed plans in history and science that support learners to know more and do more in a well-sequenced way. An ambitious personal development curriculum is providing structure for teachers to prepare pupils for their next steps. The poor attendance of some pupils has an impact on this work.

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better?

Teachers typically have high expectations of pupils. Good habits to learning are kept in focus. Work scrutiny demonstrates a range of strategies to support learners, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The special educational needs coordinator understands the needs of pupils and has developed effective systems of support. These are used in lessons to help staff to support pupils. Pupils with SEND feature in all aspects of the school’s work. Pupils’ social, emotional and mental health needs are well planned for. Pupils feel safe, and know that physical intervention is used as a last resort to keep pupils and staff safe. 4 and 5 May 2022

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Pupils’ work demonstrates that they are building on prior knowledge. This can be tracked through their work and through teachers’ assessments. Teachers engage pupils by ensuring they experience success in their learning. Sometimes, however, teachers are not checking how much pupils are knowing and remembering.

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Leaders expect to see low-level behaviour challenged. Around the school, it is calm. This helps pupils to manage their behaviour. Pupils report that negative behaviour is infrequent and is well managed by staff. Staff model positive relationships with pupils so they understand effective relationships. Restorative approaches are well established, as are de-escalation techniques.

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The ‘life studies’ curriculum provides pupils with a wide variety of opportunities to learn about the world around them and keeping safe. During the inspection, the school hosted an event about prison and crime prevention. There is an effective careers programme. The school meets the Gatsby benchmarks. Leaders have plans to develop some of these requirements more fully.

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All pupils participate in physical education. At breaks, there are also physical activities on offer. A range of pupils participated in a rugby league tournament during the inspection. Leaders have plans to host other rugby league games in the future.

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Leaders work in the best interests of pupils. They demonstrate integrity in decision- making. Leaders are prepared to use external support for pupils. For example, leaders source different programmes with alternative providers, such as construction education, to engage pupils.

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Reading is a whole-school priority. The school library is well established and includes a range of books that meet the different interests of pupils. Leaders are in the early stages of developing support for pupils who struggle to read. Not all staff are well trained in supporting pupils with their reading. Pupils have the opportunity to read each day, but this can be impacted by poor attendance. Leaders work with families that do not prioritise school attendance. The impact of this work is variable.

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The school is well led by caring leaders. Staff feel supported with their workload and well-being. Staff appreciate leaders’ open-door policy. Leaders receive strong support from the trust and the local governing committee. All leaders have ambition for pupils. Trustees and governors know the school well. They say that the school is the ‘jewel in the crown’ in the trust. There is rigorous trust and governance oversight of the school. Trustees have recognised the challenges that the school is experiencing in relation to the increased numbers of pupils joining it with undiagnosed SEND. They are working hard to ensure that they have the resources to meet the needs of these pupils.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 4 and 5 May 2022

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Leaders have developed strong systems to ensure a culture of safeguarding. Procedures to check adults before their employment starts are robust. Staff training is regular, including how to report any concerns. Record-keeping is diligent and safeguarding referrals are reported in a timely manner. Leaders are prepared to challenge external agencies if they believe decision-making is not in the best interests of pupils.

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Pupils are safe and well supervised. Pupils who spoke to inspectors say that they feel safe in school. Arrangements for keeping pupils who attend alternative provision safe are secure.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils arrive at school with gaps in their reading knowledge. School staff have not had sufficient training on how to teach early reading. This means that these pupils are not catching up as quickly as they should. Leaders need to coordinate their reading strategy and prioritise staff training in phonics to ensure that all staff have been well trained to support pupils to catch up quickly.  Leaders need to ensure that pupils attend school regularly. Leaders’ efforts to improve pupils’ attendance demonstrate some impact but some families are resistant to the school’s work to improve the situation. Leaders need to continue their work with parents to overcome any barriers to attendance to ensure their children attend school regularly.

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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 school and you are not happy with the inspection or the report, you can complain to Ofsted .

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

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. 4 and 5 May 2022

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School details

Local authority Kingston Upon Hull City Council

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School details

School category Academy alternative provision converter

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 January 2022, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 Since the previous inspection, Ashwell Academy transferred into the Sentamu Academy Learning Trust. As of 1 March 2019, the school was renamed The Compass Academy. Sentamu Academy Learning Trust has now merged with Hope Learning Trust to form Hope Sentamu Learning Trust.  The Compass Academy is a school for pupils who have been permanently excluded from mainstream school or have been placed for a period of intervention work.  The school uses one unregistered alternative provision provider.

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Information about this inspection

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

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the principal, members of the senior leadership team, middle leaders, teachers, pastoral staff and some non-teaching staff. 4 and 5 May 2022

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 The lead inspector met with senior leaders from Hope Sentamu Learning Trust, including the chief executive officer. He also met with trustees and members of the school’s local governing committee.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, drama and personal, social and health education. Both inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The curriculums in history and science were also considered.  The lead inspector met with senior leaders to discuss curriculum development.  To evaluate safeguarding, inspectors scrutinised the school’s records of checks carried out on adults who work at the school.  The lead inspector met with the school’s designated safeguarding lead. He reviewed the school’s safeguarding records, relevant policies and other

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safeguarding documentation. The lead inspector also reviewed the processes leaders use to identify and help pupils who need support.  Inspectors spoke to pupils formally and informally, including pupils who receive support to improve their behaviour and pupils with additional needs.  Inspectors reviewed a range of school documents, including the school’s self- evaluation and improvement plans.  Inspectors took into account the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for staff and pupils, and the online Ofsted Parent View survey for parents.

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Inspection team

David Mills, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Christina Jones Ofsted Inspector 4 and 5 May 2022

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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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