York Steiner School

School progress monitoring inspection report

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Main inspection findings

Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils Paragraphs 7, 7(a), 7(b)  The new school leadership team has a clear oversight of safeguarding. Its members demonstrated how they work collaboratively with staff, pupils and parents and carers to regularly review procedures to ensure that they continue to meet the need of all pupils.  Leaders attend regular safeguarding training alongside other independent school leaders. They meet regularly with the local authority safeguarding leader and have good working relationship with their local social care team.  Leaders understand the different processes in place across the various local authorities that serve the pupils who attend this school. This supports leaders’ detailed focus on safety and safeguarding for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).  Leaders demonstrated how they actively seek to reflect on, review and improve their

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Main inspection findings

processes and were able to share examples of where they had completed this successfully.  All staff receive regular safeguarding training. The designated safeguarding leads use regular quizzes to check that staff have understood this training.  The independent school standards (the standards) in this part were met at the previous inspection and remain met.

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Main inspection findings

Part 4. Suitability of staff, supply staff, and proprietors Paragraphs 18(2), 18(2)(a), 18(2)(b), 18(2)(c), 18(2)(c)(i), 18(2)(c)(ii), 18(2)(c)(iii), 18(2)(c)(iv), 18(2)(d), 18(2)(e), 18(3), 19(3), 20(6), 20(6)(a), 20(6)(a)(i), 20(6)(a)(ii), 20(6)(b), 20(6)(b)(i), 20(6)(b)(ii), 20(6)(b)(iii), 20(6)(c), 21(1), 21(2), 21(3), 21(3)(a), 21(3)(a)(i), 21(3)(a)(ii), 21(3)(a)(iii), 21(3)(a)(iv), 21(3)(a)(v), 21(3)(a)(vi), 21(3)(a)(vii), 21(3)(a)(viii), 21(3)(b), 21(4), 21(5), 21(6), 21(7), 21(7)(a), 21(7)(b)  The administration manager ensures that all appropriate recruitment checks are carried out promptly. These are recorded on the single central record. The single central record is up to date. It is compliant with the relevant legislation and guidance.  The school administrator has successfully completed safer recruitment training.  The standards in this part were met at the previous inspection and continue to be met.

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Main inspection findings

Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools Paragraphs 28(1), 28(1)(d)  At the previous inspection, the temperature of hot water, at the point of use in some taps, posed a risk of scalding to users.  These taps are now fitted with thermostatic measurement valves. This ensures that the hot water no longer presents a risk of scalding.  The site manager checks the water temperature levels each month and records this. The temperature in the hot water storage tank is checked, along with the temperature of hot and cold water at the point of use. Records show that water temperatures at all three points have remained within the recommended levels since the valves were installed.  This previously unmet standard is now met.

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Main inspection findings

Part 6. Provision of information Paragraphs 32(1), 32(1)(c)  The child protection and safeguarding policy was due to have been reviewed in May 2022. This review was postponed due to the arrival of a new headteacher. The policy available online at the start of the inspection was out of date.  During the inspection, school leaders updated the website with an interim safeguarding policy. This is available on the school’s website for parents to access. This policy pays regard to the most recent guidance issued by the Secretary of State.  This standard was met at the previous inspection and continues to be met.

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Compliance with regulatory requirements

The school meets the requirements of the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 (‘the independent school standards’) and associated requirements that were checked during this inspection. This included the standards and requirements that the school was judged to not comply with at the previous inspection. Not all of the standards and associated requirements were checked during this inspection.

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Part 5. Premises of and accommodation at schools

 28(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that—  28(1)(d) the temperature of hot water at the point of use does not pose a scalding risk to users.

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School details

This inspection was carried out under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, the purpose of which 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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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) £2,750 to £8,500 according to income

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School details

Email address reception@yorksteinerschool.org

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School details

Date of previous standard inspection 26 to 28 January 2022

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Information about this school

 This school was last inspected in January 2022. This was a standard inspection carried out under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008.  At the school’s previous standard inspection in January 2022, it was judged good in all areas.  Since the previous standard inspection, the chair of trustees has changed.  A new headteacher took up post in September 2022. She is leading the school alongside the education manager, who will leave this post in December 2022.  The school has employed a new administration manager and a new special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) since the previous inspection.  The school follows the Steiner Waldorf curriculum. It accepts pupils aged from age three to 14 years.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 The previous standard inspection took place in January 2022, when the school was judged not to meet one of the requirements of the independent school standards.  This was the first monitoring inspection to take place.  The inspection was conducted without notice.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, the education manager, the school administration manager, the SENCo and the site manager. The inspector also met with the chair of trustees.  The inspector reviewed safeguarding and SEND documentation, checked the school’s processes for the safer recruitment of staff, reviewed the school’s systems for acting on safeguarding concerns, talked to a range of staff, completed a tour of the school and checked the hot-water facilities.

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Inspection team

Zoe Lightfoot, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

Parent View You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

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Inspection team

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk , or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.gov.uk/ofsted .

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Inspection team

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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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