Bradford Alternative Provision Academy

Inspection of Bradford Alternative Provision Academy Baker Street, Saltaire, Shipley, West Yorkshire BD18 3JE

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

Previous inspection grade Not previously inspected under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

Ofsted has not previously inspected Bradford Alternative Provision Academy as an academy school under section 5 of the Education Act 2005 as, until November 2020, the school was exempted by law from routine inspection, so there has been a longer gap than usual between inspections. Judgements in this report are based on the current inspection framework and also reflect changes that may have happened at any point since the last inspection of the predecessor school. 25 and 26 April 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders are aspirational for what pupils can achieve during their time at the school. Highly skilled staff have created a place where pupils feel safe and valued as individuals. Staff quickly get to know pupils so that the curriculum they receive is suitably ambitious.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value and respond positively to the high expectations set. This is seen in the quality of their work, their knowledgeable contributions to lessons, their attendance and their behaviour. In classrooms, staff seamlessly balance kindness, respect, humour, routines and boundaries. Pupils are very positive about the difference the staff here make for them. Bullying does not happen often, but when it does, leaders deal with it as they do with everything in school: quickly, calmly and effectively.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils rapidly broaden their knowledge during their time here. Nearly all older pupils gain the qualifications they need and go on to future education and employment. Pupils of all ages leave the provision much better equipped for the world ahead.

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better?

School leaders, trust leaders and governors have a shared understanding of the important role the school has in changing pupils’ opportunities in life. Leaders continually adapt the curriculum exceptionally well. This supports pupils on both short and long-term placements to be ready for the next stage. Staff work with skill and dedication. They feel fully supported by leaders in the work they do.

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better?

The curriculum in English and mathematics helps pupils to gain the essential knowledge needed to be successful in future training and employment. Staff make precise checks on what pupils know and need to learn next. Teachers’ strong subject knowledge helps pupils learn new content and ensures that any misconceptions are addressed.

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better?

A promotion of pupils’ success and the aim to develop a sense of achievement sit at the heart of a wider, practical curriculum. This curriculum helps to develop pupils’ life skills across subjects such as art, food and nutrition and information technology. The personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) curriculum supports pupils to gain an informed view of the world. Staff encourage debate, which pupils fully contribute to. Staff do not shy away from difficult conversations.

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better?

Pupils get the support they need to read well. Staff make considered book choices, which broadens pupils’ views, subject knowledge and vocabulary. Pupils engage positively in reading aloud, or listening to others read, every day.

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better?

Behaviour systems are simple and understood by all. Leaders’ relentless checks on any lessons to be learned from incidents mean that pupils get excellent support in understanding, managing and improving the actions they take. 25 and 26 April 2023

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There is a culture of tolerance and respect as the school, which is quickly established with newcomers. Homophobia, racism, sexism or harassment are not accepted. Discrimination is dealt with quickly and effectively, if necessary. This is an inclusive school, which fully engages pupils in fundamental British values.

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Leaders describe their work to ensure good pupil attendance as being ‘an obsession’. Their dedication and action to remove any barriers to attending school is reflected in pupils’ improved attendance.

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A high level of expertise across leaders and the ‘task force’ makes the school’s offer exceptional. The school is part of the Department for Education’s funded alternative provision specialist taskforce programme. The work of the task force makes a huge difference for pupils. Experts in speech and language, mental health, youth justice and youth working form a highly effective and efficient partnership. They quickly identify the specific needs of pupils. They help pupils and their families to understand why pupils might have found things difficult in the past. Pupils get the right support to be successful.

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Leaders make deliberate choices about the alternative provision they use to support the school’s offer. They carefully select provisions that widen curriculum and qualification opportunities for specific pupils.

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Pupils are well informed about potential careers and next stages in education. They feel included in plans and well supported in making appropriate future choices.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have a deep understanding of the risks local issues and pupils’ circumstances may present. They ensure that all staff are acutely aware of the vulnerabilities of pupils and that staff recognise signs that additional support might be needed. Well-understood systems for reporting and recording concerns ensure that leaders take immediate action to support pupils. Leaders work with a wide range of other agencies to ensure their work to safeguard pupils is the best it can be.

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Safeguarding

Leaders have made sure that the most important local risks are kept front and centre in the curriculum. This is to ensure that pupils who are only in the school for a short period of time are informed of and understand ways to keep safe in the community. For example, pupils present informed views about knife crime and the lasting effects incidents can have on a wide range of people.

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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 25 and 26 April 2023

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Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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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. 25 and 26 April 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10268153 Type of school Alternative provision

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School details

School category Academy alternative provision converter

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this school

 Bradford Alternative Provision Academy converted to become an academy school in March 2019. When its predecessor school, Bradford Central PRU, was last inspected by Ofsted, it was judged to be outstanding overall.  The school became part of Exceed Academies Trust in March 2019.  The school caters for pupils who have been permanently excluded from mainstream school. The designation of the school has recently changed from providing short-term preventative education to providing short-, medium- and longer-term education for pupils after they have been permanently excluded from mainstream school.  There is a significant proportion of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Leaders secure an education, health and care plan for a notable proportion of pupils while they are on the school roll.  The school operates across two sites: Aireview and Jesse Street.  The school uses four alternative providers, all of which are Ofsted registered.

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Information about this school

 The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 7 to 13 with information and 25 and 26 April 2023

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engagement about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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Information about this inspection

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

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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 leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with senior leaders, including the headteacher, throughout the inspection. They met with those responsible for governance, including the chair of the local advisory board and the chief education officer of the trust.  The lead inspector met with members of the task force.  Inspectors carried our deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics, PSHE and food and nutrition. As part of the deep dives, inspectors met with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons on both sites, spoke to pupils, met with staff, and looked at samples of pupils’ work. They heard some pupils read in class. They also spoke to leaders about the curriculum in some other subjects and

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Information about this inspection

visited lessons in these subjects.  To inspect safeguarding arrangements, the inspectors spoke to the designated safeguarding leader, spoke to staff and pupils, reviewed the school’s arrangements for checking the suitability of staff to work with children, and analysed leaders’ procedures to check the suitability of alternative provision used by the school.  A range of school documentation was scrutinised by inspectors, including plans for improvement and leaders’ records and analysis of behaviour and attendance.  Inspectors considered parents’ responses to Ofsted’s questionnaire, Parent View.

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Inspection team

Kate Rowley, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Steve Shaw His Majesty’s Inspector 25 and 26 April 2023

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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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