Langley Hall Arts Academy

Inspection of Langley Hall Arts Academy Symphony House, 4 Waterside Court, Langley SL3 6EZ

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Inspection dates: 19 to 21 September 2023

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s intentions are perfectly summarised in its motto, which translates as ‘Choose a remarkable life.’ This is a small school with big ambitions for pupils’ achievement. The standards that pupils achieve show how these ambitions are realised.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils appreciate the extensive offer of music, art, dance and drama. These subjects complement a wide-ranging curriculum covering the English Baccalaureate, Latin, citizenship, life skills and sport. Musical talent is fostered and accelerated through additional lessons and regular performance opportunities. Extra-curricular opportunities are of high quality and are developing as the school grows in size. For example, Year 8 pupils have benefited from performing in the Royal Albert Hall, visits by the English Symphony Orchestra and trips to Wembley Stadium and Westminster Cathedral.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils’ behaviour and attitudes are excellent. Staff’s expectations are high and modelled calmly and with kindness. There is a positive ethos across the school. Pupils constantly want to give their best to their willing and enabling teachers. Pupils are happy and safe. Bullying is exceptionally rare and quickly dealt with when it does occur. Pupils know who to talk to if they have concerns.

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better?

The curriculum is carefully sequenced and planned from Year 7 to Year 11, anticipating pupils’ learning journey as the first groups of pupils move through the school. It is designed to take account of pupils’ past experiences and individual needs. Knowledge and skills are cumulatively developed. There are frequent opportunities to revisit content, including through lesson starters and ongoing assessments.

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better?

Teachers are passionate about their subjects and experts in their respective fields. Their subject knowledge is particularly strong. Cross-curricular work is clearly identified in curriculum planning. However, these plans are not always followed through in practice. The curriculum is still relatively new and therefore still being embedded. The school is working hard to reduce variability in how the curriculum is delivered and to strengthen curriculum links across subjects.

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better?

Pupils take a pride in their work and how it is presented. Pupils experience a rich diet of subject-specific vocabulary. Reading is promoted well, although pupils say they would like a greater variety of books to be offered in the new and developing library. Daily numeracy lessons help pupils develop their knowledge of mathematical concepts and procedures.

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better?

The school has identified a small number of pupils with particular needs which necessitate additional support. These pupils are well known and well looked after. More able pupils and those with gifts and talents are also well known and 19 to 21 September 2023 successfully championed. Consequently, pupils achieve their academic potential and are prepared well for their next steps.

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better?

The school is supportive of pupils’ health, welfare and well-being. Pupils are taught how to be safe and how to keep safe, including online. Personal, social, health education (PSHE) and lifeskills programmes are seamlessly intertwined. Together, they help pupils to develop their character and become caring citizens. Pupils learn a broad range of relevant content, including relationships and sex education, with themes pursued in an age-appropriate way. Content such as consent and sexuality are sensitively interwoven across the years. Opportunities to explore links between life skills and other subjects are well advanced.

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better?

Careers education is well considered to help pupils ‘reach heights of excellence’ and understand what to do to succeed. Pupils’ career aspirations include finance and banking, and aeronautical and space engineering. Outside of lessons, pupils support mental health days, breast cancer awareness months and trips to nursery schools and residential homes. Pupils are respectful and kind to others.

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better?

Pupils have a keen sense of their future roles to be changemakers in modern society. Their moral and social development are well supported across all subjects. British values are reinforced inside and outside of lessons. Health, welfare and well- being are further developed through a fully comprehensive assembly and tutorial programme.

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better?

Staff are positive about the leadership of the school. They feel that their workload is carefully managed through sharing resources and working cooperatively. Staff are universally proud to be members of the school community. Parents and carers are extremely positive about the school. Pupils and parents hold staff in exceedingly high regard.

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better?

Leaders and staff provide a safe, inclusive environment to highlight and celebrate pupils’ varied cultures and backgrounds. As a result, no incidents of racism or homophobia have been reported. Leaders have ensured that the school fully complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010. Pupils learn about, and are respectful of, the characteristics protected by this act.

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better?

Leaders fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently. Premises are appropriate and suitably maintained. Provision for music is extensive and pupils study a broad and ambitious curriculum. Policy documents are plentiful, well written and regularly updated. Complaints procedures are securely established. There were no complaints in the last academic year.

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better?

Proprietors and governors are passionate for the school to be a success. However, their focus is not sufficiently concentrated on the quality of education, the independent school standards and holding leaders to account. Record-keeping is occasionally lax, although the school is working constructively to improve procedures 19 to 21 September 2023 and protocols. A recently produced health and safety audit confirms the school’s emphasis on health, safety and pupils’ well-being.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The school’s curriculum is not yet fully in place, with no pupils currently on roll in Years 9, 10 and 11. Plans for clear links between subjects are not being fully realised in practice. The school should ensure that, as pupils move through the latter years of the school, they experience a consistently high-quality curriculum, that builds on existing best practice.  Proprietors and governors are not always sufficiently focused on the quality of education, the independent school standards and holding leaders to account. Records of their checks are occasionally lax. The school should ensure that robust systems and routines enable proprietors and governors to keep a careful check on all aspects of the school’s work, so that they can provide more effective challenge to leaders.

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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. 19 to 21 September 2023

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School details

Unique reference number 149466 DfE registration number 871/6008

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School details

Inspection number 10286495 Type of school Secondary

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School details

Website www.langleyhallartsacademy.co.uk

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School details

Email address info@langleyhallartsacademy.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20 July 2022 19 to 21 September 2023

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Information about this school

 Langley Hall Arts Academy is a mixed 11 to 16 independent school providing education with a music and arts focus. The school’s main site is located in refurbished offices in a business complex in Langley. The school opened in September 2022, and at the time of this inspection had pupils in Years 7 and 8.  The school is closely associated with Langley Hall Primary Academy, Station Road, Langley SL3 8GW. Some of the lessons (particularly science, dance and drama) take place at this school. Some of the teachers from this school have been appointed to provide specialist teaching on a part-time basis.  Pupils from the school attend sports lessons at Langley College, Station Road, Langley SL3 8BY and swimming lessons at Langley Hall Primary Academy, St Mary’s Road, Langley SL3 6BZ.  None of the pupils on roll at the school have special educational needs and/or disabilities.  No pupils attend alternative provision with other education providers.

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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 meets the independent school standards. These are the requirements set out in 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 leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors conducted deep dives in English, mathematics and performing arts. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited a sample of lessons, talked with teachers, spoke to pupils, and looked at samples of their work.  Inspectors held meetings with proprietors, governors, leaders, staff and pupils. Inspectors looked at school policies, curriculum documentation, behaviour logs, attendance records and destination statistics. The lead inspector met with proprietors and governors.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors reviewed the single central record and took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils. They considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive

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Information about this inspection

culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first. 19 to 21 September 2023  Inspectors considered responses to the Ofsted Parent View online questionnaire and additional written comments from parents. They reviewed the survey returns completed by staff and pupils.

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Inspection team

Paul Metcalf, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Jason Philipsz Ofsted Inspector 19 to 21 September 2023 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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