Westwood High

Inspection of Westwood High Kelsall Street, Oldham, Greater Manchester OL9 6HR

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Early years provision Good Sixth-form provision Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils at Westwood High have a thirst for learning. They cherish the diverse experiences that the school provides for them. Pupils said that there are trusted adults in school with whom they can share any worries.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending school and they said that they feel safe and happy. They take responsibility, respect others and are tolerant of the differences between people. This respectful culture permeates the school. Consequently, pupils leave the school well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high aspirations for all pupils. Pupils rise easily to meet these expectations. They achieve well. Pupils develop the resilience and self-belief that they need to learn with success. As a result, pupils are ready for the next stage in their education, employment or training.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils behave well. They are kind and considerate. Pupils know that it is important to help others. For example, they are keen to organise charitable projects in the community. Older pupils act as role models for younger pupils. They relish the leadership opportunities that the school provides. As a result, pupils learn to be responsible and active citizens.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school ensures that pupils develop their confidence and independence, for example through appropriate residential visits and a variety of extra-curricular activities. In addition to this, there are a range of well-considered opportunities for pupils to learn about the wider world. These are threaded carefully through the curriculum.

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better?

Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), learn an ambitious curriculum. The school makes sure that the curriculum reflects pupils’ and students’ interests and aspirations. Pupils are excited by, and engage well with, their learning.

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better?

Pupils with SEND receive the help that they need to succeed. The school identifies the additional needs of pupils with SEND quickly and accurately. Staff carefully consider how they adapt the delivery of the curriculum so that these pupils can learn well and access the full range of opportunities on offer.

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better?

In most subjects, the school has thought deeply about what pupils will learn and when this knowledge will be taught. This starts from the early years, where staff are clear about the most useful knowledge for children’s subsequent learning. However, while pupils learn well overall, some of the school’s curriculum thinking is less developed. Where this is the case, some pupils find it hard to remember their learning over time. For example, in a small number of subjects, some pupils find it 3 to 5 October 2023 tricky to solve more complex problems because they cannot remember the smaller parts of knowledge that they need.

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better?

The school supports teachers to use assessment strategies successfully to check on what pupils know and can do. Teachers use assessment information appropriately to design and adapt future learning. As a result, pupils acquire a rich body of subject knowledge. This includes pupils with SEND.

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better?

The school prioritises reading. The school ensures that children in the Reception Year learn phonics from the start. Pupils read books that match the sounds that they have learned. The school provides staff with training on how to deliver the school’s phonics programme. However, some staff lack the depth of knowledge that they need to deliver this programme as intended. Consequently, a few pupils develop misconceptions in their phonics knowledge. This hinders these pupils in becoming fluent and confident readers as quickly as they should.

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better?

In the Nursery Year, children enjoy learning stories and rhymes by heart. Across the school, pupils relish the regular opportunities to listen to the books that staff read aloud to them. Pupils read widely and often. They spoke with inspectors enthusiastically about their favourite authors and the books recommended to them by others.

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better?

Strong and supportive relationships exist between staff and pupils. These begin in the early years. Children quickly become familiar with the school’s established routines and staff’s expectations. Older pupils understand that the school rules help to keep them safe. Classrooms are calm and orderly. Pupils think carefully about the impact of their words and actions on others. They give sensitive reminders to their peers if their actions fall short of the school’s high expectations.

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better?

Pupils’ well-being is important to the school. Pupils learn to understand their emotions and how to look after their mental health. They learn how to keep safe online. The school helps pupils to reflect on their own beliefs, as well as to understand the opinions and beliefs of others. Pupils listen to and appreciate different opinions. They have a fierce belief that everyone should be treated equally.

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better?

In the sixth form, there is a sharp focus on students’ next steps. Students receive the advice and guidance that they need to make well-informed choices about their futures. For example, the school ensures that students access relevant work experience opportunities. Alongside this, students gain the independence and confidence that they need to successfully enter higher education, training or employment.

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better?

Staff have highly positive views of working at the school. For instance, they appreciate how the school communicates with them. Staff value the school’s consideration of their well-being. They receive the support that they need to embed new ideas and refine their practice. 3 to 5 October 2023 The proprietor body has the knowledge and expertise to carry out its role effectively. For example, the proprietor body checks that the school’s actions impact positively on the quality of education that pupils receive. It seeks the necessary assurances that the school consistently meets the independent school standards (the standards) and statutory requirements, including the requirements for the early years foundation stage. The school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010.

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better?

Parents and carers receive useful information about their children’s learning. For example, the school helps parents to understand the approach to phonics teaching. This helps parents to support their children with learning at home.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The school has not ensured that the staff involved in the teaching of early reading are equipped sufficiently well to deliver the phonics programme with confidence. This means that some pupils do not learn to read as quickly and as fluently as they could. The school should ensure that staff are furnished with the knowledge and skills that they need to implement the phonics programme effectively.  In some subjects, the curriculum is less well developed. Where this is the case, it is less clear what pupils need to learn and when. As a result, some pupils find it more difficult to remember their prior learning. The school should ensure that staff are clear about the most useful knowledge that pupils require for subsequent learning.

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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. 3 to 5 October 2023

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School details

Gender of pupils in the sixth form Girls

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sixth form

Annual fees (day pupils) £1,400 - £2,750

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sixth form

Dates of previous inspection 12 to 14 February 2019 3 to 5 October 2023

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Information about this school

 The school’s previous standard inspection took place between 12 and 14 February 2019.  Westwood High is an Islamic faith school.  All pupils speak English as an additional language.  A very small number of pupils are pupils with SEND.  The school operates from premises in Kelsall Street, Oldham, Greater Manchester OL9 6HR. There are four buildings on this site. The school is comprised of a high school, a preparatory school (primary), a kindergarten (Nursery and Reception classes) and a sixth form.  There is no proprietor named on the Department for Education’s (DfE’s) Get Information About Schools (GIAS). The proprietor body is The Green Dome Academy. This is registered with the Charity Commission. There are three trustees, including the chair. The Green Dome Academy was the proprietor body at the previous standard inspection.  The proprietor body has appointed a governing body. This has four members.

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Information about this school

 This school is registered on the DfE’s GIAS as a single-sex school for girls. This single-sex school is operating as co-educational. The school has admitted boys from the Nursery Year to Year 6.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

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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

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  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 the principal, the vice-principal, the chair of the proprietor body and some subject leaders.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics, personal, social and health education and history. For each deep dive, inspectors 3 to 5 October 2023 held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and

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Information about this inspection

considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  An inspector carried out a tour of the premises.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation to check the school’s compliance with the standards.  An inspector observed some pupils reading to an adult.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text responses.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff.  Inspectors spoke with pupils to gather their views of the school. They also considered responses to Ofsted’s online survey for pupils.

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Inspection team

Jane Dennis, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Stuart Perkins His Majesty’s Inspector 3 to 5 October 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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