Robert Holme Academy

Inspection of Robert Holme Academy Fircroft, 3, Wrawby Road, Brigg, North Lincolnshire DN20 8DL

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education Inadequate Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Inadequate Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils feel safe at Robert Holme Academy. Staff build strong and trusting relationships that help them to effectively support pupils’ social and emotional development. Pupils trust the adults who look after them. Adults provide immediate and purposeful support when pupils are worried or have concerns.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s expectations of what pupils can achieve are too low. Pupils do not achieve as well as they could because the curriculum is poorly designed. It is not taught well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive expert support to help them manage their feelings and emotions. They have the language to explain how they are feeling and use vocabulary, such as ‘overwhelmed’ when they are feeling anxious. Staff teach pupils to develop their ‘emotional toolboxes’. As a result, pupils can regulate their emotions well. They behave well in and around the school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy their leadership roles. They are able to apply for a variety of roles within school that support them in learning a sense of responsibility. Some pupils enjoy roles such as being drinks monitor. Others wear their high-visibility jackets with pride while on patrol as taxi monitors.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders consistently plan opportunities for pupils’ personal development. Pupils frequently apply their new skills to everyday situations in the local community. For example, pupils enjoy ordering drinks at a local café, demonstrating impeccable manners.

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better?

Pupils have experienced significant disruption to their education before joining Robert Holme Academy. Leaders plan effectively how to mitigate this in order to support pupils and their families. This work is successful and pupils quickly feel at ease. They love coming to school. This is reflected in their high attendance. However, pupils’ previous experience of schooling and prior poor attendance has led to considerable gaps in their learning.

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better?

Leaders have constructed a broad curriculum. In a very small number of subjects, such as mathematics, leaders have taken care to identify the exact knowledge that they want pupils to learn. However, this is not the case for most subjects. In the majority of subjects, leaders have not planned a curriculum that ensures pupils learn what they need to prepare them for their next stage in their education. Some subject leaders are new to their leadership role. They have not received the necessary training to equip them with the skills to design a curriculum that purposefully builds pupils’ knowledge over time. They are unable to appropriately support staff to implement the school’s curriculum or to adapt the commercial schemes they use, in order to meet the needs of all pupils. Some staff do not have the subject knowledge or expertise to effectively teach all subjects in the school’s 5 to 7 December 2023 curriculum. In a significant proportion of subjects, pupils do not achieve as well as

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better?

Leaders acknowledge the importance of promoting a love of reading. However, while there is an early reading curriculum in place, leaders do not ensure that it is consistently implemented. The range of activities that staff plan do not adequately help pupils to learn new sounds. The early reading curriculum for each pupil is inconsistent. Leaders know that many pupils have gaps in their phonic knowledge. They do not plan effective lessons or timely support to address these gaps. Most staff have not received the necessary training and support to help them to deliver phonics lessons effectively. As a result, pupils continue to make the same mistakes repeatedly. Their reading is not improving quickly enough.

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better?

All pupils who attend this school have an education, health and care (EHC) plan associated with social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH). Leaders carefully use the information from pupils’ EHC plans to provide a range of support for pupils individually or as part of a group. For example, leaders have recently created a second sensory room in which pupils can relax when they are feeling anxious. Other pupils have personalised equipment that helps them to manage the world around them. Leaders have created a strong culture of effective support in meeting pupils’ SEMH needs that pervades throughout school.

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better?

Leaders successfully develop pupils’ individual talents and interests. For example, some pupils have an interest in electrical circuits. Over the course of the term, staff have planned opportunities to explore and create circuits, including making new inventions. Leaders then extend this support to parents and carers in order to support the development of pupils’ interests beyond the school.

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better?

Pupils are positive about their school life. They know how to keep themselves safe online and in their local community. Pupils learn about healthy relationships and positive friendships. They are learning how to consider the views of others. Leaders plan celebration events and assemblies to raise pupil’s awareness and appreciation of all the protected characteristics. For example, pupils celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender month and Black History Month through artwork and English literature. Parents told inspectors that this has positively impacted on their child’s views. Pupils understand that other people may have faiths, cultures or family structures that are different from their own.

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better?

Staff feel valued and enjoy working at the school. Leaders consider staff’s well-being carefully. However, the proprietor does not hold school leaders to account regarding how well the school’s curriculum meets pupils’ needs. The proprietor has recently appointed a special needs education coordinator to the team. This team have a vision of what they want to achieve but are at an early stage in this journey.

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better?

Leaders have focused significantly on the emotional well-being of pupils. This focus has resulted in a lack of oversight of the school’s curriculum. Leaders have not identified the strengths and weaknesses of their curriculum offer. They do not check how well the learning offer increases pupils’ knowledge or how this accelerates the 5 to 7 December 2023 progress pupils are able to make. Consequently, the school does not meet the requirements set out in parts 1 and 8 of the independent school standards. Leaders acknowledge that they must address this imbalance at pace.

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better?

The proprietor has ensured that the school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010. The proprietor has put in place a suitable safeguarding policy. This policy is published on the school’s website.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and proprietor)

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What does the school need to do to improve?

 Staff do not deliver the school’s chosen phonics programme systematically. Pupils at the early stages of reading do not have the necessary knowledge or strategies to read with fluency and accuracy. Leaders need to ensure that all staff receive purposeful training and support to deliver the schools chosen phonics programme with precision, so that pupils become confident and fluent readers.  In most subjects, leaders have not considered the most important knowledge they want pupils to learn. Leaders have not designed the curriculum to allow pupils to build on what they learn over time. Pupils do not benefit from a good quality of education. Leaders should carefully plan and order what they want pupils to know and remember over time.  The school’s curriculum is not implemented effectively. Where commercial schemes are used, these are not appropriately adapted to support the starting points of pupils. School leaders are unaware of the variability in the quality of the

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What does the school need to do to improve?

learning that pupils receive. Leaders must ensure that all staff have the subject- specific knowledge they need to ensure the school’s curriculum is delivered consistently well for all pupils.  In some subjects, staff do not have the subject knowledge and expertise to teach what pupils need to know. Staff do not check on what pupils know and can do to inform their teaching. Some pupils’ misconceptions are not addressed, leading to further gaps in their learning. Leaders need to provide the appropriate support and training to enable staff to deliver effective lessons and use assessment information to quickly address any misconceptions that pupils may have.  Leaders do not regularly check on how well teachers are implementing the curriculum. They do not know what is going well and where there are issues requiring attention. This leads to some pupils missing out on key aspects of the curriculum. Leaders must improve the systems that they use to check on the

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What does the school need to do to improve?

quality of education that pupils receive, so that they can address any issues swiftly. 5 to 7 December 2023  The proprietor does not check on the quality of education in the school, or on how well the school is meeting the independent school standards. Consequently, several of the independent school standards are not continually or consistently met. The proprietor should ensure that there are systems in place to challenge and support leaders to bring about improvements to the school’s provision, so that the independent school standards are met consistently well.

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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. 5 to 7 December 2023

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School details

Unique reference number 149400 DfE registration number 813/6014

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School details

Inspection number 10286506 Type of school Other independent special school

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School details

Website https://robertholmeacademy.co.uk/

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School details

Email address info@robertholmeacademy.co.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection Not previously inspected 5 to 7 December 2023

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Information about this school

 Robert Home Academy is a small independent school for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The school operates from one site in Brigg, North Lincolnshire. It offers specialist educational provision for pupils who have had limited success in more formal education settings.  The school does not operate with a governing body.  The school provides specialist support for up to 10 pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs.  All pupils who attend this setting have an EHC plan.  The school does not have a religious ethos.  The school does not use the services of any alternative 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 has failed to meet the independent school standards. These are the requirements of 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.  Inspectors met with the headteacher and the proprietor. In addition, the lead inspector discussed the school with a representative of North Lincolnshire local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: reading, personal, social and health education, music and mathematics. For each deep dive, inspectors met with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors spoke to parents by telephone during the inspection.  Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation including the school’s development plan and several policies to check that they meet the requirements of the independent school standards.  Inspectors checked the safety and suitability of the premises. They considered risk assessments and the policies in place to promote the well-being of pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first. 5 to 7 December 2023  Inspectors observed the behaviour of pupils during lessons and at social times.  Inspectors considered the responses to the online staff questionnaire and pupil questionnaire. They also considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire.

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Inspection team

Jenny Thomas, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Gordon Watts Ofsted Inspector 5 to 7 December 2023

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

 2(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if- – 2(1)(a) the proprietor ensures that a written policy on the curriculum, supported by appropriate plans and schemes of work, which provides for the matters specified in sub-paragraph (2) is drawn up and implemented effectively; and – 2(1)(b) the written policy, plans and schemes of work- – 2(1)(b)(i) take into account the ages, aptitudes and needs of all pupils, including those pupils with an EHC plan; and  2(2) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(1)(a), the matters are- – 2(2)(b) that pupils acquire speaking, listening, literacy and numeracy skills;  3 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the teaching at the school- – 3(a) enables pupils to acquire new knowledge and make good progress according to their ability so that they increase their understanding and develop their skills in the subjects taught; – 3(c) involves well planned lessons and effective teaching methods, activities and

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

management of class time; – 3(d) shows a good understanding of the aptitudes, needs and prior attainments of the pupils, and ensures that these are taken into account in the planning of lessons; – 3(e) demonstrates good knowledge and understanding of the subject matter being taught; – 3(f) utilises effectively classroom resources of a good quality, quantity and range; – 3(g) demonstrates that a framework is in place to assess pupils’ work regularly and thoroughly and use information from that assessment to plan teaching so that pupils can progress;

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

 34(1) The standard about the quality of leadership and management is met if the proprietor ensures that persons with leadership and management responsibilities at the school- – 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; – 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently; and 5 to 7 December 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

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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