Queen's Manor School

Inspection of a good school: Queen’s Manor School and Special Needs Unit Lysia Street, London SW6 6ND

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Outcome

There has been no change to this school’s overall judgement of good as a result of this ungraded (section 8) inspection. However, the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now. The school’s next inspection will be a graded inspection.

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Outcome

The principal of this school is Lilli Landau. This school is part of the United Learning Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Jon Coles, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Reena Keeble.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is firmly placed at the heart of the community. Pupils enjoy coming here. They value their relationships with other children and their teachers. Pupils know and embrace the school’s values of ‘ready, respectful and safe’.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school teaches pupils how to keep themselves safe. Pupils have confidence that staff will help them with any worry or concern. Pupils consider that any incidents of unkindness are followed up quickly. The school community is highly inclusive, with pupils showing empathy towards others.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school develops pupils’ character and independence. There are opportunities for pupils to take on responsibilities. The Rainbow Rangers are pupil leaders who play a key role working with others. Pupils say that they make sure everyone stays safe. Pupils also have a voice through their Pupil Parliament.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for pupils, including those with special educational needs (SEND), to achieve well. There are some inconsistencies in how well pupils are learning. This means expectations are not always realised. The trust and the school recognise this and have plans in place to improve achievement further. 5 and 6 June 2024

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Since the last inspection, the school has experienced turbulence in leadership and staffing. As a result, some important aspects of the school have declined. The trust has addressed staffing issues. They have also put in place an ambitious curriculum. This is planned well, in a logical order. There are examples of pupils learning well through the curriculum. For example, resources and activities in early years support children well to understand and remember number bonds and shapes. This builds to when older pupils use their knowledge of different types of triangles when they plot coordinates to draw their own. Sometimes, activities in mathematics do not provide secure opportunities for pupils to develop their key knowledge and skills further.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school organises relevant professional development opportunities for staff. However, this has not ensured that teachers have sufficient subject expertise in developing the consistency of the delivery of the curriculum. This leads to pupils sometimes having gaps in their learning.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Some pupils with SEND do not learn routinely well because the planned curriculum is not adapted closely to their needs. On occasion, the planned activities and resources used to support pupils are not consistently used well. This limits the deeper understanding of some pupils with SEND.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Reading is a priority across the school. From early years, children develop a love of books. All pupils take part in daily reading activities. There is a key focus for younger readers and those at the early stages of reading to learn to read well. Teachers make sure that pupils read books that match the phonic sounds they know. They quickly identify pupils who are not as confident and put in place a range of appropriate support. This means that most pupils, including those with SEND and those new to learning English, learn to read well.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Pupils’ behaviour is mostly calm and settled. In lessons, pupils generally focus. They listen and follow instructions well. Sometimes, learning is disrupted when teaching is not well adapted to pupils’ needs. Attendance rates are improving over time; however, persistent absence is high. The school works with families whose children do not attend school. Recent action, including steps to robustly address attendance, are beginning to take place.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

The school has developed a well-thought-out, age-appropriate curriculum to support pupils’ wider development. Pupils are taught about diversity in our society and how to be tolerant of others and to respect different beliefs. The school uses the local area and places further away to plan curriculum visits. These include trips to the River Thames, the Tower of London, Fulham Palace and the Science Museum. Pupils enjoy the outings and attending sporting competitions with other schools. They value the range of clubs in school.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Trust leaders, governors and school leaders know what they need to do to strengthen further the effectiveness of the school. The school has worked closely with parents and carers to foster good relations. They know this is important ongoing work. Staff feel well 5 and 6 June 2024

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supported, with both their workload and well-being. Parents, pupils and staff appreciate being part of a close community.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In a few subjects, the school has not ensured that the core knowledge that pupils need to know, remember and revisit over time is covered in as much detail as it could be. As a result, sometimes classroom work in these subjects does not support pupils to learn what they should as effectively as they could. The school should ensure that the important knowledge and skills that pupils need to know and remember are clearly delivered across all subjects, and that classroom activities consistently support pupils to learn the planned curriculum.  Sometimes, teaching and resources are not consistently well planned and adapted for all pupils with SEND in mainstream and special provision classes. This means that some pupils with SEND are not supported effectively to build their curriculum knowledge over time. The school should continue to ensure that planning, teaching and resources are adapted to meet the needs of all pupils with SEND.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some pupils are absent from school frequently. These pupils miss out on learning and do not achieve as well as they should. The school should ensure that it works with pupils and their families to understand the importance of regular attendance. It should be systematic in the steps taken to address pupil absences from school. 5 and 6 June 2024

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in December 2018.

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How can I feed back my views?

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.

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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’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 5 and 6 June 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection 6 December 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school became an academy in October 2016. It joined the United Learning Academy Trust in 2022.  The current headteacher has been in post since July 2023.  The school does not use alternative provision.  The school has a special needs unit which caters for 17 pupils with social, emotional and mental health difficulties, specific learning difficulty, severe learning difficulty, speech, language and communication needs and autism.

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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. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 5 and 6 June 2024

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 The inspector spoke with the chair of the board of trustees and a local authority representative and met with the regional director for the trust.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: 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.  The inspector scrutinised a wide range of documents, including those related to pupils’ wider development and behaviour and attendance. The inspector also met with groups of staff and pupils to discuss these aspects of the school’s work.  The inspector carried out deep dives in these subjects: early reading, mathematics and history. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and

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looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector also discussed and sampled work in the art curriculum. The views of parents, pupils and staff were also considered, including through Ofsted’s online surveys.

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Inspection team

Janice Howkins, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 5 and 6 June 2024

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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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