Banks House School

Inspection of Banks House School Bright House, 51 Wendene, Bowthorpe, Norwich NR5 9HA

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive exceptional education and care at Banks House School. Staff possess a profound understanding of pupils’ complex needs. Pupils form deeply caring and supportive relationships with staff. They learn a wide range of communication methods tailored to their individual needs. This enables them to express their wants, needs and opinions effectively. This, in turn, helps staff to respond quickly to meet pupils’ needs. Pupils benefit from adults’ relentless drive to make sure that they are well cared for and supported to do well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s ambitious, child-led curriculum and well-designed physical environment are instrumental in helping pupils to thrive. Pupils are given excellent support to manage their behaviour effectively. They thoroughly enjoy using their outdoor sensory space with crunchy bark flooring, cushions and a swing to use when they need to.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils engage in activities that are designed to closely meet their developmental needs. Pupils enjoy exploring objects on a sensory tray, developing their curiosity with water sprinklers, choosing and listening to music or kicking a football. They know they have the option to participate in trips such as swimming or horse riding. If they choose not to, staff quickly adapt their plans and provide equally beneficial activities for them.

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better?

Most pupils join the school having experienced significant disruption to their education. They often arrive after their previous school or residential placement has broken down. The school works highly effectively to ensure that pupils’ transition to Banks House School is successful. They hold detailed meetings with parents and a wide range of relevant professionals to make sure they have a precise understanding of pupils’ very specific needs when they join. They use this information to create a personalised learning plan for each pupil.

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better?

Since the previous inspection, the school has embedded an ambitious new curriculum. It is specifically designed for pupils working well below the level of the national curriculum. Pupils follow different pathways, which are exceptionally well suited to their needs. These pathways broaden pupils’ skills and knowledge in important areas. They include, but are not limited to, communication, play and leisure, outdoor school, art, drama, dance and independence. Staff receive highly effective training to deliver the curriculum well. Subsequently, staff are highly skilled in delivering the different curriculum areas exceptionally well.

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better?

The school ensures that pupils are incredibly well supported to meet the targets on their education, health and care plans (EHC plan) as well as the wider curriculum. Adults engage pupils in a wide range of personalised and enticing activities which support their development. Some pupils learn how to take a bus with support from adults. Others learn how to play alongside their peers or make a choice between 18 to 20 June 2024 two options. The school has precise checks in place to capture the small steps of progress that pupils make. Staff are skilled in capturing this progress and planning bespoke learning activities that build on these successes. This helps to ensure that pupils receive exceptional support to do well.

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better?

The school is highly focused on supporting pupils to enjoy reading and being read to. Pupils enjoy listening to stories from the ‘favourite five’ list. This is often while they are engaged in other sensory activities. Where it is appropriate to their needs, pupils are taught to read through the school’s phonics programme. The school makes excellent use of different opportunities, such as travel time and off-site visits, to embed pupils’ phonics knowledge in different contexts. This frequent repetition helps pupils to remember more sounds and make strong progress through the curriculum.

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better?

Staff are experts in noticing changes in pupils’ actions or behaviours. If a pupil displays signs of becoming distressed, staff quickly use the most appropriate methods to support them to regulate their emotions. This is done in an incredibly caring and compassionate manner. As a result, there has been a significant reduction in incidents of pupils becoming unsettled.

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better?

Pupils’ personal development is exceptionally well embedded throughout all areas of their day. Staff consistently model and embody the school’s ethos of ‘my voice, my choice, my lifelong learning’. They repeatedly reassure pupils that they are listening to them and explain to pupils how their actions are designed to keep them safe. Staff work diligently to increase pupils’ independence. Pupils may learn to care for themselves by putting on shoes to go outside, wearing sunhats or greeting people. Staff focus tirelessly on preparing pupils for adult life. This includes trips to places of worship and activity clubs, woodland walks and forest school experiences. Pupils really benefit from using transport and interacting with others.

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better?

The proprietor body and school advisory board have been highly effective in providing the appropriate expertise to ensure pupils benefit from an outstanding education and a well-maintained site. They demonstrate a strong moral imperative in ensuring pupils receive exemplary support and care. Their robust systems of quality assurance ensure this vision is realised for all pupils.

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better?

Leaders have excellent levels of positive engagement with parents, professionals and the wider community. They have interesting articles in the local newsletter and have set up a small library outside the school. They also interact with local primary school children through a ‘stick swap’ area where children can enjoy exchanging sticks as they pass by the school.

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better?

The proprietor ensures that the school complies with the Equality Act 2010.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 18 to 20 June 2024

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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. 18 to 20 June 2024

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School details

Type of school Other independent special school

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School details

School category Independent special school

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School details

Website www.cascade-care.com/education-at- cascade Email address schools@cascade-care.com

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School details

Date of previous inspection 15 to 17 November 2022 18 to 20 June 2024

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Information about this school

 The school received a monitoring inspection in July 2023 where it met all of the independent school standards.  The school caters for up to six pupils aged 13 to 19 years of age. Local authorities refer pupils. All pupils have an EHC plan.  The school does not use supply staff or alternative provision.  The school advisory board is the name for the body that carries out the functions of local governance of the school.

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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

Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.

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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

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with leaders, including the headteacher, the special educational needs coordinator, the chair of the advisory board, representatives from the proprietor body, the school’s challenge partner, an educational psychologist employed by the school, an EHC plan coordinator and a special adviser working on behalf of the local authority.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in early reading, communication, physical development, and personal, social and health education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, looked at curriculum plans, 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, inspectors reviewed the single

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Information about this inspection

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.  Inspectors toured the school’s site to review the suitability of the premises and its pupil accommodation.  Inspectors considered the views expressed in the responses to the Ofsted Parent View free text and the responses to the staff survey. The lead inspector spoke via 18 to 20 June 2024 telephone with one parent.

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The school’s proposed change to the maximum number of pupils

The school has applied to the Department for Education (DfE) to make a ‘material change’ to its registration. At the DfE’s request, we checked whether the school is likely to meet the relevant independent school standards if the DfE decides to approve the change. This part of the inspection was carried out under section 162(4) of the Education Act 2002.

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The school’s proposed change to the maximum number of pupils

 The outcome of this part of the inspection is: the school is likely to meet the

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relevant independent school standards if the material change relating

to the school provision is implemented.  The school has the leadership capacity to support an increase in the number of pupils they support. The curriculum is in place and well taught. There are sufficient staff employed by the proprietor body to support an increase in pupils. The premises that are proposed to accommodate an increase in pupil numbers were visited by inspectors and meets the requirements of the independent school standards.

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Inspection team

Bessie Owen, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Charlie Fordham His Majesty’s Inspector 18 to 20 June 2024 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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