Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Ltd)

Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited) Report following a monitoring visit to a ‘requires improvement’ provider

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Name of lead inspector: Ian Frear, His Majesty’s Inspector

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Type of provider: Independent specialist college

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Address: Wood Lane Chapelthorpe Wakefield WF4 3JL Monitoring visit: Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited), 20 and 21 June 2024

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Context and focus of visit

Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited) was inspected in July 2023. At that time, inspectors judged the overall effectiveness of the provision to require improvement.

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Context and focus of visit

The focus of this monitoring visit was to evaluate the progress that leaders and managers have made in resolving the main areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection.

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Reasonable progress

Since the previous inspection, leaders have made the difficult decision to close the farm and residential setting at the college. They now have a much clearer focus on improving the quality of education for learners.

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Reasonable progress

The advanced practitioners now have a lead role in identifying and sharing good teaching practice through conducting observations of teaching and auditing training files. They use the findings from these activities to coach staff to improve the effectiveness of their teaching practice and the monitoring of learners’ progress towards meeting the outcomes in their education, health and care (EHC) plans.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have provided clear guidance, training and support for staff to improve their effectiveness when managing behaviour in line with learners’ EHC plan outcomes. Teaching staff now include the therapy team when considering appropriate strategies to keep learners focused on their studies. For example, should learners return to class from lunchbreaks agitated, staff respond skilfully using the support and de- escalation techniques suggested by the therapy team. This helps avoid learners’ potentially poor behaviour from escalating, ensuring that lessons continue without disruption.

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Reasonable progress

Advanced practitioners work effectively to train staff on how to use the results of initial assessment to plan and review learning. Teachers now plan mathematics learning with high-quality and well-contextualised creative learning activities. For example, learners sell the goods that they make in craft workshops and during horticulture activities and handle money from customers, including the use of card machines. These activities help learners to consolidate their mathematical skills.

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Reasonable progress

Parents and carers are very complimentary about the improvements made at the college, including the communication that they receive about their children’s progress. Most parents are positive about the plans for their children’s next steps. Monitoring visit: Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited), 20 and 21 June 2024 Staff have clear plans for learners to move on to a range of destinations, including employment, further training and independent living, as they approach the end of their education at the college.

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Reasonable progress

Since the previous inspection, leaders have appointed a specialist EHC plan coordinator. The coordinator collates evidence for annual local authority review meetings, chairs these meetings and disseminates the key information from them to teachers, support staff and parents. The coordinator also attends meetings relating to new learners joining the college so that learners, and their teachers, are well prepared for their programme of study when they arrive.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders identified that staff were not accurately or consistently reporting concerns about learners’ behaviour. Staff were occasionally normalising poor behaviour or not escalating a concern where one existed. In response, leaders have introduced new behaviour guidance and provided training so that staff know when, how and what to report. Staff now record learners’ behaviour more consistently and adapt their teaching and behaviour management strategies to meet learners’ needs more effectively.

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Reasonable progress

Staff now have a much clearer understanding of the progress that learners are making towards their intended learning outcomes and future destinations. They agree with learners short-, medium- and long-term targets that are derived from learners’ EHC plans. Learners know their individual targets and can talk about what they are doing to achieve them. For example, learners tell the teacher when they have finished their classroom work as they know that verbal communication is a key skill linked to their planned outcomes.

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Reasonable progress

Advanced practitioners work closely with teaching staff to help them better understand how to measure and record the progress that learners make from their starting points. Although staff understand the importance of recording this information, they do not consistently record it quickly enough. This means that, in a few instances, it is not clear whether learners are progressing as they should be or whether an intervention is required.

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Reasonable progress

Staff now provide learners with more realistic careers advice and guidance. Managers are supporting a member of staff to work towards gaining a careers advice and guidance qualification. Most learners attend at least three or four specific careers Monitoring visit: Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited), 20 and 21 June 2024 advice and guidance sessions per year. Staff plan purposeful activities with employers in line with learners’ individual aspirations. Learners also go on site visits, benefit from listening to a range of guest speakers and go on work placements. These activities help learners to gain a better understanding of their potential future career pathways.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have significantly reduced the proportion of learners who leave college without a positive destination. In the previous academic year, around a third of learners did not progress to education, employment or training when they left the college. There are now clear plans in place for every learner to progress to a positive destination. A high proportion of learners have already secured paid employment or a place at a further education provider.

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Reasonable progress

In a few instances, staff are not ambitious enough for what learners can achieve once they leave the college.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have increased the amount and range of work placement opportunities for learners. They now work with businesses such as local garden centres, sculpture parks, pet centres and car dealerships to provide placements that meet the aspirations of learners. However, leaders recognise that they need to increase further the range and breadth of work placements, particularly by developing relationships with larger businesses that can offer sustainable work placements and employment opportunities.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have started to develop a wider range and variety of employer visits. Learners now visit car garages, large-scale manufacturing plants and commercial warehouses, in addition to the smaller employers that leaders have worked with for some time. Often, learners have a short introductory session or experience day before either they or the employer commit to the placement. For example, a learner on a long-term work placement at a car dealership had already visited the business twice to ensure that it was a viable placement opportunity.

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Reasonable progress

Staff agree realistic employment and work-placement activities for learners. They now make good use of the information that they receive about learners at the start of their programme to plan site visits and potential taster days for them. When learners go on a taster day, such as to an equine yard, their experience helps to determine whether they can cope with busy and unpredictable environments.

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Reasonable progress

Learners are supported well to develop their employability skills and independence during their work placement. Staff often attend placements with learners when they first start, before gradually reducing their support over time. For example, a learner working in a horticulture business initially attended for one morning per week Monitoring visit: Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited), 20 and 21 June 2024 alongside his support worker who transported him to site. This learner now attends placement for one full day per week on his own and makes his way to the site unaided. Monitoring visit: Camphill Wakefield (Pennine Camphill Community Limited), 20 and 21 June 2024 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

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Reasonable progress

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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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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