SGS Pegasus School

Inspection of SGS Pegasus School Hempton Lane, Patchway, Almondsbury, Bristol, South Gloucestershire BS32 4AJ

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The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Requires improvement

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The headteacher of this school is Marie Cooper. This school is part of the South Gloucestershire and Stroud College (SGS) Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Alan Dane, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Andrew Downing. There is also an executive headteacher, Claire Price, who is responsible for this school and two others. 1 and 2 October 2024

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils experience variability in the quality of education and provision at the school. The new curriculum is not taught and adapted sufficiently well in all subjects to meet pupils’ special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Sometimes, pupils complete work that they can do easily yet they are not moved on in their learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Positive relationships exist between staff and pupils. This helps pupils feel safe in school. Most pupils attend school regularly. Pupils are happy and supported by staff to build friendships. However, opportunities to support and develop pupils’ social skills are sometimes missed.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Students welcome the chance to be responsible for school activities and they contribute to new school initiatives. Sixth-form students like to organise the school’s tuck shop. Pupils enjoy spending their school value awards, ‘Pegasus Pounds’, in the shop. Older pupils enjoy work experience and the carefully planned preparation for adulthood lessons.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Shared expectations between the school and parents and carers for pupils’ behaviour, personal, social and academic achievements are increasing. This helps shape pupils’ ever more ambitious education, health and care (EHC) plan targets. Most parents are happy with the school’s provision. Nevertheless, the school recognises there is more to do to ensure all pupils flourish and attain the best outcomes.

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

Since the previous inspection, significant turnover of trust and school staff has slowed school development. This period of instability has now settled. The trust is committed to investing in pupils' education and provision. For example, staff are benefitting from high- quality training. The new staff and leadership team are working tirelessly to implement the necessary changes to improve the school’s quality of education.

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

Trust and school leaders have accurately identified the priority areas for school development. The school improvement plans are well thought through. The trust is working with the school to embed these developments into daily practice. Several sustainable improvements to the school’s quality of education and provision are already in place. For example, staff are being supported to use the school’s approach to communication with pupils.

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

Carefully selected songs, rhymes and books are shared with pupils to nurture their love of reading. Pupils read books that match their phonics knowledge. The school has recently introduced a new phonics programme. Previously, pupils progressed through the phonics curriculum but did not secure a deep knowledge and understanding of the letter sounds. Careful checks now identify and are beginning to rectify gaps in pupils’ phonics knowledge. The school’s intention to raise the standards of phonics teaching and learning is clear. However, the impact of staff training and of the new curriculum on pupils’ phonics knowledge is not yet evident. 1 and 2 October 2024

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The school is starting to identify pupils’ needs with greater precision. This information is beginning to help staff, parents and pupils write EHC plan short-term targets that successfully meet pupils’ needs and aspirations. Improvements to staff’s knowledge of how to adapt the curriculum and use assessment information successfully is starting to have a positive impact. For example, staff know how to teach and check pupils’ understanding of their learning in mathematics. Staff knowledge is not as well developed in some subjects such as personal, social and health education (PSHE). The development of staff’s knowledge to adapt the curriculum and check pupils’ understanding is new. The quality of education, including pupils’ EHC plan short-term targets, is inconsistent.

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Staff welcome the changes to the school’s policies and practices to improve the quality of education and provision for pupils. However, leaders are mindful of the impact whole- school changes can have on staff. Leaders have listened to staff concerns. For example, to support staff’s well-being and to help staff to manage their workload the trust has developed a well-being plan. Staff will shape the ongoing well-being offer to better meet their needs.

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The trust has introduced new systems, such as ‘class debriefs’, to review and understand patterns of pupil behaviour and attendance. Currently, the school identifies individual pupils who need additional support to develop their social, emotional, physical and mental health. Pupils are taught how to stay safe online and in the local area. They learn important life skills for independent living such as cooking healthy meals. Some pupils have help to understand and respond to their feelings appropriately. This works well for the individual pupil. Nonetheless, the school’s consideration of how best to support groups of pupils’ personal development is in its infancy.

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The careers programme for pupils is well developed. A range of carefully planned opportunities prepares pupils for adulthood and the world of work. Parents are invited to careers events from Year 7 onwards to help their children make informed choices. Pupils complete work experience within the community, attend careers fairs and meet with local employers. Most sixth-form students undertake their academic studies at a local college. Students successfully transition to college or employment when they leave school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 The school has recently revised its curriculum. Staff do not have a secure knowledge of the new curriculum’s expectations. This means that they do not check pupils’ knowledge effectively. In some subjects, learning activities do not support pupils to secure knowledge and understanding well enough. The trust needs to support staff to 1 and 2 October 2024

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develop their knowledge of the revised curriculum so that staff can implement it effectively.  Some pupils’ short-term targets are not adapted precisely enough. As a result, the curriculum that staff design from these targets is not as effective as it could be. The trust needs to ensure that all targets are precise enough to ensure that pupils learn successfully at every opportunity.  The school has recently developed clear expectations to improve pupils’ behaviour. While the school records behaviour incidents, it does not analyse the information. Consequently, opportunities to support groups of pupils to understand and respond appropriately to their behaviour are sometimes missed. The trust needs to ensure that the school makes use of information to identify appropriate support for pupils and maintain high expectations for pupils' behaviour.  Some members of staff do not feel that the trust sufficiently supports their well-being and

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workload. The trust has an accurate view of the school and will use this to put the support in place for staff. The trust needs to support and encourage staff to contribute to and access the trust’s well-being provision.

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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). 1 and 2 October 2024

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School details

Date of previous inspection 1 to 3 March 2022 under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 SGS Pegasus is a special school for pupils with autism spectrum disorder.  All pupils who attend this school have an education, health and care plan.  The school has pupils in Year 1 through to Year 13. There are currently no pupils in the early years at the school.  SGS Pegasus is part of the South Gloucestershire and Stroud Academy Trust.  Sixth-form students study part-time at SGS College, Filton Campus.  The school uses three unregistered alternative providers.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024, will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school's education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  The inspectors met with the executive headteacher, head of school and other school leaders and wider staff. They met with the chief executive officer, chief operations officer, chair of trustees and chair of governors.  The inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: communication and early reading, PSHE and personal development, mathematics and food technology. For each deep dive, the inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning, looked at samples of pupils’ work and EHC plans and associated documents.  The inspectors discussed the school’s curriculum with leaders and the provision for

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sixth-form students at SGS College and at the school.  The inspectors observed pupils during social times and spoke with pupils and leaders about opportunities for pupils’ personal development.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the 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.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey, Parent View. They also took into consideration the responses to the staff survey.

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Inspection team

Marie Thomas, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Nicolle Deighton Ofsted Inspector 1 and 2 October 2024

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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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