Ofsted’s accreditation visit to Boland Companies Ltd

Companies Ltd

On 15 and 16 January 2025, Ofsted visited Boland Companies Ltd as part of the Online Education Accreditation Scheme . Through this scheme, providers of full-time online education to school-age children in England can apply to the Department for Education (DfE) for accreditation.

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Companies Ltd

Ofsted visits providers to find out whether they meet the minimum standards for online education set by the DfE. This report sets out what we found during our visit on 15 and 16 January 2025. You can find out whether this provider is accredited by the DfE at Get Information about Schools .

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Key findings

◼ Boland Companies Ltd does not meet all the minimum standards for online education. More information on the standards that Boland Companies Ltd (Boland) does not meet can be found in the last section of this report. ◼ The proprietor’s and staff’s lack of knowledge and training means that safeguarding is not good enough. The setting’s systems for recording safeguarding concerns are poor, and too few checks are made on the suitability of staff to work with children. ◼ Senior leaders’ knowledge of the required Online Education Accreditation Scheme standards is weak. As a consequence, standards relating to the required breadth of curriculum, the provision of information, children’s welfare and safeguarding and the provision for those pupils who speak English as an additional language are not met. ◼ While having some strengths, such as the range of subjects available for study at A level and iGCSE, the setting’s curriculum does not meet the required standards

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Key findings

for the Online Education Accreditation Scheme. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to study the physical, aesthetic and creative areas of learning. ◼ Teachers have secure subject knowledge. They use questioning effectively to evaluate how well pupils understand what is being taught. Where necessary, they revisit aspects of work to correct any misconceptions and to help pupils make more progress.

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Who is this online provider?

◼ Boland is an international online education provider based in Gosport, Hampshire. Boland provides online education that is accessed through any one of four advertised settings: Acorns to Oaks Online Primary School, International Online School and College Oxford, Cambridge Online School and College International, and Eureka Learning. The proprietor company has one director, who also acts as the setting’s principal. ◼ Pupils who attend Boland study a curriculum that is based around the English national curriculum. Schemes of work utilise the content of a commercial curriculum product, which subject leaders and teachers have carefully amended to take account of the setting’s online context. However, leaders have not ensured that pupils have the opportunity to study physical, creative or aesthetic subjects as part of their learning. ◼ Older pupils study towards recognised international qualifications, such as iGCSEs

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Who is this online provider?

and international A levels. The schemes of work for these subjects are well designed and based around exam board syllabuses. The setting is not a registered exam centre, and pupils wishing to gain external qualifications must make private arrangements to undertake these assessments near where they live. ◼ Careers education is provided as part of the setting’s curriculum. This includes opportunities for pupils to receive impartial advice from specialist careers services. ◼ Leaders have designed a suitable scheme of work for personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education. This develops a wide range of areas of knowledge and skills, including financial management and health and relationships education. The PSHE curriculum also promotes pupils’ understanding of how to keep safe online. However, it is optional and is, therefore, not followed by all pupils, including some who are attending the setting full time. Consequently,

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Who is this online provider?

many pupils do not benefit from this essential element of the curriculum. ◼ Currently, 155 school-age pupils study with Boland full time. None of these pupils have an education, health and care (EHC) plan . Of these, 97 live in England. Another 115 school-age pupils study with Boland part time.

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How are pupils taught at Boland?

◼ Classes and activities at Boland are undertaken live. There is no requirement for pupils to turn on their cameras during any of these activities. Leaders explained this is because many pupils suffer from anxiety. However, the total lack of visibility of some pupils, who choose to never activate their cameras, inhibits staff’s ability to conduct effective welfare and safety checks. ◼ Pupils sign up to one of the four online ‘schools’ that Boland operate. However, regardless of which school they join, they are all educated together, in the same classes and by the same teachers. ◼ Pupils are taught in classes organised into year groups. Specialist teachers, who have strong knowledge of the subjects they teach, oversee individual subjects. They teach small groups that typically contain no more than 10 pupils. Teachers know their pupils well and consistently demonstrate, in their teaching and interactions, the setting’s ambitious academic expectations. Teachers routinely

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How are pupils taught at Boland?

model respect and a love of learning, which is reciprocated by pupils in classes. ◼ Teachers routinely check on pupils’ understanding through skilful questioning. Teachers also use assessments, undertaken at the end of topics and at regular intervals during the year, to check pupils’ long-term retention of knowledge. Teachers use the information gained from assessments to take account of individual pupils’ needs and, where necessary, adapt their curriculum plans. ◼ Teachers make effective use of technology and high-quality resources to promote learning and make lessons interesting. The use of a self-contained learning platform allows teachers to deliver lesson content without the need for pupils to visit unsupervised areas of the internet. Additionally, the platform is designed so that feedback and information about pupils’ progress can be shared directly with other staff, pupils and parents.

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keeping children safe?

◼ Ofsted’s visits to online providers can give only a limited level of

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inspections of schools and other providers of face-to-face education

and training. However, we found that the arrangements for keeping children safe at Boland are not good enough. ◼ The proprietor has a weak understanding of safeguarding and child protection procedures. She has not ensured that keeping children safe is central to the setting’s operation. The setting’s policy does not reflect the statutory guidance for schools as laid out in ‘Keeping children safe in education’ 2024, and required by the accreditation standards. Throughout the setting, a lack of appropriate training means the proprietor and her staff do not have the knowledge, skills and understanding they should have to carry out their roles effectively and ensure the safety of pupils. ◼ The setting does not have a systematic approach to recording any identified concerns. Additionally, leaders, including the designated safeguarding lead (DSL), do not have a clear understanding of their reporting duties, for example when,

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inspections of schools and other providers of face-to-face education

how and to whom they should make external referrals. This is the case for children living in the UK, as well as for those residing overseas. ◼ The setting’s recruitment procedures do not meet the statutory guidance for schools. The proprietor has not carried out the appropriate pre-employment checks to confirm that staff working with children are safe to do so. ◼ The proprietor has not ensured that all children attending the setting receive appropriate information about how to keep themselves safe online. Online safety education forms parts of the setting’s PSHE curriculum. However, this subject is optional, and most pupils choose not to take it. Additionally, at the time of this visit, online safety education was not part of the setting’s induction/enrolment programme for new pupils. ◼ The setting has detailed risk assessments. These show that leaders are knowledgeable about the risks that may impact pupils and staff and have

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inspections of schools and other providers of face-to-face education

implemented appropriate actions to mitigate them. However, leaders have not put into place a written risk assessment policy to make clear who is responsible for undertaking these assessments and to ensure they are routinely reviewed and evaluated.

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Boland Companies Ltd?

◼ Pupils who responded to the online questionnaire or who spoke with inspectors typically have positive views of Boland. Pupils said they liked the English national curriculum and the chance to learn without travelling from their houses. Pupils also like the way teachers interact with them in lessons. Pupils feel that teachers listen to them and respond swiftly to any concerns they have. Most pupils who spoke with inspectors could not recollect their online safety education and felt that they would like more opportunity to interact with their peers outside of lessons. ◼ Parents who spoke with inspectors or who responded to the online questionnaire share similarly positive views about Boland. Parents particularly like the responsiveness of leaders and teachers to their queries. In addition, parents also praised the routine sharing of achievement information and the high ambition fostered by staff. Many reported that their children’s attitudes to education had

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About the visit

◼ This is Boland Companies Ltd‘s first accreditation visit. John Nixon, His Majesty’s Inspector (HMI) was the lead inspector, accompanied by Jonathan Dyer HMI.

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standards for online education

This section is included primarily for the benefit of the Department for Education (DfE), to help inform their decision on whether to accredit Boland Companies Ltd. This section lists the standards for online education set out by the DfE (‘the standards’) that Boland Companies Ltd does not meet. Where a standard is not listed, this is because Boland Companies Ltd meets the standard. If any of the standards do not apply to Boland Companies Ltd, these will be listed at the end.

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standards for online education

The full list of standards can be found in DfE’s guidance on meeting the online education standards .

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Section 1. Quality of education provided (curriculum)

◼ The written curriculum policy does not cover all the areas of learning required by the scheme and is not supported by appropriate schemes of work. This is the case for physical, aesthetic or creative education. ◼ Participation in PSHE curriculum activities at Boland Companies Ltd is optional. This means some pupils, including some who attend full time, miss out on this vital part of their education.

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The following standards in section 1 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ Standards 1.1 on the curriculum policy, plans and schemes of work ◼ Standards 1.3 on content of the curriculum

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Section 2. Quality of education provided (teaching)

The provider meets all the standards in section 2 of the standards.

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pupils

The provider meets all the standards in section 3 of the standards.

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Section 4. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

◼ The proprietor and senior leaders, including the DSL, have received no safeguarding training to support their knowledge, understanding and implementation of their roles. Consequently, update training shared with teachers has been delivered by untrained personnel. As a result, teachers rely on their knowledge gained from previous employment to help keep children safe. ◼ The proprietor has failed to ensure that some required policy documents are in place and all policies contain the required information. Missing documents include a written risk assessment policy and an appropriate admissions register that contains information about all the parents of a child and their previous education setting. Leaders also have no procedures in place to ensure that local authorities in England are informed when a child who resides in their area starts or leaves the setting. ◼ The optional nature of online safety education through the PSHE curriculum, and

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Section 4. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

a lack of a clear policy to ensure information about how to keep safe online is delivered to pupils starting the school, means pupils do not receive effective support to remain safe online.

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The following standards in section 4 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ Standard 4.1 on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of pupils ◼ Standard 4.7 on maintaining admission and attendance registers ◼ Standard 4.8 on maintaining and implementing a written risk assessment policy and managing risk ◼ Standard 4.9 on supporting online safety

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Section 5. Suitability of staff, supply staff and proprietors

◼ The proprietor has not carried out all the required pre-employment checks. These checks include those relating to whether potential staff members are prohibited from teaching, as well as confirming their identity and qualifications. Additionally, the proprietor has allowed staff to start work at the setting before the completion of the checks they do undertake. ◼ The setting has a single central record that contains those suitability checks leaders have carried out on staff. However, this record is incomplete as not all of the required checks are undertaken.

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The following standards in section 5 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ Standards 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.9, 5.10 on checking the suitability of staff ◼ Standard 5.24 on maintaining a single central record of all staff and volunteers

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Section 6. Provision of information

◼ The proprietor has failed to ensure that the setting meets all the requirements in this section of the accreditation standards. The proprietor does not have in place a written policy on how pupils who speak English as an additional language will be supported. As a result, this information is not made available to parents.

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The following standards in section 6 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ 6.13 on information that must be made available to parents

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Section 7. Manner in which complaints are handled

◼ The published complaints procedure for the setting does not meet the requirements of the online standards. The complaints procedure identifies that a complaints panel may be formed. However, it does not make clear that this is when a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of the initial investigation into a formal complaint. Also, two members of the panel, indicated in the procedures, are the same persons as those identified to carry out the initial investigations. This prevents correct impartiality at the final stage of a complaints hearing. ◼ The written complaints procedure does not make it clear that the outcomes of an investigation into a complaint may also be shared with the person complained about. Consequently, the standard relating to the sharing of the outcomes of a parental complaint is not met.

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The following standards in section 7 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ Standards 7.1, on maintaining a written complaints policy ◼ Standards 7.7, 7.9 on provision for a panel hearing in the event a parent is not satisfied with the provider’s response to a complaint

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service

◼ The proprietor and leaders demonstrate weak knowledge and understanding of the requirements of the online standards. The proprietor has not made best use of the knowledge, expertise and experiences of some staff members or undertaken sufficient external training to ensure they improve their knowledge. This includes urgently completing appropriate training relating to statutory guidance for safeguarding in schools and the promotion of pupils’ welfare. ◼ Those members of staff with leadership and management roles have not received the training they need to keep their knowledge up to date. As a result, many standards are unmet.

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The following standards in section 8 of the standards are therefore failed:

◼ Standard 8.1 on those with leadership and management responsibilities at the provider demonstrating skills and knowledge appropriate to their role ◼ Standard 8.2 on those with leadership and management responsibilities at the provider fulfilling their responsibilities effectively so that the standards are met consistently ◼ Standard 8.3 on those with leadership and management responsibilities at the provider actively promoting the well-being of pupils

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The following standards do not apply to this provider:

◼ Standards 5.11, 5.12, 5.13, 5.14, 5.16, 5.17, 5.18 only apply where the provider uses supply staff ◼ Standard 6.3 only applies where a provider has a governing body ◼ Standards 6.5, 6.10 only apply where a report on the provider has been published under the Online Education Accreditation Scheme at the time of the visit ◼ Standards 6.8, 6.9 only apply where at least one full-time pupil at the provider is wholly or partly funded by a local authority

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DfE unique reference number

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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to

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DfE unique reference number

the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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DfE unique reference number

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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DfE unique reference number

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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