Beech Hill School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Beech Hill School Mount Pleasant Avenue, Halifax, West Yorkshire HX1 5TN

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Outcome

Beech Hill School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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Outcome

The co-headteachers of this school are Samantha Bowling and Sara Cockroft. This school is part of The Family of 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 (CEO), Shameem Hussain, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Nadim Najib.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils enjoy attending this friendly and welcoming school. They are cared for by adults and friends alike. As a result, pupils feel very safe in the school. Some pupils join the school at different times in the year. Many pupils speak English as an additional language. The warm welcome pupils receive helps them to settle into their new school. Pupils are proud to model the values of the school. The kindness pupils show to each other contributes to the very caring atmosphere in school. Pupils pass each other in the corridors and enjoy saying hello to each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has very high expectations for pupils’ behaviour and achievement. Pupils rise to these expectations. Pupils’ behaviour in lessons and around school is exceptional. They show great respect for each other. Pupils achieve well in end-of-key-stage tests. This helps them prepare for their next stage of education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils speak with great enthusiasm about the trips and visits they go on. Children in early years enjoy their regular visit to the library. Pupils in Year 2 enjoy their residential trip. These rich experiences help develop key skills, such as independence, from a young age.

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

Pupils at the early stages of reading receive effective support. Pupils develop phonics knowledge at pace, including children in the early years. The school identifies those who 4 and 5 February 2025

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need extra support. Personalised support helps pupils who need extra help to keep up with their peers. Pupils enjoy reading. The school ensures that it exposes pupils to a range of ambitious texts. Pupils enjoy taking part in the ‘50 book challenge’. Here, the school challenges pupils to read a broad range of texts. These opportunities help pupils to develop a love of reading.

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Pupils study a broad and ambitious curriculum. The deliberate sequencing of learning ensures pupils study gradually more complex content. For example, in mathematics, pupils develop important problem-solving skills. These skills are taught from the early years to Year 6 as part of the well-designed curriculum. This helps pupils become confident mathematicians as they progress through the curriculum.

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In some subjects, pupils recall their learning well. For example, Year 5 pupils connect recent lessons on vertebrates with their Year 1 learning about mammals. However, in some subjects, pupils cannot draw on prior learning as well as they could. The school is still refining and embedding the strategy to help pupils remember their learning over the longer term. Pupils are starting to use what they have learned in the past to help them build new knowledge. However, this is not as well embedded in some subjects as it is in others.

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Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) benefit from the support the school provides. Adults are well informed about how best to support pupils with SEND. Adaptations help pupils access the ambitious curriculum. Pupils use key vocabulary to help understand how to structure a response to a task. Thoughtful adaptations ensure pupils with SEND progress well through the curriculum during their time in the school.

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In early years, children get off to a flying start to their education. They benefit from caring relationships with staff. This means they enjoy school. Well-structured activities help children learn. Skilled input from staff creates opportunities for pupils to develop skills. Children enjoy practising their mark-making skills in the drawing area. They also enjoy making a gingerbread person out of play dough. These activities help children develop their fine motor skills. Overall, children are very well prepared for their next stage in the school.

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Pupils have a deep respect of difference in the world. They understand protected characteristics in an age-appropriate way. Pupils explain why discrimination is wrong and link this to the Equalities Act. Pupils show a strong understanding of different faiths. Pupils value the role they play in the school’s school of sanctuary status. Pupils empathise with others and take great pride in helping peers who join the school. Pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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Pupils take on leadership roles with pride. There are many opportunities, such as that of attendance monitor, where pupils help raise the profile of the class attendance every day. Older pupils describe how they are role models. They embrace modelling good behaviour to younger children. These experiences help pupils to develop important skills for life. 4 and 5 February 2025

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Those responsible for governance have clearly defined roles. They support and challenge the school in effective ways. The school has taken effective steps to maintain the standard of education. Leaders ensure the school is constantly evolving. Adults in the school know they are valued. They are proud to work at the school.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, strategies to help pupils to recall prior learning are not as securely embedded as in others. Where this is the case, pupils are less able to make connections in their learning than in other areas. The school should continue to refine the implementation of the curriculum in these areas so pupils are able to recall, connect and apply learning over time.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024, graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged good for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 for overall effectiveness in June 2019. 4 and 5 February 2025

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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). 4 and 5 February 2025

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School details

Co-headteachers Samantha Bowling and Sara Cockroft

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 12 and 13 June 2019, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of The Family of Learning Trust.  The school has provision for two-year-olds.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision for its pupils.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation 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 his evaluation of the school.  The inspector spoke with the CEO, co-headteachers and assistant headteachers during the inspection. 4 and 5 February 2025

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 The inspector visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  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 considered the views of parents through the responses to Ofsted’s online questionnaire for parents, Ofsted Parent View.  The inspector considered the views of staff and pupils through meetings held with them and through their responses to Ofsted’s online survey.

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Inspection team

Andrew Gibbins, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector 4 and 5 February 2025

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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 looked-after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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