Newbridge School

Inspection of a school judged outstanding for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Newbridge School 161 Gresham Drive, Romford, Essex RM6 4TR

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Inspection dates: 25 and 26 February 2025

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Outcome

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

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Outcome

The principal of this school is Angela Murphy. This school is part of the Astrum Multi 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 (CEO), Lara Parr, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Davide Cason.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This is a school where pupils’ futures are at the heart of all decisions made. Staff are highly motivated to prepare pupils well for their lives beyond school. Staff focus on equipping pupils with the skills they need to participate in society and to be as independent as possible. As a result, generally pupils are prepared well for adulthood or their next stage in education or employment.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive high quality care, delivered by staff who are trained well. Staff build thoughtful working relationships with pupils. Staff get to know pupils well, understanding their interests, likes and dislikes. This helps to ensure pupils feel safe and happy.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is tenacious in ensuring that all pupils are able to communicate. Communication is championed in all activities. Staff empower pupils to make choices, build independence and express their feelings. This also helps pupils to regulate their behaviour and emotions. Pupils’ behaviour is supported and managed well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school provides opportunities for pupils to have experiences beyond the classroom. There are regular outings into the community such as to museums, adventure playgrounds or to musical events where pupils sing and sign alongside pupils from other schools. 25 and 26 February 2025

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

The school is ambitious for all pupils. Curriculums are aspirational. The school mindfully balances academic learning and personal goals. Staff take outcomes from education, health and care plans (EHC plan) and collapse them into sequenced learning steps. They personalise programs of study to help pupils to achieve these steps. Alongside personalised learning goals, pupils work through pathway curriculums. Pathway curriculums, including for children in the early years, clearly identify what pupils should learn. This helps to ensure that pupils learn new knowledge and skills in a logical order.

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

Staff work together to review and check the impact of teaching and therapies. This enables staff to understand what pupils know and can do. The school is refining processes to enable curriculum thinking to more precisely identify pupils next steps. This is at the early stages of being implemented, however is beginning to show some impact.

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

The multi-agency team of teachers, therapists and health professionals across the trust work alongside each other well to share expertise and deliver training. Staff value this training and the positive impact it has on their workload and well-being. Staff apply their training and knowledge of pupils effectively. Staff creatively adapt learning, resources and approaches. This helps children in the early years to settle well and quickly. It also enables pupils to engage and contribute meaningfully to their learning. As a result, typically pupils successfully achieve their personal goals.

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

The school ensures that the love and enjoyment of reading is prioritised. Across the school, from the early years through to the sixth form, stories are enthusiastically shared. Staff read to pupils often. Staff use multi-sensory adaptations to bring stories to life and to make them accessible for all pupils. Staff carefully identify when pupils are ready to learn the sounds that letters make. For these pupils, there is a sharp focus on helping them to become fluent readers. Staff regularly check the sounds that pupils know and ensure that they read books that are closely matched to those sounds. This helps pupils to learn phonics securely.

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

The curriculum in the sixth form is designed to prepare students for adulthood. Students follow personalised learning pathways that focus on developing their understanding of life, work and relationships. Students have opportunities to apply this learning in real contexts. For instance, they run the school shop or visit local care homes to interact with residents. A small number of students work towards a work-related accreditation. They complete this whilst on a supported internship at a local hospital. However, the accreditation pathways for other students, to support them with their next steps in education, employment or training, is underdeveloped.

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

For many pupils, physical development is core to their personalised curriculum. Staff deliberately and thoughtfully integrate physical movement into the school day. This includes learning to navigate the school building using walking frames, accessing the 25 and 26 February 2025

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hydrotherapy swimming pool or holding and using cutlery. This further enhances pupils’ physical health, resilience and independence.

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The school regularly celebrates pupils’ achievements and hosts cultural days. This supports pupils to develop their spiritual, moral, social and cultural awareness. Pupils share experiences such as visiting pantomimes, team building scavenger hunts and taking part in sporting competitions. These experiences encourage pupils to share their talents, build confidence and develop peer relationships. The school has robust procedures to monitor pupils’ absence. Staff understand the reasons affecting some pupils’ attendance at school. Staff work with parents and specialists to find ways to increase pupils’ attendance. This includes sharing advice and training from experts on sleep hygiene or from medical professionals. This helps to ensure that many pupils’ attendance improves over time.

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Those responsible for governance, including trust leaders set and implement priority improvement plans. They work collectively to ensure that the school maintains its high standards.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Opportunities for students to work towards and achieve accreditations are limited. This reduces the gains that some of the oldest students make. The school should ensure that it identifies and embeds appropriate accreditation pathways for those students who can access them.

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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 to be outstanding 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 25 and 26 February 2025

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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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This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding for overall effectiveness in July 2013.

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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). 25 and 26 February 2025

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School details

School category Academy special converter

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Website www.newbridgeschool.astrum-mat.org

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Dates of previous inspection 6 and 7 November 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this inspection

 The school caters for pupils with a range of special educational needs. All pupils have an EHC plan.  The school is part of the Astrum Multi Academy Trust  The school is registered for children aged two years upwards. At the time of inspection, no two year old children were on roll. The school does not use any alternative provision.  The school has a post-16 satellite class based at King George Hospital.  The school operates across two sites. The lower school provision is at Gresham Drive, Chadwell Heath, Romford, Essex RM6 4TR. The upper school provision is at Barley Lane, Goodmayes, Essex IG3 8XS. 25 and 26 February 2025

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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. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors 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 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 met with senior leaders, teachers and the wider school team.  Inspectors met with the vice chair and other trustees.  Inspectors met with the chair of the local advisory board and other members.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors met with the CEO and with the school’s improvement partner.  Inspectors considered responses to Ofsted’s online surveys for parents and staff. They also spoke with pupils.

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Inspection team

Kieran Bird, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Penny Barratt Ofsted Inspector 25 and 26 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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