Camp Hill Education

Inspection of Camp Hill Education The Bordesley Centre, Stratford Road, Camp Hill, Birmingham B11 1AR

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Inspection dates: 11 to 13 February 2025 and 11 March

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Requires improvement Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Requires improvement

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is small and intimate. It provides a haven for pupils who have previously struggled in other school settings. When pupils attend well, they make the most of the fresh start they get to their education. The school aims to equip pupils with qualifications that will support them appropriately in their choices for further education, employment or training.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school is a welcoming environment where pupils develop positive relationships with staff. Most pupils behave well. Bullying is rare. Pupils feel safe and are well looked after. They enjoy experiences outside of school, including visits in the local community. The school’s sharp focus on personal development means pupils are well prepared for their next steps in life.

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What is it like to attend this school?

All pupils have social, emotional and mental health needs. Staff provide appropriate support to pupils to meet these needs well. This support is carefully linked to pupils’ education, health and care (EHC) plans. However, the way staff meet pupils’ individual learning requirements is not as well designed. What pupils know and can do in different curriculum subjects is not considered carefully enough to help them to build on their prior learning effectively. This means that the proprietor is failing to meet some of the independent school standards.

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better?

Since the last inspection, limited progress has been made to improve the school. The proprietor’s recent changes to improve the oversight of leaders and some aspects of the curriculum are beginning to have a positive impact. However, more needs to be done to ensure that pupils attend well and that teaching meets pupils’ individual learning needs.

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better?

The curriculum is suitably broad. Most pupils join the school with significant gaps in their knowledge of English and mathematics. Teachers place high priority on these curriculum subjects. For example, pupils work towards achieving qualifications in English and mathematics. These support pupils with their college and employment options. Pupils benefit from small-group teaching and sometimes one-to-one adult support. However, teachers do not use the information they collect about what pupils know and can do when they join the school to design lessons effectively. Their ongoing checks on pupils’ learning do not accurately inform pupils’ next steps or connect to the targets linked to their EHC plans. This means that pupils are not supported consistently to fill gaps in their knowledge and to achieve their best.

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better?

The school encourages pupils to read regularly. Leaders promote the importance of reading for pleasure and for a purpose. For example, pupils enjoy reading their class text together. They read extracts from newspapers and online media articles to support their learning in personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education. However, some pupils do not receive suitable support to develop their reading 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025 comprehension skills. These pupils find it challenging to understand and make sense of what they are reading.

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better?

The curriculum is enhanced by appropriate work experience opportunities for pupils. Pupils enjoy personalised learning experiences linked to their interests. They visit careers fairs and local colleges. They appreciate that external careers advice and guidance is provided regularly.

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better?

The promotion of pupils’ personal development is supported well by the PSHE curriculum. Pupils learn about how to keep themselves mentally and physically healthy. They enjoy a range of recreational sport. They develop an age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships and sex and health education. They develop their awareness of potential risks to their safety, including substance misuse. The curriculum is responsive to pupils’ individual needs. For example, leaders take appropriate action to address issues in the media or the local community such as knife crime and anti-social behaviour. Pupils enjoy taking part in enrichment activities linked to the curriculum, including visits to different places of worship.

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better?

Attendance remains an ongoing priority for the school. There are suitable procedures in place to follow up pupils’ absences. Leaders highlight the importance of regular attendance to parents and carers. The school understands that most pupils have missed significant periods of education before joining Camp Hill Education, and some are anxious about attending school. However, leaders’ actions to improve the individual attendance of some pupils lack the necessary tenacity. Too many pupils do not attend school on a regular basis. These pupils miss essential learning and social experiences.

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better?

Staff are well supported by leaders who are considerate of their workload and well- being. They are proud to work at the school.

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better?

The proprietor has ensured that there are frequent checks on the health, safety and welfare of pupils. Suitable policies and procedures are in place to keep pupils safe. For example, leaders make sure that pupils are safe and well if they are absent from school. Pupils are appropriately supervised. The school building is well maintained. The school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010. There is a suitable accessibility plan in place. However, the proprietor has not ensured that all the independent school standards are met consistently over time. Leaders have not demonstrated the required knowledge and skills to make sure that the school offers a high-quality education for all pupils. They have not provided suitable training and support for staff to teach the curriculum well and meet the learning needs of pupils effectively.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 Teachers do not make effective use of assessment information and individual targets for pupils’ learning when they design lessons. As a result, some pupils do not connect their learning and develop their knowledge and skills as well as they should. The school should ensure that staff know how to use assessment information and pupils’ individual targets for learning effectively, so that lesson sequences are tailored to take into account what pupils already know and can do.  Attendance is an ongoing priority for the school. Too many pupils are persistently absent. They miss essential learning and experiences, which has a negative impact on their education. The school should intensify its efforts to address persistent absence and support pupils to attend school regularly.  Pupils are not supported to develop their reading comprehension effectively. This means that pupils do not develop the skills they need to become confident

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

readers. Leaders should ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills they need to teach reading comprehension skills well.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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. 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025

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School details

Unique reference number 146999 DfE registration number 330/6049

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School details

Inspection number 10342143 Type of school Other independent school

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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) £33,500 to £55,000

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School details

Email address camphilleducation@gmail.com

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School details

Date of previous inspection 13 to 15 June 2023 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025

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Information about this school

 Camp Hill Education is an independent school located in the centre of Birmingham. The school is housed within a community centre called the Bordesley Centre, at Stratford Road, Camp Hill, Birmingham B11 1AR.  The school offers places to pupils who have social, emotional and mental health difficulties. All pupils have an education, health and care plan.  The last standard inspection took place in June 2023 when the school’s overall effectiveness was judged to require improvement and the independent school standards were met.  The school is registered to admit up to 18 pupils. At the time of the inspection there were no pupils in Years 7 to 9.  The school does not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008. The purpose of the inspection is to advise the Secretary of State for Education about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school.

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Information about this inspection

The school has failed to meet the independent school standards. These are the requirements set out in the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.  The inspection started on 11 February. Inspectors returned on 11 March to gather additional evidence in line with Ofsted inspections and visits: Deferring, pausing and gathering additional evidence policy.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the proprietor, who is also the headteacher. Meetings were also held with the deputy headteacher and the chair of governors.  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, mathematics and PSHE. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, looked at curriculum plans, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  Inspectors also looked at curriculum plans and spoke to leaders about some other

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Information about this inspection

subjects.  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. 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025  To check for compliance with the independent school standards, inspectors scrutinised a wide range of policies and documentation, including those relating to attendance, behaviour, the curriculum, complaints and health and safety. The lead inspector also reviewed the attendance and admissions registers and made a tour of the premises.

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Inspection team

Melanie Callaghan-Lewis, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Stephanie Innes-Taylor His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Ben Hill His Majesty’s Inspector 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025

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Part 1. Quality of education provided

 2(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if– – 2(1)(a) the proprietor ensures that a written policy on the curriculum, supported by appropriate plans and schemes of work, which provides for the matters specified in sub-paragraph (2) is drawn up and implemented effectively – 2(1)(b) the written policy, plans and schemes of work– – 2(1)(b)(i) take into account the ages, aptitudes and needs of all pupils, including those pupils with an EHC plan – 3 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the teaching at the school– – 3(d) shows a good understanding of the aptitudes, needs and prior attainments of the pupils, and ensures that these are taken into account in the planning of lessons – 3(g) demonstrates that a framework is in place to assess pupils’ work regularly and thoroughly and use assessment to plan teaching so that pupils can progress.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

 34(1) The standard about the quality of leadership and management is met if the proprietor ensures that persons with leadership and management responsibilities at the school– – 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently – 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently. 11 to 13 February and 11 March 2025 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

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

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