High Park School

Inspection of a school judged good for overall effectiveness before September 2024: High Park School Thorn Lane, Heaton, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD9 6RY

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Outcome

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

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Outcome

The headteacher of this school is Bridie Dorning. This school is part of Carlton 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), Adrian Kneeshaw, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Gareth Logan.

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What is it like to attend this school?

High Park School is a highly supportive and inclusive environment for pupils to learn in. The school is mostly ambitious for its pupils. It has a deep commitment to developing pupils’ communication and interaction skills. Pupils are well prepared for their next steps in education and life. The curriculum is organised to ensure pupils become successful learners.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils receive patient and caring support from staff who understand their needs well. As a result, pupils feel safe and happy in the school. Pupils benefit from a range of specialist resources and therapies that support their personal development and special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). These are used effectively to ensure pupils can learn well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff proactively support pupils to behave positively. As a result, the school is typically calm and orderly. Pupils mostly engage with their learning with enthusiasm. Staff swiftly intervene if pupils become unsettled. This helps pupils focus on learning well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school supports pupils’ personal development exceptionally well. It ensures pupils experience a variety of opportunities that contribute to their broader development and build their independence. This helps them to develop socially, emotionally and academically. 23 and 24 April 2025

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

Pupils, including those in the early years and post-16, follow a pathway curriculum. Each pathway is organised to meet their individual needs and support their SEND. The school has correctly identified that the pathway curriculum should be more aspirational.

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

Overall, the curriculum is well considered. For example, curriculum pathways are, in most cases, carefully organised to support pupils’ needs. However, in a few areas, the curriculum design is not as aspirational as it could be. Some subject areas do not identify the key knowledge that should be learned closely enough. This is especially where pupils are able to gain formal qualifications. Where this is the case, pupils do not achieve as well as they might.

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

The school ensures that developing pupils’ communication and interaction skills is an important part of the curriculum. Pupils read regularly and learn different ways to communicate effectively. Pupils are exposed to books and songs that are used skilfully to support their language development. Staff expertly support pupils to develop their reading skills. Pupils who need phonics support receive targeted intervention. Pupils practise phonics skills enthusiastically and improve their reading successfully as a result.

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

The school ensures staff are well trained to deliver pupils’ learning effectively. Staff skilfully adapt lessons to suit pupils’ abilities and meet their individual SEND. As a result, most pupils build up what they know over time. However, some lesson activities and classroom resources distract pupils’ attention from learning the intended curriculum. This limits pupils’ ability to develop knowledge and understanding effectively.

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

The school makes meaningful curriculum links across subjects to develop pupils’ independence. For example, sixth-form pupils strengthen their independence skills through practical tasks. These include managing a home environment, getting dressed and preparing healthy meals. These activities effectively equip pupils with life skills that prepare them well for adulthood.

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

Pupils typically demonstrate excellent behaviour in lessons. They are supported by staff who know their needs well. Staff provide individualised and targeted support when needed. This means pupils can learn well and ensures the school environment is purposeful.

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

The school has strengthened its approach to attendance and punctuality. School systems make positive attendance a shared responsibility between the school and parents. As a result, pupils’ attendance has notably improved over time.

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

Pupils know ways to support their physical and mental health. They enjoy experiences that promote their positive well-being. These include areas such as aromatherapy, art, dance and swimming. Pupils develop an understanding of differences among people by celebrating various faith events together. They know a lot about keeping themselves safe through learning about consent and personal space. They have a thorough understanding of online safety. 23 and 24 April 2025

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The school prepares pupils for their next steps in education, employment or training effectively. Pupils learn about college and the variety of jobs available to them in age- appropriate ways. If appropriate, pupils gain work experience. For example, they work in a community café to develop their social skills and strengthen their understanding of employment. Pupils are sensitively supported at transition points as they develop through the school.

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Pupils’ SEND support plans provide staff with clear information and well-thought-out strategies for support to meet pupils’ individual needs. Staff accurately identify pupils’ needs, and pupils’ learning targets are carefully informed by their education, health and care plan (EHC plan) outcomes. Staff proactively adapt their teaching approaches and interventions to meet pupils’ needs. Staff collaborate with families and external professionals to plan interventions to ensure pupils can achieve well.

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Trustees and the CEO have a strong understanding of the school’s progress since joining the trust. They provide appropriate challenge with meaningful support on the school’s journey of improvement. They recognise that the school has more work to do to ensure all aspects of the curriculum are equally strong, particularly for the most able learners. Staff are mostly positive about the school’s improvements and appreciate leaders’ work to support their well-being. They recognise that an increased workload was needed to strengthen the curriculum further and ensure pupils learn well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some subject areas and curriculum pathways are less well designed than others. This means that some pupils are not learning as well as they could in all subjects and pathways. This includes pupils who are able to take more formal qualifications. The school should strengthen the design of the curriculum to ensure this prepares pupils more successfully for their next stage of learning and for when they leave school.  Some lesson activities and classroom resources are not well linked to the intended learning. They distract pupils’ attention from learning. This limits pupils’ ability to develop knowledge and understanding effectively. The school should ensure curriculum activities and classroom resources consistently support pupils’ knowledge development.

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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 23 and 24 April 2025

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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 good for its overall effectiveness.

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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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This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in January 2020.

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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). 23 and 24 April 2025

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School details

School category Academy special sponsor-led

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form

Dates of previous inspection 28 and 29 January 2020, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 High Park School is one of eight academies in the Carlton Academy Trust. The school joined the multi-academy trust in July 2023.  The principal was appointed in September 2023.  Pupils attending the school have a range of complex SEND. These include autism, severe learning difficulty and profound and multiple learning difficulty. All pupils who attend the school have an EHC plan.  A very small number of children attend the school’s early years provision.  The school has an agreed capacity of 100 pupils. At the time of this inspection, 120 pupils attend the school. 23 and 24 April 2025

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 The school does not use any alternative education provision.  The school meets the requirements of the provider access legislation, which requires schools to provide pupils in Years 8 to 13 with information and engagement about approved technical education qualifications and apprenticeships.

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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 met with the principal and other leaders in the school.  The lead inspector also met with members of the board of trustees and the CEO of the trust.  Inspectors visited a sample of lessons, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The lead inspector listened to pupils from different year groups reading to a familiar adult.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, 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

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Information about this inspection

safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments. They also considered the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. Inspectors spoke with groups of staff and pupils to gain their views about the school.

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Inspection team

David Mills, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

David Penny Ofsted Inspector 23 and 24 April 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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