Edison Pace School

Inspection of Edison Pace School Wellesley Street, Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire ST1 4NF

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Inspection dates: 29 April to 1 May 2025

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Edison Pace School is a highly specialised provision for pupils with complex emotional needs. Many have often found it difficult to access education in the past. Pupils’ success is at the heart of every decision this school makes. Pupils are happy and thrive here because of staff commitment, care and compassion for all pupils. They achieve their ambition to ‘be the school that makes a difference’ to the pupils they work with.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This school has high expectations for pupils’ learning, which they achieve through the ambitious curriculum that pupils follow. It has carefully thought about how to make the curriculum exciting and engaging beyond the day-to-day lessons. For example, pupils enjoy many visits, special curriculum days and practical outside opportunities.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff and pupil relationships are of the highest standards. Pupils want to come to school and be in lessons because they feel safe and listened to. They quickly learn strategies to manage their anxiety and behaviour. As a result, this is a calm and productive school because pupils learn to recognise and manage their feelings appropriately.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This school really does make a significant difference in the lives of the pupils they teach.

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better?

The school, including the proprietor body, has a clear vision. It intends pupils, all of whom have special educational needs and/or disabilities and an education, health and care plan, to gain the academic and life skills they need to equip them for life beyond this school. This vision is achieved consistently.

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better?

The proprietor body ensures that the school complies with schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010. It makes systematic and rigorous checks to ensure that the school consistently meets the independent school standards. The school has worked tirelessly to provide stability through several staffing changes. It empowers staff to re-evaluate what is working well and what more they can do to improve the school. These improvements are making a significant impact on every aspect of the school. Staff are overwhelmingly positive about working at this school. This is a testament to the leader’s commitment to the staff’s development and well-being.

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better?

The school has carefully thought about what it wants pupils to learn in the curriculum in nearly all of the subjects. Units of work and lessons help pupils remember what has been taught before, practise these skills and confidently move to new learning. Subjects support pupils’ development of reading skills by creating reading opportunities that match pupils’ needs. The school has a well-planned approach for the very few pupils who still need support with early reading. 29 April to 1 May 2025 All staff are highly aware of pupils’ needs. They use their knowledge of the pupils to adapt lessons and their delivery effectively. This helps pupils engage and, at times, conquer their fear of some subjects. Staff explain key content clearly and with precision. They ensure that pupils understand the subject-specific vocabulary. As a result, pupils use subject-specific vocabulary with confidence in their work.

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better?

The work in pupils’ books demonstrates that the staff’s high expectations are consistently met. In these subjects, pupils produce work of good quality and show how they successfully build on their prior learning. For example, art books show how pupils develop new skills and redraft work to produce complex pieces of art, which they are very proud of. However, in a few subjects, the knowledge and skills the school wants pupils to remember have not been fully identified. As a result, staff cannot check that pupils have secured the curriculum’s essential knowledge in these subjects.

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better?

Pupils in lessons are highly engaged and want to do well. Several pupils spoke about their love of different subjects. They say how lessons and the careers advice and guidance they receive help them consider what careers they might like to pursue. For example, they created characters for gaming because they were good at art and joined the army because they liked being physically active.

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better?

The school plans well for the personal development of pupils of its pupils. This school helps pupils to understand and respect different faiths and cultures, often through a variety of trips that they enjoy. Pupils are taught and develop the essential skills they will need to become independent as they grow older. For example, they learn how to budget money and use public transport. A current project they are enjoying is sourcing clothes from local charity shops and upcycling them to create outfits for staff to wear in a fashion show.

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better?

Pupils enjoy coming to this school and make rapid improvements in their attendance. For some pupils, this is quite a dramatic improvement from hardly attending school previously to being in school nearly every day. The school has clear expectations regarding behaviour in and around the school. They are quick to identify any concerns and swiftly take action to provide support to pupils and training for staff if needed. School routines and positive working relationships with staff help pupils know what is expected of them. As a result, pupils follow routines and behave well in school. Parents and carers value this school’s positive impact on their children’s lives.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 The school has not yet finalised the knowledge and skills it wants pupils to 29 April to 1 May 2025 remember in a few subjects. This means pupils are not receiving a curriculum that helps them build knowledge over time in these subjects, and staff cannot check that pupils have secured the curriculum’s essential knowledge. The school should prioritise completing the curriculum in these subjects and ensure assessment tools reflect the curriculum changes made.

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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. 29 April to 1 May 2025

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School details

Type of school Other independent special school

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School details

School category Independent special school

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School details

Annual fees (day pupils) £65,000 to £105,000

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School details

Date of previous inspection 1 to 3 November 2022 29 April to 1 May 2025

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Information about this school

 Edison Pace School offers places for pupils aged seven to 16 years old.  The school operates from two sites. Secondary site: Wellesley Street, Shelton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST1 4NF. Primary site: Porthill Bank, Newcastle- Under-Lyme, Staffordshire, ST5 0LS.  The last standard inspection took place on 1 to 3 November 2022. Since then, there have been two material change inspections on 25 September 2024 and 1 February 2024.  The school provides education for pupils with complex social, emotional and mental health needs.  All pupils have an education, health and care plan.  The school does not currently use 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

Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.

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Information about this inspection

The school meets 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

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings with members of the proprietor body, the headteacher and other senior leaders.  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.  The lead inspector made a tour of the school premises to check the suitability of the premises and accommodation against the relevant standards  Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: English, science, art and personal, social, health and economics education. For each deep dive, inspectors held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample of lessons, spoke to

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Information about this inspection

teachers, spoke to some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. Inspectors also observed pupils read to a familiar adult.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation, including school policies and 29 April to 1 May 2025 attendance information.  The inspectors considered responses to Ofsted Parent View and to Ofsted’s online staff survey.

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Inspection team

Amanda Green, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

Ann Pritchard His Majesty’s Inspector 29 April to 1 May 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 for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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