Hillside Special School

Inspection of Hillside Special School Hitchcock Place, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 1NN

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The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Outstanding

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Until November 2020, the school was exempt from routine inspection because it was judged outstanding for overall effectiveness at its previous inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school has not been inspected under section 5 of the Act since January 2014. The school received an ungraded inspection under section 8 of the Act on 20 and 21 September 2023. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 24 and 25 June 2025

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love attending Hillside. They arrive at school with a smile on their face, ready for the day ahead. Caring staff greet pupils with a warm welcome and a ‘good morning’. This helps pupils quickly settle into class and begin learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff build incredibly positive relationships with pupils. They teach pupils how to become more independent and confident. Pupils show this independence when collecting their lunch from the dining hall before sitting down to eat with their friends. Pupils behave exceptionally well. They are highly motivated to work hard, especially when they find work tricky. This helps pupils to reach the high expectations the school has of them. Consequently, pupils achieve well.

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What is it like to attend this school?

A vast range of activities help pupils secure crucial life skills. Pupils gleefully accept these opportunities. Many happen in school, such as attending yoga classes or acting as sports leaders for younger pupils. Equally, pupils love to get out into the world around them. Pupils are proud to represent their school when travelling on the bus, shopping in the supermarket or taking part in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme. All of this prepares pupils very well for life after Hillside.

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

The school has made improvements to the curriculum. Across different subjects and pathways, it has clearly identified the important knowledge pupils need to learn. The school uses information contained in pupils’ education, health and care plans (EHC plan) well to create pupils’ individual learning plans. These provide staff with the specific targets pupils need to achieve. In most cases, staff are skilful at using the information in these plans to decide what it is pupils need to learn. This helps pupils to make progress towards securing the knowledge they need now and for their future learning.

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

Leaders provide staff with effective training. Typically, staff have expertise in how to meet the specific needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff usually match the support they offer closely to pupils’ individual needs. For example, they often provide high-quality opportunities for pupils to learn about taking turns when playing games with their peers. This helps pupils to secure this important life skill. It is then reflected in the way pupils behave and play together harmoniously at lunchtime. However, there are some instances where the expertise of staff is less secure. Occasionally, their subject knowledge and the support that they provide are not as well matched to pupils’ needs as they could be. When this happens, pupils do not secure their understanding as well as the school would like.

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

Communication and language are at the heart of the curriculum. Staff use consistent strategies to teach pupils how to have a voice. For example, some pupils use communication tools to articulate their wants and needs. The school uses precise checks that help to identify pupils who are ready to read. Leaders have trained staff well. Staff help pupils to begin to identify the sounds letters make and blend them together to read new and unfamiliar words. This helps pupils to become more confident and fluent 24 and 25 June 2025

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readers. Books and stories flow through the entire curriculum. Pupils love to read a book for themselves or listen to the stories staff share with them.

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Preparation for adulthood is exceptionally well aligned to pupils’ individual needs. As a result, pupils are very well equipped for their next stages. This begins with the social and personal curriculum, which teaches pupils important content such as how to keep safe when online or in the community. Being in the community is a core theme. Pupils benefit greatly from the meticulously planned opportunities to learn outside Hillside. Visiting local parks, shops or the police station teach pupils important life skills such as how to behave when out and about. Pupils do this exceptionally well. Work experience is closely aligned to what pupils want to achieve. Older pupils delight in running the Kestrel Café. They look forward to deciding how to spend the profit they make.

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Governors keep a close eye on the quality of education on offer. They provide leaders with appropriate support and challenge. Leaders identify where they would like to improve the quality of education pupils receive. They have had much success in this school improvement work. For example, leaders have improved the design of the curriculum since the previous inspection. However, sometimes, the priorities the school identifies for future school improvement are not as specific as they could be. Here, the school does not have as clear an understanding of what they want the impact of their work to be. This makes it hard for leaders to know how successful their school improvement work is or where to target future improvements.

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Leaders provide effective support to staff to help them manage their workload and well- being. Staff are proud to be a part of Hillside. They value the training and support leaders give them. This helps pupils to be well prepared for life after Hillside.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 There are some inconsistencies in the teaching expertise and subject knowledge of staff. This leads to occasions where teaching does not support pupils’ needs as effectively as it could. When this happens, pupils do not build on what they know and can do as well as they might. The school should ensure all staff have the expertise to match the support they offer pupils more precisely to pupils’ individual needs.  Sometimes, the school’s priorities for future school improvement lack clarity. This makes it hard for the school to evaluate the impact of its work. The school should ensure that its priorities for school improvement are clear, specific and measurable. This is so it has a better understanding of what is working well and where to target future improvements. 24 and 25 June 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). 24 and 25 June 2025

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 20 and 21 September 2023, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

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Information about this school

 The school caters for pupils with profound and multiple learning disabilities and severe learning disabilities. All pupils have an EHC plan.  The school does not use alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management) and for any relevant provision judgement (early years and/or sixth form provision). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school. 24 and 25 June 2025

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these subjects: communication and language, mathematics and social and personal development. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with leaders, visited a sample of lessons, spoke with teachers, spoke with pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work. The lead inspector also listened to pupils read with a familiar member of staff.  Inspectors met with leaders, reviewed evidence of learning and visited some lessons in other areas of the curriculum.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, the deputy headteacher, the assistant headteacher, staff, governors and a representative from the local authority.  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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safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documents, including behaviour logs, bullying records, attendance records, pupil records, minutes of governor body meetings, school development plans, records of monitoring from the local authority and school policies.  Inspectors considered responses to the Ofsted online survey, Ofsted Parent View. They also took into consideration the online staff survey.

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Inspection team

Michael Williams, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Rowena Simmons Ofsted Inspector 24 and 25 June 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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