Swalcliffe Park School

Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 1 Swalcliffe Park School Swalcliffe, Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX15 5EP Residential provision inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this residential special school

Swalcliffe Park School is an independent residential special school for boys aged between 10 and 19 who have a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. At the time of the inspection, there were 75 students attending the school. Of these, 19 were staying in the residential provision.

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Information about this residential special school

The inspector only inspected the social care provision at this school.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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outstanding

How well children and young people are helped and protected outstanding

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outstanding

The effectiveness of leaders and managers outstanding

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outstanding

The residential special school provides highly effective services that consistently exceed the standards of good. The actions of the school contribute to significantly improved outcomes and positive experiences for children and young people.

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outstanding

Date of previous inspection: 10 March 2025

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outstanding

Overall judgement at last inspection: outstanding Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 2

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outstanding

Exceptionally strong leadership, research-informed practice and integrated care is the cornerstone of the success of this school. Children receive excellent individualised care from a committed multi-disciplinary team. This starts at the point of admission and continues throughout children’s time at the school until they leave. Parents describe their children’s experiences as ‘life changing’ because staff are ambitious for their children and reset their trajectory leading to meaningful, life ‑ enhancing outcomes.

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outstanding

Children enjoy staying in the residential provision because they have the opportunity to socialise and make friends. They develop a strong sense of belonging, community and camaraderie. Residential staff develop positive relationships with children based on mutual respect and trust. Their interactions are warm and playful. Children confidently talk with staff about their views, feelings and aspirations. Children know that their voices are important and they contribute to weekly residential meetings and talk with the independent visitor and governors.

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outstanding

The residential provision is a homely and comfortable environment. Children have their own bedrooms that they can personalise. Communal spaces invite play and learning, for example, students can choose from books, board games or using technology with their peers. Children are encouraged to practise independence by cooking, exhibiting good self-care and traveling independently. Older Children have the opportunity to live in a separate residential space, helping them to gain insight into solo living. Students access tasty and nutritious meals via the cafeteria.

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outstanding

Residential staff strongly encourage and support children to attend extracurricular activities such as sports, youth achievement programmes and electronic vehicle making and racing. Staff also ensure that children have the opportunity to attend clubs in the local community such as swimming, cadets and theatre school. Additionally, students engage in residential trips and fun activities during the weekend, which includes theme parks and comic book conventions. While these experiences are for enrichment purposes, they also allow the children to develop sensory tolerance, resilience and a sense of achievement, boosting their confidence.

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outstanding

The integrated care model delivered by the school is extremely impressive and greatly enhances children’s developmental outcomes. For example, increased comprehension of language and emotions, improved emotional literacy and self- advocacy. The multi-disciplinary team comprises of clinical psychologists, speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. They work closely with parents, residential staff and teachers to develop an in-depth understanding of children’s needs, including their strengths and vulnerabilities. Children access therapeutic interventions through weekly timetables at school and they are invited to join group Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 3 sessions at their residential provisions. For example, the ‘regulation and relaxation group’ teaches children about calming tools.

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outstanding

From the moment children join the school, leaders and managers are thinking about their futures and how to help them achieve their aspirations. Sometimes, due to previous experiences, children have low confidence and they are unable to express their goals. In these instances, staff are attentive to their interests and explore how they align with established career pathways in order to motivate children. Staff use their local connections to organise work experience for children and to enrol them on additional courses at colleges. Overall, children who access the residential provision have positive outcomes. For example, the children who left the school in Summer 2025 are all attending university.

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outstanding

The strong culture embedded within the school ensures that children and their families continue to feel connected and committed to the school community well beyond theirs or their child’s time there. Families agree to participate in research and former students visit the school to talk with children about their transitions, delivering inspiring messages. This helps children to understand that their aspirations are within reach. The school’s exemplary practise has been recognised by a leading charity that specialises in supporting people with autism and their families.

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outstanding

The residential provision is remarkably settled due to the proactive and preventative measures implemented by the multi-disciplinary team. Children engage in meaningful conversations with staff alongside creative therapeutic interventions. This allows them to talk about their feelings, learn about brain development and how the body responds to stress. During these interventions, children develop increased self- awareness and the ability to reflect. They are also supported to devise strategies that successfully help them to regulate their emotions.

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outstanding

Staff have a positive response to challenging behaviour because they understand the impact of neurodiversity and trauma. On the rare occasions that staff observe concerning behaviour, they have supportive and firm conversations with children, helping them to understand boundaries. One child expressed that he was being bullied by a peer, staff took immediate action to address this in accordance with his wishes and feelings. The child was happy with this outcome.

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outstanding

There have been four safeguarding incidents since the last inspection. When children approach staff with their worries, staff respond with empathy and care. Staff swiftly escalate concerns to safeguarding leads who take immediate action to explore matters. For example, informing parents, increasing staffing around children and liaising with the clinical psychologists to assess risks. When necessary, safeguarding leads have escalated concerns externally to social care and the police. Staff attend children’s statutory meetings in order to share updates and contribute to safety planning. Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 4 Leaders and managers have established an open safeguarding culture. When staff share concerns about themselves or others, they respond with rigor while reaching proportionate decisions. When appropriate, safeguarding leads liaise with the local

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outstanding

authority designated officer to share information and seek guidance. Safer recruitment practices are carried out to a very high standard.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are innovative and inspiring. They have used a myriad of research to devise systems and frameworks that enables the school to deliver a bespoke service to children and families. They have skilfully embedded a research culture that ‘gives back’ to children enabling them to thrive. They collate and review data from various sources including conversations with children, surveys and parent forums with the aim of identifying patterns and themes. They respond by piloting new projects to support the children’s development. For example, a ‘strength and conditioning group’ that helps children to improve their coordination and ‘exam strategy sessions.’

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are highly influential practitioners. They have developed a professional network that is used as a platform to share best practice and autism awareness. They share their innovative tools and research with external professionals with the aim of helping them to improve their services. Leaders and managers have delivered presentations at national and international conferences, drawing the attention of well-respected professionals and schools. They are renowned for their expertise in autism and commitment to helping other organisations achieve positive outcomes for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers are critically reflective and transparent. They welcome scrutiny from external organisations such as local authorities and charities. This has resulted in the school becoming accredited for its outstanding practice linked to careers advice and support. Additionally, leaders and managers have established their own quality assurance system by appointing ‘improvement partners’ that review the schools practice across residential, education and therapeutic remits. This allows them to quickly identify and address areas for improvement.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Leaders and managers have high expectations of staff and therefore ensure that they receive meaningful training that helps them fulfil their roles to an excellent standard. Since the last inspection, the therapy team has focused on devising bespoke training that teaches staff about trauma informed care and sensory diets. Staff are committed to the school because they work in a positive environment and managers invest in their continued development. Consequently, there is low staff turnover which means that children benefit from long-standing relationships with staff and consistency of care.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: outstanding

Despite their seniority and competing demands, leaders and managers have a visible presence in the residential provision and they have developed strong relationships Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 5 with children and their parents. This has the effect of making people feel seen, valued and respected. For some children, this is an entirely new experience that creates the foundation from which they can flourish and achieve.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people using the 'Social care common inspection framework'. This inspection was carried out under the Children Act 1989 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with the national minimum standards. Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 6

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Residential special school details

Social care unique reference number: 1266836

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Residential special school details

Headteacher/teacher in charge: Mr Rob Piner

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Residential special school details

Type of school: Residential Special School

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Residential special school details

Email address: rpiner@swalcliffepark.co.uk

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Inspector:

Tara Webb, Social Care Regulatory Inspector Inspection report for residential special school - Swalcliffe Park School 7 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 looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspector:

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Inspector:

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Inspector:

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