Roundwood School and Community Centre

Roundwood School and Community Centre

Address: Longstone Avenue, Harlesden, Brent, London, NW10 3UN Unique reference number (URN): 148250

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, pupils are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect schools for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The school has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. All legal requirements are met. Not met: The school has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Attendance in this alternative provision shows clear improvement from very low starting points. Pupils typically arrive with long histories of persistent absence, disrupted education and complex social, emotional and mental health needs. Leaders track attendance through patterns of engagement and attendance. Evidence shows increased regularity of attendance, improved punctuality and reductions in unauthorised absence across the cohort. Higher levels of authorised absence reflect careful professional judgement by leaders, including the use of phased timetables, therapeutic provision and safeguarding decisions. Improvement is evident across different groups of pupils, demonstrating that leaders’ personalised and inclusive approach is effective.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Behaviour across the school is calm, respectful and well managed. This is particularly impressive given pupils’ negative prior experiences of education. Classrooms and social times are orderly, well supervised and underpinned by positive relationships. Pupils respond well to clear expectations and nurturing support. Pupils appreciate that the school's environment enables them to focus on learning. Leaders’ data-informed and restorative approach ensures that incidents of poor behaviour are infrequent, managed sensitively and used to support reflection and improvement. Bullying and discriminatory behaviour are rare and addressed promptly and consistently.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leadership and governance are highly effective and underpinned by a clear moral purpose. This results in a strong positive impact on pupils’ education, care and wellbeing. Leaders provide decisive, values-led direction, prioritising the right actions for improvement within a highly complex context. Decisions are consistently taken in pupils’ best interests.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders demonstrate a strong commitment to inclusion and equity. They know pupils and families well and shape provision around pupils’ experiences, ensuring that no pupil is left out or overlooked. This inclusive approach informs curriculum design, safeguarding, attendance and behaviour strategies.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Governance is increasingly purposeful, supported by robust multi-academy trust oversight. Trustees and governors meet statutory responsibilities and use performance information effectively to hold leaders to account for safeguarding, standards and the use of resources. They also provide appropriate support for leaders. Continuity in leadership and governance has secured stability and sustained improvement.

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Leadership and governance Strong standard

Leaders, supported by the multi academy trust, ensure that staff benefit from high-quality, evidence-informed and sustained professional learning. This has strengthened teaching and learning and increased staff confidence and expertise. Leaders are mindful of staff wellbeing and workload in an intensive setting and take considered steps to support staff morale and retention. Staff are overwhelmingly proud to work at the school. Parents work closely with the school and are happy that their children are in a safe school in which they can flourish.

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Expected standard

Leaders work effectively with external partners, including schools and agencies. This helps to secure trust and positive outcomes for pupils, including successful reintegration.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

This area is a strength of the school and has a highly positive impact on pupils’ confidence, safety, engagement and preparation for adulthood. Leaders have established a responsive and inclusive personal development programme that is carefully tailored to pupils’ complex needs and experiences.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

The personal, social, health and citizenship curriculum is broad, well structured and adapted appropriately in response to emerging risks and pupils’ needs. It supports pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development through opportunities for reflection, discussion and respectful debate. Pupils demonstrate secure understanding of healthy and unhealthy relationships, consent, different family structures and how to keep themselves safe online and offline. Pupils are clear about who they can speak to if they are worried and report feeling safe and respected.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

The programme is particularly effective for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Leaders integrate personal development into the curriculum and pastoral systems so that learning is reinforced through subjects alongside mentoring and enrichment. Relationships and sex education is age-appropriate, carefully sequenced and sensitive to pupils’ backgrounds, with clear progression from key stage 3 to key stage 4.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Enrichment is purposeful and contributes well to pupils’ personal development. Sport, boxing, music, trips, careers education and external speakers broaden pupils’ experiences, build self-esteem and re-engage pupils, who were previously disengaged from education. Pupils develop teamwork, discipline and resilience. Many pupils report increased confidence and improved emotional regulation.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Careers education is well planned and personalised. It supports pupils to explore a range of pathways, including further education, apprenticeships and employment. Leaders also prioritise preparation for adulthood, including independent travel, financial awareness and personal responsibility.

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Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard

Overall, the school provides a coherent and effective personal development programme that equips pupils with the knowledge, skills and confidence to participate positively in society and prepare well for their next steps.

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Achievement Expected standard

Pupils make meaningful progress from very low starting points. Many enter the provision with significant gaps in learning, disrupted schooling and histories of exclusion. Evidence from work in books, interventions and pupil voice shows improving literacy, subject knowledge and readiness for accreditation. Leaders ensure that targeted one-to-one reading support strengthens pupils' fluency and comprehension, enabling pupils to access the wider curriculum with increasing confidence.

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Achievement Expected standard

Published outcomes provide a limited insight into pupils' achievement in this specialist context. Pupils who completed GCSE examinations in English, mathematics and science achieved broadly positively. Outcomes in mathematics and science have improved year on year, reflecting stronger teaching and support. High achievement in some GCSE subjects reflects the effectiveness of personalised pathways, where pupils are stable and engaged. Entry-level qualifications help pupils to secure success and rebuild confidence.

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Achievement Expected standard

Pupils make sustained progress over time. They are increasingly well prepared for next steps in education, employment or training.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have designed a clear and flexible curriculum that meets pupils’ needs and prepares them for their next steps. Pupils join the school at different points throughout the year and begin learning immediately. Where pupils are not ready for a full timetable, learning is temporarily adjusted without lowering expectations. Pupils benefit from clear pathways towards GCSEs, functional skills or reintegration into mainstream education.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Teaching is calm, supportive and well organised. Staff understand that pupils need to feel safe and settled before learning can be successful. Classrooms have clear routines and positive relationships. Work is generally well matched to pupils’ starting points, with support such as visual prompts, structured materials and adult guidance. Pupils engage with challenging content. Lessons are planned to help pupils build their understanding step by step. Leaders recognise the importance of ensuring that all staff, including new and agency staff, deliver the curriculum consistently and adapt learning effectively for all pupils.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders know that many pupils arrive with significant gaps in reading, writing and mathematics. While support is in place, they recognise the need to prioritise these foundational skills more sharply from admission so that systematic, well-matched support is implemented promptly and delivered consistently.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Inclusion is a strength of the school’s culture and practice. Leaders and staff identify pupils’ needs swiftly and accurately. Leaders ensure that staff have detailed knowledge of disadvantaged, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, pupils known or previously known to social care, or those who face additional barriers, such as trauma, anxiety or disrupted education. Leaders and staff use assessment information, safeguarding records and professional insight to develop a clear understanding of each pupil’s starting point.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders reduce barriers to learning and wellbeing through carefully planned and flexible support. This includes personalised timetables, targeted mentoring, reading and literacy intervention, therapeutic and sensory-aware approaches, and appropriate classroom adaptations. These approaches are used well to enable pupils to engage more effectively in learning and rebuild confidence.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Pupils’ progress is monitored closely through regular reviews, case discussions and analysis of pupils' attendance, behaviour and learning. Leaders evaluate the impact of interventions and adapt provision promptly when pupils' needs change. Staff receive appropriate training and are well supported to work with all pupils. That said, there is some variability in how some staff support pupils.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders work effectively with families, social care, the Virtual School and a range of external professionals to coordinate support and raise aspirations. Pupil premium funding for disadvantaged pupils is used flexibly to meet academic, pastoral and practical needs. This ensures equitable access to education and improved outcomes for the most vulnerable pupils.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils describe the school as a place where they feel safe, understood and accepted. Many arrive having experienced trauma, exclusion, anxiety or extended periods of non- attendance. From admission, pupils are welcomed into a calm, orderly and nurturing environment, where staff know them well and prioritise pupils’ safety and wellbeing.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils are clear about who they can speak to if they are worried. They report that all concerns are taken seriously and addressed promptly. Incidents of bullying are rare, and leaders ensure that discriminatory behaviour is not tolerated.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Behaviour across the school is extremely positive, particularly given pupils’ complex backgrounds and previous experiences of education. Pupils say behaviour is far better than in their previous schools, which enables them to learn and build relationships. Clear routines, strong staff-pupil relationships and restorative approaches help pupils to manage their behaviour and develop confidence and self-control. Social times are calm, inclusive and well supervised.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils are positive about their learning. Teaching is supportive and appropriately adapted to meet pupils’ needs. Pupils value the encouragement and structure provided by staff and say that they receive help when learning is difficult. They speak positively about their learning and understand how learning supports progress towards qualifications. Many pupils say they are learning more successfully here than in previous mainstream settings.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils achieve well from very low starting points. Leaders reduce barriers to learning through personalised timetables, mentoring, reading support and enrichment opportunities. Improvements in attendance are reflected through increased engagement, improved routines and greater consistency. Pupils express pride in their achievements and feel better prepared for their next steps.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Pupils also benefit from a strong programme of wider experiences. Sport, music, trips and careers education support pupils to develop resilience, confidence and aspiration. Overall, pupils belong to a caring and inclusive community, where they are supported to grow, achieve and thrive.

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Next steps

• Leaders should continue their close work with families, carers, care homes and external agencies to further strengthen the attendance and punctuality of pupils and particularly for persistently absent pupils. • Leaders should ensure that all staff consistently deliver the curriculum effectively and adapt teaching appropriately to meet the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other complex barriers. • Leaders should ensure that systematic, well-matched support is implemented promptly from admission and delivered consistently to further support the development of pupils’ foundational knowledge and skills, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics.

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About this inspection

This school is part of Beckmead 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), Dr Jonty Clark, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Mr Laurence Nesbitt.

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this full inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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About this inspection

Following our renewed inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty's Inspectors (HMIs) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with the headteacher and other members of the leadership team, as well as the CEO, deputy CEO and chair of the trust board and governors. They also spoke with members of staff, parents, carers and pupils.

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About this inspection

This is an alternative provision that serves a vulnerable cohort of students aged 11 to 16, who have been excluded from mainstream education or require intensive support for social, emotional and mental health needs.

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About this inspection

The headteacher took up post in September 2025.

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About this inspection

The school does not use any other alternative provision.

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Lead inspector:

Aliki Constantopoulou, His Majesty's Inspector

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The data was used by the inspector(s) during the inspection. More recent data may have been published since the inspection took place.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils currently at this school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils who can attend the school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan. This covers pupils with more support than is available through special educational needs support.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with reported special educational support needs at the school.

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What does this mean?

Based on the English Indices of Deprivation (2019) and the school's location, we have calculated whether the school is located in a more or less deprived area.

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Overall absence

The percentage of all possible mornings and afternoons missed due to absence from school (for whatever reason, whether authorised or unauthorised) across all pupils.

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Persistent absence

The percentage of pupils missing 10% or more of their possible mornings and afternoons.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other schools can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The school reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The school is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The school needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Urgent improvement

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk . Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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