Expanse Learning (Expanse Group Ltd)

Expanse Learning (Expanse Group Ltd)

Address: Leigh Sports Stadium, Sale Way, Leigh Sports Village, Leigh, Greater Manchester, WN7 4JY Unique reference number (URN): 141738

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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, learners are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

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

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How we evaluate safeguarding

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

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders have established a culture in which learners feel welcomed and supported. Where learners have adverse educational experiences, staff sensitively support their wellbeing and help to reduce social barriers to education.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders gather relevant information about learners’ needs before their transition to and during their first few weeks at college. They place a strong emphasis on learners’ personal development, which is successful in helping learners to achieve personal goals. Leaders do not place the same priority on supporting learners to achieve their academic targets. For example, leaders do not evaluate sufficiently whether learners’ personalised learning plans result in ambitious and inclusive curriculums.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders and staff work closely with parents, carers and professionals to ensure that learners can advocate for themselves and have a voice in the education and support they receive. Where appropriate, learners meet with staff to plan the reduction of support in lessons or the wider curriculum.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders work closely with stakeholders such as local authority partnerships to improve opportunities and learning experiences for learners. Stakeholders provide vocational options in alternative settings to help learners to build their skills in nurturing environments.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders have appropriate quality assurance systems in place and identify areas for improvement, for example in English and mathematics. However, they do not prioritise sufficiently key actions to resolve weaknesses. Areas for development identified at the previous inspection, such as planning learning so that learners make rapid progress from their starting points, have not been fully rectified.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff generally have the qualifications and experience for their roles. They benefit from professional development and accredited training, such as training for the role of special educational needs and disabilities coordinator and supporting teaching and learning qualifications. However, teachers do not receive sufficient training to help them develop the skills to teach learners with diverse and complex needs.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders place high priority on staff wellbeing and workload. Staff benefit from private healthcare, team- building activities, social events and wellbeing days. Teachers have a non-teaching day per week to plan learning and complete assessments of learners' work. Staff mostly report that they have a manageable workload.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Governors are experienced and experts in their roles. They have significant experience in, for example, safeguarding, disability rights and advocacy and in education settings for learners with high needs. Governors challenge leaders rigorously, including in relation to improving learners’ achievements in English and mathematics. Leaders work closely with a range of stakeholders. These include employers who provide learners with suitable opportunities for work experience and with local authorities with whom they develop and plan curriculums to meet the diverse needs of learners attending the college.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners benefit from an extensive programme of enrichment activities that enhance their learning. They take part in forest school, sports activities and enterprise sessions, such as the ‘choc, pop, drop’ tuck shop and the Expanse chicken diner. Learners are exposed to a wide variety of cultural experiences, such as residential activities in the Lake District and student parliament trips to London.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners attend high-quality work placements. They work in a range of settings, including regional and national employers in areas such as construction, catering, warehousing, factories and administration. Learners develop work and social skills, which help them in their daily lives and prepare them for life after college.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders have high expectations for learners’ behaviour, attendance and punctuality. Learners attend their lessons punctually and generally behave appropriately. Teachers do not tolerate bullying or harassment and leaders deal swiftly and sensitively with the very rare instances that occur.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners have a clear understanding of fundamental British values and explain articulately what the rule of law and democracy mean to them in their everyday lives. They are well prepared for their adult lives in their local communities.

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Achievement Needs attention

Most learners remain until the end of their course. However, around a quarter of learners over the age of 19 do not achieve their qualifications, particularly in English and mathematics. A few learners ably develop their English and mathematical skills and complete written assessments in lessons. They are registered for external examinations, but are unable to take these due to high levels of anxiety or mental health ill health.

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Achievement Needs attention

Leaders gather a range of information about what learners can do at the start of their course. However, their monitoring of learners’ progress is too generic and they do not adequately identify the progress that learners make against outcomes and targets in their education, health and care plans. Learners are not consistently set challenging enough targets to help them to make sustained progress.

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Achievement Needs attention

Learners are generally well prepared for their next steps. They mostly progress to destinations including higher-level study, training and supported living.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders have a broadly accurate understanding of the quality of the teaching and training that they provide. However, they do not identify a few weaknesses quickly enough, such as planning learning based on setting and monitoring learners’ individual targets linked to their education, health and care plan outcomes.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders frequently review the curriculums and respond appropriately to the needs of learners. For example, in the current academic year, they have increased the emphasis on developing learners’ communication skills, resilience and wellbeing. Leaders have successfully designed curriculums to balance courses with qualifications alongside personalised outcomes for learners. However, teaching is not tailored well enough to meet the individual needs of all learners who are working below entry level 3.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Leaders have not yet ensured that in planning the curriculums they take account of all learners’ starting points or that the curriculums are consistently well sequenced. For learners studying below entry level 3, teachers do not consistently build securely on what learners already know and can do. This means that, too often, teachers do not ensure that enough time is built into lessons for learners to practise their skills and for teachers to identify and close gaps in learners’ knowledge and skills. Teachers and support staff often intervene too quickly without giving learners enough time to think about and answer questions.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Teachers place too much emphasis on recording evidence towards qualifications rather than supporting learners to secure and deepen their understanding, which limits the progress that learners make. In a few instances, teachers do not match learning activities appropriately to learners’ starting points, including tasks that are overly demanding or lack appropriate scaffolding. Teachers make limited use of visual aids or modelling of tasks, which hinders learners’ understanding, particularly in practical activities such as learning to play ukulele chords.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners complete a range of assessments, including in English and mathematics, prior to the start of their course. However, staff do not consistently identify learners’ starting points accurately. In a few instances, learners’ personalised learning programmes are either too challenging or not sufficiently challenging, which results in these learners not making expected progress.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Teachers do not routinely assess learners’ progress against their individual targets and outcomes. Teachers’ written feedback to learners is often too generic. Learners are unclear about what they have done well or their next steps.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners receive the support that they need to be active members of the college community. Leaders ensure that learners have access to external support, such as speech and language therapy and physiotherapy. Staff receive training in moving, handling and posture situation to ensure that they meet learners’ therapeutic needs.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners benefit from age-appropriate sexual health and relationships training. They understand what constitutes a healthy relationship, which helps to prepare them for adulthood and future relationships.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners work with their job coaches to develop appropriate professional behaviours in the workplace. They develop their understanding of dangers, such as in the construction industry and in factories. Learners follow the dress code of their workplaces and develop social skills and communication. They acquire the skills they need for employment.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners who have significant barriers to their learning benefit from an extended induction and phased introduction to lessons. Learners with previously extremely low attendance at school now regularly attend college, participate in lessons and attend work placements.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Learners are appreciative of the support they receive from staff. They feel that they are listened to and that staff understand their needs.

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Next steps

Leaders should accurately identify learners’ starting points and use this information to develop ambitious and personalised curriculums for all learners. Leaders should improve their oversight so that they accurately identify weaknesses and put in place swift actions to ensure the provision is of a consistently high quality. Leaders should use education, health and care plan outcomes to plan individual programmes of learning and to monitor learners’ achievements towards their individual targets, including in English and mathematics. Leaders should provide training for teachers to ensure that teachers plan and use inclusive teaching strategies so that all learners participate fully in their lessons.

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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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Lead inspector:

Anita Pyrkotsch-Jones, His Majesty's Inspector

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Team inspectors:

Jane Young, Ofsted Inspector Tracy Gillett, Ofsted 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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98

Inspectors spoke with senior leaders, teachers, learning support assistants, pastoral officers, employers, governors and learners during the inspection.

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98

Inspectors confirmed the following information about the provider:

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98

Expanse Group Limited is an independent provider of education, health and social care. In 2015, it opened an independent specialist college, Expanse Learning. The provider offers specialist further education for young people aged between 16 and 25 who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. All learners have an education, health and care plan.

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98

At the time of the inspection, 98 learners attended the college, 52 of whom were 16 to 18 years old. Learners study across sites in Leigh, Orrell and Wigan in Greater Manchester and Dean Wood in Lancashire. They follow individualised programmes across a range of pathways. Most learners study the preparation for life and work and employability pathways and supported internships.

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Exceptional

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

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Strong standard

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

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Expected standard

The provider 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 provider 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 .

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Urgent improvement

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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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