The Amicus School

The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 1 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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The Amicus School The Coach House, Arundel Road, Fontwell, Arundel, West Sussex, BN18 0SX

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Overall outcome

At its most recent inspection, the school was judged to not meet all of the independent school standards and associated requirements.

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Overall outcome

The purpose of this inspection was to monitor the progress the school has made in meeting the independent school standards and other requirements that it was judged to not comply with at its previous inspection.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

When we carry out progress monitoring inspections of independent schools, we report on the school's likely compliance with part 8 of the independent school standards first. Under part 8, the proprietor is required to ensure that the school meets all of the independent school standards (the standards) consistently. The standard in part 8 is intended to ensure that the quality of leadership and management at the school is sufficient for that purpose.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

At the last inspection, this part of the standards was not met. The inspection found that there was not sufficiently rigorous oversight of some decision-making at governance level. Leaders had not always followed their own policies or taken decisions in a timely manner.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The proprietor has taken on board the findings of the last inspection and acted decisively to put in place improvements, particularly in terms of building knowledge and expertise about the standards.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

As part of this work, the proprietor has taken advice from many sources and used this to make changes to policies. While this is commendable, it has created an element of confusion in some of the written policies. For example, the safeguarding policy was completely re-written following the previous inspection. The proprietor has then added various additional sections to that agreed document aiming to address different pieces of advice. These additional sections have not been fully considered in terms of the policy as a The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 2 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

whole. This has resulted in a confusing policy. While pupils are safeguarded due to staff’s alert actions and daily discussions, if staff merely followed the written policy, there is potential for pupils to be put at risk due to the lack of clarity.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The weaknesses the previous inspection found in governance are being addressed. The proprietor has set up a new governance and assurance board, but it has not yet begun its work. Members with suitable knowledge and experience are being recruited. At the start of the inspection, the terms of reference for this group lacked focus on the independent school standards. The proprietor changed this document during the inspection to show that the group’s members are intended to have oversight of the standards to ensure that they are met consistently over time.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The proprietor and school leaders have also written a new action plan following the Department for Education’s evaluation that their first one was unsuitable. This plan contains many appropriate steps that are likely to help build leaders’ knowledge and oversight of how the standards are being met in the school. However, as with the first plan, many of the actions are assumed to be completed and successful when they are in place. Leaders have not fully considered how they will check that each action has the intended impact.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The proprietor acted on findings of this inspection during the day, making changes and decisions quickly. While this shows a laudable commitment to improvement, it is not an effective or sustainable way to ensure that the standards are met consistently. Currently, leaders as a whole do not have deliberately designed ways of working that are based on knowledge and understanding of the standards and what they want to achieve.

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

The standard in this part remains unmet.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that staff have detailed knowledge of pupils’ needs and what they need to be alert to. Staff act swiftly to share any worries and work together to keep pupils safe, particularly when pupils show signs of distress that could impact others.

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Safeguarding

Information about pupils is kept in multiple systems but leaders ensure that it is joined up through frequent conversations. These conversations about pupils are thoughtful and focused on finding the best support for each individual. Leaders act swiftly on any concern or worrying event. They engage and work well with external agencies.

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Behaviour, anti-bullying and supervision of pupils

These paragraphs remain met. The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 3 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Behaviour, anti-bullying and supervision of pupils

The relationships between staff and pupils are positive throughout the school. Supervision of pupils is carefully considered and interactions are effective. Staff are very clear and calm. They help pupils to reflect on their behaviours and the impact they might have on others. The written behaviour policy is implemented effectively. Staff use the records of behaviour incidents to help them identify and anticipate how pupils will respond to different situations.

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Behaviour, anti-bullying and supervision of pupils

There are very few bullying incidents at the school. Staff are alert to all acts that could be bullying and take swift action in these cases. Pupils trust the staff and are happy to be at the school. The support provided helps them to feel safe.

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Risk assessment

Paragraphs 16(a) and 16(b) remain met. The requirements in paragraphs 16A have come into place since the last inspection. They are met.

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Risk assessment

A suitable risk assessment policy is in place. It is effectively implemented by staff. It details actions to be taken, and by whom, to reduce risks that are identified. Individual risk assessments are produced for each pupil. These are carefully considered and reviewed every half term, or sooner if additional risks emerge. Positive handling plans focus on strategies to avoid restrictive intervention. They clearly link behaviours that staff may see with appropriate de-escalation techniques.

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Risk assessment

Leaders have ensured that staff training is suitable. This training along with ongoing staff discussions help to mitigate the confusions in the physical intervention policy. A few staff are not as confident as they could be when discussing all elements of the physical intervention process. Leaders have recently conducted a staff survey to address this.

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Risk assessment

Staff record all incidents and their actions promptly. This includes any time where restraint or force is used. Seclusion is used rarely and for short periods for specific pupils when absolutely necessary to keep them safe. Leaders review and consider all events carefully to ensure that processes were followed and those involved are supported properly.

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Part 6. Provision of information

The standards in paragraph 32A are met. Paragraph 32(1)(c) remains met.

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Part 6. Provision of information

The proprietor ensures that the procedures for recording all incidents where force, seclusion and/or restraint is used are followed properly. These are reported to all parents and carers and/or social workers. This information is reported in a way that has been agreed with those parties and is in line with legislation.

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Part 6. Provision of information

The school’s safeguarding policy is published on the school’s website. The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 4 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under sections 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, at the request of the registration authority for independent schools. Inspectors checked the school's compliance with 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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About this inspection

The inspection was commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE) to consider if the school now met the standards that were not met at the previous inspection. The DfE also commissioned inspectors to consider additional standards. This was due to concerns raised with the DfE about the safety and welfare of pupils at the school.

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About this inspection

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

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About this inspection

The inspection was carried out without notice.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with the proprietor, headteacher, chair of the governance and assurance board and school improvement partner. They also spoke with members of staff and pupils around the school.

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About this inspection

Inspectors also considered the school’s single central record of pre-employment checks. These requirements of the standards are met.

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About this inspection

The previous inspection was a standard inspection published 9 February 2026. At this inspection the standards relating to the quality of leadership and management of schools were not met (part 8). The school’s overall effectiveness was judged to require improvement.

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About this inspection

The DfE required the school to produce an action plan to address these failings. This was evaluated as not acceptable on 16 March 2026 because it did not provide suitable assurance regarding the concerns about governance arrangements and the implementation of the revised safeguarding policy. The DfE rejected the plan.

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About this inspection

This is the school’s first progress monitoring inspection.

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About this inspection

The Amicus School is an independent special school. It is part of a therapeutic community accredited by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. It caters for pupils who have complex social, emotional and/or mental health needs. All pupils have an education, health and care plan and have suffered significant trauma in their early lives. Pupils are placed by local authorities. The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 5 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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About this inspection

The proprietor is the strategic and clinical director of the Community. The school has a governance and assurance board which has just been established. The headteacher joined the school since the last inspection.

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About this inspection

The school does not use alternative provision.

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About this school

Proprietor Rebecca Newton Headteacher James Walters Type of school Other independent special school Capacity 36

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compulsory school age on roll

Part-time pupils 0 Age range of pupils 5 to 16 Gender of pupils Mixed Annual fees for day pupils £123,864 Email address info@theamicuscommunity.com

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Part 8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools

 34(1) The standard about the quality of leadership and management is met if the proprietor ensures that persons with leadership and management responsibilities at the school- – 34(1)(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; – 34(1)(b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently; and – 34(1)(c) actively promote the well-being of pupils. The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 6 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

 7 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that- – 7(a) arrangements are made to safeguard and promote the welfare of pupils at the school; and – 7(b) such arrangements have regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State.  9 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor promotes good behaviour amongst pupils by ensuring that- – 9(a) a written behaviour policy is drawn up that, amongst other matters, sets out the sanctions to be adopted in the event of pupil misbehaviour; – 9(b) the policy is implemented effectively; and – 9(c) a record is kept of the sanctions imposed upon pupils for serious misbehaviour.  10 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that bullying at the school is prevented in so far as reasonably practicable, by the drawing up and implementation of an effective anti-bullying strategy.  14 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that pupils are

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

properly supervised through the appropriate deployment of school staff.  16 The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that- – 16(a) the welfare of pupils at the school is safeguarded and promoted by the drawing up and effective implementation of a written risk assessment policy; and – 16(b) appropriate action is taken to reduce risks that are identified.  16A(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor- – 16A(1)(a) ensures that a procedure is in place for recording each use of force incident in accordance with section 93A of the Education and Inspections Act 2006; – 16A(1)(b) ensures that a procedure is in place for recording each incident in which a member of the school staff secludes, restrains or immobilises a pupil for whom education is being provided at the school (a "seclusion or restraint incident"); and – 16A(1)(c) takes all reasonable steps to ensure that both procedures are complied

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

with.  16A(2) The procedure under sub-paragraph (1)(b) must require that the record is made in writing as soon as practicable after the incident.  16A(3) The procedure under sub-paragraph (1)(b) need not provide for any action to be taken in relation to a seclusion or restraint incident that also constitutes a use of force incident within the meaning of section 93A of the Education and Inspections Act The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 7 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Part 3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils

2006 and therefore falls to be recorded under the procedure referred to in sub- paragraph (1)(a).

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Part 6. Provision of information

 32A(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor-  32A(1)(a) ensures that the procedures for recording use of force incidents and seclusion and restraint incidents referred to in paragraph 16A(1)(a) and (b) include procedures for information about each such incident (except where the pupil concerned is aged 20 or over or provision made under sub-paragraph (2) applies) to be provided to each parent of the pupil as soon as practicable after the incident; and  32A(1)(b) takes all reasonable steps to ensure that those procedures are complied with.  32A(2) A procedure under sub-paragraph (1)(a) must include provision to the effect-  32A(2)(a) that a person ("R") who would otherwise be required by the procedure to provide a parent with information about an incident must not provide it to that parent if it appears to R that doing so would be likely to result in significant harm to the pupil; and

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Part 6. Provision of information

 32A(2)(b) that if it appears to R that there is no parent of the pupil to whom R could provide information about the incident without that being likely to result in significant harm to the pupil, R must provide information about the incident to the local authority (within the meaning of the 1989 Act) within whose area the pupil is ordinarily resident.  32(1) The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that- – 32(1)(c) particulars of the arrangements for meeting the standard contained in paragraph 7 are published on the school's internet website or, where no such website exists, are provided to parents on request; The Amicus School, 2 July 2026 8 SENSITIVE-OFSTED USE ONLY

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Part 6. Provision of information

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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Part 6. Provision of information

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Part 6. Provision of information

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Part 6. Provision of information

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