Hawes Side Academy

Hawes Side Academy

Address: Johnsville Avenue, Blackpool, Lancashire, FY4 3LN Unique reference number (URN): 138538

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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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This school requires special measures

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to provide an acceptable standard of education, and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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Early years Expected standard

Staff interactions with children in the early years are warm, nurturing and purposeful. Staff use these interactions to develop children's language and vocabulary, asking questions that extend thinking and introducing new words in context. Careful checks help staff find out what children know and can do. They use this to plan activities that build on children's starting points. Staff prioritise learning to read from the start of early years. They teach the phonics programme skilfully, modelling sounds precisely and addressing misconceptions quickly. As a result, children develop their early reading knowledge well.

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Early years Expected standard

The early years curriculum is well designed and sequenced. Learning activities match children's needs and help children build knowledge and skills progressively. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive precisely targeted support from staff, who know them well. Children enjoy learning, engage confidently with activities and develop secure personal and social skills.

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Early years Expected standard

Adults work closely with parents and carers and pre-school settings so that children's needs are known from the moment they arrive. Children settle quickly, feel safe and are well prepared for Year 1 and beyond.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Pupils' overall attendance is below the national average. Too many pupils miss important learning due to absence, particularly those who are disadvantaged and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders have begun to work closely with families to understand the barriers to regular attendance for some pupils. It is too early to see the full impact of this work although early signs are positive.

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Attendance and behaviour Needs attention

Some pupils do not meet the school's expectations for behaviour, including at breaktimes and lunchtimes. Leaders have raised standards and their work is ongoing to ensure that staff understand and apply the behaviour policy effectively. The school is a calmer, more orderly and more respectful place than previously. Pupils' attitudes to learning are usually positive. Leaders have also taken effective action to reduce suspensions. Where pupils with SEND find it difficult to behave as the school expects, leaders put support in place to help them. Staff know their pupils well and work hard to support them. Incidents of bullying and any discriminatory behaviour are not tolerated. When they occur, staff deal with them quickly. Pupils feel safe in school and trust the staff who care for them.

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Inclusion Needs attention

The support that disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive is not matched closely enough to their individual needs. Leaders identify pupils' needs early and put plans in place promptly. However, the targets within these plans are not specific enough to guide how teachers adjust their teaching. Staff have started to develop their knowledge of how to build on and adjust support for pupils with SEND but this is at an early stage. As a result, most disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND do not achieve as well as they should.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Pupils in the specially resourced provision benefit from targeted teaching. Staff know these pupils well and meet their needs with care and accuracy, enabling them to make secure progress through the curriculum and participate well in school life. Leaders work effectively with outside professionals to review and shape the support pupils receive.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders understand the challenges that disadvantaged pupils face and have strategies in place to improve their outcomes. However, they do not check closely enough whether these strategies improve pupils' attendance or achievement. Pupil premium funding does not have the impact that leaders intend.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders typically establish effective partnerships with families and external agencies, including the virtual school. They use alternative provision appropriately.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils do not benefit equally from the experiences the school provides. Leaders do not keep a clear enough record of which pupils attend enrichment activities, trips and visits. This means they cannot be sure that pupils who are disadvantaged have the same access to these opportunities as their peers.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Leaders have designed a coherent personal, social, health and education curriculum that puts pupils' development at the heart of school life. From the Reception Year onwards, pupils learn how to manage their emotions, resolve disagreements and get along with others. The school teaches relationships and health education in an age-appropriate way. Pupils learn about healthy lifestyles, positive relationships and how to stay safe, including online. Pupils think carefully about concepts, such as democracy, tolerance and respect, connecting these ideas to the school's 5 values. They reflect on their own beliefs and the experiences of others.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils take on real responsibilities through roles, such as school councillors and playground ambassadors. Pupils visit local farms and welcome professionals, including dentists and firefighters, into school. These experiences help pupils think about how they can contribute to their community and the wider world. The school uses its own history, stretching back to the 1930s, to help pupils develop a genuine sense of identity and pride.

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Urgent improvement

The school's pastoral support makes a genuine difference to the pupils who need it most. Staff go out of their way to support pupils and their families, including through practical help when it is needed. Calm spaces and counselling are available for pupils who find school life difficult, supporting their mental health and wellbeing.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Pupils do not achieve as well as they should. Too many pupils leave the school without the knowledge and skills they need for secondary school. Pupils have wide gaps in their basic knowledge. These gaps grow as pupils move up through the school and prevent pupils from building knowledge securely. Pupils' attainment in national tests at the end of key stage 2 is far below that of pupils nationally and has been for a number of years. Disadvantaged pupils do not reach the standards they should. Their outcomes are well below those of other pupils nationally, and the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and non-disadvantaged pupils is wide.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Pupils' attainment in the Year 1 phonics screening check is typically above the national average. However, this success does not transfer into pupils' independent reading. Many pupils do not develop the knowledge and skills they need in reading, writing and mathematics.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

The curriculum does not clearly set out what pupils need to learn in each subject at each stage. As a result, many teachers are unable to plan learning activities that build effectively on pupils’ prior learning. In science, history and geography, the tasks given to pupils are often disconnected. These tasks rely on extended writing rather than the development of pupils' subject-specific knowledge and skills. In art, pupils do not study artists in any depth and teaching does not build pupils' practical skills progressively. Overall, teaching does not enable pupils to develop the understanding that is intended.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

Teaching does not check regularly what pupils know and understand. This matters most for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils. Errors in pupils' knowledge persist because teachers do not address them effectively. Some teachers lack the subject expertise needed to support pupils to catch up in reading, writing and mathematics. Leaders do not provide staff with the tools required to develop pupils’ language and vocabulary within lessons.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

Leaders lack an accurate understanding of the quality of teaching. They have not identified how far classroom practice falls short of the curriculum’s intentions. While leaders have sought external advice and developed an ambitious curriculum, this has not translated into changes in classroom practice. The training teachers receive has not addressed weaknesses in teaching.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

Leaders have not acted with sufficient urgency to improve the quality of pupils' education. They have not responded quickly enough to address the areas for development found at the last inspection. A period of uncertainty in staffing has hindered the progress needed. Leaders know the school's strengths and have identified priorities for improvement. However, the needs of pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, have not been kept at the centre of their decision- making and the actions taken have not had the required impact. At times, school leaders and trustees do not check carefully enough that decisions have been made in pupils’ best interests.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

School leaders do not provide the board of trustees detailed enough information about the school's performance. Trustees do not, therefore, have an exact picture of the quality of education. When trustees do receive information, they try to challenge leaders but this is not effective. Some aspects of leaders’ record-keeping are not consistently maintained with sufficient rigour. Leaders are taking steps to address this.

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Leadership and governance Urgent improvement

Leaders are mindful of staff workload and wellbeing. Staff feel valued. Leaders have set up a staff professional learning programme, which focuses on improvement priorities. However, it has not been designed well enough to tackle weaknesses in teaching and has not had the positive impact on pupils' achievement that leaders intend.

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

Too few pupils at this school achieve as well as they should. Attainment in national assessments at the end of Year 6 has been well below average over time. Pupils' experiences in lessons do not help them to build knowledge effectively across the curriculum. Pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those known to children's social care, do not develop the knowledge and skills they need for their next stage of education. Pupils do not attend school often enough and miss important opportunities to learn and socialise.

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

Despite these weaknesses, this is a welcoming school, where most pupils, staff, and parents and carers feel supported. From the Reception Year, children benefit from warm and nurturing relationships with adults. They enjoy learning, making friends and working together, developing a genuine sense of belonging as they settle into school life. Pupils feel safe because they know they have trusted adults they can turn to. Pastoral staff listen carefully to any concerns and provide suitable support for pupils and their families.

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

Pupils know the school's values of reflection, resilience, respect, responsibility and relationships. They try hard to embody these in daily life. Behaviour is typically calm and orderly. Pupils understand the school rules, which they view as fair and well applied. Bullying is not common. When incidents occur, staff respond quickly.

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

Pupils are taught how to stay safe and healthy. They understand what makes a relationship healthy and how to stay safe online. Older pupils develop an understanding of the characteristics that are protected by law, such as race, fundamental British values and cultural diversity. Pupils have opportunities to take part in enrichment activities and wider experiences, although some pupils do not benefit fully from these.

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Next steps

Leaders, including the board of trustees, must make sure that staff have the knowledge and expertise to teach the curriculum effectively, so that pupils, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, build knowledge and skills across the curriculum. Leaders must make sure that the curriculum in each subject is planned and sequenced, so that teachers can design learning activities based on what pupils already know and help pupils make connections with prior learning. Leaders must make sure that staff identify and resolve gaps in pupils' knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics accurately and swiftly, so that pupils make suitable progress. Leaders must quickly and accurately identify the challenges that disadvantaged pupils face and devise a strategy that significantly improves these pupils' outcomes. Those responsible for governance must build their knowledge and expertise and hold

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Next steps

leaders to account for ensuring that decisions are consistently in pupils’ best interests, through detailed scrutiny of the school's performance. Leaders should check carefully that strategies to improve pupils' attendance have the intended impact, particularly for disadvantaged pupils, and take swift action where they do not. Leaders should continue to make sure that staff apply the behaviour policy consistently, so that pupils meet the school's expectations for behaviour across all aspects of school life. Leaders should keep a clear record of which pupils benefit from enrichment activities and wider opportunities so that no pupil misses out.

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About this inspection

This school is a single academy trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Caroline Boothroyd, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Deborah Hardman.

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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 senior school leaders, those responsible for governance, including the chair of the board of trustees, staff and pupils during the

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Lead inspector:

Dianne Holcroft, His Majesty's Inspector

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Team inspectors:

Sally Aspinwall, Ofsted Inspector Julie Brown, Ofsted Inspector Nicky Parkinson, Ofsted Inspector

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This was the data available at the time of the full inspection, taken from different sources . More recent data may have been published since the full inspection took place.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The inspector(s) used this data during the full inspection on 14 April 2026

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412

inspection. Inspectors also spoke with some parents and carers at the start of the school day.

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412

In accordance with section 44(1) of the Education Act 2005, His Majesty's Chief Inspector is of the opinion that this school requires special measures because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.

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412

HMCI strongly recommends that the school does not seek to appoint early career teachers. The position regarding the appointment of early career teachers will be considered again during any monitoring inspection(s) we carry out.

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412

The inspector confirmed the following information about the school.

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412

The school has a specially resourced provision for 8 pupils with speech, language and communication needs. All pupils in the specially resourced provision have an education, health and care plan.

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412

The school currently uses 2 registered alternative provisions.

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412

The school manages a breakfast and after-school club.

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412

Principal : Caroline Boothroyd Above average

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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 at any point in the last 6 years.

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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 needs support 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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What does this mean?

Whether school has Resourced provision or SEND unit (if applicable).

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What does this mean?

The type of Special Educational Needs provision provided at the school (if applicable).

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standards in a combined reading, writing and mathematics measure.

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing.

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Pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics.

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average

2022/23 (final) 38% 44% Close to average

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing.

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average

2022/23 (final) 48% 58% Close to average

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics.

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Disadvantaged pupils' performance gap

Disadvantaged pupils are those who have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years and children looked after. The school disadvantage gap is the difference between the performance of the school's disadvantaged pupils compared to the performance of all non-disadvantaged pupils nationally.

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mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics, including the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in reading

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in reading and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in teacher-assessed writing

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in teacher- assessed writing and the disadvantaged gap.

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Disadvantaged pupils reaching the expected standard in mathematics

The percentage of disadvantaged pupils meeting the expected standard in mathematics and the disadvantaged gap.

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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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national average

2022/23 (3 term) 6.4% 5.9% Close to average

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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

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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