Fern House School and College

Fern House School and College

Address: New Pale Road, Kingswood, Frodsham, WA6 6LB Unique reference number (URN): 151440

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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. Insufficient evidence: Inspectors were unable to gather sufficient evidence to judge whether safeguarding standards are met.

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Attendance and behaviour Expected standard

Prior to joining this school, pupils have had fragmented and often negative experiences of education. Staff take a detailed and bespoke approach to identifying and reducing each pupil’s barriers to wellbeing. The school’s work getting to know pupils and building positive relationships with them and their families is successful. When pupils first arrive, a graduated, pastoral induction process helps them to feel safe and comfortable in school. This enables pupils to re-engage with learning. Over time, pupils' attendance improves significantly from their starting points. Once settled, pupils start to establish high levels of attendance.

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Attendance and behaviour Expected standard

The school has high expectations of pupils' behaviour and staff model these consistently. Well-established routines and clear expectations of pupils' conduct help to create an orderly environment. Staff use the school's agreed strategies for managing behaviour well. The expertise in school to support pupils' social and emotional needs and regulation is a strength. If pupils become dysregulated, this is managed calmly and sensitively by staff. Staff support pupils to gradually learn to manage their emotions independently so pupils can focus successfully on learning. Pupils typically get along well with each other and behave respectfully towards staff. Bullying and discrimination are rare and are dealt with swiftly when they occur.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Formal assessment and tracking systems linked to pupils' academic progress are at an early stage of development. They do not currently provide staff with a clear understanding of pupils’ starting points, gaps in pupils' essential knowledge or the progress pupils are making over time. As a result, support is not always targeted effectively. Staff do not consistently have the skills and expertise necessary to adapt teaching to address pupils’ learning needs and gaps in understanding. Some independent school standards relating to the curriculum for pupils with education, health and care plans are not met, as a result.

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Inclusion Needs attention

That said, the school is passionate about pupils feeling valued and wanted. Staff are committed to ensuring that pupils feel safe and supported. All pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff have a deep understanding of the social, emotional and mental health barriers that pupils face. Effective systems, routines and tailored support help pupils regulate their emotions, promote wellbeing and engage positively in learning. Pupils with additional vulnerabilities are identified promptly and supported effectively to ensure that they, and their families, receive the help they need.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

The school has not ensured that the independent school standards are met. The proprietor has a secure understanding of the school’s context and has appropriate knowledge and experience to fulfil the role. Following a troubling period for pupils and staff, leaders have prioritised maintaining statutory duties such as safeguarding, and stabilising the workforce. However, the proprietor and governors have not held school leaders to account effectively for the quality of the curriculum and pupils' academic progress.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Current leaders have identified the school’s strengths and areas for improvement quickly. These include a focus on refining the curriculum, embedding systems to check pupils' learning and improving staff expertise. Many of these actions are in the early stages of implementation. As such, the impact of this work is not yet evident. Importantly, leaders have identified these areas for improvement based on what will make the biggest impact on pupils’ experience of education. Leaders recognise the multiple barriers to learning that most pupils at the school face and have taken this carefully into account. The proprietor and governors support leaders to make realistic plans for further improvements.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff are still adjusting to the rapid changes in leadership. They value the actions that the school takes to support their workload and wellbeing. However, the programme of professional development for staff is not aligned as closely as it should be to address weaknesses in curriculum design, teaching and monitoring progress. Leaders at all levels agree that immediate improvements to the curriculum, staff training and checking systems are needed.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Parents and carers speak positively about the school. They value that their children are nurtured and feel comfortable coming to school and accessing learning.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

The school is proactive in providing wider experiences for pupils and looking after their wellbeing. Conversely, the curriculum for personal, social, health and economic education lacks order and coherence, similar to other subjects. With no checking systems in place until recently, it is not clear how staff identify gaps in pupils’ learning after missing periods of education.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils know how to stay safe and maintain healthy lifestyles, including managing risks online. They understand consent, the features of positive relationships and what to do when relationships become difficult. Regular workshops with local police officers help to highlight risks such as grooming and domestic violence.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

Pupils have some knowledge of important British values and understand concepts such as equality and discrimination. However, their understanding and respect for other cultures and religions is limited, reflecting gaps in the wider curriculum. Pupils’ knowledge of diversity and their understanding of viewpoints beyond their own is variable. For this reason, some of the social, moral, spiritual and cultural independent school standards are not met.

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Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention

The school encourages pupils to take responsibility for their community. Pupils speak proudly about their roles as school councillors and the work they are undertaking to gauge pupil voice on school lunches. Pupils have secure economic awareness. They can explain budgeting, comparing their needs to their wants and they understand why we pay taxes. They are encouraged to have high ambitions and see themselves as successful adults, preparing them for life beyond school.

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Urgent improvement

Pupils value taking part in activities such as climbing, swimming and horse riding. The school is developing its approach to nurturing pupils' interests and talents. Taking pupil voice into account, it is starting to offer lunchtime clubs based on pupils' interests such as Uno, football, pool and art.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Pupils' learning across the curriculum is limited by shortfalls in curriculum design and the lack of coherence between key stages. Suitable support helps most pupils address gaps in their reading, but not in their writing and numeracy. There are inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and how well gaps in learning are addressed.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Many pupils, all of whom have special educational needs and/or disabilities, do not make sufficient progress from their starting points. Pupils demonstrate some understanding of their learning. For example, they can talk about the functions of skeletons and muscles from their science work and can explain solar electricity. However, most of their knowledge aligns with learning that is well below age-related expectations.

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Achievement Urgent improvement

Leaders support pupils well to understand the career and training options available to them when they leave school. The detailed information that the school gathers about each pupil is used to tailor support around their options and the actions that they should take to achieve their aims.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

The curriculum lacks order and coherence across the school. Staff do not plan learning focused on clearly defined end points. Planned activities often do not match pupils' needs, being too easy for some, thus limiting their learning. Staff do not probe for depth of knowledge and understanding. They have low expectations of pupils’ outcomes. For example, pupils are not expected to organise their own work or write independently. While this strategy may minimise emotional triggers, pupils are not getting opportunities to build the stamina and resilience that they need to progress academically.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

Due to periods out of education, many pupils have gaps in their basic knowledge when they arrive. Until recently, the absence of systems to check learning and measure progress means that staff are unclear about whether pupils are meeting age-related expectations. Therapeutic activities take up a significant amount of time. This limits pupils’ access to wider curriculum subjects, which are often taught through cross-curricular activities. As a result, pupils do not receive a broad and balanced curriculum, and some independent school standards relating to the curriculum and quality of teaching are not met.

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Curriculum and teaching Urgent improvement

While the overall approach to teaching lacks rigour, pupils are supported to become accurate, fluent readers as they move through the school.

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

Fern House School and College is a warm, friendly environment where pupils feel safe and accepted for who they are. However, the quality of the school’s academic provision does not match its pastoral offer. The curriculum lacks a clear and well-structured design. Pupils do not benefit from effective teaching and expectations of what they are capable of achieving are too low. The school's systems to check how well pupils learn key curriculum content are not yet embedded. Staff are unable to measure how well pupils progress from their varied starting points. As a result, pupils do not achieve as well as they should. Recent leadership changes have brought clearer direction and intent to the curriculum and its delivery. However, these changes are recent and are yet to have the impact necessary.

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

Pupils are welcomed to school each day by staff who care deeply about pupils' wellbeing. Staff understand pupils’ needs and form positive relationships with them. Many pupils have previously been disaffected with education. The school’s focus on behaviour, regulation and therapeutic support makes for a calm and purposeful atmosphere. There are marked and sustained improvements in pupils' attitudes to school, reflected in their improved attendance rates. Pupils begin to engage with education again at Fern House.

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

Despite weaknesses in the quality of education that they receive, pupils show positive attitudes to learning. Most are keen to learn and they behave well. They are curious and chat confidently with visitors. Any incidents of inappropriate behaviour and bullying are resolved promptly and effectively. Pupils show pride and a clear sense of belonging to their school and its community. They value the range of interesting trips, for example to an art gallery, a forest trail and a country show. However, while pupils are prepared socially for life beyond school, they do not attain well and are not equipped for their next steps in education.

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Next steps

Leaders must ensure that the curriculum across all subjects is ambitious, well sequenced and meets the complex needs of the pupils it serves. Leaders must ensure that teachers have the knowledge and expertise to deliver and adapt the curriculum so that pupils achieve well. Leaders must ensure that the school’s assessment systems identify and help to close gaps in pupils’ knowledge, so that pupils can achieve well from their individual starting points. The proprietor should ensure and maintain consistent compliance with all of the independent school standards (the standards). They should take immediate action to address the unmet standards. Leaders should ensure that the personal development curriculum fully develops pupils' understanding of important concepts, such as cultural diversity, so that pupils are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

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Independent school standards

Independent school standards are either met or not met for each category.

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this standard inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008, and 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

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 school leaders, including the headteacher, the chair of governors and the proprietor, during the inspection.

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About this inspection

Inspectors confirmed the following information about the school:

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About this inspection

This is the first standard inspection of a newly registered school. The school was registered by the Department for Education on 14 May 2025.

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About this inspection

A new headteacher took up the post in May 2026.

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About this inspection

All pupils at the school have special educational needs and/or disabilities. The school caters for pupils with social, emotional, mental health needs.

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About this inspection

The school does not use alternative provision.

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About this inspection

The name of the proprietor is IMAP Centre Ltd.

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About this inspection

The chair of the proprietor board is Martin McKevitt.

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About this inspection

The annual fees currently charged are £85,500.

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About this inspection

The email address of the school is schoolenquiries@imapcentre.co.uk

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About this inspection

1. Quality of education provided Standards not met

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About this inspection

The following standards have not been met:

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About this inspection

The standard in this paragraph is met if– (a) the proprietor ensures that a written policy on the curriculum, supported by appropriate plans and schemes of work, which provides for the matters specified in sub-paragraph (2) is drawn up and implemented effectively; and

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About this inspection

(b) the written policy, plans and schemes of work– (i) take into account the ages, aptitudes and needs of all pupils, including those pupils with an EHC plan; and

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About this inspection

The standard in this paragraph is met if the proprietor ensures that the teaching at the school–

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About this inspection

(a) enables pupils to acquire new knowledge and make good progress according to their ability so that they increase their understanding and develop their skills in the subjects taught; (b) fosters in pupils self-motivation, the application of intellectual, physical and creative effort, interest in their work and the ability to think and learn for themselves; (c) involves well planned lessons and effective teaching methods, activities and management of class time; (d) shows a good understanding of the aptitudes, needs and prior attainments of the pupils, and ensures that these are taken into account in the planning of lessons;

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About this inspection

2. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils Standards not met

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About this inspection

The following standards have not been met:

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About this inspection

The standard about the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils at the school is met if the proprietor–

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About this inspection

(b) ensures that principles are actively promoted which– (v) further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling pupils to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures;

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About this inspection

3. Welfare, health and safety of pupils Standards met

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About this inspection

4. Suitability of staff, supply staff, and proprietors Standards met

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Facts and figures used on inspection

5. Premises of and accommodation at schools Standards met

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Facts and figures used on inspection

6. Provision of information Standards met

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Facts and figures used on inspection

7. Manner in which complaints are handled Standards met

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Facts and figures used on inspection

8. Quality of leadership in and management of schools Standards not met

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The following standards have not been met: Paragraph 34(1)

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Facts and figures used on inspection

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–

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Facts and figures used on inspection

(a) demonstrate good skills and knowledge appropriate to their role so that the independent school standards are met consistently; (b) fulfil their responsibilities effectively so that the independent school standards are met consistently; and This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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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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Insufficient evidence

Inspectors were unable to gather reliable enough evidence to grade an evaluation area. This is rare and normally only happens if there are no pupils on roll at the school.

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Insufficient evidence

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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Insufficient evidence

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Insufficient evidence

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Insufficient evidence

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Insufficient evidence

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

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