THE FORUM SCHOOL SHILLINGSTONE BLANDFORD FORUM DORSET DT11 0QS

Dates of inspection: 10-12 October 2000

non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all extracts quoted are reproduced verbatim without adaptation and on condition that the source and date thereof are stated. This report is on the OFSTED website (www.ofsted.gov.uk), together with a list of independent special school inspections.

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Information about the school

Type of school: Residential school for pupils with autism

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Information about the school

Type of control: Independent (part of the Hesley Group)

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Information about the school

School address: Shillingstone, Blandford Forum, Dorset DT11 0QS

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Information about the school

Director of the Hesley Group: Mr S R Lloyd

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Information about the school

DfEE number: 835/6033 The inspection team comprised:

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EDUCATIONAL STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY PUPILS AT THE SCHOOL

Attitudes, behaviour and personal development

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

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QUALITY OF EDUCATION PROVIDED

Partnership with parents and the community

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THE MANAGEMENT AND EFFICIENCY OF THE SCHOOL

Staffing, accommodation and learning resources

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MAIN FINDINGS

The Forum School is an improving school with many strengths. It provides an attractive learning and living environment with good educational and residential facilities. Pupils are well cared for and all staff strive hard to promote their progress.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The nature of pupils' difficulties means that their progress is made in small steps, often occurring in an unpredictable pattern of gains and plateaux, and achieved only with the greatest of effort on the part of pupils and staff. Pupils' progress is at least satisfactory in the majority of lessons and good or very good in a third. In one lesson in eight, pupils make insufficient progress as planned activities do not match their capabilities. Progress in communication skills is good and is improving further as teaching methods are refined.

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MAIN FINDINGS

Staff know and understand pupils well; they all work to provide a learning environment which has consistent structures and practices which help to reduce the effects of autism and challenging behaviour. Whilst all pupils are very dependent on adult support, both in school and in the residential units, they are learning to make choices and to respond to adult requests.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The quality of teaching is at least satisfactory in most lessons and is good or very good in almost half. Teachers generally plan effectively to meet pupils' needs and all deliver lessons with energy and enthusiasm, but in one lesson in eight there are weaknesses in the teaching. Good use is made of information from assessment to plan further steps in learning. Special support assistants contribute well to pupils' learning, particularly when working with individuals or pairs of pupils.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The curriculum is broad and balanced and takes good account of the individual needs of the pupils. A two year cycle of topics has been introduced but at present this does not ensure that pupils will make progress over an extended period of years.

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MAIN FINDINGS

Improvements have been made recently to curriculum planning, and in particular, to links between education and care. There is an effective planning system with more detailed individual learning objectives for literacy, numeracy, behaviour and information technology during the school day. These link with individual education plans with broader objectives, which are used across care and education. Care plans emphasise objectives for developing independence, personal and social skills. Whilst some are good examples of planning and implementation, they are not consistently good or well implemented both across and within units. As a result the 24 hour curriculum requires further development in order to be fully effective.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The assessment of the pupils' attainment and progress, and the analysis of results including targets for individuals and for the whole school, are particular strengths. The strong ethos in the school, which values individuals and accepts differences, the daily acts of worship and the celebration of different beliefs and cultural traditions all contribute to the development of pupils' spiritual and cultural awareness. Although autism inhibits their development of social and moral understanding, pupils are being helped to become more aware of themselves in relation to others and to develop an understanding of acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.

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MAIN FINDINGS

Partnership with parents is good and parents are very supportive of the school.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The school is effectively led and managed, and development planning reflects priorities well. The school's strengths and weaknesses are well known to the management. As a result, many aspects of the school's work are developing strongly. Practice and provision are subject to review and changes are implemented to refine them. The processes of self-evaluation and monitoring are developing, but have yet to make sufficient impact on the quality of practice. Some weaker aspects of provision remain unresolved for too long. Administration and communication within this complex organisation are effective. Much of the school's documentation is very well presented.

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MAIN FINDINGS

The number of teachers and special support assistants is adequate in most circumstances to meet the educational needs of the pupils. The number of residential care workers is not fully adequate within current patterns of deployment to enable the individual needs of pupils to be consistently met. Long term difficulties in the recruitment and retention of this group of staff have not yet been resolved.

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MAIN FINDINGS

Opportunities for training are good but not always realised due to difficulties in releasing staff. The induction programme is particularly effective.

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MAIN FINDINGS

Learning resources are generally good in the school. They are less adequate in most of the residential units, but are in the process of being supplemented.

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KEY ISSUES FOR ACTION

In order to further improve the quality of provision, the headteacher and staff with the support of the Hesley Group should:

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KEY ISSUES FOR ACTION

• continue to refine the monitoring process in both education and care settings in order to ensure that the quality of all teaching matches the best, and that care planning and practices are consistently good; • continue to develop the curriculum and schemes of work so as to ensure that pupils make consistent progress and that when topics are revisited pupils do not repeat earlier work; • review the staffing levels and deployment in the care setting to ensure that pupils' developmental needs can be fully addressed; • reduce the high turnover of care staff; • continue to review and enhance the resources for play and learning in care settings.

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Characteristics of the school

The Forum School is an independent finally registered termly boarding school seeking approval from the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) for up to 48 boys and girls aged 5-12 with autistic spectrum disorders. Pupils suffer from associated learning difficulties and some display challenging behaviour. All are placed and funded by local authorities. At the time of the inspection there were 30 boys and three girls on roll, all with statements of special educational needs. The school is one of nine establishments across the country which comprise the Hesley Group. It has close links with Purbeck View School within the Hesley Group, to which many of its pupils transfer on leaving.

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Characteristics of the school

The school occupies a large site in the rural village of Shillingstone, a few miles from the market town of Blandford Forum.

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Characteristics of the school

There are seven classes with from three to six pupils. Residential accommodation is in five house units within the main building.

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Characteristics of the school

The school has adopted the mission statement of the Hesley Group: "To enable people with special needs to achieve their full potential". The school sets out to offer a "24 hour curriculum" in which activities in school and home settings are planned to complement each other and to address pupils' difficulties in a positive and effective manner. The school aims to:

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Characteristics of the school

provide pupils with autism with access to a calm, consistent, eclectic approach so as to meet their very individual needs and address their diagnosis to enable pupils to reach their potential through high expectations and an open, honest partnership with parents and all professionals involved with them.

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Exclusions

There were no exclusions of pupils during the previous academic year.

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Quality of teaching

Percentage of teaching observed which is:

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National Curriculum Assessments

No pupils are entered for formal national curriculum tests or tasks.

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Attainment and progress

The nature of the pupils' difficulties means that their progress is made in small steps, often occurring in an unpredictable pattern of gains and plateaux, and achieved only with the greatest of effort on the part of pupils and staff.

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Attainment and progress

There is evidence from pupils' records that they make at least satisfactory, and sometimes good, progress in behaviour and in social and academic skills over time. Pupils' individual education plans and their sets of individual learning objectives present realistic and challenging targets.

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Attainment and progress

Pupils' progress is at least satisfactory in the majority of lessons and good or very good in a third. Pupils make insufficient progress in about one lesson in eight as activities do not match their capabilities. Pupils' progress is enhanced by adults' awareness of their individual learning objectives which are planned, implemented and reviewed on a regular basis.

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Attainment and progress

Progress in communication skills is good and is improving further as teaching methods are refined. The recent introduction of a picture exchange communication system, to augment signing and gesture, has been very beneficial. Many pupils are unable to use spoken language readily, but the most capable can understand instructions involving more than one action and can express themselves clearly. The least able are learning to interpret graphic and pictorial symbols, while the most able pupils are capable of reading aloud to a group a familiar story in simple text. Most pupils enjoy looking at books. A small number of older pupils are on the threshold of becoming independent writers.

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Attainment and progress

Pupils make good progress in mathematics, and particularly in numeracy. While some pupils are learning to match and classify at a very simple practical level in their numeracy work, the most able can count accurately and name geometric shapes.

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Attainment and progress

In their work in personal, social and health education (PSHE), pupils make good progress in such areas as making choices and learning how to sit and eat in a group during regular snack times each day. Individual education plans include targets for developing skills for interacting with others and increasing independence and organisational ability, both in education and care settings. These learning objectives relate appropriately to 'P' level targets, developed nationally for pupils working toward national curriculum Level One. Progress in further aspects of PSHE will be assured when schemes of work are completed and staff have identified the strands of PSHE which can be taught in science, humanities and other subjects.

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Attainment and progress

As information and communication technology (ICT) is under-used at present, pupils make insufficient progress in their use of the technology and in their use of ICT to support other work. While only a limited amount of teaching was seen in other subjects, evidence from records and from pupils' work indicates that they make satisfactory progress. There is an appropriate emphasis on practical work and experiences and on model making in geography, history and design and technology. Pupils have a good range of experiences within art lessons.

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Attitudes, behaviour and personal development

Despite the difficulties which pupils experience as a result of their autism, they generally respond positively to adult requests. They often settle for long periods with the variety of activities in lessons and most remain calm throughout the teaching sessions. Whilst all pupils are very dependent on adult support, both in school and in the residential units, they are learning to make choices and some are beginning to tackle tasks more independently. Calm and professional management of pupils helps to minimise the effects of individual behavioural problems upon the progress of the rest of the group. The spacious classrooms are also helpful in this respect.

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Attitudes, behaviour and personal development

Adults often show great skill in encouraging pupils to pay attention, to remain calm and to engage in tasks. They explain the sequence of activities each day, using signs, gesture and the more recently introduced picture exchange communication system. Whilst staff in educational settings are confident in using the system, care staff are awaiting more detailed training. There are very good relationships throughout the school between adults and pupils, while adults also work well together in staff teams.

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Attitudes, behaviour and personal development

A re-drafted behaviour management policy is being discussed by all the schools in the Hesley Group. In order to be fully effective, this will require more specific detail which relates to the needs of pupils in this particular school, including appropriate methods of restraint.

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Attendance

Registers are completed by class teachers to record attendance in education, and reasons for absence are noted appropriately.

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Teaching

The quality of teaching is at least satisfactory in the majority of lessons and is good or very good in almost half. All the teachers deliver lessons with energy and enthusiasm, which is a crucial factor in gaining and holding pupils' attention, but in one lesson in eight there are weaknesses in the teaching. Teams of teachers and special support assistants work well together. Teachers generally plan effectively to meet pupils' needs. Good use is made of information from assessment to plan further steps in learning. In a small proportion of lessons, expectations of pupils are too low or too high, so that pupils need to make little effort or they are over-dependent on close adult guidance. Individual activities are usually well matched to pupils' capabilities, and a good balance is struck between challenging pupils' capabilities and giving them tasks which they can achieve successfully without support. The special support assistants

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Teaching

work particularly effectively in these individual sessions, supporting learning with skill and sensitivity and recording pupils' responses so as to inform future planning.

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Teaching

Pupils are often encouraged to work as part of a group, and some sessions are particularly well planned to provide a group activity within which pupils make individual contributions to a task or game which match their very different capabilities and needs. In a small proportion of the longer group sessions, pupils spend too long waiting for a turn during activities which depend on an adult working with one child at a time. In such sessions, the role of special support assistants can be reduced to 'minding' the waiting pupils.

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Teaching

Classrooms have been made attractive and interesting with displays of children's work, practical materials and equipment which pupils enjoy exploring, and photographs of activities and places visited, to which they readily relate. The increasing use of photographs in displays and as a teaching resource is helping pupils to recall earlier learning and is encouraging their use of communication skills.

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Teaching

Consistent routines and structures established within classes and residential provision help pupils to cope with anxieties and focus on the tasks set for them.

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The curriculum and assessment

The school provides a broad and balanced curriculum which includes the National Curriculum and religious education. Appropriate attention is given to developing the pupils' communication skills. Personal, social and health education is seen as a prominent part of the curriculum in both education and care settings. Basic skills of literacy and numeracy receive appropriate emphasis in the curriculum. The school has drawn on the national literacy and numeracy strategies, adapting their approaches successfully for these pupils. The curriculum for ICT is at an early stage of development. Physical education has a particular role in the curriculum, not just as a national curriculum subject, but as part of the exercise session which provides an effective start to the school day for all the pupils. Overall, the curriculum takes good account of the needs of the pupils.

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The curriculum and assessment

The staff have worked hard recently to establish a model for curriculum planning which meets the requirements of the school. The overall model is good and has a number of strong features: the individual educational plans (IEPs) give an overview of the pupils' targets for a six week period and are shared between education and care staff; the individual learning objectives (ILOs) for both education and care provide a breakdown of skills to be taught and a means of monitoring progress, and the planning for literacy and numeracy work takes good account of individual needs.

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The curriculum and assessment

However, there are a number of weaknesses that need further attention. Schemes of work are not complete, and the plan to use the same scheme of work for all classes in line with a two-year cycle of topics for each subject should be reconsidered as this may lead to repetition for some pupils and a lack of progress over time. The whole model is at an early stage in its implementation and will require careful management from an overall curriculum co-ordinator to ensure that it is effective. No management role of this nature has yet been established. Curriculum co-ordinators are new to the role and have not yet taken on a monitoring function. The curriculum achieves a good balance between the individual and group work. The Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH) approach is used very well with individual pupils for a small proportion of the day. It is balanced appropriately with opportunities for pupils to

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The curriculum and assessment

work in close proximity to each other for much of the day and to join with other classes on occasion.

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The curriculum and assessment

The links between education and care settings are well planned through the IEPs and the ILOs. However, there are inconsistencies in how well these are implemented in residential units. This is due in part to pressures on staff time but also to the lack of a universal perception that an educational approach is part of the role of the care staff. Monitoring of practice is not well enough established to ensure that the school's policy is fully implemented.

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The curriculum and assessment

Activities planned in the care setting provide a range of experiences. However, there are limitations because of staffing levels, which are often not sufficient to allow an individual pupil to follow a specific interest or to be taught a skill consistently so as to achieve mastery. Activities too often have to be undertaken as a whole group with more of an emphasis on occupying and managing the group than on extending individuals in line with their learning objectives. As a result, the 24-hour curriculum is not yet fully established.

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The curriculum and assessment

The assessment of pupils' progress is effective. A range of baseline assessment information is obtained, making use of the nationally recognised 'P' scales. This gives a good starting point for the teachers' planning. The assessment information has been used well by teachers to set challenging targets for pupils and the analysis of results is already beginning to demonstrate the differing rates of progress pupils make over extended periods. The setting of targets for the whole school has a sharp focus on pupils' progress.

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The curriculum and assessment

Good practice in relation to annual reviews of statements is well established. Parents are fully involved and consulted and reports for the review are usually detailed and informative. The quality of reviews is improving further as the assessment process continues to be developed. Six monthly reports for children in public care are completed where applicable.

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Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

There is a strong ethos in the school which values individuals and gives priority to the needs of the children. Daily acts of worship and activities in lessons give opportunities for pupils to reflect and to develop a sense of awe and wonder. Bright, lively displays around the school enhance pupils' awareness of other beliefs, traditions and cultures. Pupils' own work is celebrated and displayed, along with evidence of pupils' activities in the locality. All these factors contribute well to pupils' spiritual and cultural development.

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Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

Assemblies provide opportunities for classes to share the work and activities in which they are presently involved. Special days are held at the end of each half term to celebrate the world religion which has just been studied and to provide opportunities for pupils to explore beliefs, food, and music. Whilst pupils are learning about different world religions and traditions in their religious education lessons, planned over a two year cycle, staff will need to consider other relevant strands from within the locally agreed syllabus, in addition to world religions, so as to broaden the content of the subject.

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Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

Moral and social awareness is developed satisfactorily during snack sessions and in all aspects of the work with pupils in the school and the residential units. Staff are very conscious that they need to plan opportunities for pupils to work together in groups, as well as individually. They try to help pupils to understand the difference between what is acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and they encourage pupils to treat others with respect.

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Support, guidance and pupils' welfare

Staff know and understand pupils well; all work hard to provide a learning environment which has consistent and familiar features and practices which help to reduce the effects of autism and challenging behaviour. Individual education plans link education and care activities with respect to the targets for increasing independence and organisational skills. The school's three girls are given an appropriate level of care by staff, but there is insufficient planning to meet the more specific needs of this disproportionately small group.

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Support, guidance and pupils' welfare

Procedures for recording incidents and accidents are very good and are consistently applied. There is also a thorough system for documenting any more serious incidents.

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Support, guidance and pupils' welfare

The school nurse has introduced a safe and well managed system for the administration of medicines. She provides training for team and shift leaders. All staff are expected to undertake the minimum of a one-day course in first aid. While pupils with weight problems are provided with special diets and the doctor and nurse are keen to see these implemented, they are not being consistently applied at meal and snack times.

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Support, guidance and pupils' welfare

Child protection procedures are thorough and are well understood by staff. Fire drills are held at intervals and are documented; fire appliances are thoroughly checked and are placed, along with first aid boxes, in all main buildings and units. A recently introduced ventilation system on the upper floor of the main building has improved temperatures in the summer months, but it had been blowing cold air for some time during the inspection week and needed more urgent attention.

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Support, guidance and pupils' welfare

Two Independent Persons are available to pupils and parents. They make visits at intervals and report their findings to the management of the Hesley Group. This is a valuable safeguard to pupils' welfare. In addition, the headteacher and deputy headteacher make unannounced visits during the night to ensure that pupils are safe and that the planned systems for care are implemented.

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Partnership with parents and the community

The school has good relationships with families and carers. Communication is maintained through weekly telephone calls, which the children are encouraged to take part in, through weekly reports, annual reviews of progress to which parents and carers contribute, and a termly newsletter. Strong links between home and school promote consistency in children's management, which contributes greatly to the progress they make.

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Partnership with parents and the community

The school has many links with the local community which benefit the pupils. The local Cubs and Brownies meet at the school so that pupils who are members of these groups have a good opportunity to mix with local children. Productive links have also been made with the local army camp where the school has held an Olympic Sports Day and other events. Links with the local nursery and other schools enable a number of pupils to benefit from a wider range of experiences.

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Leadership and management

The school is effectively led and well managed. There is a clear view of the direction for development and a strong drive for improvement. There is an appropriate structure of senior and middle management posts and of staff meetings to plan, to review and to disseminate information. The staff meeting structure provides for information to be "cascaded" to staff teams in an organised manner. Meetings are minuted and senior managers attend a sample of meetings to ensure that messages are being received accurately. The school's 'Joint Consultative Council', established at the initiative of the Hesley Group, enables the views of all staff to be aired with senior management both in school and at the Group's central office.

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Leadership and management

Development planning reflects the school's priorities well; the school's strengths and weaknesses are well known to the management. As a result, many aspects of the school's work are developing strongly. Practice and provision are subject to review and changes are implemented to refine them when weaknesses are detected. The processes of self-evaluation and monitoring are developing, but have yet to make sufficient impact on the quality of practice. Some weaker aspects of provision, for example the school's response to pupils' dietary needs, remain unresolved for too long.

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Leadership and management

The school makes use of external consultants and senior staff from the Hesley Group to support the management process, the evaluation of the quality of practice in care and education, and staff training. This increases the pool of expertise available to support improvement.

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Leadership and management

All staff are appraised regularly, but the school's management team recognise that the system requires further development and have plans in hand to take this forward.

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Leadership and management

Co-ordinators have been appointed to lead developments in each subject of the curriculum, and time has been allocated within the working week to fulfil the role. Their roles are being developed to include monitoring of the quality of teaching in their subjects.

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Leadership and management

There are particularly good links with the Group's secondary school to which many pupils move on reaching Key Stage 3. This enables the exchange of expertise including some joint working of staff between the two schools, and it supports pupils' transition very well.

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Leadership and management

Administration and communication within this complex organisation are effective. Much of the school's documentation is very well presented. The increasing use of ICT is supporting these aspects of the school's management well.

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Staffing

The school has sufficient teachers for the number of pupils on roll. They are qualified and experienced and several have additional qualifications for teaching pupils with autism. All have opportunities to attend short in-service courses relevant to teaching pupils with autism and to undertake longer more in-depth courses including degree courses. For most situations, the school has sufficient special support assistants including some who work one-to-one with pupils. However, at times during the inspection, a small number of pupils with more complex needs required greater levels of attention than were available. On occasion, special support assistants manage a class without a qualified teacher when there is illness. While special support assistants are competent and know the pupils well, an alternative teacher should cover such situations. The assistants have good opportunities for additional training.

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Staffing

The role of head of care is fulfilled jointly by two qualified members of staff. The ratio of one residential care worker (RCW) for every two pupils is often not enough, within current patterns of deployment, to meet the needs of the pupils sufficiently well in the care setting, especially to provide an effective 24-hour curriculum. Opportunities for training are available, but sometimes not taken up because RCWs cannot be released due to a lack of staff to cover their shift. The recruitment and retention of RCWs is a major difficulty for the school with 36 per cent of RCWs new to post in the last 12 months. The school is aware of the problem and has a number of strategies to put in place to rectify the situation. This is a priority issue to be resolved if care provision is to contribute effectively to the 24 hour curriculum.

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Staffing

The two week induction programme open to all staff is particularly good and is followed up with the foundation course which further equips staff working at a range of levels in the organisation. The school is working towards the implementation of performance management with the teachers in line with DfEE guidelines.

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Staffing

Many pupils require speech and communication therapy and it is a requirement on several statements. However, a speech therapist is not currently available. The school is seeking urgently to fill the vacancy.

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Accommodation

The accommodation for education is good. Teaching areas have a very high standard of display, which makes them attractive and stimulating places to work in. Each room is sufficiently spacious to provide several learning environments to suit group and individual work. Study booths, provided to support the TEACCH approach by reducing pupils' distraction, are available as needed. Resources are well organised and accessible to the pupils. There is a good range of specialist rooms and there are plans in hand to increase the range and quality of these further. The sports hall is a valuable resource in and out of school hours, although at the time of the inspection its heating awaited a planned refurbishment and it was too cold for some activities. The theatre provides an ideal setting for whole-school assemblies.

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Accommodation

Children live in groups of six to eight in self-contained units within the main building and eat together in the dining room. The standard of accommodation in the units is very high. Children's rooms are thoughtfully personalised and are decorated and furnished so as to provide a bright and welcoming environment. The small group of girls has access to en-suite rooms or to a designated bathroom. The school grounds provide a variety of play areas, including separate areas for out of school hours, a large playing field, an outdoor swimming pool, and riding stables with two horses which are being schooled for the children to ride.

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Learning resources

There are adequate resources in classrooms for learning in most subjects with a good range for English, which includes a suitable stock of books including big books for group work. For mathematics there is a good selection of practical material. Computers are available in all classes, in the computer room and in residential units with a limited range of software. Resources for play and learning in most of the residential units are limited; some older books and games require replacing and a wider range of books and of equipment such as large construction sets is needed. Plans are in hand to enhance the resources. Outdoor play resources for break and out of school times are limited in range and quantity.

p.13

The efficiency of the school

The school's funding is overseen by the Hesley Group's financial manager. Some costs are met centrally, but much of the responsibility for financial planning and for spending is devolved to the headteacher. The school's development plans take appropriate account of budgetary factors. Care is taken to ensure value for money from external contractors. Financial management is sound and day-to-day accounting is well managed by the school's administrator.

p.13

The efficiency of the school

The deputy head takes responsibility for much of the spending on school equipment, and budgets are devolved appropriately to subject co-ordinators according to relative priorities agreed for the year for each subject. Priorities for staff training are aligned effectively to the school's needs. Increasing account is being taken of existing strengths and qualifications amongst staff to enable individuals to contribute more effectively to the work of the school.

p.13

The efficiency of the school

The school's management is aware that current shift patterns may not make the best use of care staff time when pupils are in classrooms, and there are plans to review this. The high rate of turnover of care staff reduces the efficiency of the school, not least because all new and inexperienced staff must undergo an induction programme and gain considerable experience before they can be fully effective in this specialised work. Not all of the extensive accommodation is in use at present, but there are imaginative plans to re-develop those buildings which currently see little or no use.

p.13

The efficiency of the school

The sports field is under-used at present as it is not securely fenced.

p.14

The efficiency of the school

The ICT suite and the classroom computers are under-used, but staff training needs have been audited and plans are in place to increase both the quality and the extent of use of equipment.

p.14

Health and safety issues

The school has a suitable system for identifying and responding to health and safety issues. Some issues were identified for the school's consideration during the inspection:

p.14

Health and safety issues

• the main entrance door to the school building has no security system during the day and evening, such as a lock or full oversight from a reception office, so that it is not secure against intruders or pupils' absconsion; • security gates within the premises are not always bolted; • the playing field is not securely fenced; • despite remedial work and care to keep them free of leaves, the surfaces and edges of some paths remain hazardous; • stone steps leading down to the playground would benefit from a handrail.

p.14

Summary of inspection evidence

• all or part of 30 lessons, to a total of almost 16 hours observation; • assemblies; • evening activities and bedtime routines; • meal times; • staff meetings.

p.14

Summary of inspection evidence

• the principal of the southern region schools within the Hesley Group; • members of the senior management team, teaching and care staff, administrative staff, school nurse and catering staff; • pupils.

p.14

Summary of inspection evidence

• portfolios, folders and displays of pupils work; • photographic evidence of pupil activities; • pupils' record files in education and care settings including statements and reviews; • staff rotas; • minutes of staff meetings; • the school's documentation of policies and curriculum; • incident and accident books; • attendance registers.

p.14

Summary of inspection evidence

• the school site, accommodation and resources.

p.15

Pupil and teacher numbers

Number of full-time pupils Girls: 3 Boys: 30

p.15

Pupil and teacher numbers

Residential care workers (inc senior and night care staff) 82

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Income

Income Last financial year (£) Forecast this financial year (£)

p.17

Income

Income per pupil 53,758 (Average 38 pupils) 56,676 (Average 40 pupils)

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RESPONSES:

I am happy with the school my child attends. 18 1

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RESPONSES:

I think this school meets my child's special education needs. 17 1

p.17

RESPONSES:

I believe that the school helps me to understand what my child is taught. 17 0

p.17

RESPONSES:

I think that the school keeps me well informed about my child's progress. 19 0

p.17

RESPONSES:

I am happy with the standards of behaviour at this school. 18 1

p.17

RESPONSES:

I believe that this school helps my child have positive attitudes to school work. 19 0

p.17

RESPONSES:

I believe that this school helps my child to mix well with other children. 17 1 I believe that this school promotes the personal and social development of my child. 17 0

p.17

RESPONSES:

I think that this school prepares my child for the next stage of education and training. 17 0

p.18

RESPONSES:

I feel that my child is safe at this school. 18 1

p.18

RESPONSES:

I believe my child likes this school. 19 0

p.18

Positive points raised by parents

Parents' positive views very strongly outweighed concerns

p.18

Positive points raised by parents

Pupils' progress and happiness at school.

p.18

Positive points raised by parents

High standards of care, and staff concern for pupils' welfare.

p.18

Positive points raised by parents

Communication and information from school.

p.18

Issues that concerned parents

Injuries caused by aggression of other pupils and lack of written reports to parents of incidents.

p.18

Issues that concerned parents

Some low quality and cancellations of care activities.

p.18