Southern Cross School

SOUTHERN CROSS SCHOOL

Dates of inspection: 16 th - 17th June 2003

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SOUTHERN CROSS SCHOOL

Short inspection carried out under section 10 of the School Inspections Act 1996 This report may be reproduced in whole or in part for 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.

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SOUTHERN CROSS SCHOOL

Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the School Inspections Act 1996, the school must provide a copy of this report and/or its summary free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. Southern Cross - 3

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

School address: Barlow Hall Road Manchester

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Appropriate authority: The Governing Body

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

Date of previous inspection: 22 nd June 1998 Southern Cross - 4

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Team members

23587 Alastair Younger Registered inspector

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Team members

Penta International Upperton House The Avenue Eastbourne BN21 3YB

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Team members

Any concerns or complaints about the inspection or the report should be raised with the inspection contractor. Complaints that are not satisfactorily resolved by the contractor should be raised with OFSTED by writing to:

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Team members

The Complaints Manager Inspection Quality Division

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Team members

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE Southern Cross - 5

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PART A: SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 6

Information about the school How good the school is What the school does well What could be improved How the school has improved since its last inspection Standards Pupils’ attitudes and values Teaching and learning Other aspects of the school How well the school is led and managed Parents’ and carers’ views of the school

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

This is a school for pupils aged 11 to 16 with emotional and behavioural difficulties. There are 47 pupils currently on roll, four of whom are girls. About a third of all pupils are of non- British origin and two are the children of travellers. One pupil comes from a home where English is not the main language spoken. All but seven pupils are entitled to free school meals, a pointer to the poverty experienced in the areas where they live. All pupils have statements of special educational need reflecting the priority given to their emotional and behavioural difficulties. Many pupils are of very low ability and two are recognised to have moderate learning difficulties in addition to their other problems. Several pupils have either been excluded from, or refused to attend, other special (including residential) schools. The inspection took place towards the end of the summer term when Year 11 pupils had left and

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL

most Year 10 pupils were being introduced to courses out of the school.

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HOW GOOD THE SCHOOL IS

This is not a happy school; it has many problems and very few strengths. Expectations are low and teaching is not good enough to ensure that pupils make sufficient progress. The leadership and management of the school are compromised by the lack of a clear vision for its future and its failure to provide pupils with a suitable, or satisfactory, education. In failing to manage the extreme behaviour of pupils the school is not at all times a safe place for pupils or staff. The school is a cheaper option than many of the alternatives but it is letting pupils down, and as such it is giving poor value for money.

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What the school does well

 Special support is enabling many pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 to improve their reading.  Administration procedures are thorough and finance is carefully managed.

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What could be improved

 Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the most important subject of English.  Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons are often boring.  Pupils’ attitudes and behaviour are poor; many are violent and rude and little improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times unfriendly.  The curriculum falls well short of meeting statutory requirements.  Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems. The areas for improvement will form the basis of the action plan prepared by the appropriate authority.

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What could be improved

In accordance with section 13(7) of the School Inspection Act 1996 I am of the opinion, and HMCI agrees, that special measures are required in relation to this school.

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HOW THE SCHOOL HAS IMPROVED SINCE ITS LAST INSPECTION

There has been a marked deterioration since the previous inspection in June 1998. Shortly after that inspection, reorganisation within the local education authority shifted the focus of the school’s work from outreach support to full time education for pupils on roll. It has since failed to come to terms with this new role. All areas that were identified as strengths by the previous inspection have now become concerns. What was a good school with many very good features is now a shadow of its former self. Southern Cross - 7

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STANDARDS

The table summarises inspectors’ judgements about how well pupils achieve in relation to their individual targets.

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STANDARDS

Mathematics C D unsatisfactory D personal, social and health education E E poor E other personal targets set at annual reviews or in IEPs* E E very poor F

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STANDARDS

Achievement overall is poor. The unambitious target of two pupils being expected to achieve one GCSE pass this year is, however, likely to be achieved. There have been no GCSE passes, though, since 1998. Passes in Entry Level examinations (or their Certificate of Achievement equivalent) in English, mathematics, science design and technology and information and communication technology have been falling for four years. Few pupils are meeting their individual targets and improvement is not being seen. Other than in reading, where good gains are seen for those pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 who receive special support, pupils have achieved very little in English over the past year. In 2001, no Year 9 pupils registered a level in statutory tests and in 2002 only two did so, both at a level found more commonly in Year 6 pupils. In Years 10 and 11, virtually no written work has been produced in English in the last two terms. Achievement is slightly better in mathematics. Pupils in

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STANDARDS

Years 7, 8 and 9 improve their number work and their ability to use calculators but remain hesitant in their understanding of shape, space and statistics. Overall achievement is weaker than the quality of teaching because so many pupils choose not to attend. Southern Cross - 8

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attitudes to the school Poor. Pupils have very little enthusiasm for coming to school and many have nothing positive to say about it. The reluctance of many to attend, and for those who do so to join in with lessons, speaks volumes. Pupils are not happy and they make this clear.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Behaviour, in and out of classrooms Poor. During the inspection, pupils were rude and abusive to staff, each other and to visitors. Records show that this is commonly the case. There are many fixed term exclusions, involving almost a half of the pupils on roll. These are often for violent or threatening behaviour. In the past year much of the glass in the school has been replaced with plastic and wooden doors replaced with metal ones, which are often kept locked to help staff maintain order. Even when individuals want to learn, the behaviour of others often prevents it.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Personal development and relationships Poor. Scant regard is paid to the sensitivities of others and pupils show no respect for classroom rules and regulations, which they themselves have negotiated. They do not work unless heavily supervised and supported. Several older pupils, however, show a much greater commitment to the workplace than to school and have successfully held down work experience placements.

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PUPILS’ ATTITUDES AND VALUES

Attendance Poor. About a third of all learning time is lost because pupils do not attend. A quarter of the pupils attend for less than half the time they should. Even when they arrive at school, many pupils fail to attend lessons with the intention of learning.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

Quality of teaching Unsatisfactory Inspectors make judgements about teaching in the range: excellent; very good; good; satisfactory; unsatisfactory; poor; very poor. ‘Satisfactory’ means that the teaching is adequate and strengths outweigh weaknesses.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

There is far too much unsatisfactory teaching and some that is poor. Too many teachers are not taking control of behaviour in their classrooms. There is a preoccupation with occupying pupils rather than teaching them; as a result, a very limited range of methods are used to capture the imagination of pupils and make lessons interesting. The teaching of reading to individual pupils and of English, where a teacher appointed two weeks ago is injecting higher expectations and more variety into lessons, bucks this trend. Several teachers show a good understanding of the subjects they teach but are unable to get their message over to pupils because their behaviour management skills are not good enough. Poor teaching is the result of very low expectations, occasionally a lack of professionalism and sometimes the inability of the teacher to keep any pupils in the classroom. Learning objectives for individuals are rarely made clear, resulting in most pupils being given the same tasks,

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TEACHING AND LEARNING

irrespective of their ability and making it very difficult for teachers to quantify with any precision just what pupils are learning; or for pupils to be suitably rewarded. Southern Cross - 9

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

The quality and range of the curriculum Poor. It falls well below statutory requirements. The current timetable shows that reasonable consideration has been given to providing pupils with their full entitlement in recent weeks but the English curriculum has been in disarray for the past year and there is little evidence of the subject having been taught to pupils in Years 10 and 11. The science curriculum is inadequate, virtually no design and technology, music or modern foreign language has been taught for several years. The curriculum does not sufficiently promote pupils’ personal development. An alternative curriculum for Year 10 and 11 pupils, with an emphasis on work based opportunities fails because it neglects to recognise the importance of ensuring that English and mathematics studies remain of paramount importance.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

Provision for pupils’ personal, including spiritual, moral, social and cultural development Poor. The paucity of provision is reflected in the fact that pupils’ personal development is very weak. There is an inconsistent approach to the promotion of moral and social values, very little celebration or respect for different cultures is seen other than in religious education lessons.

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OTHER ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL

How well the school cares for its pupils Unsatisfactory. There are sound procedures to ensure that child protection issues are properly dealt with and there are sufficient first- aiders in the school. Risk assessments are carried out in preparation for outings. However, fire regulations have been flaunted by the locking of steel doors at important points of exit. The behaviour of many pupils puts others at risk of harm and there are few signs of the school improving either behaviour or attendance Southern Cross - 10

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

Leadership and management by the headteacher and other key staff Poor. The vision of senior staff is flawed in that it is strongly focused on removing Year 10 and 11 pupils from the school site and putting them in the care of other agencies rather than offering pupils a suitable education in school and enrichment through links with colleges and the workplace. In this respect, the school is reverting to its role as a service rather than a school. Far too much senior management time is spent maintaining order. The management has not succeeded in recruiting or retaining enough good teachers with the result that staff morale is low and standards in the school are significantly lower than they should be.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

How well the appropriate authority fulfils its responsibilities Unsatisfactory. There are several signs that the governing body is gaining in effectiveness. It has played a good role in managing finance and in the production of a good school improvement plan. It has, however, failed to ensure that statutory requirements for the curriculum have been met and it has not ensured that the school is, at all times, a place of safety for staff and pupils.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The school’s evaluation of its performance Poor. There is very little monitoring of teaching beyond the minimum required for performance management. Senior staff and governors are aware of this and there are suitable plans to improve it. Teachers meet their performance management targets and pass threshold agreements yet standards remain poor. Too much comfort is taken from small successes whilst not enough concern is caused by a more general malaise.

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HOW WELL THE SCHOOL IS LED AND MANAGED

The strategic use of resources Unsatisfactory. Finance is carefully managed and extra funding from the Excellence in Cities initiative has been well used to improve pupils reading. However, time and resources are frequently wasted. Virtually all of teachers’ non-contact time is taken up in trying to maintain order. That this is ineffective is evident in the expenditure of thousands of pounds on steel doors throughout the school to protect younger pupils from older ones. This money has been wasted and has served to create an oppressive climate. Exclusions continue to rise whilst the school remains unruly.

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PARENTS’ AND CARERS’ VIEWS OF THE SCHOOL

Eight parents attended a meeting prior to the inspection and eight returned questionnaires. Many expressed positive views, especially about their satisfaction with the way that the school keeps them informed about how their children are getting on. They also find staff very approachable and helpful when problems are encountered. The majority of parents confirm that their children do not like school and do not get any work to bring home. Almost half the responses to the questionnaire expressed concern over the leadership and management of the school and felt that not enough was being done to help their children become mature and responsible. Inspectors agree that parents are kept suitably informed about what their children do in school but also share their concerns. Southern Cross - 11

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

Special support is enabling many pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 to improve their reading.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

1. Many pupils in Years 7,8, and 9 receive extra support to help them improve their reading. This is in the form of regular short sessions taught by a teaching assistant who has received additional training in the teaching of reading. In these sessions pupils receive 1:1 tuition in a highly organised and stimulating environment. Well-organised resources are at hand to help the tutor present pupils with work well matched to the pupils’ ability. Books are well arranged and graded according to their difficulty so the tutor knows which will challenge pupils without daunting them, a table of magazines covering topics of interest to pupils encourages them to read for pleasure and a good variety of worksheets are at hand to lend variety to lessons and help record what pupils have learned.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

2. One pupil was observed learning about the sounds that different letter combinations make. The tutor reminded him about what he had learned in past lessons and encouraged him by reminding him about how far his reading had come on over the past six months. The friendly and patient approach of the tutor complemented by the good challenge of the work, resulted in the pupils co-operating well, being very polite and trying his hardest to learn. Good records are kept, the tutor making notes and recording small improvements as they happen. These records are building up to a reliable source of evidence to show that those pupils involved are nearly all making good, and occasionally very good progress. In Years 7 and 8 for instance, over the past six months, five pupils have made a gain in their reading age of over a year. For two of these, the gain has been nearer to two years.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

Administration, procedures are good and finance is carefully managed.

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WHAT THE SCHOOL DOES WELL

3. The school office is well run. This means that important documents are ready to hand and well organised. The complications of a fluctuating budget and a very high turnover of temporary staff have been very carefully handled by the governing body. Several factors combined to leave the school with a larger than average surplus in its budget at the end of this last financial year. Governors picked up on this very quickly and have ensured that the current year’s spending plans include most of this surplus, ensuring that money allocated to pupils is being spent on them. A grant from the Excellent in Cities initiative has been very well spend part funding the reading improvement scheme; the area of this schools greatest success. The most recent audit found very few, minor, areas for improvement in systems and all have been addressed.

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

4. Most pupils are admitted having achieved very little in previous schools. A few have reading ages up to six years below their chronological age. More have reading ages within a couple of years of their actual age. Nevertheless, after statutory assessment, most pupils’ emotional and behavioural difficulties are considered to be more of a bar to their learning than their moderate or specific learning difficulties. Not enough is done to help them overcome any of these and as a result they achieve very little.

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

5. This is best illustrated by the fact that only two (out of six) pupils who leave school this year will do so with any English work that could be presented as evidence of progress. Southern Cross - 12 There is no evidence of the other four having been taught English this year. At the end of eleven years of compulsory state education therefore; up to half of it at Southern Cross, pupils have little to show of their progress in English and only one Year 11 pupil has made a demonstrable gain in reading over the last three years. No pupils have been entered for GCSE examinations in English since the previous inspection. Over the past four years, about a half of leavers have gained passes in Entry Level (or its equivalent) examinations but the pass rate is declining and no pupils this year have completed sufficient work to gain accreditation for the full course.

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

6. Last year (2002) only two out of nine Year 9 pupils registered any result in statutory tests in English. One was level 3 and the other level 4. This represents a level of understanding more commonly found in Year 5 and 6 pupils. In 2001, no pupil recorded any success in the same tests. Virtually no pupils’ work was available for inspectors to look at; the little that was, being disorganised, badly presented and giving no indication of progress. More work, and of a higher quality, has been produced in the past two weeks than over the whole of the previous year.

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

7. Achievement in mathematics is slightly better but still lower than should be expected. This year, two Year 11 pupils have been entered for GCSE mathematics and are expected to gain passes in the lower grades. Over the past four years, however, there has been a steady decline in Entry Level (or its equivalent) examination successes. In 2000, there were three passes, in 2001 two passes and in 2002 one pass. The results of statutory tests at the end of Year 9 suggest that pupils make better progress in mathematics than they do in English. Last year, six out of nine pupils recorded results. Two of these registered a level of understanding more or less in line with their age; two had results more normally found amongst Year 6 pupils and a further two well below this. Pupils’ mathematical achievement is best in number and calculator work, where several pupils have made sufficient progress to gain Unit Awards this year. They achieve far less when learning about shape, space,

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

clocks and time and statistics. This holds back overall achievement and reduces prospects of success in examinations.

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Pupils do not make enough progress, especially in the very important subject of

8. Achievement in science has rapidly declined and is now poor. Over the past three years, no pupil has gained examination success in the subject. Last year, four Year 9 pupils gained good scores in statutory tests. It is symptomatic of the school’s problems that when asked how pupils achieved so much more success in science than in mathematics or English, despite very little being taught, explanations offered included that it could be subliminal learning or booster lessons done in preparation for the tests’. Pupils own work does not suggest that success comes from what they are being taught. They have conducted virtually no experiments and there is no investigative work in evidence.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

9. Too much teaching is not good enough. Many lessons are boring, pupils lose interest and, as a result they become restless and un-cooperative. When this happens, many teachers fail to manage the resultant bad behaviour of pupils and lessons break down, with the result that many pupils stop learning.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

10. Pupils have worked out for themselves which lessons they feel are worth attending. Certain lessons, such as ICT and PE are usually well attended. In these subjects, pupils work well, are given suitably demanding tasks and teachers inject pace and enthusiasm into their teaching. In a Year 7 PE lesson, for instance, pupils were involved from the start and worked hard to improve their throwing skills because the teacher created a sense of Southern Cross - 13 urgency and moved pupils quickly from one activity to another, ensuring that all pupils got a turn at each activity and was rewarded for their effect with appropriate praise.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

11. Less successful lessons quickly lose the attention of pupils. In these, work is set at a level which does not make pupils think for themselves. It is often in the form of worksheets which are not sufficiently adapted to reflect the wide range of ability of pupils in each class. As a result, higher attaining pupils find them too easy and lower attaining pupils struggle to read them. Planning for lessons is often weak. It rarely identifies what each pupil is expected to learn and gives no indication of what methods will be used to help pupils of differing abilities to benefit equally.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

12. A further weakness of planning is that it rarely refers to what pupils have learned in previous lessons or how each lesson relates to longer term planning. This results in too many lessons appearing to be one-off tasks, with little evidence of ongoing, systematic learning taking place and occasional unnecessary repetition of work.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

13. Teachers’ expectations are low. Several have little confidence in their ability to manage pupils’ behaviour and are reluctant to challenge pupils. As a result, they resort to giving pupils work that is too easy. In a Year 9 lesson, for instance, two pupils spent forty- five minutes pasting paper to a small section of wall on which they were going to paint a mural. The benefit of expecting more of pupils was seen to good effect in an otherwise dull Year 7 mathematics’ lesson. For most of the lesson pupils filled in worksheets with so little enthusiasm that the teacher complained that he was doing all the work; yet for the last ten minutes, when pupils were given protractors to measure angles accurately, three pupils remaining in the classroom worked hard, asked sensible questions and quickly learned a new skill.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

14. Several teachers take very little care to present pupils’ work in a way that celebrates achievement and helps pupils to see the progress they are making. There are notable exceptions in the classrooms for ICT and reading support where vivid displays encourage and interest pupils. History and religious education work is also meticulously presented in pupils’ files. The worst practise is seen in English, where very little work predating the last two weeks exists. The little that does is often incomplete and untidy. There are small collections of worksheets for a few pupils, all of them scrappy, with inconsistent and erratic marking. In this way, any effort that pupils have made appears to have gone un-rewarded, pupils have very little knowledge of their learning and it is not surprising that they are making little intellectual effort.

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

15. Teachers’ management for pupils’ behaviour falls well below the standard expected in a school of this type. In almost a half of all lessons observed weak management contributed to the slowing or cessation of learning. One Year 7 English lesson spiralled out of control despite only three out the expected seven pupils being present. Only a very limited range of strategies was used to try to get pupils to work and when their language deteriorated it was ineffectively dealt with. When two pupils left the classroom, both members of staff followed, leaving one pupil alone in the class. Shortly after this the remaining pupil left the class, swearing loudly, leaving the inspector alone in the room. In thirty-five minutes, one pupil wrote one sentence on the computer and no other work was done. A comprehensive classroom discipline plan is prominently displayed in each room but it is widely ignored by teachers. They do not refer to it when talking to pupils. None of the

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Teaching is unsatisfactory; many teachers fail to manage bad behaviour and lessons

four classroom rules, agreed by the whole school, are observed or enforced. The discipline plan clearly identifies a hierarchy of sanctions matched to offences but these were not observed being implemented. In almost every lesson swearing at adults and active refusal to work went unpunished even though such behaviour is classified as severe, and punishable by being sent home. Southern Cross - 14

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

16. The school’s management maintains that pupils were more unsettled than is usual during the inspection. This is not borne out by records of pupils’ behaviour, the incidence of exclusion and staff and pupils’ comments. These all point to a school that teeters on the brink of being out of control. Only one of many pupils spoken to said he enjoyed attending and several parents say their children do not like the school. The fact that absence runs at about 33 percent suggests that many pupils vote with their feet and choose not to attend. Less than a quarter of pupils attend sufficiently for their absence not to be a cause for concern. Several pupils register their attendance but then fail to participate in lessons. During the inspection, less than half the pupils expected to be in classrooms were actually there, and consequently not learning.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

17. Pupils do not present the school in a good light. They are abusive to staff, each other and to visitors. There is an oppressive and threatening atmosphere that is detrimental to learning. Wooden doors proved inadequate to protect classrooms from being vandalised and as a result have been replaced with steel ones - which are often kept locked because staff are unable to protect younger, or more vulnerable, pupils from more aggressive ones. Most of the windows in the school have been re-glazed with plastic to reduce the expenditure on replacing broken glass.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

18. There have been over 100 exclusions in the past year and the number is rising. Twenty-two different pupils, almost half the population of the school, have been excluded at some point over the past year. This extraordinarily high incidence of exclusion is clearly not working and, as a result, behaviour is not improving. The school is proud of the fact that it has had no reason to permanently exclude any pupil in the past two years but the question has to be asked ‘why not?’ Records show that a pupil who attacked another with a hammer received a one-day exclusion; one who pulled a knife and threatened another pupil received a two-day exclusion and the standard tariff for possessing drugs, committing arson or throwing bricks at staff is a single day’s exclusion. This is doing pupils a disservice and is giving them a completely wrong message. These actions are not acceptable; yet pupils are receiving the message that they are minor indiscretions.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

The curriculum falls well short of meeting statutory requirements.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

19. The current timetable reflects a suitable curriculum but hides many problems. Over the past couple of years it is clear that pupils have received a curriculum that has not reflected their needs or their entitlement. The greatest concern has to be expressed about the curriculum for English. Leadership of the subject is in the hands of a teacher in post for two weeks and on a temporary contract. She describes what she found as ‘chaos’, and she is right. Until two weeks before the inspection there were no schemes of work for the most important subject in the curriculum. It has not been taught to pupils in Years 10 and 11 this year and pupils in Years 7, 8 and 9 have been taught on a piecemeal basis by a succession of supply teachers for the last two years.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

20. The planned curriculum for mathematics is better and there has been much more stability in its teaching. This has not, however, ensured that progress in each of the more important areas of learning has been successfully ensured. Areas of learning in which pupils experience difficulty tend to be neglected in favour of those in which they achieve success. In science, pupils do not have opportunities to develop their investigative and experimental skills, ostensibly because their behaviour presents insurmountable problems. Southern Cross - 15 21. In design and technology the newly appointed subject leader found that there had been no permanent teacher since 1997, that there was little evidence of design work in that period and that construction work was poor. As a result, there is no evidence of pupils making progress in this subject. There is little evidence of pupils following the National Curriculum in art and in recent years no modern foreign language has been taught. Music

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

has been reintroduced to the curriculum in recent weeks, but not for all pupils.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

22. The curriculum for pupils in Years 10 and 11 embodies many good ideas but fails in that it does not sufficiently recognise the importance of English and mathematics and the essential skills of reading, writing and number work. Planning the curriculum for this age group pays far too much attention to what other agencies can provide and nowhere near enough to what the school can. In nearly every instance, responsible staff make more of the importance of separating older pupils from younger ones, for reasons of maintaining order, than looking to provide pupils with learning opportunities that will help them to succeed in later life.

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improvement is seen. The atmosphere of the school is threatening, and at times

23. Pupils’ personal development is not sufficiently addressed through the curriculum. Success is celebrated in special assemblies but reward is often out of proportion to effort and pupils know and abuse it. There is seldom sufficient calm in the school for pupils to reflect, even in assemblies. Opportunities, which should provide for the improvement of social skills are not taken; pupils tend to be pandered to; at lunchtimes they are waited on, and cleaned up after, by teachers, in the aftermath of lessons teachers take sole responsibility for putting pupils work away and tidying up after them. There is no consistency in the implementation of classroom rules; teachers do not refer to them, even though they are prominently displayed in every classroom. Rudeness to visitors is treated as a pupil, rather than a school, problem.

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

24. Too much management time is being spent trying to maintain order and not enough in ensuring that the school is well led and managed. There is a serious flaw in the vision of senior staff and governors. Rather than working to provide successfully for all pupils who are referred by the local education authority, in accordance with the requirements identified in statements of special educational need, the school is reverting to its former role as a support service, whereby it supervises and mentors other agencies to educate older pupils on the school role rather than doing the job itself and providing enrichment through work experience, college links and strong relationships with training providers. The same is true in the school’s efforts to improve attendance. Rather than evaluating what it does to improve this, and then seeking solutions, it has lobbied the local education authority not to refer

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

pupils who may present attendance problems.

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

25. The weak state of leadership and management is evident in its failure to provide pupils with a suitable curriculum and especially ensuring that English is taught to all pupils. Many statutory requirements are not being met and the school has not been held to account by governors. Small achievements are over-celebrated whilst the bigger picture of declining standards is not being given sufficient attention.

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

26. The school has failed to attract staff capable of working effectively with the pupils on roll. There has been enormous reliance on temporary teachers, many of them inexperienced in this type of work. Successful teachers have chosen not to stay. Newer teachers occasionally feel unsupported and vulnerable. Many staff report that they feel the school has been improving of late but several are still considering leaving. Southern Cross - 16 27. Governors are becoming increasingly involved. They have significantly and effectively contributed to the school’s good improvement plan and are effective in monitoring and directing the school’s finances. What they have not done is gain an accurate picture of what the school is really like for pupils and for staff; nor have they ensured that statutory requirements are being met.

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

28. There is currently no monitoring of teaching beyond that required for performance management or teachers’ threshold pay agreements. It is a cause for concern that whilst this monitoring, some of it by external assessors, has produced satisfactory outcomes, standards are falling. New, well considered, procedures have been proposed by governors to improve the quality of monitoring of teaching.

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

29. Although finance is carefully watched and governors have chased up irregularities, there are inefficiencies in the school. Senior staff, in their supervision of pupils, are doing a job that has little to do with their management responsibilities. In reality, they are acting as exceptionally well-paid ‘minders’ whilst other important management tasks, such as monitoring teaching and the curriculum, go unfulfilled. Ill advised decisions on capital spending have been made; money being spent on security and reduction in damage has had little effect on either but has resulted in the school becoming more oppressive and detrimental to learning and personal development. The principles of best value are not fully understood by the school. Little attempt is made to compare outcomes with national statistics and there is little analysis of the use of resources outside the school. By seeking tenders for the fitting out of a science laboratory the school saved an estimated £15,000; but

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Leadership and management is weak; it has contributed to all of the above problems

having saved the money the laboratory is not being used sufficiently for its intended purpose.

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

30. In order to raise standards and improve the school, senior staff and the governing body should now:

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WHAT SHOULD THE SCHOOL DO TO IMPROVE FURTHER?

 Ensure that all pupils are taught English well, and frequently, enough to make at least satisfactory progress. (Paragraphs 4,5,6,14,15,19)  Improve teaching by training teachers in a greater range of behaviour management skills and ensuring that a much wider range of activities is presented to pupils to keep them interested in learning. (Paragraphs 9,10,11,13,15,26)  Address problems in the promotion of pupils’ personal development to improve their manners and behaviour, including getting rid of oppressive mechanisms for imposing control, including locked steel doors. (Paragraphs 17,18,23)  Ensure that the curriculum meets statutory requirements. (Paragraphs 19,20,21,22,25,27)  Ensure that everyone in the school has a clear view of its purpose and that senior staff contribute more to the monitoring and evaluation of teaching and the curriculum. (Paragraphs 24,28,29) Southern Cross - 17

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Summary of the sources of evidence for the inspection

Number of discussions with staff, governors, other adults and pupils 23

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

Excellent Very good Good Satisfactory Unsatisfactory Poor Very Poor

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Summary of teaching observed during the inspection

0 5 22 34 22 17 0 The table gives the percentage of teaching observed in each of the seven categories used to make judgements about lessons. Care should be taken in interpreting these results as each observation accounts for more than five percentage points.

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s roll (FTE for part-time pupils) 47

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of full-time pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 40

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs 47

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils on the school’s special educational needs register 47

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Information about the school’s pupils

English as an additional language No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Number of pupils with English as an additional language 1

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupil mobility in the last school year No of pupils

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who joined the school other than at the usual time of first admission 3

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Information about the school’s pupils

Pupils who left the school other than at the usual time of leaving 4

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Attendance

National comparative data N/A National comparative data N/A Both tables give the percentage of half days (sessions) missed through absence for the latest complete reporting year. Southern Cross - 18

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Categories used in the Annual School Census No of pupils on roll Number of fixed period exclusions Number of permanent exclusions

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

White – any other White background 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – White and Black Caribbean 2 22 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Mixed – any other mixed background 1 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British - Pakistani 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – Bangladeshi 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Asian or Asian British – any other Asian background 0 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – Caribbean 1 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

Black or Black British – any other Black background 1 0 0

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Ethnic background of pupils Exclusions in the last school year

The table gives the number of exclusions, which may be different from the number of pupils excluded.

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of qualified teachers (FTE) 8.6 Financial year 2001/2

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Number of pupils per qualified teacher 6

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Education support staff: Y7 - 11 Total expenditure 596,093

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total number of education support staff 5 Expenditure per pupil 12,682

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Teachers and classes Financial information

Total aggregate hours worked per week 148 Balance brought forward from previous year 38,616 FTE means full-time equivalent. Balance carried forward to next year 51,753 Southern Cross - 19

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Summary of parents’ and carers’ responses

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Results of the survey of parents and carers

Several parents expressed positive views, especially about their satisfaction with the way that the school keeps them informed about how their children are getting on. They also find staff very approachable and helpful when problems are encountered. The majority of parents confirm that their children do not like school and do not get any work to bring home. Almost half the responses to the questionnaire expressed concern over the leadership and management of the school and felt that not enough was being done to help their children become mature and responsible. Inspectors agree that parents are kept suitably informed about what their children do in school but also share their concerns.

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