Springfield House Community Special School

Inspection Report Springfield House Community Special School

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103623 Unique Reference Number Birmingham LEA 276959 Inspection number 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006 Inspection dates Sarah Mascall AI Reporting inspector

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This inspection was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Kenilworth Road School address Special Type of school Knowle Community School category Solihull, West Midlands B93 0AJ 5 to 11 Age range of pupils

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01564 775696 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01564 771767 Fax number 57 Number on roll Mr Graham Locker Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mr Stuart Revell Headteacher 20 March 2000 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 276959 10 May 2006 - 5 to 11 11 May 2006 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report 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.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

Springfield House is a residential primary school for boys and girls with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Of the 57 pupils only a small number (11) are girls. Many pupils have a range of additional learning difficulties including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and Aspergers. All have statements of special educational need. At present 13 pupils are residential and the remaining boys and girls are day pupils. Eight pupils are looked after by the local authority. Pupils come from Birmingham and outlying towns. The majority of pupils are White British and there are no pupils with English as an additional language. There have been a number of changes to the leadership of the school in the last three years and an acting management team is in place until September 2006.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006

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Grade: 2

Springfield House School is a good school and through its own self-evaluation it recognises this. It is successful in achieving its aim to enable pupils to live and learn together and show respect to each other. Pupils start school with very limited skills both academically and in their personal development. By the time they leave, pupils have made good progress in their learning and in the way they behave and respond to others. Progress in their communication and reading skills is good but progress in writing is not as good. Pupils make good progress in mathematics and in personal, social and health education. Teaching and learning are good and staff manage pupils’ behaviour very effectively. Pupils are supported well by the good care and welfare procedures. However, the school does not make the most of its success in improving pupils’ behaviour as it does not provide enough opportunities for pupils to experience and return to mainstream education.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. Senior staff have ensured that the school has continued to improve and develop. There is a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school and a good start has been made on collecting information about pupils’ achievements. The school recognises, though, that it is not yet using this data sufficiently well to evaluate what it needs to do to improve standards further. Parents are very positive about the school and the impact it has had on their children. The school has made good progress since the last inspection and has good capacity to improve further. It provides good value for money.

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Grade: 2

The residential facility is good and this is confirmed by a recent positive Commission for Social Care Inspections (CSCI) report. The small number of recommendations for improvement raised in the CSCI report have been or are in the process of being addressed. The accommodation is comfortable and homely and pupils are clearly proud of their surroundings. There are good systems in place to support pupils’ personal development and relationships with staff are very positive. Pupils say they like being in residence and enjoy all the activities that are available to them. Staff make good use of the local community and plan various evening activities for each group. The use of residential social workers (RSWs) during the school day to support pupils means that links between school and residential staff are good. For example, the handover of pupils to teachers at the start of each day ensures teachers are made aware of any

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Grade: 2

concerns that may have arisen overnight. Effective links have been established between the head of care and the co-ordinator of personal, social and health education. Together they have developed a new programme dealing with issues such as bullying and social skills, which will be taught in the residential facility as well as in school. 2 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006

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What the school should do to improve further

• Provide better opportunities for pupils to experience or return full time to mainstream schools. • Provide pupils with more opportunities for extended writing to develop their skills in writing. • Make better use of information gathered on pupils’ progress to inform the next steps in planning what the school wants to improve.

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Grade: 2

From a very low start, pupils, regardless of their learning difficulties, make good progress although standards remain below the national average. The very small number of girls in the school make good progress because teachers ensure that they are involved in lessons. All pupils achieve well in speaking and listening because they have many opportunities to contribute to discussions both in lessons and during the school day and their responses are valued. Most pupils make good progress in reading and for some, particularly the youngest pupils, progress is excellent. The school has recognised that pupils’ progress in writing is not satisfactory because there are not sufficient opportunities to enable pupils to write at length or in detail, for example when responding to written questions. Achievement in mathematics is good throughout the school. Pupils make good progress in personal, social and health education because

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Grade: 2

teachers place great importance on this area. The school sets itself challenging targets and meets these well.

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Grade: 2

Pupils’ personal development, including their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, is good. Pupils clearly enjoy coming to school and this is reflected in their good attendance. They settle to work in lessons quickly and have positive attitudes to learning. They demonstrate considerable pride in their work and this is shown in the way they celebrate their own and each other’s achievements in assemblies. Pupils gradually develop positive feelings about themselves and this is a direct result of the strong sense of mutual respect within the school. This is endorsed by parents, one of whom commented that their child’s ‘self-esteem has greatly improved and this is because of the care and understanding given by all the staff’. Together with their good progress in literacy and numeracy, this prepares pupils well for their future economic well-being. However, the lack of opportunities for pupils to attend

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Grade: 2

mainstream schools prevents them from making full use of the skills they have learnt. Pupils show a good understanding of what is acceptable and not acceptable behaviour and learn not to react when others behave inappropriately. They respond well to the school’s high expectations and the positive relations they have with all staff. The school has addressed pupils’ concerns about bullying well through improving lunchtime activities and this has been effective in reducing the number of incidents that occur. Pupils have a good awareness of what is good for them in terms of healthy lifestyles 3 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006 and, although commenting that they should have chips more than once a week, they do appreciate the range of good quality food they have each day. They have a good understanding of keeping safe. Pupils take full advantage of the many physical activities

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Grade: 2

on offer including swimming, football and horse riding. This is extended further in several classes, for example with a ‘Wakeup Workout’ which helps the pupils become calm and settle on arrival in school. Pupils enjoy taking on responsibilities in the school community and those within the school council take their roles very seriously. Pupils are involved in fund-raising and have a good understanding of life in a multicultural society.

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Grade: 2

Teaching and learning are good because all staff know pupils well and manage their behaviour very effectively. They make good use of the school’s systems to ensure that there is a consistent approach to rewards and sanctions through the school. Considerable time is spent ensuring that pupils understand when they have behaved inappropriately. Staff work closely together and ensure that best use is made of their specialist subject knowledge. Effective training has enabled staff to have a better understanding of the range of needs of their pupils and often lessons are well planned to meet the needs of each pupil. However, subject leaders recognise that this is not yet consistent throughout the school and at times work set is not appropriate for all pupils. Teachers make very good use of information and communication technology in their lessons both to support learning and to create a calming atmosphere which,

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Grade: 2

for example, allows time for pupils to read independently. However, not all teachers plan effectively to improve pupils’ writing skills and there is an overuse of printed worksheets which often prevents pupils from writing in detail. Teachers and support staff work well together and there are good examples of joint planning to ensure there is a clear understanding of what pupils will learn. Support staff are particularly effective in helping and encouraging pupils to remain on task. Teachers assess pupils’ work on a regular basis. However the school recognises that more work is needed to ensure their assessments are always accurate. In addition, it is not always possible to tell from teachers’ marking how much help a pupil has been given to complete their tasks.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good overall. Effective curriculum planning ensures that pupils are taught all the subjects they should be and makes clear what each year group will learn. There are a good number of opportunities for pupils to be involved in activities and the school makes effective use of the local community to support pupils’ learning through trips to places of interest. However, links with mainstream schools are not effective and opportunities to prepare pupils for returning to the mainstream are very limited. 4 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006 The recently introduced extended curriculum provides a range of activities for pupils to be involved in after school, such as fishing, walking and cycling. There are appropriate plans in place to develop this further. The programme for personal and social development is very good and the school plans to develop it even further by

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Grade: 2

introducing a programme focused on developing pupils’ social and emotional aspects of learning. The accommodation and school grounds provide pupils with a very positive learning environment.

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Grade: 2

Care, guidance and support are good. Staff are strongly committed to all pupils and have been well trained to meet their needs. They establish very good relationships with pupils and this enables pupils to feel safe and confident. Good child protection procedures are in place and there is regular training for all staff. There are very good links with other agencies and pupils are well supported through a range of therapies. Good, regular contact between home and school and the good work with agencies provides support for parents and families as well as the pupils. The use of setting targets to help pupils make progress is satisfactory overall and being developed well. It has improved from the previous inspection. Targets are now more focused on pupils’ personal and social development, though this is not yet consistent for all pupils. The school is appropriately looking to reintroduce targets for literacy and numeracy to

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Grade: 2

enable teachers to track pupils’ academic progress more effectively. Pupils know their targets well and are involved in both setting them and reviewing their progress in class.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. Despite a number of changes in leadership over the last three years, the senior management team have succeeded in ensuring that the school has continued to provide a good quality education for its pupils. Systems to check on the work that goes on in class are good and subject leaders carry out their roles well. There is, as a result, a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school and this is reflected in the school’s accurate self-evaluation. There is a good level of consultation with all those involved in the school, including parents and pupils, and this has contributed to the school’s understanding of how it is perceived and what it needs to do to improve. A good start has been made in collating data on pupils’ achievements but the school is still at an early stage of analysing and evaluating the information gained and is not yet using it as part of its improvement planning.

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Grade: 2

Governors have a good knowledge of what goes on in school and a number have visited lessons and provided detailed reports to the governing body. They recognise they are still at an early stage of developing their role as ‘critical friends’ of the school but are very clear about what needs to happen, as when setting targets for the acting 5 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006 headteacher or visiting the residential facility. Good progress has been made since the last inspection and the school has a good capacity to improve. 6 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006 .

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set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s

website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 7 Inspection Report: Springfield House Community Special School, 10 May 2006 to 11 May 2006

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Overall

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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learners?

NA 2 How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? NA NA The quality and standards in foundation stage NA 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation NA Yes The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

NA 2 How well do learners achieve? NA 4 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 2 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

NA 2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development NA 2 The behaviour of learners NA 2 The attendance of learners NA 2 How well learners enjoy their education NA 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices NA 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles NA 2 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community NA 2 How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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needs and interests of learners?

NA 2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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needs and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low.

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and supporting all learners?

NA 2 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 2 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 2 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 2 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 2 The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities NA Yes The adequacy and suitability of staff to ensure that learners are protected

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The extent to which schools enable learners to be healthy

Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to eat and drink healthily Yes Learners are encouraged and enabled to take regular exercise Yes Learners are discouraged from smoking and substance abuse Yes Learners are educated about sexual health

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The extent to which providers ensure that learners stay safe

Yes Procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements Yes Risk assessment procedures and related staff training are in place Yes Action is taken to reduce anti-social behaviour, such as bullying and racism Yes Learners are taught about key risks and how to deal with them

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The extent to which learners make a positive contribution

Yes Learners are helped to develop stable, positive relationships Yes Learners, individually and collectively, participate in making decisions that affect them Yes Learners are encouraged to initiate, participate in and manage activities in school and the wider community

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The extent to which schools enable learners to achieve economic well-being

Yes There is provision to promote learners’ basic skills Yes Learners have opportunities to develop enterprise skills and work in teams NA Careers education and guidance is provided to all learners in key stage 3 and 4 and the sixth form NA Education for all learners aged 14–19 provides an understanding of employment and the economy

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for making us so welcome in your school. We very much enjoyed meeting and talking to you. You were very pleasant and polite and we were very pleased to see how proud you were of your school and the residential facility. Your school is a good school. Below are some of the things we liked best: • You get on well with your teachers and they are very good at helping you to manage your behaviour. • You improve your behaviour and social skills well. • You clearly like school and you all attend school very regularly. • You all make good progress in speaking and listening and in your reading and mathematics. • You are very well cared for and those who stay in the residential facility are looked after well. To make things even better we have suggested three things that the school should now do: • Provide more opportunities for you to return to mainstream schools. • Provide you with more opportunities to improve your writing skills. • Use the information it has on your achievements

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

to help plan to make the school even better. I wish you well for the future. Sarah Mascall Lead inspector

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