Croft Community SchoolOfsted inspection, 13 Jan 2006

114340 Unique Reference Number Durham LEA 279367 Inspection number 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006 Inspection dates Mrs Noreen Buckingham Reporting inspector

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

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Catchgate School address Special Type of school Annfield Plain Community School category Stanley, County Durham 5 to 16 Age range of pupils 01207 234547 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01207 234922 Fax number 93 Number on roll Alderman Thompson Chair of governors The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs Maggie Collins Headteacher 1 December 1998 Date of previous inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 279367 12 January 2006 - 5 to 16 13 January 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 an additional inspector.

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Description of the school

Hare Law school is a day special school in North West Durham for pupils who have moderate learning difficulties. An increasing number have additional complex learning needs such as autistic spectrum disorder. Pupils can be admitted between the ages of 5 and 16, but currently few are under 8 years of age. Numbers have decreased in recent years. Pupils’ standards on entry are below those expected for their age. All pupils have statements of special educational needs and no pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006

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Grade: 3

The overall effectiveness of the school is satisfactory with some good features. This finding agrees with the school’s own judgement. Parents’ views are overwhelmingly positive. Pupils’ good personal development and attendance show how much they enjoy school and the good level of care they receive. Other strengths are the headteacher’s leadership and management, elements of teaching and learning and the curriculum. Pupils’ achievement is satisfactory, and is improving in English and mathematics. However, while pupils learn certain skills in information and communication technology (ICT), they are not able to develop and apply them through work in other subjects. Subject leaders are not involved enough in monitoring and improving their subjects. Governors fully support the school and are increasingly active in monitoring its work, but they do not assist in the setting of challenging whole-school targets to raise pupils’ achievements. The school nevertheless gives satisfactory value

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Grade: 3

for money. Since the last inspection, the school has made satisfactory improvement. Its accommodation is improved and it makes better use of assessment information to ensure that lower attaining pupils make more progress in mathematics. Although the involvement of governors and subject leaders remains an issue, other recent management issues have been resolved. The stability and direction provided by the appointment of a permanent headteacher gives the school a satisfactory capacity to improve.

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What the school should do to improve further

The school should: • raise pupils’ achievement, particularly by involving all staff and governors in setting and using whole-school targets • improve pupils’ learning in lessons by making subject leaders more effective in monitoring and improving the quality of teaching • increase pupils’ use of ICT in other subjects to raise their confidence and competence in this subject.

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Grade: 3

Pupils’ achievement is satisfactory. Standards are low compared to national expectations. Most pupils make satisfactory progress in relation to their individual capabilities, and different groups, such as boys and girls and pupils with autistic spectrum disorder, achieve equally well. A few make good progress. The school adequately identifies individual areas for improvement and enables pupils to meet the targets on their individual education plans (IEP). It also uses assessment information to decide how to reinforce or change its provision for particular pupils. The information is not used, however, to set whole-school targets for raising standards. 2 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006 Older pupils achieve at a satisfactory level in the range of nationally accredited examinations they are offered, such as General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in art, Entry Level 1 in mathematics, science and physical education, Entry

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Grade: 3

Level 3 in English and ICT, and a wide range of units which include vocational subjects that support their preparation for leaving school. There are some good examples of extended writing in English in Years 8 to 11.

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Grade: 2

Pupils’ personal development and well-being are good. Most show a good level of maturity by the time they reach Year 11 and are prepared for life after school as a result of the school’s strong emphasis on personal and social skills. Pupils develop a keen sense of responsibility and pride in themselves and their school. Members of the school council take their role very seriously, feeling that they can make a difference to what happens in their school and the wider community. For example, they have raised funds for Oxfam and created a garden within the school grounds in memory of a former pupil. Behaviour is good and pupils have positive attitudes to lessons. Their good attendance indicates how much they enjoy what the school offers. Losing a football match did nothing to dampen their high spirits, their enthusiasm for participating in the game or their determination to do better next time. Although the number of fixed-term

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Grade: 2

exclusions is high, most relate to a very small minority of pupils. All staff are trained in a team approach to managing behaviour, and this has a positive effect on improving pupils’ behaviour. Because of good opportunities in physical education, science and design and technology, pupils learn well about the importance of healthy lifestyles and about health and safety generally. Pupils are adequately prepared for their future lives by developing understanding of basic skills in literacy and numeracy, which are used well by the older pupils involved in the Young Enterprise project, ‘Dazzle Designs’. The school’s ethos supports pupils’ social and moral development well but their spiritual and cultural development is just satisfactory. The celebration of individual achievement in assemblies raises pupils’ self-awareness and esteem, but they do not learn enough about life in our culturally diverse society.

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Grade: 3

Teaching and learning are satisfactory, although there are some good features, especially in English in Years 8 to 11 because, in these classes, the teacher’s secure subject knowledge, enthusiastic approach and very positive relationships strengthen pupils’ learning. Additionally, the different approaches used for pupils with autistic spectrum disorder help them to make progress in lessons. In some lessons, too little 3 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006 is asked of the pupils; activities are routine, and a slow pace further disengages pupils. Planning varies in quality. At best it provides good detail for individual learning needs and targets; at other times it is vague, with minimum information about content and outcomes. Praise and encouragement are used effectively to maintain interest and enable pupils to see how well they are doing. This was particularly evident in a design and technology

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Grade: 3

lesson in which pupils were completing a money box to a specified design. Pupils were very proud of the finished product and able to assess how well they had met the design criteria. Similarly, in a trampoline lesson, pupils learned new skills well and enjoyed the practical element so much that they participated with enthusiasm. When marking is good, it gives pupils a clear understanding of how to improve their work, but worksheets are generally overused and seldom match individual needs. Teaching assistants make a vital difference in the classroom because of the way they manage and support pupils and work with teachers. This means that most pupils are engaged for most of the time and disruption to learning is minimal.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is satisfactory and generally meets the needs of all the pupils. The school has recognised the need to adapt it for some pupils, and also to give older pupils work placements and work-related learning activities, and to develop life skills. Pupils have some satisfactory opportunities to work in mainstream schools on an individual basis. Opportunities for pupils to use and improve their computer skills across the curriculum are very limited. However, older pupils have good opportunities to access a number of courses of their choice in local colleges, where they can continue their learning after leaving school. Personal, social, health and citizenship education has a positive effect on pupils’ overall personal development. This is further supported by the programme Towards Responsibility in Education and Employment, in which a weekly theme encourages pupils to improve specific personal attributes. Success in this is celebrated in assemblies.

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Grade: 3

The curriculum is enriched by a number of activities throughout the year. Examples include local church services, a community orchestra, links with the local People’s Kitchen which helps the homeless, local arts groups and visits to places of interest. In addition, all pupils enjoy the opportunity to go on a residential week. ’It’s good going away. You get to do good things’. However, pupils have few opportunities for any activities after school.

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Grade: 2

The school successfully places a strong emphasis on pupils’ care, guidance and support. A wide number of agencies support pupils, parents and the school. As a result, the staff know the pupils very well, pupils and staff have very positive relationships, and pupils trust staff to help them if they have a problem. Health personnel give good 4 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006 support, for example by holding “drop in” sessions, and Connexions staff support careers work. All statutory requirements are securely met, and careful risk assessments ensure the safety of pupils both in and out of school. All staff are trained in a team approach to managing behaviour. Parents are very confident that the school has their child’s best interests at heart, ‘Choosing Hare Law for my son was the best decision I have made’, said one parent. The school council and their own Annual Review give pupils

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Grade: 2

opportunities to make decisions about what happens in school. However, some reports to parents do not give a full picture of individual progress across the curriculum. The tracking of pupils’ progress is at an early stage, but it does give basic information which helps staff to decide whether to support what is being done or to consider changes.

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Grade: 3

The school has come through a difficult time and the appointment of the acting headteacher to a permanent position has brought stability to leadership and management. She has the drive, vision and determination to move the school forward, and a commitment to provide the very best for every pupil. The school’s self-evaluation shows that she knows the school well and her judgement that leadership and management are satisfactory agrees with the inspection judgement. She has prioritised the most important areas for improvement and enlisted the views of parents and pupils. Parents have full confidence in the leadership and management of the school. Despite some strengths in the middle management, the need remains to extend the role of subject leaders in monitoring and improving teaching in their subjects so that learning becomes good rather than adequate. Governors fully support all the school does but are becoming more critically involved and challenging, as was seen when a

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Grade: 3

governor challenged the number of exclusions and wanted to know more about the reasons for them. However, governors do not yet use the school’s assessment information to set the school challenging targets in order to help to raise pupils’ achievements. The headteacher has introduced new ways of monitoring and evaluating the work of the school, and has recognised the need to involve others in the process. The school improvement plan highlights the most important areas for development well. Considering the school’s past problems and its record of improvement, its current capacity to improve is satisfactory. 5 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006 .

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Grade: 3

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Hare Law School, 12 January 2006 to 13 January 2006

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Inspection judgements

16-19 School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

NA 3 How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? NA 3 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 3 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 3 How well do learners achieve? NA 4 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

NA 3 How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners NA 3 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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Personal development and well-being

NA 2 How good is the overall personal development and well-being of the learners? NA 3 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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The quality of provision

NA 3 How effective are teaching and learning in meeting the full range of the learners' needs? NA 3 How well do the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of learners? NA 2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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The quality of provision

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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Leadership and management

NA 3 How effective are leadership and management in raising achievement and supporting all learners? NA 3 How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education NA 4 How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets, through quality assurance and self-review NA 3 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can NA 3 How effectively and efficiently resources are deployed to achieve value for money NA 3 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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Leadership and management

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 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 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

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Leadership and management

wider community 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 Yes Careers education and guidance is provided to all learners in key stage 3 and 4 and the sixth form Yes 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

Alexandra House 33 Kingsway London WC2B 6SE T 0207 421 6800 F 0207 421 6707 Ofsted helpline 08456 404045 Mrs Maggie Collins Hare Law School Catchgate Annfield Plain Stanley County Durham DH9 8DT 12 Jan 2006 Dear Pupils Thank you for making me so welcome in your school last week. I did enjoy meeting you all and talking with you. You gave me valuable insights into how your school is run and how well you are cared for. The things I particularly noted were: the way you behave well and enjoy your lessons. Your attendance is good so I know you enjoy coming to school the way all the adults in the school take care of you all equally and make your school a happy place to be how you make good relationships with each other and all the adults in school how very happy your parents are with what the school does for you the range of opportunities you are given as you get older to get ready for the next step in your lives how the headteacher and staff make decisions with your best interests at heart.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

I have asked your headteacher and governors to make your school even better by: encouraging all the teachers and governors to be more involved in all aspects of what goes on in the school giving you more opportunities to use your computer skills in lessons getting teachers to take a closer look at how subjects are being taught so that they can be improved. With very best wishes

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