Oak Grove College

126161 Unique Reference Number West Sussex Local Authority 293479 Inspection number 28 February °1 March 2007 Inspection dates Ann Berger HMI Reporting inspector

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

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The Boulevard School address Special Type of school Worthing Community special School category BN13 1JX 11 °19 Age range of pupils 01903 708870 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01903 705439 Fax number 200 Number on roll (school) 37 Number on roll (6th form) Tracie Griffiths Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Graham Elliker Headteacher 26 February 2001 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection dates Age group 293479 28 February °1 March 2007 11°19 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 of Her Majesty’s Inspectors and one Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

Oak Grove College opened in October 2005 as a result of the reorganisation of special provision in this part of West Sussex. There are 31 classes and 112 staff, which is much larger than the average special school. It is housed in a brand new building designed specifically for these students. The students all reach standards below national expectations because they have learning difficulties and complex needs. The school is co-located on a campus site together with a mainstream high school, youth centre and residential provision. The school has provision for 35 students up to the age of 19 for those with the most complex needs who are not ready to transfer to a local college at age 16. Most students came from the secondary departments of three local special schools. About two thirds of the staff transferred from these schools.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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Grade: 3

The school has overcome significant challenges. As one teacher explained, 'Eighteen months ago this was an empty shell.' In a short time the staff have established a very positive ethos and a satisfactory quality of education. The senior team, through their energy, enthusiasm and vision, have established a cohesive school where students care for and support each other well. Many students started with apprehension about changing school. These concerns have been overcome through the determined efforts of staff. The students feel very safe and secure, although arrangements for risk assessments are insecure and inconsistently applied. Any bullying is addressed well and everyone is valued. The students have made an outstanding contribution to the rapid developments. Of particular note is the work they have done to improve the environment. Many give up their own time to maintain and develop the gardens and play area to a very high

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Grade: 3

standard. They enjoy school and are highly motivated by the innovative curriculum, which meets their needs and prepares them well for the future. The students regularly participate in active sports to support a healthy lifestyle. Many suitable policies and practices have been established and the drive to change and develop the school is good. Positive partnerships with a range of providers, for example the local college, work experience partners, the Church and youth service, enhance the opportunities for students. The governing body provides good support and challenge and is holding the school to account for its work very effectively. Despite these many strengths there is a long way to go to establish the systems and procedures which ensure continued improvement. The school's self-evaluation is satisfactory but underdeveloped, as the school's view of its own performance is insufficiently well grounded in a rigorous evaluation of the progress the students

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Grade: 3

make. This limits the school's capacity to improve, which is satisfactory overall. There is too little focus on drawing together all the evidence to inform developments and ensure practice across the school becomes more consistent. Key strategic partnerships with the local authority and mainstream schools are inadequate and too many students do not have the opportunities to mix with their mainstream peers. The students' achievements are generally satisfactory. The progress they make varies considerably between the year groups and between subjects. They make good progress in Key Stage 5 and in the vocational aspects of the curriculum. The progress in literacy is variable. The main reason for the uneven progress is insufficient focus on developing policies which ensure consistency in classroom practice. There are assessment systems within individual subjects which record achievements but they are not drawn together to

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Grade: 3

enable staff to account for the students' performance. 2 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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Grade: 3

The information about the students' learning is clearer than for the students in Key Stage 5 than in the rest of the school. There has been greater continuity for these students as nearly all came from one school. Most students achieve accreditation at ASDAN Bronze Award level with over half achieving ASDAN Silver Award. In all other respects the judgements for these pupils are reflected in the relevant sections of the report.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Build on the good practice to establish coherent systems for assessing and tracking students' progress and use this information to develop better systems for self-review. • Develop management policies to establish more consistent classroom practice. • Improve the relationship with the local authority and find more ways of developing partnerships with local mainstream schools. • Establish secure risk assessment practices for students going on trips out of school.

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Grade for sixth form: 3

The progress the students make varies between groups and subjects. In the lessons observed they made good progress in art and design, drama and technical studies. The progress was satisfactory in literacy, information and communication technology (ICT) and physical education. Students in the sixth form made good progress with their vocational skills developed though work experience, for example in horticulture. The senior leadership team has not yet collated the information about the progress the students make to reach a secure judgement on this. However, feedback from parents indicates that they are mainly happy with their children's progress. The inspectors have agreed with the school, in the light of the evidence available, that achievements are satisfactory overall.

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Grade for sixth form: 2

Students' personal development and well-being are good. They like their new school and think that students from the three original schools mix well and get on well together. Behaviour is good and students are tolerant and respectful towards one another. They can often be seen assisting each other, for example in the dining hall, at playtime, or when playing sports. The students' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good. Students are proud of their school and are happy to take 3 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007 responsibility for improving it. They have worked extremely hard to develop attractive areas such as the central playground and grounds from a previously barren environment. Through the School Council, students raise issues that they want to see improved, such as litter and safety cameras. Students love the residential trips and several said how much they were looking forward to the next one. Many select healthy options at

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Grade for sixth form: 2

lunchtime and enjoy the range offered. The wide-ranging curriculum and good attention to students' personal and social skills mean the school is preparing students well for their future lives. Students' attendance is satisfactory though there are a few whose attendance is not as good as it should be.

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Grade for sixth form: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is mainly satisfactory, although it varies from lesson to lesson and there are good features in most lessons. For example, teaching assistants are deployed well, activities are well planned to engage the students and there is a good emphasis on the students' enjoyment of their time in class. The relationships are very good and behaviour is very well managed. The variability is caused in part by lack of a whole-school policy to ensure that the expectations of high achievement are consistent across the school. Weaknesses in teaching lie mainly in the core subjects of English, mathematics, ICT and science. Work has only recently begun to establish clear programmes of study for each of the core subjects. A good start has been made with English, though there is more to do to ensure the new policies are consistently applied. For example, despite advice and training on literacy materials, teachers in years 7 and 8 still use resources which are

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Grade for sixth form: 2

not suitable for students in secondary school.

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Grade for sixth form: 2

The school has introduced an innovative curriculum which allows students considerable flexibility and choice. This is much appreciated by the students. A suitable balance between core subjects and the rest of the curriculum has been achieved and progression routes are also developing well. The curriculum is particularly well matched to students' interests and needs. In addition to the current qualifications available, plans to introduce NVQ level 1 qualifications and other accreditation are progressing at a good pace though no students have yet completed a full key stage, so their progress over time on these courses is yet to be evaluated. 4 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007 The curriculum for the students in Key Stage 5 is suitable for their ages. For example, they run their own café and go across to the college for lunch. Good links with other workplace organisations make the learning relevant for the students.

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Grade for sixth form: 2

Students receive good care, support and guidance and this is a major reason why students' personal development is good. All staff in the school are committed to this. There are good links with support agencies, including care workers and health professionals. The school has a successful system for managing students' behaviour. This has led to an overall reduction in incidents over the last year. Arrangements for safeguarding students meet requirements in most respects. However, the school does not fulfil the statutory requirements for carrying out risk assessments. This is in urgent need of improvement to ensure that no student's safety is compromised when out on visits, including residential stays. The school's systems for tracking and evaluating students' performance are at a very early stage of development and are not yet sufficiently accurate to enable staff to have a clear view as to the academic progress students have made and whether students

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Grade for sixth form: 3

The leadership has been focused on establishing an orderly community and this it has done well. The team has won the confidence of staff, though there is more to do to ensure that their performance is monitored and supported. Good efforts have been made to ensure that teaching is at least satisfactory but the leadership has not fully established the consistent policies required to ensure a higher proportion of good teaching. Governance is much improved and the school is held closely to account for its work. Middle leaders work hard and ensure they discharge their responsibilities. They are well managed and the secure year team structure provides good support for individuals. However, information about the school's performance as a whole needs to be gathered and analysed with greater consistency and rigour. 5 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007 .

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Grade for sixth form: 3

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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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

3 3 How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? 3 4 How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 3 3 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 3 3 The capacity to make any necessary improvements NA NA Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

3 3 How well do learners achieve? 4 4 The standards 1 reached by learners

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Achievement and standards

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

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well-being of the learners?

The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The behaviour of learners 3 The attendance of learners 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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range of needs and interests of learners?

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

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range of 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 to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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achievement and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities No No Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for welcoming us when we came to inspect your school. We enjoyed talking to you and we were impressed by how much everyone looks after each other. The teachers do a good job making sure that your lessons are fun. While we were watching lessons, you did what you were asked to do and behaved very well. We were also very pleased with how much work you have all done to improve the play areas and garden. The school is still very new and everyone is trying hard to make sure it runs smoothly and problems are sorted out quickly. We have suggested that: • staff spend more time checking how much you are learning in your lessons so they can all help you improve • more ways are found for you to mix with the students from the mainstream school. The school has got off to a good start and everyone is keen to help you do better in your lessons. 9 Inspection Report: Oakgrove College, 28 February °1 March 2007

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