College Park School

101182 Unique Reference Number Westminster Local Authority 307606 Inspection number 5 °6 June 2008 Inspection dates Greg Sorrell 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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Special Type of school Community special School category 5 °16 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 83 School The governing body Appropriate authority Ms Marion Stern Chair Mrs Regan Watkinson (Acting) Headteacher 1 November 2004 Date of previous school inspection Garway Road School address London W2 4PH 020 7641 4460 Telephone number 020 7221 5731 Fax number

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5-16 Age group 5 °6 June 2008 Inspection dates 307606 Inspection number .

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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

College Park is a community special school for 83 pupils aged 5 to 16. All have a statement of special educational needs relating to learning difficulties and other needs including behaviour, communication and autism. The school works in partnership with a number of local schools. Recent awards include Healthy School, Sportsmark and Artsmark. The acting headteacher has held this post for over a year. The school is due to move location whilst major building works are carried out. It is also subject to re-organisation and its intake will be more specifically pupils with autism. The appointment of an executive headteacher for this and a sister school was made during the inspection. The school is in the early stages of applying for Specialist Schools Status.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 3 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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Grade: 2

College Park School provides a good education for its pupils and provides well for their personal development and well-being. They make good progress in a wide range of subjects and gain accreditation that prepares them well for leaving school. The pupils' behaviour is good, as is their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The good curriculum enables the pupils to improve their communication skills as well knowing about staying safe and healthy in an environment where they enjoy lessons. There are also many opportunities for creativity, although not all pupils in Key Stage 3 have access to music lessons. The quality of teaching is good. Teachers and teaching assistants know the pupils well and most lessons are well planned, reflecting the good specialist subject knowledge held by staff. Relationships with all staff are good. Teachers' use of assessment to plan lessons is good overall.

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Grade: 2

Vocational programmes, work experience and attendance at local colleges of further education prepare older pupils well for leaving school. The curriculum is enriched by enterprise activities and after school clubs that have a positive impact on their personal development and well-being. Good attention is given to making the curriculum relevant to needs. School based programmes are well planned and monitored although some off-site activities for a minority of older pupils lack this necessary attention to detail. The quality of care, guidance and support is good. School procedures ensure that pupils' well-being is appropriately safeguarded. Pupils receive good support from school staff and therapists to develop effective communication and improve behaviour where appropriate. Leadership, management and governance are good. The acting headteacher and deputy have responded well to the challenges posed by the headteacher's illness, a changing pupil population

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Grade: 2

and re-organisation proposals that include temporarily moving site during major building works. The senior managers have a good overview of the school's effectiveness and provide relevant training for all staff. Subject development planning is good, although not all departments make sufficient use of achievement data to evaluate their effectiveness on pupils' progress. The governing body gives good support on personnel, premises and finance issues although their role in evaluating pupils' achievement is underdeveloped. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive of the school. The school has made good progress since the last inspection and its capacity to improve further is also good.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Improve the analysis of progress by all staff and governors to ensure that all pupils are achieving as well as they can. ■ Ensure that all off-site alternative curriculum programmes are of the same quality as those that are school-based. ■ Provide opportunities for all Key Stage 3 pupils to study music.

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Grade: 2

Pupils make good progress in relation to their abilities and the targets set for them. The standards attained are inevitably well below average given the nature of the pupils' special educational needs. At the end of Key Stage 4 pupils achieve accreditation in a range of subjects 4 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008 including English, mathematics, science, information and communication technology, art and drama. The majority of examinations are at GCSE entry level. Vocational and enterprise awards are gained within the Award Scheme Development and Accreditation Network (ASDAN), Young Enterprise entry level and BTEC Skill for Working Life. Pupils also make good progress towards targets in their individual education plans. The school's tracking of progress is good and shows no significant differences in achievement between groups of pupils. However, the school acknowledges that the analysis of achievement data requires further investigation to ensure

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Grade: 2

all pupils are achieving as well as they can.

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Grade: 2

Pupils clearly enjoy being at school as seen by good attendance and behaviour. On arrival they exchange greetings with peers and staff. Many take advantage of breakfast club and show a good awareness of what makes for a healthy diet. Those who have to remain in taxis until school begins do so patiently. During lessons and breaks their behaviour is good. The vast majority accept the inconvenience posed by the school's limited accommodation very well, for example having to travel off-site for physical education and games lessons. Occasionally, they have to change rooms at short notice due to other classes requiring additional space for specific lessons. Pupils and their parents feel the school is a safe place to be. Rare incidents of challenging behaviour are properly recorded and fully investigated to everyone's satisfaction. There are many evident friendships in class and in the playground. Through the curriculum pupils

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Grade: 2

experience the cultures and faiths of others and develop good spiritual and cultural understanding. Pupils make a good contribution to the community through work experience, charitable donations and drama performances. Membership of the school council is taken seriously and they understand the importance of consultation and decision making, such as choosing the school uniform. Pupils enjoy success in local and national competitions and have created award winning designs. They look after each other well and understand moral issues such as the importance of conservation. Through work-related learning and a variety of mini-enterprise activities they gain a good awareness of the world of work. Pupils readily take up opportunities for exercise and understand the importance of a healthy diet and the need to stay safe.

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Grade: 2

Teachers and teaching assistants have a good knowledge of pupils' different needs and reflect this in their planning. Appropriate account is given to prior attainment when setting up learning groups. Teachers and assistants work well together as a team, often with assistants taking on specialist roles, for example monitoring and supporting behaviour and in programmes to develop the social use of language. The most effective lessons involve practical and purposeful activities that engage the pupils fully; for example in art where the pupils achieve well in accredited courses and express themselves freely. Teachers use a wide range of teaching styles that involve whole class and individual learning. Effective use is made of praise and immediate feedback, for example 'good looking' or 'good learning'. Behaviour management is effective and staff 5 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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Grade: 2

liaise well to ensure disruption to learning is minimised. Occasionally, the content of lessons does not fully match the pupils' abilities and some lessons lack the pace evident where teaching is better. Appropriate use is made of interactive whiteboards. In order to meet the increasingly complex needs of the pupils, staff have embarked upon learning alternative methods of communication with pupils such as picture exchange. These methods are very effective for pupils who need visual support for communication.

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Grade: 2

The recently revised curriculum is good. In all subjects there is a suitable focus upon literacy and numeracy. In Key Stage 4, in addition to accredited subjects such as GCSE, Entry Level and Youth Awards, there are well-planned vocational programmes. Relevant activities include work experience, mini-enterprises and part-time attendance at a local college of further education. For a minority of pupils personalised programmes are drawn up that include access to off-site provision. However, some elements of these programmes lack the rigorous monitoring evident for those based at school. Although there is good provision for creative arts not all pupils in Key Stage 3 have music lessons to which they are entitled. Extra curricular provision is good and includes a very popular performance arts group led by external specialists. The annual residential trip has been suspended this year due to staffing difficulties. Opportunities for competitive sports are regularly provided and the breakfast club

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Grade: 2

has a good impact on the pupils' well-being and understanding of health-related matters. Good use is also made of the local community, for example visits to local museums and places of interest.

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Grade: 2

Overall, care guidance and support for pupils is good, with particular strengths in pastoral aspects. This ensures pupils feel safe, promotes their personal development very effectively and helps them achieve well. Good links exist with other professional agencies. Therapies, particularly speech and language, have a significant impact on pupils' achievements. Good provision is made for more vulnerable pupils, for example specific groupings based on behavioural needs and close support from pastoral staff. Significant preparation is undertaken to ensure smooth transition between classes and when leaving school for further education. Annual reviews of statements of special educational needs keep parents well informed. Parents are overwhelmingly supportive with comments such as, 'the school has done wonders for my child'. Academic support and guidance is good. The majority of reports are very detailed, although

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Grade: 2

some in Key Stage 4 focus too much on attitudes and effort rather than progress and guidance for improvement.

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Grade: 2

Leadership, management and governance are good. The acting headteacher has shown good leadership since taking up the post in difficult circumstances. She is very well supported by the acting deputy headteacher and together they have worked hard to improve the school. They work well with senior mangers to identify and implement improvements to management 6 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008 procedures and delegated responsibilities. These include re-establishing performance management for all staff, rigorous monitoring of behaviour and a curriculum review in light of the pupils' changing special educational needs. These actions have had a positive impact on achievement. The deployment of teaching assistants, especially those with specialist roles, is particularly effective in supporting pupils with additional communication and behavioural needs. Subject leadership is good overall and aided by good specialist subject knowledge. The senior

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Grade: 2

management team have rightly identified the need to develop staff expertise to address the challenges posed by a move to class based lessons for most subjects in Key Stage 3 and below. The routine gathering of evidence and analysis of progress data to inform subject planning is at an early stage although is well developed in English. Professional development is very strong for all staff. The school has good systems to induct new staff and effective support is given when appropriate. Monitoring procedures give an accurate view of teaching and planning. The school's commitment to inclusion and equality of opportunity is good. The governors have relevant expertise in personnel, premises and finance. This is used to good effect, notably in recruiting an executive headteacher and involvement in local authority's re-organisation planning. Finances are well managed and appropriately audited. However, governors' role in evaluating pupils' achievement is less well developed.

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Grade: 2

7 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008 .

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Grade: 2

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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Inspection judgements

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

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 4 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 2 The behaviour of learners 2 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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and interests of learners?

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

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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. 9 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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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 2 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 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 Yes 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? 10 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

17 June 2008 Dear Pupils Inspection of College Park School,London,W2 4PH Thank you for helping me to get to know your school last week and for the warm welcome. I found that you make good progress while at the school and this prepares you well for life after school. Your acting headteacher and her deputy give good leadership to the school and have been working hard to see that the school continues to give you the education you need now and in the future. The teaching you receive from the staff is good as is the additional support to help you all communicate as well as possible. It is clear you become more confident as you get older. I enjoyed seeing how hard you work in lessons, especially when you were improving your reading and use of mathematics. You obviously enjoy practical lessons such as art and I could see how well prepared you were for the dance production. The range of lessons and other activities

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

such as clubs are good. These experiences and your time on work experience and at college prepare you well for leaving school. You get on well with the staff and allow your fellow pupils to get on and learn in class. I was very impressed by your good behaviour in lessons. The school works hard to keep you fit and healthy. The breakfast club gives you a good start to the day and your physical education lessons help you a lot. The wall displays of recent work in art, science, history and technology show that you achieve well in these subjects. In order to improve the school further, I am asking your acting headteacher to improve the way the staff and governors use all the information they have about how well you are doing. I'm also asking her to make sure that all the alternative programmes are really well planned and finally to ensure that all Key Stage 3 pupils can have music lessons. I wish you lots of luck in the future.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Yours sincerely Greg Sorrell Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: College Park School, 5 °6 June 2008

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