The Brook Special Primary School

William C Harvey School Inspection report

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102177 Unique Reference Number Haringey Local Authority 323595 Inspection number 4 February 2009 Inspection date Kay Charlton Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The registered childcare, managed by the governing body, was inspected under section 49 of the Childcare Act 2006.

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Special Type of school Maintained School category 3–16 Age range of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils Number on roll 49 School (total) 0 Government funded early education provision for children aged 3 to the end of the EYFS 0 Childcare provision for children aged 0 to 3 years The governing body Appropriate authority Ms Jane Low Chair Ms Margaret Sumner Headteacher 6 December 2005 Date of previous school inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous funded early education inspection Not previously inspected Date of previous childcare inspection Adams Road School address London N17 6HW 020 8808 7120 Telephone number 020 8885 2719 Fax number

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3–16 Age group 4 February 2009 Inspection date 323595 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. 2 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by an Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

William C Harvey is designated as a special school for pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties and/or disabilities as well as severe learning difficulties and/or disabilities. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in both the range and complexity of pupils' needs on entry. All pupils have a statement of special educational need. They come from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds with the most predominant group being Black African. A high percentage of pupils speak English as an additional language and many of these are at the early stages of learning English. Children in the Early Years Foundation Stage are taught in the Reception class. The school has achieved accreditation such as the Healthy Schools and International Schools awards. The school is part of a re-organisation of Haringey special schools and in the next few years is due to be integrated into one of three fully inclusive campuses covering all

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Description of the school

types of school. The school's sixth form left in July 2007 to join the newly formed Haringey Sixth Form College.

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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: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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Grade: 1

William C Harvey is an outstanding school. Its vision that 'The school should be full of laughter, light and enthusiasm' has an extremely positive impact on pupils' achievements and their personal development, both of which are excellent. As a result, older pupils are exceptionally well prepared for the next stage of their education and parents are delighted with the school. The headteacher and senior team have ensured that there has been significant improvement since the last inspection. They have established a caring and supportive ethos that contributes significantly to raising pupils' self-esteem and confidence and in ensuring that pupils achieve of their best. There are very strong systems to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the provision, so that leaders are fully aware of its strengths and weaknesses. All have contributed to a well-focussed improvement plan that takes full account of the proposed reorganisation.

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Grade: 1

There are rigorous systems to monitor and develop teaching and learning and, as a result, these are excellent. All staff are trained and supported extremely well, so that they are successful in managing the learning of pupils with an increasingly wide range of learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Across the school, teachers' planning has a clear focus on the needs of individuals, based on the challenging targets that are set for pupils' personal and academic development. Teachers and support staff assess pupils' achievements meticulously and set well-focussed targets to challenge pupils in the next steps in their learning. The professionalism and commitment of the support staff play a significant part in pupils' excellent achievements. The outstanding curriculum is a key feature in the school's success. Staff work with other professionals, including therapists, health professionals and the wider community, to create a

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Grade: 1

comprehensive range of exciting and purposeful learning activities. A high emphasis is given to the development of pupils' skills in language and communication and this very effectively supports their learning across all areas. Enrichment activities, underpinned by the school's exceptional links with others, are of a very high quality, as recognised by its International Schools Award. The regular drumming sessions, where around 60 pupils from William C Harvey and other local schools play together, are a joy to behold. All of these extra activities help to ensure that pupils' attitudes to school are extremely positive and that their behaviour is excellent. A significant feature of the school is the strong teamwork and sense of purpose established by the headteacher and senior team. This is the cornerstone for the excellent relationships that have been built up with other agencies and other schools. The school's work in championing

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Grade: 1

the profile of pupils with complex learning across the world makes an outstanding contribution to community cohesion. Middle leaders support their areas well. In line with the school's drive for continual improvement, it has identified that these staff do not yet take on enough responsibility for monitoring the effectiveness of the areas that they lead and sharing good practice. The governing body acts very effectively as the school's critical friend. The arrangements for safeguarding pupils and ensuring their safety are robust. The school has an excellent track record of improvement and is extremely well placed to face the challenges of reorganisation.

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Grade: 1

Children's achievements are outstanding because of excellent teaching. The arrangements to introduce young children to the school are very effective. This ensures that they settle very 4 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009 quickly and develop the daily routines and independence that form the foundation of their future learning. Staff are experienced in working with children of this age and match learning very well to the needs of individuals. The leadership of the Early Years Foundation Stage is highly effective. Very comprehensive assessment systems are used to track each small step of a child's progress and set up well-focused targets for further development. The provision fully meets the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum, with best use made of the outdoor area so that all teaching fully challenges the children.

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What the school should do to improve further

■ Extend the role of middle managers so that they take more responsibility for monitoring the areas that they lead and sharing good practice.

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Grade: 1

As a result of excellent teaching and care and guidance, pupils invariably meet or exceed their challenging targets. The high quality of support given to pupils, often on an individual basis, ensures that they all make outstanding progress whatever their ability. Standards are well below those in mainstream schools but, given the nature of the pupils' learning difficulties and/or disabilities, this represents excellent achievement. The high focus on the development of pupils' language and communication skills pays off because it has a significant and positive impact on their achievements throughout the curriculum. It also ensures that pupils who speak English as an additional language achieve as well as their peers. The school enables pupils aged 14 to 16 to achieve very well within nationally accredited courses focused on the skills needed for life beyond school.

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Grade: 1

The various facets of pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development are excellent. Staff show high levels of respect to pupils, enabling them to make noticeable gains in developing their personal and social skills. The ways in which pupils of different ages support each other and learn to think through their rights and responsibilities play an important part in this development. Pupils work together in a harmonious atmosphere where bullying is rare. Key developments have taken place in developing the pupils' 'voice' and their views are taken fully into account. A particularly good example is the way older pupils helped to decide the award of the Turner prize. Pupils make a particularly strong contribution to the wider community, for example, through their work with a school in Ghana. All pupils show good awareness of the need for a healthy lifestyle and they pay attention to acting safely, as evidenced by the school's

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Grade: 1

Healthy Schools and Sportsmark awards. Attendance is good. The overall rate is affected by the medical conditions of some pupils. However, the school makes every effort to encourage all to attend and has recently been recognised by the local authority for improvements achieved. Pupils take on extra responsibilities, such as being head boy or head girl, with enthusiasm. Along with the strong development of their basic skills, this ensures that pupils are very confident to move to the next stage of their education. 5 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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Grade: 1

The quality of teaching has improved since the last inspection as a consequence of the rigorous support systems that are in place and the effectiveness of monitoring by senior staff. Staff plan their lessons and assess pupils' progress extremely carefully to match individual needs. They set a high expectation for each one and encourage pupils to think things out for themselves. Excellent relationships are a feature of all lessons and these are used extremely well to engage pupils and actively involve them in their own learning. Behaviour and classroom management are very effective so that lessons are calm and purposeful. The highly effective use of specialist communication techniques, such as signing, the use of pictorial systems and sensory learning, means that pupils, whatever their learning difficulties and/or disabilities, are fully challenged. In one outstanding lesson seen, which was focused on a topic entitled 'Let us

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Grade: 1

probe the silent places', these skills were exemplified extremely well. In turn, pupils' responses were exceptionally positive.

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Grade: 1

The school's vibrant curriculum with very high-quality art, dance, music and physical education fully reflects the pupils' cultural backgrounds. The ways in which the school works with others to ensure that pupils' learning experiences are of the highest order, including work with schools in Italy and Ghana, is exceptional. An emphasis on personal development ensures that every opportunity is seized to develop pupils' social skills. Very effective use is made of information and communication technology to support pupils' access to the curriculum.

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Grade: 1

Staff make sure that all pupils settle happily into school and feel confident about moving to the next stage of their education. There is comprehensive tracking of each pupil's academic and behavioural progress. This information is used very well to organise extra support for individuals as required. It is also used very effectively to set targets for pupils that guide their future learning. There are thorough child-protection and safeguarding procedures, and the care provided by all staff is of the highest quality. Parents and carers are seen as partners in their child's education and the school works extremely well with them to support pupils' development.

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Grade: 1

Leadership is outstanding. The energy and enthusiasm of the headteacher and senior team is driving the school forward on a path of continual improvement. All staff work together very effectively in the present cramped accommodation to ensure that pupils receive very high-quality education. Governors are very supportive. They challenge the school very well to ensure that it provides excellent value for money. The school's focus on developing the skills of all staff pays dividends, as evidenced by the work of a member of the support staff running 'rebound 6 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009 therapy' sessions. These have proved very successful in improving pupils' physical development and also their concentration. The very strong links with the community, including the international community, ensure that the school plays a highly effective role in promoting community cohesion. As an important next step, the school has rightly identified the need to

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Grade: 1

extend the role of its middle managers as part of its drive for further improvement. This is especially important because, when it moves to the new inclusive campus, they will have to play a role in developing practice across a range of different institutions. 7 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009 .

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Grade: 1

in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 8 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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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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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? 1 The capacity to make any necessary improvements

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EYFS?

1 How well do children in the EYFS achieve? How good are the overall personal development and well-being of the children in the EYFS? 1 How effectively are children in the EYFS helped to learn and develop? 1 How effectively is the welfare of children in the EYFS promoted? 1 How effectively is provision in the EYFS led and managed?

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Achievement and standards

1 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 1 How well learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make progress

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Achievement and standards

1 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: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners enjoy their education 2 The attendance of learners 1 The behaviour of learners 1 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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learners' needs?

How well do the curriculum and other activities meet the range of needs and interests of learners? 1 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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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 1 How effectively leaders and managers use challenging targets to raise standards 1 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 1 How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination eliminated 1 How well does the school contribute to community cohesion? 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: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

13 February 2009 Dear Pupils Inspection of William C Harvey School,London,N17 6HW Thank for all the help you gave me when I came to visit your excellent school. I was very pleased to meet you and have the opportunity to talk to some of you in the headteacher's room. You told me that you really enjoyed coming each day and this was clear when you arrived at school smiling. You said that you like many things about school, especially art, music, drama and physical education. I could see that staff make sure your learning is of a very high quality and the way everyone works together to meet your needs is very effective. They all look after you extremely well. All of the extra things you do, such as drumming and swimming, also make your school a great place to be. I was very impressed with the way you work with lots of other people, including nearby schools and some abroad. This is brilliant. The headteacher and senior team are helping those teachers who have responsibility for

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

curriculum areas to look more closely at how well you achieve across the school and support each other in making your learning even better. This is to ensure that the school is doing as well as it can in every aspect. I want them to continue with this and you can help by doing your very best in all your lessons. Yours faithfully Kay Charlton Lead Inspector 11 of 11 Inspection Report: William C Harvey School, 4 February 2009

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