Chapel Green School Ofsted Report

Full report

What does the school need to do to improve further?

• Move more teaching to become outstanding so that all pupils make outstanding progress by ensuring that:
  • teachers have the highest expectations for the most able pupils and use every opportunity to deepen their thinking
  • less experienced teaching assistants receive training and support to develop their role in supporting the learning of all pupils, including the most able.
• Strengthen leadership and management by ensuring that subject leaders and phase leaders support teachers in:
  • making effective links between the progress seen in pupils’ books and the progress seen in the school’s tracking data
  • acquiring a clear understanding of how to move teaching and learning from good to outstanding.

Inspection judgements

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

• The headteacher has worked effectively with senior leaders and governors to secure good improvement in leadership and management since the previous inspection. This has enabled the school to move from requires improvement to good. The school has sustained its positive ethos, with a focus on the care and welfare of pupils and high expectations for teaching and behaviour. Leaders have successfully addressed the areas for improvement.
• New assessment systems are rigorous and accurately track the progress that pupils are making. Leaders’ view of the quality of the school’s work and how it has improved is accurate and based on close monitoring of assessment outcomes.
• Staff morale has increased since the previous inspection and parents have more confidence in the work of the school, reflected in the positive questionnaire returns of staff and parents.
• Leaders have provided more training for staff since the last inspection to ensure that they meet the needs of the changing cohort of pupils. However, a few of the recently appointed teaching assistants have not benefited from training to enhance their skills in supporting different pupils they are working with effectively.
• The leadership of teaching is good and based on strong systems of managing the performance of teachers. The headteacher and senior leaders visit lessons on a regular basis to determine the impact of teaching and assessment on pupils’ learning and progress. Good teaching is rewarded and any weaknesses are supported through mentoring and training. The areas for development are fed into a well-conceived improvement plan with detailed targets and timescales for completion. This is enabling leaders and governors to track progress towards these targets.
• Subject leaders and phase leaders also visit class teachers every half term to review the progress that pupils are making. They look in detail at the school’s data on pupils’ progress to form a view and look at a sample of books in classes. However, they are not comparing the work of pupils in class to ensure that it links closely with the whole school information about progress. As a result, they do not have a clear enough view of how to move teaching from good to outstanding, which limits the guidance they can provide to teachers to improve their practice.
• Leaders are ensuring a smooth transition to the new premises by scheduling full risk assessments and developing clear timescales within the school’s action plan for the move.
• The curriculum has been strengthened to closely match the learning needs of pupils in the school. The developments identified at the previous inspection are now embedded in practice and are enabling each pupil to have a personalised programme of learning activities across a broad range of subjects. There are good opportunities to enrich learning through a variety of visits to water sporting activities such as sailing and a holiday in a residential horse-riding centre.
• Sport and music continue to be promoted well in the curriculum and ‘forest school’ learning is now embedded, providing challenging activities for all pupils, including those of secondary age. This has a marked increase on their confidence and improves team work and social skills well.
• Leaders are ensuring that the curriculum promotes pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development effectively, including their awareness of fundamental British values. This is achieved through whole-school assemblies to celebrate different religious festivals, through topics on different world faiths and through foreign language days.
• Staff work hard to ensure that the oldest pupils and older students are prepared effectively for the next stage of their lives when they leave school through the school’s charity shop. This provides pupils with valuable experience of the workplace and for meeting members of the community.
• The local authority is providing appropriate support for the school through the provision of training for governors and a review of the school’s work through the external consultant appointed to support the school.
• Leaders are ensuring that the additional pupil premium funding is used well to support disadvantaged pupils. As a result, they are doing better than their classmates and making outstanding progress from their starting points. The additional Year 7 catch-up funding is used well to support the development of literacy and numeracy skills. The school is also using the primary sports grant well to enable pupils to develop their physical skills and fitness. This includes the purchase of a trampoline for rebound therapy and the extension of dance and swimming clubs for the most able.
• Staff promote equality of opportunity well by working closely with therapists on individualised programmes to ensure that all pupils have full access to the curriculum. As a result, most pupils are making at least good progress from their different starting points. The school also ensures that any form of racism or prejudiced discrimination of any kind is tackled decisively. All staff provide excellent role models for pupils.

Governance of the school

• Governance has improved since the last inspection. Governors are challenging the work of the school by gaining their own view of the school through focused visits. They have recently looked at samples of pupils’ work, carried out joint learning walks with senior leaders and met the deputy headteacher to review the system for tracking pupils’ progress. As a result, they have a realistic and accurate view of the quality of teaching and learning.
• Governors review the spending of additional funding for pupil premium, primary sport and Year 7 catch-up and have a good knowledge of how these funds are spent. They provide challenge to the school to ensure good value for money.
• Governors take a great pride in the school, they are ambitious for its future and have worked hard with senior leaders to prepare a detailed plan for the smooth transition to the new building in January 2018.
• Governors are ensuring that all legal requirements are met, especially for safeguarding. They are checking that records to determine the suitability of staff to work with children and training are up to date. They are ensuring that the website complies with requirements.

Safeguarding

• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff work closely with parents, health professionals, therapists and other agencies to maintain a strong culture of safeguarding in the school. They maintain high levels of supervision and involvement in pupils’ activities throughout the day. All training is up to date and leaders ensure that all the required checks are made to determine the suitability of staff and visitors to work with children. These are entered in a single central record of checks and updated regularly.
• Leaders and staff are acutely aware of the risks associated with neglect, abuse and exploitation and ensure that the personal dignity and care of those with the most complex medical needs are met. Parents are given clear guidance on how the school assures pupils’ safety.

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

• The quality of teaching has moved from requiring improvement to good since the previous inspection. This is seen in pupils’ work, the outcomes of lessons visited over time and in the school’s information about the progress that pupils are making.
• Teachers maintain excellent relationships with pupils and manage behaviour consistently well. This was seen in all lessons, and as a result pupils concentrate and focus on learning, trying their best.
• In a sensory mathematics lesson, pupils who have complex needs maintained interest and focused on their learning because staff sang ‘Five little speckled frogs’ to the pupils. Pupils enthusiastically reacted to the song and were given a soft toy frog to hold. Staff then challenged pupils to choose between a five and a frog, promoting their awareness of mathematical language.
• Staff have a thorough knowledge of the prior learning of pupils and use assessment well to plan individual programmes and set challenging targets for pupils to achieve. The most able pupils are now more often challenged in their learning. However, on a very small number of occasions teachers do not use ongoing assessment during the lesson to extend pupils’ learning further. On such occasions, a small number of pupils lost interest.
• In a literacy lesson, most-able pupils listened to the class teacher, who read the story of ‘Oliver’s vegetables’, and were challenged to recall which vegetables Oliver had on different days of the week.
• Teaching assistants generally provide good support for pupils’ learning. They focus on developing the meaning of key words by working closely with teachers and therapists to implement the individual programmes which have been planned. Occasionally, this is not the case as newly appointed support assistants have not been fully trained in how to extend the learning of all pupils, especially the most able.
• The teaching of basic skills of literacy and numeracy is good and is reflected in the good progress that all pupils make over time. Teachers’ use of well-chosen specialist resources when joint planning with therapists ensures that pupils make at least good progress and sometimes outstanding progress in their communication skills.

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding

Personal development and welfare

• The school's work to promote pupils' personal development and welfare is outstanding.
• Staff continue to sustain the supportive ethos of the school, which was identified at the previous inspection. Strong teamwork between teachers, teaching assistants and therapists is highly valued by parents in making a real difference to the emotional and physical well-being of each pupil.
• Staff work very effectively with the child, parents and outside agencies to ensure that transition to school is as smooth as possible. Students at post-16 benefit equally from high-quality support and guidance to enable them to transfer successfully to college.
• Staff maintain high levels of supervision and involvement in activities around the school. Staff were seen reading the story of the ‘We’re going on a bear hunt’ to the great enjoyment of a group of children in the playground, who animated their responses with enthusiasm.
• Staff assess all potential risks to pupils during any activity or when out on a trip. These assessments take full account of the individual personal development needs of pupils and are meticulously checked by school leaders.
• Topics on personal safety, including the safe use of computers, along with pupils’ work as school councillors, promote their personal development well, including their sense of right from wrong and the fundamental British values of the rule of law and democracy. Pupils learn about different religions such as Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Christianity through well-chosen topics and the celebration of religious festivals. They watch ‘Newsround’ to develop an awareness of issues around the world.
• Parents praise the work of staff in developing their children’s life skills, especially through the safe independent travel training which helps them to use public transport confidently.
• Throughout the school, pupils adopt safe practices. Children in the early years stay safe and consistently use equipment safely in their learning. Students at post-16 also adopt safe practices when moving around school and when using equipment. Most parents and staff agree that pupils are safe in school. Pupils said they always feel safe in school, which was confirmed in their questionnaire responses.

Behaviour

• The behaviour of pupils is outstanding.
• This represents an improvement since the previous inspection, when behaviour was judged as good. Pupils are now nearly always engaged in their learning, which they greatly enjoy. School records show that there has been a steady decline in the number of incidents of challenging behaviour recorded since the last inspection.
• Pupils say behaviour is usually very good and their parents agree. Pupils’ conduct in lessons and around the school, including in the early years and the sixth form, was outstanding. They behave exceptionally well when entering and leaving school in their taxis and minibuses.
• Pupils respond very well to the consistent management of their behaviour, and school records show that the number of physical interventions has decreased since the previous inspection.
• Pupils take great pride in their work, and in discussion they all said how much they love learning. This is reflected in the year-on-year rise in attendance and the corresponding reduction in persistent absence since the previous inspection.
• Pupils say bullying is rare. They have very good relationships with their peers and greatly respect the views of others.

Outcomes for pupils Good

• The school’s accurate and reliable assessment systems and records of progress over time show that pupils are making good progress. Good progress and some outstanding progress was seen in the work in pupils’ books, although these are not always consistent with the progress data from tracking. Pupils’ books show that they almost always complete their work and there are no major gaps in their learning, although very occasionally the work is not demanding enough for a small number of pupils.

• The curriculum is more closely tailored to the individual needs of disadvantaged pupils, who make outstanding progress from their different starting points. This is a good improvement since the last inspection. Pupil premium funding is used well to provide additional support for their learning.
• Primary-aged pupils make good progress in their physical development and fitness because sports funding is used well to provide additional swimming sessions for the most able, as well as rebound therapy and dance coaching for other pupils.
• Year 7 catch-up funding is used well to provide extra individual support for pupils’ learning. They make good progress in literacy and numeracy, with all meeting their aspirational targets.
• The most able pupils are making good progress in reading and in their use of phonics for reading and writing. Reading records show that they read widely in school and practise reading most days at home.
• Pupils make good gains in learning across a range of subjects, including art, science and technology, computing, English and mathematics, because the curriculum is matched closely to pupils’ individual needs. Some pupils make outstanding progress in communication and science.
• The oldest pupils are making good progress in their accredited courses. Students at post-16 are making good progress in preparing for life beyond school. They are well prepared for the world of work and transfer to colleges.
• The outreach work provided to local mainstream schools by the deputy head is highly valued. Consequently, many pupils are effectively supported to remain in their mainstream schools. Some pupils from this school make such good progress that they are successfully re-integrated into mainstream schools with support.

Early years provision Good

• Leadership of the early years is good and has improved from the previous inspection. The early years leader has successfully addressed the weaknesses in provision identified then.
• The outdoor and indoor learning environments have been improved to provide a wide range of free choice activities, with an increase in the range of well-chosen resources to support children’s learning. Children were seen baking in the outdoor kitchen and filling buckets with sand to make a big sand castle while developing their understanding of mathematical language, for example ‘more’ and ‘big’.
• Assessment systems have also improved. Staff systematically record the gains in skills, knowledge and understanding that children make in each area of learning, and enter these in the new online assessment system. This enables parents to view the steps of progress that their children are making and to make their own contribution to this too. The early years leader ensures that the accuracy of all teacher assessments is checked with colleagues in a local primary school.
• Strong team work between teachers and teaching assistants ensures that assessment is used well to set high expectations for learning and informs the next stages of children’s learning. As a result, in the last two years children have made consistently good progress in each area of learning from their low starting points on entry. For example, some children move quickly from making marks on paper to writing words in sentences using finger spaces and forming the letters correctly.
• Parents praise the good support they receive for helping their children to settle in to school routines. They feel involved in their children’s assessments and are shown how to help their children with their learning at home.
• Children are happy and safe in school because the welfare arrangements are excellent. All staff do their very best to ensure that children are safe and fully enjoy their learning, which they do. Children grow rapidly in confidence and develop their communication skills well as a result of good quality adult support. As a result, they are well prepared for entry into Year 1.

16 to 19 study programmes Good

• Leadership of the sixth form has improved since the last inspection and is now good because it ensures that students are making good progress as a result of effective teaching.
• Teachers set high expectations for students’ learning, as seen in the dance lesson where all staff challenged pupils to improve on their performance. Teachers and teaching assistants work well with outside professionals and parents to prepare students for life after school.
• Students run a charity shop and develop good independence and work-related skills, which prepares them well for college transfer.
• Students follow a range of accredited courses, including literacy, numeracy, independence skills and work-related learning courses. Leaders have increased the range of accredited courses available, which has resulted in students entering college to pursue a diverse range of courses, including drama. They rightly recognise the need to further increase the range of accreditation to students and are introducing new functional skills courses in December this year.
• The school provides students with good guidance and support for transition to the next stage of their education or training. Staff accompany students to college placements to familiarise them with the setting. As a result, all students transfer successfully to college or training when they leave school.
• Students’ behaviour and safety are outstanding and they have very good attitudes to learning.

School details

Unique reference number 121260 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 10036265 This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Type of school Special School category Maintained Age range of pupils 3 to 19 Gender of pupils Mixed Gender of pupils in 16 to 19 study programmes Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 63 Of which, number on roll in 16 to 19 study programmes 10 Appropriate authority The governing body Chair Terry Hickman Smith Headteacher Karin Heap Telephone number 01953453116 Website www.chapelroad.org.uk Email address office@chapelroad.norfolk.sch.uk Date of previous inspection 26–27 November 2015

Information about this school

• The school meets requirements on the publication of specified information on its website.
• Chapel Road School provides for pupils who have complex needs, including moderate, severe, profound and multiple learning difficulties. A significant number have additional needs such as autistic spectrum disorder or medical needs. All pupils have an education, health and care plan.
• Almost one third of pupils, a higher proportion than other schools, receive support through the pupil premium funding for disadvantaged pupils. This includes a small number who are looked after by the local authority.
• Pupils are taught in mixed-aged classes according to their learning needs. There are very few children in the early years and they are taught alongside pupils in Years 1 and 2.
• The headteacher is a local leader of education and the school works in close partnership with other Norfolk schools to share good practice.
• The school is due to move to new purpose-built premises in January 2018.
• At the time of its previous inspection in November 2015, the school was judged as requiring improvement. In May 2016, the school received another inspection by Ofsted to determine the progress it was making in becoming a good school by addressing the areas for improvement.
• The retirement of several teachers has contributed to the significant turnover of teachers since the previous inspection.

Information about this inspection

• Inspectors carried out joint observations of learning with senior leaders in every class. They looked at pupils’ work and also heard some pupils read.
• The inspectors looked at the school’s information about the progress that pupils were making over time, including children in the early years, and the destinations of students at post-16.
• Inspectors held a formal meeting with a group of pupils and spoke informally to them at breaktime, at lunchtime and during lessons. They also looked at the online questionnaire responses completed by four pupils.
• Inspectors took account of 12 parents’ responses to Parent View, Ofsted’s online questionnaire, in addition to eight text responses. They also considered the online questionnaire returns of 35 staff.
• Inspectors held discussions with senior, phase and subject leaders and three members of the governing body.
• Inspectors looked at a range of documentation, including: a range of policies to promote safeguarding, attendance figures, records of behaviour, risk assessments, minutes of governing body meetings, the school’s self-evaluation document and the school’s improvement plan.
• Inspectors also looked at the school’s website to find out if the required information was published.

Inspection team

Declan McCarthy, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector Paul Copping Ofsted Inspector