Adelaide School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Adelaide School continues to be an outstanding school.

The headteacher of this school is Sarah Barlow. This school is part of Manor Hall Academy Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer (CEO), Richard Redgate, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by John Fitchett.

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils thrive at this school. They are exceptionally polite and well-mannered. The high quality of care that they receive supports them to overcome many of the barriers that have prevented them from succeeding in the past.

Pupils are happy. They value the positive rel...ationships that they enjoy with staff, who know them extremely well.

The school has the highest aspirations for pupils' achievements.

Many of the pupils that attend this school have not been in education for an extended period of time. Pupils, all of whom have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve exceptionally well. Students in the sixth form benefit from a curriculum that is tailored skilfully to their individual needs.

This allows them to flourish.

Pupils take great pride in living up to the high expectations that the school has of their behaviour. This is evident in pupils' respectful conduct throughout the school.

Pupils make the most of an impressive programme of activities that help them to increase their confidence. Students in the sixth form make a tangible contribution to the life of the school. For example, they organise activities such as 'Pride Sports Day.'

Pupils become independent young people who are exceedingly well prepared for adulthood.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Trustees, the local advisory board and staff have established a school where everyone is welcomed and valued. They are exceptionally well informed about the performance of the school.

Trustees and members of the local advisory board use this information diligently to provide appropriate support and challenge. Together, they carry out their statutory duties effectively.

The school has designed a highly ambitious curriculum.

It has thought carefully about the important knowledge and skills that pupils should learn. Pupils study a broad range of subjects in each key stage. The curriculum prepares pupils extremely well for each phase of their education.

Pupils, including those in the sixth form, gain a suite of qualifications that set them up well for further education, apprenticeships or employment with training.

Staff have an intricate understanding of the curriculums that they teach. They make regular checks on what pupils know, remember and can do.

Staff use this information expertly to support pupils to address any gaps or misconceptions that they may have in their learning. This means that pupils gain a deep body of subject knowledge and achieve remarkably well.

Staff are highly skilled at identifying and supporting pupils' additional needs.

They draw extensively on the information in pupils' education, health and care (EHC) plans to design engaging and appropriate activities. This helps pupils to build their knowledge and skills securely over time.

The school prioritises the development of pupils' reading and spoken language skills.

Pupils at the early stages of learning to read receive the help that they need to develop their phonics knowledge. They read from books that are well matched to the sounds that they already know. This helps pupils to become confident communicators and fluent readers.

The school provides parents and carers with the help that they need to support their children's reading at home.

Pupils accurately recall themes from the books that they read. This further develops their understanding of the world, for example immigration, refugees and the many differences that exist between people.

The school ensures that pupils quickly develop exceptionally positive attitudes towards their learning. This is reflected in the pride that pupils take in their work. A small number of pupils receive highly effective support to help them manage their own behaviour.

Most pupils attend regularly. Those pupils who do not, benefit from a personalised package of support from the school to successfully improve their attendance.

The school prioritises pupils' personal, social and emotional development.

It provides them with an array of powerful experiences that help them to develop the self-belief and resilience that they need to tackle new challenges. Pupils learn how to look after their physical and mental health. Staff take great care to ensure that pupils have an age-appropriate understanding of healthy relationships.

Pupils access a comprehensive programme of careers education and work experience placements.

The school and the trust ensure that staff benefit from an extensive package of training and trust network meetings. This has a positive impact on reducing staff workload.

It also enables staff to carry out their roles with expertise and integrity. Staff appreciate the support that they receive for their well-being. Parents hold the school in extremely high regard.

They value the nuanced support that the school provides which helps their children to succeed.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Background

When we have judged outstanding, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains outstanding.

This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding in January 2018.