Kingsdown School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Kingsdown is an exceptional school. Pupils thrive and flourish here. They love school.

They develop excellent communication and independence skills. The staff know the pupils incredibly well. They ensure that every pupil is making progress all the time.

Parents and carers feel well supported by staff and know that their children are safe and well looked after.

The school is a close community. Pupils enthusiastically celebrate others' successes in lessons and at celebration assembly.

The very youngest quickly join in and take a full part. They sing or sign the school song with pride at being part of Kingsdown. At playtimes, the older pupils make sure ...that all peers are fully part of play.

They help those who are non-ambulant join energetic dancing or calmer blowing bubbles.

The school has high aspirations for pupils. Everyone is included in everything.

The school gives pupils high-quality opportunities, overcoming the challenges of disability. Pupils go to the beach to take part in teamwork and art projects. Many pupils are part of the orchestra and perform on stage with other schools.

Pupils enjoy regular cycling; the wide range of bikes and trikes mean that everyone can enjoy the feeling of speed and success.

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

The greatest strength of this school is its staff and their expertise. These skills and knowledge have grown over time.

Staff have had extensive training and opportunities to learn from each other. All pupils have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and some pupils enter with increasingly complex needs, therefore, staff receive further specialist training. As a result, they have excellent knowledge of how to help pupils learn and develop.

They use this to give pupils an excellent education.

Staff work very closely with parents and medical staff to ensure that pupils are safe and well cared for. They co-create detailed 'Hello, this is me' profiles.

These help the class teams to understand how to support pupils effectively and know their likes and dislikes.

Every pupil has a personalised curriculum. This breaks down what pupils need to work on in different areas of learning into precise, bespoke steps.

Staff then weave this into individuals' and classes' areas of interest to engage pupils in what they do. Every interaction becomes a quality learning moment. Staff regularly review and adjust the learning steps as needed.

As a result, pupils make strong progress.

Communication and interaction are a high priority. The school uses a wide range of communication tools, including switches, symbol boards and signing.

Many pupils become highly skilled in talking and/or signing. The oldest pupils talk confidently to unfamiliar visitors about their school. For those pupils learning to read, phonics is taught well.

Pupils enjoy choosing books in the school library. They love the sensory stories, brought to life with objects, sounds and smells.

Pupils develop their independence well.

Consistent routines and cues from staff help them be confident to try out new things and behave very well. Children in the early years quickly build up their ability to join in with group activities and concentrate for longer periods. Older pupils have responsibilities across the school.

They are helped to think about what life might be like when they are older, for example taking part in work experience activities at a local supermarket. They learn life skills such as shopping and cookery.

Fundamental British values such as democracy are part of daily life.

Pupils vote for activities in classes. Pupils respect each other and develop the ability to work with peers and as part of a team. As pupils grow older, they are sensitively taught about how their bodies change.

They learn how to keep themselves safe.

Pupils benefit from the specialist sensory resource spaces. The youngest pupils practise balancing, throwing and catching in the large soft-play room.

For example, pupils learn how to use switches to explore cause and affect by turning lights and bubbles on and off in dark rooms. The skilled way that staff use these, further ensures that pupils make excellent progress in all areas of learning.

Last year, most of the building was closed at short notice because of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) in the roof.

Leaders at all levels worked to ensure that pupils were able to continue their learning as soon as possible and that the quality of that education continued to improve. Trustees and governors know the school well and ensure their statutory duties are met.

Staff feel incredibly well supported.

There is an established route for training staff to progress in their career, several qualifying as teachers. This has both retained and developed staff expertise, further benefiting the pupils.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.