Notton House Academy

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.

Pupils who may have experienced interruptions to their education settle and make good progress in reading, writing and mathematics. There is a steady increase over the last two years in the number and quality of qualifications that Year 11 pupils gain. Pupils know that they are safe at school and speak of how recent improvements to the building have helped this.

Pupils' behaviour is good in lessons and around the school. Pupils say that staff have helped them understand and manage their behaviour so that they can succeed in learning. Teachers and support staff know pupils well.

They are highly skilled and knowledgeable about how... to adapt work and provide challenge to motivate pupils in lessons. There have been rapid and highly effective improvements to teaching since the arrival of the executive headteacher. The school has also benefited from forming a partnership with another special school.

Leaders and managers have high expectations of what everyone in the school community can achieve. There are good relationships throughout. The headteacher and senior leaders, including the governing body, have taken good decisions to improve the quality of leadership and teaching and to make rapid improvements to the building.

Governors know that teaching is good and that this is resulting in pupils achieving well. The few pupils in the recently introduced sixth form are making good progress. Their attendance and participation in education are improving.

It is not yet an outstanding school because : The overall quality of teaching is not outstanding. Pupils are not always given enough opportunities to find out things for themselves. Sometimes pupils do not have time to correct their work soon after it has been marked.

Some teachers have not yet adopted the best practice in full. Leaders and managers have not yet improved the range of qualifications on offer so that pupils can achieve at their full potential, particularly in some practical subjects.

Information about this school

All pupils are boys and have a statement of special educational needs for emotional, social and behavioural difficulties.

The school provides residential provision during the week for 38 weeks of the year. Since the previous inspection, the school has had an acting headteacher for the academic year 2013-14. In September 2014 a partnership was formed with Knowle DGE Learning Centre in Bristol.

These two schools now share the same executive headteacher. The governing body has been reconstituted. The school uses alternative provision from three providers: Education First; Rocksteady; and Bristol City Council; at a site in Bristol city centre.

Six pupils currently attend. There is a new sixth form which currently has three students. All of these students currently attend the alternative provision.

One third of the teaching staff are new since September 2014. About three quarters of the pupils are eligible for the pupil premium (additional funding for pupils known to be eligible for free school meals and those in the care of the local authority). Very few pupils in Year 11 are eligible for this.

A fifth of pupils are in the care of a local authority. Almost all pupils come from the City of Bristol, but a few are placed by neighbouring authorities. The proportion of pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds is higher than average.