Oakdale School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school. From mostly very low starting points, the great majority of pupils make progress that is at least good and achieve well.

Teachers and teaching assistants are particularly skilled at helping pupils learn to communicate. Once children can begin to express their needs and wishes they make good progress in their personal and social development as well as in their reading and number skills. The school is very good at finding out why a few pupils do not do as well as they should and make sure they get the extra help they need.

The headteacher leads the school exceptionally well. She knows what the school needs to do to improve and works very h...ard to give pupils the best opportunities to enjoy success. The staff works well in teams to manage behaviour so that it is outstanding and helps everyone to learn.

Parents are very happy that their children are taught well and are looked after safely. It is not yet an outstanding school because : Not enough teaching is outstanding and there is a little that requires improvement. This is because lesson targets from individual education plans are not always incorporated into the lesson plan.

Sometimes pupils find it difficult to join in with group activities and on these occasions they are not always directed to other learning activities.

Information about this school

Oakdale School and Acorn Nursery is the local authority primary provision for pupils with severe, profound and complex needs. All pupils have a statement of special educational needs.

Pupils often attend for a period of assessment initially. Some pupils have multiple barriers to learning including medical, physical and sensory conditions. About half of pupils have autism spectrum conditions and the proportion of these pupils has increased since the last inspection.

As typical in such schools, two thirds of pupils are boys. Over half of pupils are of White British heritage. There are growing numbers from a range of minority ethnic backgrounds who have English as a second language.

The number of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is high. Pupil premium is the government's additional funding for pupils eligible for free school meals, children in the care of the local authority and children of service families The headteacher is new in post since the previous inspection. Almost half of classes have teachers who are new to the school and new to working with pupils who have a range of complex needs.

Many teaching assistants are also recent appointments. Most children begin school in Acorn Nursery which is a shared provision jointly managed with the co-located primary school. A few children join the school at later stages, sometimes after failed placements in other settings.

The school is part of a group of teaching schools and supports the development of skills and training for teaching assistants working with pupils with special educational needs. It is also a part of an Early Years Best Practice Partnership. The school provides an early years' outreach service and has a team of staff to support inclusion.