Pathways School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Through the school's strong support for pupils' emotional and social development, pupils are helped to build their resilience and confidence. Leaders are ambitious for all pupils.

Typically, pupils' learning is not disrupted by the behaviours of others.

Pupils are taught strategies to help them to understand and manage their emotions. They are helped to identify what may cause them to experience challenges and to understand how they think and respond to different situations. Pupils are encouraged to develop working and healthy relationships.

One parent/carer comment, typical of many, was: 'My child has learned so much, is much calmer and is learning to manage... emotions and is so much happier.'

Pupils' development is further enriched through a range of experiences, such as orienteering, caving and learning to play musical instruments. Pupils have opportunities to take on roles and responsibilities within the school, for example as members of the school council and helping create a legacy garden in the community by planting trees.

Pupils feel safe and trust staff to help prepare them for their future adult lives and to resolve any issues or concerns that may arise.

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

Over time, the school has worked with the trust and partner schools to strengthen the curriculum. Typically, subject curriculum thinking is well established and a few subjects have been reviewed and refined more recently.

Subject curriculums are ambitious. They are well ordered and enable pupils to know and do more over time, as well as help pupils to practise and recall what they have learned previously. Teachers deliver subject content in a logical sequence.

This helps pupils to feel confident to talk about what they know and to learn new knowledge and skills.

The school equips staff with the knowledge they need to deliver the subjects they teach coherently. Generally, teachers check that pupils have a secure understanding of key concepts before moving on to introduce new learning.

However, sometimes checks to identify what pupils know and remember over time are not carried out as routinely, and as a result some misconceptions and gaps in pupils' knowledge and recall are not identified and addressed.

Leaders have increased the range of qualifications that pupils can study towards and are continuing to do so. Through partnerships with local educational provisions and colleges, the school ensures that pupils have access to a broad academic and vocational range of studies.

Pupils leave the school with the qualifications they need to continue their education or for employment.

The school prioritises the teaching of early reading and ensures that pupils know the importance of fluent reading as a life skill. Pupils said that they are proud of the progress they have made in reading.

The school's early reading programme is well sequenced and adapted to pupils' individual needs.

The school knows the pupils well and their specific needs. Leaders analyse information about incidents of unsettled or disruptive behaviour and identify appropriate strategies that help to reduce recurrence over time.

Alongside this, pupils are supported to reflect on the impact of their actions and how they could conduct themselves differently in future. Consequently, disruptions to the curriculum reduce over time.

The school works effectively with pupils, parents and other specialist professionals to encourage regular attendance.

Leaders analyse attendance figures and identify solutions to increase attendance and ensure that pupils attend school regularly. As a result, pupils' attendance rates improve over their time at the school.

Pupils are encouraged to think about their future adult lives from the moment they join the school.

All staff have high aspirations for pupils and encourage them to be ambitious for themselves. Pupils are guided to choose and then take their next steps. This includes information on careers, further study and the world of work.

A carefully planned and sequenced personal, social and health education curriculum reinforces this further. Pupils are taught to keep themselves safe and are encouraged to think about the decisions they make and the potential consequences of these.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Sometimes, what pupils know and remember is not checked routinely well in all subjects to identify where there are misunderstandings or misconceptions. As a result, sometimes gaps in pupils' knowledge of prior learning are not picked up swiftly and addressed. Leaders should ensure that what pupils know and remember is checked routinely to identify and address any gaps or misconceptions.