Welsh House Farm Community School and Special Needs Resources Base

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Everyone is welcome at Welsh House Farm school. There is a real sense of community. Relationships between school, the pupils and their parents are highly positive.

The school ensures that all pupils receive a high level of pastoral support so they can feel safe and happy in school. This helps them to settle quickly, regardless of when they join the school.

Pupils behave well at all points of the day.

They know the three key rules very well and love to chant them to show how well they know them. Pupils look out for each other on the playground so nobody feels lonely by being a friend to pupils who sit on the 'buddy stop'. Staff are kind and caring.

Pu...pils know there is always an adult to help them in variety of ways. Pupils replicate this example in how they treat each other.

The school has high ambitions for all pupils.

This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This ambition is realised effectively for many pupils, who are supported to achieve as well as they can.

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

While published data at the end of key stage 2 is below national expectations, the school provides an effective education for pupils.

Many pupils leave and join the school at different times throughout key stage 1 and key stage 2. There is also a very high proportion of pupils who speak English as an additional language. This presents the school with challenges in terms of ensuring that all pupils receive an education that is matched closely to their very varying needs.

Current teaching is helping pupils to make strong progress from their different starting points. A new approach to the teaching of phonics, mathematics and writing are all supporting this.

The recently introduced phonics programme is helping pupils to make good progress in learning the skills of early reading.

Teachers deliver the programme very well. They identify pupils who find it harder to keep up with their peers very quickly. These children receive highly targeted and expert support in helping them to close the gaps they might have.

The school has identified an interesting and varied list of stories and books that pupils will enjoy and learn in each year group. This starts exceptionally well in Nursery. Children are immersed in arrange of high-quality activities to support them to understand these stories and to be able to retell them with ease.

Pupils take great pride in their work and books are presented to a very high standard. The new approach to the teaching of writing is having a positive impact. It supports pupils to develop a wide vocabulary and they apply this to their writing well.

This is also effective for pupils with SEND. However, in some subjects, the impact on pupils' progress is not yet as positive. This is because some activities do not ensure pupils gain a deep understanding of the intended learning.

Due to some plans being new, pupils have gaps in their learning and these gaps prevent them from having the secure understanding needed to make the progress of which they are capable.

The school is beautifully calm and enables pupils to learn without disruption. Pupils show very good attitudes to learning.

They concentrate well and books reflect the good level of effort they put into their work. The school has introduced an approach to managing the behaviour of pupils, particularly those who find this more difficult. However, the school does not yet analyse how effective this is for all pupils.

The school is a truly inclusive environment. The diversity of the pupils and the community are celebrated. Pupils are taught to respect differences, and they do.

The school's support for supporting pupils with emotional needs is of a high quality. The pastoral team, supported by 'Ted' the therapy dog, are highly effective in helping pupils to be emotionally ready so they can learn to the best of their ability.

Pupils appreciate the variety of trips and experiences on offer to help bring the curriculum to life and to widen their experiences of the world.

These are all funded by the school so that no pupil misses out. The many areas to promote pupils to lead healthy lifestyles are welcome by the pupils. Many visitors to school support this and inspire the pupils to take part in a variety of different sports.

The school is led with compassion and with a desire to inspire pupils to 'grow and flourish'. It is held in extremely high regard in the community. Parents are appreciative of the many ways they are supported and for the care, kindness and education their children receive.

All staff members work in the best interest of the children and are a cohesive and dedicated team. All pupils and staff agree that 'once a Welsh House farmer, always a Welsh House farmer'.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Some activities pupils complete do not support them well enough in securing important learning. This limits their ability to have a deep understanding of key aspects in some curriculum areas. The school should ensure that the work teachers give to pupils is precisely meeting their needs and enables them to build on their learning.

• The school does not analyse the information they collect about behaviour incidents to identify any trends in pupils' behaviour. Consequently, they are unable to identify if additional support and actions they put in place leads to improved behaviour for some pupils. Leaders should use information about behaviour incidents to better detect any patterns or trends and understand if their actions and policies are having the intended impact.