A special school on the Isle of Wight supports pupils with complex and severe needs ‘extremely well’, a government schools inspector has said.
St George’s School, in Newport, has maintained its ‘Good’ Ofsted rating.
Headteacher Steff Gleeson, said it was a great achievement.
Pupils had an ‘extremely positive’ relationship with staff
The education watchdog, at an inspection last year, found pupils had an ‘extremely positive’ relationship with staff and as a result, they feel safe, secure, well looked after and prepared for the future.
The secondary school was last inspected in 2016 and has maintained its rating despite significant leadership changes including a new headteacher, deputy head and Key Stage Five leader.
Gleeson: Staff work incredibly hard
Ms Gleeson said staff had worked incredibly hard to achieve the rating and were relentless in pursuing positive outcomes for the young people who attend the school.
Inspectors noted leaders and staff were highly ambitious for St George’s pupils and build a clear picture of what each pupil needs, meaning they can design learning that is highly personalised and engages pupils extremely well.
Encouraging positive attitudes
They also said staff work well together to ensure pupils’ behaviour and attitudes are positive, as well and pupils themselves encourage others to behave positively and follow school rules.
Managing challenging behaviour
When pupils get angry, frustrated or behave inappropriately, inspectors said staff are extremely skilled in knowing how to manage these situations with success and keeping pupils safe is at the heart of what leaders and staff do.
Where improvements can be made
Inspectors identified two areas that could be improved including the school’s assessment system which was not as refined or consistent as leaders would have liked.
They said it creates unnecessary workloads for leaders and staff.
The other area, inspectors said, was the governors do not hold leaders to account rigorously enough and the questions they ask do not challenge leaders enough.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
