Mabel Prichard School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school Led by a strong headteacher, senior leaders and governors have implemented and sustained improvements since the school's previous inspection. New middle leaders are building effective teamwork and sharing their enthusiasm and expertise. Staff are deeply committed to ensuring that pupils feel safe, are well cared for and achieve well.

Detailed knowledge of pupils' learning and care needs helps teachers to plan relevant learning activities that support pupils well. In the early years provision, children settle quickly into the school. Teaching promotes children's interest in learning.

Parents and carers are delighted to see how rapidly thei...r children learn to communicate and become more confident. By the time that pupils leave the school, they have typically made good progress in both learning and personal development. Students leaving the sixth form are well prepared for further education or employment, and to live with at least some independence from adults.

Pupils enjoy school. They attend regularly and behave well in their lessons and at breaks. They form trusting relationships with adults and are friendly with other pupils.

Leaders have recently redesigned the curriculum, tailoring it to meet pupils' starting points. The curriculum offers many engaging learning activities that interest pupils, while developing highly personalised and relevant skills. Teachers and leaders are currently improving the use of assessment information so that it is consistently reliable.

This work is not fully developed or linked with the curriculum in all key stages. It is too soon for leaders yet to have had time to review the impact of the new curriculum and assessment processes on pupils' improving rates of progress. Leaders are addressing a few remaining inconsistencies in the quality of teaching and learning.

These arise when teachers do not use assessment sharply enough to plan for pupils' next steps in learning. In some primary classes, pupils do not have varied enough opportunities to apply their learning in different ways.

Information about this school

The school caters for pupils with severe learning difficulties, pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties and pupils with autism spectrum disorder.

A large number of pupils have communication difficulties, and some are nonverbal. A small number of pupils have degenerative or life-limiting medical conditions. All pupils are placed in the school by the local authority as a result of an EHC plan.

There are twice as many boys as girls. The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is above average. Approximately half of the pupils are from minority ethnic groups.

Almost one third of pupils come from families where English is spoken as an additional language. The school is located on two sites: one is for primary pupils and one is for secondary pupils and the sixth form. Both sites adjoin a mainstream academy.

The school does not use any alternative provision. The early years provision includes a small number of children of nursery age. At the time of the inspection, none were less than three years of age.