Oasis Academy Parkwood

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Oasis Academy Parkwood has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

The principal of this school is Tracey Norriss. This school is part of Oasis Community Learning, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school.

The trust is run by the chief executive officer, John Barneby, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Caroline Taylor.

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a school at the heart of its community. It prioritises building positive relationships with pupils and their families from the moment they join the school.

Parents and carers value this. It helps pu...pils to settle quickly. The school's 'Hub', which includes the 'Pantry' shop and café, provides a place for parents to meet and participate in a range of courses and information sessions.

This helps parents to find out about how to support their child with their learning. It contributes positively to the school's family friendly ethos. Pupils help to raise money for local organisations.

They recognise the importance of being a responsible and caring citizen.

The school is ambitious for all pupils. Most pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well.

However, the achievement of disadvantaged pupils in recent national tests was below the national average in reading and mathematics. A significant proportion of pupils in Year 4 did not meet the standard of the multiplication tables check.

The school provides a calm and safe environment for pupils to learn.

Pupils behave exceptionally well. They demonstrate the school's high expectations in class and around school. Pupils enjoy coming to school.

They describe it as a caring and supportive place to be. Positive relationships between staff and pupils are evident across the school. Staff calmly and skilfully support pupils who become distracted or have difficulty regulating their behaviour.

Pupils benefit from participating fully in their learning.

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

The school has implemented the trust's curriculum effectively. The school has adapted curriculum content carefully to meet the needs of pupils.

The curriculum enables pupils to regularly revisit and build upon prior learning. Pupils increasingly make connections to what they already know as they progress through the school.

In class, pupils use tablet computers confidently to research information, record answers and complete their work.

Teachers use their strong subject knowledge to explain new concepts clearly. They ask questions that deepen pupils' understanding. Adults regularly check what pupils know, and can do, during lessons.

This enables teachers to respond promptly to the needs of pupils within their class.

Staff identify and support the needs of pupils with SEND extremely well. The school listens, and responds, to pupils' thoughts and feelings about their learning.

This helps staff to support pupils appropriately. Teachers adapt learning carefully to meet the needs of pupils. This enables pupils with SEND to learn the intended curriculum.

The school has prioritised the teaching of reading successfully. It recognises that this is essential for pupils to fully benefit from the curriculum. Children in the early years listen to, and participate in, carefully selected stories, songs and rhymes.

Adults make effective use of opportunities to introduce new words. Most pupils gain a confident grasp of phonics by the time they leave key stage 1. This helps them to read with fluency and accuracy.

The school provides high-quality support to pupils who require additional time to fully grasp skills in early reading. Adults support these groups well. They demonstrate strong subject knowledge and address errors swiftly.

The school provides purposeful opportunities for pupils to learn about life in modern Britain. Its religious education curriculum enables pupils to develop their knowledge of different faiths and cultures as they progress through the school. Pupils know that it is important to treat people with fairness and respect.

Personal, social and health education lessons and assemblies teach pupils how to keep themselves safe, including online.

The school provides a range of extra-curricular and school holiday clubs. Pupils enjoy attending these.

They like learning new skills and being with their friends. Pupils contribute positively to the life of the school. Pupils take on a variety of leadership roles, such as health champions, reading buddies and 'mini SLT', a group of pupils acting as a school leadership team.

These opportunities enable pupils to support their peers and develop their independence. Some pupils told the inspector that taking a leadership role had improved their confidence and that they now contribute to discussions more frequently.

The school reviews all pupils' attendance carefully.

It works closely with families to ensure that pupils attend regularly. Consequently, pupils' attendance at the school is high. Pupils know that being at school helps them to learn more.

The trust and those with responsibility for governance maintain close oversight of the school's work. They ensure that leaders and staff are well supported to carry out their roles effectively. The trust rightly recognises the many areas of strength at the school.

This enables it to share examples of its strong practice across the trust. Staff are proud to work at this school. They feel valued members of its community.

The school makes sure that improvements to its work are introduced carefully. This supports staff workload and well-being. The school ensures that its curriculum is implemented consistently well.

The school is refining the ways in which it checks how well pupils achieve in subjects other than English and mathematics. It recognises that it does not know if the broader curriculum is having the intended impact on pupils' learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• The school's understanding of how well pupils achieve in foundation subjects is not fully embedded. It does not know if the broader curriculum is having the intended impact on pupils' learning. The school should further develop its strategies for reviewing the impact of the school's curriculum on pupils' learning.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be good for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection is carried out under section 5 of the Act.

Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good for overall effectiveness in June 2016.