Brompton Hall School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils value the positive environment at Brompton Hall. They say that teachers know them well and that this helps to make them feel safe. The school has high expectations of pupils and helps them to learn how to live up to these.

Across the school, pupils generally behave well. Pupils are helped over time to improve their behaviour. Staff provide careful pastoral support to pupils and help them to learn about their own emotions and choices.

Pupils enjoy the praise and rewards they work towards together in their classes. However, some pupils do not display positive attitudes to their learning.

Pupils' attendance is improving but there is still much work to be ...done.

Pupils appreciate that their experience of school has improved recently. However, pupils are not doing as well as they could.

The school makes sure that pupils benefit from a range of trips and enrichment activities.

Pupils take part in a range of clubs to support their development. Older pupils have access to high-quality support for their future careers, including information about apprenticeships and college visits. This supports their preparation for adulthood.

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

The school is highly ambitious for all its pupils, regardless of their past experiences or current challenges. Adaptations are made in line with pupils' education, health and care plans (EHC plan). Staff carefully ensure that the correct provision is in place to meet pupils' social and emotional needs.

The personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) curriculum is central to pupils' development. It supports those who are present in school to progress well towards their EHC plan targets.

Trustees, trust and school leaders have realised significant changes to the provision over the course of the last two years.

There is an accurate and shared understanding of what needs to improve and the steps to achieve this. Significant improvements in pupil support and in the curriculum in a range of subjects, including PSHE, are evident. However, some work is still embedding.

There is not sufficient impact on pupils' attendance and other aspects of the curriculum.

The school recognises that attendance is currently not good enough. It analyses the reasons for pupils' absence, which helps staff to identify the next actions to be taken.

Several pupils have begun to attend better. The school has strategies in place that are beginning to develop impact, but too many pupils are regularly absent.

Pupils can learn well, and achievement at the end of key stage 4 shows some improvement.

Staff give pupils opportunities to revisit their learning regularly across the curriculum. Teachers are clear on what they want pupils to learn. Pupils appreciate this.

However, on some occasions, teachers move pupils on to new learning before their knowledge has been checked. This means that gaps in pupils' understanding go unaddressed.

The school has raised the profile of reading and, more recently, writing.

Pupils quickly gain the knowledge and skills they need to become confident, fluent readers. They begin to read for pleasure more often. Staff have the appropriate expertise to help pupils who are at the early stages of learning to read.

This helps pupils who find reading difficult to catch up. Reading is being promoted well. However, pupils' writing is not being developed well enough.

The school has begun to address this but this in its very early stages.

Pupils' personal development is always considered throughout the school day. For example, lunchtime activities and clubs help pupils to improve their social skills.

Pupils develop an appropriate understanding of key things that will affect their lives. For example, they learn about how to be more welcoming and tolerant of others. Pupils are listened to.

They are helped to think regularly about their future. Pupils are consistently supported well to understand what is possible beyond Year 11.

Overall, pupils feel safe in school.

There is a growing culture in which positive relationships help pupils to engage with their learning. Behaviour has improved over the last academic year. Staff are increasingly able to be proactive in their support for pupils.

However, older pupils' engagement with learning is particularly inconsistent.

There is a strong focus on staff development. This ensures staff are aware of exactly what to do next to help pupils stay safe.

Staff appreciate the growing strength of communication and support in terms of their workload and well-being.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

• Overall, pupils do not attend school regularly enough.

Pupils continue to miss valuable time in school. The school should ensure that work to improve attendance continues and prioritises pupils' learning. ? Support for pupils' writing has not been structured sufficiently well until recently.

This means that pupils' writing does not improve quickly enough. The school should ensure that staff implement and adapt the support that pupils receive to develop their writing effectively over time. ? Pupils' understanding is not always checked well enough before moving on to the next part of the curriculum.

As a result, pupils have gaps in their knowledge. The school should ensure that staff check pupils' understanding consistently well. This will enable pupils to build knowledge more effectively over time.

The school's actions to support pupils who struggle to engage in their learning are not as effective as they should be. This hinders pupils in developing positive attitudes to learning and re-engaging with their education. The school should ensure that appropriate support is in place to help pupils to engage well with their learning over time.