Broadoak School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 23 April 2024

Broadoak School is a warm and welcoming place. Pupils understand the importance of respecting the differences between each other. As such, they are courteous and friendly. This helps the high proportion of pupils arriving from different countries to settle into school well. Most pupils behave well in lessons and during social times. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), typically enjoy coming to school. The school has worked closely with the trust to improve the curriculum. This has helped to raise the expectations set for pupils' achievement. Nonetheless, the refined curriculum is not delivered as well as intended. Therefore, some pupils do not learn all that they should to help them to achieve well. Pupils appreciate the broad range of extra-curricular activities in which they can participate. They enjoy attending friendship, puzzle, volleyball and debate clubs. Such opportunities help pupils to build their confidence. Some pupils relished taking part in recent eco-friendly projects, such as litter picking at Dunham Massey. Other pupils value the opportunities to serve the elderly in the community and collect food items for the local foodbank. These experiences help pupils to further develop their understanding and awareness of life beyond the classroom.

What the school should improve

• The school has not checked that the renewed curriculum is being delivered as intended. This prevents the school from spotting weaknesses in the way that some lessons are designed. As a result, some pupils do not benefit from the changes in the curriculum as well as they should. The school should ensure that it monitors the delivery and impact of the new curriculums so that it can help staff who need extra support and also be assured that the new approaches are making the desired difference to pupils' achievement.
• Some staff have not received the training and support that they need to successfully adapt their teaching to meet the needs of pupils with SEND. This means that some pupils with SEND do not learn as well as they should. The school should make sure that teachers have the guidance and knowledge that they need to ensure that pupils with SEND progress well through the curriculum.
• Some teachers do not use assessment strategies well enough to identify errors in pupils' knowledge. This means that misconceptions are not addressed. The school should ensure that teachers are suitably equipped to check that pupils' earlier learning is secure and that they remedy these gaps swiftly.
• Pupils in key stage 3 who find reading difficult do not receive the support that they need to overcome gaps in their reading knowledge. These pupils do not gain confidence and fluency in reading. This prevents them from accessing the curriculum. The school should ensure that pupils who need extra help to read successfully receive the support that they need so that they become competent and confident readers.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)