Compass Community School Pinetree Park

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 3 October 2023

This school strives to give pupils a sense that they have a place in the world. For some pupils, this is truly transformative. The school's welcoming environment and beautiful setting provide a positive space for pupils to re-engage in education. Relationships between pupils and staff are notably positive. In lessons, alongside the periodic use of well-judged humour, these relationships are mainly focused on learning. The school is ambitious for its pupils and pupils want to do well. At breaktimes, the atmosphere is more relaxed. Pupils and staff eat a freshly prepared hot meal together or play football outside. At all times, though, these relationships are characterised by mutual respect. Pupils are taught to listen, consider and accept others' viewpoints. The school is usually calm. Pupils say that behaviour can sometimes be a bit 'up and down'. However, they trust staff to sort it out. They say they would always talk to staff about any concerns. Pupils are allowed the time and space to regulate their emotions and behaviour when they need to. The gently swinging hammock is a helpful and popular spot to relax. Learning outdoors and going elsewhere for physical education or other fieldwork activities add richness to pupils' experiences.

What the school should improve

• The use of diagnostic assessment to understand more about why some older pupils struggle to read is not as secure as it could be. This means that interventions to improve pupils' reading could be more specific and targeted than they are currently. The school should strengthen the expertise of all involved in teaching or supporting older struggling readers. It should put this expertise into practice by sharpening the approach to the assessment of reading and target specific interventions more precisely.
• There is some variability in how successfully approaches to teaching the curriculum take account of pupils' needs. This leads some pupils to sometimes disengage and not retain the intended learning as well as they could. The school should increase staff confidence and competence so that the curriculum is consistently well adapted to the needs of all pupils.

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