Coppice School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 16 May 2024

The school is highly effective at meetings the needs of pupils at Coppice. The school makes sure that pupils feel safe and are ready to learn. Pupils have severe learning difficulties and the majority of pupils have a diagnosis of autism. The school supports each individual pupil by making sure that they have access to different spaces, equipment and activities to help them to stay calm and to focus on their learning. The building has been decorated to mirror nature. This helps everyone to settle and concentrate. As a result, pupils behave well. Pupils are happy here. Expectations for achievement are high. The school knows the abilities of individual pupils. The curriculum and activities that pupils complete are generally precise, well-thought- through and match pupils' needs. Pupils develop their skills well, often in very small steps. The school uses a variety of techniques to help pupils to communicate. For some pupils, this means helping them to choose between two options. For others, signs and symbols are used effectively to help pupils to express themselves. In all classes, there is a focus on preparing pupils for life after Coppice. Specifically, students in the sixth form are supported in developing life skills, such as cooking, road safety and independent travel. Special care is given to help students to move on from Coppice successfully.

What the school should improve

• Sometimes, the granular steps for pupils are not clearly identified within subject areas or pathways. This means that, on occasion, the precise next steps for pupils are not identified when delivering the curriculum. Therefore, it is also difficult to assess exactly how much pupils know and can do. The school should continue its work in refining these so that teachers can assess where pupils are in their learning with greater accuracy and help pupils to make even more progress.

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