G.E.M Hereford

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 25 June 2024

G.E.M. Hereford is a calm, safe and caring school. Many of the pupils who attend this school, all of whom have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), have had negative experiences in other settings. That is not the case here. Pupils are happy and take advantage of the broad range of activities on offer. This is a school full of passion and ambition for getting pupils' education just right. A place where the words, 'growth, empowerment and motivation' are not only the school's name, they are also the school's accomplished aims. When pupils start school, staff spend time getting to know them to understand fully their needs and preferences. Staff support pupils effectively to manage their behaviours and feelings. This helps pupils to feel less anxious or overwhelmed and so prepares them for learning. Consequently, pupils work hard and focus well. This shows both in the volume and quality of the work they produce. The school has high expectations of pupils, knowing that they can achieve well. Positive relationships between staff and pupils underpin the school's work. These are the bedrock of the successes here. Adults are sensitive to the needs and views of pupils and work tirelessly to create a school where pupils feel welcome, secure and motivated to learn.

What the school should improve

• On occasion, the questions adults ask do not offer pupils enough challenge. This means that staff miss opportunities to encourage pupils to reason and deepen their thinking. The school should support staff to use questioning more effectively to promote pupils' deeper thinking and reasoning skills.
• Some areas of the curriculum are at an early stage of implementation. This means that there are times when learning is less effective because the intended curriculum has not been broken down into small enough steps. The school should ensure that the curriculum in all subject areas is broken down into small, sequenced steps so that pupils learn more and remember more.

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