Grange Park School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 February 2024

The school is expert in understanding and meeting the needs of pupils with autism spectrum disorder. Pupils appreciate the exceptionally calm and orderly environment throughout the school. All pupils receive carefully tailored support that enables them to become increasingly able to recognise and manage their physical and emotional well-being. As a result, pupils demonstrate exceptional levels of self-control and commitment to their education. Over time, all pupils develop the social skills and confidence to build positive relationships and friendships within the school community. The school has great ambition for every pupil to achieve the best possible outcomes. This includes ensuring that every pupil has a clear pathway into further education or employment when they leave the school. The achievement of some pupils, however, is limited, because the support the school provides for those at an early stage of learning to read lacks precision. Pupils have extensive opportunities for personal development. They talk with great enthusiasm about the range of trips, visits and workshops on offer, and the difference these opportunities have made to their lives. For example, pupils reflected on how an opportunity to perform on a professional stage had given them a deeper sense of confidence and self-belief.

What the school should improve

• The school has not developed sufficient expertise in the teaching of phonics and reading to ensure that the reading support provided is precise and enables every pupil to learn to read. Gaps in pupils' phonological knowledge and understanding are not systematically identified or addressed. Consequently, not all pupils are fully able to access the school's planned curriculum, and these pupils achieve less well than they could. The school should ensure that staff develop sufficient expertise so that every pupil gets the right support to learn to read.

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