Leycroft Academy

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 21 May 2024

New leaders have raised the expectations for what pupils can achieve at Leycroft Academy. They are creating a new curriculum to meet the school's ambition to 'enable pupils to understand the wider world around them and discover the talents within'. However, this is in the early stages. There is still more work needed to ensure that all pupils' learning needs are well understood and supported. Relationships between pupils and staff are positive. Staff are caring and supportive and want the best for pupils. Pupils are safe. Staff know how to quickly raise any concerns. The school has recently introduced newly agreed systems to support pupils' communication needs. Staff are supported by trained 'communication champions' who support in identifying systems for individual pupils. However, some staff do not always implement the agreed strategies. This means that pupils are not always able to communicate what they need. Consequently, this leads to low-level behaviours in classrooms, as sometimes pupils become unsettled. Leaders are ambitious for what they want pupils to achieve in their personal development. This is beginning to be realised. Pupils celebrate a wide range of festivals. They learn about different faiths and religions. Special visitors come into school. Plans are now in place to give pupils experiences within the wider community.

What the school should improve

• Staff do not always implement the agreed communication and behaviour systems in their classrooms and across school. This means that pupils are not always able to communicate what they need. This leads to pupils quickly becoming unsettled and not responding positively to their learning. The school should ensure that all staff have the necessary skills and knowledge to consistently implement agreed communication and behaviour strategies across all classrooms and all areas of school.
• The curriculum is not developed well enough in all subject areas. Some parts of the curriculum are also at the early stages of development. The school has not yet identified the essential component knowledge and skills they want pupils to learn and in what order. This means that pupils are not building their knowledge or skills over time. The school should ensure that they clearly identify the specific knowledge and skills they want pupils to learn and remember in all areas of the curriculum.
• Staff do not always implement the curriculum well enough to support pupils' learning. Learning activities provide pupils with some experiences but do not always build effectively on what pupils know and can do. This limits pupils' learning. The school should ensure that the work teachers give to pupils precisely identifies the important knowledge and skills and enables them to build on their learning.
• The school has recently introduced a number of new initiatives, including changes to the curriculum. Leaders do not yet have a clear view of how well new initiatives and changes are being implemented across the school. Leaders need to continue their work on checking and accurately evaluating how well initiatives and changes are being implemented across school.

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