Lime Academy Hornbeam

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 5 December 2023

This is a school where everyone is made to feel welcome. Pupils are kind and accepting of others. They work and play alongside one another, regardless of differences. Staff get to know pupils well. This helps them to identify when something may be out of the ordinary for their pupils. Staff use this knowledge to keep pupils safe and provide them with personalised support. Pupils are well looked after and trusted staff help them if they need it. The school is a calm and settled environment where, overall, pupils behave well. Pupils rise to the challenges and high expectations set by staff. Students in the sixth form are encouraged to be ambitious for their future adult lives. Pupils enjoy all that the school has to offer. Younger pupils, for example, get involved in all sorts of activities in school, including trampolining and cooking. Other opportunities include fencing and learning to play the ukulele. Pupils take on different responsibilities in school, such as their work on the school council. Pupils participate in school-wide events. For example, by setting up and selling books at the school's book fair.

What the school should improve

• In a few subjects, curriculum thinking lacks precision. It is not routinely clear what pupils on each 'curriculum pathway' are expected to be taught in these subjects. The use of assessment is not used routinely well to identify what pupils know and to inform their next steps in learning. The school should continue to develop curriculum thinking so that, in all subjects, staff are clear about what to teach and when for pupils on each pathway. The school should ensure that checks on pupil's learning identify what pupils know and can do and what they need to learn next.

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