Mossbrook School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 16 July 2024

Pupils enjoy attending this inclusive and welcoming school. Relationships between pupils and staff are caring and strong. Staff know pupils very well. Pupils say they feel safe and trust adults to support them if they have any concerns. Parents and carers appreciate the expert help staff give to their children. One parent reflected the views of others when they stated: 'Mossbrook is an understanding and caring school, that supports and advocates for all its children so that they flourish there'. Pupils make timely progress toward their personal goals. Most pupils achieve well in relation to their learning targets. Pupils behave well around the school. Most interact calmly and with respect for each other. Staff support pupils to communicate their needs in a variety of ways. They know the causes of distress for each pupil, so they can intervene early to help pupils remain calm. There are high ambitions for all pupils. Staff plan for pupils' personal development throughout the school day. Many pupils understand how they can keep themselves safe, including when near water or out in the community. They learn about eating healthy foods, developing fitness and staying safe online. Pupils' individual plans help them to develop the knowledge and skills they need to prepare them for their stage of learning.

What the school should improve

• Some pupils on the 'adventurer' pathway are not stretched and challenged by their curriculum. There has not been enough careful thought given to how they can be further supported with their reading or how they can access aspects of the national curriculum at an age-expected level. This means that some pupils do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that the curriculum provided through the 'adventurer' pathway enables these pupils to know and remember more over time and so achieve as well as they can.
• In some lessons, pupils do not complete tasks that are matched to their prior knowledge and skills and that help them to understand the intended core learning. This hampers these pupils' progress through the planned curriculum. The school should ensure that pupils complete well-constructed tasks that enable them to explore and develop their knowledge and understanding fully.
• There is inconsistency in the way staff use the 'progression steps' to assess pupils' progress through the curriculum. As a result, not all pupils have the most relevant next step provided for them. This can limit how quickly they make progress. The school should ensure that all staff are confident in assessing pupils accurately so that the correct next steps are identified, so enabling pupils to achieve as highly as they should.

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