Corbets Tey School

Overview

Corbets Tey School continues to be a good school, providing a highly expert and caring environment for pupils with severe learning difficulties. The report highlights that pupils feel safe, secure, and confident, benefiting from a bespoke curriculum designed to support their individual needs and prepare them for adulthood.

Strengths

• Staff are described as “highly expert and deeply caring,” creating a “close-knit community” where pupils feel valued and supported.
• The curriculum is carefully designed to meet individual needs, with a strong emphasis on functional mathematics, literacy, and communication strategies such as signing or using electronic devices.
• Pupils participate in enriching experiences, including enterprise projects and work experience, which encourage independence and prepare them well for adulthood.
• Assessment is used effectively to gauge understanding, allowing staff to refine and adapt support to help pupils embed knowledge and make connections.
• Leaders ensure transitions are carefully managed to reduce anxiety, and staff work closely with families and external agencies to support attendance.

Areas to improve

• The implementation of the phonics curriculum is “not consistently precise,” meaning pupils ready to learn to read are not sufficiently supported to develop accuracy and fluency.
• The school should ensure there is “sufficient expertise to implement the curriculum consistently” regarding phonics to support reading development.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with an open and positive culture that puts pupils’ interests first.