Fred Nicholson School

Overview

This ungraded inspection found that aspects of the school’s work “may not be as strong as at the time of the previous inspection,” prompting a future graded inspection. While pupils are proud of their school and develop strong social skills, leaders acknowledge weaknesses in the quality of education. Currently, pupils do not consistently receive an education that matches the school’s ambitions, particularly regarding curriculum planning and teaching expectations.

Strengths

• Pupils are “proud to be part of Fred Nicholson School” and develop “strong social skills,” regularly encouraging each other.
• The school is a “calm place” where staff help pupils recognise and manage feelings, using consistent visual aids to support communication.
• Staff “get to know pupils really well as individuals,” helping them become confident in using their preferred communication systems.
• Pupils engage in a “wide range of activities beyond the school,” including workplace visits, which supports their preparation for life outside school.

Areas to improve

• Staff expectations are “too low in too much of the work they do,” resulting in activities that are “too easy” and fail to challenge pupils appropriately.
• Phonics teaching is not effectively adapted; staff do not use checks effectively, so some pupils practise sounds they already know, which “slows their progress in learning to read.”
• The curriculum lacks clear sequencing; the school has not identified precisely what knowledge will be taught and when, meaning some pupils are not taught in a “logical order.”

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective.”