Glendinning Academy

Overview

Glendinning Academy is described as a special school where staff create a “calm and productive” atmosphere, ensuring pupils receive the care and support needed to overcome challenges. The report highlights that pupils are happy, have a “strong sense of belonging,” and achieve well due to high staff expectations and an “ambitious and well planned” curriculum.

Strengths

• Staff foster warm relationships, helping pupils feel “safe and well cared for,” which contributes to regular attendance.
• The curriculum is “ambitious and well planned,” with leaders carefully considering the knowledge pupils need in subjects such as science, history, and art.
• Reading is treated as the “bedrock of pupils’ education,” with effective phonics training and support for those who struggle.
• Pupils actively participate in wider opportunities, including outdoor education and water sports, which develop their “independence and social skills.”
• Personal, social and health education is “threaded throughout the curriculum,” focusing on safety and well-being.

Areas to improve

• Leaders must establish assessment systems that clearly show what key knowledge pupils remember, as current systems are not fully in place, leading to “patchy” recall of prior learning.
• Leaders need to strengthen links with parents to address concerns regarding staffing changes and ensure any issues raised are “dealt with quickly.”

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with leaders ensuring the community stays alert and staff having the necessary information to recognise and report signs of abuse.