LIPA School

Overview

The inspection found that pupils do not benefit from positive experiences, with many feeling unsettled and unsafe due to poor behaviour and inconsistent sanctions. The report states that the quality of education has declined, leadership is ineffective, and safeguarding arrangements are not effective, leading to the school being placed in special measures.

Strengths

• Some pupils feel happy at school and have high aspirations for creative and performing arts subjects.
• There are opportunities for pupils to engage in activities to develop interests and support the community, though uptake is low.
• Children in the early years get off to a prompt start in learning phonics.
• Older pupils choose books to read for pleasure, which helps build reading confidence.
• When concerns are raised by pupils or staff, they are followed up appropriately.

Areas to improve

• The trust must take urgent action to stabilise staffing and provide leadership capacity to improve all aspects of provision.
• The school must design and implement a coherent, ambitious curriculum that prepares pupils well for each stage of education.
• Safeguarding arrangements require immediate improvement, particularly regarding attendance checks and pupil safety oversight.

Safeguarding

The report states that safeguarding arrangements are not effective, noting that slow follow-up of absences puts vulnerable pupils at risk of harm and that insufficient supervision of premises and equipment creates potential dangers.