New Park Academy

Overview

New Park Academy is described as a “nurturing school” where “pupils achieve well” and feel “happy and safe.” Leaders have established “clear and effective routines,” including a popular breakfast club, which help pupils have a “bright start to the school day.” The report highlights that staff build “supportive and respectful relationships” with pupils, who receive “effective and bespoke support” for their special educational needs and disabilities.

Strengths

• Leaders have designed a “broad and balanced curriculum” where pupils in most subjects “build new learning on what they already know.”
• Staff “weave specialist advice effectively” into individual programmes, ensuring pupils with SEND make progress through the “ambitious curriculum.”
• Leaders have implemented an “effective reading curriculum” that “skilfully re-engage[s] pupils with the joy of reading.”
• The school provides “high-quality careers education” and ensures pupils are “well prepared for adulthood.”
• Governors and trustees “know the school well” and offer “effective support and challenge.”

Areas to improve

• Leaders must ensure all staff receive suitable guidance on the phonics programme so they can support early readers “consistently well.”
• In a small number of subjects, leaders should ensure curriculums identify important content in “sufficient detail” to prevent hindered progress.
• Leaders should ensure subject leaders are “well equipped to confidently lead their areas of responsibility” and check that teachers deliver the curriculum as intended.

Safeguarding

The report states that “the arrangements for safeguarding are effective,” noting that staff recognise signs of abuse, raise concerns promptly, and pupils learn about risks such as knife crime and online safety.