The Rowan School

Overview

The Rowan School provides an exceptional environment where pupils with complex needs receive "high-quality nurture and support" within an "aspirational" setting. The inspection highlights a "thoughtfully designed" curriculum and "excellent" relationships, resulting in pupils who are "exceptionally well cared for" and developing resilience.

Strengths

• The curriculum is "broad and ambitious," structured across four pathways to grow pupils’ knowledge from ‘roots’ to ‘leaves’, with learning "personalised to each pupils’ stage of development."
• Staff are "highly skilled" and act as "excellent role models," promoting "respectful relationships" and helping pupils manage emotions and behaviour effectively.
• There is a strong focus on communication, with staff proficient in teaching signing, pictures, and ‘core board’ symbols, leading to an "increasingly positive impact" on pupils’ ability to express needs.
• Reading is prioritised with well-taught phonics and "sensory stories," fostering a "love of reading" even among younger children.
• Pupils benefit from extensive enrichment activities, including swimming, cooking, and outdoor education, alongside strong community links that promote inclusion.

Areas to improve

• The school must ensure assessment checks "precisely what pupils learn of the curriculum" so teachers can use this information effectively to inform teaching.
• Currently, checking of pupils’ learning in some subjects is "not as precise as it should be," meaning teachers cannot be sure pupils are retaining knowledge in those areas.

Safeguarding

The report states that "the arrangements for safeguarding are effective."