THE SECRET GARDEN SCHOOL

Overview: The Secret Garden School provides a nurturing environment where pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can thrive. Pupils are happy and feel they belong, with staff using effective approaches to encourage a love of learning. The school has high expectations for pupils' academic success, and pupils achieve well.

Strengths:

• Pupils are happy and feel they belong at the school.
• Staff use effective approaches to encourage a love of learning.
• The school has high expectations for pupils' academic success.
• Pupils achieve well.
• The school provides a well-equipped environment with many areas for pupils to take a break.
• Pupils engage with and care for a range of domestic and exotic animals.
• Pupils benefit from many opportunities to expand their experiences within and beyond the school grounds.
• The school provides pupils with off-site opportunities such as horse riding, trampolining, and rock climbing.
• Pupils visit butterfly farms, zoos, factories, and museums.
• The school ensures that pupils receive suitable independent careers advice and guidance.
• Adults are highly respectful of the individual needs of pupils.
• Pupils learn to be respectful of each other.
• The school places a high priority on working with parents and carers to promote good attendance.
• The strong oversight and involvement of the proprietor ensures that the school meets all the independent school standards.

Areas to improve:

• The school has not identified the precise knowledge that pupils should learn and remember in some foundation subjects, leading to pupils not always achieving as well as they could.
• The school does not consistently monitor how well the curriculum is being implemented, leading to leaders not always identifying where staff would benefit from guidance and support to improve their pedagogical knowledge.

Safeguarding: The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.