Castle School
Catchment Area, Reviews and Key Information

Primary & Secondary
Post 16
Special school
PUPILS
219
AGES
2 - 19
GENDER
Mixed
TYPE
Community special school

How Does The School Perform?

Good
NATIONAL AVG. 2.09
Ofsted Inspection
(16/05/2023)
Full Report - All Reports

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93%
NATIONAL AVG. 93%
Happiness Rating

Ofsted Parent View

7.0:1
NATIONAL AVG. 19.9:1
Pupil/Teacher ratio
40.8%
NATIONAL AVG. 17.7%
Persistent Absence
17.4%
NATIONAL AVG. 22.0%
Pupils first language
not English
43%
NATIONAL AVG. 25.9%
Free school meals
Courtney Way
Cambridge
CB4 2EE
01223442400

School Description

The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. You are an innovative and inspiring leader who continuously seeks ways to improve and enhance provision for all pupils. Staff are right behind you in striving for the best possible outcomes for pupils’ academic achievement and in their personal development. They share your ambition unconditionally. Comments in the staff questionnaire are testament to the inclusive, child-centred, community-spirited ethos and the strong values that you and all leaders communicate, believe in and demonstrate. Staff said: ‘Leaders are approachable, involved and get to know the staff and children, making it feel like we are all part of the same team and valued.’ ‘I love the positive buzz around the school.’ ‘We all work very hard together to get the best possible outcomes for our young people.’ ‘Castle School is a pupil-centred school and teamwork is the key.’ Senior leaders have moved the school forward since the previous inspection, particularly in improving teaching, learning and assessment and pupils’ behaviour. The school currently provides for an extensive range of pupils’ needs. You have risen to this challenge by revising and redesigning the curriculum and adapting it to meet individual pupils’ needs. Leaders have done a sterling job in developing an effective system to check how well pupils are learning. Teachers and teaching assistants know exactly what pupils already know and can do and what they need to learn next. From the early years through to post-16, all pupils are stretched to achieve the challenging targets that teachers set for them. Staff have high expectations for all pupils to be as independent as possible in their learning, including the most able and those who have profound and complex medical, physical and/or learning needs. All groups of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, make strong progress from their individual starting points, especially in developing their language, communication, reading, writing and mathematical skills. Pupils’ behaviour has improved significantly since the previous inspection. The senior teacher responsible for this area of development has worked closely with the local authority to make the necessary changes. Effective training for staff has helped them to develop more ways to increase pupils’ engagement, involvement and participation in learning. Relationships between adults and pupils are strong and respectful, which lends confidence to their learning and promotes a calm, purposeful, supportive atmosphere in every classroom. The senior leader tracks each pupil’s behaviour and analyses the information to ensure that strategies and approaches to manage challenging behaviour are working and having an impact. His mantra, ‘what gets measured gets managed’, has proved successful in driving forward improvements. The school development plan that lies at the heart of school improvement work does not have such clear, measurable criteria against which to judge progress towards achieving the targets set. Recording and summarising of information is variable in quality and not entirely efficient in some respects. This makes some management tasks more difficult than they should be. You have begun to extend the methods and approaches that staff use to communicate with parents and some are having a marked impact. For example, feedback from parents about the end-of-year reports on pupils’ achievement are positive and they appreciate the addition of a DVD showing their children learning in action. The recent addition of including digital images of pupils working in the home/school communication books is prompting more comment from parents. Nonetheless, as seen in Parent View, some parents do not feel that the school responds well enough to their views and concerns. The school website does not publish all of the information that the Department for Education requires. All staff give careful consideration to creating a welcoming and inviting place for pupils to learn. Eye-catching, good-quality displays of pupils’ work celebrate their achievements and provide pupils, staff and visitors with valuable information about what pupils are learning. Classrooms and specialist rooms are clean, attractive and well organised. Every pupil’s targets are on display so that anyone stepping in to cover a class at short notice knows exactly what pupils are expected to learn next. Pupils take pride in the presentation of their work. Under your and the deputy headteacher’s strong leadership, the school is in safe hands to continue to develop and improve. Governors support and challenge you in equal measures, fulfilling their duty to act as a critical friend. They are forwardlooking and consider all options to ensure that provision is sustainable and meets pupils’ needs effectively. Safeguarding is effective. The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. The designated safeguarding leads (DSLs) are properly trained to fulfil the role. The designated leads for safeguarding and the safeguarding governor ensure that safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and applied consistently. You have created a culture of shared responsibility for everyone to safeguard pupils. Pupils are listened to and feel safe. All staff receive regular training and updates about safeguarding to ensure that they are kept abreast of any key changes. You provide staff with helpful guidance and advice on how to record concerns accurately and effectively in writing. Staff comply fully with your insistence that ‘if it is not written down, it did not happen’. The single central record of statutory checks on all staff and adults working with pupils is completed properly to ensure their suitability to work with children. Requirements for recruiting staff are followed carefully. You ensure that pupils learn how to keep themselves safe through the personal, social, health and relationships programme that teachers follow. Impressively, when I visited a classroom with a senior leader, a pupil was quick to alert staff to the fact that I was not known to him. Inspection findings The previous inspection in December 2013 identified three things for the school to work on. These included: – raising achievement by ensuring that teachers set tasks for pupils at the right level of difficulty – improving behaviour – improving communication with parents. To determine that the school remained good, one of my key lines of enquiry was about the impact of leaders’ work in addressing these areas for improvement. Our findings confirmed that, across the school, pupils currently make strong progress from their starting points. This includes pupils of all abilities, pupils who have complex physical/medical needs and those, who in addition, are disadvantaged and eligible for pupil premium. Staff frequently check and record how well pupils are learning and use the information effectively to ensure that the tasks they set for pupils are not too easy or too difficult. They measure pupils’ progress towards their targets using a four-point scale to confirm that their knowledge, understanding and skills are entirely secure before moving on.

Castle School Parent Reviews



92% Parents Recommend This School
Strongly Agree 72% Agree 21% Disagree 3% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 5% {"strongly_agree"=>72, "agree"=>21, "disagree"=>3, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>5} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 72% Agree 15% Disagree 3% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 8% {"strongly_agree"=>72, "agree"=>15, "disagree"=>3, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>8} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 46% Agree 36% Disagree 8% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 8% {"strongly_agree"=>46, "agree"=>36, "disagree"=>8, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>8} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
My Child Has Not Been Bullied 67% Strongly Agree 3% Agree 10% Disagree 5% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 15% {"my_child_has_not_been_bullied"=>67, "strongly_agree"=>3, "agree"=>10, "disagree"=>5, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>15} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 64% Agree 33% Disagree 0% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 0% {"strongly_agree"=>64, "agree"=>33, "disagree"=>0, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>0} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
I Have Not Raised Any Concerns 38% Strongly Agree 38% Agree 13% Disagree 8% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 0% {"i_have_not_raised_any_concerns"=>38, "strongly_agree"=>38, "agree"=>13, "disagree"=>8, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>0} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 77% Agree 15% Disagree 5% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 0% {"strongly_agree"=>77, "agree"=>15, "disagree"=>5, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>0} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 46% Agree 41% Disagree 5% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 8% {"strongly_agree"=>46, "agree"=>41, "disagree"=>5, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>8} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 62% Agree 28% Disagree 8% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 3% {"strongly_agree"=>62, "agree"=>28, "disagree"=>8, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>3} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 77% Agree 21% Disagree 3% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 0% {"strongly_agree"=>77, "agree"=>21, "disagree"=>3, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>0} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 59% Agree 28% Disagree 5% Strongly Disagree 0% Don't Know 8% {"strongly_agree"=>59, "agree"=>28, "disagree"=>5, "strongly_disagree"=>0, "dont_know"=>8} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 28% Agree 28% Disagree 13% Strongly Disagree 10% Don't Know 21% {"strongly_agree"=>28, "agree"=>28, "disagree"=>13, "strongly_disagree"=>10, "dont_know"=>21} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Strongly Agree 62% Agree 31% Disagree 5% Strongly Disagree 3% Don't Know 0% {"strongly_agree"=>62, "agree"=>31, "disagree"=>5, "strongly_disagree"=>3, "dont_know"=>0} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023
Yes 92% No 8% {"yes"=>92, "no"=>8} Figures based on 39 responses up to 19-05-2023

Responses taken from Ofsted Parent View

Your rating:
Review guidelines
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Castle School Catchment Area Map

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