Agencies/London
Pupils at a special school were kept locked in classrooms by teachers to stop them from running out, an Ofsted report said.
Woodlands School, in Beechdale Road, Aspley, Nottingham, was put into special measures following an inspection in June.
A report published by Ofsted last week said the school, which has 56 pupils aged three-16, did not adequately safeguard pupils because some classroom doors were “locked inappropriately” when the children were in the room to stop them from running out.
Inspectors said the practice had been condoned by on-site leaders and had not been picked up by the governing body or the executive headteacher.
They also said at times the staff’s responses to low-level disruptive behaviour was “unsuitable”.
In their report, the inspectors noted that improvements had been made since the last inspection in teaching, the subjects offered to pupils and in behaviour management by some staff.
They also noted that ways of improving teaching led by the executive headteacher had been successful.
However they said the school’s capacity to improve further was “uncertain” because some senior staff did not understand safeguarding and positive behaviour approaches well enough and did not demonstrate high enough expectations of pupils’ progress.
Their report concluded that the school required special measures “because it is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the persons responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school.”
The report, published on July 23, follows an inspection carried out by Ofsted on June 18 and 19.
