INSPECTORS say an independent school for children with special educational needs and disabilities needs to make urgent improvements.
Regulator Ofsted visited Elmtree Grove School in Overndale Road in January.
Its report, published at the end of May, outlined “multiple weaknesses in the quality of the school’s provision”.
Ofsted said the school needs to urgently improve pupils’ achievement, its curriculum and teaching, inclusion work, and leadership and governance.
The inspectors also said the school’s safeguarding culture is not open and positive, and systems and processes to keep vulnerable pupils safe are not good enough, putting pupils “at significant risk of harm”.
They said work on pupils’ attendance, behaviour, personal development and well-being needs attention.
Executive head teacher Tyrone Perry-Harry is “highly disappointed” with the report, and does not believe it reflects the school’s current position.
Elmtree Grove opened last year on the site of the former Gracefield Preparatory School, which closed in 2024.
It has around 25 pupils aged from four to 12 with autism, ADHD and social, emotional and mental health needs, and charges fees of £36,000 to £48,500 per year to local authorities that place children at the school.
Inspectors Gavin Summerfield and Hilary Goddard said “poor teaching” meant pupils have weaknesses in their essential knowledge and do not achieve well.
They said: “A weak culture of safeguarding exists, putting pupils at risk of harm.
“Pupils do not receive an acceptable standard of education.
“The school does not take into account pupils’ starting points or meet their special educational needs and/or disabilities well.
“Furthermore, teaching often does not address the significant gaps in pupils’ knowledge.
“The proprietor’s oversight of these issues is weak.
“Despite this, some pupils enjoy their learning.
“Many pupils have missed considerable periods of their education before joining Elmtree Grove.
“The school’s work to overcome barriers to learning helps pupils to re-engage with education and improve their attendance.
“Caring and respectful relationships guide their daily interactions. Some pupils feel safe, however, not all.”
The inspectors said proprietor Elementa Education Group “has not ensured that the school’s site is safe for pupils”.
They said there are weaknesses in how the school monitors attendance and bullying, but said staff respond swiftly to any complaints, and have “high expectations and build caring relationships with pupils”.
The inspectors said the curriculum lacks coherence and staff have not had sufficient training to adjust it to pupils’ needs, with “significant weaknesses” in how individual needs are assessed.
Their report said that since opening, the school has “experienced significant staffing turbulence, including at a leadership level”.
This relates to the school’s dismissal of its previous head teacher last year, following a number of complaints and an internal investigation.
The inspectors said: “Until very recently, the school has lacked both the strategic direction and the external support needed to bring about rapid and meaningful improvement.
“New leaders have brought additional capacity and a renewed sense of stability and direction. “These leaders have begun to introduce more training to promote greater consistency in curriculum delivery. However, this work is still at an early stage.”
The inspectors laid out seven steps for improvement, including to safeguarding systems, oversight, assessment and adaptation of teaching to meet pupils’ needs.
Mr Perry-Harry said: “We are highly disappointed with the outcome of the recent Ofsted inspection, as we believe that it does not reflect the current position Elmtree Grove School is in.
“As a very small independent specialist school supporting young people who have struggled in their education journey, we feel the inspection does not reflect the journey our children and school have been on in the short time it has been open.
“We are a small specialist SEND school, supporting pupils with highly complex and evolving needs, many of whom were previously unable to access suitable placements.
“We have continually adapted our curriculum to reflect a growing understanding of each child, creating a responsive and inclusive environment despite the challenges of fitting the standard Ofsted inspection framework.”
He said the four-month delay in publishing the report was as a result of the school completing Ofsted’s complaints procedure, saying the school’s “context and our young people sit outside of standardised processes”.
Mr Perry-Harry said all of the areas identified by Ofsted for improvement were already existing priorities, and the school has moved from being overseen by a panel of advisors to a governing body, as recommended by Ofsted.
The school pointed to a report commissioned from consultants Education Safeguarding Solutions last November, which concluded safeguarding was “effective”, and a council quality assurance report that recognised improving leadership and stability.