St John's School in Seaford given good rating

St John’s School in Firle Road, Seaford, looks after children with complex learning disabilities.

An Ofsted inspection in February said the school was “inadequate”.

But its latest report shows improvement and inspectors have said it is “good” overall.

It said young people enjoy their time there, have plenty of activities and are in good health.

Inspectors said: “Young people make good progress. Some are above their reading age and one young person is now a published author. Staff see young people’s abilities and not their disabilities.”

They said staff showed a sensitivity to the emotional wellbeing of the young people and encouraged then to think about society. For example staff arranged to plant trees to commemorate people who lost their lives during the First World War.

Inspectors recognised staff have addressed fully the health and safety concerns that arose in the previous report, which said the school “placed children at risk.”

They suggested further improvements could be made and said staff at the nursery needed to improve and develop outdoor activities.

The said staff could provide written reports on the progress of young people for use at statutory reviews and consider how to further embed training into practice, such as creating more structure in evening timetables.