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Extra pupil capacity has been added to specialist school The Sky Academy in Taunton after a £4.9million expansion was formally opened.

Invited guests from Somerset Council, academy staff and governors, and representatives of the school’s parent trust Cabot Learning Federation attended a cake-cutting ceremony to unveil the extension this week.

The state-of-the-art building includes six new classrooms, breakout rooms, a science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) room, kitchenettes, and an activity space.

This expansion will enable The Sky Academy to take pupils from years 5 and 6 and help increase their chance of long-term success beyond education.

Work on the project – funded by Somerset Council and carried out by Willmott Dixon – has taken two years and has been carefully planned to have the maximum positive impact on pupils’ learning.

This is important for The Sky Academy, which is a specialist school for boys with social, emotional and mental health (SEMH) needs and speech, language and communication needs (SLCN).

It is currently the only school offering this specialism within the local area – as a result, its pupils attend from a wide catchment area.

The project also saw contractor Willmott Dixon work with students to teach them construction skills like bricklaying. Students took to the task so well, Wilmott Dixon later offered one of the Sky Academy students an apprenticeship at another local site, the Digital Innovation Centre in Taunton.

Speaking at the opening of the new block, The Sky Academy’s Headteacher Bex Jones told guests the expansion reflects a commitment by all parties to ensuring the right specialist provision is available for children with SEND within the communities that they live.

Bex Jones, Headteacher at Sky Academy, said: “We are very proud to be at the heart of Somerset’s SEND improvement strategy for young people with SEMH needs. This new facility has further enabled us to provide the aspirational challenge, nurture and education that Sky has become known for – championing the success and life chances of all children.

“We look forward to the next stage of this collaborative journey, alongside other schools within the Cabot Learning Federation Somerset hub.”

Councillor Tessa Munt, Executive Lead Member for Children and Families, said “At Somerset Council, we are committed to providing equal learning opportunities to all young people. It is fantastic to see this important project completed, ensuring even more children in Somerset can benefit from a specialist learning environment close to home.”

The Sky Academy in Taunton has earned praise from Ofsted inspectors for the ‘significant’ improvements it has made to behaviour, leadership and curriculum – while confirmation of an imminent move to join a new school trust will help guide further progress.

Sky, a special school for 100 young people in years 5-11 with social, emotional and mental health needs, has made great progress since being rated ‘inadequate’ by inspectors last year.

A recent monitoring visit from the schools watchdog – carried out to monitor progress made to move out of special measures stemming from the earlier inspection – saw inspectors herald the steps taken by new school leadership to address past weaknesses and drive widespread improvement.

Ofsted’s report said: “The leadership team was in its infancy at the time of the previous inspection. The previous inspection report acknowledged that new leaders had started to tackle the significant weaknesses at the school. This work has continued.

“Substantive leaders now have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. They have acted quickly to impact areas they deemed a priority. This includes behaviour, attendance and special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) awareness amongst staff to support pupils’ learning.”

Inspectors acknowledged the ‘significant improvements’ carried out to the use of school buildings, and the impact this has had on safeguarding and raising expectations of student behaviour.

They also noted that leaders have taken ‘important’ steps to enhance Sky’s curriculum, including new measures to tailor academic and pastoral support to pupils on a bespoke basis. Initiatives designed to prioritise reading – and improve students’ attitudes and engagement – were singled out for praise.

Issues around poor student behaviour and attitudes are also being addressed effectively, according to Ofsted.

Inspectors said: “As a leadership team, you were very aware of the need to tackle the poor behaviour and attitudes to learning highlighted in the previous inspection. Your response to this has had some considerable impact.

“Teachers have the support and training they need to maintain high expectations of pupils. The school restructure has played a crucial role in this.

“Pupils now learn in nurture groups where the relationships with, and consistency of, adults are prioritised. Pupils describe the changes positively. They feel that staff work with them and give them time to talk. Pupils agree they feel listened to and that many of the staff understand their needs.

“The impact of this work can already be seen on pupils’ attendance and fewer behaviour incidents.”

Ofsted also recognised that most parents feel positively about the school and its ‘rapid journey of improvement’ – which will benefit from additional future support after the Department for Education gave a formal green light for Sky Academy to join a new multi-academy trust.

On August 1, Sky – alongside sister schools Lansdown Park Academy in Bristol and Brook Academy in Gloucestershire – will join the Cabot Learning Federation, a West Country Schools trust with a proven history of supporting schools to improve.

This will follow the dissolution of the Learn@ MAT which the three schools are currently part of.

Sky Academy Headteacher Bex Jones, who was appointed as substantive head in April 2022 and has led the rollout of improvement plans, said: “We are pleased that Ofsted has recognised the significant progress made at Sky over the past year, which is testament to the dedication and expertise of our team.

“Work to enhance to our curriculum and environment has had a big impact, and our students have responded well; the improvements to attitudes and behaviour are key to helping them achieve well.

“We recognise there is work still to do but believe joining the Cabot Learning Federation will open the door to new resources and collaborations which can help us fulfil our ambitions to deliver an excellent education which prepares our young people for adulthood.”