At Orchard Therapeutic Farm, we take our responsibility for Quality Assurance (QA) extremely seriously. Our priority is to ensure that every pupil attending our provision is safe, motivated, able to learn, and supported to achieve their potential.

The Department for Education’s statutory guidance on Alternative Provision (DfE, 2013) states:

“Responsibility for the alternative provision used rests with the commissioner. The nature of the intervention, its objectives and the timeline to achieve these objectives should be agreed and clearly defined.”

We fully understand the role of commissioners and the importance of their responsibilities, and we regard these with the utmost seriousness. Schools and other commissioners should ensure appropriate quality assurance is carried out for all off-site and/or alternative provision accessed by pupils.

As part of our commitment to transparency, Orchard Therapeutic Farm grants commissioners and stakeholders access to our quality assurance processes, practices, and policies upon request. This enables schools and commissioners to evaluate evidence directly from us as the provider, making informed judgements about the effectiveness of our provision in meeting pupils’ needs.

Our governance team plays a vital role in quality assurance. This includes local community partnership groups, internal QA experts who offer both support and constructive challenge, and external educational improvement partners and independent professionals with a deep understanding of education.

Because quality assurance is fully embedded in everything we do, there is a consistent focus on delivering provision of the highest standard. Schools and local authorities referring learners can be confident that the scrutiny we apply and the standards we maintain are exemplary.

Our Quality Assurance Responsibilities

We are committed to:

• Complying with the most recent DfE guidance and legislation for alternative provision.

• Maintaining regular contact with the commissioning school and the pupil’s parents/guardians, providing updates on progress.

• Completing an initial assessment of educational needs within one week of referral to ensure the right course level and support are in place.

• Notifying the school of attendance and absence — best practice is twice daily.

• Providing relevant policies and procedures that relate to the pupil’s welfare, education, and safety (e.g., Safeguarding Policy, E-safety, Health & Safety Policy, Behaviour Policy).

• Attending relevant multi-agency meetings such as Personal Education Plan (PEP) meetings, EHCP reviews, SEND reviews, and social care meetings.

• Applying clear monitoring criteria to judge the quality of teaching and learning, and reporting this to the commissioning school at agreed intervals.

• Providing a named contact for all matters relating to the pupil.

• Complying with Oxfordshire County Council’s policies, standards, and procedures (e.g., Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board, Children Missing Education).

• Maintaining Individual Learning Plans that set out programme targets (e.g., L1 Functional Skills English, Pass grade) and wider targets (e.g., 95% attendance, behaviour). These are agreed by the pupil, the provider, and the school.

• Carrying out regular audits in safeguarding, health & safety, and teaching & learning in line with regulatory requirements.

Evaluating the Impact of Our Provision

Responsibility for quality assurance and evaluation sits with the Director of Education and the Board of Advisors. We review our provision against the following key areas:

• Quality of teaching and learning.

• Academic progress, ensuring suitably challenging targets.

• Accreditation, including English and maths.

• Safeguarding and health & safety (including quality of accommodation).

• Personal development and wellbeing.

• Pupil voice.

• Employability and life skills — progression to post-16 destinations.

• The role of advisors in understanding pupil progress, enabling commissioners to make informed decisions about value for money.