The Alternative School, known as TAS to all those connected with it, is a non-denominational, day school for boys and girls aged from 13 to 16 years. It was established in May 2007 to ‘offer a new and exciting alternative Key Stage 4 curriculum to those young people who are not engaging with mainstream education’. It was registered as a school with the Department for Education in 2010. The school operates from two separate sites, 18 miles apart, in east Lancashire. Its base is on the ground floor of The Old Library in Barnoldswick; the other site is in the New Era Centre in Accrington. The school has neither teaching assistants nor middle leaders. There are currently 29 students on roll, with 14 girls and 15 boys. All but one of the places for students currently on roll are funded by local authorities, maintained schools or pupil referral units. Students arrive at the school at any time throughout the year. All students are identified as having special educational needs. Seven students have a statement of special educational needs and five are in the care of the local authority. The statements cover a range of needs, including learning difficulties, behavioural, emotional and social difficulties and conditions associated with autistic spectrum disorders. The vast majority of pupils are White British. All speak English as their first language. The school uses no off-site provision. The school aims to provide an alternative experience for young people who are not attending mainstream provision and would, therefore, have left school without any qualifications and with low self-esteem. Its vision is that ‘with our more holistic approach of nurture, academic achievement, vocational opportunities and inclusion for all, time spent with TAS is both enjoyable and successful’. The school was last inspected in June 2011. A new headteacher was appointed in August 2013. During the current year she and the former headteacher, who is also the proprietor, are taking joint responsibility for the headteacher role.