Little Hayes Nursery School

Little Hayes Nursery School and Children’s Centre Symington Road, Downend, Bristol, BS16 2LL

p.1

Overall effectiveness

Previous inspection: Good 2 This inspection: Good 2 Achievement of pupils Good 2 Quality of teaching Good 2 Behaviour and safety of pupils Good 2 Leadership and management Good 2

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is a good school.  Children make good progress in communication and language and outstanding progress in their physical development and in their personal, social and emotional development.  The excellent outdoor area, which includes a Forest School, makes an outstanding contribution to children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Since the previous inspection there has been a significant improvement in tracking children’s progress, especially by gender, ability and ethnicity.  Nursery staff have a good understanding of how children learn. They provide a wide range of exciting and stimulating activities, both indoors and outdoors.  Children’s behaviour is good because children are very safe and engaged in all the exciting learning experiences provided for them.  Children are happy at nursery and form very good relationships with each other, nursery staff and visitors.  The headteacher, staff and governing body

p.1

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

have a detailed and accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and areas to improve. Priorities for future development are focused on improving children’s learning.  The school’s strong commitment to encouraging children and their families to learn together contributes significantly to the school’s success.

p.1

It is not yet an outstanding school because

 Teachers do not always give children enough opportunities to work in small groups to develop their speaking and early writing skills.  There is no focused programme to assess and develop the skills of children in the early stages of speaking English as an additional language.

p.1

Information about this inspection

 The inspector spent six hours observing children, including some learning independently or in small groups with their key person.  She held meetings with the headteacher, deputy headteacher and the Chair of the Governing Body and a representative from the local authority.  Although there were no formal meetings with children, many opportunities were taken to talk to the children and observe them talking during their activities.  As well as informal discussions with parents or carers at the start of sessions, account was taken of the five responses to the online questionnaire (Parent View).  The inspector looked at documentation which included the headteacher’s notes of monitoring the quality of teaching, information about performance management and safeguarding arrangements, children’s learning and assessment diaries, records to track children’s achievements, the school’s development plan and its self-evaluation form.

p.2

Inspection team

Joyce Cox, Lead inspector Additional inspector

p.2

Information about this school

 This is a larger than average nursery school attended by 4 full-time and 98 part-time children aged between 3 and 4.  In September 2012 the headteacher, staff and governors took over the management of Oldbury Court Children’s Centre, Fishponds, and the nursery now operates on two sites at Downend and Fishponds.  There are four nursery classes, two at each site.  Just over half of the children come from White British backgrounds. There are 80% of the children who speak English as their first language. Other languages spoken include Turkish, Hungarian, Albanian, Polish, Bengali and Vietnamese.  The proportion of disabled children and those with special educational needs is below average for those supported at school action and average for those on school action plus or in possession of a statement of special educational needs.

p.3

What does the school need to do to improve further?

 Provide more regular opportunities for children to work in small groups in order to accelerate their progress in speaking and early writing.  Build on the existing good practice in some classes to devise and implement a programme to assess and develop the skills of those children who are at an early stage of speaking English.

p.3

The achievement of pupils is good

 Children enter the nursery with skills and knowledge at levels that are below those expected for their age. Many children transfer to the Reception Year in the academic year in which they become five years of age with the skill levels expected for their age, and in some cases exceed them, indicating that they have made good progress during their time at nursery.  Children make excellent progress in their personal, social and emotional development. They are taught to make choices, enjoy playing together, take risks and challenge their fears, for example picking up snails and jumping from a high climbing frame.  The needs of disabled children and those who have special educational needs are clearly identified and they receive sensitive support at all times which enables them to achieve as well as their classmates.  Children make excellent progress in their physical development. They show confidence and skill

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

in handling small equipment such as paint brushes and scissors. Outdoors they are very active and confident when climbing, balancing and riding bikes.  Although children make good progress overall in their communication and language, there are not enough regular opportunities for them to practise their speaking and early writing skills in planned small group activities.  Early mathematical skills are integrated seamlessly into children’s play. When playing in the sand children automatically counted the number of hidden objects they found. Children enjoy being read to in group times and individually during activity times. There are many books in each classroom and children take books home to share with their parents and carers.  Children who speak English as an additional language make good progress. However, there is inconsistent provision for the small number of children who are at an early stage of speaking

p.4

The achievement of pupils is good

English because there is no whole-school programme to assess and develop their language skills.

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

 Teaching over time is good, as shown by the continued rise in children’s achievement since the previous inspection and by the monitoring notes kept by senior leaders. All staff fully meet the standards set for teachers. Planning for children’s learning meets the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage which came into force on 1 September 2012.  As at the time of the previous inspection, children learn by doing exciting activities that are supported by high-quality resources which engage their interest. Staff are exceptionally skilled at helping children to learn to become independent. For example, young children quickly learn to dress themselves in waterproof clothing and wellington boots to play outside in the rain.  Nursery staff form excellent relationships with children and their parents and carers. This is a key reason why children settle so quickly and happily to learning and playing in the nursery.

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

 Early years practitioners provide high-quality support to teachers and children. They are talented and conscientious and enthusiastically complete additional training to fulfil their roles. Staff are eager play partners and sensitively extend children’s learning experiences through activities such as digging in muddy, wet ground for worms.  Children with special educational needs are supported very well and, as a result, they make good progress and achieve as well as their friends. They learn to take turns and begin to communicate through signing and singing sessions.  Staff carry out meticulous observations of children’s learning on a daily basis and the results of these assessments are used effectively to track children’s progress by areas of learning, gender and ethnicity.  Overall, staff provide children with a good balance of activities that children choose for themselves and those that are led by adults. However, in some instances, staff do not spend

p.4

The quality of teaching is good

enough time supporting children in small groups with their communication and early writing skills.  The outdoor learning area, which includes a superb sensory room, is very attractive and stimulating and supports children’s physical and personal and social development exceptionally well. Children love planting, harvesting, cooking and eating fruit and vegetables from their Jubilee Garden and investigating and exploring in their Forest School.  Staff vary in their ability to support children who are at an early stage of speaking English. In one outstanding session children make excellent progress in learning to recognise and name different coloured cars because of the practitioner’s infectious enthusiasm and skill in repeating significant words. However, there is no specific means of assessing children’s understanding and developing competence in the use of English. This limits the ability of staff to closely tailor

p.5

The quality of teaching is good

activities to meet these children’s specific needs.

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

 Children’s attitudes to learning and playing are good and make a significant contribution to the calm, happy, positive atmosphere for learning. On a few occasions children become restless and lose concentration if they are kept sitting too long on the carpet. Parents and carers spoken to consider that behaviour in the nursery is good.  Adults have high expectations regarding behaviour and all of them focus effectively on ensuring that children learn how to behave well and keep themselves safe in different situations, for example not to run inside the classroom and to always sit down when using scissors.  All behaviour observed was at least good and often outstanding. Children from different backgrounds and cultures play amicably alongside each other. There are no recent records of poor behaviour, although clear procedures exist to record it if any should occur.  Children are interested in their learning and are very keen to come to nursery. They play happily

p.5

The behaviour and safety of pupils are good

together and share their toys willingly. Attendance is generally good.  Strong partnerships with relevant services ensure that children whose circumstances may make them vulnerable are kept safe.  Children likely to enter the nursery with behavioural difficulties are identified early through home visits, and staff and parents and carers work in close cooperation to help children overcome their problems and settle quickly.

p.5

The leadership and management are good

 The pursuit of excellence is central to the work of the nursery. Senior leaders are ambitious, professional and uncompromising in their quest to ensure all children achieve as well as they possibly can. Data are used effectively to monitor the school’s performance and adapt aspects of its work to consistently meet children’s needs, for example to improve the achievements of boys.  Staff are extremely successful in engaging parents and carers as partners in their children’s education. There are regular, much appreciated events such as Stay and Play and Family Time where parents can learn alongside their children.  The school’s self-evaluation is accurate and underpinned by senior leaders’ regular monitoring of teaching and learning. The school has identified accelerating children’s progress in speaking and writing as a key priority based on detailed assessments of children’s learning.  Professional development is effective and linked to staff performance management. After recent

p.5

The leadership and management are good

training on the new curriculum for the Early Years Foundation Stage, staff have worked hard and adapted their planning and observation documents accordingly. The curriculum, including the Forest School, makes an outstanding contribution to children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.  Staff ensure that all the safeguarding and welfare requirements for children under the age of five comply fully with current legislation, including that covering child protection and discrimination.  The local authority rightly considers this school to provide a good quality of education and provides light touch support. Little Hayes has an excellent reputation within the locality and senior leaders have made significant improvements to the Fishponds site since the amalgamation at the beginning of September 2012.  The governance of the school:  the governing body is kept well informed through regular written reports from the

p.5

The leadership and management are good

headteacher, discussions with staff and visits to the nursery. The members are fully involved in checking that the nursery is a safe place for children to learn and play. Documentation relating to safeguarding is well organised and statutory requirements are met  governors, along with senior leaders, ensure that discrimination of any kind is not tolerated and that all children achieve well in a setting which supports the good promotion of equal opportunities.

p.6

Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding An outstanding school is highly effective in delivering outcomes that provide exceptionally well for all its pupils’ needs. This ensures that pupils are very well equipped for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 2 Good A good school is effective in delivering outcomes that provide well for all its pupils’ needs. Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education, training or employment. Grade 3 Requires improvement A school that requires improvement is not yet a good school, but it is not inadequate. This school will receive a full inspection within 24 months from the date of this inspection. Grade 4 Inadequate A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors. A school that requires special measures is one where the school is

p.7

Grade Judgement Description

failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school. This school will receive regular monitoring by Ofsted inspectors.

p.7

School details

Unique reference number 108895 Local authority Bristol, City of Inspection number 401022

p.8

School details

This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

p.8

School details

Type of school Nursery School category Maintained Age range of pupils 2–4 Gender of pupils Mixed Number of pupils on the school roll 114 Appropriate authority Bristol City Council Local Authority Chair Jon Hallett Headteacher Shirley Doveton Date of previous school inspection 9–10 March 2010 Telephone number 0117 9030405 Fax number 0117 9030404 Email address headlittlehayesn@bristol.gov.uk guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.8

School details

You can use Parent View to give Ofsted your opinion on your child’s school. Ofsted will use the information parents and carers provide when deciding which schools to inspect and when and as part of the inspection.

p.9

School details

You can also use Parent View to find out what other parents and carers think about schools in England. You can visit www.parentview.ofsted.gov.uk, or look for the link on the main Ofsted website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.9

School details

achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please

p.9

School details

telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

p.9

School details

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.9