Setting

Mrs Janet Brownjohn Headteacher Rothesay Nursery School 59 Rothesay Road Luton LU1 1RB

p.1

Special measures monitoring inspection of Rothesay Nursery School

Following my visit to your school on 15 October 2013, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to confirm the inspection findings. Thank you for the help you gave during the inspection and for the time you made available to discuss the actions which have been taken since the school’s recent section 5 inspection.

p.1

Special measures monitoring inspection of Rothesay Nursery School

The inspection was the first monitoring inspection since the school became subject to special measures following the inspection which took place in June 2013.

p.1

Evidence

During this inspection, meetings were held with you, three governors and a representative of the local authority. The local authority’s statement of action and the school’s development plan and action plan were evaluated. I checked the school’s documentation for the safe recruitment and vetting of staff. You took me on a brief tour of the school.

p.1

Context

Since the section 5 inspection which placed the school in special measures, five staff have left the school. One new governor has joined the governing body. No new two- year-olds have been admitted since the school was inspected in June 2013. Serco Inspections 20 Colmore Circus Queensway Birmingham B4 6AT T 0300 123 1231 Text Phone: 0161 6188524 enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk www.ofsted.gov.uk Direct T : 01216 799162 Direct email : siobhan.garrattley@serco.com

p.1

The quality of leadership and management at the school

You and the governing body have begun to address the points for improvement identified in the last inspection to raise achievement through better teaching and leadership. However, the school’s development plan and action plan are not helpful as tools to drive improvement forward rapidly. They lack clarity about what precisely needs to be done to address the priorities and how progress towards them will be measured. Deadlines are too broad for the completion of tasks. Targets for improvement in children’s achievement are suitably high but they are not based on children’s starting points. The targets for good teaching have also been set. However, what, specifically, you are expecting teachers to do to achieve them is too vague.

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

A Local Leader of Education (LLE) and local authority advisers are helping you to check that your judgements about learning and teaching are accurate. You have introduced a new electronic system to gather information about children’s learning. This means that all staff and governors are better placed to measure children’s future progress. Arrangements for managing the performance of staff are suitable. Development points are shared, with an expectation that improvement will follow quickly.

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

A new approach to managing children’s behaviour sets out clearly what the expectations are for good behaviour, and children are responding. Parents and carers have signed a new home/school agreement which explains what they can expect from the school and what the school expects from them. Governors are fulfilling their duty to check on the school’s performance. They are in the early stages of understanding and interpreting the school’s data to ask challenging questions and hold leaders to account for children’s achievement. A new governor with relevant experience of the Early Years Foundation Stage is adding to the skills and expertise available within the governing body. The safeguarding governor checks that arrangements meet requirements.

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

The local authority’s statement of action does not meet statutory requirements. It spans only one of the possible two years before the school’s next section 5 inspection and the reason for this is not explained. The local authority successfully brokered the arrangement for an LLE to support you and arranged an external review of governance. It provides adequate advisory support.

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

Following the monitoring inspection the following judgements were made:

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

The local authority’s statement of action is not fit for purpose. The school’s development plan and action plan are not fit for purpose.

p.2

The quality of leadership and management at the school

The school may not appoint newly qualified teachers before the next monitoring inspection.

p.3

The quality of leadership and management at the school

I am copying this letter to the Secretary of State, the Chair of the Governing Body, and the Director of Children’s Services for Luton. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

p.3