Abbey Green Nursery School

Inspection of a good school: Abbey Green Nursery School Green Lane, Manningham, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD8 8HT

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Outcome

Abbey Green Nursery School continues to be a good school. There is enough evidence of improved performance to suggest that the school could be judged outstanding if we were to carry out a graded (section 5) inspection now. The school's next inspection will be a graded inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

High expectations and nurturing relationships make for a calm and safe environment for children to learn in. Staff use their training and experience to expertly guide children’s learning and development. Children are interested by the resources and activities which staff share with them. Staff tailor their interactions with each child to help them learn exactly what they need next. Staff reinforce learning through repetition of new language and vocabulary. They develop children’s independence, for example teaching them to put their coat on before going outside.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children respond to the curriculum with the same enthusiasm shown to them by staff. Staff use their knowledge of children to hold children’s attention and keep them focused on the task at hand. Children are so absorbed in their learning they are unaware when a visitor enters the room. They engage happily and enjoy the feeling of success. Familiar routines such as singing, and story time help provide a settled experience in which children thrive.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders work hard to build strong partnerships with families. Parents are seen as an important part of the school community. Family baking sessions are an example of a valuable experience that involves parents in their child's learning.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Leaders and governors make sure the school is continually improving. Leaders have thought carefully about what they want all children to learn. They are determined that the curriculum is rich and ambitious. It includes themes such as sustainability, safeguarding, equality and diversity in an age-appropriate way. Leaders consider children’s broader development well. Children learn healthy habits, such as brushing their teeth and making 18 October 2022

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healthy food. Communication and language underpin the whole curriculum. Stories, rhymes and songs form a central part of this.

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Leaders and governors check the effectiveness of the curriculum. They make adjustments to take account of differences in children’s starting points. For example, an increased focus on expressive arts and design ensured that children benefited from experiences they had not accessed at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Leaders work closely with staff to ensure they receive the right support, and that workload is manageable. Staff training is a high priority for leaders and is valued by staff. Staff are experts in developing children’s communication and language. Every interaction between an adult and child is seen as a chance to develop this. Staff get down to the child’s level and narrate what children are doing, adding new vocabulary. They repeat new language to reinforce it and give children the confidence and opportunities to start to use it themselves in different contexts. For example, they recap the numbers one to three, which children are learning in mathematics, on many occasions, such as when children are lining up, counting the apples or playing a game outside.

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Staff make story time a thoroughly enjoyable experience. They immerse children in books by sharing them repeatedly and talking about the story. They make the experience multi- sensory, for example using real leaves to replicate Goldilocks walking through the woods. This helps children understand new words they come across. Children soon start to join in with stories and songs. They show respect for the books. They have been taught how to treat them with care and put them back on the shelves tidily.

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Leaders and staff know each child’s needs well. This starts with the building of strong relationships with families before a child joins the school. Staff get to know the children and are alert to any barriers they face and the knowledge they need to learn next. Such strategies ensure that staff can quickly identify and meet the learning and development requirements of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They make sure the curriculum and teaching are highly engaging and appropriate for each child. This sometimes involves having to make swift referrals to external agencies. Staff provide for children’s care and safety needs in a way which is sensitive to their age and development.

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Staff model how to use good manners, share and take turns. Children quickly respond by showing the desired behaviour themselves. Staff establish important routines, which show children what is expected and how to behave. Classrooms are incredibly calm, allowing children to concentrate well.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Leaders make sure that everyone working in school understands the important part they play in keeping children safe. The regular training and updates which staff receive mean they are aware of the different ways in which young children may display signs of concern. Staff are confident to report any worry, no matter how small. 18 October 2022

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Staff invest in getting to know all children and families well. This means that parents feel well supported and able to ask for help and advice. Leaders make sure that vulnerable children are identified quickly and get the help they need.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 Some aspects of the curriculum are more recent in their development following the early years foundation stage reforms. Leaders should continue to embed the newly developed curriculum to make sure that it is increasingly effective in enabling children to reach the ambitious curriculum goals which have been set.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in April 2014.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, 'disadvantaged pupils' refers to those pupils who attract government pupil premium funding: pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years and pupils in care or who left care through adoption or another formal route. 18 October 2022

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School details

Inspection number 10240610 Type of school Nursery

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 12 July 2017, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is federated with a local maintained nursery school. The federation is known as Manningham Community Nursery Schools. The headteacher leads both schools with other senior leaders also working across the two schools.  The school has a resourced provision for children with SEND. It caters for children with a wide range of needs, including: hearing impairment; visual impairment and speech, language and communication. There are currently 13 children accessing the resourced provision.  Most children attend either morning or afternoon sessions. A small number of Reception aged children attend all day.

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Information about this inspection

 This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with senior leaders, including the headteacher, assistant headteacher and SEND coordinator, to gain an understanding of the school’s curriculum and its impact. 18 October 2022

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these areas of learning: communication and language; personal, social and emotional development; and mathematics. For each deep dive, inspectors spent time observing in the classrooms. This included observing the quality of the interactions between staff and children, and the daily routines that staff have established. Inspectors also talked to staff and children and observed activities to determine the impact of the curriculum and teaching methods on children’s learning, development and well-being.  Inspectors held discussions with parents. An inspector had a meeting with five governors, including the chair of the governing body. A meeting took place with a representative of the local authority.  Safeguarding records and procedures were reviewed. Inspectors also spoke to staff and parents about safeguarding.

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Inspection team

Kirsty Godfrey, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

Marcus Newby His Majesty's Inspector 18 October 2022

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regulates and inspects to 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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children's services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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