Golborne & Maxilla Nursery School

Inspection of an outstanding school: Golborne Children’s Centre 2a Bevington Road, North Kensington, London W10 5TN

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Outcome

Golborne Children’s Centre continues to be an outstanding school.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children love coming to this nursery. Parents and carers would recommend the school highly to others. One parent summed this up by saying, ‘It is like a big family, with a wonderful community.’ This sentiment was shared by all those who spoke with the inspection team.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders have created a highly ambitious curriculum. They make sure that children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), receive the support they need to thrive and be confident in all areas of learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff are skilled at interacting with children. They know how to get them involved in a wide range of experiences, such as ‘dress-up’ days. Staff work together to create a purposeful environment, selecting activities and resources that support children’s development exceptionally well. Children take part in activities with enthusiasm. Staff help children to learn alongside each other. They are taught to listen and to look after resources, as well as to be considerate of each other.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children get lots of opportunities to experience and talk about new things, both in the nursery and beyond. For example, children spoke excitedly about what they found out during their visits to the local area. Most recently, they have been on visits to see the sights of London as part of marking the coronation of King Charles III.

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

Each area of learning is planned and delivered with ambition. Leaders and staff expertly use their interactions with children to develop and embed children’s knowledge and understanding. Parents’ views and ideas are sought regularly. This means that staff have a detailed understanding of the interests and needs of each child and how to support their development. 4 May 2023

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Staff are highly skilled in identifying what children need to learn next. They expertly address any gaps in understanding. Leaders provide staff with a range of training and guidance. This ensures that staff are confident and knowledgeable about ways that they can promote children’s learning and ensure that they build up knowledge across the curriculum.

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Leaders and staff deliver a curriculum that places a strong focus on extending children’s communication and language skills. Staff model language as children play, skilfully encouraging them to use and repeat new words and phrases. For example, when children were engrossed in building models with plastic construction bricks, staff modelled how to give simple instructions so others could copy what they were making. Children eagerly practised giving instructions themselves, knowing that it was important to use words such as ‘first’, ‘second’, ‘in front’ and ‘on top’.

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Books, stories and songs all have a special place at Golborne. Adults read stories with enthusiasm. They revisit high-quality texts often so that children know stories in depth and become familiar with the language that they hear. Children become engrossed at story time. Staff guide children to ask questions and talk about the books shared, including what might happen next in a story.

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Staff encourage children to be independent and confident as they explore and play. This is supported through clear classroom routines, which help children to learn that they have to take turns and listen to each other. The well-planned outdoor area is used to teach children about risk and how to play safely. For example, adults support children to use tools such as hammers and saws to work with logs in the forest area. Adults also encourage children to eat healthily. Older children prepare some of the fruit that will be eaten during their shared time, carefully being shown how to cut using knives.

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Leaders and staff take every opportunity to teach children about important values such as respect and forgiveness. Staff help children to put these values into practice. The books read at story time are used purposefully to revisit these messages. This approach fosters a positive and inclusive learning environment where children feel safe and respected.

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Leaders make sure that children are exceptionally well prepared for moving to primary school. Children with SEND are especially well supported. For example, staff and leaders take time with these children’s parents to explain the process of moving on to a new school. They liaise closely with children’s new schools, including organising visits so that children are supported to settle in quickly.

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Staff feel valued and listened to by leaders, including governors. They appreciate the real care given to their well-being, as well as the adjustments to make their workload manageable.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 4 May 2023

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Staff receive up-to-date safeguarding training, including on issues relevant to working with younger children. Staff with designated responsibility for safeguarding work with external professionals to make sure that children get the help they need promptly. Leaders and staff meticulously carry out regular checks on the premises and outside areas, making sure children are cared for in an extremely safe and secure environment.

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Leaders make sure that safeguarding has a high priority. The relevant recruitment checks are carried out on staff before they start to work at the school. Staff know children and their families very well. They are vigilant and they know what to do if they have concerns about a child’s welfare or safety.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be outstanding, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains outstanding. 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 outstanding in March 2015.

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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. 4 May 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 20 February 2018, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school federated with Maxilla Nursery School in March 2013. The two establishments have a joint governing body and, in some instances, staff work in both settings. The school has plans to amalgamate formally with Maxilla Nursery School.  The school has an additional specially resourced provision for children with SEND, providing six places for children with social and communication needs, including autism spectrum disorder.  Leaders do not make use of alternative provision.

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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 the headteacher, members of the senior leadership team and members of staff. Inspectors also met with members of the governing body and a local authority representative. 4 May 2023

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 Inspectors did deep dives in these areas of learning: communication and language, mathematics and understanding the world. For each of these areas of learning, inspectors discussed the curriculum with subject leaders, visited classrooms and spoke with staff and children. Inspectors also considered other areas of learning as part of this inspection.  Inspectors spoke with parents and considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text responses.  Inspectors spoke with children and staff about the school’s work to keep children safe. Inspectors also considered safeguarding records and documentation, including the school’s single central record of staff suitability checks.

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Inspection team

Adam Vincent, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Noeman Anwar His Majesty’s Inspector 4 May 2023

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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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