South Acton Childrens Centre

Inspection of South Acton Children’s Centre Castle Close, Acton, London W3 8RX

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Previous inspection grade Good 24 and 25 May 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children arrive at this nursery with a smile on their face. They very much look forward to the fun and adventures that they will have each day.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Relationships between staff and children are strong. Staff care deeply about each and every child and want the best for them. All adults, especially the key workers, get to know children very well. This enables them to be responsive to children’s interests and make sure that their needs are fully understood and met.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Leaders and staff are aspirational for what all children can and do achieve here. This includes those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children achieve consistently well across the curriculum. They benefit from excellent support from staff to build up their understanding and remember important ideas.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders place partnerships with parents and carers at the centre of all of their work. Staff keep parents very well informed on what their children are learning and how they can help. Regular workshops also provide further guidance on how parents can support their children’s development at home. Leaders also involve parents in making valuable contributions to children’s learning in the nursery. For example, parents come into school to speak to children about their different cultural celebrations and to read stories to them.

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better?

Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum. Clear end goals have been identified and staff strive for all children to achieve these. Staff are very responsive to children’s interests. They use these as a springboard to create activities that not only hook children in and instil them with a sense of wonder, but also focus on the intended learning. Careful curriculum thinking, together with close attention to each child’s needs and interests, ensures that children develop deep knowledge and skills across all areas of learning.

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better?

Children are taught to be curious, inquisitive and keen to learn. Concentration levels are high. Staff help children to engage in a multitude of activities with a sense of purpose.

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better?

Leaders and staff regularly check what children know and can do. They use the information effectively to close any gaps in understanding and plan what children should learn and practise next. This helps to ensure that children’s understanding builds up very successfully.

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better?

The development of children’s language and communication is an absolute priority. It is threaded throughout all aspects of the provision. Staff model and continually develop children’s vocabulary. No matter what the children are doing, staff get them 24 and 25 May 2023

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to join in with discussions and express their ideas, often using the words that staff have modelled and emphasised.

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Staff regularly read and share stories with children. They create exciting opportunities for children to bring the stories to life, such as using role play and props to retell the story. Staff also teach children to listen out for sounds that they hear around them. Children practise this often, and this prepares them for learning phonics when they move to primary school. Family trips to the local library and workshops for parents further promote reading for pleasure. Families like that they can borrow books from the nursery library to share at home.

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Inclusion is at the heart of this nursery. Staff are highly skilled at supporting children with SEND, including those who attend the resourced provisions. Children’s needs are met through careful and precise adaptations to the planned learning. Leaders work closely with external agencies and families, so that children’s needs are understood. They make sure that children with SEND receive the support that they need to flourish in their learning.

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Staff have high expectations. They are experts at identifying when children need support to make the right choices. Every opportunity is used to reinforce and promote sharing, turn taking, listening to each other and respecting everyone. Children are taught to value and appreciate diversity and difference.

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Leaders plan activities, so that children get first-hand experiences of the wider world. They use real-life resources to support children to practise and apply what they have learned. For instance, the outside area features a real car, where children can pretend to go on outings and immerse themselves in role play. Leaders and staff plan family learning trips to broaden children’s experiences. This includes visits to places such as the local library and picnics in Hyde Park.

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Leaders and governors share a very strong commitment to staff professional development. This results in a highly skilled workforce and a deep understanding of how young children learn. Leaders and staff are continually reviewing and evolving what they do. They are always striving to build on existing strong practice to make it even better.

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Staff are proud to work here and feel that leaders are very considerate of their well- being and workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is a vigilant culture of safeguarding. Leaders and staff have regular training to ensure that they know what to look out for if a child may be at risk of harm. There are clear reporting and monitoring procedures, and leaders oversight of concerns is strong. Leaders work with a range of other agencies to get the right help for families as early as possible. 24 and 25 May 2023

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Children are explicitly taught to identify and name different emotions. For example, ‘emotion stations’ support children with strategies to use when they are feeling different emotions and to speak up if they feel worried.

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How can I feed back my views?

or to 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. 24 and 25 May 2023

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Date of previous inspection 24 and 25 September 2019, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is situated within the South Acton Children’s Centre, where provision provides wraparound care and support for children and babies from birth.  The school has three base classes for children with SEND: one is for children with autism spectrum disorder, one for communication and language needs and one for complex needs. Places in these units are allocated by the local authority.  Leaders do not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.  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 carried out deep dives in these areas of learning: communication and language, personal, social and emotional development, understanding the world and physical development. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the 24 and 25 May 2023

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curriculum with leaders and staff, visited classrooms and the outdoor provision, looked at examples of children’s learning, and spoke to children as they played and learned.  Inspectors met with the headteacher and other senior leaders. They also met with governors and a local authority advisor.  Inspectors spoke with leaders, staff and children about safeguarding. Inspectors also checked safeguarding records and documentation.  Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s Parent View survey and spoke to a number of parents informally during the inspection.  Inspectors also considered staff survey responses.

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Inspection team

Julie Wright, lead inspector His Majesty's Inspector

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Inspection team

David Radomsky His Majesty's Inspector 24 and 25 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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