Howard Street Nursery School

Inspection of Howard Street Nursery School Howard Street, Rochdale, Lancashire OL12 0PP

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Previous inspection grade Good 27 and 28 June 2023

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children are happy at Howard Street Nursery School. They arrive full of smiles and confidently say goodbye to their parents and carers. They feel safe and trust the staff to care for them, including when they need comfort or reassurance.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children, including two-year-olds, achieve well. This is because leaders and staff have high expectations for every child, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children enjoy playing and investigating in the well-equipped classrooms and outdoor areas. They proudly showed the inspectors their favourite books and resources.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Staff teach children to behave and expect them to follow the rules and routines of the day. Children behave sensibly and respect other people. They learn how to be kind, well-mannered and how to share resources. Staff step in quickly when children need guidance so that unwanted behaviour is addressed effectively before it becomes an incident of bullying.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Leaders seek to create rich moments of learning that children will never forget. Children benefit from many educational trips and visits, such as canoeing along a canal and exploring nature by splashing in muddy puddles at a woodland nature reserve.

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better?

Leaders have designed an ambitious curriculum that meets the needs of all children, including two-year-olds and children with SEND. The curriculum identifies the key knowledge that children should learn and the order in which information should be taught. Staff have a well-informed understanding of the curriculum. They use this guidance, alongside their in-depth knowledge of child development, to provide children with learning activities suited to their needs, development and interests. This helps children to achieve well.

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better?

Mostly, staff successfully join in children’s play, supporting and extending their ideas and investigations. Much of the time, staff skilfully teach children how to communicate and listen, as well as to recognise some letter sounds. However, on occasion, some children do not learn as well as they could. This is because some staff, particularly in the class for two-year-olds, do not talk enough with children to build their knowledge.

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better?

Leaders make sure that staff carefully review children’s learning. For instance, staff use the two-year-old progress check of children’s development to identify any early signs of concerns about individual children. This helps staff to know what to teach next. 27 and 28 June 2023

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Children gain a secure foundation in communication and language. For example, children, including two-year-olds, confidently take part in stories, singing and rhyme times with staff. Children develop a valuable knowledge of books, stories and language that they need for continuing their learning at primary school.

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Due to staff’s gentle support and guidance, children become keen, confident learners. They take part in learning activities with little distraction or disruption. Children are too busy exploring and playing in the well-resourced environment to disrupt the learning of others.

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Leaders have established a meaningful and ambitious programme to promote pupils’ personal development. For example, leaders ensure that children experience well- thought-out cultural events at a local primary school. Children learn to respect the differences between people and communities. During the inspection, children relished the special ‘Eid stay and play’ sessions with their parents and staff.

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Leaders and staff quickly identify any potential barriers to learning, including SEND, that children may face. Leaders ensure that children who need extra help benefit from a wide range of support, including from professionals outside of the school. Leaders make certain that children with SEND are fully included in all opportunities for children at the school.

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Governors use their expertise effectively to provide support and challenge for leaders. Staff are proud to work at the school. They said that leaders provide effective support for their well-being and workload.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders ensure that everyone working in the school understands the important part that they play in keeping children safe. Staff and governors receive regular training and updates to make sure that they are aware of the different ways in which young children may display signs of potential harm.

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Safeguarding

Staff know children very well and act quickly and effectively when they have any concerns. Leaders respond promptly to these concerns and engage well with external agencies to get timely support for children and their families. Staff help children learn how to keep themselves safe. For example, children learn how to act safely near water or when in a canoe.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, some staff miss opportunities to build children’s knowledge through talking with them about their learning as they play. This means that some 27 and 28 June 2023

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children do not learn as well as they could. Leaders should ensure that all staff make full use of opportunities to support and extend children’s learning through discussion.

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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. 27 and 28 June 2023

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School details

Inspection number 10240123 Type of school Nursery

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.howardstreet.rochdale.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 19 November 2021, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The nursery school is led by an executive headteacher, who is also a headteacher of a local primary school.  The governing body links with the governing body at the partner primary school to review areas of shared work.  The nursery school offers provision for two-year-olds.  Leaders do not make use of any 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.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with leaders and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the executive headteacher. The lead inspector also met with a representative from the local authority. 27 and 28 June 2023

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 Inspectors carried out deep dives in these areas of learning: communication and language and early reading, mathematics and physical development. For each deep dive, the inspectors met with curriculum leaders, visited a sample of classroom activities, spoke to teachers and looked at children’s learning records.  Inspectors also spoke with leaders about the curriculum in some other areas of learning.  Inspectors reviewed a range of documentation about safeguarding. They also spoke with staff to understand how they keep children safe and reviewed the leaders’ records of checks undertaken on staff.  There were no responses to the Ofsted survey for pupils. Inspectors spoke with children as they played in the nursery.  Inspectors spoke with some parents and considered responses to Ofsted Parent View.  Inspectors spoke with staff and reviewed responses to an Ofsted survey for staff.

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Inspection team

Victoria Burnside, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan His Majesty’s Inspector 27 and 28 June 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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