Reddish Vale Nursery School

Inspection of a school judged outstanding for overall effectiveness before September 2024: Reddish Vale Nursery School Reddish Vale Road, Reddish, Stockport, Cheshire SK5 7EU

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Outcome

Reddish Vale Nursery School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children are happy and feel at ease at this school. They enjoy playing with their friends and staff. The school helps children, including two-year-olds, to settle very well in their classrooms. Staff guide them gently to make the brave step of separating from their parents and carers. At the end of an enjoyable and rewarding day at school, many children are keen to tell their parents about their fascinating learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children’s trusting relationships with staff, such as with their key person, indicate that children feel safe at the school. They learn from staff how to manage their own feelings and behaviour very well. Where children have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), the school takes extra steps to make sure that children receive the support that they need. Children at the school blossom in their development and learning.

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What is it like to attend this school?

As a result of the school’s high expectations, children gain much new knowledge. For instance, they become confident, communicative explorers and first-rate storytellers. Children develop a wide range of additional skills, including climbing trees and swinging on rope swings in the school’s garden. They enjoy learning from the skilful staff so much that they are keen to know even more.

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

Expert leaders and staff are at the heart of this school’s continued success. They have set up a well-thought-out curriculum. The school carefully refines staff’s knowledge of child development and nursery education. Staff use their highly developed teaching skills to provide children with rich learning experiences. Their proficient help ensures that children, 3 December 2024

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including two-year-olds, learn successfully how to behave. Disruptions to children’s learning activities are minimal. The school prepares children very well for their later education at primary school.

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In the main, the school thinks carefully about the key information that children need to learn. Staff help children to build their knowledge successfully over time. They also help children to develop their thinking. For example, staff prompted children working on a group task to consider: ‘What is the solution?’ Nevertheless, on occasion, some of the school’s curriculum is less clear about the essential knowledge that staff will teach.

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The school immerses children in a curriculum that is rich in stories, rhymes, songs and the learning of important new words. The school chooses stories very carefully so that children develop an in-depth knowledge of characters, storylines, authors and illustrators. Staff model expertly to children how to be a storyteller. Children at the school develop a great love for fiction and non-fiction books. They know how to create, remember and re- tell their own stories.

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The school spots and meets the needs of individual children very well. It speaks often with other professionals and with parents to review children’s needs. Staff use information from their checks on children’s learning effectively. For example, staff decide when they should provide children with greater support or a recap of previous learning. This approach helps the school to ensure that it meets the needs of children with SEND. Children have an equal chance to succeed.

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The school prepares children very well for their future lives. It ensures that children learn to respect and celebrate differences between people and communities. For example, it helps children to learn about different skin colours. Children learn from meeting visitors to the school who inspire them, for instance, about writing books and designing buildings. Children are well prepared to take their place in the world.

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The school works successfully with parents. For instance, it supports and encourages parents about the importance of children’s attendance. Parents feel well informed and involved in their children’s time at the school.

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The school considers the workload of its staff when making decisions. It consults staff often and fosters much successful teamwork between teachers and teaching assistants. This is a happy place to work. Governors play their part in supporting and challenging the school, as well as keeping an eye on its long-term development.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 3 December 2024

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 On occasion, in some of its curriculum, the school is less clear about the important information that it wants children to know. This means that, at times, the school is less sure that children learn as much as they could. The school should identify the key curriculum content that staff will teach, to help build children’s knowledge even more securely.

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Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted’s website. From September 2024 graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade. This school was, before September 2024, judged outstanding for its overall effectiveness.

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Background

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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’s work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 third ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding for overall effectiveness in December 2012.

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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. 3 December 2024

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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’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 3 December 2024

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School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

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School details

Website www.reddishvalenursery.stockport.sch.uk

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School details

Date of previous inspection 16 January 2020, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school does not use alternative provision for children.  Since the previous inspection, some staff have left the school and others have joined.  Recently, the school has increased the number of places that it provides for two-year- old children.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  This was the first routine inspection the school received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Inspectors discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors met with the school to discuss some areas of learning, behaviour, SEND and its provision for children’s personal development.  The lead inspector spoke by telephone with a representative of the local authority. 3 December 2024

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 The lead inspector met with some governors, including the chair of governors.  The inspectors visited a sample of learning activities, including in the school’s garden. They spoke with some children about their learning and looked at samples of children’s work.  The inspectors spoke with some parents and considered the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free-text comments.  The inspectors spoke with staff about working at the school and considered the responses to Ofsted’s survey of staff.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspectors: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and children; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children’s interests first.

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Inspection team

Tim Vaughan, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Dawn Davies Ofsted Inspector 3 December 2024

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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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