The Nottingham Nursery School and Training Centre

Inspection of The Nottingham Nursery School and Training Centre Denman Street West, Radford, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire NG7 3AB

p.1

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Requires improvement Previous inspection grade Outstanding

p.1

Until November 2020, the school was exempt from routine inspection because it was judged as outstanding for overall effectiveness at its previous inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school has not been inspected under section 5 of the Act since May 2015. The school received an ungraded inspection under section 8 of the Act on March 2024. Since September 2024, schools have not been awarded an overall effectiveness grade. 8 and 9 July 2025

p.1

What is it like to attend this school?

This is a caring and nurturing school. Building strong and positive relationships is at the heart of this school’s intentions. It does this particularly well. Parents and carers talk about how the school cares for their child. They are overwhelmingly positive about the school. It also ensures that parents feel welcome and helps the children to settle quickly. The school serves its community well.

p.2

What is it like to attend this school?

Changes in leadership have meant that the required improvements have not happened as quickly as the school would like. However, the school is clear about what needs to be done to ensure the quality of education improves. Although the school is ambitious for children to do well, not all children achieve as well as they could.

p.2

What is it like to attend this school?

The school’s motto, ‘be ready, be respectful, be safe’, guides children well. This helps the children to get on well with each other. Children learn about their own feelings and emotions. Staff are eager to encourage and support children. They establish clear routines and high expectations for behaviour. They help children learn and play well together. Children remain focused when playing with each other. Children develop into happy, confident individuals eager to share their learning with adults.

p.2

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

The school has worked hard to ensure that there is an ambitious curriculum in place. This enables the children to develop the foundations for learning. However, in some subjects, the curriculum is not yet refined and detailed enough to ensure that children make the requisite stages of learning to build their knowledge over time. Staff create well-organised activities that enable children to explore their own learning. For example, in mathematics, children get the opportunity to investigate the properties of number with a range of apparatus.

p.2

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

The school is keen to ensure that children learn to communicate well. It has identified a wide range of ambitious vocabulary. This is explicit throughout the curriculum. This helps children talk about their learning. Interactions between adults and children are positive and engaging. Adults model language well. Activities are well designed to help children develop their skills in early writing.

p.2

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

Recent changes to the classroom environment support the teaching of the school’s curriculum. It enables children to explore their own learning and apply it through play. For example, the role play areas enable children to use language, communicate with each other and develop a deeper understanding. However, some aspects of the learning environment do not fully support the implementation of the intended curriculum. While there are plentiful activities for children to develop their physical skills, there are fewer opportunities for them to engage meaningfully in other areas of learning, for example expressive arts and design . This limits the impact of how well the children learn from the provision available.

p.2

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

Children get along together. They enjoy coming to school. The school works well with 8 and 9 July 2025

p.2

3

parents to ensure that their child attends regularly.

p.3

3

The school ensures that the needs of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified swiftly. The school works in partnership with parents to establish any barriers to learning. It shares these needs and barriers with all staff. However, staff do not consistently make curriculum adaptations to meet the needs of children with SEND. This means that some children with SEND do not learn as well as they could.

p.3

3

The school places considerable focus on children’s personal development. Visits by organisations such as the police, fire service and dental hygienists help children to learn how to look after themselves and others. It ensures that children understand the importance of respect. Pastoral support is of high quality for both children and parents.

p.3

3

The school knows its strengths and areas for development well. It has made a steady start on its journey of improvement. It makes sure that staff receive the right training to do their jobs well. Staff appreciate this support and know that their well-being is considered. However, governance does not consistently provide an effective balance of support and challenge in relation to the curriculum and pupils’ achievement.

p.3

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

p.3

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 In some subjects, the curriculum is not yet refined and detailed enough to ensure that children make small steps in learning to build their knowledge over time. Where this is the case, children are not learning key knowledge well enough. The school should ensure that teachers map out the small steps in knowledge that children should learn and check how well they remember this knowledge.  Staff do not consistently make curriculum adaptations that meet the needs of children with SEND. This means some children with SEND do not learn as well as they could. The school should support staff to make effective adaptations to the curriculum, so children with SEND achieve well in all subjects.  Some areas of provision do not support children’s wider development effectively, for example their understanding of expressive arts and design alongside other areas of learning. As a result, children are not consistently engaging in meaningful learning

p.3

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

across all seven areas of the early years curriculum, which limits their readiness for the next stage of education. The school must ensure that activities are carefully planned and implemented to promote learning across the full breadth of the curriculum.  Governors do not consistently provide effective support and challenge to the school. This limits their impact on school improvement, particularly in relation to the curriculum and pupils’ achievement. Governors should check the impact of the curriculum with 8 and 9 July 2025

p.3

4

greater rigour, so that their accountability processes can support more rapid improvement.

p.4

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.

p.4

How can I feed back my views?

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

p.4

Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

p.4

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). 8 and 9 July 2025

p.4

School details

Appropriate authority The governing body

p.5

School details

Headteacher Joy Buttress and Lorna Dermody (Co- Headteachers) Website www.nottinghamnurseryschool.com

p.5

School details

Date of previous inspection 20 March 2024, under section 8 of the Education Act 2005.

p.5

Information about this school

 The school joined the Nottingham Nursery and Mellers Primary Federation in February 2022.  The co-headteachers and early years leader started at the school after the previous inspection.  There is a before- and after-school club managed by the school.  The school does not use any alternative provision.

p.5

Information about this inspection

The inspectors carried out this graded inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. During a graded inspection, we grade the school for each of our key judgements (quality of education; behaviour and attitudes; personal development; and leadership and management). Schools receiving a graded inspection from September 2024 will not be given an overall effectiveness grade. 8 and 9 July 2025

p.5

6

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation about the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the school and have taken that into account in their evaluation of the school.  Inspectors held meetings to discuss the provision for children with SEND, behaviour and attendance. They also discussed the school’s personal development offer. The lead inspector spoke with a representative from the local authority and the chair of the governing body.  Inspectors carried out deep dives into the following areas of learning: communication and language, mathematics and personal, social and emotional development. For each deep dive, inspectors discussed the curriculum with leaders, followed by observations of a range of activities in the nursery. They spoke with children and staff. Inspectors also discussed the curriculum in some other subjects.  The lead inspector met with the chair of the governing body.

p.6

6

 The lead inspector met with two local authority representatives.  Inspectors took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including free-text responses and Ofsted’s survey for school staff. Inspectors spoke informally with parents outside the school.  An inspector visited the breakfast club that pupils attend.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, inspectors reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  Inspectors considered pupils’ behaviour at various times of day, including in lessons, around the school site and at lunchtime. They scrutinised the school’s records for attendance and behaviour.

p.6

Inspection team

Mark Anderson, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

p.6

Inspection team

Kelly Royle Ofsted Inspector 8 and 9 July 2025

p.6

7

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.

p.7

7

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

p.7

7

You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open- government-licence/ , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.7

7

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

p.7

7

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

p.7