La Chouette School

Inspection of La Chouette School Church Gardens, Ealing, London W5 4HN

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Inspection dates: 22 to 24 September 2025

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Does the school meet the independent school standards?

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What is it like to attend this school?

Children are happy and safe at this school. They arrive each morning eager to learn and quickly settle into the well-established routines. Staff take time to get to know each child, providing warmth and security that helps them to feel confident. The youngest children are supported sensitively, for example, when learning to use cutlery, managing personal care or joining in with the morning greeting songs.

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What is it like to attend this school?

The school has high expectations for children’s learning and behaviour. Children rise to these expectations, showing curiosity, persistence and pride in their work. They are encouraged to use both English and French with increasing confidence. Children enjoy joining in with songs, counting and everyday conversations in both languages. Staff generally model language well, and children are motivated to repeat and use new vocabulary.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Behaviour is calm and orderly. Children understand routines and are helped to manage their emotions. Adults encourage independence, for example, as children put on coats and shoes, collect resources or tidy away their activities. Relationships across the school are warm and supportive.

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What is it like to attend this school?

This combination of nurture, high expectations and a rich bilingual environment gives children a strong foundation for learning and for life.

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better?

The school has an ambitious and carefully structured curriculum that supports children’s learning in both French and English. Activities are sequenced so that children build knowledge step by step, with the use of both languages reinforcing learning. Daily routines, songs and practical activities help children to develop vocabulary, communication and the ability to understand and manage their own emotions. For example, children count confidently in French and English, learn to describe shapes and colours, and enjoy role play and creative projects.

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better?

Staff know each child well and adapt teaching to individual needs. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are quickly identified through careful observation and assessment. The school works closely with parents and carers, and external professionals to ensure that children’s needs are understood and planned for effectively. For instance, staff support children with the early building blocks of handwriting, provide additional time for number recognition, or use visual tools to support focus and independence. Four- and five-year-old children are offered tasks that stretch their understanding appropriately, while younger children work on activities suited to their stage of development. As a result, children with SEND take part fully in the life of the school and make secure progress from their starting points.

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better?

Reading and phonics are introduced through well-structured programmes. Children hear and use language regularly in songs, rhymes and stories, building early 22 to 24 September 2025 confidence and enjoyment in reading. Other early learning is similarly well embedded, with opportunities for counting, ordering and measuring indoors and outdoors. Staff support children’s creative and physical development through painting, music, obstacle courses and outdoor play. This encourages children’s cooperation and resilience. It also supports children with the development of their coordination skills.

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better?

Staff generally interact well with children, using questioning and modelling to extend understanding. However, interactions are not, at present, consistently effective in building on what children already know and their prior experiences. As a result, there are times when the curriculum is not delivered as intended and, in some subjects, children do not learn all that they could. Leaders have rightly identified this as a priority and are supporting staff to develop their expertise in promoting children’s development and learning.

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better?

Children behave well and show positive attitudes to learning. They understand the clear expectations set by staff, responding quickly to instructions in both French and English. Visual prompts and consistent language use support children to share, take turns and follow instructions. On occasion, some children find sharing challenging. Staff respond calmly when this occurs and help children to manage their emotions. As a result, classrooms are purposeful and relationships are nurturing. Children are keen to attend the school and attendance rates are high.

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better?

The school ensures that children’s wider development is a central part of the curriculum. Children are taught to recognise and talk about their feelings. They take part in family-themed songs and projects to develop their awareness of relationships. Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is supported through celebrations, stories and bilingual learning. This helps to build children’s cultural awareness and respect for difference.

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better?

The school works closely with parents, sharing information and encouraging involvement in children’s learning. Staff benefit from regular professional development, mentoring and partnership work with the local authority. They feel that their workloads are manageable and that they are well supported to carry out their roles.

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better?

The proprietor monitors the school’s compliance with the independent school standards (‘the standards’) carefully. It makes sure that the requirements of the standards and the duties set out in schedule 10 of the Equality Act 2010 are fully met. The requirements of the early years foundation stage are also met in full.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. 22 to 24 September 2025

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(Information for the school and proprietor)

 While children engage well overall with the planned curriculum, there are occasions when the curriculum does not build children’s learning as well as the school intends. To further enhance the quality of education, the school should continue to support staff in refining their teaching approaches, so that interactions purposefully build on children’s prior learning. This includes ensuring that the curriculum is consistently implemented as intended and that children make strong progress across all areas of learning.

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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. 22 to 24 September 2025

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School details

Unique reference number 137802 DfE registration number 307/6004

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School details

Inspection number 10391762 Type of school Other Independent School

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School details

Email address admin@lachouetteschool.co.uk

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 6 to 8 December 2022 22 to 24 September 2025

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Information about this school

 The school’s previous standard inspection took place from 6 to 8 December 2022, when it was judged good for overall effectiveness. An additional inspection took place in September 2024 when the school moved to new premises. La Chouette now shares this site with Grange Primary School, Church Gardens, London W5 4HN.  The headteacher is also the joint proprietor of the school. There is no governing body.  La Chouette School offers a bilingual education to children aged two to six. The curriculum combines the early years foundation stage with the French national curriculum for early years. Each classroom has both a French teacher and an English teacher.  The school provides for two-year-olds and currently has three classes. The ‘toute petite’ section, for children aged two to three years, is based in one classroom. The other two classrooms comprise the ‘petite’ section, for children aged three to four years and the ‘moyenne’ section, for children aged four to five years. There

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Information about this school

are currently no children aged five to six in the ‘grande’ section.  The school provides before- and after-school childcare for children who attend the school.  The school does not currently use any alternative provision.  The proprietor also runs a provision for children aged 12 to 18 months at the same setting. This has a separate registration and was, therefore, not considered as part of this inspection.

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors carried out this inspection under section 109(1) and (2) of the Education and Skills Act 2008. The purpose of the inspection is to advise the Secretary of State for Education about the school’s suitability for continued registration as an independent school.

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Information about this inspection

The school meets the independent school standards. These are set out in the schedule to the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.

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Information about this inspection

 Inspections are a point-in-time evaluation of the quality of a school’s education provision.  Inspectors discussed with the school any continued impact of the pandemic and took this into account in their evaluation.  Inspectors met with the headteacher, as well as leaders responsible for SEND, behaviour and attendance, pupils’ personal development and other staff to discuss the school’s work.  Deep dives were carried out in early reading, communication and language, mathematics, and personal, social and emotional development. In each area, the 22 to 24 September 2025 inspectors discussed the curriculum with teachers, visited indoor and outdoor learning spaces, spoke with staff and children, and looked at children’s work. Other areas of learning were also considered.  A range of documentation was reviewed, including school policies and procedures relating to safeguarding and health and safety, the admissions and attendance

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Information about this inspection

registers, leaders’ evaluation of the school, and other information provided by leaders.  Inspectors also scrutinised a range of documentation. This included documentation and information relating to the standards and the school’s improvement plans.  An inspector spoke with some parents to gather their views of the school. Responses to Ofsted’s online survey for parents and to the online staff survey were also considered.

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Inspection team

Adam Vincent, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Hannah Glossop His Majesty’s Inspector 22 to 24 September 2025 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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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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Inspection team

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

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