Hungerford Nursery School Centre for Children

Hungerford Nursery School Centre for Children

Address: 22 The Croft, Hungerford, Berkshire, RG17 0HY Unique reference number (URN): 109755

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, pupils are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect schools for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The school has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. All legal requirements are met. Not met: The school has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Leaders and staff share the importance of children's attendance with parents and carers to help support routines and early education and prepare them for their transition to school. As such, the vast majority of children's attendance is high and important routines are established that will prepare them effectively for the transition into school.

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Attendance and behaviour Strong standard

Children behave remarkedly well. Staff create a warm and nurturing environment where children are well cared for and treated with respect. They set clear, age-appropriate expectations for behaviour and offer gentle guidance. During learning, children listen attentively and cooperate very well with one another. They demonstrate consistently positive attitudes to learning and obvious enjoyment of learning. For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) appropriate plans are in place that successfully help them to access the environment with increasing independence. Leaders work effectively with parents and external agencies to understand and inform their approach to children's behaviour needs. As a result, children are calm, confident and able to manage their emotions during social situations. They are able to turn take, cooperate and play collaboratively. This creates an harmonious environment where the children can flourish.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children are developing highly effective independence skills. They follow instructions, such as helping to tidy up after activities and putting on their own coats. This supports children for their transition to school. During their time at the nursery, children become confident communicators. They express themselves through talk, gestures and play. Children enjoy sharing stories and learning rhymes that reinforce their grasp of early number.

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Achievement Expected standard

Overall, children make typical progress from their starting points and successfully achieve their next steps. They develop into confident, enthusiastic learners who are eager to explore and engage in a wide range of purposeful, well-planned activities. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or who have barriers to their learning, develop positive social skills. They understand routines and learn the importance of healthy habits, such as oral hygiene and healthy eating. This ensures that children are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The nursery has a well-sequenced curriculum to support all children. This curriculum closely aligns with the nursery's systems of checks to provide staff with an accurate view of children progress against development milestones. Central to the curriculum, are the key areas of child development including developing children's language and communication skills. The learning environment is well organised and activities engage children effectively. Staff provide high ‑ quality teaching for all, including those with additional needs. They plan a wide range of activities that support progress towards the ambitious curriculum end goals. Communication, language and literacy are prioritised through daily rhymes, songs and purposeful story times, where story maps and props support children's understanding. Mathematical development is embedded in routines, such as using five ‑ frames in the daily register. There is also a clear focus on developing fine motor strength in readiness for

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

During adult ‑ led learning, staff explain and model new learning clearly. Their interactions are highly effective and checks on children’s understanding are precise, helping to maximise learning. During child-initiated activities, there are times when staff interactions could be more sharply focused, to ensure that every opportunity for learning is maximised.

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Inclusion Expected standard

This is an inclusive setting where all children are welcomed and cherished. The nursery works in close partnership with parents who value the support in place. There are clear processes in place to identify additional needs. This includes using information from a suite of assessments, including the two-year old check. When necessary, the school engages proactively with external agencies to seek advice and secure the right support. Leaders provide staff with the information they need to provide effective help for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who are disadvantaged, so they can achieve well and participate fully in nursery life.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders ensure staff have the expertise to remove barriers for children with SEND. Children's plans precisely address their identified needs. Impact of this support is accurately tracked using a graduated approach supported by termly reviews involving parents and professionals. Leaders use additional funding wisely to reduce any barriers disadvantaged children may face. They focus on increasing staff numbers, ensuring all children are read to daily, and providing support for lunch and wider opportunities. Leaders recognise that systems for evaluating the impact of additional support for disadvantaged pupils are currently less well embedded than those for children with SEND and are addressing this.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders have a clear vision of where they want the nursery to be. They have an accurate understanding of the nursery's strengths and their key priorities. Their self-evaluation is accurate. Priorities for improvement are precise and leaders are taking appropriate action at pace. Together, leaders supported by governance, have a commitment to ensuring that the nursery continues to improve.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders recognise that their greatest resource is their staff. In turn, staff value being part of the nursery. They appreciate that leaders listen to their views and act on their feedback. When staff ask for extra support, leaders provide it. This positive relationship has helped the new headteacher to implement improvements and subsequent curriculum changes effectively. Staff training and professional learning are well planned and purposeful, linked to the improvement priorities. Staff also value leaders' consideration of their wellbeing and the positive steps to ensure that they have a manageable workload. Governors work closely with leaders to ensure the nursery remains the focus of all decision ‑ making. They make sure that children facing disadvantage are a priority. The governors provide robust support and challenge. They check that welfare requirements are in place, maintain oversight of the school's strategic direction and fulfil their statutory duties.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders fosters highly effective positive relationships and engagement with parents and carers. This effective partnership work supports the children to achieve well.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

The nursery has a well ‑ planned personal development programme, which leaders continue to strengthen. Alongside the nursery’s values, this ensures that children’s personal, social and emotional development is at the heart of the curriculum. Important skills such as turn taking and sharing are explicitly taught. For example, staff use the sand timer to wait for their turn in an activity. The school uses social scripts to help children manage any potential conflict such as when two children both want to play with the same toy.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Children are taught to be as independent as possible through every day routines. For example, they quickly learn how to put on their coats, how to hang them up and how and where to put away their work. The nursery deliberately plans in social activities such as snack time and lunch time. This enables the children to sit together and enjoy food, learn how to use cutlery and make healthy choices about food they are eating. Children enjoy outdoor play and exercise at the nursery. They enjoy the opportunities they have to climb, ride bikes and swing.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Strong relationships and a culture of care enable children to form secure attachments and feel emotionally secure. Enhanced pastoral support is in place for children who need it. Respect and tolerance are taught through the school’s ethos and day to day interactions. Staff effectively model tolerance, respect and an inclusive ethos. They teach the concept of consent through their interactions with children. For example, staff ask children's permission to change their nappies.

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Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders also provide an increasing range of enrichment opportunities including the nursery's ‘promise to childhood’ for children. These include visits to the school from emergency services, hatching butterflies and chicks. These all contribute to children’s holistic, wider development.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Children at Hungerford Nursery settle well into the school day. Staff enthusiastically greet them and foster a genuine sense of excitement. The nursery's values of belonging, resilience, imagination, curiosity, kindness and sustainability are the grounding values that underpin the nurturing ethos. Staff know their key children well. Highly effective relationships with adults ensure children feel a powerful sense of belonging. As a result, children feel safe and attendance is high. A notable feature of this provision is the highly effective manner in which staff foster children’s personal and social development. Children behave well and any minor disagreements are dealt with quickly. Children consistently demonstrate highly positive attitudes to learning. From a young age, children display impressive levels of sustained concentration in their learning. They are naturally polite and keen to help one another and

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

their teachers. During their independent play, children are happy and eager to explore and learn.

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

Children access a broad, stimulating curriculum. The nursery plans in a range of wider opportunities that all children benefit from. This includes visits to the woods to explore the outdoors and learn new skills such as den building. Leaders make sure that children have lots of opportunities every day to build their communication, language and literacy skills. Staff carefully consider each child's individual needs and interests. They adapt activities to ensure that these are reflected in children's play and learning experiences. Reading and high-quality story telling are woven into the day, across the provision. Recent improvements to the curriculum, particularly for early reading and maths means provision is taught effectively. The nursery’s highly inclusive environment enables children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to thrive. For children that experience barriers to their learning, staff adapt the curriculum well. As such, children are achieving well. Leaders’

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What it's like to be a pupil at this school

positive partnerships with families ensure that any barriers to access are removed swiftly. This means children can access their learning successfully and they are well prepared for school.

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Next steps

Leaders should continue their work to refine the curriculum to ensure that staff have the information they need to maximise opportunities for high-quality interactions with children and learning throughout the day. Leaders should maintain their clear commitment to supporting disadvantaged children while further strengthening processes and systems to enable more effective monitoring of progress and evaluation of the impact of the support provided.

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About this inspection

The chair of the board of governors in this school is Marjorie Bannister.

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About this inspection

Inspectors carried out this full inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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About this inspection

Following our renewed inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

Inspection activities: Inspectors spoke with the headteacher, the special educational needs and disabilities coordinator, staff members, governors and children during the inspection.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The data was used by the inspector(s) during the inspection. More recent data may have been published since the inspection took place.

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What does this mean?

The total number of pupils currently at this school and how this compares to other schools of this phase in England.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals.

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3.31%

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the school: The school does not use any alternative provision.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with an education, health and care plan. This covers pupils with more support than is available through special educational needs support.

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What does this mean?

The proportion of pupils with reported special educational support needs at the school.

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What does this mean?

Based on the English Indices of Deprivation (2019) and the school's location, we have calculated whether the school is located in a more or less deprived area.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other schools can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The school reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The school is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The school needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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

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