Grosvenor Nursery School and Day Care Centre

Inspection Report Grosvenor Nursery School

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105144 Unique Reference Number Bolton Local Authority 287135 Inspection number 21 November 2006 Inspection date Mike Hewlett Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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Lord Street School address Nursery Type of school Kearsley, Bolton Community School category Lancashire BL4 8AR 3 °5 Age range of pupils 01204 337343 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01204 573849 Fax number 82 Number on roll (school) Mrs Elsie Rigby Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Mrs M Vickers Headteacher 19 February 2002 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection date Age group 287135 21 November 2006 3 °5 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by one Additional Inspector.

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Description of the school

Grosvenor Nursery School serves an urban population with significant disadvantage and family need. It provides part-time nursery education for 90 children and there is also a school club that provides before and after school care and holiday provision for up to 25 children. Nearly all the children are of White British heritage, although this year there is a small proportion of pupils of Asian heritage. Most of these are at an early stage of English language acquisition. The number of children who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities is average. The school is central to the extended services of the newly established Children's Centre. In 2005 it achieved the Basic Skills Quality Mark for the second time and in 2006 was successfully reassessed by Investors in People.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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Grade: 2

'I am very happy with the nursery, staff are excellent and they really care,' is a view commonly reflected amongst the parents. This helps to explain why Grosvenor is such a good school with some outstanding features and provides good value for money. The leadership has built on the strengths and successes of the school's outstanding care and support. As a result, all the children, including those who are new to English and those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, achieve well. The school's self-evaluation is accurate except in a small number of areas where it has been too cautious. The outstanding leadership, vision and knowledge of the headteacher, and her determination to provide the best quality provision for children and their families, have helped to steer a smooth pathway during a period of radical change. As the school was being rebuilt and daycare added, effective communications

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Grade: 2

were maintained with everyone. Excellent relationships and a focus on the needs of all the children ensure that their personal development and well-being are outstanding. Even the youngest three year olds, who have recently started, are happy to come to school and this is confirmed by their parents. Perceptive management and governance have ensured that staff are deployed effectively and that strategies for improvement continue to be rigorous. The result of this work is reflected in the good progress children make in all the areas of learning. When children arrive in school their levels of attainment are low, particularly in their personal and social development and communication skills. By the time they leave to start in their Reception Year, standards reached are similar to those expected of children of their age. The breadth of experience and skills they gain stand them in good stead for their future learning.

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Grade: 2

They progress so well because the quality of teaching and learning is good. All the staff work hard to ensure the children become more independent in their learning, setting them challenging tasks that they are expected to complete. In addition, the quality of care, guidance and support provided is excellent so children settle quickly, gain in confidence and acquire the vital skills which help them to become good learners. However, in some activities, learning opportunities are missed when adults offer too much support. Children's problem-solving skills in mathematics are not as good as they could be. The school is working hard to bring about the necessary improvements and capacity to improve is good. A good curriculum is provided which children find exciting. It offers them a good range of early skills and a growing awareness of how they can be healthy and keep safe. Children enjoy their school, learn to take on a range of responsibilities, such as tidying

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Grade: 2

up after themselves, and say what they think would make things even better for them. For example, they had a say in how the outdoor classroom was organised. Equally, the views of parents, grandparents and carers are welcomed. 'I can come in any time if I am concerned,' is a typical response from parents and carers. 2 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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What the school should do to improve further

• Provide more opportunities for problem solving in mathematics. • Improve teaching and learning by ensuring that learning opportunities are not missed through adults offering too much support.

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Grade: 2

Children achieve well. They make good progress in all areas of their learning which is confirmed by inspection evidence and by the award of the Basic Skills Quality Mark. Children's skills of communication improve rapidly, with children who are new to learning English making especially good progress in their speaking and listening. All settle quickly into the routines of each day. The school records and children's work show that the emphasis on developing children's communication skills makes a difference to children's attainment in all the areas of learning. It is the good match of activities to children's individual needs that brings success to all children.

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Grade: 1

Personal development and well-being are outstanding and very well supported by the excellent relationships which exist between teachers, nursery nurses and voluntary helpers. As a result, children are exceptionally well behaved and eager to learn and their attendance levels are good. Activities set out for children each day grab their attention. Their parents, grandparents and carers like what is on offer too and are encouraged to join in when they bring the children to school. Children get off to a great start in understanding what it is to be healthy through experiencing healthy snacks and cooking activities. Because they feel the school is such a safe, familiar and happy place to be, they rapidly grow in confidence. Their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is excellent. There are numerous opportunities for children to explore the festivals of other cultures and faiths. Equally, they learn what is expected of them and how important it is to behave well, share and

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Grade: 1

to be kind towards others. The skills they acquire equip them exceptionally well for the future.

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Grade: 2

The quality of teaching and learning is good and this enables children to make good progress. Effective planning, excellent relationships, accurate assessment and a calm, orderly atmosphere all help the children to play purposefully with others and enjoy the times they learn with adults. Plenty of interesting activities help the children to 3 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006 take steps towards independence, although there are times when adults offer too much support. Well designed and effective lessons are planned to develop children's skills in communication and the children benefit in many ways as they explore, make, build and imagine with their classmates. It is here also that teaching assistants and voluntary helpers make a good contribution to learning. They check what children understand, guide them with questions and support those who need extra help. These features

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Grade: 2

help the children to enjoy gaining the skills needed for their future.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good and is skillfully designed to meet all the children's needs. It ensures that they develop well and make good progress, although not enough emphasis is being placed on simple problem solving activities in mathematics. The curriculum is enriched by an imaginative range of activities, contributions from visitors and thoughtful use of the local area, such as taking children on a short train journey from the nearby station. The children benefit from the plentiful equipment for play, talk and exploration. They learn what it is to be healthy and the important features of keeping safe through the school's programme of personal, social and health education. Outdoor provision is a particular strength. A well organised 'outdoor classroom' is very effective in supporting learning in this area.

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Grade: 1

The care, guidance and support provided are outstanding. The school provides excellent pastoral care for the children and is vigilant and very supportive of those who are facing difficulties. As a result, all make good progress and their confidence is boosted. All the requirements for the care, safety and protection of children are in place, including detailed risk assessments. High quality support is provided for those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and for children who are new to English. A large amount of effective background provision and links support a smooth transition to the children's next school. Guidance for children's progress is first rate and ensures that they gain the early skills they need as learners. Information is shared, not only with parents and carers but also with the children themselves so that they know how to improve.

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management are good. The headteacher's leadership is excellent and she has led the school very effectively during a period of substantial change. As a result, good headway has been made in managing the integration of the well established nursery provision with the extended services of daycare, which is newly opened. At 4 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006 the heart of this work is a caring ethos that puts the children first. Any barriers that hamper a child's start to their education are sensitively overcome through intensive support, inter-agency work and effective deployment of staff. It is in these areas that leadership demonstrates a perceptive understanding of how to ensure that children's needs are well met. The school's evaluation of its work is accurate and it has selected the right priorities. Performance management is effective and staff contributions are valued. This has

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Grade: 2

been recognised externally by the award of Investors in People. It includes all the staff team and links directly to improvement planning. As a result, the school's strengths are maintained and it is ready to put right any weaknesses that are identified. For example, more emphasis needs to be placed on problems in mathematics, so that children reach their highest potential. The school has a good capacity to undertake its improvement work. Governance is good and its expertise is well used. 5 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006 .

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Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 2 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 3 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

1 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 1 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 1 How well learners enjoy their education 1 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 1 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

1 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

I have asked Mrs Vickers to read this letter out to you so that you can find out what I thought about your nursery when I visited recently. Thank you very much for making me so welcome. I really enjoyed talking to you and finding out about what you enjoyed doing. What I really liked about your school • It is a happy place where everybody gets a chance to show how well they can do things. • You are very kind and polite to each other wherever you are in the nursery. • You enjoy learning about new things and your teachers give you lots of exciting and interesting things to do. • You are trusted to make your own mind up about what you choose to do. • You look after your school very well and it is a lovely place to be. • Your headteacher and the other adults run the school very well. They listen to what you have to say and work hard to make things better for you. • Your parents and carers think that you go to a good school and I agree with them.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

What I have asked your school to do now • I was very impressed with what I saw and there are no big things that have to be changed. • I have asked your teachers to make sure you are given more chances to practise number problems and the time to try things out on your own. 9 Inspection Report: Grosvenor Nursery School, 21 November 2006

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