Rawmarsh Nursery School and Childrens Centre

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Rawmarsh Nursery School and Childrens Centre continues to be an outstanding school.

What is it like to attend this school?

Children arrive at this nursery school with big smiles on their faces.

They are excited to be here. From the moment they hang their coats up, children are fully immersed in high-quality play and learning experiences. Staff prioritise developing warm and nurturing relationships with children.

Children are safe. This is a place where children thrive.

Whatever their starting points, children are exceptionally well supported in their learning and play by staff who are experts in understanding the needs of young children.

In turn, children... are enthusiastic and happy learners. The excellent start that children experience means that they are incredibly well prepared for their next steps in education.

Behaviour is exemplary.

Children follow simple rules alongside well-established routines. Children quickly learn to manage their own feelings due to the excellent level of care and support that adults provide. Children show independence from a young age because the school sets high expectations.

Experienced and knowledgable staff guide and encourage children to do things for themselves.

The school treats parents and carers as partners. Parents appreciate the way staff listen and guide them to help support their child.

Parents speak highly of the school. As one parent said, 'This nursery has supported my child's confidence and self-esteem as well as her learning and development.'

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

The curriculum is highly ambitious for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Leaders have designed a bespoke curriculum using their research-based knowledge of child development. The important knowledge that the school wants children to learn is thoroughly planned and sequenced. At every stage, this learning is broken down into small steps.

This means that the well-trained staff understand how to develop children's knowledge over time. The school is meticulous in checking how well children are learning the curriculum. Any gaps in learning are swiftly addressed.

Children who are at risk of falling behind are quickly identified and given the support that they need.

Communication and language is a high priority in all areas of the curriculum. Highly skilled practitioners play alongside children and make the most of every opportunity to develop children's vocabulary.

Leaders have expertly developed the curriculum linked to key texts, rhymes and songs. These are repeated so that children become familiar with the planned language and vocabulary. The stories are brought to life in many ways, both inside and outdoors.

Adults model and repeat deliberately chosen words. For example, when listening to a story about zoo animals, the children learn the names of the animals and use adjectives to describe them.

The provision for SEND is to be commended at this school.

Early identification and precise targets enable adults to provide highly effective support for children with SEND. The school has well-established links with other agencies to support children's learning and development needs. Parents of pupils with SEND receive regular communication about the support their children receive.

They value this partnership with the school.

Leaders value their staff. The school prioritises ongoing training for all adults to enable them to become experts in how to deliver the carefully thought-out curriculum.

Staff play alongside children and make the most of every opportunity for children's learning. Adults know just when to step in and when to step back. Children know that adults care for and support them well.

This gives children the confidence to try new and challenging activities. They persist and persevere.

Leaders have ensured that children have regular opportunities to engage with the school's impressive grounds and facilities.

Staff use their extensive knowledge of the early years curriculum to plan highly engaging activities. All children enjoy and benefit from the on-site forest school provision. Children happily play alongside other children.

They share and cooperate well. A host of visitors bring the curriculum to life. These include the fire and rescue service, Guide Dogs for the Blind and The Salvation Army.

Staff are proud to work at this school. Leaders are mindful of their workload. For example, leaders have removed unnecessary paperwork related to observations and recording.

Staff spend their time and expertise involved in children's learning and development. Governors are committed and well informed. They know the school well.

The school readily shares its wealth of knowledge with others, including other local schools.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Background

When we have judged a school to be outstanding, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains outstanding.

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 would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which 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.

This is the second ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding in March 2014.