Tolworth Infant and Nursery School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils love school. They are excited when they arrive each day and staff greet them at the school gates. Pupils are happy and safe here.

Staff expect the very best from all of them. They take the time to get to know every pupil in their class extremely well. Teachers adapt their teaching to meet each pupil's needs.

This means that pupils really enjoy their learning and achieve highly.

Pupils are proud members of the school community. The school values, including to be 'successful learners', are understood by all.

The school's work to promote pupils' personal development and welfare is impressive, with a high focus on pupils' emotional well-being. Pup...ils demonstrate positive attitudes in lessons and towards each other. Behaviour is impeccable, both inside and outside the classroom.

Leaders make sure that pupils have access to a wide, rich set of experiences. They weave these through the curriculum in addition to clubs at lunchtimes and after school. Pupils enjoy their visits to the attached junior school to help them be prepared for their next stage in education.

They benefit from educational visits and visitors. Clubs, such as tennis, karate, skipping and music, are well attended.

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

The school's curriculum is ambitious, clear and coherent.

It exceeds the expectations of the national curriculum. Leaders prioritise staff training. As a result, teachers deliver every subject with confidence.

Leaders have made sure that children's curriculum journey starts in the provision for two-year-olds. Staff encourage children to be inquisitive learners and ask questions. They offer them the opportunity to revisit and practise previous learning.

This helps them deepen their understanding. For example, in the Nursery, during physical education (PE), children learn how to climb up and down stairs and balance on a stable base. In Reception, they move on to travelling along a more unstable base, concentrating on, and developing, their core strength.

In Year 1, pupils learn how to hold their balance, using their whole body, for longer periods of time.

Leaders have made sure that the curriculum is well sequenced. For example, in art, they have thought carefully about the knowledge and skills pupils will build over time in drawing and use of colour.

In Nursery, children learn about colour mixing through exploration and painting techniques through the work of famous artists. In Reception, they start to develop their painting, using and confidently mixing primary colours.

Staff's expectations of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are consistently high.

Leaders make sure that pupils with SEND are identified early on, and appropriate support is put in place quickly, working closely with external professional agencies when needed. Pupils with SEND attending the specialist provision, as well as those in the mainstream classrooms, have access to the full curriculum.

Leaders have made sure that every pupil learns to read, and no time is wasted in getting them started.

Reading, including the teaching of phonics, is taught from the beginning of Reception. Pupils falling behind are identified swiftly and supported in catching up. Pupils attending the specialist provision benefit from daily tailored phonics teaching.

The school has developed high levels of staff expertise in the teaching of phonics and reading. The love of reading is promoted by all staff, using a range of creative approaches, including the school's library bus. Pupils enthusiastically share their favourite books and authors.

The whole school community knows and understands the school's 'Golden Rules'. Pupils are taught how to behave well. The school's behaviour policy is applied consistently and fairly by all staff.

Pupils are taught about different family units and know what makes a positive friendship. Staff teach pupils how to keep safe. Pupils speak highly of their leadership opportunities, including running for school council and being library ambassadors and eco-warriors.

Leaders ensure that pupils' attendance is high. When it drops for some pupils, leaders go the extra mile, working closely with families to make sure their attendance improves rapidly. Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school.

They appreciate the support they get from staff regarding their children. Staff express great pride in working here. They say their workload is manageable and appreciate the way leaders look out for their well-being.

Governors understand their role and carry this out effectively. They ensure that the school has a clear vision and strategy, and that leaders are challenged and supported well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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