Yeading Infant and Nursery School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Outcome

Yeading Infant and Nursery School has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

What is it like to attend this school?

Yeading Infant and Nursery School is an utterly joyous place to be.

The happiness and kindness are palpable. Staff, parents and carers say it feels like a family. Relationships are really positive and allow everyone here to thrive.

Respect is at the heart of everything the school does.

The school is exceptionally ambitious for all its pupils. The broad curriculum is supplemented by extremely well-chosen activities that spark pupils' interest, create a sense of awe and wonder and support the development... of a sophisticated vocabulary.

For example, pupils explained to the inspector how hedgehogs are so named because they scavenge for food in hedges. Pupils are proud of the roles they have, such as eco-warriors and the y-team, who act as a school council.

Expectations for behaviour are equally high.

Pupils concentrate exceptionally well in lessons. Routines are very well established, both in lessons and when walking around the school. Pupils are keen to do the right thing, they respect the rules.

Pupils who initially struggle to follow these rules, are given highly effective support. This creates an extremely conducive environment for learning.

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

Elements of the school's ambitious and well-designed curriculum are carefully interwoven to help cement pupils' learning.

For example, pupils cook food for the 'Yin' café, developing their design and technology skills. They then sell it, using their mathematical understanding to give the correct change.

The school prioritises reading.

Teachers' strong subject knowledge means they deliver phonics lessons in a really engaging way. Pupils therefore focus exceptionally well and all join in when expected. Books that pupils take home are closely matched to the sounds that they know.

This enables them to practise their reading skills confidently. Pupils who struggle get expert help to keep up. Right from Nursery, children are encouraged to develop a love of reading.

The school ensures that pupils are exposed to a range of rich texts. Regular story times and lots of adults to read to pupils add to their enjoyment.

The school is also adamant that pupils become successful writers.

Early years staff ensure that children all have a correct pencil grip. A strong focus on handwriting means that pupils quickly develop excellent letter formation. Pupils are exposed to subject-specific language and develop the ability to use this across the curriculum.

This means that they are skilled at writing about a range of topics by the time they leave the school.

Teachers check pupils' learning regularly. They ensure that new ideas build on existing knowledge.

For example, in mathematics, pupils were learning a new way to show how a whole number can be split. They confidently drew on all of their mathematical knowledge to achieve this.

Pupils therefore achieve well across the curriculum.

Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are given excellent support to ensure that they achieve well. Teachers know exactly how to support them based on a secure understanding of their needs. For example, in science, staff used personalised strategies to enable pupils to focus on the important knowledge they needed to learn.

They removed any barriers to learning that could have made some pupils with SEND feel overwhelmed. As a result, pupils were able to categorise animals.

The school explicitly teaches pupils exemplary social skills.

Good manners therefore abound. Pupils ask you whether you are having a nice day or wish you a pleasant evening. They are equally considerate to each other.

They regularly help each other. Similarly, pupils are taught how to be a good learner. Frequent reminders to sit sensibly, listen carefully and join in support this.

For pupils with SEND who require it, there are visual cues about how to approach learning. This means that everywhere you look, pupils are focused on their learning.

The school's work on promoting pupils' personal development is of high quality.

Pupils are exceptionally well prepared for moving on to the next stage of their education. They understand the importance of regular exercise and personal hygiene such as brushing your teeth. They learn to appreciate cultures and faiths other than their own, for example by visiting different places of worship.

Staff are extremely complimentary about working at this school. They say there is always someone to go to if they need advice. Governors are knowledgeable about the school and provide valuable support.

Everyone shares the commitment to putting children first. In this way, the school has the capacity and the will to maintain its exemplary provision.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Background

Until September 2024, on a graded (section 5) inspection we gave schools an overall effectiveness grade, in addition to the key and provision judgements. Overall effectiveness grades given before September 2024 will continue to be visible on school inspection reports and on Ofsted's website. From September 2024, graded inspections will not include an overall effectiveness grade.

This school was, before September 2024, judged to be outstanding for its overall effectiveness.

We have now inspected the school to determine whether it has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at that previous inspection. 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's work has improved significantly or that it may not be as strong as it was at the last inspection, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection. A graded inspection 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 first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be outstanding for overall effectiveness in March 2019.

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