Maytree Nursery School

Overview

Maytree Nursery School maintains its overall judgement of ‘outstanding’ following this ungraded inspection. However, inspectors noted that ‘the evidence gathered suggests that the inspection grade might not be as high if a graded (section 5) inspection were carried out now’, prompting a future graded inspection. The school provides a ‘safe and purposeful learning environment’ where children ‘enjoy coming to this nursery school’ and achieve well in preparation for primary education.

Strengths

• Children ‘explore the exciting learning opportunities with eagerness’ and ‘work and play alongside each other in a supportive and cooperative way’.
• Staff create a ‘story-rich environment’ using ‘frequent repetition of stories, familiar rhymes and songs’ to effectively develop language and imaginative play.
• The school has an ‘ambitious curriculum’ that supports progressive knowledge development, with staff who ‘know how children learn’ and support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) effectively.
• Parents are ‘included well in the educational journey’, receiving resources like ‘story packs’ and attending workshops, resulting in them being ‘overwhelmingly positive about the school’.
• Staff feel supported regarding ‘workload and well-being’, with the school ensuring ‘appropriate actions are put in place’ for any concerns.

Areas to improve

• The school must refine its ‘curriculum thinking’ because ‘some parts... lack clarity’ and ‘small steps needed to support children’s learning are not identified or understood with sufficient precision’.
• Staff need to be ‘alert to these situations’ where children lose focus, ensuring they use ‘purposeful approaches to ensure that children make the most of the learning opportunities provided’ rather than allowing disengagement.

Safeguarding

The report states that ‘the arrangements for safeguarding are effective’.