Monkstown Nursery School

Overview

The inspection was conducted during industrial action, with staff refusing to cooperate with inspectors. Consequently, the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) was “unable to assure parents/carers... of the quality of education being provided for the children.” The report states that no performance levels are available for outcomes, provision, or leadership.

Strengths

• Parents and staff provided “extremely positive” feedback, praising “caring, kind, dedicated staff” and a “wide range of learning opportunities.”
• Staff highlighted the “strong collegial teamwork” and praised the leadership of the principal.
• Parents valued the “regular updates on their children’s progress.”
• The setting features “two playrooms and a large well-maintained outdoor area.”

Areas to improve

• The school must “update the Anti-bullying Policy to reflect more fully current DE guidance.”
• The perimeter of the site is “not secure at the staff car park and garden area.”
• The ETI was unable to evaluate the “outworking of the arrangements for safeguarding” due to the industrial action.

Safeguarding

The report states that safeguarding arrangements “reflect broadly the guidance from the Department of Education,” but the ETI could not fully evaluate their implementation.