Newburn Manor Nursery School

Overview

Newburn Manor Nursery School is rated as ‘Good’ overall, with ‘Outstanding’ judgements for behaviour and attitudes and personal development. The report highlights an environment where children thrive due to ‘highly positive relationships’ and an ‘ambitious and coherently sequenced curriculum’. Staff demonstrate high aspirations, fostering a setting where children settle quickly and show ‘extremely positive attitudes to learning’.

Strengths

• Children demonstrate ‘outstanding behaviours’, supported by clear expectations and staff who expertly help them ‘recognise and manage their emotions’.
• Personal development is ‘outstanding’, with staff effectively introducing fundamental British values and using picture books to celebrate diversity and cultural differences.
• Provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is ‘strong’, featuring effective partnerships with external professionals and clear individual support plans.
• Reading is highly valued, with a ‘core range of picture books’ shared regularly to develop early story language and phonics skills.
• Parents speak ‘extremely highly’ about the partnerships between home and school, noting the ‘high levels of support’ provided by staff.

Areas to improve

• Leaders must ensure all adults understand the learning intentions behind ‘free play’ activities to avoid missed opportunities for developing knowledge and vocabulary.
• Assessment during learning activities needs to be linked ‘sharply’ to small steps of learning, rather than being too general, to identify gaps in understanding.
• The governing body requires further training and knowledge to fulfil their support and challenge roles effectively, as they currently lack a ‘secure understanding’ of the quality of education.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are ‘effective’, with clear procedures in place and high-quality training ensuring staff can identify and report concerns quickly.