Charlotte Nursery and Infant School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 23 April 2025

This is a happy, warm and welcoming school. Pupils, staff, parents and carers talk about the 'Charlotte family'. The school works hard to establish strong bonds and relationships with families. Pupils are pleased to see visitors. Pupils enjoy telling others about their school and how much they enjoy attending. There is a real sense of community here. The school has high expectations for pupils to achieve well. While it strives hard, these expectations are not always realised for all pupils. The school has a clear understanding of what it needs to do to improve. The school's values - THRIVE: teamwork, helpfulness, respect, inclusivity, very hard working, and encouragement - successfully guide pupils in their behaviour and actions. Pupils understand the importance of equality and diversity. They play excitedly together on the playground. The presence of the school dog, Doris, encourages pupils to be caring and thoughtful individuals. The school is keen to ensure that pupils have access to a wide range of experiences. For example, the 'Charlotte beach' brings a taste of the seaside to the school. Trips to places such as theatres, wildlife parks and bakeries enrich pupils' learning. Pupils enjoy coming to this school.

What the school should improve

• In some subjects, the early years curriculum is not fully considered when designing subsequent learning in future year groups. This leads to gaps in some pupils' understanding. The school should ensure that curriculum progression is carefully mapped and builds on prior learning from early years to support pupils in developing a deep and coherent understanding across all subjects.
• In a few subjects, approaches to check what pupils know and remember are not well defined. At times, teachers do not have a clear understanding of how well pupils have retained key knowledge, making it difficult to identify gaps and adapt teaching accordingly. As a result, some pupils struggle to build on prior learning. The school should ensure that approaches to check what pupils know and remember enable teachers to accurately evaluate pupils' understanding, identify misconceptions, and use this information to inform future learning and teaching.
• At times, support for some pupils with SEND is not as effective as it could be. Adaptations to teaching are sometimes not specific enough to ensure that pupils with SEND can access the curriculum. This means that some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could. The school should ensure that teachers have the expertise needed to adapt teaching so that all pupils with SEND can access the curriculum successfully.
• The early years curriculum lacks the necessary precision and clarity to ensure children secure key foundational knowledge. This means children often lack the knowledge to be successful in their learning both in early years and as they move into Year 1. The school should consider the early years curriculum carefully to ensure it clearly identifies the steps in learning children make through this part of the school.
• The school has not ensured that all subject leaders have the expertise to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their subjects. This means that some subjects are not yet fully developed and there are inconsistencies in implementation of these subjects. The school should strengthen subject leadership practices in this area and ensure greater consistency to deliver greater school-wide progress.

Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)