Highters Heath Nursery School

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 10 April 2024

Children are very happy at Highters Heath Nursery. They enjoy their learning here. Parents and carers say that their children love coming to school. Children are welcomed with a kind, warm and friendly smile as they arrive at school each day. Leaders are ambitious for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children are eager to learn and they enjoy the range of experiences and activities on offer to enhance their wider development. They benefit from trips to places in the local community, such as the local shop. This helps to prepare children well for their next steps in education. Children feel safe in school. They trust staff to care for them when they need comfort or reassurance. Children benefit from the positive relationships that they have with staff, which enhance their self-esteem, confidence and communication skills. Adults help children to settle quickly into a supportive learning environment. Children are respectful towards others and take turns while they play with toys. They are taught to look after each other. Each morning, a group of children and an adult carry out a risk assessment of the outdoor environment to check that it is suitable for all children to play there.

What the school should improve

• Some staff do not deliver the intended curriculum well enough to extend children's speaking and listening skills. This means that, from time to time, children's language development is not supported as well as it could be. The school should support staff to help them to implement all aspects of the curriculum well.
• Governors do not know yet enough about the strategic aspects of the school's work, such as the quality of the curriculum. This means that they are not able to challenge leaders as effectively as they could. The school needs to ensure that governors undertake appropriate steps to develop a good understanding of their role and the impact of leaders' actions.

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