School open Morning Monday 23rd November 9am-11am           Nursery places available           School places available Reception - Year 6           Nursery places available from 3 months old.           Nursery open evening Friday 6th November 5.00pm-6.30pm

School open Morning Monday 23rd November 9am-11am           Nursery places available           School places available Reception - Year 6           Nursery places available from 3 months old.           Nursery open evening Friday 6th November 5.00pm-6.30pm

OFSTED

Longwood School – Ofsted Inspection Highlights – June 2025

Overall Achievements – Rated ‘Good’ Across All Areas

We are proud to announce that Longwood School has been judged ‘Good’ in all categories during our most recent Ofsted inspection:

  • Overall Effectiveness – Good
  • Quality of Education – Good
  • Behaviour and Attitudes – Good
  • Personal Development – Good
  • Leadership and Management – Good
  • Early Years Provision – Good

Quality of Education

  • Pupils achieve well throughout the curriculum.
  • Staff have strong subject knowledge and explain new concepts clearly.
  • The curriculum is well-sequenced and builds on knowledge effectively.
  • Reading is a major strength:
    • Children develop a love of reading from pre-school.
    • Daily phonics lessons ensure fluency.
    • Catch-up sessions are well-targeted for those who need support.
  • Mixed-age groups are thoughtfully structured, especially in subjects like mathematics.
  • Curriculum improvements reflect a clear and ambitious vision from the leadership.

Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

  • Learning spaces and resources are thoughtfully designed to promote independence.
  • Children develop problem-solving and communication skills early on.
  • Strong preparation for Year 1 and beyond.
  • Emphasis on resilience, language development and social-emotional growth.

Behaviour and Attitudes

  • Pupils are well-mannered, courteous, and calm in lessons.
  • Behaviour is consistently positive across all age groups.
  • Pupils listen respectfully, get along well and demonstrate compassion.
  • High expectations ensure a focused and respectful environment.

Personal Development

  • Pupils understand and respect different religions, beliefs, and families.
  • They develop an understanding of democracy, the law, and societal contributions.
  • A well-designed personal development programme meets pupils’ needs.
  • Use of age-appropriate stories helps explain complex social ideas.
  • Wide range of clubs and educational trips enhances curriculum engagement and talent development.

Leadership and Management

  • New school leadership has significantly improved education quality.
  • Clear curriculum planning and guidance for staff.
  • Leaders and governors ensure all Independent School Standards are met.
  • Positive school ethos and community spirit are central to school life.

Pupil and Staff Relationships

  • Pupils say: “We are all friends” – a testament to the school’s nurturing environment.
  • Strong mutual trust and respect between staff and pupils.
  • Staff are deeply committed to pupils’ well-being and success.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND)

  • Pupils’ needs are identified and understood by staff.
  • School works in partnership with parents to support individual strengths.

Safeguarding

  • Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
  • Staff understand their responsibilities and take appropriate action to keep pupils safe.
  • The school meets all statutory safeguarding requirements, including those under the Equality Act 2010.

From our nursery Ofsted report (March 2022) - rated Good

  •  Exciting activities
  • Children recall past learning well
  • High levels of independence
  • Nurturing staff
  • Children demonstrate great confidence
  • Strong relationships with the attached school
  • Special educational needs are well supported
  • Effective means of communications with parents
  • Language rich environment
  • Physical development is well supported
  • Close relationships with parents and carers
  • High expectations of children’s behaviour
  • Managers make changes where necessary
  • Children demonstrate a positive attitude to learning and high levels of curiosity in activities.
  • Staff feel well supported
  • Staff all demonstrate robust knowledge of safeguarding

Hertfordshire County Council - Early Years Advisors' Report - Evaluation of Effectiveness in Early Years Provision Report (visit Feb 2020)

Leadership & Management

  • Arrangements for safeguarding children are effective
  • The environment is safe and secure
  • Children are well supervised and procedures for keeping them safe are effective
  • The manager has developed a cohesive team of adults who work hard to address any identified areas for development
  • Staff have access to professional development opportunities that builds on their current knowledge
  • Effective systems are in place to supervise and manage the performance of practitioners so that the quality of education is improving steadily
  • The manager is in tune with the main pressures on staff including their workload. They ensure that support is in place to manage staff wellbeing
  • Arrangements for sharing information and working in partnership with parents helps to identify all children’s needs
  • Procedures have been developed and staff work together, to ensure children experience seamless transitions between rooms

Quality of education

  • Staff are deployed well so that all children are supported in their learning
  • Adults have high expectations of what children can achieve as a result, children are happy and engaged in their learning
  • Adults competently model how to use the range of resources on offer, therefore children demonstrate appropriate skills
  • Adults have an awareness of needs of children including those with additional needs or vulnerability and offer support accordingly
  • Assessment information is used to plan learning opportunities for children to extend their skills
  • Displays reflect current learning and children’s individual work
  • During some adult led activities, children engage positively because group size and content are appropriate to children’s age.

Behaviour & Attitudes

  • Adults are consistent with communicating age appropriate boundaries or rules
  • Children’s attitudes to learning are positive. They behave well and most listen carefully to adults and try to complete tasks successfully
  • Adults give meaningful praise to children so that it builds on their self-esteem
  • Children get along well with one another and sometimes are collaborative in their play
  • Children’s behaviour and attitudes to visitors shows that they feel safe
  • Adults have forged respectful relationships with parents and children’s attendance is monitored.

Personal Development

  • Adults work well with parents to gather information about their children, including their interests, stage of development and family background
  • Children are warmly welcomed into a safe and stimulating environment
  • Children demonstrate positive relationships with adults by seeking them out for help when it is required
  • Children are gaining an awareness of their own identity and demonstrate a sense of belonging in their rooms
  • Children are prepared well for life in modern Britain as adults promote children’s understanding of British Values
  • Adults promote healthy choices. Children are provided with appropriate snacks and meals as well as experiencing daily fresh air and opportunities for them to be physically active.

Strengths

  • Transitions within the daily routines are mostly well organised
  • Staff are well deployed and attentive to children’s needs
  • The staff/child interactions are good although this is not consistent
  • The children have regular access to the outdoors and other areas beyond the classroom. This helps to alleviate the pressures of having many small children in one area at various times throughout the day
  • Staff are aware of children who need more support to be involved in activities
  • Practitioners work well to engage parents in their child’s learning and development
  • Children’s emotional wellbeing is supported by staff. This results in children being happy and confident in the setting
  • Children’s behaviour is good and shows that they feel safe
  • Safeguarding and Welfare requirements are met
  • Leaders understand the importance of regular supervision meetings in supporting staff CPD and well-being
  • Adults have effective systems in place to gather background information of children’s early experiences before they begin at the setting
  • Room leaders play an active role in the running of their rooms and staff work well as a team

Hertfordshire County Council - Early Years Advisors' Report - Closing the Gap Report (visit Jan 2020)

Green - The setting is effectively supporting disadvantaged and vulnerable children

  • Leaders and managers are relentless in employing strategies for improving outcomes for all children, especially those that are disadvantaged and/or vulnerable
  • Provision for disadvantaged and vulnerable children meets the needs of the range of children in the setting, including those in receipt of additional funding or with SEND
  • Disadvantaged and vulnerable children make strong progress from their starting points so that they catch up with their peers.
  • Disadvantaged and vulnerable children with starting points below those of children of the same age are being supported to close the attainment gaps

The following PDFs are available:

Nursery Ofsted Report March 2022

Ofsted Report June 2025