The Willcocks Nursery School

The Willcocks Nursery School
Unique reference number (URN): EY449060
Address: Holy Trinity Church, Prince Consort Road, LONDON, SW7 2BA
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registered with Ofsted: 28/05/2012
Registers: EYR
Registered person: The Willcocks Nursery School Limited
Inspection report: 28 April 2026
Exceptional
Strong standard
Expected standard
Needs attention
Urgent improvement
Safeguarding standards met
The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for
governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open
culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively
identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.
How we evaluate safeguarding
When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:
Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding.
Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all
legal requirements are met.

Strong standard
Achievement Strong standard
Children are ready for their next stage of learning, including school, and they demonstrate
secure and progressive knowledge across all 7 areas of learning. This means that they are
prepared well for the next stage in their learning. Through bright and welcoming displays,
children's work is celebrated and presented, which creates a sense of pride. Staff use
individual learning journeys to record children's ongoing achievement, and, by exploring
these journals, it is evident that children are developing, thriving and achieving as they grow
through the setting.
Children are consistently making progress and achieving and learning from prior
experiences that staff have offered them. For example, older children engage in
conversations about life cycles and cause and effect learning experiences such as liquids to
solids. Younger children begin to use child-safe knives to prepare their snack, and, with
confidence, they are able to cut their own fruit. This supports their independence. All
children, including those with barriers to learning or special educational needs and/or
disabilities, are making positive progress and thriving from the well-planned curriculum with
noticeable achievements and outcomes.
Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard
Leaders and staff have embedded high expectations for children's behaviour, with a secure
routine that helps support children's understanding and confidence. Children, including
younger children, are able to manage their feelings and demonstrate age-appropriate
positive behaviour. Staff use a consistent approach in dealing with behaviour, and, as a
result, children positively benefit and can self-regulate and discuss their feelings. Methods
such as timers, countdowns and bells are used to regain children's attention or to correct
behaviour where needed. These methods and a secure routine help children understand
expectations and manage their feelings in an age-appropriate way.
Leaders have recently updated their attendance policy and shared this with parents, with a
sharp focus on the importance of routine attendance. This will support children to achieve
and understand the routine. There is a culture of school attendance expectations, which
positively helps prepare children for the transition to primary school, for example through
developing positive attendance habits. Children are eager to engage and learn, and they
show high levels of excitement and interest as the staff present them with learning
experiences. For example, during a mathematics focus activity, staff present 4 different
activities that all have a different mathematical intent. Children eagerly observe the activity
instructions and then make a choice about which to engage in first.
Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard
Leaders and staff consistently prioritise the welfare and wellbeing of every child. They
review planning and relevant policies frequently to ensure that the best possible outcomes

for children are offered. For example, following an update to safer sleep guidance, leaders
recreate the safer sleep policy and purchase suitable equipment that matches the guidance.
Staff demonstrate an understanding of every child, and they use this knowledge to support
children's emotional wellbeing. Staff engage in activities and conversations with the children
about new siblings, relocations, family holidays and personal events such as running the
London marathon. As a result, children are confident and well settled in the setting, and they
seek the attention of all staff to share ideas, play and engage in learning experiences with
them. There is a secure routine that has been well embedded. As a result, children settle
quickly, are calm and understand what is happening now and next. Staff have a priority
focus on health and wellbeing, and children are consistently encouraged to make healthy
choices and engage in activities to support this. For example, throughout the setting there
are mirrors at child level with wipes, tissues and hand cleanser, which the children use
independently. Staff provide children with activities that support healthy habits. For example,
children engage in activities in which they craft their version of a tooth and then split food
items into 'healthy' and 'unhealthy' and create a healthy tooth.
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Leaders and staff offer a high-quality and inclusive curriculum that sets high expectations for
children's learning experiences. Staff reflect and then plan weekly activities with their key
children to ensure that every child receives a rich curriculum across the setting. The
curriculum is well designed. It focuses on the 7 areas of learning and then incorporates a
strong sense of cultural capital and school readiness to ensure that children are confident,
ready and able for their next stage of learning. There is a well-embedded focus on
communication and language within the curriculum, and staff consistently model language.
For example, story bags, labels, inviting displays, stories and ongoing meaningful
conversation are just a few of the ways in which staff promote language development.
Leaders and staff are well trained in understanding how to deliver an ongoing curriculum,
with the understanding that all interactions and experiences are beneficial to children and
positive teaching moments. Staff are adaptable and able to offer well-planned teaching
experiences, while being flexible and following the directions of children, which match their
experiences and emerging ideas. The curriculum is well developed, and, using guidance
from educational professionals and ongoing training support, leaders and staff are
continuously reviewing their curriculum to ensure that it is current, engaging and meeting the
needs of the cohort of children.
Inclusion Strong standard
Through early intervention, ongoing assessment and professional partnership, leaders and
staff consistently make a positive and clear difference to the personal and learning
experiences of every child. For example, through observation and targeted plans, staff are
able to recognise potential barriers to learning and work closely with parents to ensure that
effective referrals and support are put in place. As a result, children with barriers to learning,
such as physical impairments or developmental delays, receive the support they require,
which is then mirrored in the setting for consistency. The setting has weekly professional

visits, such as from speech and language therapists, to support children with their individual
progress to ensure that they are consistently progressing and being well supported.
Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive ongoing effective and
positive support from staff. Using baseline starting points, frequent observation and then
targeted plans, staff are able to rigorously plan next steps that meet the needs of every
child. Staff are highly skilled at adapting activities to ensure that every child receives high-
quality care and education that makes a clear, positive difference to children's opportunities
and experiences. For example, staff have a deep knowledge of different schemas that
children may present, and they adapt activities to ensure that every child can still engage
and learn while supporting their schema and preferred learning style.
Leadership and governance Strong standard
Leaders are reflective, adaptable and committed to continuous growth while improving the
quality of care and education. Using support from local authorities, community early years
coordinators and ongoing training, they ensure that all staff are up to date and well informed
of current practice expectations and how to deliver to a high standard.
Leaders and staff demonstrate a culture of high expectations from one another, and, through
formal supervision methods, staff are well supported and equipped to fulfil their role. Staff
are continuously seeking further improvement opportunities and show an open culture to
wanting to grow through training platforms and setting-based meetings and updates. As a
result of this, staff understand their roles and are well trained in delivering effective care and
education. Leaders work closely with parents and other professionals to ensure that best
outcomes are delivered. For example, following a previous inspection where concerns
around safer recruitment were recognised, leaders signed on to a safer recruitment training
programme via the local authority and conducted an external safeguarding audit. As a result
of this, all staff files were updated, and policy was reviewed to ensure that safer recruitment
checks are consistently followed for all staff.
The staffing team members at the setting have worked with one another for a significant
length of time, and, because of this, they each understand one another's strengths and use
this to an advantage. For example, staff deliver language lessons or gardening depending
on their skill and interest. Formal supervision procedures allow an opportunity for staff to
share any concerns and for leaders to check in on wellbeing and workload.
Leaders and staff are passionate about cultural capital, and they are well involved with the
community. For example, visits to local schools are conducted, where teachers and staff
share ideas for how the setting can help prepare children for the transition into their school.
Leaders also partner with local universities for placement opportunities, and they support
newly qualified staff's transition into the sector.

What it's like to be a child at this setting
Children are social and polite, and they enjoy spending time together. While engaging in the
vast variety of welcoming activities provided, children develop their social skills and show
enjoyment in enjoying their experiences together. Children are safe and well cared for. Staff
know children well and engage in stimulating conversations about the children's individual
experiences, such as the addition of a new sibling. Children are achieving and developing
skills in each area of learning, and, as a result, they demonstrate readiness for the next
stage of learning.
Staff carefully plan and assess each child, ensuring that their individual next steps are
personalised, and support them to reach developmental learning targets. All children,
including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities or those with other barriers
to learning, are offered an exciting and continuous curriculum that builds their knowledge.
Children have a positive relationship with the staff. The staff team has mostly remained the
same since the setting first began operating, with many parents commenting that they
attended as a child themselves and now their children have the same key worker that they
once did. Due to this consistency in staffing, children are comfortable, confident and have
strong secure attachments with all staff.
Children are made to feel included through family picture boards, welcoming events and
bright displays showing off their work and recent achievements. Children feel proud of their
work and show visitors. Children are celebrated as individuals, and their uniqueness is
valued and welcomed by all staff. For example, there are several children in attendance that
speak up to 3 languages, and through a range of visual methods, staff celebrate and
recognise each and every language spoken. Children take risks and have appropriate
supervision and guidance from staff. This means children grow in confidence to be risk
takers and make suitable decisions on how to keep safe. For example, children in the
garden create a fort using benches and blankets, climbing under and over with staff
supervision and being reminded about ways to keep safe.
Next steps
Leaders should ensure continued improvement in the setting's successful work to remove
barriers for children who need extra help to realise a transformational impact on all
children's achievement and wellbeing.
About this inspection
The inspector spoke with parents, staff and leaders, including the special needs coordinator,
during the inspection.

Inspector:
Louise Mackay
About this setting
Unique reference number (URN): EY449060
Address:
Holy Trinity Church
Prince Consort Road
LONDON
SW7 2BA
Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises
Registration date: 28/05/2012
Registered person: The Willcocks Nursery School Limited
Register(s): EYR
Operating hours: Monday,Thursday,Friday : 08:45 - 16:00,Tuesday : 08:45 -
14:00,Wednesday : 08:45 - 12:15
Local authority: Westminster
Facts and figures used on inspection
This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.
This data is from 28 April 2026
Children numbers
Age range of children at the time of inspection
We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the
quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The
registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for
children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage

2 to 4
Total number of places
32
Our grades explained
Exceptional
Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.
Strong standard
The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of
them.
Expected standard
The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are
following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional
standards expected of them.
Needs attention
The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary
improvements.
Urgent improvement
The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of
education and/or care.
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspects
services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects
and regulates services that care for children and young people.
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