Ofsted inspected our nursery school at the Hadley Wood Association (HWA) centre for the first time on 24 June 2026. The setting was graded Strong standard in all six evaluation areas.
Tag: Enfield Nursery
Executive Summary
In 2025, Alphablocks Research Lab continued its mission to advance the science of child development and mental health.
This year, the lab focused on how early environments influence learning and mental health throughout development, from childhood to adolescence. Using large-scale data from population cohorts, longitudinal surveys, and neuroimaging scans, our work examined how social safety, parenting, inequality, cognition, and digital environments influence children’s development.
Below we summarise this year’s research by theme.
2025 in Review
- Celebrating 10 Years!
- New site in Hadley Wood – now in its 2nd year.
- Twice Rated “Outstanding” by Ofsted (2018, 2024).
- BBC-Pearson Early Years Team of the Year (2025).
- New Projects by Alphablocks Research Lab.
The Reception year is a pivotal time in every child’s educational journey. It builds on the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework and marks the transition to more structured learning. As a parent, understanding what’s expected during this year can help you prepare your child for success, emotionally, socially, and academically.
To help parents feel more confident and well-informed, a fantastic new resource, Starting Reception, offers clear guidance on what to expect and how to support your child during this exciting transition. Here is an outline of the key areas of development aligned with that guidance:
At Alphablocks Research Lab, we are dedicated to advancing our understanding of early childhood learning and development. We are excited to share insights from our latest study, “Feeling the Distance: The Relationship Between Emotion Regulation and Spatial Ability in Childhood,” recently published in the leading journal Development and Psychopathology. This collaborative research by Prof. Eirini Flouri of the UCL Institute of Education and our Director, Dr Dimitris Tsomokos, sheds new light on how children’s spatial skills intertwine with their ability to regulate emotions, and vice versa. In this post, we describe the main findings of this study and discuss their implications for early years education.
Categories
Ofsted: Outstanding in all areas
Alphablocks Nursery School was inspected by Ofsted in the Summer Term of 2024. Our school is pleased to announce the results of this latest inspection by Ofsted, which can be read in full here: