Extremely eager and happy youngsters at an ‘outstanding’ Chester day nursery and preschool make swift progress, Ofsted found.
The conclusion was reached by inspector Susan King at Bright Horizons Countess of Chester Day Nursery and Preschool on the Countess Of Chester Health Park.
The group, which has 90 youngsters on roll, opened in 2015 and has not previously been inspected. There are 18 child care staff and the nursery opens from Monday to Friday all year round with sessions from 7am until 6pm.
Finding the nursery is outstanding overall and in all its main features, the inspector says leaders and managers ‘have a clear and uncompromising vision’ and communicate this ‘extremely effectively’.
Every member of the ‘well qualified’ staff is involved in improvements and they are ‘confident and creative’.
“Children are extremely eager and happy learners who consistently make swift progress,” suggests the inspector.
Children’s achievements are accurately assessed and are effectively shared with parents and with schools which promotes ‘excellent continuity’ in their learning.
Parents ‘are very satisfied’ and Ofsted says they highly praise all aspects of the nursery and welcome the detailed information they receive.
They feel supported and encouraged to successfully continue their children’s learning at home and readily share news, concerns and questions with the nursery.
Policies and procedures are of a very high standard and are kept under constant review.
Practitioners know them well. They implement them rigorously and this helps to promote the children’s safety. Training for staff is a particular strength of the nursery and the quality of their teaching continuously improves.
Leaders and managers have a deep understanding of how children learn and all staff have an excellent knowledge of what to do if they are concerned that a child may be at risk of abuse or neglect.
Staff use their expert knowledge to continually encourage children to take the next steps in their learning while managers in the nursery know the children well and work in close partnership with parents.
The children become ‘enthusiastic explorers and successful learners’ and all the youngsters ‘rapidly acquire the knowledge and key skills that prepare them extremely well for starting school’.
Inspection activities included the nursery manager Eileen Morrey taking part in a joint observation and the inspector speaking with parents and taking into account their views.
The inspector observed the quality of teaching during activities indoors and outdoors and assessed the impact this has on the children’s learning and also spoke with staff and youngsters during the inspection.
She made one suggestion to help the nursery improve further.
Bright Horizons executive Ross Armour said: “Everyone associated with the nursery is absolutely delighted with the ‘outstanding’ rating from Ofsted, the report read like a treasure trove of positive comments.
“It’s great to see that my teams’ passion and enthusiasm has been recognised and rewarded in such a way.
“Our focus now is to continue to offer the best possible environment in which children can flourish and naturally love learning for ever.”
