Children have ‘superb bonds' with 'fantastic' staff at good Northampton nursery, says Ofsted

A Northampton nursery has received a glowing Ofsted report that describes staff as “fantastic, enthusiastic and knowledgeable.”

Woodleys Village Day Nursery - based at Hackleton Primary School - was visited by inspectors in June and subsequently graded ‘good’ in the quality of education, personal development and leadership and management categories then ‘outstanding’ in the behaviours and attitudes category.

Children at the nursery were described as “friendly,” “extremely” well-behaved and having “superb” bonds with staff. During the inspection, they enjoyed creating a pirate ship out of old boxes, climbing small trees outside and digging for letters in the sandpit.

The Ofsted inspector had high praise for “knowledgeable” staff, who use children’s interests to plan a variety of stimulating activities and ensure that any referrals to professionals are made in a “timely” manner to ensure that children with SEND get the help they need.

Staff were also described as “enthusiastic” in their interactions with children, encouraging them to persevere with difficult tasks and praising them for their efforts, helping to build their resilience and self esteem.

At lunchtime, the nursery’s chef discusses with the children what he has cooked for them and teaches them about healthy diets.

Ofsted found that the management at Woodleys Village Day Nursery are “passionate” about their staff’s wellbeing and there is a “huge focus” on upskilling staff with opportunities to complete degree-level courses.

“Staff say that the mental health officer looks after their well-being and say that they feel supported by the whole management team,” the report said.

“Parents describe the staff as fantastic”, says Ofsted. Parents are kept informed about their child’s development through emails and verbal feedback and they are supported to continue their children’s learning at home.

To improve their grade to ‘outstanding’, Ofsted says that Woodleys Village Day Nursery needs to support staff to consistently provide challenging opportunities for children to learn at the highest levels, building on what they already know and can do.

Some local nurseries - including Favours Day Nursery in Moulton and Whiz Kids Dallington - have spoken out against Ofsted, claiming their approach to inspections is “fundamentally flawed” as reports are just a “snapshot” of the few hours inspectors are onsite and does not accurately reflect the true standard of a setting.

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Read the full Ofsted report for Woodleys Village Day Nursery here.