Ofsted praise Bedford nursery for helping children become more independent

Inspectors have praised a nursery for instilling independence in a glowing report.

Wootton Community Nursery was visited last month and was given a 'good' rating across the board - education, behaviour, personal development, leadership and overall effectiveness.

The report said: "The manager and leaders have high expectations of staff performance and children's capacity to learn. This contributes to an environment in which staff are engaged and take pleasure from children's achievements.

"In turn, children are motivated, curious and willing to have a go and experiment. Children behave well and consider the feelings of their friends."

The nursery - in Innovation Way, Wootton - caters for babies and children aged up to four and was applauded for helping children become more independent.

Inspectors said: "They clear their plates away after they have eaten their nutritious meals and learn how to put their own coats, shoes and boots on.

"Staff remind children how to work out how to master these skills. From an early age, children know how, why and when to wash their hands. This helps children adopt good hygiene routines to help keep them healthy."

And babies weren't left out of the report either.

Ofsted inspectors said: "Babies take time to feel the texture of jelly. They scoop the contents of small bowls out to find wooden cars set in the food. Staff describe what the babies are seeing, smelling and doing, helping to immerse them in meaningful language.

"Staff respond to the babbles and single words babies try out with equal amounts of enthusiasm. This helps to maintain two-way communication for long periods of time."

Inspectors added: "The nurturing staff offer cuddles to help reassure babies when people they do not know enter the room.

"Staff sit with toddlers when they settle for sleep. Their actions of gently stroking children's backs while they are snuggled under blankets is replicated by the receptive children during their role play."

You can read the full Ofsted report here