A Burnley Nursery, where “giggling can be heard throughout the day” has improved it’s Ofsted rating from ‘requires improvement’ to ‘good’ after a recent inspection.  

Kiddiwinks Day Nursery, in Old Hall Square, Worsthorne was inspected on September 11 and improved its rating from requires improvement, which it received in 2023.

A report published on October 7, described how the pre-school is ‘good’ at the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

In the latest report, inspectors said: “Children receive a warm welcome from friendly staff as they arrive at the nursery. Close bonds are evident and lots of giggling can be heard throughout the day.

“Children demonstrate high levels of confidence and self-esteem in the care of the staff.

“Leaders are ambitious for every child to reach their full potential. They have designed a sequenced curriculum which is focussed on the needs of the children attending.”

Staff were commended for reinforcing knowledge and the curriculum for language is prioritsed and embedded well.

The report stated that staff helped children to become confident communicators from an early age and offered support and encouragement to develop these skills.

Inspectors added: “Staff understand how to support children to develop the small physical skills needed for later writing. They provide interesting activities that children eagerly explore.

“Children are supported to become eager mark makers who show a genuine interest in early writing.”

Kiddiwinks were also praised for their staff’s professional development, with all leaders receiving targeted training to support them in their roles.

However, it was critiqued on leaders not precisely targeting professional development opportunities for staff, which sometimes lead to minor inconsistencies in the implementation of the curriculum.

The report continued: “Overall, the curriculum is well planned. Staff know the children well and use their interests to help children engage positively with the activities on offer. Staff know what they want children to learn from the activities they provide.

“However, at times, staff try to cover too many concepts in one activity and lose focus on the learning outcome.”

The arrangements for safeguarding were considered to be effective and there is an open and positive culture which puts children’s interests first.