AN ANDOVER nursery has been rated as ‘good’ by an education watchdog, less than a year after inspectors raised safeguarding concerns.

Egg Day Nursery, in Picket Twenty, was visited by Ofsted on May 22 and in a report published on June 8 inspectors praised staff for their “clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities to protect children’s welfare”.

In July last year, inspectors were concerned about children having to sit for a long period before being given their lunch and its safeguarding policy which was not in line with local authority guidelines, but the nursery was applauded for its action to improve safeguarding, with inspectors stating it is “effective”.

The report also highlighted its “key-person approach”, which sees a member of staff complete a home visit to build a relationship with a child, to aid a child’s transition to the nursery.

Inspectors found that children are “happy and settled” and are provided with “good opportunities to be creative and use their imaginations”.

“All children progress well and are well prepared for their next stages in their learning.”

Inspectors praised the management team for its regular training to allow staff to enhance their skills, adding: “[The manager] carries out regular observations of staff and reflects on their practice well”.

But Ofsted said that the nursery was not yet ‘outstanding’ due to staff not consistently organising some activities and the missed opportunities to support and encourage children’s independence in their self-care skills.

Egg Day Nursery was contacted for a comment.

Director Anthony White said: “There is no doubt in my mind that the standards laid down by Ofsted continue to rise with each new year and together with our management and staff team we continually strive to meet the highest standards.

“Our aim is to provide the best early years education and give each and every individual child the best start and transition to school.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank our staff team for all their hard work and dedication to the children, which has resulted in our ‘good’ Ofsted grading. Our aim is always to be outstanding and we will continue to strive for the highest standards.”