A PRE-SCHOOL which opened two years ago has been graded as 'good' in its first Ofsted inspection.

Finkley Down Farm Nursery and Pre-School was visited by the education watchdog in May, and a report on its findings published in June found it was 'good' in all areas including outcomes for children, leadership, teaching and behaviour.

The nursery and pre-school registered in 2017 and runs in the grounds of Finkley Down Farm.

The Ofsted report found children who attend are “happy, settle well and make good progress in their learning and development. Children show that they are at ease within the nursery and explore the environment well, demonstrating that they feel safe”.

It added: “Staff support the children well and naturally encourage them to have their own ideas and make choices. For example, children choose where to play, inside or out, and what clothing they need to wear. This helps children to develop their own self-awareness for emotional development.”

The inspector praised staff for supporting children’s language and communication skills inclusively, such as using sign language to help them all communicate together.

She found that parents spoke highly about the staff and their children’s experience as the nursery, describing staff as “amazing” and “kind, supportive and bring a sense of a family feel to the nursery, which breeds a happy environment”.

The report also highlighted the opportunity children are given to “develop a strong understanding about the natural world around them” with daily visits to the farm to see the animals, adding: “Children show enthusiasm and interest for learning. For instance, all children enjoy exploring with different sensory materials, such as soil, and enthusiastically hunt for worms to go into their wormery.”

To improve, the nursery was asked to make more effective use of reflective practice opportunities and make better use of adult-led group activities so that all children have more opportunities to participate and be involved.