A Leeds nursery that had previously been rated inadequate twice in less than a year has now turned itself around to earn praise from Ofsted.
Little Gems Early Year Nursery on York Road in Osmondthorpe was awarded a 'good' rating at its inspection on June 13 after months of hard work. It was previously rated inadequate after an inspection in December 2021 at which inspectors flagged issues like staff 'not washing their hands' and safeguarding problems.
The nursery has now restructured its management and put young staff through rigorous training - and its efforts have paid off. Any welfare notices attached from previous inspections have now been lifted after the big changes.
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The most recent inspection report reads: "Since their last inspection, the provider, who is also the manager, has made significant improvements. Staff understand what children need to learn and they use assessment effectively. If there are any signs that a child is not making good progress, they talk to parents without delay."
It adds: "Children are happy and settled in the nursery. They build strong bonds with staff and parents know who their child's key person is. Babies' care needs are met very well, which contributes to their positive emotional well-being. Staff have high expectations for behaviour and are good role models. For instance, they teach children to be safe, and use praise when behaviour is positive."
At the previous inspection, the safeguarding was criticised as ineffective, as well as the progress of children. Now, children are said to make good progress in their language and communication, physical development and life skills for continuing education.
Nursery deputy manager Serena Brooks told LeedsLive: "It's amazing to get this result. The staff team have worked so hard and gone through some quite intense training.
"We're a really nice welcoming home from home. We try and care for babies using their parents' routines as much as possible, then once they get past two years we start to introduce a nursery schedule for them to get used to.
"There's a much more positive environment now and that definitely shows in the children, it's a real learning environment."
Ofsted inspectors said arrangements for safeguarding are now effective. Serena explained how they have installed extra CCTV and locking mechanisms to keep children safe as well as putting staff through rigorous training.
Inspectors further praised the nursery for its support of children with SEND, behaviour expectations and relationships between staff and children. They also praised the nursery's efforts in helping children learn English when it wasn't their first language.
Serena added: "We just really want to be part of the community. It's so diverse here and we want everyone to feel welcome and like they can come.
"We've had some lovely responses from parents who have been with us throughout and have noticed the changes and that's been really nice. We're still a relatively new site but we're really up and coming.
"We're going to aim for the outstanding next time."
Little Gems first registered in 2019. It was rated inadequate in August 2021, and then again in December 2021. Actions were taken in October 2021 because of concern. It is now rated good as of June 2022, with all previous concerns lifted.
To get outstanding, inspectors recommended just two things: further improving support for children speaking English as an additional language and enhancing procedures for how children move between stages at the nursery.
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