Staff 'absolutely overjoyed' after 'incredibly happy' Sunderland nursery graded outstanding by Ofsted

Staff at Kids 1st nursery are 'absolutely overjoyed' and wept tears of happiness after being informed the setting had been judged as outstanding in all areas following its latest Ofsted inspection.

Inspectors described how children at the Ashbrooke based nursery are "incredibly happy" and how staff have "high expectations" for infants' learning and display a "very caring and nurturing" nature.

The report also highlighted how children demonstrate "high levels of engagement" in activities and the "superb progress" made by the infants.

A key focus of the report was the positive feedback from parents with families praising staff for going "above and beyond" to support their children and the attention they pay to detail.

After being informed of the judgement, centre director Bekki Grimes said: "Words can't describe how proud I am of the staff. I've been here for 15 months and so to get this judgement is extra special - I'm beyond proud.

"When we found out that we had got an outstanding we were absolutely overjoyed. There was lots of shouting and non stop tears.

"It wasn't such a big surprise. It's very hard to get an outstanding but we believe we are and so it's great for someone else to come in and recognise that."

Lead inspector Elizabeth Fish was particularly fulsome in her praise of the development of children's literacy and support for infants with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

She said: "Children make excellent progress in their communication and language and staff focus particularly well on developing children's vocabulary.

"Staff in the baby room focus on introducing key vocabulary, such as 'bye', which babies begin to copy. By the time children are in the pre-school room, they learn about terms, such as 'decompose'.

"Older children use terms including 'slimy' and 'mushy' to describe pumpkin flesh.

"Children with SEND are exceptionally well supported. The experienced lead has worked tirelessly to get children the help and support they need.

"They work effectively with staff from the local authority and outreach teams to get further support to help meet children's needs.

"These strategies help children to make rapid progress from their starting points and begin to catch up to their peers."

Bekki was most pleased inspectors recognised the relationships established between staff and children.

She said: "When you get an outstanding you are pleased with everything, but I'm really pleased the inspectors picked up on the excellent relationships established, with staff getting to know the children 'exceptionally well'.

"I'm also pleased they saw the bond developed between the staff. I must have read the report 100 times and I'm so pleased with it."

Ms Fish also commended the nursery for the "exceptional support" given to babies and the excellent relationships developed with parents.