Leeds nursery run by husband-and-wife duo place inclusion at the 'heart of their work' - Ofsted report

A Leeds nursery has been praised by Ofsted inspectors for placing inclusion at the “heart of their work.”

Kidspiration Childcare, located at St. Makarios Church Hall, on Lawns Lane, Farnley, scored a ‘Strong standard’ rating in the categories of children's welfare and wellbeing, and inclusion, during an Ofsted visit in April.

The independent nursery, which is run by husband-and-wife duo Darren and Rebecca, also scored an ‘Expected standard’ rating for achievement, behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance.

Inspectors scored the nursery as Outstanding under the old grading system during a 2022 inspection.

“Leaders place inclusion at the heart of their work,” the education watchdog said. “They identify needs early and use detailed observations to understand each child's starting points. Staff know children extremely well.

“Children experience consistent, warm and nurturing care throughout the day. Staff know them extremely well and respond sensitively to their feelings. They are alert to children's prior experiences and how these may affect their wellbeing.”

All children at Kidspiration make steady progress, often from low starting points, according to the report. Children with barriers to learning benefit from focused plans and small steps that help them to build confidence.

They behave well and respond positively to the calm and caring approach of staff. They mirror the respectful language they hear and show kindness to their friends.

Leaders have a clear vision for their inclusive curriculum and understand what they want children to learn. They design activities that link to children's interests and provide a balance of planned and free play experiences.

Overall, staff support children to enjoy their learning and to make progress from their starting points. Leaders are committed to improving curriculum quality and have identified the training needed to strengthen practice.

Focusing on areas of potential further improvement, inspectors added: “Leaders should promote punctuality more consistently to help families develop positive habits for the future and ensure that children benefit from key learning.

“They should strengthen curriculum progression so that children experience a clear sequence of learning that builds more steadily and should improve teaching to help older children develop secure foundations ready for later learning in literacy.”

According to the report, staff recognise the barriers to learning and wellbeing that children who have special educational needs and /or disabilities (SEND), those known to social care and those who have emerging emotional or behavioural needs. They act quickly and put focused plans in place.

They know children and their circumstances well and coordinate work with other professionals and agencies particularly well. Staff receive regular supervision and training and feel valued and supported.

Most children arrive “happily and ready to explore.” Those who are less confident settle quickly when staff welcome them warmly and help them choose where to begin. Children move confidently around the environment and show that they feel safe and at ease.

Darren Elliott, Managing Director at Kidspiration, said: “We are proud of what we do, we are no means perfect but the children/families are at the forefront of what we strive to achieve and we strive to do our best.

“We don’t have a chain of nurseries we concentrate on maintaining the quality we have at Kidspiration employing staff who are passionate/hard working and work together as a team.

“We have been running Kidspiration for 14 years now and its been very rewarding as well as very hard work but we will continue to get stronger to support our amazing community with a pre school where everyone is valued and welcomed.”