Burnley nursery New Era based at Sion Baptist Church rated 'good' across the board by Ofsted
A Burnley nursery manager has said she is ‘delighted’ her setting has been rated ‘good’ across the board by Ofsted inspectors.
New Era Nursery, based at Sion Baptist Church, caters for children from the ages of two to four. Inspectors highlighted the nursery’s strong commitment to early years education, praising the nurturing environment and the confidence and happiness of children in its care.
Nursery Manager Christina Lawrence said: “We’re absolutely delighted with the outcome of our recent Ofsted inspection. It’s a fantastic recognition of the hard work our staff put in every single day. Seeing our children happy, confident, and progressing in their development is what motivates us, and it’s incredibly rewarding to have that acknowledged by Ofsted.”
The nursery’s approach focuses on creating a supportive, inclusive, and stimulating setting where children are encouraged to explore, grow, and thrive. Ofsted inspectors said ‘children are happy, confident and well supported in their learning and development’.
Inspectors observed that the children are well behaved and have good role models in the staff, who provide calm guidance and clear expectations. The report said that staff work closely with parents to support children during settling-in sessions which, in turn, helps children to develop self-control and follow the pre-school's routines, enabling them to participate safely and successfully in daily activities.
Inspectors said leaders are ambitious for all children to develop across the areas of learning, and there is strong support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Leaders aim for children to develop their independence and be ready for the next stage in their learning. Each child at the nursery has a key worker who gets to know them and their family.
Inspectors said that to further improve the quality of early years provision the nursery should strengthen staff’s understanding of how to develop a well sequenced curriculum to ensure a more coherent and progressive development of children's skills and knowledge. They have also said the setting needs to ensure peer observations of staff are used to inform targeted professional development, so that staff training is closely aligned with the individual needs of children and the priorities of the setting.