CHIDDINGFOLD Village Nursery School has gone straight to the top of the class – again – with an “outstanding” Ofsted rating in all four areas assessed.

Inspectors described the staff as “highly effective” in ensuring children were emotionally ready to learn and supporting those with special needs.

Leadership and management were also geared towards “continuous improvement”.

“Children are supported extremely effectively with their emerging independence skills,” the report noted. “Parents are highly aware of the expectations for when children move on to school.”

The nursery, which was also graded outstanding in 2011, has been running for around 45 years and started off as a playgroup.

Manager Debbie Wallbank said: “I have been manager since 2005 and as a team we have been working towards becoming ‘outstanding.’

“We finally achieved our aspiration to deliver outstanding early years care and education in 2011. Since then, Ofsted have significantly raised the bar, making it more difficult to achieve an outstanding, but we have managed to retain this judgement through dedication and commitment to the children and families in our community.

“This is because our primary focus as a setting is the well-being of children in our care and this is acknowledged in the report . This approach impacts positively on children’s motivation to learn and on their behaviour.

“We are a highly qualified team and this is recognised in the report, we understand the importance of professional development to keep abreast of current research and policy changes within early years.

“We strive to always to do our best for the children that attend and to give them the strongest foundations for learning later in life. Our nursery offers a warm, welcoming, and safe environment. The children are happy and thriving, this is something we are immensely proud of.”