At Abbotts Ann Nursery School we provide our children with a provision that supports and extends their knowledge, giving them skills for life. Children are curious and motivated, and communicate well, Ofsted (2019, registration 1169193).
Our Ethos and aims
We believe children are most content and thrive when they are valued and supported in being themselves. As such we seek to operate an inclusive and nurturing environment where children are supported in being independent and resilient learners; where they are celebrated, valued and encouraged to be the unique and wonderful individuals that they are; where they develop respect and consideration for others in addition to the world around them; and where they have fun. Our skilled practitioners adapt the learning environment, their practices and the activities we provide, to enable all children to achieve their best possible outcomes.
Safeguarding
We work with children, parents and the community to ensure the rights and safety of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Our Safeguarding Policy is based on the three key commitments of the Pre-school Learning Alliance Safeguarding Children Policy:
Key commitment 1
We are committed to building a ‘culture of safety’ in which children, young people and vulnerable adults are protected from abuse and harm in all areas of our service delivery.
Key commitment 2
We are committed to responding promptly and appropriately to all incidents, allegations or concerns of abuse that may occur and to work with statutory agencies in accordance with the procedures that are set down in ‘What to do if you’re worried a child is being abused’ (HMG, 2015) and the Care Act 2014.
Key commitment 3
We are committed to promoting awareness of child abuse issues throughout our training and learning programmes for adults. We are also committed to empowering children through our early childhood curriculum, promoting their right to be strong, resilient and listened to.
The Flexible Structure
Every day the children at Abbotts Ann Nursery School benefit from a setting that provides continuous provision in an environment with free-flow elements that is flexible to each child’s needs. This means that the children have access to high quality resources and equipment available indoors and out. We are proud of the fact that the children have access to the outdoors every day, whatever the weather.
We believe that the learning environment is central to how children develop so therefore planning is necessary if we are to maximise opportunities for them. The planned environment covers all areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Prime Areas
- Personal, Social and Emotional Development
- Physical Development
- Communication and Language
Specific Areas
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the World
- Expressive Arts and Design
Unique Approach to Planning
We enhance our provision by providing weekly adult-directed provocation activities that are designed to enhance our children’s interests and learning. The activities are absorbed into our daily provision and children can choose to take part as much or as little as they wish. Their learning is observed and recorded. We use these observations which support the principles of Every Child Matters to map out progress and plan next steps in order to progress each child. Many of a child’s next steps are responded to in the moment too. In addition to this we have a ‘Book of the Week’ and a ‘Song/Nursery Rhyme’ of the week to further promote, encourage and support communication and language in a variety of ways.
Food & Nourishment
Our free flow snack bar promotes healthy practices, providing fresh and dried fruit and vegetables alongside a carbohydrate-based snack. Water is available and accessible throughout the day. We try our upmost to cater for allergies, intolerances and family preferences by providing suitable alternatives guided by our families.
Ofsted Report
AANS was inspected by Ofsted in May 2019 and maintained our ‘Good’ rating.
Ofsted commented that:
“Children were curious and motivated and create their own activities with the resources and stories.”
“Children confidently introduce themselves to visitors and engage in conversation.”
“Staff are positive role models…”
