Childcare group goes from '˜inadequate' to '˜good' in just six months

Beech Tree Childcare, in Angmering, was inspected on January 5 having been judged ‘inadequate’ in July.

That rating prompted a complaint to Ofsted by owner Heather Harmer, who described the report as “factually incorrect”.

Ms Harmer, though, was all smiles when the latest report by inspector Rebecca Khabbazi was published on January 23. In her report, Ms Khabbazi said: “The manager has taken swift and effective action to address the weaknesses identified at the last inspection.

“Staff have worked hard to develop key aspects of their practice and have made significant improvements to the provision. This has had a positive impact on children’s care, learning and well-being.”

The improved rating was described as “brilliant” by Ms Harmer, particularly when it came to the report’s recognition of the work put in by her staff.

She said: “It’s brilliant that the staff believe in themselves again as they do a fantastic job. The support we’ve had from parents has been fantastic.”

The support of the parents was echoed in Ms Khabbazi’s report. She stated: “Parents speak highly of the provision and the changes made. They value the friendly, caring staff team. They are happy with the care staff provide and their child’s progress.”

Describing the outcome for children who attended Beech Tree, Ms Khabbazi said they made good progress in their learning and development and learned a variety of useful skills as they prepared for life at primary school.

She added staff were good role models whose influence had taught children to treat each other with respect, behave well and learn to share and take turns.

Explaining how she and her team had tackled the issues raised in the July report, Ms Harmer said: “We did what we had to do and looked at every part of what we do, every process and procedure and tweaked it.”

She added: “The report speaks for itself. The staff are fantastic, the parents are very happy and we’re doing a brilliant job!”

As if a visit from Ofsted was not enough, Beech Tree, which operates from the grounds of Worthing Rugby Club, also underwent a food hygiene inspection on January 27.

It passed with flying colours.

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