Joy as nursery gets top marks from Ofsted

A pre-school which has given children 'a real hunger for learning' has been rated '˜outstanding' by Ofsted.
DM16151911a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170453008DM16151911a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170453008
DM16151911a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170453008

Staff at Scamps, which is based at East Worthing Community Centre, said they were “completely over-whelmed” by the rating which followed their inspection on October 18

In her report, inspector Jill Steer said: “Teaching is of an exceedingly high quality. Staff are, without exception, highly skilled in inspiring and engaging children.

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“They skilfully guide and support children but know when to leave them to explore on their own.” She added: “Children acquire a real hunger for learning in an exceptionally rich learning environment.”

DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008
DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008

Scamps is owned by Emma Berry – who is also the manager – her mother Lynette Cannon and her aunt Suzanne Murray.

Ms Steer described Emma as an “inspirational manager” and her team as “extremely experienced and knowledgeable”.

This was the first inspection since Scamps was registered in 2014 and Ofsted gave less than a day’s notice.

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Any nerves Emma and her team may have experienced proved unnecessary as Ms Steer said the children in their care were “extraordinarily well-prepared” for the step up to primary school.

DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008
DM16151917a.jpg. Scamps Pre-school in Worthing has been rated outstanding. Photo by Derek Martin SUS-160211-170424008

After Emma took the phone call from Ofsted telling her the pre-school had been rated ‘outstanding’, she shared the good news with her team – then promptly started to doubt herself, thinking she had misheard!

Of course, she had not heard wrong and the entire team was “absolutely thrilled”.

Emma added: “We were all completely over-whelmed. We had been told not to expect anything higher than ‘good’ because it was our first Ofsted inspection.

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“We were just hoping for a ‘good’ and the inspector was just really impressed.”

Ms Steer’s report noted the strong focus on maths, literacy and technology at the pre-school. She praised the behaviour of the children as “excellent” and recognised the “great respect” they had for each other.

Emma was not surprised by anything the inspector had witnessed, adding: “She was seeing things through the children’s eyes and seeing how happy they were.

“That’s what we’re here for, to make sure the children get the very best. It was nice that she was seeing a completely typical day.”

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