Information Bulletin
26 March 2007
Integrated Inspection by the Care Commission and HM Inspectorate of Education of Whalsay Nursery
Whalsay Nursery was inspected in November 2006. The findings were included in a report published on 24 January 2007.
The inspectors were very satisfied with the quality of education being offered at the nursery, and stated the key strengths to be as follows:
- The bright, attractively decorated and stimulating learning environment created by the highly motivated and enthusiastic staff team
- Happy, confident and purposeful learners
- The very good programmes in each of the five key areas of children’s development and learning
- Very good support for children and families
- Very effective management by the Depute Head Teacher
The inspection team found that staff had created a very welcoming and stimulating environment for the children and that they had developed very good relationships with the children. They evaluated the programmes for communication and language; emotional, personal and social development; knowledge and understanding of the world; and expressive and aesthetic development all to be very good.
The inspectors reported that staff knew the children and their families very well and were very sensitive to individual needs. They kept parents very well informed about the work of the nursery.
The Depute Head Teacher was reported as providing very good leadership and management of the nursery. He had established very positive relationships with staff, children and parents. The nursery teacher had responsibility for the day-to-day running of the nursery and was found to be very organised, highly motivated and committed to providing high-quality experiences for children.
The inspectors made one recommendation for improvement, as follows:
- The Depute Head Teacher should develop systems for monitoring all aspects of the provision further
Mrs Helen Budge, Head of Schools, said that the report confirmed what the Schools Service already knew about the excellent work going on in Whalsay Nursery and that she was delighted with the document.
Ends.