Nursery where kids serve their own lunch rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted

By Joe Coughlan, Local Democracy Reporter

A nursery where toddlers are taught to serve their own lunch and clear their own dishes has been rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted for the second time running.

More2Childcare, a nursery in Trafalgar Road, East Greenwich, has been given the highest possible rating in all areas in its latest inspection, according to a report published this week.

The nursery was praised in the inspector’s report for the high expectations placed on learning. Specifically, the report said that while children acquired skills so that they are ready to start school, they are also “well prepared for life”.

Kelly Salambasis, one of the co-founders of More2Childcare, said staff at the nursery put a large emphasis on promoting independence in children.

She said children in older groups, such as two to four-year-olds, are also encouraged to serve their own lunch.

She  said: “They love getting involved. There’s a little self-service station and under supervision they help themselves to what they want to eat. Someone sets the table, the children clear away afterwards.

“They’re very involved in thinking about how they wash their hands and wipe their own faces afterwards, obviously under staff supervision. So that’s one of the things that we thought the inspector was really impressed with.”

The inspector said in its report that the “broad and ambitious” curriculum at the nursery has been developed with children and their families in mind.

Ms Sambasis said that more than half of the children enrolled at the nursery speak or hear languages other than English at home, with staff at the nursery reading children dual language books and learning words in their families’ languages too.

The co-founder of the nursery said that management work very hard to retain staff amidst the ongoing recruitment crisis in the nursery business, alongside other rising costs and pressures.

Ms Sambasis said: “We’re not a big chain. We’re just an independent nursery. We have two nurseries and our other nursery, More2Riverside, is also ‘Outstanding’ in every area. It’s a really competitive marketplace.”

She added: “We’ve had the pandemic and we stayed open through that. We were the only nursery in a half mile radius that stayed open locally. To have come through all that, and the energy crisis, has not been the easiest of times, and we’re working with a new framework. So we are exceptionally proud.”

Pictured top: Staff and children at More2Childcare celebrate the ’Outstanding’ result from its latest Ofsted report (Picture: More2Childcare)