The Willow On The Farm Nursery

Inspection of The Willow On The Farm Nursery Nill Farm, Tadmarton Heath Road, Hook Norton, Banbury OX15 5DQ

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education Outstanding Behaviour and attitudes Outstanding Personal development Outstanding Leadership and management Outstanding Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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The provision is outstanding

Leaders and staff want the very best for the children in their care. They understand that young children have an impressive capacity to learn, so long as learning is pitched at exactly the right level and teaching is of a very high quality. Leaders plan a curriculum that is detailed, ambitious and designed to meet the needs of the children who attend. There is as strong a focus on children gaining lots of knowledge as there is on children gaining skills and positive attitudes to learning. The quality of teaching is consistently excellent. At the heart of the curriculum is a focus on children's social and language development. Staff treat children with courtesy and kindness at all times. They help children name, understand and manage their emotions through a focused programme of activities that introduce children to the words they need to describe their feelings and a range of strategies to manage them. Children learn from this to describe how they feel in different

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The provision is outstanding

ways and show huge empathy towards the feelings of others.

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The provision is outstanding

Staff's expectations for children's behaviour are as high as those for children's learning. Staff consistently model good manners. They are hugely respectful in their interactions with children. For example, as children arrive, staff ensure that their first conversations are with them, rather than with parents. Children are greeted with a warm handshake, and staff ask the children how they are feeling and if there is anything they want to share with them. Behaviour throughout the nursery is excellent, and children show they feel totally at home in the nurturing and calm environment.

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need to do better?

n Leaders work tirelessly to ensure that all aspects of nursery life are the best they can be. There is a highly effective programme of monitoring, training and support for all staff. For example, staff new to the setting work alongside experienced leaders to learn about the ethos of the nursery. They gain a deep understanding of how children learn and their role as educators. This strong grounding in child development is then used to deliver teaching of the highest quality. n Leaders put considerable thought into how to use any additional funding to which children may be entitled. For example, leaders bring in other professionals to support children's language development and to help staff provide the precise support children need to catch up with their peers. n Staff understand the links between children's learning and their sense of pride and self-confidence. Staff plan the curriculum so that children revisit learning

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need to do better?

often so that it is fully embedded. For example, children learn about different minibeasts through stories, group-time discussions and close examination of insects in their natural environment. Children are rightly proud to explain to

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need to do better?

24 June 2025 visitors all that they know about snails and ladybirds. They then use this knowledge in their creative endeavours. For example, they make giant models of these creatures during forest school sessions, accurately remembering the different body parts and what they are used for. By ensuring that learning is fun and memorable, staff ensure that children are developing a thirst for knowledge and positive dispositions towards learning. n As well as clearly identifying what they want children to learn next, staff also carefully consider how they will best teach these skills. For example, they carefully teach children to use a range of tools, through a programme of one-to- one activities. Children are then able to apply these skills well to their independent play and learning, further practising and embedding what they have been taught. For example, because staff have taught children how to pour

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need to do better?

accurately, children can apply this skill as they carefully mix mud and water outside to make a suitable consistency. Children can screw and unscrew bolts on construction toys because they have been taught how to hold and manoeuvre screwdrivers. n Staff prepare children extremely well for life in modern Britain. They ensure that the learning environment represents people of different genders, nationalities and abilities contributing positively to society. They introduce children to different festivals and beliefs, using these opportunities to deliver detailed learning about different foods, cultures and celebrations. n Threaded through nursery life are opportunities for children to learn to embrace an active and healthy lifestyle. Children explore farmland and enjoy navigating different terrains and experiencing different weather conditions. They learn a lot from first-hand experiences about the world around them.

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need to do better?

n Parents are full of praise for the nursery and the dedicated staff. They explain how much staff care about the children and that they consider their children extremely lucky to attend this nursery. There is a very strong programme of support for parents to extend children's learning at home. For example, leaders put on regular workshops for parents to help parents understand how they teach early mathematics and literacy.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY550967 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 10399173 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Sessional day care

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inspection

Total number of places 32 Number of children on roll 46 Name of registered person The Willow Nursery School Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 07766752465 Date of previous inspection 21 November 2019

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Information about this early years setting

The Willow on the Farm Nursery registered in 2017. It is located on a farm near Hook Norton, Banbury. The nursery operates from 8.50am to 4pm, Monday to Thursday, and from 8.50am to 3pm on Friday, term time only. The provider employs 10 members of childcare staff. Of these, eight hold relevant qualifications between level 2 and level 6. The setting provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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Inspection activities

n The inspector and the manager completed a learning walk together and discussed the early years curriculum. n The manager and the inspector carried out a joint observation. n The inspector held meetings with the leaders to find out about the leadership and management of the setting. n The inspector looked at a sample of key documentation. n Parents and children shared their views, and the inspector took these into account.

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Inspection activities

24 June 2025 We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

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Inspection activities

24 June 2025 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children's services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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