Reay nursery staff delighted after ‘incredible achievement’ in gaining top marks for inspection report
A charity run Caithness nursery is celebrating after receiving a glowing report from the Care Inspectorate during a recent inspection with ‘Very Good’ grade 5s across the board.
Reay Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) setting, run by local childcare charity CALA (Care and Learning Alliance), received an unannounced inspection on May 29, 2025, from regulator the Care Inspectorate which found “significant strengths” is all aspects of the service highlighting that “staff nurtured children with genuine warmth and compassion that supported their overall wellbeing”.
The inspection team stated: "[Staff] supported children to recognise and manage their emotions throughout the day. Interactions were well considered and calm, which contributed to children feeling safe and secure, and close bonds between children and staff."
The report highlighted positive comments from parents and carers, such as "[the staff] are always lovely and welcoming, very good at giving feedback," and "All of the staff are very welcoming and I know if there was anything I needed to discuss with them, I could do."
The inspector also noted that " staff supported children to achieve their potential by working closely with children, their families and other professionals. When children needed additional support, strategies were developed and put into place.”
There was recognition and praise for the staff’s inclusive and nurturing individualised approach, with the report stating, “the staff team had high aspirations for all children, and this was evident in the care and support they received. They had developed good relationships with children and their families. As a result, children felt valued and loved.”
Jaci Douglas, chief executive of CALA, said: “We are so proud of the wonderful staff we have at Reay ELC and the strong, positive relationships they have with children and parents – the positive comments from the Care Inspectorate, such as, “staff interactions were compassionate, warm and caring” highlights this. To get gradings of all 5s is an incredible achievement and shows the high-quality skills and approach the whole staff team has.”
The access and support for playing and learning both in and outdoors was highlighted with the report recognising that “children experienced an exciting and stimulating environment”.
The report further stated: “Staff had developed their skills around play provocations, which contributed to children being excited to explore their environment. Well-considered resources, including natural items, loose parts and real-life materials to support learning, were accessible to children both inside and outside.
“Children could freely access a well-resourced, securely enclosed garden area. They had opportunities to develop their imagination and creativity, alongside opportunities to develop gross motor skills, through planting, digging, running and climbing.”
The report also recognised that "snack and mealtimes were relaxed and calm experiences for children. They had opportunities to develop their independence through helping to prepare food, serving themselves, pouring their own drinks and tidying away”.
Ms Douglas added: "The recognition of the highly skilled staff supporting the children in their learning, creativity and curiosity is so welcomed with comments such as, ‘children were engaged through a variety of creative approaches to play and learning’.”
Further comments stated: “Staff used skilled interactions and questions to support and extend children's thinking and understanding. They supported developing language, literacy and communication skills by introducing new words, recalling past events and talking with children about their play. They naturally introduced mathematical language, such as measurement, size and positioning into conversations.”
The report then gave the example of this, highlighting that the children had found snails in the garden and were comparing sizes, supported by staff – and as a result, children were developing a broad range of life long skills.
The Care Inspectorate graded the service as 5 (very good) across all 5 quality indicators, and the full report can be found on the Care Inspectorate website at Inspection Reports.
Further information on CALA's Reay ELC and how to enrol can be found at: www.careandlearningalliance.co.uk
Reay ELC childhood practice manager, Donna Sinclair, said that she and all the staff are delighted by the glowing report.